Olena Bilosiuk

Olena Bilosiuk
Pidhrushna in 2023
Personal information
Native nameОлена Білосюк
Born (1987-01-09) 9 January 1987 (age 37)
Legnica, Poland
Height1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Professional information
ClubKolos
World Cup debut2 March 2007
Olympic Games
Teams2 (2010, 2014)
Medals1 (1 gold)
World Championships
Teams7 (2009–2013, 2017, 2020, 2021)
Medals6 (1 gold)
World Cup
Seasons15 (2006/07, 2008/09–2013/14, 2015/16-present)
Individual victories2
All victories6
Individual podiums8 (2 gold, 2 silver, 4 bronze)
All podiums25 (6 gold, 12 silver, 7 bronze)
Medal record
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2014 Sochi Relay
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2013 Nové Město Sprint
Silver medal – second place 2013 Nové Město Relay
Silver medal – second place 2017 Hochfilzen Relay
Bronze medal – third place 2013 Nové Město Pursuit
Bronze medal – third place 2020 Antholz Relay
Bronze medal – third place 2021 Pokljuka 4 x 6 km relay
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 2009 Ufa Relay
Gold medal – first place 2011 Ridanna Relay
Gold medal – first place 2012 Osrblie Sprint
Gold medal – first place 2012 Osrblie Pursuit
Gold medal – first place 2012 Osrblie Relay
Silver medal – second place 2010 Otepää Relay
Silver medal – second place 2011 Ridanna Individual
Silver medal – second place 2020 Raubichi Super sprint
Junior World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2006 Presque Isle Individual
European Youth Olympic Festival
Bronze medal – third place 2005 Monthey Sprint
Bronze medal – third place 2005 Monthey Mixed relay

Olena Bilosiuk (Ukrainian: Олена Білосюк, romanized: Olena Bilosiuk, née Olena Pidhrushna (Ukrainian: Олена Михайлівна Підгрушна, romanized: Olena Mykhailivna Pidhrushna; born 9 January 1987)[1] is a Ukrainian biathlete. She is Olympic and World champion and multiple medalist in different high-level competitions. Pidhrushna is considered one of Ukraine's most successful winter sports athletes. She lives in Ternopil.

Career

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Her first international competition was 2005 European Youth Olympic Winter Festival in Monthey, Switzerland, where she won two bronze medals, and 2005 Biathlon Junior World Championships in Kontiolahti, Finland. Next season she missed internationally, but on 2 March 2007, she debuted in Biathlon World Cup by finishing 44th in sprint in Lahti, Finland. She was enrolled in the national team for all three last World Cup stages that season but didn't gain any points. She didn't get a quota in the national team in 2007–08 season. That time she spent competing at Biathlon European Championships and junior competitions.

In 2008–09 season, she took part regularly in the relay team, and on 7 January 2009, she was in the winning relay team in German Oberhof.

She represented Ukraine at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.[2] Her best result at that Games was rank 12 in mass start.

2012–13 season became one of her most successful. In the first sprint race of that season on 1 December 2012, Olena finished third in Östersund, Sweden, and was second in pursuit in Italian Antholz-Anterselva in January 2013. Later on, Pidhrushna took a hat-trick of medals at the 2013 Biathlon World Championships, where she won the gold in the sprint, was part of the women's relay team which won silver, and secured a bronze in the pursuit. For these achievements, she was named Ukraine's best sportswoman of 2013.[3] That season she ended ranking 8th in World Cup general classification.

2013–14 season started for her quite successfully, with one podium in January. Together with Juliya Dzhyma, Valj Semerenko and Vita Semerenko, she won the gold medal in the Women's relay at the 2014 Winter Olympics, in Sochi, Russia. Pidhrushna took a break in her sports career at the end of the 2013–14 season and was subsequently appointed Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports in the Ukrainian government.[3] On 30 November 2014, she gave an interview for biathlon.com.ua, stating: "I took break in my sport career for a decree only. I can't do anything before the time the child will be born... so I must do something... I want fans to understand my decision and wait. I hope to be back in future, after the child will be born..."[4] So she returned in November 2015. Her attempts to have a child were then unsuccessful. Later she divorced her husband.

Stamps of Ukraine, 2014

She returned in 2015–16 season, which she started with two bronze medals in sprint and individual race in Swedish Östersund. In mid-February she won sprint in Canmore, Canada. That year she achieved her best World Cup ranking – 7. Next season Pidhrushna didn't have plenty of good results, and she missed all races in March.

She qualified to represent Ukraine at the 2018 Winter Olympics.[5] Pidhrushna carried the Ukrainian flag during the opening ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics. Due to poor physical conditions, she didn't compete in any race.

