“I supported Messi in the World Cup final.” Medvedev on football and figure skating

In the Emirates, the figure skater conducted several interviews with the players for Dynamo-TV and took part in other club activities.

At the end of the camp, Medvedeva spoke to a correspondent, explaining why she began to encourage the Whites and Blues, with whom she communicates more in the team, and how she assesses Kamila Valieva’s sensational Wednesday.

– How did you end up here, in Abu Dhabi, with Dynamo?

– Last season there was the Russian Cup final in Luzhniki between Dynamo and Spartak. I’ve been asked: Who are you going to root for? And then she answered: for Dynamo. Probably because of the color. Blue has always been my favorite. This is how I chose my team. Then they started calling me more often for games. Came once – liked it, came another, then it became a pleasant habit. Now the real part of the team has arrived here.

– So you can call yourself a full-fledged Dynamo fan?

– I prefer the word “expert” (laughs)! But it’s a joke, of course. I think the right word is ambassador and cheerleader.

– “White-blue” are the leaders present in Moscow. Do you think Dynamo will be able to maintain high attendance given the new realities with the introduction of the fan card?

I am not this thread at all. But I heard from people I communicate with at the club that Dynamo are doing everything to motivate the fans to come to the stands.

Do you understand football well? Or is it even more important to come to the stadium, to feel the atmosphere in the stands?

– It is clear that I understand football much less than figure skating. But I come little by little, if something is not clear during the matches, I specify, I learn some terms with each match. Yes, me, as a spectator, I am more interested in the entertainment, the atmosphere at the stadium. But communication with the guys is also important: when the opportunity arises, like here, it’s very interesting to get to know football from the inside.

– With which Dynamo player do you communicate the most?

– With Arsen (Zakharyan) we recorded a video in Moscow, here too. And also with Kostya Tyukavin, with Dima Skopintsev, Saba Sazonov. Nice people! I hope to keep in touch with other guys in the future.

– Many athletes – not the number of football players – are very jealous of the attention given to Russian football. Like, what have they earned that they write so much about them? You don’t have that?

‘No, and never has been. Maybe because there is also a lot of excitement around figure skating in Russia, especially after the Olympic Games in Korea. In 2014, Yulia Lipnitskaya began to arouse large-scale interest when she made a brilliant contribution to the victory of our team. Then there was 2018, and Beijing took that interest to a new level. It turns out that for the past ten years, figure skating has been making a lot of noise. Well, in the early 2000s there was huge interest as well. In almost all of these interviews, I am asked which is more popular – football or figure skating. It seems to me that our sports are now on the same level in the media.

Why do you think there was such an explosion?

– The rivalry, the head-on clash always attracts attention, especially with the advent of social networks, different communities. There was Plushenko and Yagudin, people were interested in them. But such massive interest, it seems to me, came precisely from Sochi-2014.

– At the beginning of the year, Irina Rodnina again spoke harshly about Russian football players. He says they don’t deserve the money they get…

– Now I came to Dynamo training camp and saw with my own eyes how the guys worked before the season. It’s a really exhausting workout. And whether they are worthy or unworthy… It is clear that in our country our own Cristiano Ronaldo or our own Messi has not yet been born. We still have to work on this, no one denies that. But the fact that the guys work hard is a fact. Let’s remember that any sport is hard as hell. Therefore, I don’t know if it is useful to discuss whether someone is worthy of something or not.

– I read that you follow the World Cup a bit. Were there any preferences?

– At that time I had several trips, a lot of work, filming. Therefore, I didn’t have time to sit and watch the games here. I just followed the score. But if we talk specifically about the final, then everything is trivial here – like the whole world, I was supporting Leo Messi and Argentina. Still, it’s great when a cherished goal, a dream, is realized, especially at the end of a career. It’s nice!

– And so globally. Are you for Messi or for Cristiano Ronaldo?

– Concretely, in the World Cup final, I supported Messi, but overall I did not make such a choice. From an athlete’s perspective, I think that’s not quite right. Both have made a huge contribution to their sport, both have attracted a lot of people to football with their work, both are handsome. So I’m for both.

— We are all praying for Roman Kostomarov. Do you try to get information about him from your relatives?

– I know how hard our Oksana Domnina is going through now, so I try not to distract her once again. We sit on pins and needles, read the news and get more information from the media. I hope everything will work out. Roma is strong, he is a real fighter in life. We are all praying for his health and wishing him a speedy recovery. The situation is very terrible.

– Do you want to stop playing in the cold after that?

“Prepare carefully for this winter. Last year, when I was skating on tees, my immunity was very low, sometimes the temperature went up to 39. But I still had to go out and skate: the public was waiting. No one will tell you. strength, it’s an internal responsibility. I had the main role and I couldn’t disappoint people.

This year, I decided to prepare myself in the fall, knowing that there will be performances in the cold. I drank a vitamin cure, changed my diet a bit, prepared the right clothes. Therefore, the body calmly resisted skiing at minus 25. Unfortunately, not everyone has the opportunity to prepare so thoroughly. Therefore, I have a big request for everyone reading this now: Friends, please take care of your health!

– The big story of this winter is Valieva and its Wednesday tower demolished during the demonstrations in Krasnoyarsk. What do you think?

It caused quite a stir on social media, no doubt. I’ve seen reposts even from major international audiences, including Netflix. Even the composer who created the music for the series rated Camila. Very cool! I agree, Valieva’s performance was epic. Above all, everything was very natural. She did a great job, plus makeup, plus costume. In general, everything went well.

– Can it be compared in epic with your “Sailor Moon”?

“It’s hard, after all, I felt the effect of Sailor Moon on myself. Japan is a slightly different country in perception. There was a real explosion and such force that we did not expect it at the start. But there and there the reaction was only positive – that’s a fact.

– Do you think that in the West they were able to open Valieva in a new way after such a positive wave of information?

– Personally, it’s hard for me to judge, but I don’t read Kamila Valieva’s news every day. I can only judge by my own perception. I love her madly as my friend, I’m always happy to support her. But it seems to me that Camila is now more or less in order.

– How do you like Alena Kostornaya’s transition to pair skating? Surprised?

– No, I wasn’t surprised. Especially when I saw his triple throw. It immediately became clear that she would try in pairs. What season hasn’t she been seen even in major Russian competitions, so if she has the enthusiasm to continue developing in figure skating, albeit in a different form, why not? Especially if it works.