"The Russians' cause for joy": how Ustyugov returned to the elite of cross-country skiing before the World Cup

For Alexander Bolshunov's two victories at the World Cup in cross-country skiing in Falun, another important event remained in the shadows.

Sergey Ustyugov took part in all three races.

This was his first full-time performance in international competitions this season.

The two-time world champion did not win medals, but showed a very encouraging dynamics, which allows him to be ranked among the main characters of the upcoming world championship.

Conversations that Ustyugov does not show the usual results for himself have been going on for more than a year.

His last achievement can be called the second place at the Tour de Ski in 2020, when he lost only to Alexander Bolshunov.

After that, he seemed to be replaced - the native of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug no longer won medals in personal races.

Ustyugov's preparation for the current season also did not work out.

He began training camps later than other athletes and, based on their results, showed completely discouraging results in control trainings when he took part in them.

In November, a few days before the start of the World Cup, Ustyugov became 30th in the 15 km race.

Despite the fact that he had a personal quota for participation in cup competitions, the athlete did not make it to the national team at the first stages.

After some time, Ustyugov himself explained what caused the drop in results and leaving the national team.

In the fall, he contracted the coronavirus and suffered the infection very hard, which affected his form.

At the same time, the president of the Russian Cross-Country Skiing Federation, Elena Vyalbe, argued that the situation was aggravated by the difficult nature of Ustyugov, which interfered with the normal training process.

“The coach has to make decisions.

Give a training plan, be responsible for this training.

If the athlete begins to dictate his conditions to the mentor, this is a 100% wrong situation.

Although now it sometimes seems to me that Sergey Ustyugov is trying to lead Markus Kramer in our team ... I am sure that Sergey's problems are not only related to health.

To solve them, you just need to overpower yourself - throw away all unnecessary emotions and engage exclusively in sports.

He is a very, very talented athlete.

Very, ”- said Vyalbe in December.

In January, Ustyugov missed the Tour de Ski, and there were fears that he would not be able to play at the World Championship either.

However, he did not give up trying to return to the national team and still achieved his goal.

Ustyugov set himself a condition that he must pass the selection according to the sports principle, and fulfilled it, winning the Russian Cup stage.

True, the long-awaited return of Ustyugov came out by no means so bright, rather the opposite.

At the competitions in Lahti, he ran only the last stage of the relay in the second Russian team.

The two-time world champion dropped out of the medal fight quite early and showed one of the worst results among those who ran with a skating speed.

Only thanks to the disqualification of Alexander Bolshunov, the four of Ustyugov rose to third place.

Nevertheless, he went to the next stage in Falun.

There, the 28-year-old skier finally revealed himself.

First, he finished 12th in the 15 km time trial, while showing fifth in the team.

The next day, Ustyugov was already seventh in the mass start at a similar distance.

For most of the race, he sat in the back of the peloton, but on the last lap made a spurt that few could expect from him.

As a result, he left behind his entire team, except for the victorious Bolshunov.

The classic sprint almost brought Ustyugov the first personal medal of this season.

He took the lead in the preliminary races and made it easy for the next round.

True, this tactic did not work in the final.

Ustyugov only brought up rivals led by Johannes Hösflot Klebo to the finish line, with whom he could not yet compete in sprint qualities.

He stopped a step away from the podium, but deserved praise from Vyalbe.

“In general, the performance of the team should be regarded as good.

No need to panic, everything happens.

Had a nice 3 day tour.

Ustyugov is slowly gaining shape, being drawn into the process.

Knowing Seregin's fighting and athletic nature, it was clear that he wanted to return, and he did it with dignity.

There is a month to start beautifully at the World Championships with a sprint.

I think he has a chance to be in the prizes, and if everything goes in his favor, then even higher, ”the head of the FLGR told RIA Novosti.

At least Ustyugov secured his participation in the next stage of the World Cup in Ulrisehamn.

There he will be able to perform in personal and team sprints in a free style - the latter will become a kind of rehearsal before the World Championships, since the sprint relay race will be included in his program.

Ustyugov's spectacular return did not go unnoticed in the world of cross-country skiing. 

“It's nice that he came back.

It's great that he managed such a good race.

I heard that Sergei got infected even before the stage in the Hand.

He lost a lot of time because of this.

You won't wish that to anyone.

Hopefully it won't take him even longer to recover.

He showed that he has already embarked on the path of recovery, "- quotes Klebo VG.

Evaluated the latest results of Ustyugov and 2011 world champion in the Canadian national team Devon Kershaw.

He is confident that now the Russian will strengthen the national team at the world championship.

“For me, the main revelation was Ustyugov's speech.

Did you see what he did in the sprint semifinals?

Awesome!

Obviously, Sergei felt great that day.

It was terribly difficult for him to return after an illness, he was forced to compete outside the World Cup.

Finally, Ustyugov feels like a boss.

He finished fourth in qualifying and turned on beast mode in the semi-finals.

In the final, he tried to repeat the tactics, especially at the beginning of the distance.

He looked very good, but the competition was too high.

He simply failed to make the necessary clearance.

But such a performance by Ustyugov after the hardest entry into the season is a reason for the Russians to rejoice, "Kershaw quotes the Championship with reference to the Faster Skier podcast.

Of course, it is still too early to assess Ustyugov's prospects at the World Championships.

The coaches have not yet determined the composition of the national team for these competitions, and the place of the 28-year-old skier is full of other applicants who have been competing throughout the season.

However, Ustyugov managed to return to duty in the shortest possible time and perform with dignity not only against the background of compatriots, but also foreign skiers.

If he continues to get in shape through the World Cups in Ulricehamn and Nove Mesto, he will be able to compete for medals in the individual and team sprints.

The mass start performance showed that Ustyugov can also perform in the skiathlon, however, in this discipline, Russian skiers would rather have to use command tactics to help Bolshunov, and not fight each one independently.

Participation in a marathon, a race from a time trial and a relay is unlikely for Ustyugov, but in his case, a lot can still change in the three remaining weeks.