Biathlon results

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Olympic Games

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1 medal (1 gold)

Event Individual Sprint Pursuit Mass start Relay Mixed relay
Canada 2010 Vancouver 32nd 18th 21st 12th 6th –
Russia 2014 Sochi 8th 26th 22nd 7th Gold –
South Korea 2018 Pyeongchang Didn't compete
China 2022 Beijing – – – – 7th –

World Championships

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5 medals (1 gold, 2 silver, 3 bronze)

Event Individual Sprint Pursuit Mass start Relay Mixed relay Single mixed relay
South Korea 2009 Pyeongchang 16th – – – DNF – —
Russia 2011 Khanty-Mansiysk 24th 31st 19th 24th DSQ –
Germany 2012 Ruhpolding 14th – – – 6th –
Czech Republic 2013 Nové Město na Moravě 11th Gold Bronze 11th Silver –
Norway 2016 Oslo DNF 16th 5th 18th 5th 4th
Austria 2017 Hochfilzen 10th 34th DNS DNS Silver 5th
Italy 2020 Antholz-Anterselva – 4th 13th 24th Bronze – –
Slovenia 2021 Pokljuka 43rd 11th 7th 12th Bronze 4th –

World Cup

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Individual podiums

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Season Place Competition Placement
2012–13 Sweden Östersund, Sweden Sprint 2
Italy Antholz, Italy Pursuit 2
2013–14 Germany Oberhof, Germany Sprint 3
2015–16 Sweden Östersund, Sweden Individual 3
Sweden Östersund, Sweden Sprint 3
Canada Canmore, Canada Sprint 1

Relay podiums

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Season Place Competition Placement
2008–09 Germany Oberhof, Germany Relay 1
2010–11 Austria Hochfilzen, Austria Relay 2
Slovenia Pokljuka, Slovenia Mixed relay 2
2011–12 Finland Kontiolahti, Finland Mixed relay 2
2012–13 Austria Hochfilzen, Austria Relay 2
Germany Oberhof, Germany Relay 1
Russia Sochi, Russia Relay 2
2013–14 Sweden Östersund, Sweden Mixed relay 3
Austria Hochfilzen, Austria Relay 1
France Annecy-Le Grand Bornand, France Relay 2
2015–16 Austria Hochfilzen, Austria Relay 3
Germany Ruhpolding, Germany Relay 1
United States Presque Isle, United States Relay 2
2016–17 Slovenia Pokljuka, Slovenia Relay 3
2017–18 Austria Hochfilzen, Austria Relay 2

Rankings

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Season Individual Sprint Pursuit Mass start Overall
2008–09 28 70 52 52
2009–10 15 31 32 26 29
2010–11 21 29 26 27 26
2011–12 10 36 51 30 32
2012–13 19 8 4 14 8
2013–14 22 19 34 31 28
2014–15 missed
2015–16 12 5 7 7 7
2016–17 5 37 55 30 33
2017–18 61 35 52
2018–19 34 38 67 36 43
2019–20 67 27 21 27 25

Personal life

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Olena was born in Legnica, Poland, but she spent her childhood in Velyka Berezovytsia near Ternopil, Ukraine. Her family had to move because her father was a military officer.[6]

She graduated from Ternopil Volodymyr Hnatyuk National Pedagogical University, where she studied physical training and sports. Now she is a Ph.D. student at Lviv State University of Physical Culture.

Pidhrushna married Oleksiy Kayda on 26 May 2013.[7] Kayda is a member of Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine's parliament) for the party Svoboda.[8] According to Pidhrushna, her husband was attacked in December 2013 by "provocateurs" during the Euromaidan demonstrations.[9] In October 2016 she declared that they divorced.[10]

During the awarding ceremony after her victory in the women's relay in Hochfilzen on 8 December 2013, she and other Ukrainian biathletes shouted "For Maidan".[9] Pidhrushna gained at a news conference after her women's relay victory at the 2014 Winter Olympics a minute's silence in memory of the people who died in Kyiv in the February 2014 Euromaidan riots.[11]

References

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  1. ^ "Тепер Білосюк: Підгрушна вийшла заміж і змінила прізвище". sport.ua.
  2. ^ "Olena Pidhrushna, Biathlon". Vancouver 2010. Retrieved 21 February 2010.
  3. ^ a b "Retiring from Biathlon; Part 2, the Women". International Biathlon Union. 29 April 2014. Archived from the original on 3 November 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  4. ^ biathlon.com.ua (30 November 2014). "Olena Pidhrushna. Our sportsmen showed their character".
  5. ^ "Ukrainian squad for the 2018 Winter Olympics". Ukrainian Biathlon Federation. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  6. ^ (in Ukrainian) 5 facts about Olena Pidhrushna (9 January 2017)
  7. ^ (in Ukrainian) "Свободівець" Кайда повінчався з біатлоністкою Підгрушною , Tablo ID (27 May 2013)
  8. ^ Кайда, Олексій Петрович, Civil movement "Chesno"
  9. ^ a b (in Ukrainian) "За Майдан" – біатлоністки підтримали українців на врученні золотих медалей, gazeta.ua (08/12/2013)
  10. ^ (in Ukrainian) Biathlete Olena Pidhrushna confirmed that she is divorced, (30 October 2016)
  11. ^ Minute's silence respected at Ukraine news conference, Reuters (21 February 2014)
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