The Romanian delegation came from the World Championships hosted by Shanghai with 6 medals, two gold and 4 silver, the best balance of 1997. The coordinating coach, Dorin Alupei, said he was satisfied and that the results give confirm the value of the whole team.
Another long flight, this time the one to return home following a special edition of the World Championships. Disposed on Shanghai, under hard weather conditions, the supreme competition confirmed the value of the tricolor boating, in the luggage of the athletes all the medals of the crews that climbed the podium. Between them, and one for the first time, at 8 plus 1 mixed frames, a sample at the first presence in the CM program.
In total, 6 distinctions, two gold and four of silver -Since 1997, from the World Cup at Aguebelette-Lac, there had been not so much. As soon as they arrived from the airport at the “Elisabeta Lipă” Sports Complex in Snagov, the athletes were greeted with bouquets.
However, the president was missing, which lost the Istanbul's connecting plane and had to wait for the next flight. The coordinating coach, Dorin Alupei, evaluated the evolution of the entire delegation, at the end of more than two weeks spent at one end of the world, under harsh weather conditions.
Coach Dorin Alupei: “A confirmation of the value of the athletes and the whole team”
“Yes, that's right, I'm really satisfied. As I said here, there is always a better place, but there are six medals and our athletes even worked, including those who were in the B, which ranked 10, 11 or 12. But for us the most important thing was that these medals came as a confirmation of the value of the athletes and the whole team“He said.
In the year after Paris 2024, with his eyes aimed at a still distant land, the games of 2028, from Los Angeles, how does the current Olympic cycle concern?
“Six medals have not been obtained since 1997, when I was a competitor in two samples,” said Alupei, who then conquered silver at 8 plus 1 frames and bronze in the four -frame boat. “Then it's an extraordinary thing. I said the future sounds good because everyone trains and no one has reservation, regardless of the performance he has done in the past“He emphasized.
Although there are three years until Los Angeles, it is known that the Olympic competition will be played over a unique distance, 1,500 m instead of the regulatory one of 2,000 m, in Long Beach, where the samples were held at the first Olympic edition hosted by the Californian city, the one from 1932.
How will the adaptation be done? “Unfortunately, I do not know, or fortunately, only the Olympic competition will be on 1,500m, otherwise, the qualifications and all the other verification kingdoms will be on 2,000m, so we have to do our best, first of all to qualify and then approach the preparation for the Olympic Games. For this we want that in 2027, at the World Championships in Lucerne, Switzerland, to close the qualifications and then we can prepare for the Olympics“, The coach detailed.
Magdalena Rusu, double gold medal and suffering beforehand
One of the double gold medals channels in Shanghai, Magdalena Rusu, who was imposed in double frames with Simona Radiș, but also in the newly introduced 8 plus 1 mixed frames, was forced to go over a difficult period before the onset of World Cup. She was tormented by terrible back pain, which she surpassed, climbing the podium twice. How difficult it takes to form and conquer these medals?
“It was very difficult, but not necessarily physically, but more psychically, because I had entered a hectares with the thought that I will not have enough time to come back and enjoy the support of all the people around me, starting with the coach, with the medical team, mainly with the medical team, because I have to do the best, because they all sat down so that it would be fine“, Said Magda history from a breath.
A week before leaving for Shanghai, she couldn't get out of bed, she was thinking about what her teammate would do, Simona, if she couldn't compete.
“I could not go, and at the press conference before leaving, when you were here, it was very difficult for me to go back. So I struggled a lot to hide this thing and I'm glad it was. And the moment I won the medal, I saw the room on me and I was excited and then and I cried because all the hard and all those thoughts were washed there“She confessed.
For the athletes there is a break period, for vacation, until the meeting for entering the cantonment again, in November, most likely. With the thought of the following year and the distant horizon, Los Angeles 2028.
Romania's Medalille at the Shanghai World Championships
- Gold
- double frames (f) »Magdalena Rusu, Simona Radiș
- 8 plus 1 mixed frames »Magdalena Rusu, Maria Lehaci, Andrada Moroșanu, Florin Lehaci, Florin Arteni, Ciprian Tudosă, Stefan Berariu, Simona Radiș, Victoria Petreanu
- Silver
- double frames (m) »Florin Arteni, Florin Lehaci
- 4 frames (f) »Ancuța Bodnar, Geanina Juncănariu, Adrian Adam, Amalia Bereș
- 4 frames (m) »Ștefan Berariu, Sergiu Bejan, Andrei Mândrilă, Ciprian Tudosă
- 8 plus 1 frames (f) »Cristina Drugă, Roxana Anghel, Iulia Bălăucă, Maria Lehaci, Ancuța Bodnar, Geanina Juncănariu, Adam Adam, Amalia Bereș, Victoria Petreanu
(P) Petrom is the main sponsor of the Romanian Rowing Federation and supports the future generation of champions through the “Energy for Performance” program.
