Yana Volodymyrivna Shemyakina ( uk, Яна Володимирівна Шемякіна; born 5 January 1986)
Lviv State University of Physical Culture
Lviv State University of Physical Culture ( uk, Львівський державний університет фізичної культури) is a university specializing in sports education and located in Lviv, Ukraine.
History
Lviv State ...
is a Ukrainian right-handed
épée
The ( or , ), sometimes spelled epee in English, is the largest and heaviest of the three weapons used in the sport of fencing. The modern derives from the 19th-century , a weapon which itself derives from the French small sword. This contains ...
fencer, three-time
Olympian
Olympian or Olympians may refer to:
Religion
* Twelve Olympians, the principal gods and goddesses in ancient Greek religion
* Olympian spirits, spirits mentioned in books of ceremonial magic
Fiction
* ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'', fiction ...
, and 2012 individual Olympic champion.
Shemyakina competed in the
2008 Beijing Olympic Games
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nati ...
, the
2012 London Olympic Games
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
, and the
2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games
The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...
.
Early years
Shemyakina was born and raised in Lviv, Ukraine. She is the second of a family of three children: she has a brother six years older than her, Vladimir, and a sister, Lyubov.
Her family was not particularly into sports: her brother had tried a few swimming lessons, but did not get into it. Shemyakina first tried ski at the age of nine. At the end of a lesson, after a few months' training, she attempted a harder downhill course than she was used to, fell and broke her leg. Her absence had gone unnoticed and she stayed alone in the snow for a long time, almost freezing, before she was found by chance and taken to the hospital.
Career
After Shemyakina recovered from her skiing accident, a friend suggested that she try fencing. She began training under Andriy Orlikovsky, who remains her coach , and quickly took to the sport. She soon showed talent, winning the 2002 Cadet World Championships in Antalya. Her parents were doubtful at first of their daughter's sport ambitions, as they did not believe she could make a living off it, but her coach encouraged her to go on.
She went on to earn a silver medal at the 2003 and 2005 Junior Fencing Championships.
2002–2012
Shemyakina began fencing in the senior category in the
2002–03 season. She climbed the podium at her second
World Cup event with a bronze medal in Katowice. This result had her selected into the senior national team at the age of seventeen for the
2003 World Fencing Championships
The 2003 World Fencing Championships were held in Havana, Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several ...
. She created a surprise at the
2005 European Championships by reaching the final after defeating Romania's
Iuliana Măceșeanu
Iuliana Măceșeanu (born 7 July 1981) is a Romanian épée fencer, bronze medallist at the 2005 European Championships and three-time team European champion (2006, 2008, and 2009).
Career
Măceșeanu took up fencing at CSM Craiova when she wa ...
. She then prevailed over Hungary's
Hajnalka Tóth
Hajnalka Tóth (born 27 August 1976) is a Hungarian fencer, team World champion in 1999 and 2002, team European champion in 2001. She competed in the women's team épée event at the 2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θ ...
to win her first major title.
Shemyakina took part in the
2007 Summer Universiade
The 2007 Summer Universiade officially known as the XXIV Summer Universiade and commonly known as Bangkok Universiade, was an international Multi-sport event, multi-sport for university athletes that took place from 8 to 18 August 2007 in Bangkok, ...
in Bangkok and won the
individual event after defeating Israel's
Noam Mills
Noam Mills ( he, נעם מילס; born May 27, 1986) is an Israeli fencer, who competed in the individual women's épée event for Israel at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. She is a three-time junior Israeli champion in épée, and a four-t ...
. For this result she was awarded the
Ukrainian Order of Merit III degree by
Ukrainian President
The president of Ukraine ( uk, Президент України, Prezydent Ukrainy) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, condu ...
Viktor Yushchenko. A year after she
qualified to the
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...
by reaching the final at the European zone qualifier held in Prague. The
2008 European Championships held at home in Kiev were a major disappointment: she lost four pool bouts and did not qualify for the main table. For her Olympic début in Beijing she was defeated in the first round by Panama's
Jesika Jiménez.
After the Games, Shemyakina took a bronze medal at the
2009 European Championships after losing in the semifinals to Olympic champion
Britta Heidemann
Britta Heidemann (born 22 December 1982) is a German épée fencer.
In 2016, Heidemann became a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Career Épée Fencing
At the age of 14, already being a successful athlete and swimmer, Britta ...
