Diana Zagainova, a Lithuanian triple jump athlete, has an impressive track record. She holds the title of European U23 champion, World University Games Silver medalist, and five-time national champion in both outdoor and indoor categories. Furthermore, she is the current record holder for the triple jump in Lithuania.
Born on June 20, 1997, in Vilnius, Lithuania, Diana Zagainova began her athletics journey by exploring various events such as long jump and sprints. However, her focus shifted entirely to the triple jump as her passion and talent in the sport became evident.
Diana Zagainova started her competitive career in 2013 by participating in the Utrecht 12th European Youth Olympic Festival in the long jump. She achieved her first junior title during this season at the Klaipeda Lithuanian U18 Indoor Championships, emerging victorious in the long jump event.
In 2014, Diana Zagainova chose to specialize in the triple jump, which led her to winning her first national medal – a bronze at the Klaipeda Lithuanian Indoor Championships. Throughout the season, she demonstrated her prowess by clinching the gold at the Siauliai Baltic U18 Indoor Championships and the bronze at the Vilnius Lithuanian Indoor Club Championships. Her dominance continued in the triple jump junior championships where she secured gold at the Vilnius Lithuanian U18 Championships and the Valmiera U18 President’s Cup. While she also competed at the Kaunas Lithuanian Championships, she unfortunately didn’t make a successful attempt in the final.
In 2015, Diana Zagainova won two more bronze medals in the triple jump at the national championships – the Klaipeda Lithuanian Indoor Championships and Palanga Lithuanian Championships. She also competed at the Eskilstuna European Junior Championships, but missed to win the honor. At the junior level, she showed her dominance in the triple jump by clinching the gold at the Alytus Lithuanian U20 Championships.
In 2016, Diana Zagainova secured her first national title at the Kaunas Lithuanian Indoor Championships. Throughout the indoor season, she claimed victory at the Klaipeda Lithuanian Indoor University Championships and Minsk International Indoor U20 Match. Additionally, she attained second place at the Vilnius Lithuanian Indoor Club Championships. In the outdoor season, she earned silver at the Palanga Lithuanian Championships and bronze at the Mersin ECCC Group A. She achieved gold at the Mannheim Bauhaus Junioren-Gala and Vilnius Lithuanian U20 Championships, and participated in the Bydgoszcz IAAF World U20 Championships.
Diana Zagainova continued her exceptional performance in the triple jump in 2017, securing gold at the Palanga Lithuanian Championships and Klaipeda Lithuanian Indoor Championships. She also emerged victorious at the Klaipeda Lithuanian Indoor University Championships, Kaunas Lithuanian U23 Championships, and Riga Sell Students Games. During the outdoor season, she competed at the Bydgoszcz European U23 Championships and Taipei Universiade, although she did not win any honors. Throughout the season, she achieved her personal best in the triple jump with a distance of 13.64m, accomplished at the Kaunas Lithuanian University Championships, where she won the silver.
Diana Zagainova made her debut at the IAAF World Indoor Tour in 2018, participating in the Madrid Indoor Meeting, where she finished in 9th place. During the indoor season, she secured silver at the Klaipeda Lithuanian Indoor Championships and Spanish Indoor Club Championships, and claimed gold at the Valencia Regional Indoor Club Championships. In the outdoor season, Diana Zagainova continued to improve her results, achieving a distance of 13.74m and securing silver at the Ogre Prezidenta Balva. She also obtained silver at the Palanga Lithuanian Championships and Valencia Spanish Club Championships, in addition to competing at the Goteborg Folksam GP, where she finished 7th.
In 2019, Diana Zagainova achieved her most prestigious title at the Gavle European U23 Championships. Throughout the season, she secured the gold at the Siauliai Lithuanian Indoor Championships, Resisprint International in La Chaux-de-Fonds (Switzerland), and LLAF Cupp in Utena (Lithuania). Additionally, she won silver at the Palanga Lithuanian Championships. Despite competing at the Doha IAAF World Championships in Athletics and Glasgow European Indoor Championships, she did not receive any medals.
During 2020, Diana Zagainova made her debut in the Golden Label events at the Herculis in Monaco, finishing in 7th place. She also earned the bronze at the 31st Meeting International di Atletia leggera sport soudarieta and the silver at the Palanga Lithuanian Championships.
Diana Zagainova represented Lithuania at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, which took place in 2021, competing in the triple jump but unfortunately did not advance to the finals. Throughout the season, she secured the gold at the Resisprint International in La Chaux-de-Fonds (Switzerland) and Klaipeda Lithuanian Indoor Championships, as well as silver at the Palanga Lithuanian Championships and Campeonato de Espana de Clubes. Although she also competed at the Torun European Athletics Indoor Championships, she did not manage to secure a medal.
In 2022, Diana Zagainova earned silver at the Klaipeda Lithuanian Indoor Championships and bronze at the Siauliai Lithuanian Championships. She also achieved bronze at the Palanga LAF Open Cup Competition.
The following year, in 2023, Diana Zagainova began the indoor season strongly, earning bronze at the Klaipeda Lithuanian Indoor Championships. She also participated in the Istanbul European Athletics Indoor Championships but did not progress to the final rounds. Nonetheless, she achieved 6th place at the World Indoor Tour Madrid 2023 and 4th place at the Manchester World Indoor Tour. During the outdoor season, she secured silver at the Chengdu FISU World University Games and Kaunas LAF Open Cup Competition, as well as bronze at the Palanga Lithuanian Championships and Atletica Geneve – EAP in Geneve (Switzerland).
Diana Zagainova continues to be one of the top triple jumpers in Lithuania and one of the most talented athletes in Europe. She won the silver medals at the Atleticageneve – EAP and Meeting International de Dakar, as well as the gold at the Trond Mohn Games in Bergen. She competed at the Rome European Athletics Championships but did not overcome the qualifications. However, she triumphed with the silver at the Panevezys Lithuanian Indoor Championships.
Diana Zagainova photos
