For this decathlete couple, sports is not all about winning

Having met in 1997 and tying the knot 11 years later, Irina Karpova and Dmitriy Karpov are the decathlete couple of the Asian Athletic Championship. “We met during one of the local meets and instantly fell in love,” says Irina, who is more fluent in English.

Their surnames are teasingly familiar to a chess legend. But as they head off for practice, they stop to clarify that they have nothing to do with Anatoly Karpov.

They are truly made for each other, both literally and figuratively. Interestingly, they coach each other. In fact, back home in Almaty, Kazakhstan, they not only train together but also coach the children at academies run by the government.

Luck hasn’t been equally generous on the two in the tournament’s 20th edition. While Dmitriy retained his decathlon title — he dedicated the medal to his daughter who turned three on July 3 — Irina couldn’t even make it to the women’s heptathlon.

That does not matter to Dmitriy and Irina, who have travelled together for four World Championships and two Olympics. The two are content giving something to the sport that has brought them together.

“Winning and losing is part of any sport,” says Irina, who had a bad outing in the long jump and javelin throw, which cut short her stay in the Asian Athletic Championship. “I’m lucky my husband has been winning, for it gives me a chance to travel with him as a coach-cum-wife.”

For Dmitriy, sports is like academics. He says, “Our government takes care of all sportspersons at the state level. It is a sort of employment for us.”

The Moscow World Championship in August is their next mission. Dmitriy says, “I’ve won the bronze in two World Championships, but this time I should do better.”