Klochkova now a household name (09/24/00)

Klochkova now a household name

by Roman Woronowycz
Kyiv Press Bureau

KYIV - A week ago, 90 percent of Ukrainians probably could not have identified Yana Klochkova. Today she is a household name.

Winning two gold medals in the span of four days will do that, especially since her initial victory gave Ukraine its first gilded trophy at the Sydney Olympics. What adds particular luster to her accomplishment is that the victories gave the country its first gold medals in Olympic swimming in 12 years.

Ms. Klochkova's picture has been splashed over all the front pages of the national newspapers, and a good amount of ink has been devoted to her achievements. She has earned several nicknames, including "the golden fish" and "Miss Medley." Even President Leonid Kuchma could not resist getting involved in the act. A day after her first win, Mr. Kuchma sent the 18-year-old swimmer a telegram congratulating her and thanking her for the gift of a gold medal and a world record to her fellow Ukrainians.

Remarkably, in the days before breaking the world record in the 400-meter individual medley - and the European record that stood for 18 years in the 200-meter individual medley - the swimmer had serious doubts that she could win. In an interview given to reporter Yelenoi Vaitskhovskoi after her first victory and published in the popular Kyiv tabloid Fakty, Ms. Klochkova said she had a recurring nightmare in which she was swimming in competition and losing, only to find that she was not that person and therefore was required to re-swim the race.

"Each time I would awake in great fear at the very same moment," said Ms. Klochkova.

She said that winning the gold was a load off her mind. "Lord, how I couldn't wait for that moment."

Ms. Klochkova's doubts in her abilities were present even before she got to Sydney. In another story that appeared in the Ukrainian sports journal Komanda, Yana's mother, Yelena, told of how her eldest daughter came home one day crying and exclaimed: "I probably won't be able to win at the Olympics. I can't get the breaststroke to work, and everything depends on that."

Her younger sister, Anya, who also is a talented competitive swimmer, explained that Yana believed her breaststroke, which is widely considered her weakest stroke, would cause her to lose to her arch rival, Romania's Beatrice Caslaru.

The younger sister explained that a testament to her sister's immense desire is that in the last several months she had worked to develop the weakest part of her swimming arsenal. Her effort paid off, obviously, because Ms. Klochkova decidedly beat the Romanian swimmer, who finished third in the 400 in Sydney.

Ms. Klochkova's father, Oleksander, explained in Komanda magazine that his daughter initially had been interested in synchronized swimming and, if the section had not been closed at the school in Symferopol where the family lived and where young Yana was studying, she may have been competing in that event in Sydney.

At age 8 Yana's life changed when the Klochkovs met the noted swimming trainers Nina and Oleksander Kozhukh. The family moved to Kharkiv where the Kozhukhs had their swimming school when Yana was 8, and she began to work with Ms. Kozhukh. By her early teens she was winning international competitions. By 15 she was considered the best in the world in the individual medley at the 400-meter distance. Today Ms. Klochkova has Olympic gold to prove it.

With two victories already and an 800-meter freestyle event yet to come, Ms. Klochkova undoubtedly will be remembered as the Ukrainian face of the Sydney Olympics. On Kyiv's streets the name is familiar today. When asked to identify her, Kyivans responded readily and immediately. Most of them would agree with Serhii Havrysh, 32, who said her success is an achievement for Ukraine.

"She proved that Ukraine has talent," commented Mr. Havrysh. "I am proud that because of her the Ukrainian flag was raised. It leaves one with the feeling that not all is lost in Ukraine. It will give Ukraine a better image."

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