Janina Karolchik

Sport: Athletics (shot put)

Born: 26 December 1976

Birthplace: Khrishchenovichi, Svisloch District, Grodno Region

Honors:

Honored Master of Sport of the Republic of Belarus

Order of the Fatherland 3rd Class

Career highlights:

Gold, Olympic Games in Sydney, 2000

Bronze, European Athletics Junior Championships in Nyiregyhaza, Hungary, 1995

Bronze, European Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, 1998.

World Champion in Edmonton, Canada, 2001.

Biography

Yanina Karolchik was born on 26 December 1976 in the village of Khrishchenovichi, Svisloch District, Grodno Region. As a school student, she practiced athletics, cross-country running, and table tennis. The young athlete was spotted by coach Grigory Sinitsyn at the Grodno Region school tournament. He suggested that Yanina enroll at the Grodno Regional Olympic Reserve School and take up shot put and discus throw.

Hours of training, with numerous repeats to make each element automatic, helped Yanina Karolchik to take bronze with the result of 16.98m at her first international shot put competition in Nyiregyhaza, Hungary.

In 1996 the athlete took part in the European Junior Championships. She performed in two disciplines - shot put and discus throw - and secured bronze medals in both. In the same year, Yanina Karolchik passed the final exams at the Grodno Olympic Reserve School and moved to Minsk where she began to train with Honored Coach of the USSR and Belarus Mechislav Ovsyanik.

In early 1998, on the coach’s advice the athlete focused solely on shot put. Unfortunately, Yanina Karolchik had little time with the famous coach who died suddenly. Yanina continued training with Alexander Efimov.

In Olympic Sydney, it was not clear what medal Yanina would take until her last attempt where she excelled with 20.56m. Thus she won a gold medal of the Games of the XXVII Olympiad. After the Olympics she went on to secure the champion title at the 2001 World Athletics Championships in Edmonton, Canada.

At the athletics meeting in Dortmund, Germany on 15 June 2003, Yanina Karolchik tested positive for the steroid clenbutyrol. Although Yanina denied the use of doping, she was banned for two years and missed the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.

The athlete participated in the following two Olympics Games in Beijing and London, winning no medals.

Yanina Karolchik retired from sport in 2018.