The Russian Ski Cup this season ends in Kirovsk. To make it more interesting for spectators to follow the competition, the organizers decided to hold it in the format of a mini-tour with a mass start up Mount Aykuaivenchorr. The initiator was three-time Olympic champion Alexander Bolshunov.
“Last year, one might say, this was one of my ideas - I proposed to Yuri Viktorovich Borodavko. All races are of the same type, and here there are all the conditions to conduct a marathon along the gorge, there is a ski slope where you can climb and conduct a race similar to the Tour de Ski. Kirovsk is one of the few places where you express an idea today, and tomorrow it will be implemented. That year I announced my idea. They probably heard me,” Alexander said in an interview with Khibiny People’s Television.
The mini-tour started with a freestyle sprint, which was not without loud sensations already in qualifying. Thus, among men, several athletes who traditionally compete for prizes in competitions failed to qualify for the top 30: Savely Korostelev, Alexander Terentyev and Ilya Semikov.
Bolshunov advanced to the quarterfinals with only 11th result, and Ivan Gorbunov showed the best time. Moreover, at the next stage the athletes got into one race. For a long time, a 24-year-old skier from Tatarstan was in the lead. But in the end, the three-time Olympic champion turned on maximum speed and overtook his opponent.
The surprise was presented by Dmitry Puzanov. The 18-year-old skier, competing for the first season at the adult level, ran away from his opponents at the start of his quarterfinals, including Alexey Chervotkin. The young man did not have enough strength for the entire distance: he lost to Ilya Tregubov at the finish line. At the same time, the Olympic champion remained only fourth. Artyom Maltsev performed even worse: in his race he took the last, sixth place.
It was not without difficulty that Sergei Ustyugov advanced to the next stage. For a long time the athlete was in the lead, but in the end he let Sergei Zabaluev go ahead, and won the split leg against Danila Karpasyuk.
The audience saw another sensation in the semi-finals. Once again Gorbunov and Bolshunov ended up in the same race. Ivan, just like before, turned on the maximum speed already on the first climb. Alexander supported his dash, but chose to go second. As it turned out, the tactics were unsuccessful: Sergei Ardashev passed the three-time Olympic champion at the finish line.
Moreover, San Sanych lost to first place by 0.6 seconds and for the first time in the season failed to qualify for the sprint final, even as a lucky loser, since in the second race Ustyugov increased the pace from the very first meters. And Puzanov showed better time than Bolshunov.
“The state of health is not something you can fight for victory. I ran at the Russian Championships with an illness, and that took its toll. Apparently, I overloaded my body a little. In the prologue, at the 600 m mark, I was seemingly in 60th place, although I was running at full strength, but I could not do anything, and then it was better. Let's see if it gets better, it will be good. Today’s result, given how I feel, is normal,” Bolshunov explained his result in an interview with Match TV.
In the final, Ustyugov again set a high pace, but this time Gorbunov supported him. However, the rest of the skiers did not lag behind. The Olympic champion failed to break away like in the previous race. Moreover, the skier seemed to give his last strength to this jerk - and in the end he remained only fifth.
Ardashev celebrated the victory, passing everyone at the turn. Gorbunov came second, and Puzanov closed the top three.
“Everyone rushed off very quickly from the start. Already after 200-300 meters I had no strength. I thought that I couldn’t fight them. But he understood: they would not be able to maintain this speed for the entire race. I tried to stay behind them until the descent. And I had a good finish here today,” Ardashev noted.
Meanwhile, Puzanov, along with the bronze, earned himself new skis, which Olympic champion Alexander Legkov promised him if he got into the top three.
“I want to tell all athletes: the most important thing is to never give up and train correctly. You must listen to the coach and be on good terms with him, not contradict him. If you follow all this, the result will be quite expected. The most important thing is to work hard and try,” admitted the 18-year-old skier.
The girls' qualifying went through without any surprises. However, Anastasia Kuleshova stopped fighting already in the quarterfinals. The athlete was unlucky: she ended up in the same race with strong sprinters Anastasia Faleeva and Alena Baranova, who overtook their opponent at the finish line.
They also made it to the first semi-final together. Only now the girls’ rivals were Maria Istomina and Tatyana Sorina, who did not want to sit in the general group. The skiers sped away from the others already in the middle of the distance. Faleeva and Baranova as a pair tried their best to reduce the gap, but in the end they did not qualify further even as lucky losers, since the second race turned out to be faster.
Stepanova traditionally showed herself brightly in it. Elizaveta Pantrina tried to force the Olympic champion to fight, but still lost at the finish line. And Kristina Matsokina and Daria Nepryaeva qualified for the finals.
There were no surprises in the decisive race. Veronica finished first with a huge margin and no chance for her competitors. She left the stadium first and then created a comfortable advantage for herself. Moreover, thanks to her amazing technique, the Olympic champion increased it even when turning.
In the end, the rivals fought on the last straight only for silver and bronze. Sorina was second, and Nepryaeva won the split race against Pantrina. As Stepanova admitted, in previous races she saved her strength, which is why she was able to get away from her opponents so easily.
“The race is forgotten, but the result remains. First place in the last sprint of the season - and dictating your own rules... Do you think it was done beautifully? I saved my energy for the final because I knew that I could win today,” the athlete noted.