Ukrainian biathlete Anastasia Merkushina, who was in the reserve application for the 2022 Games in Beijing, arrived in China after Elena Bilosiuk and Daria Blashko tested positive for Covid-19.
Before arriving in Beijing, Merkushina was at a training camp in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic, where she was preparing for performances at the IBU Cup. But after the news of the test, Bilosyuk began to prepare for her departure to the Olympics.
Merkushina passed the tests for coronavirus and joined the team in the Olympic village. It is expected that she will enter the Olympic track on Friday, February 11th. In an interview with Suspіlna Sport, the biathlete told how she ended up at the 2022 Olympics.
– I slept, slept off, it was just the day of the shooting, I decided not to get up early, not to rush anywhere and turned off the sound on the phone. I open my eyes, and there are a lot of messages that Elena Bilosyuk has coronavirus, that I have to pack my bags. Two and a half hours later, I was sitting on a bus for a flight from Prague to Kiev. After arriving, I passed the first and second tests, and on Saturday I just flew out,” she said.
She also noted that the biathlon track in Zhangqiangkou reminds her of the track in Antgolts.
– There is a height, very high, the lack of oxygen is felt very strongly. And the track itself is not heavy, if it were on the plain, it would generally be easy. But here, every mound seems like such a wall that you can’t wait until it ends,” Merkushina said.
Anastasia Merkushina arrived in Beijing on February 7th. The NOC press service noted that Merkushina's entry to the start of the competition will depend on the decision of the coaching staff.
However, given that Valentina Semerenko left the Olympics due to health problems, Merkushina is likely to take her place at the start.
