David Popovici (19 years old), the hero of Romanian sports, won the gold medal at the Olympic Games in Paris, in the 200 meters freestyle. He will be rewarded by COSR quite handsomely for the result.
David Popovici, obtains the first Olympic medal, in Male, in the history of Romania. PHOTO Archive
Thus, the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee (COSR) established a system of awards for Romanian athletes who climb the Olympic podium. For the gold medal, the athletes will receive no less than 140,000 euros, a considerable amount that comes as a recognition of their efforts and success.
“140,000 euros for a gold medal100,000 euros for a silver medal and 60,000 euros for a bronze medal, are the cash prizes that Romanian athletes receive in the event of a podium finish at the Paris Olympic Games”, said Elisabeta Lipă, president of the National Sports Agency, to digisport.
Popovici was second after the first pool length, was third after 100 meters, then went up two at 150 meters, managing to overtake the British Matthew Richards in the last meters of the race. The Romanian stopped the timer at 1:44:72, just two hundredths ahead of Richards!
Popovici, double world champion and quadruple European champion, won the first Olympic title in the history of Romanian male swimming. The podium was completed by the American Luke Hobson, in 1:44:79.
It is the first gold medal for Romania at Paris 2024, but also the first in history for a Romanian swimmer at the Olympic Games, in the male event. In second place was the British Matthew Richards, with a time of 1:44.74, while the Olympic bronze in 200 meters was awarded to the American Luke Hobson (1:44.79).
The last Olympic medal of Romanian swimming was in 2004, when Camelia Potec took the gold in the 200 m freestyle in Athens, and Răzvan Florea the bronze in the 200 m backstroke.
After yesterday’s formidable race, David Popovici starts all over again, with the heats of the 100 meters free, scheduled at 12:42, and the semifinals, in the evening session (9:30 p.m.). The final of the Olympic Games is scheduled for Wednesday evening, from 10:32 p.m.
