Жора Птушкин

Eremenko Andrey Ivanovich is a Soviet statesman and military leader. Marshal of the Soviet Union. Hero of the Soviet Union, Hero of the Czech SSR.

He was born in the family of a Ukrainian peasant. He was drafted into the army in 1913 . During the First World War, he fought on the Southwestern Front in Galicia. Then he served on the Romanian front in the intelligence team of an infantry regiment. Wounded twice and concussed. In the Red Army since 1918 During the Civil War, he participated in battles on the Southern, Caucasian and Southwestern fronts: Chief of Intelligence, and then chief of Staff of the cavalry brigade of the 1st Cavalry Army.

After the Civil War, he studied at the Leningrad Higher Cavalry School, from which he graduated in 1923, and at the Leningrad Cavalry Advanced Training courses for commanders. From October 1925 - Chief of Staff, from December 1929 - commander of the 79th (then 55th) Cavalry regiment in the 14th Cavalry Division. In 1931, he graduated from the courses of single-command commanders at the Military-Political Academy of the Red Army. Tolmachev, and in 1935 — the M.V. Frunze Military Academy. Since January 1936 - Assistant commander, since July 1937. - Commander of the 22nd Cavalry Regiment of the 23rd Cavalry Division of the 7th Cavalry Corps. Since August 1937 - Commander of the 14th Cavalry Division. In February 1938 he was awarded the rank of brigade commander, and in June of the same year he was appointed commander of the 6th Cavalry Corps, with which he took part in a campaign in Western Belarus in 1939. In February 1939 he was awarded the rank of commander, and in November of the same year — commander.

In June 1940, Lieutenant General A.I. Eremenko was appointed commander of the 3rd Mechanized Corps of the Belarusian Special Military District. Since December 1940, Commander of the North Caucasus Military District, since January 1941, Commander of the 1st Separate Red Banner Army of the Far Eastern Front, since June 1941, Commander of the 16th Army of the Trans-Baikal Military District.

At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, from June 30 to July 2, Lieutenant General A.I. Eremenko was the commander of the troops of the Western Front. Since July 1941 - Deputy commander of the troops of the same front. Since August, he has commanded the troops of the Bryansk Front, whose task was to cover the approaches to Moscow. General Eremenko led the defensive and offensive actions of the front's troops in the Battle of Smolensk in 1941 and in the Orel-Bryansk defensive operation, during which the enemy managed to encircle a significant part of the front's forces. In October - December, he was treated in the hospital.

Since December 1941, Colonel-General Eremenko has been the commander of the 4th Shock Army of the Northwestern (since January 22, 1942 Kalinin) Front, which defended the line along the eastern shore of the Velye —Seliger lakes. In August 1942, he was appointed commander of the troops of the Southeastern and Stalingrad fronts. In order to ensure the defense of the Astrakhan direction, the approaches to the Volga River on the Stalingrad— Astrakhan section and the Astrakhan district, the General Eremenko was also subordinated to the Stalingrad Military District and the troops at his disposal by the Directive of the Supreme Command Headquarters from August 15. On September 28, the Stavka again formed two fronts — Stalingrad and Donskoy. A.I. Eremenko was appointed commander of the troops of the Stalingrad Front. In the future , the troops of the Stalingrad Front took an active part in the Stalingrad offensive operation of 1943 . Since January 1943 Eremenko is the commander of the troops of the Southern Front that carried out the offensive on Rostov. In April 1943, he was appointed commander of the troops of the Kalinin Front, which took part in the Smolensk 1943, Dukhovshchinsko-Demidovskaya 1943 and Nevel 1943 offensive operations. In August 1943 he was awarded the rank of General of the army.

In February - April 1944 Eremenko commands a Separate Primorsky Army, which fought in order to hold and expand the Kerch bridgehead. Since April 1944, he has been the commander of the 2nd Baltic Front. As part of the 1944 Baltic Operation, the 2nd Baltic Front, in cooperation with the 1st and 3rd Baltic Fronts and the Red Banner Baltic Fleet, participated in the Riga Offensive Operation of 1944, as a result of which Soviet troops liberated Latvia, its capital Riga and blocked the main forces of Army Group North on the Courland Peninsula from land.

