The Ukrainian biathlon star was disqualified. What did Vita Semerenko do?
Yulia Sidorova October 19, 2024, 09:45 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
Being punished by the anti-doping center at 38 years old is hard.
Ukrainian biathlete Vita Semerenko, 38, still practices this sport. More precisely, she was there: she was listed among the active athletes, until the National Anti-Doping Center of Ukraine disqualified the Sochi Olympic champion for one year.
Where did Semerenko go?
The famous twin sisters Vita and Valentina Semerenko have not been seen at the World Cup for a long time. After gold at the Sochi Olympics, biathletes were successful for some time, but then fell back to the level of the IBU Cup.
Vita’s last start on the world stage took place on March 14, 2021. The Ukrainian participated in the mixed relay at the IBU Cup finals in Obertilliach. Starting from the 2021/2022 season, Semerenko performed only in local tournaments, but did not officially talk about retiring from his career. Nor did he provide information about his whereabouts to the anti-doping agency.
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When will Vita retire?
In the fall of 2024, the National Anti-Doping Center of Ukraine published a list of disqualified athletes, including the Olympic champion. Semerenko was found guilty of missing three doping tests in 12 months.
The one-year suspension sanction has already come into effect and will last until March 20, 2025. But something tells us that the 39-year-old athlete will not chase Bjoerndalen’s record. Perhaps on March 21 of next year Vita will announce the end of its long career.
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