Where is the melt? “We want more activity and creativity from Belarusians, some kind of fire in their eyes.” Beautiful champion Alina Talay breaks the mold. What surprises you about this country?

Alina Talay is a Belarusian record holder in hurdles and photogenicity. This year the girl won the European Championship and became the third prize-winner of the World Championship. The Olympics are coming up in Rio de Janeiro. A native of Orsha is preparing for it in the suburbs of Vienna. Having returned to Minsk for a short time, the country’s most smiling athlete managed to give an interview to Onliner.by about the closeness and sincerity of Belarusians, about working as an inspector in the housing department, as well as about her love for cooking and motorcycles.

Gaidaev’s phrase about “a student, a Komsomol member, an athlete and, finally, just a beauty” is only partially applicable to Talay. She has already graduated from university. He is not a member of youth organizations, although he quite freely expresses his civic position. Otherwise, Natalya Varley is quite young. Alina became the winner of the European championships and is now aiming for the podium at the next Olympics. The girl is capable of being endlessly charming in any situation. An armor-piercing smile has a guaranteed effect.

- You went to live in Austria...

I wouldn't say that I left to live. I left to train. Traditional sports training is 20-25 days in one place. Then home for half a week or a week. This is how it turns out that I spend most of the year in Austria.

- What surprises you about this country?

I've been to a lot of places. Therefore, Austria did not evoke any “wow” in me - how great everything is, how cool everything is. But yes, the country is quite interesting. With its own rules and even troubles. I definitely enjoy it there.

Of course, I have heard many stories about how our person who leaves for Europe finds it difficult to find a common language with the locals because of their mentality. But personally, it’s absolutely normal and comfortable for me to be abroad. Maybe my travel experience and communication skills are taking a toll. Although, in principle, globalization has been taking place in recent years. I think people are essentially the same everywhere. So a Belarusian is able to understand both an Argentine and a Chinese.

- Do Belarusians have anything to learn from the Austrians?

There are traditions in Austria. The same coffee that is simply everywhere in Vienna. If you meet a friend and go to a cafe, it's a whole procedure. There I turned into a coffeeholic who regularly drinks five to six cups a day. This is terrible and, frankly, not very good for the sport. (Laughs.)

True, it doesn’t seem to me that we really should learn anything from the Austrians. Belarusians are a little closed, but sincere. If we open up and relax, it becomes very warm. Belarusians just need time. Culture comes to us from the West with a delay of 10-15 years. I think Belarusians will have their own traditions and rituals. We will learn to enjoy life in general and its specific moments in particular. You just sit on the terrace of a summer cafe, look at the people - and rejoice. Moreover, in recent years, many establishments have opened in Minsk - the city has become more European and cozy.

- Do you miss home?

I still don't dream about birch trees. I don’t hear “Pesnyary” in my sleep either. I miss my family, my favorite places. But I don’t have any oppressive, truly global melancholy. I feel comfortable in Austria. I work a lot - there is no time to be sad.

You see, living in another country does not break the mold, but it definitely allows you to sober up and get out of context. I look at Belarus a little differently. In principle, it seems to me that everything is fine here. Step by step, little by little, the country is developing. However, I would like more activity and creativity from people, some kind of creative movement and fire in their eyes.

Maybe it’s just my social circle, but in Austria people are just passionate about their idea. And it turns on. I want to fit in. You come from Austria, where people are full of emotions, full of ideas, to Belarus - and here you are dampened a little. “Calm down, everything is calm, everything is fine”... Not all at once.

I really enjoy coming back though. It sounds strange, but in Austria I learned to enjoy Minsk. If you are constantly in the city, you don’t notice the scenery. House - car - road - work - road - car - house. It’s unclear what’s there around. This is typical for all countries. True, when you are not in the city so often, you begin to enjoy the little things. You walk, look at people, listen to small dialogues in stores... All this makes me happy. Of course, not in the current rain, but in the summer. Walking along the avenue in sunny weather is great. Personally, I like it. Even though we do not have a clear position on the architecture of central Minsk.