Since March 1945, A.I. Eremenko has been the commander of the 4th Ukrainian Front. Under his leadership, the Moravska-Ostrava offensive operation of 1945 was planned and carried out, during which the front's troops inflicted a heavy defeat on the enemy's 1st tank army, captured the Moravska-Ostrava industrial district and created favorable conditions for further advance into the central part of Czechoslovakia. In the future, the front's formations, in cooperation with the 1st and 2nd Ukrainian Fronts, participated in the Prague Offensive operation of 1945, which ended with the encirclement and capture of the main forces of Army Group Center and part of the forces of Army Group Austria.

After the war, A.I. Eremenko consistently commanded the troops of the Carpathian, West Siberian and North Caucasian military districts. Since 1958 - in the Group of Inspectors General of the Ministry of Defense of the USSR. Author of the memoirs "The Years of Retribution. 1943—1945». He was elected a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR in 1946-1970 . The urn with the ashes of A.I. Eremenko is buried in the Kremlin Wall on Red Square in Moscow.

Awarded: 5 Orders of Lenin, the Order of the October Revolution, 4 Orders of the Red Banner, 3 Orders of Suvorov of the 1st art., the Order of Kutuzov of the 1st art.; foreign orders: USA - "Legion of Honor" of the 2nd art., Czechoslovakia - Clement Gottwald; Honorary weapons with a golden image of the State Emblem of the USSR, as well as many Soviet and foreign medals.

The road to great achievements

In the estate of Ostrovno, today's Beshenkovichi district of the Vitebsk region, on April 2, 1557, Leo Sapega was born and was baptized into the Orthodox faith. By the time of Lev's birth, his family Sapega had achieved fame and influential position, his ancestors began to hold high positions in the GDL, and most of all, according to family tradition, held positions of clerks at court, and his grandfather Ivan Bogdanovich became first the Vitebsk Voivode, and then the Voivode of Podlasie.

His education Leo Sapieha began at the age of 7, in Niasvizh private school of Nicholas Radzivil Chyorny, where the boy was sent to learn by his parents, his father Ivan Sapieha and mother Bogdana Drutskaya-Sokolinskaya.

Despite the fact that the Nesvizh school was Protestant, it did not prevent Lev Sapega to study there, and get a good knowledge of philosophy, literature, theology from the leading teachers of European countries, as well as he learned Polish, German, Latin and Greek.

After Nesvizh in 1570, Leo Sapega with his friends, the sons of Nicholas Radzivil the Black, Yuri and Stanislav, went for further education to the University of Leipzig. There, under the influence of Reformed ideas, he converted to the Protestant faith.

Three years later, in 1573, Leo Sapieha returned to his homeland, but despite his great desire to serve the fatherland, he did not immediately begin to serve it. He had to wait for his time for a long 7 years, expectations and disappointment that his knowledge and aspirations are not needed. Sapieha was in waiting until 1580, but still waited for his time, when he was called to him by the King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Stefan Batory, a year later, seeing the talent and abilities of Lev Sapieha, Batory appointed him a scribe of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

The next stage in the service of Leo Sapieha was his appointment as ambassador to Moscow to confirm the peace treaty signed by Ivan the Terrible in 1582. Together with his guards and escort, he went on the road in 1584.

While Lev Sapiega traveled to Moscow to Ivan the Terrible, he died in the same 1584, and on arrival in Moscow, he had to deal with the new Moscow Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich. But despite the change of governor in Moscow, Sapieha manages to confirm the peace treaty and get out of captivity 900 of his countrymen, for which Stefan Bathory February 2, 1585, received from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania post of sub-chancellor, and July 20, 1586 Slonim administration, then makes it his main residence.

At 29 years of age Leo Sapieha married Dorota, daughter of Lublin Kasztelan Andrei Firlei, the wedding took place September 1, 1586. Dorota was already a widow and had a daughter from her first marriage, but Leo Sapega raised his stepdaughter Barbara Zbarozska as his own. His wife bore him a son, Jan Stanislaw, and three other children who died as infants.

In 1587 Stefan Batory died, and in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth began a royalty-free period, at which time Leo Sapieha was very active in political affairs. The throne of Rzeczpospolita claimed three candidates, the Swedish king Sigismund Vaza, the Austrian Archduke Maximelian and the Moscow Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich, who was initially supported by Lev Sapiega.

