Olympic silver medalist in speed skating Daniel Aldoshkine told that his wife’s victory in the 3,000 meters at the Russian Championship inspired him to win gold in the 5,000m.
Aldoshkin won the 5,000 meters at a tournament in Irkutsk on Sunday. His wife Ekaterina Aldoshkina (née Efremenkova), who combines performances in speed skating and short track speed skating, became the Russian 3000 m champion on the same day.
— Before the Russian Championship, we organized a three-week training camp in Irkutsk, it had been planned for a long time. The preparation took place without incident, all the work was carried out.
— How did you estimate the chances of winning today?
— Our guys are all strong, the competition remains strong, so I thought more about the time, the movements, I focused more on the seconds than on the ranking. The rink record is a bonus.
— How did the two-person fight go?
— I thought it would be tighter, closer, but it’s always nice to run with teammates, even old ones.
— How was the race after your wife won the first Russian champion title in her career?
– Hard! My first thought: my wife won, but I didn’t. They will say: “Are you a loser? You have been training for so many years, but she has been skating for two years and has won, but you have not won. So all this happened thanks to my wife.
— During these three years spent in Irkutsk, have you made progress in organizing the competitions? As shows?
— As I understand it, the broadcast did not work out with financing, so everything was done in a somewhat reduced form, but with all this, the broadcast is still the best in Russia – better than ours to Kolomna or in short track. Irkutsk is trying to keep its brand. And the competition is also at a very good level. I say this not because my second region is Irkutsk, but because it really is. At 5000 m, there was a crowd of people in the stands, everyone was shouting, the children were drawing posters with the names of the athletes and cheering us on.
I always wanted to race in Thialf (arena in Heerenveen, Netherlands) with the stands full, but first there were the Covid restrictions, then there was no chance. So I only know this from other guys’ stories. And here, in the stands, there was such a roar! In Thialf, as I was told, this happens over the entire distance, whereas here we only have it at the finish, but it’s already cool.
The specialists responsible for the ice in Irkutsk are making progress every year, listening to athletes and receiving feedback. They experiment and we give them feedback on how they feel. This brings results. They make the most of their opportunities. “As far as I know, in this championship of Russia, the ice is without additives, that is, it is natural ice, without chemicals, and if you add it, you will get an ultra ice rink -fast,” Aldoshkin told .
Source : MatchTV
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