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WIZZ MAGAZINE
ALAMY; CORBIS
SauliusRitter
NATIONALITY:
LITHUANIAN
SPORT:
ROWING
AGE:
27
Ritter’s first introduction to theOlympics
was inLondon2012. “Wehad sucha
warmwelcome fromLithuanians living
inLondon,”he says, “but Ihope the
weatherwill bebetter inRio!”Gaininga
silvermedal in the2015WorldRowing
Championships inAiguebelette,Ritter
hopes that in theupcominggameshewill
dohisparentsproud, asbothof themare
rowers too. “I enjoy thecompetition,”he
says, but thebiggestpleasure is“being
inanatural environment, rowingon the
lakeor river”.
Try rowing in Lithuania:
Thebestplace for rowing inLithuania
isTrakai,wherepeoplecandohalf-day
scenic tours.Those looking tohone their
skillscanuse the“great facilities for
training”, saysRitter. “Many interna-
tionalWorldChampionshipshavebeen
held there.”
auksinisyris.lt
MarisStrombergs
NATIONALITY:
LATVIAN
SPORT:
BMX
AGE:
29
“The first time I sawaBMX, Iwas five
yearsold. I stood there lookingat the
trackandcried foranhour,” laughs
Strombergs. “Iwassoscared.About
threeweeks later, Iaskedmydad to take
meback to the track.The first sport I
triedasakidwasmountainskiing, then
basketball,but I stuckwithBMX. I think
Imade therightdecision,”smiles the
doubleOlympicgoldmedal-winner.This
highachieverhaswonevery title inBMX
racing. “It’ssomuchharder todefenda
title than towinone,”revealsStrombergs.
“WithRio, Ihaveagreatopportunity to
goout thereandwinanothergoldmedal.
Thereare fewathletes in theworld that
havewon threeOlympicgoldmedals.” In
2010, Strombergshadaseriouscrashand
brokehiswrist.Heblames itonwearing
blacksocks. “Ididn’thaveanywhitesocks
left thatday, so Igrabbedblackonesand
crashedreallyhard,”hesays. “Since then
I’veneverwornblacksocks inarace.”
Strombergswill carry theLatvian flagat
theopeningceremony inRio.
RideBMX in Latvia:
Strombergs’ town
ofValmierahasaprototypeOlympic
track. “It’swhereall the topLatvianBMX
guys train,”he says.
bmxrubene.lv
