Dinos Lefkaritis

Dinos Lefkaritis (Greek pronunciation: [Ντίνος Λευκαρίτης]; born March 30, 1995) is a Cypriot alpine skier who represented the Republic of Cyprus in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.[1]

Dinos Lefkaritis
Personal information
Native nameΝτίνος Λευκαρίτης
National team Cyprus
Born (1995-03-30) March 30, 1995
Larnaca, Cyprus
Years active2008–present
Height6′ 0″ (183 cm)
Weight176 lb (80 kg)
Sport
SportAlpine skiing
Event(s)Giant slalom, slalom
ClubNicosia Ski Club
Medal record
Men's alpine skiing
Representing the Republic of Cyprus
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Small State Games 0 1 0
Total 0 1 0

He was asked to compete in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia,[2] however, an injury prohibited him from competing; he was replaced by Constantinos Papamichael.[3] Lefkaritis won the silver medal representing Cyprus in the 2017 Games of the Small States of Europe.

Biography

Dinos Lefkaritis was born on March 30, 1995 in Larnaca, Cyprus.[4] He began skiing at the age of 5 on the Troodoos Mountains, a large mountain range on Mount Olympus–the highest point in Cyprus.[5][6] He was named Junior Ski Athlete of the Year by the Cyprus Skiing Federation in 2011, 2013, and 2014.[7]

He attended the American Academy of Larnaca from 2007 to 2014.[8] He worked as a public relations officer for Cyprus's United Nations Youth and Student Association during his last year of secondary school.[7] Lefkaritis speaks Greek, German, and English.[7][9]

He is currently attending Bates College in Lewiston, Maine where he is double majoring in engineering and economics.[10] While at university, he participates on their ski team and is counted among the college's 12 Olympians.[11] He is the college's only male Alpine skier to compete in the Olympics.[1] Lefkaritis withdrew temporarily from the college during the second semester of his third year to train for the Olympics. He trained with the Cyprus Skiing Federation on mountain ranges in Europe and South America.[12]

Career

Early career: 2008–2017

He began competing for his home country in international competitions in 2008.[3] Lefkaritis competed in the 2012 Winter Youth Olympic Games in Innsbruck.[3] In 2013, he trained with Cyprus representatives in Ushuaia, Argentina before training for slalom racing in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. After competing in the 2013 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships he sustained an injury (anterior cruciate ligament tear); he suspended training for three months to recover.[13] In February 2015, he competed in the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in Vail, Colorado.[14] He was asked to compete in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, however, an injury prohibited him from competing; he was replaced by Constantinos Papamichael.[2][3] Lefkaritis won the silver medal representing Cyprus in the 2017 Games of the Small States of Europe.[3]

2018 Winter Olympics
Lefkaritis represented the island of Cyprus during the 2018 Winter Olympics.

On January 22, 2018, Lefkaritis was officially ranked as the best alpine skier by the Cyprus Skiing Federation out of his ski club, Nicosia Ski Club.[15][16] He was given the Olympic Solidarity Athlete Scholarship to assist him in preparing for the games.[7][17] Lefkaritis was assigned the head coach of the national team–Milan Matic–to prepare him for his first event.[3] His head-of-mission (manager) is also named Dinos Lefkaritis but the two bare no relation.[18] He reported to the Olympic Record that his alpine skiing inspiration was Austrian skier, Hermann Maier.[19]

On February 9, 2018, he carried his country's flag during the Olympic opening ceremony.[20] According to the official Olympic schedule, Lefkaritis was to ski in the men's giant slalom on February 18 and men's slalom on February 21, 2018.[21] On Sunday, February 18, 10:15 AM, he skied in the Intermediate 1 section of men's giant slalom. He recorded a 19.06 min time[22] in the section with a difference of +2.36; the time disqualified him from placing into the Intermediate 2 section of the competition. He needed an extra 2.85 seconds to qualify for the next round.[23]

Due to inclement weather, the first and second runs of men's slalom were pushed to February 22 and relocated to the Yongpyong Alpine Centre.[24][25] At approximately 10:00 AM, Dinos skied in the first run of the men's slalom.[26][27] During the start of his run, a ski went out on Lefkaritis causing him to swerve into another line and fall near the top of the course. After negotiating eight gates, he ascended the course to restart his run. However, half way up the course he stopped, yelled, and "[struck] his helmet with a hand in frustration".[28] His run was one of 54 to be recorded as a "Did Not Finish (DNF)" as he did not restart and complete the course.[9][29]

