Andrey, has life changed a lot in one year?
– Cardinally. It goes in the same direction, but the changes are still important. Not only the environment has changed, but also its perception. Try new training methods, test new loads. They radically changed the preparation compared to the one I had before Tokyo.
“But Minakov is still the same?” The one who promised to beat the Americans at the Olympics last April?
– I do not allow such an option that I would somehow be changed here. Even though I am here alone in a foreign culture.
– I’m more about the attitude, the perception of the world. Have you matured or are you not allowing yourself to lose that naïve youthful positive?
– I think an athlete should always have such a childish wick, you have to stay really hungry for victories. Well, and being able to play mental games with opponents. I would make the only amendment to these words – you need to understand that it’s not all up to you alone, you need a team. If everyone does their best, there will be some success.
“Now can you tell me what happened in Tokyo?” There were several fourth places.
— Too bad I didn’t manage to show a decent result in the 4 × 100 m freestyle relay, but as it happened, it happened. I don’t want to talk about the reasons, about someone separately. I was happy to show a decent result on a hundred butterflies. There was not much luck that day. All of those in fourth place are a bit lacking in certain components. There were two leaders that it was hard to fight against, but I had to take the bronze. I hope this is not the last Olympics and there will be a chance for revenge.
Did you manage to leave it behind?
– It does not go unnoticed. Now, because of the political situation, you think: it is not known whether I will still have such a chance or not. But what’s the point of killing yourself over this? Here you don’t know what awaits us in six months, and you don’t even have to guess for 2024. Of course, it’s not easy to think that maybe it was luck and you have took two fourth places, but that was the way it was.
What was the original program? swim for Stanford or vice versa?
– At first it was swimming for Stanford. I have not yet reached the level of the national team. It wasn’t even mentioned. Education was the priority.
Then, when the results increased, swimming became a priority. Now the goal is to get better at swimming and get a good education along the way, you have to be ready for anything.
– I have heard a lot about the crazy schedule for those who combine sports and university studies. Is it really difficult?
“At first it was tough. I had to adapt to the culture, the load, everything. Then I found a balance. The first three trimesters I took a reduced load in order to devote more time to sport. Now that the adaptation period has passed, I perceive the load more easily and the average score has increased.
– What time does your day start?
– I get up at 5:30 in the morning. In St. Petersburg, the ascent was made at 6:30 am at the earliest in order to be on time for the swimming pool due to traffic jams. Here at 6:30 we are already jumping into the water, so at 6:10 we should be in the pool. Until you get up, until you have breakfast, until you get there on your bike.
How does a Petersburger live in California? Have you gotten used to the climate?
— We live an hour from San Francisco, in Palo Alto, 40 degrees of heat every day. But the Pacific Ocean is cold, so when you ride your bike in the morning, it’s still cool – 15-20 degrees. During the day, not a single cloud in the sky and intense heat. San Francisco is easier, cooler.
I miss the snow a lot, plus this difference in temperature in the morning and in the afternoon… You go to training in jacket and pants, and then you go out, and you are warm, even if you are already in shorts and tee -shirt.
– This season was the beginning of the NCAA, there were victories. What are the main impressions of the competition?
– Emotionally, it was the most difficult competition, even though I swam at the World Championships and the Olympics. At the Olympics, it’s all nine days, but here it’s compressed to four, you can’t relax for even a second. The task is not easy.
– What emotions remained from the World Cup?
— In the 200m butterfly, the world record was expected, but the guys and I believed until the end that Krystof Milak would emerge from 1 minute 50 seconds. But still, well done! Expected well done!
The 100m world record on the back of Thomas Ceccon was very surprising, but it is more a question for Kliment (Kolesnikov) (laughing). It was impressive that the Italians won the medley relay. In general, we can say that it was the Italian championship. With the guys we swam all the “juniors”, we grew up together. When you accompany someone on the same path and see how these people succeed, it is worth a lot.
Going back to the butterfly, compared to Tokyo, everything was weaker. Lowest result in the 100m since 2017. In the 100m freestyle semi-final, David Popovich had 47.13, but the result with which he won the final was lower. In general, at certain distances, the World Championship turned out to be the weakest in four years.
At the same time, I would like to separately mention Leon Marchand, who trains with Bob Bowman, coach of Michael Phelps. Marchand showed the world what complex swimming is. Bowman is said to have given him Phelps training and said, “He swam with those seconds, you have to swim faster.”
– How did you perceive the situation with the passage of the World Cup? Initially, our camp itself refused to participate.
– Of course, I would like to go to this World Cup. There is a lack of emotion in playing for the national team. But, probably, this season there is a reason to skip international starts – I’m not saying it’s true, I’m not saying it should be. They constantly want to push us, to hinder us. So it was in front of Tokyo, when we played without flag or anthem.
But the decision to skip this season is already in the works as it is a strong argument in the further discussion of returning to the world stage.
Speaking specifically about me, maybe such a break is beneficial. You have to mentally recover from the Olympics, the move, and all those times associated with adjusting to Stanford.
– You and Vova Morozov competed in the United States. Does the FINA ban apply to them?
– We have such a system – in the season from September to March we play for the university, in the summer – according to the club system. There is no problem with the app. Also, yes, these departures are not under the auspices of FINA. There are no restrictions. Vlad means Trojan horse. There were two departures and no complaints were filed.
What is the general situation? You are unlikely to listen to complaints from Stanford students because of the political situation.
Everyone is supportive and understanding. What’s the point of fighting for things that are beyond our control? There are many people of different nationalities at the university. Here they look at what kind of person you are, not where you are from. There are haters everywhere, but luckily I haven’t met such a person yet.
– Is there a chance to see you at competitions in Russia this summer? Air travel is difficult and expensive these days.
– Yes, but that’s not the biggest problem. We are currently working on the papers so that I can move in safely after the Spartakiad. Instead of the Friendship Games, I will participate in the US Open and, as I understand it, my results will be counted in absentia.
“Remote selection?”
– Exactly.
You said you missed home. Why the most? And how is the food there? Many in the United States have problems with proper nutrition.
– Absolute truth. It’s not the best here. Lots of sugar, lots of frying, lots of fast food. But we have nutrition for athletes at Stanford, without it everything would be much worse. The head of the sports canteen always listens to our opinion. Not that everyone orders for themselves individually, but some general points are taken into account.
– Do you bring buckwheat from home?
“There’s a Russian store here. Be able to buy. But I, for example, really miss cheesecakes. I’m a big fan of cheesecakes and healthy foods in general.
Source : MatchTV