I also think that we should definitely make visas more accessible. And that turns out to be a little expensive. Of course, people from Europe can afford such expenses, but simplifying the procedure and making it cheaper will benefit the country. Yes, we don’t have mountains like Switzerland, but we have something to show foreigners.

- Regarding the culture that comes to us from the West: are there hipsters in Austria?

Listen... Hipsters... What kind of people are these anyway? I can’t really understand, comprehend and formulate this. In Belarus, everyone who is more or less “not like that” is called a hipster. Dressed more or less European - hipster. But these are just clothes, and not some kind of subculture... If we talk about clothes, then in Austria everything is democratic. I don't know if there are hipsters in Austria. I train in Austria. I go out somewhere from time to time, but it doesn’t happen often. Therefore, I cannot speak about the country as a whole.

I understand that Belarusians are constantly trying to be like someone. We aggregate everything alien to ourselves. And that's not necessarily a bad thing. Still, something Belarusian is added to the resulting mixture. We interpret borrowed things and make them completely our own. This is interesting. And this is already our peculiarity. We are located in the center of Europe. We take a good position, we see a lot of things - so we collect everything. The only interesting thing is what will come of it in the end.

- Do you speak German in Vienna?

So far there are great difficulties with this. Well, what difficulties... I can catch individual German words and understand the meaning of what is happening, but nothing more. I'm using English for now. And in this sense I feel quite free.

- What language do you think in?

I think in images. (Laughs.) When you communicate in English all day, by inertia you continue your internal monologue in the same language. Now sometimes I get stuck when I speak Russian. It happens that you explain something to children during training and stop. The English word is remembered quickly, but the Russian word is not understood.

- Would you like to get coffee?

No, enough! (Laughs.) By the way, I once hung out, communicating in Belarusian. Then I thought about the language and began to devote more time to it. I spoke Belarusian and read. As a result, the problems went away. It just takes practice.

- Has living in another country changed you a lot?

No. A person's life changes. And it doesn't matter where he lives. If you know how to think, you will develop always and everywhere.

- How do Austrians react to Belarus?

Well... They definitely know where she is. They know what it is. Not very deep, but still. There is no such thing as me walking around with a globe and explaining where Belarus is. You see, this is all a stereotype, as if no one knows anything about us. Honestly, I answered the question “Where is Belarus?” just once in a lifetime. We lived in the same hotel with the guys from Senegal. And they really didn't know. Although personally, I also have a very poor understanding of Africa and will not immediately say where exactly Nigeria is located and where Congo is.

- Do stereotypes bother you?

I really don't like it when people are labeled. A person has been assigned to a certain category, and in the public consciousness he continues to exist unchanged. This is not true. I understand that if there are stereotypes, life is easier. Everything is defined, everything is laid out on the shelves. The relationship has been formed. But, it seems to me, every person changes. Preferences change, thoughts change, guidelines change. And that's okay.

- Let's talk about stereotypes about you. Alina Talay - Russian rock.

Actually I love a lot of things. It’s clear that in adolescence you prefer heavier music. But now I listen to electro-swing, and just electronics, and new jazz, and classical music, and rock, and metalcore. I have a wide musical range. The genre is not important, the quality is important. The music must be good.

- What did you listen to today?

Today was a training session. And for training you need something more energetic. That's why I listened to Guano Apes and In This Moment.

- Cool ladies.

Yes, gorgeous. That's why I listen to almost everything and don't bother. If I had more time, I would go to more concerts. The last time I was at Linkin Park was last year. I love being on the dance floor. I don’t participate in slams, but I try to be as close to the stage as possible. The first three rows near the artist, who are pressed down by the crowd, are me. In the crowd you feel the emotion. When you jump, when the dust rises above your head, it's cool.

