Switlana Sajenko

Sajenko at the 2014 Paris Golden Grand Prix

Switlana Oleksandriwna Sajenko ( Ukrainian Світлана Олександрівна Саєнко , Romanian Svetlana Saenko ; born October 7, 1982 in Sumy , Ukrainian SSR , Soviet Union ) is a wrestler who competed for the Ukraine until 2010 and since 2012 for the Republic of Moldova . She won a total of six medals at world and European championships.

Career

Switlana Sajenko was born in Ukraine. She also started wrestling in Ukraine in 1999. The 1.69 meter tall athlete belonged to the Dinamo Sumy sports club and has been coached by Juri Holub since 1999. She started for Ukraine until 2010. But since she got insurmountable opponents there in Kateryna Burmistrowa and a few other wrestlers, she decided to start for the Republic of Moldova from 2012 . She still lives and trains in Sumi, and wrestling is currently her job.

Switlana Sajenko's international career began in 2001. She started this year at the European Championships in Budapest and came in 5th in the weight class up to 68 kg. Just one year later, in 2002, she won her first medal at an international championship. She came in Seinäjoki / Finland in the weight class up to 72 kg, in which she should only compete in the following years, with a victory over Zarife Yıldırım from Turkey , a defeat against Monika Kowalska , Poland, victories over Katarzyna Juszczak and Maider Unda González de Audicana , Spain , a loss to Nina Englich , Germany and a Sig over Monika Kowalska to 3rd place. In the same year she was also junior vice-world champion in Tirana behind Jelena Perepelkina , Russia , ahead of Anna Wawrzycka from Poland. At the 2002 World Cup in Chalkida , Greece , she finished 7th with victories over Anita Schätzle from Germany and Kang Min-jeon from South Korea and a defeat against Wang Xu from China .

In 2004 Switlana Sajenko came at the European Championships in Haparanda after victories over Fanny Gai, France , Rita Soós, Hungary and Anita Schätzle until the final battle, in which she was defeated by Güzäl Mänürowa from Russia. She became vice European champion. In the same year competitions in women's wrestling took place for the first time at the Olympic Games in Athens . The Ukrainian wrestlers also fought for a starting place in the weight class up to 72 kg. Switlana Sajenko was defeated in the internal Ukrainian elimination for this starting place to Oksana Waschtschuk and could therefore not start in Athens.

In 2005 she finished 5th at the European Championships in Varna after losing to Anita Schätzle in the quarterfinals. In the fight for one of the bronze medals, she lost to Stanka Slatewa from Bulgaria . In the same year she managed to fight for a bronze medal at the World Championships in Budapest . She defeated at this world championship Maider Unda González de Audicana, Marina Gastl from Austria , lost to the multiple world champion Kyōko Hamaguchi and defeated Wang Jiao from China in the fight for a bronze medal .

In 2006 in Moscow and 2007 in Sofia , Switlana Sajenko was both vice European champion. In Moscow she defeated u. a. Wassilissa Marsaljuk from Belarus and in Sofia Agnieszka Wieszczek from Poland. In both championships she lost in the final battle against Stanka Slatewa. At the world championships of those years in Guangzhou and Baku she missed the medal ranks relatively narrowly. It came in 7th in Guangzhou and 8th in Baku.

At the European Championships in Tampere in 2008 Switlana Sajenko lost the fight for a bronze medal against Anita Schätzle. After the Olympic Games in Beijing, she started at the World Championships held in Tokyo . But there she lost to Ohenewa Akuffo from Canada. Since this did not reach the final battle, she was eliminated and only came in 14th place.

Switlana Sajenko won the last medal at an international championship at the 2009 European championships in Vilnius . After losing in the semifinals against Aljona Starodubzewa from Russia, she won this medal by defeating Marina Gastl from Austria . But she also achieved good results at the World Championship 1009 in Herning / Denmark and at the European Championship 2010 in Baku , where she finished 5th.

Starting for the Republic of Moldova, Switlana Sajenko managed to secure a starting place for the 2012 Olympic Games in London with a 2nd place behind Ochirbatyn Burmaa from Mongolia at the qualifying tournament in Taiyuan / China in April 2012 . In London she won her first fight against Cynthia Vanessa Vesscan, France, but then lost to the 2008 Olympic champion Wang Jiao from China. Since this did not reach the final, she was eliminated and ended up in 10th place.

