Published: 25 March, 2008, 17:57
Edited: 25 March, 2008, 17:57
Russia's fastest 800 metre runner, 31-year-old Olga Kotlyarova, will compete in her last Olympics this summer. The former relay World Champion is hell-bent on grabbing an individual medal.
As summer approaches, it becomes harder for Kotlyarova to juggle training with caring for her 4-year-old daughter, Tanya, in her hometown of Yekaterinburg.
Kotlyarova is giving everything in training, and Tanya comes to every practice and dreams of running as fast as her mother.
The runner has been coached by Rif Tababilov since graduating from high school. By then, Olga had already won the national championships, but in the 10th grade she got seriously injured, and thought she couldn't go on pursuing her dreams.
However, someone recommended seeing coach Tababilov, who immediately saw the potential in the lanky teenager, and he’s been working with her ever since.
A former 400-meter runner, Kotlyarova stepped up to the 800 after surprisingly winning the distance at the European Championships in 2006.
Olga's husband, Aleksandr Belov is also a former athlete. They met 13 years ago, when Olga first came to the club and have been together ever since. They even go to training camps together.