- Stereotype about the stupidity of athletes.

The question is asked to a person with a high school diploma average of 8.9 and a higher education diploma. (Laughs.)

- Do you know how they treat BSUPC, from which you graduated?

Certainly.

- People joke: “Belarusian State University of Fakirs and Clowns.”

And at this moment I pull a rabbit out of a hat or start swallowing burning peaks. (Laughs.) You can study well anywhere. I didn't have crowns at school. I liked almost everything. And now I try to learn something new whenever possible.

Although, after finishing school, I didn’t know where I wanted to go, and I still don’t know what I want to be after sports. I took the exams for the first time at the Maxim Tank Belarusian State Pedagogical University. I didn’t qualify for the free course: I was missing one and a half points. I did not have the opportunity to study on a paid basis. As a result, I entered the Orsha State Medical College to become a paramedic. True, I studied there for literally a week and a half and realized that it was not for me. It's just not interesting. We had to wait until next year. There was a lot of free time. What to do? I have to go to work. Learn to understand how you get money. Without education, I was only accepted into the housing department. Controller.

The controller in the housing and communal services is the person who records data from the meters. You go and check. If there are any problems or questions anywhere, contact a locksmith. That experience lasted six months. It was interesting. I learned about life from a slightly different perspective. There was a clear understanding of how I didn’t want to live. Thoughts came: “We need to grow, strive somewhere.”

- The stereotype about Orsha is two stations, two prisons.

It came out of the nineties. (Laughs.) A very stable stereotype. But you can break it if you want. If you don’t like something, you go and start taking some counteractions. You see, I do not carry a cultural mission and do not promote the brand of my native Orsha. But the current residents of the city could somehow change their attitude towards it if they wanted.

- Your Harley-Davidson forms another stereotype.

Yes, yes, yes, a strong and independent woman. (Laughs) I'm having fun about it. I understand that it’s easier for people to live within limits, but I can’t do anything about it. "Harley"? Well, that means she’s brutal and wears leather everywhere. I don’t know... I’m still fine. I just like motorcycles. I am not a member of any groups. I just enjoy the feeling of speed and power. At the same time, I cook and do other women’s things.

Everyone should be allowed to do what they want. It’s not like the wife has to sit at home and cook borscht. And this is unlikely to lead to the emergence of any middle sex. A girl who rides a Harley does not lose her femininity. And a man who cooks does not lose his masculinity. It's not about how you look, it's about how you behave, what actions you do.

- About actions. You are very active in charity work.

This is how we show our care for children and help them. This is an important step. You need to be human.

- How much self-PR is there in this charity?

No, what are you... I define charity for myself very simply. This is not PR. Absolutely. How can you promote yourself on other people's problems? I’m just a media person and can attract more attention to this or that situation. This is where I see my role. After all, often people simply do not know about the existence of a particular problem.

- Your most acute emotion associated with charity.

The latter is a visit to a children's hospice. We visited its current building. Honestly, I didn't expect to meet children. I thought they would just show us around the room. And you know, when you see these guys, you learn about their problems, it becomes really hard to breathe.

I remember a couple of years ago we did a charity run to help a girl gymnast named Marina. She had cancer. They collected money for the operation. Everything seemed to be going well, the amount was accumulating. It seemed like we could help. But then it became known that Marina was no longer with us... The realization of this fact was very bitter and acute. I remembered that difficult emotion.

Now I’ve just arrived from Austria for just a day. The guys and I want to help the children and quickly complete the hospice, so as not to mothball the building and not pay a large penalty. And I would like to ask Onliner.by readers to send SMS messages to number 2015 with the hashtag #velcombegom. For each such appeal, 10 thousand Belarusian rubles will be transferred to the children.

Reprinting text and photographs of Onliner.by is prohibited without the permission of the editors. [email protected]

A Narodnaya Volya correspondent spoke with Alexander Gutin, former mentor of the most gifted Belarusian hurdler Alina Talay.

