On the day off from training, I went to the opening of the “Russia” exhibition at the VDNKh. I flew to work – my native Kamchatka invited me to become an ambassador of the region, as they say now.
I also had time to see a little of the other exhibitions. For example, “Sport for all”. Where it became clear to me that the main sporting event of 2024 in our country would be the “Games of the Future” in Kazan in February. And rightly so: the “Games of the Future” are phygital. In physical or electronic sports, there are no IOC, FIFA, FIS and other “Russia excluded” from international competitions. From what I understand, no one has banned Russians from going there or intends to do so. This means that dozens of foreign athletes will come to Kazan. Maybe not from the United States or Sweden, but the competition will nevertheless be truly international.
But personally, I’m attracted to something else.
The idea of “six minutes of football simulator, then two halves on a real mini-football field” is exactly what you need to be on trend! We are probably the first generation to have grown up with computer games from about kindergarten onwards. The ice rink in PUBG attracted me, a teenager, much more than a video on social networks where my aunt explains to me how to correctly paint my nails or my eyelashes. And we raced laser tag just as much as ski training in those years. Thank you to all parent sponsors!
I’m sure nothing can be changed here – my future children will spend even more time than me in virtual reality and games.
But what do I see in the Future Games program? Competitions will be held in sports where there are decent simulators: football, basketball, hockey, shooting games. Inevitably: types for which there are no simulators will gradually lose popularity. How can two hours in the forest on skis compete with two hours shooting?! Especially when even the laziest media have already written how much money the best Russian e-sportspeople currently earn. Well done cybersports enthusiasts, we envy you!
Therefore, any sport, any federation must now first and foremost think, not about how to build another stadium, but about how to create a realistic game around its sport. So that Bolshunov and Ustyugov look alike – and also worry about defeats. Otherwise, there will simply be no one to come to this stadium – everyone from FC24 and Street Fighter will leave. Cheaper, warmer and much more promising.
Fortunately, ski racing already has a phygital simulator – and we use it sometimes. Ski treadmill. And not necessarily as advanced as the Russian Olympic Committee has established. It could be simpler. The main thing is to have the opportunity to compete online with other skiers. By the way, I very much doubt that the Norwegians will invite us to the World Championships in Trondheim in 2025 – so I am ready to race on the virtual World Cup track.
Why am I not surprised by the IBU’s reaction to the emergence of MLCB?
I read that the International Biathlon Union (IBU) reacted negatively to the idea of creating the International Club Biathlon League (ICBL) and put pressure on the Chinese not to come to Khanty- Mansiysk. And why am I not surprised? Who liked business competitors and when? Do you think European football bosses are happy with the arrival of Arab money?
No, of course they like money – they don’t like it when newcomers want to live by their own rules. I don’t like it when the best footballers go to Saudi Arabia. Or when the leader of the Spanish football championship is an incomprehensible “Girona”, which belongs half to a company from Abu Dhabi and the other half to the Guardiola family. Sports bosses are the same everywhere: no one wants to give up control. The only thing that can bring them down is big money and new technologies. I sincerely wish MLCB good luck, but they will only be able to become a competitor to the IBU when an Arab or Chinese billionaire decides that his own biathlon club is cooler than a big yacht. Or a European football team. But to convince big companies to invest, we need new technologies and new ideas on how to organize and promote competitions. Contact me, I will share yours!
Let Northug set the record, and then we will beat his feat
By the way, about ideas. I don’t have and never will have any idols. There are people I try to learn from. First of all, those who never stop are always inventing and implementing something new. Elon Musk, for example.
Or Petter Northug. I have said it more than once: it is no coincidence that it was under him that international ski racing reached its peak, sponsors flocked to it, including from Russia. And now Petter isn’t sitting on his ass and just trying to convert his fame into money. He started his own clothing company and created his own ski team. And right now he’s inviting all his fans to set a new Guinness Record for the most people in a “ski lesson.”
I think we’ll let him set this record, and then we’ll beat him, right, Alexander Gennadievich Legkov? Because sport is no longer about medals, but about who interests the public the most. Just ask Alika Schmidt.
Source : MatchTV
I am Sandra Jackson, a journalist and content creator with extensive experience in the news industry. I have been working in the news media for over five years. During this time, I have worked as an author and editor at various outlets producing high-quality content that attracts readers from different demographics.
