La Plagne (RWH) French skeleton athlete Agathe Bessard has introduced Latvian Lelde Priedulena as her new coach for the 2021/2022 Olympic season. „I’m glad to introduce you @lelde_priedulena my coach for the new season. She will help me for all the physical preparation and sliding part through this Olympic season“, the 22-year-old wrote on Instagram.
Agathe Bessard competed in her first international races back in 2014 at the age of 15. In the OMEGA Youth Series she qualified for the 2016 Winter Youth Olympic Games and won the bronze medal in Lillehammer (NOR). Since then, the French athlete has competed in all IBSF race series, including the BMW IBSF World Cup since January 2020.
In 2016, 27-year-old Lelde Priedulena became the first Latvian skeleton athlete to win the Junior World Championship. In her 45 appearances in the BMW IBSF World Cup between 2012 and 2019, she narrowly missed the podium several times in fourth place. At the 2017 BMW IBSF World Championships at Königssee and the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang (KOR), Lelde Priedulena finished seventh, respectively. After the end of her career as an athlete, the Latvian was responsible, among other things, as a skeleton coach of the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation IBSF for the athletes from nations without their own coaches. ©RWH2021
>> Agathe Bessard on Instagram >> IBSF athete profile
Photos: IBSF / Viesturs Lacis (header photo: Agathe Bessard)