— Winter competitive season, the pinnacle of whichwas The World Championships in Birmingham turned out to be poor for our athletes in terms of results in the sprint and hurdles...

— I would like to note that Elvira German, who started in Pinsk, but from the ninth grade moved to Minsk to train with Viktor Myasnikov, did not lower the bar. The 21-year-old hurdler raised it to a record height at the Minsk Winter, and at the national championships in Mogilev she reduced the finishing time by another hundredth. In Birmingham she held on at home speed.

The championship did not go well for Alina Talay; problems began from the start and continued throughout the distance. If I were her current American mentor Lauren Seagrave, I would advise Alina to skip the championship, as well as the entire winter season. The first year of the new Olympic cycle should be devoted to laying the future foundation, approach the summer European Championships at a good speed, show your 12.60, win the next continental title and move on.

Let me remind you that Talay did not miss a single competitive season - neither winter nor summer. She is talented, persistent, decent, every year she comes to her former Orsha sports school with a bag of sports uniforms. She responds to all requests to perform under the country’s flag, but it’s time to give her body a rest! The first post-Olympic year would be just right. A start like the World Championships always involves high levels of nervous and physical stress, and her failure to make it to the finals added to the negative emotions.

- Although many athletes allowed themselves a break...

Yes, and Alina, after the summer Games, complained about fatigue and the fact that she had not yet missed a single series of winter and summer starts, which included official and so-called commercial tournaments. Nevertheless, Talay still went to Birmingham. I think, first of all, in the interests of the team.

Another hurdler Vitaly Parakhonko recently replaced Gutin’s mentor with Myasnikov. In the semi-finals he took the last, 24th place. Along the way, he clung to the barriers several times, and then stopped running altogether.

The plus is that in the preliminary race my former student rewrote his personal achievement. I don’t hold a grudge against him and I hope that in the summer season he will improve his results.

- “Pure” sprinters were represented by Kristina Timanovskaya, silver medalist of the European Youth Championship. There were no more candidates for a trip to England.

She ran better than at last year's Europe, but worse than at home. Probably it’s the tension, the pressure from the stands and rivals.

Christina is a gifted girl who has already won silver in youth Europe. She has everything ahead of her, tournament experience will help her believe in herself and establish herself among the European elite. I think that at the summer continental championships she will be able to run in the finals, and perhaps fight for medals. However, at home she is alone.

The starting protocol for the men's sprint of that Mogilev championship is three times longer, but their company did not nominate a clear leader. Last year, Stanislav Dorogokupets claimed this role, but before the start of one of the races he suffered a ridiculous injury - a child running past got under his feet - and this season, without even starting, was completed.

The men have a group of approximately equal sprinters who could emerge as strong competitors. In Mogilev, the short sprint was reserved for Alexander Linnik, not so long ago the leader of the team in lap running. But in the 200-meter final, Dorogokupets took revenge, greatly reducing his former record time. We'll see if the expected growth continues in the summer.

Why such a short list of contenders for titles? Do coaches lack skills, is it difficult to find talented kids?

There are enough problems, one of which is being raised by doctors. If there is a hint of ill health, children are not allowed to train. After all, it’s easier to ban it than to monitor it, dose it and treat it. Amazing things happen: a guy knocks out his finger during handball practice. He takes his mother to the health center, and there they inform the police. And that none of them have ever knocked out a finger in their lives? In game sports - basketball or volleyball - this is a common thing. And if one of the children twists his leg, then this is an emergency on a city scale. And it’s a completely different matter when a child gets injured on the street. In this case, the matter does not reach the police.

Because of the doctors’ verdict, oxygen was cut off to future Olympic champion Alexander Lesun and he had to move to Russia. By today's medical standards, Alina Talay would not have become an athlete.

