Lasma Liepa

Lasma Liepa
Liepa in 2016
Personal information
NationalityTurkish
Born (1988-07-04) 4 July 1988 (age 36)
Riga, Latvia
Height180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Weight77 kg (170 lb)
Sport
SportKayaking
EventK-1 200m
ClubAntalya Gençlik Merkezi GSK

Lasma Liepa (Latvian: Lāsma Liepa; born 4 July 1988) is a Latvian-born Turkish sprint kayaker. She is a member of Antalya Gençlik Merkezi GSK in Antalya.[1]

In 2015, she received the Turkish citizenship, and was admitted to the Turkey national canoe team.[2] According to the Turkish Canoe Federation, the main factor for Liepa's transfer to Turkey was supposedly her age seen by the Latvian sports officials not suitable anymore for canoeing.[3]

She took part at the 2015 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Milan, Italy, and finished 12th. Upon this result, she earned a quota spot for the women's K-1 200 m event at the 2016 Summer Olympics. She is the first ever women's canoeist to represent Turkey at the Olympics.[2][4]

References

  1. ^ "Sporcu Bilgileri – Lasma Liepa". olimpiyatkomitesi.org.tr (in Turkish). Türkiye Milli Olimpiyat Komitesi. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  2. ^ a b "Kano tarihinde bir ilk". Habertürk (in Turkish). 24 August 2015. Archived from the original on 10 August 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  3. ^ "Lasma Liepa, Türkiye'yi kanoda olimpiyatlara taşıdı". Habertürk (in Turkish). 6 June 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  4. ^ "Olympic Canoe Sprint Qualification spots confirmed". International Canoe Federation. 6 September 2015. Retrieved 22 June 2016.