“Not a punishment, but some kind of circus”: Nagorny on WADA sanctions, preparations for the Olympic Games and his video blog

“Previously, Russia did not have such a team as it is now”

- You turned out to be just an impeccable year, including you managed to win three golds at once at the World Cup. Are there any moments you are not happy with?

- In fact, an athlete should always be dissatisfied with something, otherwise he will stop developing and strive for new victories. But if we take the primacy of the planet in Stuttgart, then not everything of the plan turned out to be realized in floor exercises. I have long dreamed of taking a medal in this form, but failed. There were, of course, small organizational problems. I was called early and was not given the opportunity to prepare, although this should not be. As a result, it was not possible to make the program good from beginning to end.

- Could this be due to the fact that they approached the shell not in the best emotional state?

- Then the mood was good. In general, the mood for the tournament is formed not before entering the platform, but a day or two before the competition. Before leaving for them, we try to tune in to arrive at the place already without extraneous negative thoughts.

- In Russia historically there were strong gymnasts. Why did the country not always succeed in dominating the world stage?

- Just before there was no team that appeared now. Fortunately, we have rallied and can show maximum results, as in Stuttgart, where they won World Cup gold in team all-around for the first time in 28 years. In the future, we will try to show the same results, or even better.

- Why in Russia men's gymnastics is currently stronger than women's?

- Honestly, I don’t know. So, probably everywhere. You can not always be the first, sooner or later there is someone stronger. It is impossible to always stay young and constantly be in the prime of life. Unfortunately, the leader of the women's team Aliya Mustafina is absent, she is not enough. Other girls finished their careers, a new generation has come. In general, they win medals, and that’s good. In addition, let's not forget that they have very strong rivals - the Americans, who for many years have dominated and leave no chance for anyone. The situation will not change in the future, because the United States has Simone Biles, winning all the medals that come to her hand. And in the men's national team of Russia, leaders, in fact, are all. We are lucky in this regard. Everyone has a strong character and always has his own opinion. Surprisingly, this works.

- Less than a year is left before the Olympic Games in Tokyo. What are your expectations from them?

- For me, all competitions are the same. I think I’ll tune in to the Olympics as well as for the World Cup or European Championship. All tournaments are important. Moreover, I have repeatedly visited both adults and youth games. God forbid, we will manage to go to Tokyo and perform there. The mood is simple - to withstand the entire amount of preparation, prepare psychologically and show the maximum result.

- In anticipation of the Olympics, are you planning to somehow change your program?

- Of course. In gymnastics there is such a term as “purity”, a technique of performance. Now we need to establish this "purity", although we already get good grades for it. But you still need to "cleanse" and improve. Plus, you need to learn new elements, more complex and serious, because due to complexity, the basic score grows, which helps to compete with other gymnasts.

- Follow the preparations for the Olympic Games rivals?

- Not. Our task is to look after ourselves. The most important thing is to work, no matter what, set goals. Others do the same. This is the interest. We compete in large arenas, not knowing who is capable of what.

- Is it too late to learn new elements seven months before the Games?

- It's never too late. The question is whether you can learn them so that you can successfully insert them into a combination and execute them in the program without failures. It costs a lot. No one should doubt you.

- And how much time is usually required in order to introduce a new element into the program?

- There are different elements. It happens to me that I see the complex, I do it the first time and insert it into the program, although someone will say that it needs to be taught for a year. And on the contrary, I can’t do some. There is simply a physiological predisposition to the elements.

“The flag is taken from us, and this is unfair”

- I feel that you are confident in yourself before the Olympic Games. But what do you think about the decision of the WADA executive committee for Russia?

“We are not used to it.” The same thing happened at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, when we flew there and did not know whether we would perform at all, and if so, how. We arrived at the opening of the Olympic Village, and the IOC decision on Russia was just announced during the take-off of the aircraft. And on board we still did not know anything. Opinions sounded different. Someone thought that we would not be allowed to speak, and we would immediately return. Bad unpleasant thoughts climbed into my head. They tried to fence themselves off from this, but they flew for 12 hours, and during this time they managed to change their minds. But as soon as we landed, one of the guys took out a phone, went on the Internet and read that they still allowed us. The whole plane applauded and rejoiced. It was a small celebration right before the Olympics.

- How is the current state of affairs different from the situation with the Olympics in 2016?

