“It is necessary to concentrate fully on the work on bills”: Drachev announced the resignation of the head of the RRF

Vladimir Drachev announced his resignation as president of the Russian Biathlon Union. As reported on the official website of the SBR, the reason for such a decision was the excessive workload of the former functionary due to his work in the State Duma. The resignation of the head occurred a day before the election of the new head of the organization.

“Today, after the adoption of amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation, it has become obvious that it is necessary to fully concentrate on the bills that are necessary in connection with the adopted amendments ... Thus, the additional burden in the State Duma will not allow me to concentrate on activities related to SBR ", - said in a statement Dracheva.

On the eve of the scheduled scheduled press conference of Drachev before the election of the head of the RRF, but it was canceled. As a reason, the functionary also indicated "heavy workload."

“In such a situation, it does not seem possible to me to plunge into biathlon with all the usual return, and especially the upcoming preparation of the national team of our country for the upcoming 2022 Olympic Games. It is gratifying to realize that I have done a lot as president of the Biathlon Union for the benefit of developing our beloved winter Olympic sport. I also express my willingness to continue to provide advisory support to my successor and his team of specialists, ”concluded Drachev.

The resignation of the current head of the RRF was commented on by the Minister of Sports of Russia Oleg Matytsin. He thanked Drachev and noted that he sought to achieve positive results and supported biathletes, despite all the difficulties.

“Drachev decided to focus on work in the State Duma, and I wish him great success in this activity. I am sure that his experience and professionalism will be in demand in society and will serve the interests of Russians, ”said Matytsin.

At the same time, the Minister of Sports expressed the view that the Russian biathlon family needs to “join forces to overcome the crisis.” According to him, for this it is necessary to resolve all the contradictions that have developed inside the RRF recently.

“The priority tasks are the development of biathlon in the regions, the preparation of a sports reserve, the improvement of the results of Russian athletes in the international arena, the restoration of IBU membership, as well as the competent management of the RRF and a balanced personnel policy. Biathlon is one of the most popular and beloved sports in our country, I hope that soon it will regain its leading position in the world, ”Matytsin concluded.

The resignation of Drachev was commented on by the head of the Russian Olympic Committee, Stanislav Pozdnyakov. However, he expressed the opinion that the head of the RRF was probably not easy to take such a step.

“At the same time, I want to thank Vladimir Petrovich for the great work done during the difficult and ambiguous period for the Russian biathlon and wish him professional success in the future,” RIA Novosti quotes Pozdnyakova.

Drachev’s decision to voluntarily leave the post of president of the SBR and to refuse to participate in the upcoming elections was perceived differently. The vice-president of the organization, Vladimir Polkhovsky, supported the resignation of the functionary and appreciated his activities as head of the Union.

"It's his choice. In two years of work, he was able to do certain things. Is he positive or not? It depends. The result on the scoreboard. In fact, there was development in the national team and in the regions. Everything is relative. The decision at the moment is right. His main job as a deputy requires a lot of attention, so I think that there he will bring more benefit when working on laws. In biathlon, presidents came and went. This sport has lived and will live, ”said Polkhovsky.

Two-time Olympic champion Sergei Chepikov noted that Drachev paid attention to the development of sports in the regions and during his work in the RRF held more than 30 meetings with the leaders of the federation.

“He gave a lot of energy and energy to both national teams and the development of biathlon in the country ... I would like to thank him very much and thank him for offering me to the board of the RBU,” TASS quoted Chepikova as saying.

Two-time Olympic champion Dmitry Vasiliev more critical of the former head of the domestic biathlon and said that he had to leave his post earlier.

“The first sensible step of Vladimir Petrovich during the reign, he finally correctly assessed his capabilities and the situation that had developed due to his actions in the RRF. Everything was dramatic, a lot of dirt spilled out, which the biathlon fans did not need to hear and know. It was necessary to do this (leave. - RT ) earlier, but better late than never, ”says Vasiliev.

The same opinion is shared by two-time Olympic medalist Alexander Privalov. According to him, during the reign of Drachev, the situation in the Russian biathlon only worsened.

“I called him, convinced him to leave. Therefore, the very letter of appeal to him arose. But we did not want it to get into the media. I convinced him, he said that he would think, and then he rested and said that he would not leave his position. I think his resignation is the right decision, ”Privalov said.

Over the past months, Drachev’s position has noticeably weakened. Public conflict was his conflict with the board of the Russian Biathlon Union, the reason for which was the formation of the coaching staff of the national team. The head of the Union was given a list of specialists, according to which the current vice president of the organization Valery Polkhovsky was recommended for the position of senior mentor, Robert Kabukov was to lead the male team, and Vladimir Korolkevich was the female team. But the head of the RRF did not approve this list and went through the candidates, accusing some of them that they allegedly could contribute to the use of doping by their athletes.

• Vladimir Drachev
• © Alexander Wilf / RIA News

In response, the board initiated early elections of the President of the RRF in late April, which was met with harsh criticism from the current head of the organization. Drachev considered it inappropriate to conduct such an event during the pandemic and compared it with a "feast during the plague."

As a result, an extraordinary reporting and election conference was scheduled for July 11, and Drachev and board member Viktor Maigurov were represented as candidates for the post of president of the RRF. It is noteworthy that in 2018 they already fought for the post of head of the organization and then the silver medalist of the Olympic Games in Lillehammer took over. 40 delegates voted for him, while for the opponent - only 16.

Now Maigurov remains the only contender for the post, and he can be declared the new head of the Russian biathlon on July 11. True, for this he needs to collect more than two-thirds of the vote.

At the same time, Matytsin and Pozdnyakov have already declared their readiness to support the new leader, and representatives of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency also joined them.

“RUSADA is ready to cooperate with any leader of the sports federation who understands the importance of combating anti-doping rule violations. As for Viktor Maigurov, I do not know this person well enough to give any estimates. We met with him only in the framework of the meetings of the international working group on the restoration of the RRF, and it was clear that he had a serious approach to the problem. I hope that Maigurov will immediately join in the anti-doping work, and the process of restoring the federation, which subsided six months ago, will be reanimated, ”said Margarita Pakhnotskaya, Deputy Director General of RUSADA.