Olympic silver medalist Yauheni Zalaty arrives home to a warm welcome

At Minsk National Airport, the athlete was warmly greeted by friends, colleagues, fans and journalists.

Yauheni’s parents stayed behind as his wife with their son Mark were still in maternity hospital.

Representatives of the NOC of Belarus and the Sport and Tourism Ministry also came to congratulate the athlete and the entire rowing team.

The athlete recalled the final race of the Olympics:

"We trained both the start of the race and the finish spurt. So everything was planned ahead. I didn't worry at the beginning of the race. The rivals tired to keep pace with the leader from the very start and in the end they simply did not have enough strength. This helped me,” he said.

The breakdown of a bus on the way to the rowing canal did not affect his mood. He said that when this happened, they contacted the International Olympic Committee who assured them that the race would be postponed. The organizers delayed the announcement of this decision a little. While Yauheni knew about it, his rivals were not aware. They began to warm up and only then they were informed about the postponement.

“I do feel proud. This success was achieved thanks to our team. I am happy to be here, among friends. In Paris, it seemed that I was alone, but I understood that there was a huge family rooting for me. So I gave it my all," the Olympic medalist noted. "Most of all I want to see my son and wife. I learned about the birth of my son after the quarterfinal race. My wife said that she would go for an ultrasound, but it turned out that she had already given birth. On 5 August, I will pick them up from the hospital. There will be a double joy,”the athlete noted.

Based on the Belarus Segodnya materials

Photos by BelTA