The Belarusian wants to continue her athletics career in Poland after the Olympic thriller. She worries about her parents.
The Belarusian athlete Kristina Timanowskaja was relieved after fleeing to Poland. “I feel safe here,” said the 24-year-old during a press conference in Warsaw on Thursday. Her husband Arseni Sdanewitsch, who was last in the Ukraine, is already on the way to Poland by car and is expected in the evening. She wants to continue her sports career in Poland.
“I hope that we can stay here, that I can continue my career and that my husband can find work here,” said the athlete. On the other hand, she's worried about her parents who stayed behind in Belarus, said the athlete, who flew from Tokyo via Vienna to Warsaw on Wednesday under high security precautions. “Mainly because my father is sick. He has heart problems and in the past few days his health has deteriorated.” In the end, however, her parents had assured her that they were doing well so far.
After criticism of sports officials in her authoritarian home country, Timanovskaya claimed to be flown home from the Olympic Games against her will. She resisted by seeking protection from Japanese police at Tokyo airport. Several countries – including Austria – offered her help. Ultimately, she then left for Warsaw via Vienna on a Polish humanitarian visa.
