Skier Anastasia Faleeva don’t think Olympic champion Veronika Stepanova misses races because she’s afraid of losing to her.
On Saturday, Faleeva won the sprint in classic style at the fifth stage of the Alfa-Bank Russian Cup. Olga Sergeeva (+4.26) took second place, Ekaterina Evtyagina (+4.67) took third place. Stepanova did not start due to poor health. She also missed the sprint race at the Russian Cup stage in Tyumen.
—How difficult was this victory? Your coach Yegor Sorin said that the prologue didn’t work for you.
— The prologue, unfortunately, turned out to be crumpled. But then, during the races, I started to feel better. It’s cold today, the frost hits you. And the closer the evening approached, the colder it became. Otherwise everything is fine. I believe that here in Kazan is one of those circles that can be described as a real sprint – it’s fast, the finish is not downhill. It turns out to be a spectacular sprint, it’s interesting and it’s possible. Here the winner is not the one who unfolds cunningly, but the one who is truly stronger.
– Today there were a lot of contact fights, there were falls. What do you connect with?
— Unfortunately, there wasn’t much work on the track today. I hardly worked on the ski slope, except for the climb, because it was washed out. Almost all the time we walked without ski trails. There was a ski trail that was made from the prologue and everyone went down it. This is why there has been a struggle for this, which could lead to clashes. It’s still slippery in places, and it slows down in others because there is a strong wind, “sweeping”, such moments occur in a sprint.
— Veronika Stepanova did not start today. Did you want to go out with her?
– Yes of course! Competition is always cool and interesting, that’s why we train and compete. This gives us the opportunity to see our weaknesses and what we need to develop. I don’t know why Veronica hasn’t started, we haven’t spoken to her yet. I think the reason is clearly significant.
“But she didn’t run to Tyumen either. Maybe he’s afraid of losing to you?
– Don’t think. She herself wants to run the sprint. She is strong in long-distance running, but it’s not the same excitement, not the same emotions. However, from the sprint, you feel a charge of vigor and emotion, but afterward it is very difficult.
— Have you thought about filming, given the weather?
– No, it wasn’t. In addition, my family came here from the Tula region to support me. And then they started postponing the departure… I was afraid they would arrive suddenly and they wouldn’t be able to watch anymore. Therefore, for me today it was a sprint that had to be won and nothing else.
— In the end, you created a good base. Didn’t you see what happened in the fight for second place?
“I just started to leave.” At first she followed Anastasia Kirillova to the top of the hill, and then she began to run away from her, ”reports the correspondent of , reporting Faleeva’s words.
Watch live broadcasts of the fifth stage of the Alfa-Bank Russian Cup in cross-country skiing on TV channels “” and “Match! Arena”, as well as the sites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.
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.