Leo Sapieha cleverly used the candidacy of Fyodor Ivanovich in order to pass the third statute of Lithuania in 1588, in the creation of which he actively participated. This statute contained clauses that established de facto independence and almost complete autonomy of the GDL from Poland, which naturally did not suit the Polish magnates. However, Leo Sapieha promised to withdraw support from Fyodor Ivanovich, if the Polish side, at the Sejm, will accept the statute. Poland's fear of the Moscow tsar was stronger and they agreed to approve the third statute of the GDL.

A further task in approving the statute was to obtain the signature of the King of the Commonwealth, and with this task Leo Sapieha skillfully coped. To begin with, he supported the candidacy of Sigismund Vaza, who was not yet king. After the election of Sigismund Vaza to the throne, Maximelian went with troops to challenge the decision in his favor. Sigismund Vasa, who needed the support of neutral Lithuania in this fight, and who did not know that his troops defeated the Austrian, agreed to sign the third statute of the GDL, in exchange for the support of the GDL. The whole cunning consisted in the fact that Sapega prepared for this battle, and as soon as his spies, the very first, reported to him about the victory of Sigismund, he immediately went to him to sign the statute. Thus, thanks to his cunning and talent, Leo Sapieha was able to approve the statute of the GDL in 1588, which in other conditions would hardly have been accepted by the Polish side, and signed by the king.

Under the influence of Peter Scarga and the Jesuit order, Leo Sapieha converted to Catholicism, but this change of faith did not prevent Sapieha from building both Catholic and Orthodox churches in the GDL.

At the height of his power

In 1589 the king of Rzeczpospolita appointed Lew Sapieha as chancellor of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and he became the head of the foreign and domestic policy of the GDL. Two years later, his wife Bogdan dies. Sapieha becomes a widower and buries his wife in St. Michael's Church in Vilna.

As the chancellor of the GDL in 1594 Sapieha established the good work of his office, and ordered to rewrite the books of the Lithuanian metric in order to preserve and organize the archival documents of 15-16 centuries.

In the interests of his principality, Sapiega in 1596, comes into conflict with the king, and refused to put a large state seal on the act of appointment to the post of Vilna bishop natives of Poland. By his persistence, he manages to defend his position and obtain the appointment of a native of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania to this position, thus preventing the violation of the recently adopted statute, which stated that such positions could only be held by a native of the GDL.

The second time Leo Sapieha married in 1599 to 16-year-old Elizaveta Radziwil, daughter of the governor of Vilna and the Grand Hetman of Lithuania Christophe Radziwil Perun. In their marriage they had three sons and a daughter: Kristof Nikolai, Leo, Nikolai, and Anna.

After the death of Tsar Ivan Feodorovich of Moscow, Boris Godunov takes the throne of Moscow. The Sejm appoints Leo Sapieha as ambassador to Moscow to confirm the peace treaty. In September 1600 Sapieha from Orsha sent to Moscow to confirm the peace treaty and sign a state union between the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Principality of Moscow. In March 1601 a peace for 20 years was signed, but the proposal for a union was rejected.

Eight years later, in September 1609 Sapieha again went to the principality of Moscow, but not at the head of the embassy, and the army, in place of King Sigismund Vaza, he went to Smolensk. Leo Sapieha led the regiment, which he formed at his own expense. He would stay near Smolensk until 1611, the besiegers still managed to take the city, and Sapega returned to Vilna. In the same year, 1611, Leo Sapieha becomes a widower twice, his young wife Elizabeth dies at age 27.

In 1612 he again went to war with Moscow, along with Karl Chodkiewicz and King Sigismund. But the lost time and the militia of Minin and Pozharsky, will not give the troops of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth to put on the throne of Sigismund's son Vladislav, having suffered bad luck, together with the troops, Leo Sapega returned home.

The second raid on Moscow in 1618, in which also participated Sapega, also had no results. Vladislav's troops failed to take Moscow and other Moscow cities. The result of this war was the signing of the truce of Deulin, under which the GDL became Smolensk, and Chernigov to Poland.

After the signing of the act of truce, Sapega immediately returned to Vilna in 1619. The next year, 1620 at the Diet, Liev Sapieha managed to beat back the proposal of the deputies of the Diet, to give Smolensk and Chernigov under the administration of Prince Wladyslaw.

