Russian national team squads

The coaching staff of the Russian national cross-country skiing team announced the squad for the World Championships in Oberstdorf, where the first set of awards in the classic sprint will be played on February 25.

The men's team did not bring any big surprises.

Its main backbone will be Alexander Bolshunov, Ivan Yakimushkin, Andrey Melnichenko, Evgeny Belov, Denis Spitsov and Artyom Maltsev - all of them are in the top eight in the overall standings of the World Cup.

In addition to them, the national team included sprinter Gleb Retivykh, two-time world champion Sergei Ustyugov, recent winner of the youth world championship in the sprint Alexander Terentyev, "classist" Alexei Chervotkin, marathon runner Ilya Semikov and Sergei Ardashev.

The latter's inclusion in the team could raise questions, but his coach Oleg Perevozchikov told Sport-Express that the skier was taken only as a spare for the sprint and would be allowed home immediately after the end of the competition.

There was much more intrigue before the unveiling of the women's team.

First of all, the fans were worried whether Natalia Nepryaeva would be included in the team.

On January 29, she broke her arm and underwent surgery.

The recovery process could well have been delayed, but as a result, the skier, who takes sixth place in the overall standings of the World Cup, received a ticket to the main start of the season.

In addition to Nepryaeva, the team included all those athletes who managed to prove themselves during the season: Yulia Stupak, Tatyana Sorina, Alisa Zhambalova, Maria Istomina, Yana Kirpichenko, Khristina Matsokina and Anna Nechaevskaya.

Also, the coaching staff will count on Lilia Vasilyeva, Evgenia Krupitskaya, Veronica Stepanova and Anastasia Faleeva.

Elena Ustyugova, the wife of Sergei Ustyugov and a former participant in the World Championship, was unhappy with the choice of the squad.

She wrote on Instagram that the team included some athletes who perform worse than their compatriots.

She brought Lydia Durkina as an example of those who were to join the team, although she did not participate in any World Cup races this season.

Anthem FIS instead of "Katyusha"

Russian skiers will not formally represent their country at the World Championships, but will act as the national team of the Russian Ski Federation.

This was announced to the athletes a long time ago, and a week before the start of the competition it became known what would be the replacement of the national anthem at the awards ceremony.

The International Ski Federation (FIS) has decided that its own anthem will sound.

“The full version of the FIS anthem will be performed in honor of all Russian winners of the World Championship,” TASS quotes the organization.

Earlier, an option was considered in which the song "Katyusha" would be performed at the World Championship.

The International Skating Union (ISU) has already set a precedent when instead of its little-known anthem, it allowed Pyotr Tchaikovsky's First Concert in its competitions, but FIS did not respond to the proposal of the Russian Ski Racing Federation (FLGR).

Its president, Elena Vyalbe, stated that in the future it is necessary to prevent such a situation in which athletes are deprived of their national anthem.

“We are worried that this epic has been going on for so long.

We hope that after 2022 it will all be over and we will be able to perform in big competitions under our anthem.

Everyone needs to draw some conclusions.

To make sure that doping is eradicated in our country.

Although, then they can come up with something else, ”Vyalbe complained.

It is interesting that although the FIS has banned Russian symbols, it continues to use it for its own promotion.

In the teaser dedicated to the World Championships in Oberstdorf, you can see Russian skiers in their usual uniform, which depicts a tricolor.

Hot weather

Competitions in Germany can be extremely difficult due to the weather.

It is expected that on February 25 the air temperature will warm up to 16 degrees, and the day before on the day of official training it will be + 18 ° C.

At the same time, frosts are expected at night in the region of -10 degrees.

All this can have a huge impact on the condition of the track, and an incorrectly selected ski lubricant will surely deprive any strong athlete of the chance to win.

Norwegian Helene Marie Fossesholm has already managed to joke that now she will have to perform in a bikini.

Her compatriot Tiril Weng is now wondering what kind of sunscreen she should take with her.

Experienced athletes do not see any particular problem in the coming warming.

So, the main favorite of the women's competition, Teresa Johaug, is sure that the weather will still have time to change, and Heidi Veng recalled that the conditions will be the same for all participants.

Athletes without testing

In addition to the weather, participants in the World Cup may face another problem.

In Oberstdorf, the local coronavirus testing center has temporarily closed, in which athletes and coaches were to be tested for infection.

However, the organizers assured that there is no cause for concern so far.

“We know the circumstances and reasons for what happened.

At the moment, we are doing everything possible to solve this problem, and will notify all accredited persons about the restoration of the system.

We wish athletes, volunteers and media representatives a good start to the tournament, and we hope that we will be able to host the World Championship, despite the hardships and obstacles that have now arisen, ”the organizers told MK-Sport.

Athletes will be required to take tests every 3-5 days to confirm that they are free from coronavirus infection.

Most of the Russian skiers will arrive in Oberstdorf on February 23rd, but some athletes will need negative tests on the 18th to take part in the World Championships.