– Svetlana Borisovna, jumpers have never had so many Russian starts. Do they feel tired?
“You can’t say that the guys are very tired. Competitions that appeared spontaneously in the calendar (“Victory Salute”) were held according to a special program, in the format they needed. Before, after all, we had the Grand Prix, and the World Series, and the World Championship, which required more emotional strength. So I don’t think we overloaded them with easy starts.
On the contrary, there is not enough emotional outburst in some places, because everything happens on the same wave. Not in all disciplines, the guys showed what they were capable of. The girls on the tower did not give any pleasure with their jumps.
– The sum of the points of Ruslan Ternovoï and Alexander Bondar is higher than that of the winners, the Chinese, at the World Championships. You are probably not comparing scores, but jumps.
– Of course, we first pay attention to the quality of the jumps. The judges are different and, even despite the uniform rules, a difference of 10 to 15 points can occur somewhere. Moreover, the situation in the World Championship and the Russian Championship is different. When you fight full time, the opponent, seeing your jumps, can jump better or, conversely, worse. So you can only judge by the quality. And if we talk about quality, this jump is by far the best. This couple can fight for the highest places. And they showed great jumps!
– You have athletes of suitable age and experience at the peak of their careers, all the way to the top. Are there fears that this whole situation will affect their exit at this summit?
“We just have to do everything to prevent this from happening. We try to raise the level of competition so that the guys don’t feel abandoned. Of course, a lot will depend on their willingness to wait, their determination to fight so that at any moment, when the doors open, they say: we are ready.
— You expressed problems with the ski jumps. So the jumps didn’t go as they could?
– Maybe. Now we have come from Krugly, where we monitor the quality of the boards we work on, even if one board is no longer enough. For several years, we have not received from the Ministry of Sports the equipment that we had planned to acquire. Now, the problem is that our stepping stones are American, and although they didn’t fall under sanctions, they can’t be bought. The federation is working on this issue, looking for other channels, but there are difficulties.
In Penza the swimming pool is from 2009, they have one of the best schools. They buy shells, but the ones they have now are not of the same quality. This year is the third start here. The first day they even changed a board, but their quality is not the same. Maybe the guys have some discomfort because of it when performing. It is necessary to work with the concert springboard, if it is a little, God forbid, slippery, if it squeaks a little, slams, does not work in full amplitude, all this affects the jumps. You have to get used to the projectile, but you don’t have time to get used to it – the competition takes place the next day after the finish.
– Do you have prizes worthy of money in the Russian Championship?
– Not the same as in high level sports, but not bad. The Federation tries to encourage athletes with prize money during competitions, material support is always important.
— What are the selection rules for the Friendship Games?
– In individual jumps, four are selected, in synchronized jumps – two pairs, in mixed jumps – I will ask the question of having three of our participants.
As a result, the Russian team at the Friendship Games included (July 26-29, Kazan):
Source : MatchTV
