On Saturday, August 19, the next World Athletics Championships began. There are no Russian athletes there, so the interest in the tournament in our country, as expected, is not the highest. However, for the Queen of Sports herself, this is a significant event, since the 40th anniversary of the first world championship is being celebrated.
In honor of this event, the World Athletics Association launched a fan vote to determine the 40 most memorable, greatest and simply iconic performances at world championships over the past four decades. On the front lines, unsurprisingly, is the biggest star in sports in decades, if not history at large: Usain Bolt.
But if everything became clear with the winner and so on, then the complete absence of Soviet and Russian athletes in the ranking is meaningless. Yes, only world championship winners were on the list, but our country ranks second in history both in the number of gold awards (68) and in the total number of medals won (232). The attitude towards modern Russian athletes has long been clear to everyone, but since when should even the great achievements of the past be crossed out?
For example, in second place was the Swedish pole vaulter Armand Duplantis. This is an outstanding athlete, a huge star, but does he really deserve to be so high, and his “girlfriend” in the sector, Elena Isinbayeva, cannot even break into the top 40? Well shit. Two-time Olympic champion, three-time world champion in the open air, face of athletics in the 00s and 10s, almost on a par with Bolt. And now she’s passing over anywhere in this unfortunate ranking, can you imagine?
Former VFLA Vice President Valentin Balakhnichev reacted emotionally to this situation: “This is a shameless lie: our athletes are always under historical review. Just a disgusting act, ugh. Our athletes set world records that rightfully belong to these athletes. The actions of the International Athletics Federation are pure Russophobia. They simply want to erase our country from history. In this ranking, Elena Isinbayeva should be in the first place, we have dozens of worthy champions. Shubenkov, Lasitskene, Privalova and many others.
And it’s hard to disagree with him. Two-time Olympic champion, world champion and world record holder Svetlana Masterkova, leading the entire distance, defeated black athletes who dominated running disciplines. Olympic champion, five-time Games medalist, three-time world outdoor champion, and winner of both the triple jump and the long jump, Tatyana Lebedeva, who was remembered by everyone not only for her graceful performances, but also for her bright dyed hair and invariably long bracelets. Did these track and field stars also deserve to be left out of not just the top ten, but the entire ranking?
Do you want more active athletes? What did not please the charming Maria Lasitskene? A beauty that cannot be ignored in the high jump sector, even in the most difficult years for Russian athletics, she managed to collect the richest collection of awards: Olympic gold, three consecutive victories at world championships, five-time winner of the Diamond League. general positions. How was the hand raised to leave this outstanding athlete out of the ranking?
Of course, we remember that the athletics federation has always been especially harsh with our athletes. What is worth at least the participation of Daria Klishina alone from the Russian team at the 2016 Olympics. But the exclusion from the history of a huge number of athletes who forged glory not only for themselves, but for all athletics is a monstrously cynical approach.
On the other hand, why be surprised? IAAF President Sebastian Coe has always had an extremely negative attitude towards Russian athletes, which is why they have been put under pressure for the past ten years, even when our other athletes had the opportunity to perform more or less stably. and normal. Moreover, here the vote took place among the fans, who are now being actively brainwashed with anti-Russian sentiments, which, of course, applies to all spheres of life, including sports.
Many organizations for anniversaries make various tops for players, goals, moments and other things. And every time because of this, disputes arise, since all similar ratings are subjective. But in this case, there is a deliberate distortion of the history of a wonderful sport by defiantly ignoring the successes of outstanding athletes who turned out to be guilty only of representing the “wrong” country.