- Now the situation is worse. The flag is being taken from us, and this is unfair. It’s unfair to me, to the partners in the national team. We always stand for fair fight, for pure sport. According to President Vladimir Putin, the punishment should be individual. Do not punish those athletes who have never violated anti-doping rules. After all, they go all their lives to the Olympic Games, to their dream.

Olympic gold is the dream of every athlete since childhood. That’s all he lives for. And here they simply forbid performing under the flag of their country. I think this is unfair. But there is a second option - speaking in a neutral status. Everything is individual here, but, in my opinion, an athlete should still compete, since this is the thing of his whole life. We all know perfectly well that sport is not eternal. Therefore, if there is any possibility, it must be used and proved.

“Is awareness of injustice adding strength?”

- If the athlete is psychologically stable, any provocations from the outside will not affect him and will not take his strength. They can only motivate, or not touch at all. You can ignore such things. Everything that has happened lately has angered and motivated. It's terrible when the flag is taken away, because we were born in this country, we live here and love it. This is not entirely correct. But still, everyone will know that I am from Russia: rivals, family, fans. Take the flag, but this is not a punishment, but some kind of circus.

“After the Olympics, he opened his barbershop. A year later closed

- You have a fairly successful video blog about gymnastics. Does this interfere with sports?

- When I started doing this, I had a lot of free time. I wanted to popularize gymnastics, because, unfortunately, not many people know what kind of sport it is. There are simple command views that everyone is following. And gymnastics for the layman is not entirely clear. Looking at the exercises, you can say: "Well, he twists his somersaults and twists." On this interest runs out. It’s hard to understand the whole system of points, margins and so on. Then I got the idea to talk about it.

- You made the first video from the European Championship, where you won.

“I showed how we prepared, what we ate, where we lived.” It turned out interesting, and the video gained 30 thousand views. It seemed to me that for the first issue these are very good numbers. I continued to work on my blog, then there were the Olympic Games and a good break when I could devote more strength to it. It all ended with the need to resume a career. They told me: “You are a gymnast, not a blogger. Finish. " At that time, I already had a cameraman and an editor, although at first I did everything myself. Now issues come out less often, but still appear. I show what is happening in the competition and try to popularize gymnastics.

- Your wife Daria Spiridonova is also a gymnast. What kind of gymnastic families are they?

- I don’t know what happens in ordinary families, but I can tell you about mine. For example, at home we hardly talk about sports. We have enough of this in the hall and at the training camp. We love to travel, go for walks, attend various events. Therefore, our horizons are not limited to sports. We always have something to talk about and where to go. I think that being distracted from sports is also sometimes necessary to miss him.

- In addition to sports, you are in business. Where did you get interest in this area?

- He appeared in 2015 when he began to read a lot. Until that moment, I practically did not hold books in my hands, except for the lessons of literature at school. And then I came across a couple of books that said that money needed to be invested. Having studied this business psychology, he came home and said that it was necessary to open some kind of business. And after the Olympics, I had a certain budget, and I opened my barbershop. A year later, closed. This was my first experience. I realized that books about the whole process will not tell you. It turns out that it takes even more money and some time for development. Not so simple. When I ran into a problem, there was an interest in how everything can be fixed. So, slowly, I ended up in this area.

- Do you still have to sacrifice business for gymnastics?

- If you put it in its place, then the first is now sport, the second is business, and the third is a video blog. The last thing for me is a hobby. And business is necessary as an airbag, because sport is not eternal.

- Since you currently spend most of your time in sports, to whom have you delegated business management to business?

- There are no such people. I myself opened it and lead. There are employees that I control.

- You were born in Rostov-on-Don. How do people from the south of Russia differ from other compatriots?

- It is trite, but we are more sincere, we take it closer to our hearts. He quickly adapted to Moscow, since he moved as a child, began to go to the training camp. But when my friends from Rostov-on-Don find themselves in the capital now, much is not clear to them. For example, our self-irony is not the same as that of Muscovites. Plus, we are not so mercantile, we strive for sincere relations and true friendship.

- What would you wish the fans for the New Year?

- I want to heartily congratulate and wish, first of all, to find the light that will motivate you to do something daily. Set yourself more goals, do not be afraid, even if at first glance it seems that you will never do this in your life. This will push you to wonderful, incredibly magical moments. I think they will definitely happen to you.