Yes, she was diagnosed with arrhythmia, mitral valve prolapse and much more. God's doctor Tamara Kirillovna Finkevich came to the training sessions and checked her condition before and after exercise. In the eighth grade they decided that Alina would only compete once. With the help of moderate, controlled exercise, Alina recovered and her condition returned to normal. Some colleagues muttered, “Why do you need this?” After all, anything could happen. But I believed that Talay would become a great athlete, and I was not mistaken. Now Alina is a multiple European champion, bronze medalist of the planetary championship. Only one thing is unclear: why is she still not an Honored Master of Sports? After all, she has every reason for this; she meets all the standards necessary to receive the title.

- As a matter of fact, the title of Honored Coach of Belarus would be quite suitable for you too.

There is no one to take on this matter. You need to start with paperwork...

- Is it difficult now in Orsha, where you work, to find capable children?

More difficult than before. Firstly, the range of sports offered to them has increased. Secondly, there are fewer children, including healthy ones.

- How do you look for capable children suitable for your future group?

Firstly, at competitions. After the Republican Federation began holding the “300 Talents for the Queen” competition, there were more of them. Children are selected in several stages: first at school competitions, then at district competitions, then at regional competitions and then at republican ones. You search, you talk, you invite.

We work in a team with Igor Rutkovsky, after recruitment we identify abilities for a certain sport. Later we lay down the base and transfer it further to athletics centers, and not just running ones. One of our students is currently training in Minsk with the famous discus thrower Vasily Koptyukh.

- At the recent winter national championship, most of the preliminary races were empty...

The fact is that if an athlete graduates from a sports school with the first category, then he does not get into the regional team, not to mention the republican one. He has nowhere to go, and he leaves the sport. At one time there was an interuniversity department headed by Alexander Medved. But now it’s gone, and there’s no one to train such athletes.

A university sports federation was created in the country, which was going to solve this problem. After all, it has been said more than once that world sports, primarily American ones, are powered by student sports. It turns out that she did not become the core on which the sports reserve could rest.

It turns out that it is so. We do not have an intermediate link between youth and adult sports. So it turns out that at the championships, as a rule, those who are members of the national team and those who are involved in youth and youth teams compete. And there are few of them, hence the small number of starters.

Going it alone has helped Alina Talay reach new heights, but her quest for fresh knowledge is a race that never ends. In sports, as in life, highly educated people constantly strive for self-improvement. This is a kind of bottomless sea of ​​desire to learn new things. After, where Alina won a landslide victory in the 100-meter hurdles, an interesting interview with our athlete was published on the site. We have saved a Russian version of it, which we hope you will like!

Interview prepared by Cathal Dennehy:

When Alina Talay picked up the phone, she was sitting in one of the Minsk cafes after a German lesson. The 29-year-old athlete has been undergoing some sort of language retraining for the past month. (author's note: we are talking about June).

“My head is going to explode,” she said. – I lived in Austria for two years and never learned German well. I’m a little embarrassed, that’s why I take classes for beginners.”

Alina Talay instantly absorbs new knowledge like a sponge. In athletics, it's rare to find a world-class athlete who has the desire to train himself. Especially in such a technically complex athletics event as the 100-meter hurdles.

At the European Team Championships in Lille/Photo: Marina Kachan

Alina has traveled all over the world and worked with some of the best athletics gurus. And all this time she watched, absorbed knowledge so that one day she would take full control of her career and head to the top.

Photo: TUT.BY

“It was not an easy decision,” Talay said. – But I have a lot of experience in different training systems. I trained in Austria, so I know how German athletes prepare. Then I lived in the USA for about a year and a half. During this period, I trained at a sports academy in Florida (IMG Academy). But after the recent not entirely successful season, I said that I would try to train on my own, combining different systems.”

DREAM SPEED

Last month (author's note: May, since the interview is dated June 28) one magical evening in St. Pölten (Austria) I rewrote my personal record twice. She literally flew the distance in 12.61 in the preliminary race, and then, running away from the European champion Cindy Rohleder, she annulled her previous achievement. The athlete couldn't believe it when she saw her time - 12.41 (=NR).

