MINSK, 5 July (BelTA) - Head coach of Belarus' national swimming team Andrei Lipnitsky summed up the results of Belarus' Open Cup held last week, BelTA learned from the press service of the Belarusian swimming federation.
"We decided to invite the Russian national team to Belarus' Cup, which increased competition in all events and raised the status of the tournament. It also provided a unique opportunity to compete side by side with some of the world's strongest swimmers. In my opinion, the tournament was very interesting,” Andrei Lipnitsky said. “We assess the performance of the national team as satisfactory. On the last day of the tournament Ilya Shymanovich showed a result in the 50m breaststroke corresponding to the 2nd place of the recent world championships. It is worth highlighting the performances of Anastasia Kuleshova and Grigory Pekarsky in the 50m and 100m butterfly. Many guys came close to their personal records, and we expect them to improve at the Friendship Games in Kazan, which are considered as an alternative to the world championships.”
The international swimming competition Friendship Games will be held in the capital of Tatarstan from 19 to 26 July. The national team of Belarus will include 15 senior athletes and 12 best junior swimmers. All in all, the Belarusian delegation will consist of 45 people along with coaches and specialists.
