19.01.2006.
After 16 years in windsurfing Dorota Staszewska is ending her beautiful career due to health reasons. She announced it today during morning program at Polish television and is giving interviews all day to radio and newspaper.


 
 

A four time Formula Windsurfing World Champion.

Born in October 1978, living in Warsaw, she started windsurfing in Poland at the age of 11.  During 16 year's of her racing career she won 11 gold medals at World Championships. In October 2004 she graduated from Warsaw's Collegium Civitas university and obtained Masters Degree in International Relations. She is currently undertaking IMBA post-graduate studies at Warsaw's University of Technology.

 

Dorota on how was it possible for a Polish woman to become windsurfing World Champion...

"My elder brother always looked after me and taught me probably everything any child can teach another one, not just speaking of sports, but anything about life. Our first sport was skiing for about 4 years, then sailing. I was lucky to be younger, because I was sort of copying his steps and it was easier for me, because nobody expected me to become any champion. My parents were always very concerned for us, but all they simply wanted was to make sure we were happy, succesful people, to whom smoking or driving car drunk would not seem impressive. But they did much more than that. Since I can remember they've always put our interest ahead of their and they were always our biggest funs. When in 1989 the world opened up to the Poles, we faced many opportunities our parents were forbidden to do. Windsurfing was just to be a hobby, but it was to be our profession very soon. Together with my desire to be the best, lots of hard work and support of my family the dream was not that difficult to achieve. "

 

Dorota on Olympics...

"1996 Olympics in Atlanta was my first total commitment. When I was sixteen I decided I was going to go for it. Training from 1993 to 1996 was the toughest I've ever experienced till then, because it wasn't fun anymore, just serious and stressful. I finished in sixth place in Atlanta and I gained incredible strength in my life. The Olympics were great, very unique, almost as unique as walking on the Moon. In Poland, Olympic sports are much more popular than non-Olympic, professional sports. Today Formula Windsurfing developed into the most popular kind of racing and I am convinced it's time to put it on the Olympic schedule. If that happened, I would have been given the greatest chance of my life, competing for gold for Poland."

 

Dorota on other windsurfing disciplines...

"The only place I ever wave sailed was Maui, very few times in my life. I can't say it's not tempting to try and go for it fully, but this would involve changing my life completely as I would have to move out of Poland to do it. And also the red light turns on immediately when I think of injury. I never broke anything and I am quite afraid of pain. I don't think I am very brave either. Riding on skis behind a car going 75 km/h on the snowy streets of our little city of Sulejowek when I was about 8 was probably the scariest thing I've done in my life. "

 

Dorota on how windsurfing made her interested in International Relations...

"I became interested in International Relations by traveling around the world through my windsurfing competitions. This made me more aware of the differences between other nations, their life styles, religions and wealth. I became really interested in finding explanations for people's attitudes, views, and their desire to gain power.When I first started studying International Relations I thought I could be someone who could change things in the future. Today, I still think the same but the more I discover about diplomacy and international business, I'm not as naive to think that my abilities could change things if I were in politics. The politician's goals are not necessarily to make things better, but to simply gain power. If this were my ambition then it wouldn't be a waste of time. With my idealistic views on life I would rather see myself as an expert or consultant to politicians on certain areas rather than doing politics myself."

 

Dorota on her day-to-day...

 "My life is definetely not boring, almost every day brings something new. Although sometimes I really feel overloaded with stuff I ought to do and inability to refuse to do it makes me feel responsible and old. I don't like it when I come back from the big event just to get hammered with piles of books and materials for school works and exams. I grit my teeth and tell myself "come on, just this and next week and you are back in action again". It is much easier in Winter time, when I don't think of windsurfing all the time and I spent months in Warsaw, which let's me focus on the studies and enjoy it."

 

BEST RESULTS SINCE 1991

2004

Formula Windsurfing World and European Champion

2003

PWA World Cup Champion, European Champion

 

2002

FWC World and PWA Champion, Sylt Germany, European Champion, Caiscais, Portugal, Asian Champion, Hua Hin, Thailand, Women Cup Winner, Polish Champion

 

2001

FWC World Champion, Fortaleze, Brazil, 1 place Euro Cup RANKING, FW Polish Champion, IFCA Polish Champion, 1 place Italian Championships I Edition, Ravenna, Italy, 1 place PanAmerican Championships, Puerto Rico.

 

2000

FWC World Champion, Pattaya, Thailand, IFCA World Champion, Paros, Greece FWC Polish National Champion 1, place FWC ERA Gsm cup 1 place, Ceara Grand Prix, Fortaleza, Brazil 1 place, Trentino Cup, Lake Gada

 

1998

IFCA World Champion, Tarifa, Spain 1 place US Open, Texas, USA 6th ranked PWA racing

 

1997

2 place, IFCA European Championschips, Łeba, Polska 4 place, IMCO Spa Regatta, Medemblik, Holland

 

1996

6 place Olympic Games, Atlanta , USA Raceboard World Champion, Eilat, Israel

 

1995

IMCO Youth World Champion, Balaton, Hungary 7 place, IMCO European Championships, Isle of Wight, Great Britain

 

1993

IMCO Youth World Champion, Puck, Polska 1 place, IMCO "Semaine Olympique Francaise", Hyeres, France

 

1992

Junior World Champion, Rome, Italy

Quelle: Dorota Staszewska

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