2024-06-05 08:39:45
When he turned an grownup, he cycled round Lithuania and hitchhiked round Europe. Rock experiences numerous adventures even now whereas doing sports activities – after selecting orienteering sports activities (OS), he has to cover from bees within the sea, get caught as much as his chest in a swamp or watch deer working by after falling down.
Deaf since beginning, Rokas completed tenth grade on the Klaipėda Faculty for the Deaf and Onerous of Listening to, the place he lived in a dormitory and skilled the aforementioned adventures and began attending orientation sports activities coaching.
After that, he went to check on the Lithuanian Deaf and Onerous of Listening to Schooling Heart in Vilnius. Whereas learning there, he additionally attended OS courses with coach Laimis Drazdauskas.
Nevertheless, he left college in Vilnius resulting from bullying by different college students, returned to the seaside, the place he studied at Klaipėda Stitching and Service Enterprise Faculty, and eventually completed the twelfth grade at Klaipėda Grownup Gymnasium.
“It is a bit of a disgrace that I misplaced the chance to coach in Vilnius – there are lots of forests, extra various terrain, many competitions are held, so you may enhance quicker in comparison with Klaipėda,” stated the interviewer who answered the questions in writing.
He found orienteering on the age of 13, when he stopped training desk tennis as a result of there was no coach left at college.
“At the moment, I used to be most interested in soccer, however sadly there isn’t any sturdy deaf soccer crew in Lithuania, so I regarded for one more manner and located OS. Earlier than that, I regarded up on the Web wherein area Lithuanians achieved probably the most in the course of the Deaf Video games. I used to be stunned by the OS – it regarded totally different, attention-grabbing and unknown. It isn’t solely the work of physique and thoughts, but additionally merging with nature. Working is nice for well being, in addition to, it helps to do away with detrimental ideas and provides vitality,” defined the athlete.
Additionally it is attention-grabbing that OS has many occasions: particular person sprints on medium, lengthy or very lengthy distances, relays within the forest or sprints of combined relays.
Not afraid of nasty climate situations
13-year-old Roka was additionally impressed by the legendary orienteer Tomas Kuzminskis. She dared to write down to him via one.lt, one of the in style courting websites on the time, they usually started to correspond.
“I realized that T. Kuzminskis will take part within the Lithuanian Deaf Athletics Championship in Klaipėda Manise in 2010. within the spring I noticed him there, I dared to say hi there, we obtained to know one another. He was simply planning to go to Palanga, the place I lived. The following day we met, we went to Vanagupė forest. He had OS maps that he gave me and taught me how you can navigate. I bear in mind it was raining, he was calmly strolling with an umbrella, and I used to be working moist studying a map within the forest, then I climbed the Nagli hill,” Rock remembered.
Quickly after that, he began attending OS coaching periods with coach Ričardas Tävel from Klaipėda. The man has taken breaks a number of occasions, so he has been doing sports activities intensively for a complete of about 9 years.
Shock – second place
Now R. Koveckis known as one of the promising steering counselors for the deaf in Lithuania. For him, orienteering is each a lifestyle and a most important exercise.
He has already gained many victories on this area. 2023 was notably profitable: on the World Deaf OS Championship held in Sweden, he gained as many as 4 medals: in combined dash relays, lengthy and center distance and males’s relay occasions.
“I’m most happy with the victory within the lengthy course, as a result of it was an unforgettable journey and the toughest combat. Coach Richard wrote to me that orientation ought to come first, adopted by velocity. I remembered these phrases and took second place,” Rok recalled.
The combat in Sweden was tight all through. “At first I did effectively, from the tenth management level (KP) we competed in threes – me, the Swede and the Ukrainian. After 13 KP, the Swede took the lead, he tried to cross the river, however he did not realize it was deep and fell in as much as his neck. The Ukrainian and I went in barely totally different instructions. The Swede didn’t surrender and fought like a Viking with us till the tip.
After 17 KP, I wished to separate from the others and run throughout the street alone, as a result of there are stones, rocks within the Swedish forest meadows, which stop me from working quicker. However I did not have time to separate, the three of us continued to run via the forest. 18 KP Ukrainian and Swede stayed collectively, I turned in a distinct course. After ending, I heard that I took second place in spite of everything, the Swede was behind and remained fifth. It was surprising and really glad!”, stated Rokas.
Working and having fun with nature
Thus, OS doesn’t lack both pleasure or numerous surprises. Tracks will be lined not solely by working, but additionally by bicycle or skis.
“The scariest and coldest factor was that I competed in snowboarding in Latvia as a youngster. I obtained misplaced, however I didn’t surrender and looked for a checkpoint for a very long time. It took me nearly 3 hours to get again to the end line and somebody was already searching for me. His arms had been so chilly that he could not even unzip his jacket – he needed to ask for assist,” Roka recalled.
