Natalya Dobrynska long jumping in 2009 Decaster in Talence (© Hans van Kuijen)
Ukrainian Heptathlon Olympic champion Natalya Dobrynska won her final meet of the season on 19-20 September in Talence. Dobrynska is now putting her spikes away for a while to take part in the Ukrainian sequel of the famous TV project “Dancing for you”.
“Hi all,
“I’m just back from France, and right now I can enjoy my vacation! It feels great, like when you’ve done everything you could and you wanted to. I’m sure I do deserve some rest after the final victory of the season!
“Usually by the final meet you feel kind of exhausted. It’s always hard to focus after the main start of the season is over, especially if this main start was a success. Sadly, with the 4th place at the World Champs, this year it’s not my case… But from the other side, I did not feel exhausted in Talence and had plenty of motivation to prove that I’m still strong. I did not show what I really could in Berlin. I was determined to show this at least in Talence. I was that focused that I didn’t even feel tired.
“When it’s your last event of the season, you can give everything you have. There are no excuses like when you’re getting ready for other meets, trying to peak your shape etc. Just give what you have, and that’s it! I was repeating these words to myself all the way in Talence, especially during the last 800m. I am quite satisfied with myself that I managed to stand it all.
“I had two good days, with season bests in the shot put (16.48m) and high jump (1.86m), and also a very good result 2:13.07 in the 800m. I missed my PB by just a few hundredths. That was a very nice surprise that I was still capable of fast times, it’s fantastic! I was second before the 800m, but losing only 0,4 to Yosypenko, so that was not critical. But I still tried to run my maximum speed, because you never know – maybe someone from behind could have accelerated. I gave all I had, produced a fast time and ended my season with a victory… Well, I’ve got some reasons to be proud of myself.
“This season went out kind of controversial. I won all my meets, but for one, and the most important one – in Berlin. I can’t say that I am disappointed with the season because it’s not right to think so when you are winning meets like Gotzis or Talence. I think in life everything can happen. I’ll do my best so that the Berlin defeat doesn’t overshadow my future career. We analyzed everything with my coach, made our conclusions, and now it’s all over. It makes no sense to dwell on it again and again. I will just turn the page and go further. Overall, I had quite a good season. This final victory really helped to feel self-satisfaction and look to the future with a smile.
“What I enjoy now is freedom! You can never feel free when the season is on the way, but now I can finally do only what I want to do. To be honest, what I want to do now is dance! I am taking part in the Ukrainian project called “Dancing for you”. It’s a sequel of the famous project when people from show business or sports dance in pairs with professional dancers. It’s a completely new experience for me, and it’s amazing!
“We have nine duets and nine weeks in the project. Every week one duet will be eliminated by people’s vote. It’s all fair, even I don’t know when the project is going to finish for me. Everything depends on the voting. My debut is already on Saturday, and what makes me nervous it’s being broadcasted live!
“I’m not the only athlete to take part, there are also our famous rhythmic gymnast Anna Bessonova and figure skater Ruslan Goncharov. But you know, their situation is much different from mine. Their sports in this or that way still involve dancing, while I can’t say the same about athletics! I never had dancing lessons even when I was a kid. I am learning everything from the very beginning, and it’s so very interesting!
“I started dancing some days after I returned from Berlin. I usually had my athletics workout in the morning, and after lunch went to the dancing lesson. As my coach was joking, it was even good, as I was moving here and there all day long, no time to lie on the sofa! Generally I love to study, I love to discover something new. And with dancing, it has always been my small dream to learn how to dance nicely. Now I feel like my dream is coming true.
“Our first dance is on the modern music, “Un-break my heart” by Tony Braxton. It’s so very beautiful and romantic, and I like what we managed to prepare. Ok, I have to admit there is a problem with my plastics, but I hope nobody is going to notice!
“As you could have guessed, the indoor season is now not the main point on my agenda. No, theoretically I’d like to compete indoors. Moreover there is the World Championships this year. But it will depend on many factors, first of all when I’m going to be eliminated from the dancing project.
“You know, in the last five years I did not miss a single season. I was always there, training and fighting for my place under the sun. It’s really hard for the body, and now I feel like I need some rest. After dancing is over, I’d like to go with my husband for a small vacation. I have not yet decided where exactly, but my dream is Paris. I remember I once competed there in Bercy, and the city was so beautiful. Back then I did not have enough time for sightseeing, but now I want to explore it all over. And of course, it wouldn’t be complete without shopping!
“Bye,
Natalia”
