Translated material
New Year's transit
Skiers and skaters have no time to think about the holidays
Last weekend, several significant competitions took place for Russian athletes - representatives of winter sports. Skiers measured their strength on the Krasnogorsk Ski Track, speed skaters in Kolomna near Moscow decided on the lineup for the World Sprint All-Around Championships, and the “flying skiers” rehearsed on the eve of the Four Hills Tour.Ski racers won’t have to celebrate the New Year this year either, since the Tour de Ski starts on December 28th. According to Olympic champion Evgeny Dementyev, last year, due to the multi-day race, the athletes did not wait for the chimes on the Spasskaya Tower to strike; they decided to get some sleep on the eve of the next race. The ski tour schedule is most favorable for those who celebrate Catholic Christmas. Three days after this family celebration, the leaders of world skiing gather in the Czech Nove Mesto, where first the women will have to overcome a three-kilometer “time trial” in the classic style, and the men will have to overcome 4.5 km. During the week during which the Tour de Ski will take place, skiers will have to start eight times, as the program includes six distance races and two sprint races. This circumstance puts forward strict demands on athletes who must have universal abilities. And taking into account the fact that this season, apart from the Tour, there are no other significant events, such as the World Championships or the Olympic Games, many skiers have built their training with an eye to this very start.
The leaders of the German team decided to skip the World Cup in Rybinsk in order to continue training at altitude. This example was followed by the Czech Lukasz Bauer and other celebrities. The calendar of Russian competitions forced our coaches to undertake some kind of experiment: to contrast something with mountain training. Having undergone rigorous pre-season training, domestic skiers, according to coaches and the team doctor, should approach the Tour de Ski at the peak of their form. This weekend's Krasnogorsk Ski Track partly confirmed the risky plans. Although it will be possible to sum up the results only at the end of the season. The competitions near Moscow did not create any sensations in the sense that the winners were those whose names are well-known. The unsuccessful performance of three-time Olympic champion Yulia Chepalova should not be considered a surprise. The birth of a second child is a huge stress for the female body, and a longer period is needed to regain its previous condition.
Based on the results of the Krasnogorsk Ski Track, the composition of the Russian team that will compete in the Tour was named. It included 18 athletes: Stanislav Volzhentsev, Maxim Vylegzhanin, Evgeny Dementyev, Alexander Legkov, Dmitry Lyashenko, Nikolay Morilov, Nikolay Pankratov, Andrey Parfenov and Ilya Chernousov; Yulia Ivanova, Natalya Ilyina, Natalya Korosteleva, Larisa Kurkina, Evgenia Medvedeva, Svetlana Ovchinnikova, Olga Rocheva, Diana Sapronova and Yulia Chekaleva. Despite the fact that Natalya Matveeva and Vasily Rochev, who stood on the podium twice, distinguished themselves in Krasnogorsk, they will miss the Tour. Rochev Jr. motivated the refusal by saying that he had not yet gotten into shape and would be purposefully preparing for the next stages of the World Cup. Matveeva is a pronounced sprinter, but this quality, according to the athlete, is not enough to participate in a stage race. Two more racers, Nikita Kryukov and Mikhail Devyatyarov, remained outside the stage of the stage due to late visas.
The result of the Russian speed skating championship in Kolomna near Moscow was the list of athletes who will go to the world sprint all-around championship in Heereven at the end of January. If the coaches have no questions about the women's team (Svetlana Kaykan, Ekaterina Lukoyanova, Ekaterina Malysheva and Yulia Nemaya), then the men have so far announced three names - Alexey Yesin, Alexander Lebedev and Dmitry Lobkov. Three candidates are vying for the remaining fourth place: Maxim Bosenko, Evgeny Lalenkov and Alexey Proshin. According to the leaders of the Russian Skating Union, despite the significance of the world championship in Holland, this start should still be considered as an intermediate one - preparatory to the World Championships at individual distances, which will be held in March in Nagano, Japan.
The head coach of the Russian national team, Wolfgang Steiert, considered the last stage of the Ski Jumping World Cup in Switzerland as a dress rehearsal for the Four Hills Tour. The composition of the team, which will perform at the end of December in Obersdorf, has already been determined: Dmitry Vasiliev, Dmitry Ipatov, Pavel Karelin, Denis Kornilov and Ilya Roslyakov. For the latter, the upcoming tournament will be of fundamental importance. According to the head coach of the Russian national team, Wolfgang Steiert, if Roslyakov does not decide on priorities and does not demonstrate himself properly, then “he will be kicked out of the team.” Contrary to the results shown by the Russians at previous competitions, Steiert is confident that his players are obliged to perform with dignity. The German coach pins his main hopes on 17-year-old talent Pavel Karelin. As for Nordic combined, according to the president of the federation Vladimir Slavsky, nothing should be expected from our athletes again this season. With the advent of new coach Alexander Grushin, the team is undergoing a restructuring that will take time. And the main task of our combined athletes is to enter Group A at the World Cup by January 1, 2009.