Belarusian medallist, facing crackdown at home, clings to Olympic comeback dream

FILE PHOTO: Andrei Krauchanka of Belarus celebrates winning the silver medal in the men's decathlon in the athletics competition in the National Stadium at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games August 22, 2008. REUTERS/Jerry Lampen

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Decathlete Andrei Krauchanka knows that reaching the Olympics is seldom an adversity-free path, but the political crisis in his native Belarus has made his quest for a final chance to compete on the world's biggest sports stage even harder.

The 2008 Olympic silver medallist said he was dismissed from the national team and sacked from his job after signing an open letter demanding new elections, and later briefly jailed for participating in protests against veteran leader Alexander Lukashenko.