Darta Zunte, the skeleton runner who has represented Estonia since last season, finished sixth at the Junior World Championships a few weeks ago. Now he is preparing for the European Championship and the MK stage, which will take place on the Sigulda track in Latvia, well known to the athlete.
Zunte, 23, has already competed in some major races this winter. In the World Cup stages held in the first half of December he ranked 23rd and 26th. At the following European Junior Championships Zunte came seventh.
Worth highlighting is the sixth place at the Junior World Championships in Lillehammer at the beginning of January. Zunte already finished sixth at the Junior World Cup, but he evaluates his latest performance better.
The races were close to ideal and, despite missing the medal by only 23 hundredths of a second, the athlete has no regrets. Competition has clearly intensified in recent years.
“The best results so far are at the Junior World Cup. It’s not that bad to be in the top six in the world,” he told ERR. “I think it’s pretty good! The athletes’ driving times were very equal. And I would have liked a medal. But the top six are good and I think we did a good job.”
Zunte, who received a new sled at the start of the season, says skeleton is a nuanced industry, a truly technical sport. “I’m two kilograms lighter, which isn’t much. But balance and sledding rules change everything,” he said.
“Therefore, we have to monitor them and make continuous changes ourselves. At Skeleton, it’s not like we can find a solution that works and will be suitable for the next four years.”
At the beginning of February Zunte will be able to compete on the tracks he knows very well in Sigulda. The European championships and the MK stage take place there at the same time. Zunte, who often trains in the Valga sports hall, is also working hard to acquire the Estonian language.
“I’m trying to learn Estonian in silence. But right now I’m ashamed to speak because I don’t know many words.”
2024-01-23 20:32:00
zunte-in-skeleton-it-is-not-true-that-a-solution-found-is-suitable-for-four-years-winter-sports
#Zunte #skeleton #true #solution #suitable #years #Winter #sports