International success

year	space	competition	Weight class	Results
2001	5.	EM in Budapest	up to 68 kg	behind Natalja Gawrilowa , Russia , Lise Legrand , France , Anita Schätzle , Germany and Nina Nilsen, Norway
2002	3.	EM in Seinäjoki / Finland	up to 72 kg	after a victory over Zarife Yıldırım, Turkey , a defeat against Monika Kowalska , Poland , victories over Katarzyna Juszczak and Maider Unda González de Audicana , Spain , a defeat against Nina Englich , Germany and a victory over Monika Kowalska
2002	2.	Junior European Championship in Tirana	up to 72 kg	behind Jelena Perepelkina , Russia , in front of Anna Wawrzycka, Poland and Caroline dos Santos, France
2002	7th	World Cup in Chalkida / Greece	up to 72 kg	after victories over Anita Schätzle and Kang Min-jeong, South Korea and a defeat against Wang Xu , China
2003	12.	World Cup in New York	up to 72 kg	after a loss to Kyōko Hamaguchi , Japan and a victory over Kaliram Sonika, India
2004	7th	FILA test tournament in Athens	up to 72 kg	after a win over Rita Soós, Hungary and a defeat against Swetlana Martynenko , Russia
2004	2.	EM 2004 in Haparanda	up to 72 kg	after victories over Fanny Gai, France, Rita Soós and Anita Schätzle and a defeat against Güzäl Mänürowa , Russia
2005	5.	EM in Varna	up to 72 kg	after a win over Maria Louiza Vryoni, Greece , a defeat against Anita Schätzle, a win over Rita Soós and a defeat against Stanka Slatewa , Bulgaria
2005	2.	World Cup in Clermont-Ferrand	up to 72 kg	behind Kyōko Hamaguchi, in front of Iris Smith , USA and Tainiel Guerra, Venezuela
2005	3.	World Cup in Budapest	up to 72 kg	after victories over Maider Unda González de Audicana and Marina Gastl, a defeat against Kyōko Hamaguchi and a win over Wang Jiao , China
2006	3.	Klippan Lady Open	up to 72 kg	behind Anna Wawrzycka , Poland and Anita Schätzle, together with Jenny Fransson , Sweden , in front of Stanka Slatewa
2006	2.	EM in Moscow	up to 72 kg	after victories over Karine Schdojan, Armenia , Wassilissa Marsaljuk , Belarus and Ana Maria Paic , Romania and a defeat against Stanka Slatewa
2006	4th	World Cup in Nagoya	up to 72 kg	behind Ohenewa Akuffo , Canada , Kyōko Hamaguchi and Kristie Marano (Davis), USA
2006	7th	World Cup in Guangzhou	up to 72 kg	after victories over Maider Unda González de Audicana and Jenny Fransson and defeats against Kyōko Hamaguchi and Kristie Marano
2007	2.	EM in Sofia	up to 72 kg	after victories over Nina Sklenková, Czech Republic , Wassilissa Marsaljuk and Agnieszka Wieszczek , Poland and a defeat against Stanka Slatewa
2007	8th.	World Cup in Baku	up to 72 kg	after victories over Zümrüd Qurbanhacıyeva, Azerbaijan and Jaresmit Weffer, Venezuela and a defeat against Güzäl Mänürowa
2008	5.	EM in Tampere	up to 72 kg	after a defeat against Güzäl Mänürowa, a win over Iryna Zyrkewitsch, Belarus and a defeat against Anita Schätzle
2008	14th	World Cup in Tokyo	up to 72 kg	after a loss to Ohenewa Akuffo
2009	3.	EM in Vilnius	up to 72 kg	after victories over Maider Unda González de Audicana and Simge Yıldız, Turkey, a defeat against Aljona Starodubzewa , Russia and a victory over Marina Gastl
2009	3.	German Grand Prix in Dormagen	up to 72 kg	behind Ekaterina Bukina and Natalja Vorobjowa , both Russia
2009	3.	Austrian Lady Open in Götzis	up to 72 kg	behind Mami Shinkai , Japan and Jenny Fransson
2009	5.	Golden Grand Prix in Baku	up to 72 kg	behind Stanka Slatewa, Jenny Fransson, Güzäl Mänürowa and Ohenewa Akuffo
2009	5.	World Cup in Herning / Denmark	up to 72 kg	after victories over Preetkaur Gursharan, India, Jana Panowa, Kyrgyzstan and Laure Ali Annabel , Cameroon and defeats against Qin Xiaoping , China and Stanka Slatewa
2010	5.	EM in Baku	up to 72 kg	behind Stanka Slatewa, Jekaterina Bukina, Emma Weberg , Sweden and Maider Unda González de Audicana
2010	2.	Austrian Lady Open in Götzis	up to 72 kg	behind Jenny Fransson, in front of Maider Unda González de Audicana and Marina Gastl
2012	8th.	Olympic qualification tournament in Sofia	up to 72 kg	Winner: Jenny Fransson ahead of Kateryna Burmistrowa , Ukraine
2012	2.	Olympic qualification tournament in Taiyuan / China	up to 72 kg	behind Otschirbatyn Burmaa , Mongolia , in front of Maja Gunvor Erlandsen , Norway and Marina Gastl
2012	5.	Austrian Lady Open in Götzis	up to 72 kg	behind Leah Callahan, Canada, Jenny Fransson, Maider Unda González de Audicana and Marina Gastl
2012	5.	Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid	up to 72 kg	behind Stanka Slatewa, Laure Ali Annabel, Cameroon, Maider Unda González de Audicana and Jenny Fransson
2012	10.	OS in London	up to 72 kg	after defeating Cynthia Vanessa Vescan, France and losing to Wang Jiao, China
2012	3.	"Henri Deglane" Challenge in Nice	up to 72 kg	behind Adeline Gray , USA and Dalma Caneva, Italy
2013	2.	"Alexander Medved" Prize in Minsk	up to 72 kg	behind Jekaterina Bukina, Russia, in front of Sabirə Əliyeva, Azerbaijan and Wassilissa Marsaljuk, Belarus

Explanations

• all free style competitions
• OS = Olympic Games, WM = World Championships, EM = European Championships

swell

• Trade journal Der Ringer
• Foeldeak Wrestling Database website

Individual evidence

1. ^ Svetlana Saenko - Events and results