Janis Timma, basketball player. Biography
Janis Timma was born in 1992 in the Latvian city of Kraslava. He was fond of sports since childhood, playing soccer, hockey and competing in school competitions. The boy became interested in basketball thanks to his father, who taught children this game and worked in the gym next to his son's school.
At the age of 15, the budding athlete moved to the Latvian capital to play basketball at a more professional level. He joined the ASC Riga youth academy. During his studies Timma joined the junior national team, as a member of which he won the bronze medal of the European Championship in 2010.
In 2011 Janis became a player of the basketball club Liepājas Lauvas, and then moved to Ventspils - one of the most famous Latvian clubs. In 2013, he led his team to victory in the Baltic Basketball League. Already in the next season, the athlete received the title of Latvian champion.
After that, Timma traveled to the United States to try his hand at the National Basketball Association (NBA) games. However, he practically did not participate in the games, spending most of his time on the bench. Then the athlete decided to return to his homeland and continue training there.
In 2014, the basketball player signed a contract with the Riga club VEF. As part of this team Timma took part in the VTB United League, where he received a bronze medal and the title of best player of the tournament. In the same season VEF won the national championship in Latvia. The talented young athlete attracted everyone's attention, and soon he was offered a contract with Zenit St. Petersburg club.
For the Russian team, the basketball player played two quite successful seasons. In 2017, he moved to Spanish club Baskonia, and in 2018 he became a player of Greek Olympiacos. In the summer of 2019, Timma returned to Russia and joined the Moscow Region club Khimki, with which he won silver in the Russian championship.
In 2020-2021, due to disagreements with the new coach, the athlete left Khimki and joined UNICS Kazan. However, Timma failed to show a good result in Euroleague matches and lost his contract. After that he signed an agreement with a team of the NBA Development League and became a player of the club Lakeland Magic. In parallel, he continued to play for the Latvian national team,
In the fall of 2024 Timma took part in the Russian tournament Media Basket as a member of the team "Alikson". Because of this basketball player was criticized in his homeland, as earlier the Latvian Seimas passed a law prohibiting Latvian athletes to play in competitions in Russia and Belarus. Janis himself said on social networks that he does not regret his decision, and asked to leave his family alone (at the time he was married to Russian singer Anna Sedokova).
Janis Timma - personal life
With his first wife Sana Timma lived together for almost nine years. Their relationship began in 2011, but the young people decided to legalize their union only after five years. They also brought up their son Christian. After the birth of the child, conflicts began to arise in the family, which eventually led to a breakup.
In 2019, in one of the Moscow bars, the athlete met the singer Anna Sedokova. Later, journalists noticed the couple on vacation in Turkey. The Russian artist was accused of destroying someone else's family and mercantilism, since Timma's income significantly exceeded her own. To stop the rumors, the basketball player published a post on social networks, in which he stated that he has not lived together with his wife for six months, and his romance with Sedokova began after their separation.
In turn, the ex-spouse of the athlete accused him of cheating, and in an interview complained that Timma kicked her and her child out of the house and blocked all bank accounts. In response, Sedokova urged not to believe the speculation.
In 2020, Timma and Sedokova got married. They held the ceremony secretly to avoid the attention of the press, and the joyful event was reported to fans only two weeks later. The star couple lived together for four years. In the relationship of spouses was not all smooth - they often quarreled, several times conflicts almost led to a breakup. In October 2024 Sedokova filed for divorce, and in December of the same year the spouses officially separated.
Janis Timma - death
On December 17, 2024, Janis Timma was found dead in the entrance of an apartment building in Moscow. According to preliminary data, the basketball player committed suicide. According to the source of "Izvestia", on the phone of the athlete was installed screensaver with the inscription "Call Anna" and the phone number of the former wife. At the same time, the day before he congratulated Sedokova on her birthday in social networks.
After Timma's death, the singer published a video message in which she asked subscribers not to write about the death of her ex-husband to protect her young child from this information. She also mentioned that she had been "living in hell" in recent years.
Timma's former coach at Khimki, Rimas Kurtinaitis, in a conversation with Izvestia, called his death a great loss for world basketball and Latvia. He noted that the athlete was a good player.
