"2020 gave us the opportunity to understand that only together we can overcome the difficulties that have arisen"

- 2020 turned out to be very difficult for the whole world.

How did 

Russian sport survive it?

- I did not survive, but continues to live.

Let's hope that we will be able to overcome the temporary, albeit protracted, difficulties that have affected not only Russian sports, but the entire world community.

Lessons will be taken into account.

We understand that each country needs to remain open to share its experience in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

At the moment, this is actually a global task.

The international sports community has shown a high degree of consolidation and understanding of these issues.

We all need to work together both to develop regulations and to form new communication formats.

We need to keep the world sport intact.

Russia needs to preserve the system of physical culture and sports, both high-performance and mass sports.

Our ministry, together with other federal agencies and regions, promptly responded to all challenges.

Once again, I would like to express my gratitude to the doctors.

2020 gave us the opportunity to understand that only together we can overcome the difficulties that have arisen.

We see that this work does not stop.

In particular, Vladimir Putin continues his daily work with all segments of society: business, government agencies, so that people remain healthy and the economy recovers as quickly as possible.

And in our case, the whole system of sports should help the people overcome difficulties.

- Which sport went through this period with the least losses, and which one suffered the most?

- I would not make such a rating, since sports are, first of all, people, and they live in the same society and in the same conditions.

We all have families, we all need communication.

Most importantly, all sports worked, and the representatives of the federations acted as a whole.

We continue to communicate with our colleagues via video conferencing, and do not share who survived the pandemic easier and who is harder.

It is clear that there are economic criteria.

Professional leagues such as football and hockey are in a tough spot.

These are the negative consequences of the pandemic.

But it also affected the organization of competitions, the work of children's and youth schools.

And when we now talk about a recovery plan, we mean all spheres of physical culture and sports: children's, professional, corporate, school, student, fitness industry.

Each of them requires increased attention.

- Does football feel easier due to the fact that fans, albeit in small numbers, are allowed to enter the stadiums?

- The absence of spectators in arenas in this form is most pronounced.

But hockey, volleyball, and basketball also need the support of fans.

At the same time, it was the Russian Football Union and the Russian Rugby Federation, together with the Ministry of Sports, Rospotrebnadzor, clubs and regions, that were the first to develop regulations for the resumption of the country's championship.

They gave hope and joy to the fans.

People were able to come to the stadiums, albeit with certain restrictions.

- Was it a difficult decision?

Indeed, in Europe, almost everywhere matches were held with empty stands.

- Difficult.

It was not easy because this was the first time this was happening.

The main task that we faced was to minimize the risks of the spread of coronavirus.

Therefore, the measures provided for by the regulation remain tough.

It was not without criticism, but over time people realized the need for such measures, and not only in sports.

Sport has shown the entire community that, subject to certain rules, you can live with minimal restrictions.

It is worth noting the great merit of the people who made this decision: the president, the government.

They managed to achieve a balance in this matter.

Yet the emotional state of people plays an important role for the stability of society.

We see that the decisions we made were right.

The competition continued, giving the audience an opportunity to be a part of the sporting events.

  • Matytsin on admitting fans to stadiums

"The sanctions have and will have a negative impact on our athletes."

- Can the easing of

CAS

sanctions

on Russian sports be called a victory?

- This is hard work to protect the interests of the country and Russian sports.

The sanctions have and will have a negative impact on our athletes.

They restrict Russia's rights to host international competitions.

But it is important that CAS took into account the opinion of our side and did not apply the principle of collective responsibility.

Athletes will be allowed to participate in the competition on a general basis.

Restrictions apply only to the Olympic Games and World Championships.

WADA proposed to include all major multisport competitions in this list.

Restrictions on the use of national symbols at official ceremonies are very painful.

Nevertheless, the inscription "Russia" will be present on the athletes' uniforms.

It is also possible to use the colors of the national flag when sewing equipment.

Fans have the right to both carry Russian tricolors onto the stands and sing the anthem.

I would say this: this is the reality today.

Hopefully this page will be turned over soon.

Russian sport is self-sufficient.

We have to organize a lot of major competitions, the right to host which the country has already received.

The development strategy until 2030 was approved.

It remains to learn from what happened and move on.

You need to stay open and work professionally.

Thus, RUSADA was recognized and is still one of the leading in the world.

We hope CAS took this fact into account when making a decision.

Of course, there were no initial sanctions.

But when compared with the proposals of the WADA executive committee, CAS took a much softer position.

- Some Western media wrote that it was necessary to completely ban the attributes of Russia at international tournaments.

How do you feel about such proposals?

- I am not a supporter of commenting on anyone's position, be it Western or Russian media.

There is a point of view of the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which initially has the right to make decisions on controversial issues.

The parties agreed that they will be guided by the final verdict of the court.

There remains the possibility of filing an appeal on procedural issues to the Swiss Federal Court.

Whether it will be used is a matter of the competence of the parties.

The task of the Ministry of Sports is to live in the given conditions and, above all, to protect the interests of athletes, to create the most comfortable conditions for them.

  • Matytsin on the CAS decision in Russian sports

- As for the ban on civil servants from attending international tournaments, is there a possibility to challenge this sanction?

- We believe that if someone's guilt has been proven, then sanctions should be applied to specific people.

