Deputy Chairman of the Russian Water Polo Federation Gennady Karpyuk told that the Leningrad region has decided that the All-Russian Spartakiad of the Strongest does not interest them.
Women’s water polo competitions in Spartakiad ended on August 26. The first place was won by the team from the Chelyabinsk region, which defeated the team from Moscow in the final with the score 9:4. Third place was taken by the team from the Nizhny Novgorod region, which defeated the team from the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug and Yugra with the score of 11:10.
– How do you find the level of the Spartakiad at the moment?
“It’s hard to say at the moment because the competition is the first,” Karpyuk told . – Teams called national teams of regions participate. In principle, all the teams that participate in the women’s championship are present here.
Did the favorites disappoint?
– There is no need to talk about favorites. They called the Spartakiad of the strongest, but for some reason the strongest did not come. I’m talking about the Leningrad region team. They decided to ignore these competitions. Let’s say there are teams, but the strongest rest.
– Is there an explanation why the Leningrad region did not come?
– Unfortunately, these are questions for the regional federation.
– Is it related to logistics or maybe funding?
– Not. Probably, they felt that these competitions were not very interesting for them.
– But where else to perform now, except in Spartakiad?
I’m not ready to answer for them. I don’t understand. These competitions have been talked about for a long time, it was the Ministry of Sports that organized them. But the most important thing is that they are the first, which means that they will be remembered.
Which team surprised you?
– The other teams that played were equalized, it turned out to be quite an interesting tournament. I would single out the team from the Nizhny Novgorod region, as they are the youngest in terms of age, but they took third place and showed a good game.
– Is the Spartakiade now an outlet for athletes?
– Sure. For athletes of all ages, the game is an important step in their career. They study like at school, then they take tests. They must show which class they have reached. Now our team is not participating anywhere, so these competitions are only good.
The strongest All-Russian Spartakiad women’s water polo competitions were held in Moscow from August 22 to 26.
Source : MatchTV