One other time whereas snowboarding down a really excessive mountain he fell after which he noticed deer working in entrance of him – it was a ravishing sight.
Not too long ago, he was surrounded by bees on the coast of Latvia, he could not even run usually and orient himself within the setting due to them – neither waving a cane nor working via a dense forest scared them. Lastly needed to break the observe and crawl into the ocean, then the bees lastly stopped (none stung).
I’ve run via tall nettles, many occasions I needed to take care of ticks.
Rock is significantly better impressed by the opposite animals he meets on the street – he met a big wild boar, a strong elk, and a seagull nesting within the youngsters’s playground.
“OS is way more attention-grabbing than simply working, right here you must discover management factors with a map and a compass – it is like taking part in chess within the forest. I counsel everybody to strive it. It isn’t essential to run, you can too stroll with a map and benefit from the moments. Individuals want a reference to nature, it is price gaining new experiences and data, understanding what life is, as an alternative of pampering your self and sitting within the consolation zone whereas browsing on a pc or smartphone,” urged Rokas.
He additionally desires to thank those that assist him on his chosen path. “I need to thank my private coach Ričardas Täveleis (I belong to his sports activities membership “Horizontas”) for his work, long-term cooperation, dedication, coaching plans and solutions to questions. I’m additionally grateful to the pinnacle coach Laimis Drazdauskas for coaching camps not solely in Lithuania, but additionally overseas, in addition to for speaking in signal language. Because of my teammates for the help and enjoyable firm. I additionally sincerely thank the Lithuanian Deaf Sports activities Committee for the superb situations supplied and for making life simpler. The warmest factor I need to do is thank my beloved mom for the shock on the Vilnius airport,” the athlete stated.
Each veterans and newbies
L. Drazdauskas has been working with deaf steering counselors for greater than twenty years, and now he’s additionally the coach of the Lithuanian nationwide crew. More often than not he holds a place within the civil service, and dealing with athletes is an attention-grabbing free time for him, wherein he sees which means.
He began working as a coach in 1998. At first, he labored with listening to folks, and in 2001 he was approached by deaf athletes. Luckily, he took up the job – by the way in which, he did it on social grounds, with out remuneration.
“Now the scenario is significantly better: each coaches and athletes obtain remuneration, athletes may also obtain state scholarships, so this motivates them. Prior to now, all the pieces was performed very amateurishly,” the interviewer said.
He stated that the deaf orienteers are hardworking, hearken to the coaches’ directions, and help one another. They’ve achieved so many victories that it might be unattainable to checklist them on an A4 sheet – they’ve grow to be each European and world champions many occasions.
Among the many achievements he was particularly glad about, the coach singled out the gold of the Taiwan Deaflympics, gained within the males’s crew competitors in 2009. The lads’s crew took second place in Sweden final yr as effectively. The second or third place all the time makes women orienteers glad.
When requested which athletes deserve reward probably the most, the coach stated: “R. Koveckis may be very promising, as is Mikalojus Makutėnas. Promising women – Gedvilė Diržiūtė, Adrija Atgalainė, in addition to Viltė Kanapinskaitė, we even have a powerful veteran Judita Volungevičienė.”
The athlete spent the night time within the backyard
Throughout greater than twenty years of labor as a coach, there have been additionally many adventures. As soon as the orienteers educated within the Ignalina district, the coaching befell within the night. Everybody ran away, and one athlete by no means got here again. The border guards with canine had been searching for her, the army forces had been supposed to affix within the morning – however within the morning the police reported that she appeared. It seems that the girl obtained misplaced and eventually got here to the vegetable backyard and determined to spend the night time there.
“The opposite time in the course of the competitors, such a boy didn’t return – we waited for him for a number of hours, then we referred to as his mother and father to inform them that we had an issue. His mother and father stated he was already at dwelling – he simply could not discover the checkpoint, he obtained bored and rotated and went dwelling with out telling anybody,” the coach recalled.
So as to keep away from comparable issues, L. Drazdauskas now distributes sharp whistles to athletes earlier than competitions in tougher locations – though some can’t hear their sounds in any respect, in the event that they get misplaced, they are going to be capable of let others know the place they’re by whistling.
The coach assured that such misunderstandings solely happen amongst starting athletes. Professionals rapidly discover their manner not solely in Lithuanian or Latvian forests, but additionally in unique areas. Now the deaf orienteers who’ve made it to the Lithuanian nationwide crew are already making ready for the World Deaflympics to be held in Japan subsequent yr.
2024-06-05 08:39:45