The winners of the first medals of the BRICS Games 2024 in Kazan were announced on 13 June.
The first BRICS Games medals were won by the Russian artistic swimming team, which became the best in the women’s and men’s solo technical routines this morning.
Svetlana Kolesnichenko beat Vasilina Khandoshka from Belarus and Diana Onkes from Uzbekistan, adding another gold to her ample collection of victories. Alexander Maltsev, a multiple world champion, received the best marks from the judges and also became the winner of the BRICS Games, having scored more points than the athlete from Thailand, Kantinan Adisaisiributr.
“We only have two days of competition, or rather, three, officially, but our pair performs for two. That is, we’re already finishing tomorrow. On the one hand, it’s very convenient because of the fast starts. On the other hand, we don’t have much time to revel in the atmosphere of the Games.
I’m very grateful to Kazan. As always, the competitions are held at the highest level, everything is perfectly organised. Kazan is my second home, I’m always happy to come here. Thank you very much!” said Svetlana Kolesnichenko.
The duet Kolesnichenko – Mayya Doroshko was the best in the technical routine with a score of 304.0783 points. Anastasiya Dabravolskaya and Aliaksandra Mironchyk from Belarus took the second place, while the bronze medal was won by athletes from DPRK: Pak Hyon A and Yun Kyong Ryong. Russian artistic swimmers Anastasiia Bakhtyreva, Tatiana Gayday, Daria Geloshvili, Ekaterina Kossova, Varvara Kreopalova, Elizaveta Minaeva, Elizaveta Smirnova, and Agniia Tulupova also won in the acrobatic routine.
The champions scored 280.6800 points. The second place was taken by Belarusian athletes with 210.3266 points. The third place went to the team from Thailand who scored 204.2334 points.
Further on the first competition day, the winners of the individual all-around were determined among the BRICS Games participants in artistic gymnastics. Two-time Russian champion Daniel Marinov won the men’s event with a score of 84.700. His compatriot and Olympic champion Artur Dalaloyan came second (79.950 points), while the bronze medal went to Yahor Sharamkou of Belarus (77.950). Olympic champion Nikita Nagornyy withdrew from the all-around due to a hand injury sustained during his performance on bars.
“The support of the home stands helped me cope with the trepidation; this was my first time on the international stage after all,” admitted Daniel Marinov. “I couldn’t sleep after breakfast today, although I have no problem turning in and getting some rest at training camps. But today I barely got any shuteye at all, and there was agitation, palpitations until I passed two apparatus. I calmed down only after the horizontal bar exercise: all the extra sweat came out; I battled it out, got through, and everything felt right.”
“The setting is definitely close to the Olympic Games, the European festivals where we performed, and to the Gymnasiade in Brazil, where many athletes from different countries meet and compete on an international level. So, it’s perfectly similar, feels great,” said Artur Dalaloyan.
Leyla Vasilyeva of Russia became the best performer in the women’s all-around, scoring 56.450 points after four exercises. Another Russian athlete, Anna Kalmykova (56.100 points), won the silver medal, and Kira Maharevich (48.750) from the Republic of Belarus rounded off the top three. The artistic gymnastics competitions in individual events will be held on 14 and 15 June.
Seven sets of medals were awarded at the sambo competitions during the BRICS Games in Kazan on Thursday. Sofia Emelyukova (under 50 kg) and Elmira Kakhramanova (under 59 kg) of Russia, as well as Bayarmaa Nekhiitbaatar (under 54 kg) of Mongolia won gold medals in the women’s event. The men’s winners were Pavel Ivanov (under 58 kg), Kirill Bazhin (under 64 kg), and Daniil Orlov (under 79 kg) of Russia, as well as Ubaydillo Muminov (under 71 kg) of Uzbekistan.
“I’m very happy to win this competition,” Sofia Emelyukova enthused. “It’s so cool that it was held here in Russia. I was counting on the first place: I’ve been preparing for the BRICS Games for a month and a half with no breaks, and I succeeded.”
The sambo competitions will end on 14 June, when the winners in seven more weight categories will be determined.
The 1/8 Finals of the men’s 56 kg, 60 kg, and 65 kg Sanda bouts were held on the first day of the BRICS Games wushu competitions, and six sets of awards were given for performances in different styles of the Taolu discipline. In the Daoshu programme, Sandra Konstantinova of Russia took the title. In Nangun, the gold went to Qi Zhou from China. Anastasiia Kadenova from Russia won in Taijiquan style.
