“Some people think I’m afraid to talk about ‘neutralization conditions.’ They confuse fear and disgust. Chronicle of Veronica Stepanova

And skiing in Russia has not only survived, but is also developing! And both professional and amateur. End of 2023, I can say with confidence.

I write from the snowy Moscow region: here and now there are trails for every taste and budget. Including absolutely free ones. They are all really well prepared. A word from the skier – I prepared directly for the last two stages of the Cup of Russia in the Moscow region, mainly in the Larisa Lazutina park and in Meshchersky. Here and there hundreds of amateurs were skiing at the same time – those who wanted to follow me on the long climb to Lazutinka held on. Some even exceeded. Good game! Although I still would not recommend pushing your pulse into the fifth zone in this way without daily training and without the supervision of a doctor.

My older colleagues and friends found themselves in the role of managers of private ski clubs. They are the owners, trainers and managers. They attract people, teach children and adults to ski, write training plans and participate in training camps in different places in Russia.

It’s best to ask them yourself how the business is doing. But the fact that they are opening one branch after another is known to everyone in the ski world. And we’re talking about different people, basically competitors. In other words, there is a demand. People want to ski, they have time and money for it.

At the Russian Cup stages, less than a hundred women and more than a hundred men take part in most races. Coming from several dozen regions. Based on the winners and winners, you can study the geography of the country, looking at where they (we) come from, where they grew up, where they were trained in childhood and youth. Yes, now almost all the best play in five or six regions, but for me this is an indicator of development, which I have written about more than once. For example, my colleagues and I from the national team of the Arkhangelsk region signed contracts with a private sports club in this wonderful region. From what I understand, nothing like this existed five years ago. And now it’s like football or hockey. Almost!

We do everything really well. Through the joint efforts of the Ministry of Sports, regional ministries of sports, sports societies, private sponsors and philanthropists. Of course, there is huge merit and a central role for Elena Valerievna Vyalbe. Yes, she’s a bossy leader who doesn’t spend a lot of time explaining things, and I don’t always agree with her outside of the ski stadium. But she supports the cause and solves the problems one by one. The most important thing for me was and remains the full presence (or rather absence) of cross-country skiing on the federal television channel. Serious sponsors (including personal ones) should know in advance how many times their sport, athlete or sportswoman will appear on television and how many viewers will see them each time. I refuse to understand why ski PR and marketing isn’t a top priority, but I try to make up for it with personal media and social media activity.

Many people think I’m lying when I’ve been saying for almost two years: we skiers need to return to the international scene either on an equal footing or not at all. Let me try to explain to you once again: if things were bad for us, if the only opportunity to prove ourselves, to earn money, were international performances, if stadiums and hotels in Italy and in Norway were very different from those in Tyumen or Kirovo. Chepetsk, then, maybe we would miss the World Cup. But fortunately, everything is now at the right level and “forecasts indicate further improvement”.

Some people think that I am afraid of participating in the World Cup “in neutralizing conditions”. They confuse fear with disgust. I do not dare to impose my point of view on anyone, but I am confident in it myself. Happy New Year everyone and see you soon on the ski slopes!