President of the Skating Federation of the Sverdlovsk region Boris Terentyev, on the air of the program “There is a topic” on , spoke about what could encourage the Russian speed skating champion Vladimir Semirunniy to join the Polish national team and stated that the athlete has minimal chances of returning to the Russian national team.
Semirunniy told on Monday that he had informed the Russian Skating Union of his desire to compete for the Polish national team. The skater is already in Poland. The 20-year-old athlete started cycling training before the season and working out in the gym. Earlier, Terentyev told that Semirunniy was no longer included in either the Sverdlovsk region team or the regional federation.
How unexpected was this transition?
“It was a very unpleasant surprise for me, the federation and the coaches. There was no sign. The work process was underway, we had big plans.
— Why Poland?
— I think about this shocking news. I think they didn’t fully think through the decision. There is no single reason. It was a combination of events from sports life, his serious ambitions to win Olympic gold or become a leader at the World Cup. He is ready to do anything for titles.
He left his home, his parents and the organization that fully supported him. In Soviet times it was the capital of speed skating, although today we no longer have a single speed rink for the next season.
This has a significant impact on young athletes. Until this year, we had the only ice rink in Yekaterinburg that met the requirements. Now he’s gone too. There will be a reconstruction of the stands. We hope that in a year or two we will not lose the number of children who want to play sports. We are hoping for a temporary relocation.
— What can you say about compensation in the event of a change of nationality for young people? Is such a law necessary?
– Of course, this would stabilize the situation and give guarantees to our country. But I am more interested in stable motivation in my home region than in remuneration. And the compensation itself would stabilize and balance to a certain extent the rights of the athlete and the organization where he received unlimited resources.
— Are you ready to take him back if he decides to come back?
“I don’t agree with him, but I understand his decision.” But there will be no going back.
— Why is it only in the Russian Federation that a change of citizenship is considered so tragic?
— We love our leaders very much. To achieve good sporting results, you have to be an extraordinary person. This is a great example for all of society. We had high hopes for Volodya. We saw good conditions. I don’t know under what conditions he will work from now on. And the prospects could be illusory. We lost our own banner, which was the benchmark for regional speed skating and even for All-Russian speed skating. It’s been a long time since we had such athletes!
— How did the team react to your departure?
— We have not yet digested the information. We haven’t discussed it collectively yet. We are only experiencing the second day of information.
— Don’t you think that such an act is a consequence of the complete absence of patriotic education that existed in Soviet times?
— I started speed skating in the USSR in 1980 and finished my career in 1997, but in Yekaterinburg and the region about 5,000 people were involved in speed skating. There are about a thousand in Yekaterinburg, plus a hundred trainers. There are around 800 trainers in the region. There was a complete selection. Now, we select guys like diamonds, the choice is much more limited. Nowadays there are so many skaters in the country, as it was during the USSR only in the Sverdlovsk region.
Patriotism is absorbed with breast milk. If applicable [уход в другую команду] happened, that means we have gaps. And we need to intensify work in this area,” Terentyev said on .
The International Skating Union (ISU) previously confirmed the suspension of Russian athletes from tournaments under its auspices due to the situation in Ukraine.
Source : MatchTV
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