MOGILEV, 2 August (BelTA) - Instead of helping her team, Krystsina Tsimanouskaya created a hype out of nothing, Belarusian biathlete, 2010 Olympic silver medalist, world championship silver medalist, two-time European champion Sergei Novikov said as he commented on the recent situation at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
“Krystsina Tsimanouskaya is not right in this situation. Even if she found out from third parties that she was entered into the 4x400m relay, she should have talked to the coaching staff instead of writing posts on the internet in the first place. I am sure they would have explained everything to her. It is inadmissible to talk about the Athletics Federation and the National Olympic Committee in such a tone,” said Sergei Novikov.
According to the Olympic medalist, the Olympic Games are a difficult tournament, all athletes are nervous and stressed. “The relay, where Tsimanouskaya was supposed to compete, would have taken place after the race in her discipline. Instead of supporting her team and the country, she chose to create some hype, probably, for her own ends. In any case, since the Belarusian team was entered in this competition while already in Tokyo, she could have taken it down a notch and compete. Any athlete is happy at any opportunity to compete in the Olympic Games, in any discipline. Moreover, it was a time when her team needed her,” Sergei Novikov said. “I will emphasize once again that all these discussions should not have spilled over into the internet, but should have taken place primarily with coaches. Before making hasty conclusions, she had to at least listen to those who helped her get into the competitions of this level. Such behavior is unacceptable either from a professional point of view or a human one. Everyone is stressed out, everyone is overwhelmed. Instead of help, we got a scandal out of nothing that has benefited no one: either our athletes, or, especially Tsimanouskaya herself,” he said.
