"Athletes stayed at home": how Russian skaters return to training after a pause

It is too early to talk about the return of sports life to its former course, however, the resumption of the work of bases, including the main training center of the national team in Novogorsk, Moscow Region, can definitely be considered good news. That is where members of the national figure skating team will arrive soon.

This information was confirmed by the President of the Russian Figure Skating Federation (FFKKR) Alexander Gorshkov. According to him, most of the athletes will arrive on Sunday and begin classes from next week.

“Athletes of the national team plan to start training from the beginning of next week in Novogorsk, and those who have planned training in Kislovodsk will begin work there a week later - in early June,” TASS quoted Gorshkova as saying.

Earlier, the director of Novogorsk Nikolai Domoratsky, in an interview with RT, said that Moscow and Moscow skaters would be the first to settle on the base after resuming its work. A total of 54 athletes are expected to arrive. Immediately after arrival, they will all be tested for coronavirus, and then remain in the training center until the quarantine restrictions are lifted.

At the moment, the names of those who arrive in Novogorsk first are unknown. According to media reports, we are talking about the main backbone of the adult and junior teams. It is reported that the Olympic champion Pyeongchang Alina Zagitova will join her colleagues later. The reasons for this decision are not called, however, it is known that the skater carries out self-isolation in his native Izhevsk.

Team training is expected to begin on Monday. For this, Novogorsk has already prepared all the conditions.

“The rink is flooded and ready for training. You can start training on ice on Monday or Tuesday, ”said Domoratsky.

It is known that the trainer Sergey Dudakov and choreographer Daniil Gleichengauz will work with the groups of Eteri Tutberidze in Novogorsk. As for the mentor herself, nothing is known about her presence at the base. The fact is that after the suspension of centralized classes in Moscow, she went to the United States, where her daughter, figure skater Diana Davis, lives. She spent the last weeks there, but at the moment she is already working on the issue of returning to Russia.

Of course, after such a long break, which totaled about two months, it will be extremely difficult for athletes to resume full-fledged physical activity. Many skaters had the opportunity to train and even work out some elements in suburban areas, but more serious classes were out of the question.

Some admitted that it was difficult for them to imagine themselves at the rink after a pause. That is why such experts as Tatyana Tarasova and Irina Slutskaya actively called for skaters to go out on ice in small groups as soon as possible.

According to the General Director of the FFKKR Alexander Kogan, training skaters at federal bases will be held behind closed doors.

“We have several options for how the training will go. In daily mode we work with the Ministry of Sports. As soon as we decide, we will talk specifically. Now athletes are beginning to undergo an in-depth medical examination to get to these training camps, ”Sport24 quotes Kogan.

The honored trainer of Russia Alexander Svinin, working with a dance pair of Alexander Stepanov - Ivan Bukin, also spoke about plans to resume training.

“We are glad that we finally have the opportunity to return to work, to return to the ice rink. Our athletes were very happy with the good news - everyone stayed at home, everyone wants to go ice. We’ll enter the form in stages, we won’t start immediately with serious loads, ”Svinin explained.

The work of sports training centers was suspended on March 29 as a measure to prevent the spread of coronavirus. However, some teams chose to remain in quarantine in Novogorsk.

On May 22, Minister of Sports Oleg Matytsin announced the resumption of centralized training processes for national teams and the launch of the bases. Russian President Vladimir Putin supported this initiative, while emphasizing that athletes must still adhere to safety rules.

Thus, from May 25, Novogorsk will begin work, from May 1 - a number of training centers in the Krasnodar Territory, Stavropol and Crimea. According to Domoratsky, immediately after the skaters, the arrival of the Russian national pentathlon team is expected, and in total 220 people will be on the base.