Krystsina Tsimanouskaya


Krystsina Siarheyeuna Tsimanouskaya is a Belarusian-born Polish sprinter. She has won numerous medals at various events, including a silver medal in the 100 metres at the 2017 European U23 Championships, a gold medal in the 200 metres at the 2019 Summer Universiade, and a silver medal in the team event at the 2019 European Games.
Tsimanouskaya qualified to represent Belarus at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, competing in the women's 100 m and 200 m events. On 30 July 2021, a scandal broke out during the Olympics when she accused officials from the Belarus Olympic Committee of entering her into the 4×400 metres relay without her consent. BOC coaches withdrew her from the Olympics on 1 August and took her to Haneda Airport to return to Belarus, but she refused to board the plane and contacted Japanese authorities, who granted her police protection; she was given a humanitarian visa at the Polish embassy in Tokyo before flying to Poland, where she later gained Polish citizenship. In 2023, the World Athletics Nationality Review Panel waived the normal three-year waiting period for citizenship changes, allowing her to compete for Poland.
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Early life

Krystsina Siarheyeuna Tsimanouskaya was born in Klimavichy on 19 November 1996. Though she raced for fun as a child, she joined competitive athletics late, receiving an offer from an Olympic trainer to join his academy when she was about 15 years old. Her parents were initially worried, thinking she would not achieve an athletic career, but she and her grandmother convinced them.

International competitions

1Did not finish in the final
2Disqualified in the final

Tokyo 2020 Olympics

Tsimanouskaya qualified for her first Olympics in the 100 m and 200 m events, representing Belarus. On 30 July 2021, she finished 4th in the first round heat of the 100 m event with a time of 11.47. Prior to the 200 m event, Belarus Olympic Committee officials withdrew her from the competition. On 2 August, the Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected Tsimanouskaya's request to annul the decision of the NOC RB to stop her from participating at the Tokyo Olympics, stating that she was unable to prove her case. On 3 August, the CAS clarified that its judgement was based on the fact that Tsimanouskaya could not prove she would still attempt to compete at Tokyo while she was in the process of seeking asylum in other countries.

Forced repatriation scandal

On 30 July 2021, Tsimanouskaya criticised Belarus Olympic Committee officials in an Instagram video, claiming that they had entered her into the 4 × 400 m relay race without her consent. On 1 August, she was told by BOC officials that she was being withdrawn from competition, and would be taken to Tokyo's Haneda Airport to return to Belarus. After receiving a warning from her grandmother during a phone call, she refused to board the plane and contacted Japanese police and media outlets, telling them that she was afraid of returning to Belarus and that she intended to claim asylum. The Belarusian Sport Solidarity Foundation, an organisation dedicated to protecting athletes, confirmed that an attempt had been made to forcibly return her to Belarus. She received Japanese police protection and was taken to the Polish embassy in Tokyo, where she was granted a humanitarian visa by Poland on 2 August.
Though multiple European countries offered her protection, Tsimanouskaya reportedly chose to seek asylum in Poland as the country had expressly offered her the opportunity to continue competing, and the IOC made contact with officials from the Polish Olympic Committee regarding the possibility of her resuming competition. On 4 August, she flew from Tokyo to Vienna Airport in Austria, where she briefly stayed in the airport under the protection of Austrian police; according to the BSSF, she connected in Austria instead of flying directly to Poland for security reasons on the advice of Polish authorities. She then flew to Warsaw Chopin Airport in Poland, where she was met by Polish officials and Belarusian expatriates. IOC President Thomas Bach and Japan's Foreign Ministry both gave statements on 6 August, describing the scandal as "deplorable" and "unjust". Tsimanouskaya received Polish citizenship in June 2022.
She competed for Poland at the 2024 Summer Olympics in the 200 m and 4 × 100 m relay events.

Personal bests

Outdoor
Indoor