Israel’s unexpected medal hope in the pool ‘surprised himself’
Yakov Toumarkin, who set making the semifinals as a goal before the games, became only the second Israeli ever to advance to the final round in the water
Aaron Kalman is a former writer and breaking news editor for the Times of Israel
Israel is not an Olympics powerhouse, but still had several medal hopes going into the 2012 Games. To most, 20-year-old swimmer Yakov Toumarkin was not among them.
But after Toumarkin squeaked into the finals for the 200 meter backstroke Wednesday night, a chance for the podium doesn’t seem so far-fetched anymore.
Toumarkin told reporters there was “nothing wrong with hoping” to stand on the podium, shortly after advancing to the finals by tying his record-breaking swim Wednesday night.
“I was in shock,” Toumarkin said, after realizing he was only the second Israeli in history to make it through to an Olympic finals in swimming. He explained he had hoped for a semifinals, but to reach the finals? “I surprised myself,” he said.
He’ll compete for the gold Thursday night, but will have to beat out a strong field, including American Ryan Lochte, who holds the Olympic record for the event.
In the qualifying heat the of the 200 meter backstroke, Toumarkin stopped the clock at 1:57.33 minutes, a time which broke the Israeli record — which he had set previously at the European championships, — and placed him in the eighth seed in the semifinal heat.
I didn’t know if I should be happy or not. The odds weren’t in my favor
After winning two medals at the European championships in May, a semifinals was the goal set by the swimmer and his coaches. Mission accomplished, but the event wasn’t finished.
A few hours later the Ashdod resident jumped into the pool for the second time of the day, equaling his mark from the qualifying heat.
Describing the moments of anticipation, the few minutes between knowing his time and seeing the overall rankings, the swimmer said he didn’t know if his result was enough. “It was the same result as the qualifying heat,” he said. “I didn’t know if I should be happy or not. The odds weren’t in my favor.”
It was enough. Toumarkin advanced to the finals from the eighth and last spot with a time two hundredths of a second faster than ninth place. “It was beyond expectations,” the swimmer told Army Radio. “Only after I swim in the finals I’ll know I did it.”
On Thursday night the swimmer, who moved to Israel from Russia shortly after his first birthday, will become the second blue-and-white swimmer to compete in the finals of a swimming category at the Summer Games. Toumarkin will dive into lane number eight at 7:48pm (London time).
The only previous Israeli to swim in an Olympic final was Eithan Urbach, who finished eighth in the 100 meter backstroke at the Sydney Games in 2000.
“I need to stay focused” and prepare for the finals, Toumarkin said. He knew his reaching the finals was an achievement, and that there were other swimmers who were the favorites. “I have nothing to lose” and could “improve the result by a few milliseconds,” he said.
Toumarkin’s coach Leonid Kaufman, who worked with the swimmer for more than seven years, called him “a true hero.” Toumarkin was focused during the whole competition, “he listened and executed our tactical decisions,” Kaufman said.
The swimmer refused to get excited about his opponents. “You don’t see your opponents underwater,” he said, but noted that they were nice people outside the pool, and that swimming against the world’s best forced him to push himself harder and improve his results.
Toumarkin also spoke about his family and friends, who were “very excited.” He said he “wanted to thank everyone for the support, the messages and the blessings,” but it would take him some time before he could answer everyone who called or texted him.
At the European Championships in May 2012 Toumarkin won two bronze medals, and became the first Israeli in history to stand on the podium twice in the same championships.
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