“I couldn’t believe my eyes. I thought it was impossible to run so fast. I expected around 12.60. It was crazy."

Photo from Alina Talay's personal page on Facebook

Anyone who had doubts about Alina's result received an answer in the following weeks, when the athlete confirmed that it was not an accident: Talay finished 2nd in Oslo - 12.63, then 3rd in Stockholm - 12.55, and then won at the home arena during the International match – 12.50. And all this with acceptable wind levels.

Photo: Alexander Shelegov, Directorate of the II European Games

“Until last week, I couldn’t believe my result – 12.41, but when I ran 12.50 in Minsk, I really realized that I was ready to run fast.”

CREATIVE PROCESS

Imagine that 100m s/b is art. A twelve-second performance that, from a scientific point of view, can be assessed with the methodological precision of an engineer.

In fact, as far as her sports career is concerned, Alina is an object, a scientist and the architect of her destiny!

“Honestly, I don’t know how many hours I spend watching exercises, races, hurdles, everything, on my phone. It's difficult because you have to film yourself, watch all the videos, analyze your performances throughout the year and find your weaknesses. It’s not easy, I get really tired of it.”

“But on the other hand, it's great. I know what I should do, what's best for me. You are part of the creative process."

It’s no secret that Talay’s running experience goes back two decades.

Alina is from Orsha. This is a small city in the northeast of Belarus. A local physical education teacher noticed the athlete's talent when she was 13 years old. At that time, she ran short distances, hurdles and did jumping. But after Alina suffered a back injury at the age of 15, she had to give up her sports career as a jumper.

As a teenager, athletics was nothing more than a hobby for her. But in 2008, the athlete finished 4th at the World Junior Championships in Bydgoszcz, showing a result of 13.31 in the 100m sprint final. And then she began to dream.

“I thought maybe sport could become my profession and I could make money from it. Since then I’ve seriously thought about it,” said Alina.

At the European Team Championship in Cheboksary/ Photo: Vadim Devyatovsky

AT THE CROSSROADS

In 2014, Alina found herself at a crossroads: burdened with injuries on the eve of the European Championships in Zurich, Talay finished only 5th there.

“I decided that I had to either change something or retire because it was hard to train with injuries,” she said. “Then I decided to move to Austria. I started training with a new trainer. And you know, there have been changes for the better in my career.”

With Phillip Winfried at the ceremony of presenting a special award to the NGO "BFLA" "Athletics"

Alina spent two years under the guidance of Phillip Winfried and reached a new level, winning bronze at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing: “It was important for me to realize that I can compete with the best athletes in the world,” she said. “It motivated me to continue my career.”

Photo: getty images

This medal promised good results for the next year. But at the biggest start in Alina’s life - in Rio, her Olympic dream collapsed.

In the 100m s/b semi-final, she lost her balance at the eighth hurdle and was barely able to keep it at the remaining two. As a result, Talay came last with a score of 13.66.

Photo: getty images

“You can imagine my disappointment,” Alina shared her emotions. – For an athlete who gruelingly prepares for this competition for four years, and then suddenly after 12 seconds all your efforts go to waste. This was a big disappointment. I took a two-month break, did absolutely nothing, just forgot about the track. But then I decided that I needed to change something else.”

“After that, I moved to Florida to train with a new coach. This is all I am - in these crazy decisions. I knew I had to do something different to achieve my dream. So I didn’t hesitate.”

Photo: getty images

The athlete spent a year and a half training under Lauren Seagrave before returning home to prepare for the 2018 season. Although Alina trains on her own, she is not alone. Talay trains and trains with the 21-year-old hurdler at his base in Minsk. And at foreign training camps, she regularly cooperates with other European athletes who also specialize in the 100m sprint. They conduct joint training.

