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The excellent organization of the 2022 European Junior Swimming & Diving Championships in Otopeni also secured the hosting of the European Short Course Swimming Championships (25 m) for seniors in December 2023, President of the Romanian Swimming and Modern Pentathlon Federation (FRNPM) Camelia Potec told AGERPRES in an interview.
Camelia Potec revealed that Romania relies exclusively on David Popovici to claim medals at the European Swimming Championships in Rome (August 11-17), in the unexpected absence of Robert Glinta, ranked fifth in 50 m backstroke final at the World Swimming Championships in Budapest.
As far as David Popovici is concerned, the Olympic Games in Paris are his major objective, says Potec: "Paris will be the primary objective in this Olympic cycle. Now he wants progress every year, which is what all professional athletes want. But I wish him to stay healthy, we see very well that health is the most important and without it we can achieve absolutely nothing. I want him to stay focused on what he sets as his objective and prepare to reach his target".
David Popovici, who won two gold medals at the World Senior Championships in Budapest (men's 100 m and 200 m freestyle events), was the star of the European Junior Championships in Otopeni, winning five medals, four gold (50 m freestyle, 100 m freestyle, 20 0m freestyle, 4x100 m freestyle relay) and one silver (in the 4x100 m freestyle mixed relay).
The Romanian delegation finished third in the nation ranking, with nine medals, five gold and four silver.
Romania did not get any medals in the European Junior Diving Championships in Otopeni, the best result being fourth place in the team competition (Jump Event).
"We had 12 athletes at European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF) and even if we won only 4 medals, we almost had double the chance, to say so, to win almost 8 medals, but unfortunately without experience for the young ones in the big competitions, they were a little too emotional in the finals and they didn't manage to get on the podium,'' said the former Olympic champion.
At the European Youth Olympic Festival in Banska Bystrica, Romanian swimmers won four medals, three silver, through Aissia Claudia Prisecariu (swimming - 200m backstroke and 100m backstroke), the mixed 4x100m medley relay (Darius Stefan Coman, Alexandru Constantinescu , Eva Maria Paraschiv, Aissia Claudia Prisecariu) and a bronze one, through the women's 4x100 m mixed relay (Aissia Claudia Prisecariu, Brigitta Vass, Eva Maria Paraschiv, Irina Preda, Ana Maria Sibiseanu).
"We have a young generation, for the future, that will pleasantly surprise us with good results in the years to come. I'm not just referring to certain athletes, I'm referring to an entire team, because we have two relays that won medals, relays that can bring good results at the next competitions for our country," emphasized the president of the Romanian Swimming and Modern Pentathlon Federation.
Camelia Potec, Olympic champion in Athens 2004 in the 200 m freestyle, became the youngest president of a sports federation in Romania, at 31 years old, after the elections of the Romanian Federation of Swimming and Modern Pentathlon in October 2013.
