INTERNATIONAL: Belarusian sprinter, Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, who effectively defected during the Tokyo Olympics says she plans to apply for Polish sporting citizenship so that she can run for the country. The 24-year-old sat down with the BBC in Warsaw. She says she hopes her application can be speeded up, as the process for sporting citizenship in Poland can take up to three years.
Tsimanouskaya was the biggest headline of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. After criticizing her coaches on Instagram for not doing enough to combat doping, she was forcibly taken to the airport for a flight back to Belarus. After refusing to board, she fled to the Polish Embassy in Tokyo and applied for asylum. She was due to fly directly to the country from Japan, but ended up flying via Vienna owing to concerns for her safety.
She says Poland will now be her permanent home, and she wants to compete for the Polish national team as soon as possible.
