Romania’s delegation at the Tokyo
Olympics will comprise 100 athletes. Of these, 56 will for the first time
compete in an Olympic event. At the opposite pole are the veterans of our
delegation, fencer Ana-Maria Popescu and gymnast Marian Drăgulescu, who are taking
part in their fifth Olympic event and on whom many Romanians have pinned their
hopes of a medal. Drăgulescu will be competing in the men’s vault event, where
he is several-time world and European champion. Drăgulescu’s record sheet
already includes three Olympic medals, obtained 17 years ago in Athens: silver
in the floor event, and bronze in the vault and team events.
Another Olympic event where Romania will
be represented by a champion is fencing. Ana-Maria Popescu last took part in
the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004, where many believed our fencers will grab
medals. Ana-Maria ranked 16, however. She picked up her game in 2008 in Beijing,
where she grabbed silver, Romania’s best performance in the Olympic Games that
year. At the Rio Olympics of 2016, Ana-Maria Popescu wasn’t part of the team
that won the gold medal in the team event.
Much is also expected in rowing. Our
women’s 8+1 and coxless pair crews are the defending European champions.
Moreover, in the recent European championships, hosted by Varese in Italy,
Romania ranked 4th in the medal standings, scooping two gold medals
and four silver. Rowing is also one of the most successful Romanian sports at
the Olympic Games, our double-skull and 8+1 crews scooping five and three Olympic
gold medals, respectively.
Romania’s delegation also includes
two very promising young athletes. Robert Glinţă is the first Romanian swimmer to
win a gold medal in the European Championships and the first athlete to secure
qualification at the Tokyo Olympics. He was also the only Romanian swimmer to reach
the finals at the Rio Olympics of 2016, ranking 8th in the 100-meter
backstroke event. David Popovici last week won three gold medals in the 50-m
freestyle, 100-m freestyle and 200-m freestyle events at the Under-21 European
Championships, setting world records in the last two events. David Popovici
also won silver in the 4×100-m freestyle relay. (VP)