#ARCTIC. #SIBERIA. THIS IS TAIMYR. Krasnoyarsk region governor Mikhail Kotyukov congratulated the countryman-athlete on his victory and awarded him with a certificate of honour of the Krasnoyarsk region for achieving high sports results.
At the Paralympics Matvey Yakushev won a gold medal in the long jump. He set a new Russian and European record with a result of 7,51 metres. The Nazarovo native was the only representative of the Krasnoyarsk region at the Games. Yakushev’s gold medal is the first highest award for an athlete from our region at the Summer Paralympics in 12 years.
The Paralympic champion said that he was very pleased with his performance in Paris, but is not going to stop there.
“I have something to aspire to. There is a desire to break the world record, to take part in the world and European championships. At the international level, I have so far performed at the Paralympic Games. Of course, I would like to compete at international championships and show a decent result”, Matvey said.
Yakushev trains in Krasnoyarsk at the regional sports training centre for adaptive sports. Since 2020, he has been a member of the Russian national team in sports for people with intellectual disabilities. Matvey is an honoured master of sports of Russia, has repeatedly become a winner and medallist in all-Russian and international competitions, as reported on the official portal of the Krasnoyarsk region government.
Also, the Krasnoyarsk region governor presented certificates of merit to the athlete’s coaches – Mikhail Petrik, who has been training Yakushev for six years, and Nadezhda Bannikova, the head of the sports centre where the athlete trains. Together with Matvey, his parents came to meet with the head of the region.
It should be noted that earlier Russian president Vladimir Putin awarded the winners of the Paris Paralympics with state insignia. On 16 December in the Kremlin, the head of state presented Matvey Yakushev with the Order of Friendship. During the ceremony, Vladimir Putin left his autograph on the Krasnoyarsk athlete’s gold medal ribbon at his request.
More than 26 thousand people in the Krasnoyarsk region are engaged in adaptive physical training and sports. The region’s national teams include 249 athletes, including 72 athletes who represent the region in the national teams of the country. Krasnoyarsk athletes have more than 150 medals at the All-Russian and international levels.
The 17th Summer Paralympic Games in Paris took place from 28 August to 8 September 2024. At the tournament 88 Russians competed in five sports: athletics, swimming, triathlon, table tennis and taekwondo. The Russian team won 64 medals: 20 gold, 21 silver and 23 bronze. The team took the eighth place in the unofficial medal standings in terms of the total number of awards. Athletes from 171 countries took part in the competition.
Earlier This Is Taimyr told about the annual regional festival of adaptive sports held in Norilsk.
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Text: Maria Ivanova, Photo: Krasnoyarsk region government press service