Did Daria Bashkirova from the small border town of Svetogorsk in the Leningrad Region think that she would celebrate her 16th birthday in Moscow, competing with the strongest electricians in the country at the VII Open Electricians Championship by IEK?
That's exactly what happened. The girl's birthday coincided with the final day of the championship. Daria became its youngest participant, and the only female representative who reached the finals.
"The main thing is desire and interest. Persistent training and constant gaining of experience in the field you like also play an important role. Achievements come with them," the girl answers when asked how she managed to achieve such a result.
Daria Bashkirova has been fascinated by an atypical activity for a girl – electrical installation – since the age of 13. She was inspired by the example of her friend Irina Shestakova. She was one of the first to study in a newly opened electrical installation class at the local Children and Youth Creativity Center. Then she called several other girls with her, including Daria Bashkirova.
The class leader and Daria's mentor Vitaly Pavlov recalls that at first not everything worked out for her in class. She had to work hard, and the girl's perseverance was rewarded: at the age of 14, together with Irina Shestakova, Daria Bashkirova took first place among juniors at the VII Open Regional Championship "Young Professionals" (WorldSkills Russia) in St. Petersburg.
And then she aimed for the IEK Electricians Championship. Here she had to compete with very experienced electricians. However, this did not bother her.
"I wasn't very worried that my opponents were experienced, established masters," she smiles. "Although, of course, keeping up with them in terms of physical load was really hard."
At the IEK Electricians Championship, Daria took 12th place. She decided not to stop there, and that same year participated in the National Championship of Professional Mastery "Professionals," also reaching its final.
The hobby helped Dasha decide where to go to study after the ninth grade. Vitaly Pavlov notes that initially the girl hesitated, choosing between electrical installation and a creative field. The first option won: Dasha entered the Svetogorsk Polytechnic College in the specialty "electrician for repair and maintenance of equipment in industries."
"Now I'm completing the program for
She also plans to participate in the VIII Open Electricians Championship by IEK and helps prepare another student of Vitaly Pavlov for it. By the way, according to him, there are now more girls than boys in the class. And working with them, he believes, is in some ways more convenient: the students are more responsible, less distracted, although they argue more and have their own opinion about everything.
"If you have an interest in the craft, you need to try yourself in it. When a person is passionate about a business, it is much easier to master it," Daria Bashkirova advises girls who would also like to become electricians.