Krystsina Tsimanouskaya facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Krystsina Tsimanouskaya

Tsimanouskaya at the 2019 Summer Universiade
Personal information
Citizenship	Poland Belarus
Born	(1996-11-19) 19 November 1996 (age 28) Klimavichy, Belarus
Height	168 cm
Weight	61.5 kg
Sport
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	100 m, 200 m
Club	BFST Dynamo
Medal record Representing  Belarus European Games Silver 2019 Minsk team event Silver 2019 Minsk 100 metres Summer Universiade Gold 2019 Naples 200 metres European Athletics U23 Championships Silver 2017 Bydgoszcz 100 metres Representing  Poland Polish Indoor Athletics Championships Silver Toruń 2023 60 metres

Krystsina Siarheyeuna Tsimanouskaya (born 19 November 1996) is a Belarusian-born Polish sprinter. She has won numerous medals at various events, including a silver medal in the 100 metres at the 2017 European U23 Championships, a gold medal in the 200 metres at the 2019 Summer Universiade, and a silver medal in the team event at the 2019 European Games.

Tsimanouskaya qualified to represent Belarus at the 2020 Summer Olympics in the women's 100 m and 200 m events. On 30 July 2021, during the Games, she accused officials from the Belarus Olympic Committee of forcing her to compete in the 4 × 400 metres relay and entering her name for the race without her consent. On 1 August 2021, she was taken to Tokyo's Haneda Airport against her will, where she refused to board a flight to Belarus. She was eventually given police protection and granted a humanitarian visa by Poland, where she was later given Polish citizenship.

In August 2023, the World Athletics Nationality Review Panel waived the normal three-year waiting period for nationality changes, allowing her to compete for Poland.

Early life

Krystsina Siarheyeuna Tsimanouskaya was born in Klimavichy, a town in eastern Belarus. Though she raced for fun as a child, she joined competitive athletics late, receiving an offer from an Olympic trainer to join his academy when she was about 15 years old. Her parents were initially worried, thinking she would not achieve an athletic career; they were convinced by Tsimanouskaya and her grandmother.

International competitions

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Notes
Representing  Belarus
2015	European Junior Championships	Eskilstuna, Sweden	6	100 m	11.85
			17 h	200 m	24.51
2017	European Indoor Championships	Belgrade, Serbia	12 sf	60 m	7.39
	European U23 Championships	Bydgoszcz, Poland	2	100 m	11.54
			4	200 m	23.32
2018	World Indoor Championships	Birmingham, United Kingdom	31 h	60 m	7.37
	European Championships	Berlin, Germany	13 sf	100 m	11.34
			10 sf	200 m	23.03
2019	European Indoor Championships	Glasgow, United Kingdom	7	60 m	7.26
	Universiade	Naples, Italy	6	100 m	11.44
			1	200 m	23.00
	World Championships	Doha, Qatar	26 h	200 m	23.22
	European Games	Minsk, Belarus	2	Team event (100 m)	11.24
			2	100m	11.36
2021	European Indoor Championships	Toruń, Poland	–	60 m	DQ
	Olympic Games	Tokyo, Japan	38 h	100 m	11.47
			–	200 m	DNC
Representing  Poland
2023	World Championships	Budapest, Hungary	30th (h)	100 m	11.32
			23rd (sf)	200 m	23.34
			5th	4 × 100 m relay	42.66
2024	European Championships	Rome, Italy	19th (sf)	200 m	23.34
			8th (h)	4 × 100 m relay	43.151
	Olympic Games	Paris, France	6th (rep)	200 m	23.01
			12th (h)	4 × 100 m relay	42.86

¹Did not finish in the final

Tokyo 2020 Olympics

Tsimanouskaya qualified for her first Olympics in the 100 m and 200 m events, representing Belarus. On 30 July 2021 (postponed from 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic), she finished 4th in the first round heat of the 100 m event with a time of 11.47. Prior to the 200 m event, Belarus Olympic Committee (NOC RB) officials withdrew her from the competition. On 2 August, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rejected Tsimanouskaya's request to annul the decision of the NOC RB to stop her from participating at the Tokyo Olympics, stating that she was unable to prove her case. On 3 August, the CAS clarified that its judgement was based on the fact that Tsimanouskaya could not prove she would still attempt to compete at Tokyo while she was in the process of seeking asylum in other countries.

Repatriation incident and asylum

Krystsina Tsimanouskaya with Polish Minister of Culture, National Heritage and Sport Piotr Gliński in August 2021

On 30 July 2021, Tsimanouskaya recorded an Instagram video criticising officials from the Belarus Olympic Committee (NOC RB), saying that they had entered her in the 4 × 400 m relay race, a distance she had never contested, without her consent. On 1 August 2021, Belarusian media reported the attempt to forcibly return Tsimanouskaya to Belarus. Tsimanouskaya said to journalists that she was afraid of returning to Belarus, and she intended to claim asylum. After contacting airport police, on 2 August, she was granted a humanitarian visa to Poland.

Though most of western Europe had offered her protection, she reportedly chose to seek asylum in Poland as the country had expressly offered her the opportunity to continue competing; the IOC made contact with officials from the Polish Olympic Committee (PKOI) regarding Tsimanouskaya resuming competition. On 4 August, Tsimanouskaya flew to Warsaw Chopin Airport, where she was met by Polish officials and Belarusian expatriates. President of the IOC Thomas Bach and the Japanese foreign ministry both gave statements on 6 August describing what happened to Tsimanouskaya as "deplorable" and "unjust".

She confirmed that she had received Polish citizenship in late June 2022.

Personal bests

Outdoor

• 100 metres – 11.04 (+0.7 m/s, Minsk 2018)
• 200 metres – 22.75 (+1,0 m/s Warsaw 2023)

Indoor

• 60 metres – 7.21 (Mogilyov 2017, Minsk 2019, Luxembourg 2024)
• 200 metres – 23.45 (Toruń 2023)

See also

In Spanish: Kristina Timanóvskaya para niños