Ukraine makes history with first-ever “gold” in water sports at Euro with Zheltiakov’s 200-meter backstroke victory

Ukrainian swimmer Oleksandr Zheltiakov won the first gold medal in the history of Ukraine at the 2024 European Aquatics Championship for the 200-meter backstroke.

"Suspilne. Sport" writes about this.

Zheltiakov began swimming in sixth place during the first 50 meters, but he managed to finish the first half of the race in the top three.

He managed to clinch the championship title by overtaking Greek swimmer Apostolos Siscos by a mere 0.03 seconds at the very end. Roman Mityukov, a Swiss swimmer, came in third place.

Here is the results for the 200m backstroke final in the Euro water sports competition:

• 1st place: Oleksandr Zheltyakov from Ukraine with a time of 1:55.39 minutes;
• 2nd place: Apostolos Siskos from Greece with a time +0.03 seconds;
• 3rd place: Roman Mityukov from Switzerland with a time +0.36 seconds.

Not only is this Ukraine's first "gold" in the history of the 200-meter backstroke, but it is also the first backstroke medal in the Euro water sports in 24 years. The last time Ukraine achieved this was in 2000, when Volodymyr Nikolaychyk won the "silver" in the 100-meter swimming race.

It also became Ukraine's first place at the 2024 European Championships in water sports and Zheltiakov's first personal "gold" at the adult European Championships.

In addition, the swimmer's result is a new national record in the 200-meter backstroke. Zheltiakov improved the previous record, which also belonged to him, by 0.4 seconds.

What is the meaning of Zheltiakov's "gold"?

• Ukraine secured its first "gold" at the European Championship in water sports, with its previous wins limited to three diving awards.
• Zheltiakov also achieved his first personal "gold" at the adult European championships, after previously only earning medals at the junior level, including two "golds" at the Junior World Championships and two top awards at the Euro.
• This marked Ukraine's first "gold" in the 200-meter backstroke, as well as their first backstroke medal at the Euro in over two decades. Prior to this, Volodymyr Nikolaychyk had won "silver" in the 100-meter backstroke in 2000.

For reference:
Zheltiakov is the swimmer from Dnipro, aged 18, who is a European champion, a world junior champion, a medalist in the European Junior Championship, and holds a Ukrainian record.

Specifically, during the 2023 World Junior Swimming Championship in Netanya, Israel, Zheltiakov earned two gold medals in the 100-meter and 200-meter backstroke events, as well as a silver medal in the 50-meter relay, meeting the Olympic standard.

It should be noted that the Ukrainian high jump champion Yaroslava Mahuchikh defended her championship status at the European Championships in Rome, which she won for the first time in 2022.

It was also reported that in the final of the Golden Euroleague-2024, the volleyball team of Ukraine won against the national team of Croatia.