October 16, 2019
U Kalinina – bronze in Qatar
Great news: Elena Kalinina won the bronze medal of the first World Beach Games. Here is the press service of the Academy of Sailing of the Yacht Club of St. Petersburg:
The first World Beach Games are held in Qatar from October 12 to 16. The competition is attended by 1237 athletes from 97 countries of the world. The program includes 13 sports – including 3×3 basketball, open water swimming, beach handball and, of course, kiteboarding.
In kiteboarding, we had good reason to count on a medal. Yelena Kalinina, a sportswoman at the Academy of Sailing, won the silver of the World Cup a couple of weeks before, so she flew to Qatar with the most ambitious plans. Her competition at the World Beach Games was 19 strongest athletes from around the world, including World Cup winner Daniela Moroz (USA).
Weather conditions in Qatar did not favor racing at high speeds. The air warmed up to 38 degrees, water to 32 degrees, and wind power rarely exceeded 4 m / s. Sweat poured in streams during races with athletes. On the first day, due to the lack of wind, the judges gave only one race, in which Elena Kalinina came sixth. But on the second day, a light breeze allowed to conduct six more races and complete the qualification. Kalinina showed two second, two third and fourth parishes, finishing on the third line.
According to the qualification results, only the two best racers were directly selected to the finals. They became American Daniela Moroz and Polish Julia Domashevich. While our athlete had to punch the way to medals through the semi-finals. Fortunately, on the third day of racing, Elena coped brilliantly with all the difficulties – she confidently won both semifinal races and made her way to the final four.
The fate of the medals was decided by one race in which Daniela Moroz, Julia Domashevich, Elena Kalinina and Briana Whitehead took part. The first two reached the final with a serious reserve, so it was rather difficult for our athlete to count on victory. As expected, American Frost won the gold, silver went to Polish Domashevich. But for the third line a serious struggle has unfolded. Despite all the efforts of the Australian Whitehead, Kalinina tactically competently conducted the race and did not allow the competitor to get ahead of herself on any sign.
“The organizers introduced an interesting format to make the competitions more spectacular,” says Elena Kalinina. – In ordinary regattas, there is practically no intrigue for the last races, everything is decided in the first three days. Here, the athlete who finished qualifying in eighth place almost got into the finals. This format is constantly kept in suspense and does not allow to relax. In the final, I pulled and lost to Julia quite consciously, because I needed to control the Australian. According to the format of this regatta, if you have not reached the finals directly, it is almost impossible to rise above third place.
Before the World Beach Games, I was very worried. When the whole Olympic team of Russia met us at the airport, I felt a huge responsibility for the result. I’m glad that I won a medal for the country. ”
Recall that kiteboarding is included in the program of the Olympic Games in 2024. The International Sailing Federation decided to introduce a team classification in kiteboarding with mixed crews at the Games in Paris.
118 October 16, 2019 # 9575
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