Sigismund Vaza, February 6, 1623 appointed Sapieha governor of Vilna, at that time, it was the most honorable military post in the GDL, but simultaneously with the new appointment, Sapieha refused the post of Chancellor of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

At the age of 68 years, July 25, 1625 Sigismund, Leo Sapega was appointed to the post of Grand Hetman of the Duchy of Lithuania. At this time there was a war with the Swedes, but Sapega, did not immediately go to the front, and began to gather new troops for the war. Only in September 1625 he went to war to the Western Dvina. Because of his political activities, he did not stay at the front for long, as he had to go to the Sejm all the time. So he would go back and forth until the signing of the armistice with the Swedes on September 26, 1629.

In 1632, Sigismund Vaza dies, elections begin in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth of a new king, and Leo Sapega supports the candidacy of the son of Sigismund Wladyslaw Vaza. In the same year, he again has to form new regiments, as the Principality of Moscow declared war and sent troops to Smolensk.

Being one of the richest and most influential people in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, who had served the Fatherland all his life and achieved the highest positions in his family, Leo Sapieha dies on July 7, 1633. He is buried in the church of St. Michael the Archangel in Vilna.

Barbara Radziwill, daughter of Yuri Radziwill, Grand Hetman of Lithuania, Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of the GDL, second wife of Sigismund (Sigismont) II August.

Born in 1520, she died in 1551 half a year after her coronation. She was buried in the Vilna Cathedral Church.

Barbara Radziwill became the heroine of many legends, in which she appears as the Black Lady, and numerous works of fiction are devoted to the romantic love story of Barbara and Zhigimont.

One of the best players in the history of Belarusian hockey, captain of the national team. Ruslan Salei was the first domestic master of the stick to reach the final of the Stanley Cup.

Ruslan Albertovich Salei, Belarusian ice hockey player, defenseman, captain of the national team. Honored Master of Sports of Belarus (2002). Ruslan Salei was born in Minsk on November 2, 1974.

Ruslan Salei is one of the best players in the history of the Belarusian ice hockey. He participated in all three Olympics (1998, 2002, 2010), where the national team played. Champion of Belarus in 1993, 1994, 1995.

Salei played in the strongest league of the planet from 1996 to 2011, playing 917 games in the regular NHL championships for "Anaheim" (1996 - 2006), "Florida", "Colorado" and "Detroit" and getting 204 (45+159) effective points. Ruslan Salei was the first Russian player to reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2003.

Ruslan Salei tragically died in a plane crash on September 7, 2011, when Yak-42 with Russian Lokomotiv on board crashed on takeoff near Yaroslavl.

The Belarusian Ice Hockey Federation withdrew from circulation in the national team number 24, under which Salei played in the national team. On the eve of the first anniversary of the plane crash near Yaroslavl, Minsk hosted the first Ruslan Salei Memorial Tournament, established as an annual hockey event.

"Simply the Best. Simply the Best" is the title of a book about Ruslan Salei, written by the hockey player's friend, sports journalist Sergei Olekhnovich.

Чемпион зимних Олимпийских игр в Ванкувере.

С 1995 — спортсмен-инструктор Министерства спорта и туризма Республики Беларусь

1998 — участие в Зимних Олимпийских играх в Нагано (8-е место)

1999 — окончил РУОР

2000 — Серебряный призёр общего зачета Кубка мира

2001 — Чемпион мира по лыжной акробатике (г. Уистлер-Блэккомб, Канада),

2002 — Бронзовый призёр Зимних Олимпийских Игр в Солт-Лейк-Сити

2002 — Серебряный призёр общего зачета Кубка мира

2002 — Спортсмен года в Белоруссии

2003 — Серебряный призёр чемпионата мира (г. Дир-Вэлли, США)

2004 — Бронзовый призёр общего зачета Кубка мира

2005 — Бронзовый призёр чемпионата мира (г. Рука, Финляндия)

2006 — участие в Зимних Олимпийских играх в Турине (4-е место)

2010 — Чемпион зимних Олимпийских игр в Ванкувере

Чемпион зимних Олимпийских игр в Ванкувере

В истории белорусского спорта — первый чемпион зимних Олимпийских игр. Олимпийское золото Ванкувера-2010 Гришин выиграл там же, где 9 лет назад единственный раз выиграл золото чемпионата мира.

