The biathlete Svetlana Sleptsova, whose biography is described in our article, is the champion of the Olympic Games as part of the relay team of Russia and a three-time winner of the summer world championship. Repeatedly became the champion and prize-winner at the stages of the World Cup. In 2017, she completed her sports career.
Biographical data
Biathlete Svetlana Sleptsova (photo of the athlete can be seen in the article) was born in July 1986 in the city of Khanty-Mansiysk. Her father served in aviation, and her mother worked as a doctor.
Svetlana was attracted to sports from early childhood, while the girl tried many kinds, from ballroom dancing to martial arts.
At the age of ten, Sleptsova first entered the biathlon section after the coach of the local sports school visited the school where she studied and invited everyone to try this sport. Svetlana was very interested in the opportunity to handle weapons at such a young age.
Several times the girl tried to quit biathlon, but the coaches who saw her as a huge potential did not let this happen every time.
Another problem associated with a tight training schedule was the deterioration of academic performance. The young biathlete Svetlana Sleptsova graduated rather mediocre from school, but managed to enter the University of Sports and Tourism at Ugra. Since at that time she often became the winner and winner of various national and international competitions, she was allowed to study on an individual schedule.
First sports success
Under the leadership of the first mentor Alexander Korchak, biathlete Svetlana Sleptsova trained hard, but, unfortunately, did not achieve much success.
In 2000, the athlete began to prepare for the junior competition under the guidance of another specialist - Mikhail Novikov. A year later, she won the All-Russian competition among juniors for the prize of A. Strepetov.
At the age of eighteen, Sleptsova first took part in the world championship U-19 in the French Ot-Morien. Her highest achievement was the fourth place in the relay.
A year later, at similar competitions in Kontiolahti, she became the world champion in the individual race. In addition to this achievement, she added a bronze medal for the relay to her collection of awards.
In 2006, Svetlana Sleptsova - biathlete of the Russian youth team. At the World Cup in Presque Isle as part of the relay team, she becomes the bronze medalist of the competition. In the same year at the European Cup she won a silver medal in the pursuit.
2007 brought many achievements to Sleptsova. At the World Championships in Val Martello (Italy), Svetlana first became the best in the sprint, and then confirmed her leadership in the pursuit. From the continental championship, the Russian woman brought a whole set of awards. In addition to gold for sprint and relay, she won silver in a parsuit and bronze in an individual race.
After such brilliant performances, Svetlana Sleptsova is allowed to speak at the stages of the World Cup.
Professional sports career
In the 2006/07 season, Svetlana Sleptsova is a biathlete in the Russian national team at international competitions. For the first time at the World Cup stage, she went on the track in Slovenian Pokljuka, but showed not very good results there. On the second attempt, Sleptsova managed to score the first points in the pursuit race in Lahti. As a result, before the end of the competition, Svetlana scored 45 points and took 55th place in the overall ranking.
The next season brought the Russian biathlete world sports fame. At the second stage in Hochfilzen, Sleptsova first hit the podium, taking second place in the relay. In Pokljuka, she repeated this achievement.
The stage in Oberhof became brilliant for biathlete Svetlana Sleptsova. In addition to the bronze in the relay, she first won an award in individual discipline - she became the second in the sprint. At the stage in Ruhpolding, Svetlana again became the third in the relay, and in the sprint race - the second (after the disqualification of Kaisa Varis Sleptsova was awarded the first place).
After successful performances in Antholz, the athlete was first announced for the World Cup. Here she also becomes a bronze medalist in the mixed relay. But the most enchanting for Sleptsova was the final stage in Holmenkollen, where she brilliantly won the sprint and the pursuit.
The following season, Svetlana became the world champion in the relay. At the stages of the World Cup, she went up to the podium six times, and in Hochfilzen she took the highest step of the podium for victory in the sprint race.
The 2009/10 season was literally “gold” for the biathlete. In addition to four victories and two podiums at the World Cup, Sleptsova, together with Bogaliy-Titovets, Zaitseva and Medvedtseva, after winning the relay race became Olympic champions of Vancouver.
Two post-Olympic seasons Svetlana spent quite successfully, several times getting on the podium of both team and individual disciplines.
Deterioration
Before the 2012/13 season, biathlete Svetlana Sleptsova had knee surgery, which is why she missed part of the preparation for the competition. Because of this, the athlete showed very poor results in two stages, and then almost did not perform until the end of this year and almost the whole of the next.
After two unsuccessful seasons, Sleptsova made another attempt to return to the elite of the world biathlon in 2016. But the results again did not please - the best individual achievement was the 24th place in the pursuit race at the World Cup.
Triumphal care
During the summer world championship in 2017, Svetlana Sleptsova performed simply brilliantly. But after victories in the mixed relay and sprint, she announced the completion of her sports career. The athlete explained this decision to changes in her personal life. After her statement, Sleptsova held her last pursuit, in which she won the third and last gold medal of the World Cup.
Athlete’s personal life
The personal life of biathlete Svetlana Sleptsova is not very open to the public, although reporters have repeatedly attributed to her novels with such famous athletes as Tariel Be and Emil Hegle Svendsen, as well as other famous personalities.
She herself does not deny that she has a loved one. And as it turned out, the main reason for Sleptsova’s departure from the sport was pregnancy.