Opinions & Interviews

SOCHI, 12 February (BelTA) – The victories like the one biathlete Darya Domracheva has brought to Belarus promote the country’s positive image better than any diplomacy does, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said as he congratulated Darya Domracheva on winning a gold medal in the 2014 Sochi Olympics 10K Women’s Pursuit on 11 February, BelTA has learnt.

The Belarusian leader was one of the first to congratulate Darya Domracheva on the victory. Among those who gathered to congratulate the Olympic gold medalist were Belarusian fans and members of the Belarusian national team. President’s son Nikolai presented a bouquet of flowers to the Belarusian biathlete.

Alexander Lukashenko shared his impressions of the performance of Darya Domracheva and her closest rivals. According to the head of state, such achievements in sport are sometimes better than any diplomacy in promoting the country’s image worldwide.

Darya Domracheva for her part took note of the efforts of the whole team in the achievement of such a high result. In her words, “the stars have aligned on the day”.

“These are your Olympics,” the President said addressing Darya Domracheva. Alexander Lukashenko also expressed confidence that other Belarusian athletes, including the national biathlon team, are capable of winning Olympic medals.