With Lauren Seagrave/Photo: Vyacheslav Patysh

“At competitions we are rivals, but in everyday life we ​​are friends,” said Alina. - It's nice to watch each other. See what others are doing, what technology they use. It helps me train."

Photo: european-athletics.org

Talay also works on behalf of her “colleagues” within the framework of the IAAF Athlete Commission, on which she has been a member since 2016. In recent weeks, she has been forced to take some time off for family reasons.

“It's been two great years. We were heard,” she says. “It was cool, and I really hope it will be even better in the future.” It would be very nice to see athletics among the most popular sports in the world because we are changing now.”

ON THE WAY TO BERLIN

Alina is the winner of a special award from the NGO "BAF" "Athletic-2017" / Photo: Alexandra Krupskaya

To date, Alina has two medals of the highest standard at the European Indoor Championships, a bronze medal at the World Championships, a bronze medal at the World Indoor Championships, and gold and silver at the European Championships.

Photo: getty images

In August, she plans to add another medal to her collection from the European Championships in Berlin - the highlight of the athlete's season.

“Like every athlete, I want to be the best,” shares Alina. “I will try to show my best form and a good show in Berlin.”

The road to Berlin will most likely pass through the Diamond League stages in Rabat and London. During breaks, Talay will study videos on his phone, scanning his performances for imperfections and nuances.

“Even in my best race at 12.41, I see a lot of mistakes,” Alina noted. “Sometimes I just can’t look at my running technique: “Oh, God, what am I doing!”

“But it’s good because I can improve and improve my results.”

Alina Talay is a famous athlete from Belarus, participant and medalist of the World Championship.

Childhood and youth

Alina was born in March 1989 in the Belarusian SSR. She grew up as a fairly active child, and therefore her parents decided to send their daughter to the sports section. They decided that she should do athletics. The future athlete did not resist and attended the sports section with pleasure.

After some time, the coaches noticed that the girl stood out from her peers. Since then, they began to pay a little more attention to her than to the others.

Alina Talay successfully competed in children's and youth competitions in the domestic arena. Time passed, and the girl gradually began to run professionally.

Youth career

At nineteen, she went to her first competitions, which took place outside her native Belarus. It was the youth world championship. Few people believed in the athlete’s success, but she managed to qualify for the finals. Unfortunately, she only took fourth place in the final. Despite this result, the girl continued to study hard.

A year later, she goes to the European Championships. Alina again approached the tournament as a “dark horse”. Despite everything, Alina returned to her homeland with a bronze award.

In 2011, Alina Talay participated in the European Youth Championships for the last time and this time won a gold medal. Thus, at twenty-two, Alina won her first major award.

It is worth noting that back in 2011 she took part in the Military World Games and won the 100-meter hurdles.

Adult career

In 2012, Talay goes to Turkey, where the World Indoor Championships are being held. The runner takes third place in the sixty-meter hurdles. In the same year, the athlete becomes second at the European Championships.

2013 was not a very successful year for the young athlete. She won only at the Universiade, which was held in Russia.

In the spring of 2015, Alina became the European champion in the 60-meter hurdles, and just a few months later she won bronze at the World Championships in China. The Belarusian also competed at the London Olympics in the 100m hurdles, but left the tournament at the semi-final stage. She also took part in the relay race, where the Belarusian team lost in the first round.

Unfortunately, the Olympics brought disappointment: Alina Talay did not win anything. Photos and videos from those competitions show the intensity of passions and how hard the athlete tried, but, to the disappointment of the fans, she did not win. But to her credit, later, during many conversations with journalists, she did not look for excuses, but honestly admitted that she was not prepared enough for the competition.

Personal indicators

As you can see, Alina Talay is a rather interesting person. The athlete’s biography shows the following personal records:

• In open space, the girl ran one hundred meters in 11.48 seconds.
• She covered two hundred meters in 23.59 seconds.
• The girl runs 100 meters with obstacles in 12.66 seconds.