The famous Belarusian biathlete Darya Domracheva is a four-time Olympic champion, silver and bronze medalist, two-time world champion, winner and medalist of the World Cup, Honored Master of Sport, and Hero of Belarus.

The Belarusian athlete was named the best biathlete of the year 2010 according to the Biathlon Award.

Worked for the Belarusian national biathlon team from 2006 (in 2005 she made her debut for the junior team) till 2018.

Coaches: Yury Albers (senior coach of the Belarus national team), Fedor Svoboda (senior coach of the Belarus national women's team), Alfred Eder (coach of the Belarus national women's team)

Darya Domracheva's main victories

Darya Domracheva was the first woman biathlete to win four gold medals at an Olympic Games in different years.

GOLD

4×6 km relay (PyeongChang 2018)

pursuit (Sochi 2014)

individual race (Sochi 2014)

mass start (Sochi 2014)

SILVER

Mass start (PyeongChang 2018)

BRONNESS

Individual race (Vancouver 2010)

Biathlon World Champion twice: in the pursuit (2012, Ruhpolding, Germany), in mass start (2013, Nove Mesto, Czech Republic)

Silver medal winner of the World Biathlon Championships: mixed relay (2008, Estersund, Sweden), mass start (2011, Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia), sprint (2012, Ruhpolding, Germany), pursuit (2017, Hochfilzen, Austria)

Bronze medal winner of the World Biathlon Championship in the relay (2011, Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia)

Winner of the Big Crystal Globe in the overall World Cup (2014/2015)

Silver medalist World Cup: 2011/2012, 2012/2013

Bronze medalist World Cup: 2013/2014, 2017/2018

Holder of the Small Crystal Globes: in mass start (2010/2011), in the pursuit and mass start of the World Cup 2011/2012, in mass start (2013/2014), in sprint and pursuit in 2014/15.

Biography of Daria Domracheva

Daria Domracheva was born in Minsk, but at the age of 4 she left for Khanty-Mansiysk together with her parents-architects. The future athlete's mother was the chief architect of the city of Nyagan, where the family lived for 15 years.

Darya Domracheva began her sports career there: in 1992, following her brother, she joined a skiing section under the guidance of coach Andrey Doroshenko. And in 1999 Darya was one of the first to attend the new biathlon school that had just opened in Nyagan. Daria Domracheva's first biathlon coach was Albert Musin.

In 2003, Daria Domracheva returned to her native Minsk and, at the invitation of her coaches, started training for the national team of Belarus.

Darya won her first international start for the Belarusian national team at the 2005 IBU Youth and Junior World Championships in Kontiolahti (Finland). The Belarusian biathlete won the sprint and pursuit and was 40th at the individual race (a diopter fell off at one of the shooting ranges, which resulted in five misses out of five on the third shot).

In 2006 Darya Domracheva took the 3rd place in the pursuit and the 4th place in the individual at the World Junior Championship in Presque Isle (USA).

In 2007 she picked up two silver medals in sprint and pursuit at the Junior World Championships in Vall Martello (Italy).

Apart from her athletic career, Domracheva has put special emphasis on education: the famous biathlete entered the Belarusian State University of Economics, where she graduated in 2009 with a degree in advertising in the tourism industry. The first higher education was followed by the second: in 2015 Daria Domracheva received a diploma in Business Law.

In July 2016, Daria Domracheva married a famous biathlete from Norway, Ole-Einar Bjorndalen. Soon the celebrity couple had a daughter, Ksenia.

June 25, 2018, the best Belarusian biathlete officially announced the end of her career: "It was not easy enough for me to pull myself together, I thought for a very long time, but it was time to dot the "i". I tried to find a compromise, which would allow me to combine bringing up my child and continuing my sport career. Unfortunately, I did not find the best solution for combining such important areas of life. My decision has been deliberate and not an easy one. I am ending my athletic career."

On February 18, 2019, four-time Olympic champion Darya Domracheva was seen off from the big sport after the Race of Legends festival in Raubichi Sports Complex.

