The Russian Special Olympics team won prizes at competitions in Italy


The Russian Special Olympics team won prizes at the Special Olympics World Winter Games in Turin, Italy. The competition was held from March 8 to March 15.
About 1.5 thousand people and their unified partners from more than 100 countries took part in the games. The Russian Special Olympics team was represented by a dancing couple from Novosibirsk, Mikhail Arkhipov and Yulia Koroleva, as well as snowshoe athletes Vladislav Fedoruk from St. Petersburg and Tatiana Ilyashchenko from Armavir, who participated under a neutral status.
Following the results of the snowshoe running competition, Ilyashchenko won gold among women in the 100 and 400 m and became a two-time champion of the Games. Fedoruk, in turn, took second place in the men's 100 and 200 m competition, becoming a two-time silver medalist. Arkhipov and Koroleva won the bronze medal in the dance competition.
"I am very glad that the Russian team, although in a neutral status, participated in the games in Turin. This is the first and very important step for the return of our Russian special athletes to international competitions," said Olga Slutsker, President of the Russian Special Olympics.
The Special Olympics is an international charity organization that organizes sports competitions for people with intellectual disabilities. The purpose of the program is to help people adapt to life in society through sports.
On March 10, Morinari Watanabe, head of the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) and presidential candidate of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), announced his intention to return Russian athletes to the international arena. He stressed that he would make every effort to restore the participation of Russians in major sporting events.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»