Israeli swimmer Anastasia Gorbenko won her fourth gold medal on Saturday at the European Championships held in Belgrade, finishing first in the 200m individual medley final, with Lea Polonsky coming in second. Gorbenko held the title she won back in 2021 and 2022, clocking in at 2:09.75 minutes, while Polonsky finished with a time of 2:11.18 minutes, earning the silver medal.
The 20-year-old Gorbenko had already won gold in the 400m individual medley, the 4x100m mixed medley relay, and the 4x200m freestyle relay in the competition. She was the clear favorite for gold, having entered the final with the best qualifying time of 2:11.61 minutes.
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Anastasia Gorbenko and Lea Polonsky
(Photo: Simona Castelvillery, Israel Swimming Association)
Gorbenko will head to the 2024 Paris Olympics in peak shape, after securing two gold medals in her strongest events at the European championships and a silver medal at the World Championships (in the 400m individual medley).
Thanks to her remarkable progress, Gorbenko has become a medal contender for the Paris Olympics and would be the first Israeli to win a medal in swimming should she conquer the challenge in one of the core Olympic sports.
In addition to her silver medal, the 22-year-old Polonsky met the qualifying standard for the Paris Olympics, where she’ll make her Olympic debut. She was also part of the Israeli relay team that won gold in the 4x200m freestyle relay.