Lefkaritis carried the flag of Cyprus during the closing ceremonies of the Olympics on February 25, 2018.[3] According to Balla.com.cy, Lefkaritis posted the following on Facebook on February 24: "The Olympics are a hell of an experience. They push you to face yourself in new ways. I learned a lot, I am really inspired and I am ready to work harder for more."[30]

gollark: Yes, it runs my website, SPUDNET, that sort of thing.
gollark: Hmm, seems like I've accidentally frozen my server a bit.
gollark: Yes, though the problem is that you need increasing amounts of computing power to generate later and later digits.
gollark: They cost £15 new.
gollark: Yep, government.

See also

References
  1. "Meet Olympians with Maine ties in PyeongChang". Press Herald. 2018-02-08. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  2. "Cyprus skiers ready for Winter Olympics - Cyprus Mail". Cyprus Mail. 2014-01-30. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  3. "On the Olympics in South Korea will go one Cypriot | CypLIVE". en.cyplive.com. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  4. "Alpine Skiing | Sport & NOC Entries by Event Cyprus - Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Winter Games". www.pyeongchang2018.com. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  5. "Bates College junior is only Olympian in Cyprus team - Lewiston Sun Journal". Lewiston Sun Journal. 2018-02-09. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  6. "Sole Cyprus team member is from Maine". The Seattle Times. 2018-02-09. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  7. "Profile: Dinos Lefkaritis, Alpine Skiing - Slalom". WCSH. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  8. "Dinos Lefkaritis". Bates College. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  9. "Profile: Dinos Lefkaritis, Alpine Skiing - Slalom". WCSH. Retrieved 2018-02-23.
  10. "Bobcat Dinos Lefkaritis '19 realizes his Olympic dreams". bates.edu. 2 February 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
  11. "Bobcat Olympians". Bates College. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  12. "Bates College Alpine skier to represent Cyprus at Olympic Games". Bangor Daily News. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  13. Dinos Lefkaritis (2014-11-07), Dinos Comeback, retrieved 2018-02-10
  14. Dinos Lefkaritis (2015-03-03), DINOS LEFKARITIS | WSC BEAVER CREEK 2015 | GS QUAL RUN1, retrieved 2018-02-10
  15. "Bobcat Dinos Lefkaritis '19 realizes his Olympic dreams". Bates College. 2018-02-02. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  16. "LEFKARITIS Dinos - Biographie". data.fis-ski.com. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  17. Cyprus Olympic (2018-02-05), Η παρουσίαση της Team Cyprus για την "PyeongChang 2018", retrieved 2018-02-23
  18. "Cyprus to take part in the PyeongChang Winter Olympics". Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  19. "Alpine Skiing | Athlete Profile: Dinos LEFKARITIS - Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Winter Games". www.olympic.org. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  20. "Sole Cyprus team member is from Maine". idahostatesman. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  21. "LEFKARITIS Dinos". Pyeongchang 2018 Olympics. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  22. "UPDATE 3-Olympics-Alpine Skiing-Men's giant slalom overall results". Reuters. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  23. "Alpine Skiing | Results Men's Giant Slalom Run 1 - Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Winter Games". www.olympic.org. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  24. "Alpine Skiing | Results Men's Slalom Run 1 - Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Winter Games". www.olympic.org. Retrieved 2018-02-21.
  25. "Olympic roundup: Austrian skier dominates again". Press Herald. 2018-02-18. Retrieved 2018-02-23.
  26. "Alpine Skiing | Athlete Profile: Dinos LEFKARITIS - Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Winter Games". www.olympic.org. Retrieved 2018-02-23.
  27. "LEFKARITIS Dinos - Biographie". data.fis-ski.com. Retrieved 2018-02-23.
  28. "Maine Olympic hopefuls: Clare Egan shoots clean in biathlon". Press Herald. 2018-02-22. Retrieved 2018-02-23.
  29. "UPDATE 3-Olympics-Alpine Skiing-Men's slalom overall results". Reuters. Retrieved 2018-02-23.
  30. ""The Olympics are a hell of an experience" - Balla.com.cy". Balla.com.cy. 2018-02-24. Retrieved 2018-02-25.
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