As for the indoor results, they look like this:

• Sixty meters in 7.31 seconds.
• Sixty meters hurdles in 7.85 seconds. It is worth noting that this is the best result in the history of Belarus.

Since 2008, Alina Talay has been training under the guidance of Viktor Myasnikov, who is a famous Soviet athlete.

Perhaps if the girl had been a little taller, she would have been able to win more awards. It is very difficult to compete with tall runners when your height is only 164 centimeters. Despite this, Talay is always aimed at winning and tries to fight to the last. It was due to her stubborn character that the girl was able to achieve certain heights.

The young and very gifted Belarusian athlete Alina Talay has already seriously declared herself in the world, and in the shortest possible time she was able to break into the world athletics elite.

Alina Talay was born on May 14, 1989 in Orsha. Her specialty is the 100 meter hurdles. The athlete is training with the famous former hurdler Viktor Myasnikov. Alina is already an international master of sports and a record holder in Belarus.

Like many track and field athletes, Alina Talay did not immediately become involved in athletics, and in particular, hurdles. According to the athlete herself, she has been drawn to playing some kind of sport since childhood. The athlete started athletics only at the age of 12. Before that, she was fond of volleyball and even shot put. Alina Talay took up running only at the age of 14.

Alina Talay's first serious success came in 2008, when she took fourth place in the 100-meter hurdles at the Junior World Championships, which was held in the Polish city of Bydgoszcz, running the distance in 13.50 seconds. A year later, in the same type of program, Alina Talay was able to climb to third place in the finishing protocol at the European Junior Championships (U-23), which was held in the Lithuanian city of Kaunas, running the distance with a time of 13.30 seconds.

After this, the athlete joined the main athletics team of her country. In 2010, Alina Talay completed her performance at the semi-final stage in the 60-meter hurdles. These starts - the World Indoor Championships - took place in Doha. There, the Belarusian athlete ran the distance in 8.18 seconds.

In 2011, Alina Talay made it to the finals at the same distance at the continental indoor championship, which took place in Paris. There the athlete eventually took fifth place with a result of 7.98 seconds.

The next year, 2012, turned out to be the most successful in her career so far for the athlete. At the European indoor championship, which took place in Istanbul, the Belarusian athlete stood on the podium for the first time in her adult career. At this final, Alina Talay took third place in her signature distance of 60 meters, showing a result of 7.97 seconds. In the same year, but already at the summer European championship, which took place in Helsinki, Alina Talay ran the 100-meter hurdles in 12.91 seconds, which allowed her to take second place.

After such performances, the world athletics press started talking seriously about the athlete from Belarus. From that moment on, Alina Talay firmly broke into the elite of world athletics. It is no coincidence that in Belarus Alina Talay was recognized as the best athlete in the country in 2012.

Soon the athlete went to her first Olympic Games, which took place in London in 2012. The debut at the Olympics for the Belarusian athlete turned out to be quite good. Alina Talay, in her signature distance - the 100-meter hurdles - was able to reach the semi-finals, showing a quite decent result - 12.84 seconds. In the final protocol, the athlete was in 13th place. It is worth noting that in the qualifying races, Alina Talay was able to set her personal highest achievement - 12.71 seconds. In addition, the athlete competed with the team in the 4x100 meter relay at the Olympics.

Alina Talay confirms her high skills in 2013. In Beijing, at the World Challenge tournament, which is held under the auspices of the International Athletics Federation, Alina Talay took third place in her profile distance, covering it in 13.09 seconds.

In addition, she also stood on the podium at commercial indoor competitions this year. In Düsseldorf, the runner from Belarus was second, and in Ghent - third. In addition, Alina became second at the Old World indoor championship in Gothenburg, running the distance in 7.94 seconds.

Every athlete strives to win an Olympic medal in his career. Alina Talay is no exception. Alina hopes that her dream will come true at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro! And for this, the young athlete from Belarus has all the data.