SANCOV Alexei

Republic of Moldova

Swimming

Date of Birth: 15 Oct 1999

Age: 21

Gender: Male

Youth Olympian

Place of birth: CHISINAU

Birth Country:

Republic of Moldova

Place of residence : LOS ANGELES, CA

Residence Country:

United States of America

Events and Medals
Records
Schedule
Bio
General Interest
Milestones

Events and Medals

Discipline	Event	Rank	Medal
Swimming	Men's 200m Freestyle
	Men's 200m Butterfly

Schedule

Change

Start Time	Location	Event	Status
	Tokyo Aquatics Centre	Men's 200m Freestyle - Heat 2	Finished
	Tokyo Aquatics Centre	Men's 200m Butterfly - Heat 2	Finished

Biographical Information

Highlights

Athlete:

Olympic Games

Year	Location	200Free
2016	Rio de Janeiro, BRA	H (1:48.85)

Youth Olympic Games

Year	Location	400Free	800Free
2014	Nanjing, CHN	H (3:56.89)	7th (8:06.54)

World Championships

Year	Location	100Free	200Free	400Free	800Free	1500Free	4x100Medley X
2019	Gwangju, KOR	H (50.05)	H (1:48.60)	-	-	-	H (3:55.15)
2015	Kazan, RUS	-	H (1:50.18)	H (3:55.83)	H (8:10.83)	H (15:53.85)	-

European Championships

Year	Location	200Free	100Fly	200Fly	4x100Medley X
2020	Budapest, HUN	H (1:48.42)	H (53.26)	SF (1:57.85)	H (3:54.75)

Legend
Free - Freestyle, Back - Backstroke, Breast - Breaststroke, Fly - Butterfly, IndMed - Individual Medley, SF - Semifinal, H - Heats, DNS - Did Not Start, M - Men, W - Women, X - Mixed, DSQ - Disqualified, [Relay athlete without time] - Did not swim in final

Hobbies:

Surfing, golf. (Athlete, 21 Jul 2021)

Occupation:

Athlete, Student

Education:

University of Southern California, United States of America

Languages spoken:

English, Russian

Club name:

University of Southern California Trojans [United States of America]

Coach:

Jeremy Kipp [club]; Chase Bloch [club]

Debut:

2014 for Republic of Moldova (Athlete, 04 Aug 2016)

Injuries:

He has suffered a dislocated shoulder during his career. (Athlete, 21 Jul 2021)

Start:

He took up swimming at age four in Chisinau, Moldova. (Athlete, 04 Aug 2016, 21 Jul 2021)

Reason:

He began swimming to help with his back problems. (Athlete, 04 Aug 2016)

Memorable:

Setting a junior world record in the 200m freestyle at the 2017 European Junior Championships. (Athlete, 21 Jul 2021)

Hero:

US swimmer Michael Phelps. (Athlete, 04 Aug 2016)

Philosophy:

"Everyone is going to have their breaking moment in their lives, and for some people it comes in college, so it is better to take a step back by failing and learning from your mistakes so you can take two steps forward. And the most important thing is just to not give up during this moment." (trojanswire.usatoday.com, 11 Jul 2021)

Award:

He was Moldova's flag bearer at the opening ceremony of the 2015 European Youth Olympic Festival in Tbilisi, Georgia. (infotag.md, 28 Jul 2015)

General Interest

General
MENTAL HEALTH
He said that during his first year of college he believed he did not need to work hard to achieve success. "I had this false illusion that I don't really need to work hard to perform well. My first dual meet, I had the realisation that I'm swimming against guys that are as talented as I am, as fast as I am. It hit me really, really hard." He said these experiences affected his mental health and that he had to seek a sport psychologist's help to overcome these problems. "I just put myself in such a big mental hole that I could not get out of. That anxiety that I was feeling behind the blocks, it was really, really scary. I realised, 'I'm scared to swim.' And whenever I was getting in the water, I was lost. I've learned to be present in the moment, and control whatever I can control right now, and the things I cannot control, I've learned how to not overthink." (swimmingworldmagazine.com, 14 Oct 2020)

MOVE TO CALIFORNIA
He moved to the United States of America with his parents at age 16. (swimmingworldmagazine.com, 14 Oct 2020)

Social Media

Legend

:: Gold Medal Event
:: Silver Medal Event
:: Bronze Medal Event

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