What’s better in an athlete’s career than winning the Olympic Games? Victory at the Olympic Games on home soil. Jenia Grebennikovplaying for Zenit, became a two-time Olympic champion. The second gold medal of his career was won in the final against Poland (3-0) in front of the full stands of the Stade Paris-Sud. It seemed that the arena simply could not withstand such a sound wave. Quinten Geoffroy even said to Grebennikov before leaving: “Zhenya, I’m scared.”
What did Grebennikov himself say after the golden match?
“It’s incredible, like one of the most beautiful dreams.” Two Olympic gold medals, we wrote our names in the history of French volleyball. What our fans did was simply unreal. This kind of support makes all the difference in tough matches, especially at the end of a set. Even if you try to let go, the same thought always runs through your head: we are playing in front of our fans, in front of our families. All this gave motivation.
— The atmosphere of a home final can hardly be compared to anything?
– I think it shouldn’t be compared to anything. Every ending is unique, but the atmosphere is great. And we played very well in that match against Poland. I’m very happy, because that’s the case when we win in front of our home crowd, at our home Olympics. It’s just unrealistic. There were a lot of people in the stands.
— They say they beat Poland very easily.
“Nothing is easy in sport, and there are no easy finals either. I think we played very well. We fought for every ball in this match, so thanks to that work we won.
— Did you feel pressure during the Olympic Games on home soil?
– No. But I knew that our loved ones would come, that we would have enormous support that would help us play.
— Did you manage to see anything?
— I didn’t follow anything in particular. It’s just that when I came across a program, I had time to watch something. I saw handball, for example, basketball. There wasn’t much time for anything.
– Did you live in the village?
– Yes, like everyone else.
— Which final was the most difficult: this one or the one in Tokyo?
– Both were heavy. But in Tokyo, the final was even a little harder.
— Do you hope the club will honor you?
– Let’s see! But yes, I hope so (laughs).
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Source : MatchTV
I’m John White and I’m an experienced journalist working in the news industry. My specialty is covering sports news, which I’ve been doing for over 6 years now. During this time, I have worked as an author with Athletistic, a popular online news website focusing on sports topics.