.
[ In the 2009–10 season she won her first World Cup event in Doha and proceeded to earn a silver medal in Lobnya and a bronze in Nanjing. These results, along with a quarter-final finish at the 2008 European Championships, allowed her to finish the season World No.6. She earned her ticket to the ]2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
in London as a member of the top-ranked European team in positions 5–16. In the individual event she saw off 2009 World champion Lyubov Shutova
Lyubov Andreyevna Shutova (russian: Любовь Андреевна Шутова; born 25 June 1983) is a Russian fencer, World champion in 2009 and team World champion in 2013 and 2014. Bronze medallist of a team event at 2016 Summer Olympics ...
. She then beat World No.1 Ana Maria Brânză
Ana Maria Popescu, formerly known as Ana Maria Brânză (, born 26 November 1984), is a Romanian left-handed épée fencer.
Popescu is a four-time team European champion, 2013 individual European champion, and two-time team world champion.
A f ...
and reigning European champion Simona Gherman, both by a single hit. She defeated China's Sun Yujie in the semifinals, then overcame Beijing Olympic champion Britta Heidemann
Britta Heidemann (born 22 December 1982) is a German épée fencer.
In 2016, Heidemann became a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Career Épée Fencing
At the age of 14, already being a successful athlete and swimmer, Britta ...
to win the Olympic title. In the team event Ukraine lost to Russia in the first round, then to Germany and Italy, and finished last.
Shemyakina ended the 2011–12 season World no.2, a career best . For her Olympic performance she was awarded a second Ukrainian Order of Merit III degree by President Viktor Yanukovych. She was also named “Person of the Year”.
After the London Games
After the London Olympics, Shemyakina took a break to focus on life outside of sport. She competed in four World Cup events, winning the Budapest Grand Prix, but did not take part in the 2013 European Championships nor in the 2013 World Championships.
The 2013–14 season she posted a second place at the Leipzig World Cup and a quarter-final finish at the Saint-Maur World Cup. At the 2014 European Championships in Strasbourg she lost in the quarter-finals to Romania's Simona Gherman, whom she had defeated in London at the same stage of the competition, but gained a spot in the Top 16, which qualifies for exemption from the pool phase in competitions. At the 2014 World Championships in Kazan she reached the semi-finals, where she lost to Italy's Rossella Fiamingo
Rossella Fiamingo (born 14 July 1991) is an Italian left-handed épée fencer and two-time individual world champion. A three-time Olympian, Fiamingo is a 2021 team Olympic bronze medalist and 2016 individual Olympic silver medalist.
She is e ...
and took a bronze medal.
In the 2014–15 season she won a bronze medal at the Xuzhou World Cup and at the Barcelona World Cup.
Medal Record
Olympic Games
World Championship
European Championship
Grand Prix
World Cup
Personal life
Shemyakina married fencing coach Oleg Lopatenko in May 2013. She is a student at the Lviv State University of Physical Culture
Lviv State University of Physical Culture ( uk, Львівський державний університет фізичної культури) is a university specializing in sports education and located in Lviv, Ukraine.
History
Lviv State ...
.[Fencing : Yana Shemyakina - Bronze medalist of European Championship 2009]
Lviv State University of Physical Culture
Lviv State University of Physical Culture ( uk, Львівський державний університет фізичної культури) is a university specializing in sports education and located in Lviv, Ukraine.
History
Lviv State ...
[Фехтування:Яна Шемякіна і Христина Стуй нагороджені іменними значками і дипломами МОК ''Nominal awarded badges and certificates IOC'']
Lviv State University of Physical Culture
Lviv State University of Physical Culture ( uk, Львівський державний університет фізичної культури) is a university specializing in sports education and located in Lviv, Ukraine.
History
Lviv State ...
(16 November 2012)
References
External links
*
*
archive
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Shemyakina, Yana
1986 births
Living people
Ukrainian female épée fencers
Fencers at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Fencers at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Fencers at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Sportspeople from Lviv
Olympic fencers of Ukraine
Olympic gold medalists for Ukraine
Olympic medalists in fencing
Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Universiade medalists in fencing
Universiade gold medalists for Ukraine
European Games competitors for Ukraine
Fencers at the 2015 European Games
Medalists at the 2007 Summer Universiade
Medalists at the 2009 Summer Universiade
20th-century Ukrainian women
21st-century Ukrainian women