On arrival in Glasgow we heard the medal contender wouldn’t be able to compete. Happily he did earning direct qualification to Rio.
– How did you decide to be coached by Dimitris Raftis?
I decided to choose Mr. Raftis because when I asked his opinion about our other coaches, he was the only coach who had something good to say about everyone. …
He worked hard with the successful coach Dimitris Raftis and 2015 turned out to be a golden year for our champion. The 25-years-old earned 10 first place finishes in 11 appearances until he got on the podium for the world finals.
However, on the other hand, he was facing obstacles throughout the entire year: bad training conditions in a cold gym, old equipment, financial problems and then, just weeks before the beginning of the world championships, the death of his beloved father.
– Out of all the hardships of the year, which one was the worse?
– My father’s death. It was very hard for me to return to the gym.
– You had a problem with your hand before the worlds qualifications.
– I was scared for my health. A virus entered my wound and it got into the tendon of my wrist. I’m still on antibiotics. At Sunday, right before the qualifications, I couldn’t even wear my grips. Then, my doctor, Odisseas Paxinos and my coach became… psychologists and managed to make me forget the pain. …
– What were the first feelings you had when you earned the gold medal?
– Joy, sadness because I couldn’t share it with my father, excitement but also puzzlement. I asked my self “so, that’s it?” …
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