Historic medal for SGH at international university sports games, surpassing the magical 70m mark, and debut at the World Championships, all topped with the gold badge of the Academic Sports Association. Aleksandra Śmiech will surely remember 2023 with a smile on her face for a long time.
Aleksandra, Ola for short, started the 2023 season with a bang - in May, she joined the prestigious group of hammer throwers who surpassed the 70m mark, becoming the leader of Polish rankings. A week after this wonderful achievement, the competition favourite easily defended her title as the academic champion of Poland in hammer throw, securing her fifth gold medal in a row.
The next stage of the 2023 season was the Polish Championship, where Ola Śmiech was only defeated by Malwina Kopron and the three-time Olympic champion Anita Włodarczyk, achieving a historic 3rd place. Further part of the season was marked by international contests.
At the end of July and beginning of August, the 31st World University Summer Games took place in Chengdu, China. World University Games are the most important competition for student athletes: it is held every two years, and its level is in many aspects similar to that of the Olympics. The qualifying round in Chengdu was a formality, and was an opportunity to feel the atmosphere of the stadium and prepare for the final competition. In the final, our student placed third after the first throw, and although she improved her result twice, her position remained unchanged. In her best attempt, Ola threw the hammer 68.65m, thus winning the historic bronze medal of the University Games.
After this success, Ola focused on preparing for the Budapest World Championships in August 2023. She ultimately finished in 19th place with a result of 69.76m.
International success was appreciated by the authorities of the Academic Sports Association (AZS) - Ola received the Gold Badge of AZS. The badges are awarded by the Main Board of the Academic Sports Association, and in order to receive them, besides significant sporting or organizational achievements, a sufficiently long (minimum three years) membership in the organisation is required.
This is how the athlete herself summarises this season:
“Last season was successful and groundbreaking for me. Surpassing the 70m mark has been my goal for a long time, and I managed to achieve it in my first competition. The next task was to qualify for the World Championships in Budapest. Successful competitions, including the one in Geneva, where I set a new personal record of 71.14m, ensured me a sufficiently high position in the world rankings, but the decisive start in this battle was the Polish Championships. The condition was to be ranked in the top three. The start was incredibly stressful, but ultimately brought many positive emotions. Winning the bronze medal meant, in my case, being called up to the Polish national team for the World Championships. It was a dream come true for me. Before the most important start of this season, I still had to compete at the University Games in Chengdu. The trip itself was an amazing adventure, and the desert was the 3rd place.”
What are Ola’s plans for the Olympic season?
In 2024, she would like to enter the European Championships final in Rome. “The minimum is 71.20m, so just a few centimetres more than my personal record, which I would like to beat. Qualifying for the Olympic Games in Paris would be a dream come true for me, which I will also fight for this season,” she said.
We keep our fingers crossed.
MAGDALENA BRYK, AZS SGH Board Member
