Eliza Field after the end of her career this season, she enjoyed the Beijing Olympics and achieved her best result.
Photo: Mareks Galinovskis / FIL
Ilmārs Stūriška, “Latvijas Avīze”, JSC “Latvijas Mediji”
Luge athletes have made their entry in the Beijing Olympics. The second day did not bring good luck to the Latvians, but the eighth place of Eliza Tīruma is one of the best achievements of our ladies in the big forum under the flag of the independent state. Kendija Aparjode 11th place, debutant Elīna Vītola – 18th.
Four years of progress
PHOTO. From gold at the Olympics to completely ruined health: a sharp and personal story by Oscar Melbourne
The veil of secrets has fallen: Queen Elizabeth II announces who will ascend the throne after the end of her reign
VIDEO. “I’m leaving at the end of February”: Roberto Meloni reveals the reason why he will no longer be seen on TV screens
Read other news
The first day of the competition, which was full of surprises, allowed us to wait for the second one with extra interest, when Eliza Tiria still had hopes for the podium. Unfortunately, both she and the other Latvians did not manage to climb up or defend their positions. After the third race, Elisha slipped one place and was seventh, Aparjode minus two places, and 11th, Vitola below three, taking 14th place in the table.
Unlike the first day, this time the leaders drove much more stably, without falling. Madeleine Egle, an unsuccessful Austrian on the first day, had pushed the field out of the coveted place in the top six. In the last attempt, nothing was corrected, but in his third and last Olympic Games, Eliza Tīruma was in the top ten for the first time. She was 12th in Sochi and 16th in Pyongyang. She also broke the family record – Sister Maya was ninth in Vancouver in 2010.
Kendy finished 11th, making significant progress over Pyongyang (22nd), surpassing her mother Aiva in 2006 in Turin (18th).
In the third game in a row, the champion was the German Natalia Gaizenberger, who, together with the relay, is the fifth gold.
Crew expectations
In the individual competition, both Latvian men and women had good starts, but the leaders did not manage to squeeze out the maximum. We hope for the crews who will start the race today at 14.20, when Andris and Juris Šicis are the first to enter our main medal hopes, and the third issue will be drawn for debutants Mārtiņš Bots and Robert Plūms.
In four training runs, Shicik is the second, twice the third and fourth time, “robots” – twice the sixth, fifth and seventh. The second Austrian crew of Janik Meller and Armin Frausser, who were on the podium once this season at the World Cup, have dropped out of the rank due to injury. The training times clearly show that two German and one Austrian crew will compete for medals alongside Schitz. Here everything will be decided in just two rides.
The right choice
“I made it close to the maximum, the second trip was wrong, and I could drop time there, then sixth place would be enough. I will bring positive feelings from Beijing. It will definitely be better in the next games, ”said Gints Bērziņš about the seventh place in the debut Olympics for Latvijas Avīze.
He had a very hard time training, experiencing several falls, injuring his elbow, but in the competition the picture was completely opposite, making stable trips. “One training day after the fall I didn’t make the second trip, there was an inner fear, a lot of reflection throughout the day. I talk to trainers and physiotherapists, ”revealed Bērziņš.
Oskars Urbanovičs, a physiotherapist at the Latvian Olympic team, provided psychological help and received a lot of compliments from 3 × 3 basketball players at the Tokyo Olympics. “I was at the massage, we talked coolly. I was worried that I needed to make the second trip, because it was already a little workout. Oscar said there was nothing to regret, the choice was the right one. Maybe it wasn’t at all, but he knows how to cheer him up, saying the words I needed to hear at the time. “
Many thanks also to the coach Inārs Kivlenieks, who worked with Gints sleighs in the second half of the season, sacrificing sleep hours in Beijing.
The track was a big problem for many sledges, but the final table is logical – in the top five, all those who took the first five places in the overall World Cup standings, only the Italian Dominik Fischnaller jumped from the fifth to the third place. “Johannes Ludwig is very good this season, both starting and driving and equipment. Even before the Olympics, I think he will win, ”the 19-year-old Bērziņš praises the champion.
Gints is the champion of the 2020 Youth Winter Olympics and hopes to be able to repeat it in the big games as well: “You have to keep working, you need to get stronger, and then time will tell. Of course, I want to do it, but the air medal will not fall off my neck. First of all, hard work. ” He started training in sleigh sports at the age of 11, inspired by the Latvian starts at the Sochi Olympics. Living a few minutes walk from the Sigulda track, the choice was understandable and real.
Gints Bērziņš did not take part in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, because the next day was the men’s start, he chose to save strength. The debutant says only the best words about the organization of the Games – apart from the six hours it took to arrange the paperwork and the way to the Olympic Village after arrival, everything was fine, the local Chinese welcome, speak English, catering level.
It should be noted that Kristers Aparjods will represent Latvia in the relay on Thursday.
Results. LUGE
OLYMPICS
Beijing, China
1. N. Gaizenbergere 3: 53,454, 2. A. Berreitere (both Germany) +0.493, 3. T. Ivanova (KOK) +1.053, 8. E. Tīruma +1.987, 11. K. Aparjode +2.685, 18. E. Vītola +4,697.
FOLLOWING OURS
* Wednesday at 4.15 slalom for downhill skier Liene Bondare; at 10.00 northern duel – Markus Vinogradov; at 13.00 short track, 1500 meters for Robert Kruzberg and Reinis Bērziņš; at 14.20 luge sport, crews – Andris and Juris Šici, Mārtiņš Bots and Roberts Plūme.
* Thursday at 3.30 Skeleton, Martin and Thomas Dukuri; at 6.10 hockey Latvia – Sweden; at 9.00 10 km classic style distance for skiers Patricia Eiduk, Kitty Auziņa, Samanta Krampe and Estere Wolfa; at 15.30 team relay in luge.
Themes
