Anzhelika Timanina: The Russian Olympic champion swimmer chasing Tokyo surfing dream (PHOTOS)
The former captain of Russia’s synchronized swimming team, Anzhelika Timanina, has been included in the national surfing squad as the sport plans to make its Olympic debut at the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo.
The 30-year-old blonde, who called time on her illustrious swimming career in 2016, has been swept away by another sport, finding a new passion and motivation in surfing.
Having swapped a swimming pool for the ocean, Timanina started to take part in various surfing shortboard competitions, attracting the attention of Russian surfing bosses who invited her onto the national team.
During her swimming days Timanina achieved stunning results, winning 11 world and two European titles. Timanina also captained her teammates to the coveted Olympic gold at the 2012 Games in London.
Her achievements in surfing have been quite modest in comparison thus far, with her world championship debut last year being recorded with a first-round exit.
Surfing, climbing, and skateboarding were added to the Tokyo Games schedule for the first time with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) monitoring the sports before delivering a final decision on their inclusion to the 2024 Paris Games.
The surfing competitions in Tokyo are scheduled to run from July 26 to August 2. Timanina will be hoping she’s there to ride the new wave of popularity for the sport.