Greek swimmer Marilena Ioannidi has won a silver medal in the girls' U16 100-metre backstroke at the 1st European Deaf Youth Games in Hanover, Germany.
The 13-year-old athlete completed the final in 1:16.50 to claim the first medal of the competition for the Greek delegation.
Ioannidi, a first-year middle school student, was the youngest competitor in her category, competing against older athletes including first-year high school students.
The young athlete has been training continuously in swimming academies since the age of four.
Coach Praise and Opening Day Challenge
Hellenic Sports Federation for the Deaf national swimming coach Elias Panetis said Ioannidi delivered a very good performance on the opening day of the event. He noted that despite her anxiety, she handled an event that is not her primary discipline well.
Panetis said the result provides encouragement for the remainder of the competition, where she is scheduled to swim in her stronger disciplines of freestyle and butterfly. He added that she would feel even greater confidence in those events.
Addressing the difficulty of opening day, Panetis pointed out that Ioannidi had qualified for the final in third place before improving her position to finish second. He emphasized that the achievement was particularly notable given that it marked her debut in international competition and that she is the youngest athlete at the games overall.
The national coach extended his congratulations to Ioannidi for her performance and wished her success in her remaining events.
Preparation for the 2029 Deaflympics
The Hellenic Sports Federation for the Deaf praised both Ioannidi and Panetis following the race. Federation officials stated that swimming has historically been one of the governing body's most successful sports, maintaining a long-standing tradition in Greek deaf athletics.
The federation added that Ioannidi's success confirmed the wisdom of its decision to invest in young athletes as part of national team preparation for the 2029 Deaflympics, which are scheduled to be hosted in Athens.
The organization said the achievement demonstrates that the future of Greek deaf sports is already established.
The 1st European Deaf Youth Games in Hanover began on the opening day of competition and will run through August 22.
