Tokyo 2020. Day of Contrasts

Belarusian athletes won no medals at the Tokyo Olympics on 26 July. All the attention was on the Tokyo Aquatics Center, but many who know how tough competition in modern swimming is understood that winning a medal was akin to a feat.

Belarusian leaders Anastasia Shkurdai and Ilya Shymanovich are among the elite athletes in the 100m Butterfly and 100m Breaststroke events. Participation in the finals in these disciplines is the result of the coaches’ work over recent years. However, both athletes and fans want more. That was why Ilya Shymanovich, always friendly and open, decided not to show off his emotions to the press after finishing 8th in the Men’s 100 breaststroke.

The result is far from what the swimmer is capable of. He is well aware of that, and we have no doubt that we will see Ilya on the podium in the future.

Young athlete Anastasia Shkurdai carried herself well in the mixed zone. For the athlete who had already won many titles by the age of 18, the 8th place at her maiden Olympics is not the limit of her abilities. Anastasia understands that she will have many opportunities to show her best in the future.

“Of course, I am happy that I reached this stage and took part in the Olympics finals. Maybe I did not improve my personal best (56.95 seconds), but I believe everything is still ahead of me. In Tokyo, I have two more events to compete in: Medley and 100 Freestyle. I want to try myself alongside the world’s best swimmers in the 100m Freestyle. I have already adjusted in here and ready to compete with the famous athletes,” Anastasia Shkurdai said.

Monday was not the best day for Belarusian tennis players. Egor Gerasimov did his best in the match against Italy’s Fabio Fognini but lost in two sets.

“This is my first Olympic Games. I wanted to stay in the competition longer, but the opponents are world-class players and one should be ready for anything. As for anti-coronavirus measures, the world of tennis has been living with them for a year and a half, we got used and adapted to them long ago. The Olympic Village is very comfortable. The organizers did a great job,” Egor Gerasimov said.

Belarus’ number 1 Aryna Sabalenka put up a strong fight against Croatia's Donna Vekic. Their match lasted for more than two hours. However, the opponent’s serves and active attacks left Aryna Sabalenka no chance for an Olympic medal. The Belarusian tennis player expected to perform better in Tokyo and has a reason to be disappointed with her result.

One of Belarus’ most experienced boxers Vitali Bandarenka participated in the Olympic Games for the first time. He lost the first bout to Troy Isley of the United States, one of the favorites. After the fight, the Belarusian boxer expressed respect for Troy Isley. “It is always an honor to compete at the Olympic Games. All my coaches are very happy to see their student finally perform at the Games. Of course, all of us wanted me to succeed, however, I am not the only one here with this goal. I should give the American his due, he did well in the fight against me,” Vitali Bandarenka noted.

Nikita Tsirkun of Belarus is currently 18th in the overall standings in the men's RS:X event, with six qualifying races left.

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