25 July 2021
Tokyo 2020. One Step Away From Podium in Tokyo

For Team Belarus the third day of the Olympic Games in Tokyo will undoubtedly be remembered for the performance of the Belarusian archers.

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Hanna Marusava, Karyna Kazlouskaya, and Karyna Dziominskaya placed fourth in the Women's Team Archery Event. The top three were South Korea, Russia and Germany, the best performing nations in this sport.

The Belarusian girls, who made headlines at the 2nd European Games, were expected to do the same in Tokyo. And they didn’t disappoint. They successively defeated China and Japan and lost to South Korea in the semifinal. In the bronze-medal match German athletes were more consistent and thus claimed bronze.

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Coach of the archery team Ekaterina Timofeeva gave kudos to her team. “Given that our archery team had never competed at the Olympics team event before, I view the fourth place as a success. Everyone is tired, because Tokyo is sweltering in heat. But the athletes did their best and performed at the top of their game. Of course, I wanted to see Belarusian girls on the pedestal, to hear the anthem played in their honor and our flag raised. But today the German athletes were stronger. I am happy with all my athletes. Each of them made a feasible contribution to the result,” she said.

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“In my opinion, this is a very good result. I would like to note that three Belarusian archers qualified for the Olympics, which happened for the first time. This is an achievement. Previously, no Belarusian archer placed that high. We have a good close-knit team and we hope to show ourselves more than once at major international tournaments,” Karyna Kazlouskaya said.

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For the experienced Hanna Marusava, this is the third Olympics in her career (Sydney 2000 Olympic Games were her first). She noted that the girls completed their main task. “I am satisfied with the result. I really wanted to rise to the podium. We should have paid more attention to the wind in the match against Germany. In any case, the result is excellent for such a modest team as ours,” Hanna Marusava noted.

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Aryna Sabalenka opened the program of the Olympic Games on 25 July by winning the opener against Polish Magda Lynette 6-2, 6-1 on the court in Ariake Tennis Park.

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“Before the Games in Tokyo, I tried to treat the Olympic tournament like any other, but when they call your name, the country ... You immediately feel the weight of responsibility, you understand where you are. I wish there were people in the stands. Otherwise everything is great. I got acclimatized, I sleep well on a cardboard bed!!! How do I feel about being a favorite? As you grow more experienced you ease up on the opinion of others. I am fine. Let’s move on,” Aryna Sabalenka said.

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Belarus’ Ilya Ivashka defeated Gael Monfils of France to proceed to the second round.

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Dzmitry Minkou beat Ayoub El-Idrissi of Qatar in the opening event of the Judo Men’s 66kg, but lost to Mongolia’s Baskhuu Yondonperenlei (ippon) in the second round.

“I am very familiar with my rivals, I faced them more than once. These are strong competitors; indeed, the Games bring together the best. I was a little nervous before the event, I couldn’t sleep, I started out very well, but then I began to make mistakes and this turned the tables,” Dzmitry Minkou said commenting on his performance.

At the Sea Forest Waterway, rowers Dzmitry Furman and Siarhei Valadzko competed in the Men’s Pair Repechage. “We are glad to have the second shot at making to the semifinal in the repechage. We are also happy to be able to find the appropriate rhythm and technical performance for these weather conditions, crosswind. The heat is a real challenge. Today we have even seen a medical team helping athletes from China and New Zealand.

Due to a storm warning, our event was postponed for two days. We will make the most of this time to prepare for the semifinal scheduled for 28 July,” Siarhei Valadzko said.

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Belarusian boxer Dzmitry Asanau eased past Obada Mohammad Mustafa Alkasbeh of Jordan in the opening round of the Men’s Light (57-63kg). The Belarusian showed good boxing, he dominated his rival from the beginning till the end. This was also acknowledged by the judges and the match was scored 5-0 to the athlete from Minsk Oblast.

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In 1/8 Finals Dzmitry Asanau will face Wanderson de Oliveira of Brazil on 31 July. A day before, another Belarusian boxer, Aliaksandr Radzionau from Bobruisk, came out victorious in his match.

“The performance didn’t quite work out. The opponent is very uncomfortable: although he does not excel in technique, he has experience on his side. I am glad that I have prevailed and will move further! On 31 July I will take on the Brazilian athlete. Good opponent. I will try to show beautiful boxing! ” Dzmitry noted.

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Shooting events are still in progress. Yury Shcherbatsevich and Viktoria Chaika failed to reach the final on 25 July and are preparing for other events in Tokyo.

Hanna Traukova, Belarus’ only representative in artistic gymnastics, finished 77th in the Women’s Artistic All-Around Event and bowed out of the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Belarus’ Alena Amialiusik finished 17th in the Women’s Road Race at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. The event was won by Austria’s Anne Kiesenhofer. Annemiek van Vleuten of the Netherlands finished second. Bronze went to Italy’s Elisa Longo Borghini. Mikita Tsirkun begins his contention in the Men’s RS:X.

For more information, please contact Belarusian NOC press secretary Victoria Mennanova (+375291708753 for messages in Viber, WhatsApp, Telegram)


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