World Cup and World Championships in Domracheva's career

Darya Domracheva made her World Cup debut in 2006. In the first round in Estersund, Sweden, she finished 16th in the sprint race and was the second of five Belarussian biathletes.

The 2006/2007 season was her first biathlon season as an adult. She took 22nd place in the World Cup.

In the 2008/2009 season Darya Domracheva is among the ten best biathletes in the world. However, she faced two unfortunate misunderstandings in Oberhof (Germany). In the mass start Daria shot standing up, not lying down, missed the target by mistake and dropped out of the race. A year later, leading the race again, Dasha hit someone else's target at the third range and received four penalty laps.

In 2009/2010 season Daria Domracheva won sprint and pursuit races (Kontialahti) and won silver in the individual (Holmenkollen).

In the 2011/2012 season Daria Domracheva placed second in the World Cup standings (1188 points) after Magdalena Neuner of Germany (1216). Darya Domracheva won two Small Crystal Globes in both mass start and pursuit events.

In anticipation of the 2012/2013 season, Darya Domracheva was one of the medal contenders in both the Biathlon World Cup and the World Championships in this sport. However, despite her good speed the Belarusian failed to shoot accurately. Darya Domracheva won the sprint in Hochfilzen in Austria and the individual race in Sochi during the Biathlon World Cup. The best Belarusian biathlete won gold in the mass start at the Biathlon World Championships in the Czech Republic. As a result of the season 2012/2013 Daria Domracheva finished second after the Norwegian Tora Berger, but did not win a single Crystal Globe at the World Cup.

Darya Domracheva's 2013/2014 season was truly triumphant, but in the overall World Cup standings, where Olympic results are not counted, Domracheva finished third (793 points). In the fight for the Big Crystal Globe the "Belarusian rocket" lost to the leader Kaisa Mäkäriäinen (Finland) and Tora Berger (Norway) who finished second. Nevertheless, at the end of the World Cup season 2013/2014 Domracheva won the Small Crystal Globe in the mass start.

Darya Domracheva finished the 2014/2015 biathlon season with a grand victory: at the end of the World Cup, the "Belarusian rocket" won her long-awaited Big Crystal Globe. Throughout all the stages Domracheva made it to the top step of the podium nine times and with 1092 points beat her closest rivals - Finnish biathlete Kaisa Mäkäriäinen (1044) and Ukrainian Valentina Semerenko (865). Darya has the most victories of the season - four in pursuit races (Pokljuka, Anterselva, Nove Mesto, Khanty-Mansiysk), twice in sprint races (Anterselva and Holmenkollen) and mass start (Ruhpolding and Oberhof), and was first in the individual race in Östersund, Sweden.

Darya Domracheva at the Olympics

In 2010, Darya Domracheva, 23, won her first Olympic medal in Vancouver, bronze in the 15km individual.

Four years later, the Olympic Games in Sochi brought the Belarusian biathlete a real triumph. Within 5 days, Darya Domracheva won three consecutive races and became a three-time Olympic champion, the first woman in biathlon to win three top awards at one Olympics.

Darya won her first gold in the 10-km pursuit. She started ninth and raced through the race, finishing ninth, with only one penalty at the last turn. As a result Domracheva became the first, beating the Norwegian Tora Berger (silver) and Thea Gregorin of Slovenia (bronze).

The second gold of the "Belarusian rocket" Darya Domracheva won in the 15 km individual race. That day the champion was on the podium together with another representative of Belarus Nadezhda Skardino (bronze) and Swiss biathlete Selina Gasparin (silver).

Darya Domracheva snatched her third gold of the Olympic Games in Sochi in the mass start 12.5km. Having missed only once on four shooting ranges she beat Czech Gabriela Soukalova (silver) and Tiril Ekhoff of Norway (bronze).

At the Games in Sochi Darya Domracheva broke the Olympic record of biathlete Katja Wilhelm. Moreover, Domracheva is the world's first three-time Olympic champion, who won all her victories in individual races.

At the 2018 Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Darya Domracheva won silver in the mass start and gold in the women's 4×6 km relay.

Daria Domracheva: interesting facts about the athlete

The athlete has a video diary film "Darya Domracheva. Representing Belarus" (2010), where she talks about the world of big sports, her life in the team and her first victories.

