To him Tasso Korakaki the general public knows him as the father and coach of A.us Korakaki. The elders also know him from his championship in shooting. But now that the countdown to the Paris Olympics is underway, we’ve also learned about him as… the father of the qualifiers. Of the three qualifying tournaments that our country has won, so far two have the coaching … stamp of the old champion. Anna Korakakis and Christina Moski have already booked “tickets” to France, and Thassos Korakakis is living a new dream.

“When I was an athlete, I never dreamed of becoming a coach, and I would not have started if one of my children had not started shooting. In 2004 I didn’t qualify because I had lower back problems and in 2012 I missed qualifying by 0.1mm. Participation in the Olympic Games was a dream that did not come true, and now, thanks to my athletes, I have received multiple joys,” Tasos Korakakis told kathimerini.gr.

Christina Moski, 21, is from Pieria and is 4^V her place in the 10m air pistol at the recent European Championships qualified her. “Christina is an athlete of our club and has been training with us for about 1.5 years. Since she is studying medicine at Larissa, I give her a training program and we train together when she enters Drama. It’s something very challenging and it gives a lot of value to what he’s achieved. She is an extremely talented athlete, but we don’t train together as much as we should. If we had done them, he would have been at a different level, ”the coach told us.

And Christina Moski may not be training with her coach as much as she should, but Thasos Korakakis has the potential to have his athletes win a gold medal and an Olympic qualification even with telephone advice. “For personal reasons, I couldn’t go to Tallinn, Estonia, so Anna and Kristina competed by practicing over the phone. Anna became the European champion, and Christina took 4th place, ”she laughs.

“Strange feeling”

Thassos Korakakis is Anna’s father and trainer. Now he also trains Christina, who competes in the same weapons as Anna. What feelings does the coach have when there is also a paternal interest? “It’s a strange feeling. On the one hand, I have Anna, who is not only my athlete, but also my child, and on the other hand, I have a new talented athlete. The second is a big challenge for the coach. In any case, it’s a little strange” he told us with a smile.

A few days ago, Anna Korakaki added another medal to her rich collection. Our Olympic champion has secured his qualification for Paris and is working on it. “There were some personal issues that held us back a little, but Anna has the drive and when she gets to the final she will do well. In our sport, there are 10-15 athletes who are at a similar level. Every time our goal is to reach the final, and from there the difference is so small that we can’t say anything,” the experienced coach emphasized.

Tasos Korakakis, when he was an athlete, did not dream of becoming a coach. However, in Paris, two athletes are expected to lead the Olympic dream. Perhaps part of the qualifications of Dionysus Korakakis is currently missing from this dream. “Of course, that way the dream would be complete. For men, the qualifiers are very difficult. There are many high-level athletes, but Dionysius is not at that level yet. Of course, we will fight and claim the best,” he stressed.

Further commitments include hosting the World Cup in Baku in May, the European Games in June and the World Cup in August, which will also be held in Baku.

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