“They returned everything in accordance with the criteria”
The new season in the biathlon has not yet begun, and a grandiose scandal has already occurred in the Russian team. At the end of October, the RBU approved the criteria according to which the composition of the team for the first stages of the World Cup and IBU Cup was to be formed.
However, to the surprise of the fans, the coaches decided not to be guided by these criteria. In particular, Irina Starykh, who did not undergo centralized training with the national team, got into the roster, which was one of the main conditions. And Yekaterina Glazyrina, who served the disqualification, on the contrary, was not on the list, although she successfully performed at special qualifying starts in Tyumen.
The incident caused a serious resonance. It got to the point that even the vice president of the RBU, Alexei Nuzhdov, said that he was ashamed of "such a decision." In turn, the head of the union Vladimir Drachev pointed to the coaching staff, and in the case of Glazyrina, he explained everything by skipping two doping tests.
But the composition was yet to be approved at a meeting of the board of the RRF. And its results were quite unexpected. The governing body has effectively quashed all previous controversial decisions. Firstly, Starykh was transferred to the IBU Cup roster. Secondly, Glazyrina will go there all the same. Thirdly, Tamara Voronina, who initially made it there following the results of the test starts, was included in the World Cup.
Thus, the full composition of the Russian team in the first stages of the CM is as follows:
Men: Alexander Loginov, Evgeny Garanichev, Dmitry Malyshko, Anton Babikov, Eduard Latypov, Nikita Porshnev, Matvey Eliseev.
Women: Ekaterina Yurlova-Percht, Victoria Slivko, Svetlana Mironova, Larisa Kuklina, Kristina Reztsova, Tamara Voronina.
Drachev, commenting on what happened, emphasized that he initially opposed the changes that so excited the public.
“I did not support the inclusion of the Old Ones in the team for the World Cup, as this could introduce a mess into the system. As a result, we were able to cope with this situation and returned everything in accordance with the criteria so that the next time the coaching staff would more carefully and clearly relate to their own proposals for the board. Proposals to include Starykh and Glazyrina only for participation in the IBU Cup in September came from the coaches themselves, such adjustments came from them after the coaching council in Tchaikovsky. Now they offered to violate their proposal. In the current situation, it would be wrong to play back. They decided to leave everything unchanged, nothing bad will happen, ”TASS quoted Drachev as saying.
Head coach Anatoly Khovantsev also noted that the final decision on the composition was for the board of the RRF.
“There is nothing critical about this, but given that five people start at our World Cup, we remain entitled to call someone from the IBU Cup in case of illness, the criteria do not prohibit this. I am not surprised by the decision, because it was for the board that the final decision was whether to approve the proposed lists or not. And whether or not the absence of the Old Ones will affect it will be visible already during the competition, when the World Cup and IBU Cup start. It’s too early to talk about it now, ”TASS quoted Khovantsev.
“I'm waiting for the awards. Medals will be "
The famous commentator Dmitry Guberniev, who initially harshly criticized the RRF and the coaching staff of the national team for violating their own criteria, also commented on the results of the meeting.
“Fresh biathlon news! RRF changed the composition of the biathlon team for the stages of the World Cup and IBU Cup! Voronin at the base, Old and Glazyrin go to IBU. For what I love democracy in sports federations: the president, governor or minister have one vote! And victory should not be the voice of doom and permissiveness, but the voice of reason! We form the national team of the Great Sports Country! ”- Guberniev wrote in the Telegram channel.
At the same time, the journalist made a tough joke on Khovantsev.
“Anatoly Nikolaevich Khovantsev! How will you now defend your homeland in biathlon relay races? Without Irina Old? Do you yourself go to the start in a women's dress, like A.F. Kerensky in 1917? ”- Guberniev wrote in his Telegram channel.
Now that the Russian team has finally been approved, the team can begin to calmly prepare for the first stage of the Planet Cup in Ostersund, which will start on November 30. Meanwhile, coaches are waiting for biathletes to win awards in Sweden.
“For me, this is partly a new experience. Last year, I traveled only to the North American stages of the World Cup. But I note that the preparation for this season was more harmonious with us. We had good skiing in Austria and Tyumen. Whereas a year ago almost no snow was seen on the glacier in Ramsau. And after that, in Finnish Kontiolahti, there were also problems with the track, and as such, the athletes did not receive pre-competition practice. So, theoretically, we can count on better results than at the start of the World Cup last season. I am also waiting for awards. There will be medals, ”cites the words of the head coach of the men's team Sergei Belozerov, Tyumen Arena.
However, a serious problem for the team may be the absence of leader Alexander Loginov, who is diagnosed with ligament inflammation. But, according to Belozyorov, a native of Saratov should still have time to recover. Currently, he is undergoing drug treatment and is training on an individual schedule.