In 2010, after the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games, the Belarusian Post released stamps dedicated to Olympians, including Daria Domracheva.

In 2010 Darya Domracheva was named the Female Athlete of the Year in Belarus and received the title of Honored Master of Sports.

Daria Domracheva and Frenchman Simon Fourcade starred in a short humorous film "The Spy Who Loved Biathlon," released by the International Biathlon Union (IBU) at the end of the 2012/2013 season. The shooting, which took place in Antholz, Oslo, Sochi and Khanty-Mansiysk, featured biathlon stars Kaisa Makjarainen, Martin Fourcade, Bjorn Ferry, Olga Zaitseva...

Darya Domracheva was among the outstanding people of Belarus who took part in the opening ceremony of the National Flag Square on July 2, 2013.

Before the Games in Sochi, Daria Domracheva consulted with London 2012 Olympic champion "King of the small-bore rifle" Sergei Martynov and his trainer Alexander Ivanov on the shooting.

By Presidential Decree No. 66 of February 17, 2014, Daria Domracheva was awarded the title "Hero of Belarus" for her high professional skills and exceptional sporting achievements. The outstanding athlete became the first woman in the history of the country to be awarded this honorary title.

Darya Domracheva has been awarded the highest mark of recognition in the sport of skiing in Norway - the Holmenkollen Medal, which has been awarded since 1895. Only eight biathletes in history have received this award: Andrea Henkel, Ole Einar Bjorndalen and Michael Grays (2011), Magdalena Neuner and Emil Hegle Svendsen (2012), Tura Berger and Martin Fourcade (2013), Daria Domracheva (2014).

In 2018, the legendary biathlete received the interstate "Stars of the Commonwealth" award.

She swears with foul words and makes quite loud screams when she hits the ball with her racket. The athlete herself is not ashamed of her emotions. The tennis player tries to be herself and not to hide from the public. For example, her Instagram account is full of funny photos and videos of Azarenka "fooling around" with her son and friends. Victoria was born in Minsk July 31, 1989. The girl was the second child in the family - she has an older brother, Maxim. Sports in her biography appeared thanks to her mother, a methodist at the Olympic Tennis Training Center in Belarus.

At the age of 7 she took Mukha (as neighbors nicknamed Victoria) to the coach Valentina Rzhanykh. The hard-working girl spent all her time on the court. At 15, she left home and moved first to a tennis school in Spain, where she trained under her former mentor Steffi Graf, and later in the United States with Antonio van Grihin.

Personal life

The first serious passion of the tennis player (height 1.83 m, weight 66 kg) was the singer RedFoo. Young people met in 2012, and a romantic relationship arose already in a month. The lovers appeared everywhere together and almost never parted. The boyfriend proposed to Victoria, but it did not come to the wedding. They separated in 2014, explaining their breakup by being too busy.

In 2016, it became known that the Belarusian tennis player is pregnant. The father of the child turned out to be Billy McKeague, a hockey player from America. On December 20, the newly formed couple became parents. Victoria and Billy had a son, who was named Leo Alexander. The birth took place in the United States, which gave the child the right to dual citizenship.

Leo's parents never became husband and wife, so after the breakup of the romantic relationship, they did not have to file for divorce. Upon returning to America, McKeague filed a petition with the court demanding that custody of the child be awarded to his father. The athlete's ex-boyfriend claimed that she took her son out of the country without his knowledge.

The court sided with McKeague, ruling that while the case was pending, Leo must not leave the state and live in Billy's home. Victoria, who was caught off guard by the situation, tried to move her son's custody proceedings to Belarus. In January 2018, it became known that the U.S. court granted the tennis player's request to move the hearing to her home country. In turn, representatives of the authorities in Minsk assigned custody of her son Azarenka.

Since the Belarusian court had failed to properly notify the father of the hearing and McKeague himself did not agree with the decision, the proceedings in the United States began anew. The boy's father appealed to the California court, which overturned the mother's custody of his son. During the legal battle, both parents were to have custody of the child, and Leo was not allowed to leave the city of Los Angeles.

That ruling made it impossible for Azarenka to continue her career: she wouldn't be able to attend the games. The athlete sued her former boyfriend and demanded that he compensate her for all of the $10 million she lost.