And to punish civil servants who previously had nothing to do with sports is, at least, controversial.

We consider this decision to be unfair and biased.

In fact, the principle of collective responsibility was used.

But an appeal in this case can be submitted only by the parties to the process, the Ministry of Sports is not such a party.

- You spoke about the admission of athletes to the competition.

Will additional restrictions apply to athletes with a doping history?

- As far as we understand from the press release of the CAS decision, an athlete who has served an anti-doping rule violation suspension will have the same rights as the rest of his colleagues.

The full text of the document should be published soon.

Hopefully there will be no discrepancies with the press release.

- What does RUSADA need to do to return the

WADA

compliance status in two years

?

- In this case, we are only talking about the sanctions imposed for this period.

As far as I know, we are not talking about the need to develop a "road map" and establish compliance with certain criteria.

RUSADA was reinstated, and the agency, in the opinion of all foreign colleagues, worked effectively.

Cooperation with WADA also proved to be effective.

In 2020, Russian athletes passed almost a record number of doping tests.

I hope that after the end of the biennium RUSADA will be automatically reinstated.

I have not heard of any claims related to the quality and professionalism of the agency.

  • Matytsin on the restoration of the ARAF status

"I am sure that in the near future World Athletics will consider the issue of restoring the ARAF status"

- Will RUSADA's restoration affect the return of the All-Russian Athletics Federation (ARAF) to the

World

Athletics

"family"

?

- As far as we know, in the criteria that were developed and proposed by WA, there was no such item as RUSADA's activities and its compliance with the code.

I am sure that the activities of the Federation itself and its work on countering doping will be taken into account, and in the near future the WA will consider the issue of restoring the status.

The same goes for the Russian Biathlon Union (RBU).

- In 2020, Pyotr Ivanov was elected as the new president of ARAF.

Is there any hope that the recovery process will go faster with it?

- I am confident that Ivanov's competence, his experience and the experience of those people who work with him in a team make it possible to look with optimism at the timing and process of the ARAF recovery.

- How anti-doping activities will be carried out in Russia.

Will foreign experts be involved, or will the agency work on its own?

- RUSADA, for sure, will function in close cooperation with WADA.

Areas of work are known: educational sphere, activities related to testing, organization and conduct of events in the country.

Now there are new WADA approaches to the formation of the organizational structure of RUSADA, which exclude both the participation of the state and structures related to sports in its activities.

I am sure this will not negatively affect the work of the agency and its interaction with the Russian sports community and international organizations.

- How will the funding of athletes performing in neutral status change, the amount of their prize money?

- So far, we do not see the need to radically change something.

We will discuss this topic in more detail after the neutral status is restored.

Unfortunately, this issue has not yet been resolved, but there are prospects.

ARAF leadership is in constructive negotiations with World Athletics.

We hope that the International Federation will make a positive decision in the near future.

Without Maria Lasitskene, Sergei Shubenkov, Angelica Sidorova, athletics became less bright.

And they were not convicted of anti-doping rule violation. 

- Recently, rower Ivan Kalashnikov announced a reduction in salaries to members of the Russian national kayak and canoe team and asked you to personally influence the situation ...

- It was strange for me to see this appeal.

Rather, it was about disinformation or information that was incorrectly provided by someone.

We did not take any measures to reduce the number of bets for the federation.

Now we are developing more objective criteria, but the issue will be resolved at the end of next year after the end of the Olympic Games.

Athletes and coaches can be sure that their rights will not be violated.

Let's approach the issue of bidding as objectively as possible.

- When will it become clear about the major tournaments that Russia will host?

This includes the European Football Championship, the Beach Football World Championship, and the World Championship in volleyball and ice hockey.  

- I have no fears about holding the already planned competitions, unless force majeure circumstances intervene.

Although much will depend on the positions of international federations and the epidemiological situation.

But we continue to work actively non-stop.

A meeting of the Euro 2020 Supervisory Board took place today.

There is a very constructive dialogue with UEFA and other international federations.

The safety and health of athletes and spectators is at the forefront.

We already have experience, and the regulations have been developed, and several for different scenarios.

Russia is one of the leading countries in terms of organizing activities in a pandemic.

I hope these holidays will take place in the country.

- At the moment, the youth world ice hockey championship is taking place in Canada.

Are you worried about the Russian national team?

- Our renowned hockey player, and now coach Igor Larionov has some experience.

We see with what motivation the guys play.

They believe in their mentor and team.

This is the main factor in winning.

The world championship itself takes place in very difficult conditions with empty stands, although in hockey the support of the audience is very important.

Talented guys have gathered in the Russian national team.

The team is amazingly cohesive.

Everyone knows the professionalism of the coaches.

I hope all these components will help the national team to perform successfully.

- At the same time, in the second match, the Russian national team unexpectedly lost to the Czech Republic ...

- It's a sport.

Moreover, young people are more emotional.

I hope the guys will take into account the lessons of the unsuccessful match.

Here, the analysis will be carried out by the coaching staff.

In fact, the whole tournament is ahead.

We believe that the hockey players will concentrate as much as possible and will give Russian fans a reason for joy.

- What would you like to wish

RT

viewers and readers

for the New Year?

- Of course, I want to wish everyone good health, both in the outgoing year and in the new year.

Go in for sports.

It will help you overcome all difficulties in life.