The men’s results are as follows: Pavel Muratov (Russia) won in Qiangshu; Zhuhang Xu (China) won in Gunshu; and Luhao Tang (China) won in Nandao.
“Performing at international competitions is a totally different thing compared to Russian tournaments. Our federation tried to hold championships in Moscow, so we stayed in shape; we didn’t fall down, but got up,” said Sandra Konstantinova, the winner of the BRICS Games. “We can rest a while now, but tomorrow we have more competitions, and so on for three more days. But I’m very happy. We’ve come a long way, we’ve been training for these Games since forever. And, although I have won both the World and European Championships in the past, these Games felt the most important.”
The BRICS Games weightlifting competitions began at Tulpar Sports Complex on Thursday. The participants fought for medals in four weight categories.
Elizaveta Zhatkina won in the women’s up to 49 kg category. The Russian champion showed a result of 171 kg on the sum of snatch and jerk. Her compatriot Polina Andreeva (162 kg) won the silver medal, while Victoria Nazareth Tovar Milano (143 kg) of Venezuela took the bronze.
Alina Shchapanova of Belarus celebrated success in the category up to 59 kg with a total of 218 kg. Olga Tyo (212 kg) of Russia was second and Yuliya Hulina (198 kg), another Belarusian athlete, was third.
In the men’s event, Haider Sultan won Pakistan’s first medal at the BRICS Games in the men’s 61 kg category. He lifted 261 kg. Oleg Musokhranov (260 kg) of Russia came second and his compatriot Elkan Gvazava (258 kg) took the third place.
“I came to the Games to win and didn’t even think about silver or bronze,” said champion Haider Sultan. “I really enjoyed the BRICS Games. Very good competition, everything’s at a top level. I’m very happy to have competed in Kazan. It’s a beautiful city, which stroke a chord with me. I have only the kindest words for the BRICS Games organisers as well. Everything is really amazing.”
Zulfat Garaev of Russia, the bronze medallist of the 2021 World Championship, became the champion in the up to 73 kg category with 336 kg. The second place went to another Russian, Sergey Petrov (332 kg), while Vadzim Likharad (326 kg) of Belarus took the bronze.
“It was especially satisfying to win at home. I counted on success, though I could’ve done better. After the record snatch I paced my emotions as there was still a jerk exercise ahead. But after nailing the jerk I was over the moon. The Games are the most serious competition this year. I’m glad to see such a start in Russia, so many countries came! This is a very valuable medal for me, I’d like to dedicate it to my family,” Zulfat Garaev said.
Preliminary heats were held in rowing at the BRICS Games. Aleksandr Yakovlev (Russia), Mekhrojbek Mamatkulov (Uzbekistan), and Anastasia Lyubich (Russia) were the leaders in their respective groups in the single sculls. The lightweight singles were dominated by Mikita Karneyeu (Belarus), Aleksandr Tufanyuk (Russia), and Anastasia Lebedeva (Russia).
Pair competitions have also started. Russian athletes took the top two places among men and women, with the winning pairs Ilya Ivanov and Ivan Kladov and Marina Rubtsova and Valentina Plaksina.
“The BRICS Games are a very important event in the sport world. It’s a very significant tournament that unites people from many countries. I’m glad that rowing is represented at the Games,” shared Puneet Kumar, a competitor from India.
The semi-finalists of the BRICS Games have been determined in table tennis team competitions. The Russian national team made it to the top four in both men’s and women’s tournaments. Russian tennis players defeated Tajikistan 3-0, while the men’s team also defeated Bahrain. Teams from India, Iran, and China also made it to the top four in the women’s event.
“We’re all in good shape now. We played a match against Brazil today. We had a very good performance. It’ll be interesting to face the Russian team. Over all, everything is great and we’re enjoying Kazan very much,” said Elina Rahimi, a tennis player from Iran.
The men’s semi-finalists were China, Belarus, and Iran, who beat India 3-2 in a tight match.
The tennis and badminton tournaments of the BRICS Games have kicked off as well. The participants played games in sub-groups with deciding matches still to come.
“Everything is great, the organisation and venue are top-notch. We like it very much. Kazan is a beautiful and very clean city with many sights. The competition is really serious. There are some strong players from Russia and Belarus,” remarked Mohammad Saddiq Barakzai, a badminton player from Afghanistan, sharing his thoughts about the tournament.