Away from home for more than a year, seeing his family once in a few long months, motoring across the ice at the crushing speed of 50 km per hour and clenching his teeth during a 700-km mountain biking stint – it all began to pay off. Vladi Bikanov placed 5^th in the 1000 m distance in short-track European Championships in Dresden, Germany. He was 12^th overall – 9^th in 1500 m and 25^th in 500 m classifications respectively in addition to his 5^th finish in the 1000 m. More than 40 athletes took part in the event.

http://www.sportresult.com/federations/ISU/ShortTrack/Results.aspx?evt=11210200000006&gen=m&ref=6388&view=dcl

Having come home to finally see his parents and sister living on the northern border of Israel before he goes back to Calgary where he trains under Jeroen Otter to prepare for World Championships in March, Vladi shared his European Championships experience:

“I had only a 20-minute break between the races. My heart was pounding fast and heavily and I sat down to relax and get ready for the next start. It helped and I went out and finished with my best placement so far”.

Vladi spoke appreciatively of his coach Jeroen Otter:

“He understands my needs very well, and knows how to get me ready for competition. It hasn’t been a long time since he was an internationally competing athlete himself and it definitely helps in our coach-trainee interaction”.

Vladi was also interviewed by a Canadian reporter and as soon as the interview comes out, it will be added to From the Media section on the website.