According to the final decision of the U.S. court, Victoria was appointed Leo's primary guardian in 2019, and his primary place of residence was the Republic of Belarus. You can admire a photo of Azarenka with her son on the athlete's Twitter account.

Tennis

An adult professional career for Victoria began with small matches in Israel in 2003. Already in 2 years she was in the top 300 famous athletes and won the unofficial title of "The Best Young Tennis Player of 2005".

In 2006 the girl got her first victory over a really tough opponent. She defeated Nicole Vaidishova, one of the top 20 tennis players in the world. Azarenka's victory over Anastasia Myskina was no less surprising in the sports world.

By early 2007 Victoria had broken into the world's top 100 rackets, though she only ranked 97th. Another achievement was her success in the mixed doubles - together with Maksim Mirny she reached the semifinals of the Grand Slam.

The most important event of 2008 was the WTA tournament in Prague where she got to the finals without a single defeat, but lost it to Vera Zvonareva. At the end of 2009 Victoria was already ranked No.7 in the world. The tennis player had 45 wins and lost 15 matches.

The next year the whole world watched as Azarenka fainted and fell during her match against Hicela Dulko at the US Championships. It was later found out that the cause of her malaise was a blow to the head, which she received during the warm-up. Health problems pushed the tennis player to the bottom of the world rankings, but she did not stay out of the game for long.

The most successful year for the athlete was 2012. She went to the Olympics, where she won gold in the mixtape. Azarenka was partnered by the already proven Maksim Mirny, and in singles the tennis player from Belarus won a bronze medal. Victoria showed just as much skill at Wimbledon, reaching the finals and losing her final battle to Serena Williams.

At the Championships in Beijing Azarenka reached the semifinals and lost to Maria Sharapova. According to analysts, the defeat was caused by a right shoulder injury, the condition of which was still bothering doctors. At the end of the year, Victoria was recognized as the first racket of the world.

After the incredible triumph, the athlete began to lose form. The tennis player missed out on the prestigious title, losing the first lines to Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova. No less frustrating were leg injuries, which forced Azarenka to miss important championships.

The tennis player started 2014 already on the 4th line of the world ranking. She decided to suspend her competitive career to take care of her injured legs and feet.

Her return to competition in 2016 was marked by a victory at the tournament in Brisbane and a rather defiant defeat of Serena Williams at the Premier Mandatory. Azarenka had another Olympic Games ahead of her, but she withdrew for family reasons.

In April the Belarusian went to Spain to participate in the Premier Mandatory, but crashed out of the bout in the 2nd round after failing to cope with Karolina Pliskova.

In May, Azarenka lost at Roland Garros, not even making it to the second round. She lost to Katerina Siniakova. In the same month she lost her first game at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia to Naomi Osaka.

In July 2018, Victoria reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon together with Jamie Murray. And at the tournament, held in Mallorca, in the 2nd round she lost to Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic.

In April 2019 at the Monterrey Open, Azarenka reached the final, but could not beat Spain's Garbiña Muguruza.

In May, together with Australia's Ashley Barty, Victoria added the Italian Open to her list of victories. But in the same lineup, as in singles, failed to win at Roland Garros.

As for the Wimbledon tournament, the Belarusian tennis player managed to beat Alize Corne and Ayla Tomljanovic, but she lost to Simona Halep.

At the US Open Azarenka and Barty reached the doubles finals, losing to Arina Sobolenko and Elise Mertens. In singles, Victoria already lost to Sobolenko in the 1st round.

Victoria Azarenka now

In 2020, the athlete missed the Australian Open because of legal proceedings for custody of her son.

At the 2020 Western & Southern Open games in August, Victoria reached the final, defeating Donna Vekic, Caroline Garcia, Alize Corne, Uns Jabir and Johanna Konta. Her opponent for the final match was going to be Naomi Osaka. The Japanese player refused to play, so Azarenka got another win at WTA tournaments.

At the US Open Victoria reached the semifinals of the Grand Slam singles, beating Arina Sobolenko, Karolina Mukhova, Elise Mertens and Serena Williams. In the US Open final in New York, Naomi Osaka won.

At the Italian Open tennis tournament in Rome in the 1/8 finals the Belarusian got a technical victory over Daria Kasatkina, who could not finish the match because of injury.