Diving is one of the most technically difficult and traumatic sports. Rarely can an athlete maintain a high level here for more than ten years. All the more admirable sports achivments Dmitry Sautin, who began to participate in international competitions back in the USSR national team and ended his active career only in 2012, after the death of his first and only coach. For twenty years, he became a multiple Olympic champion, winner of the world and European championships.

The happy case of the boy from the left bank

Dmitry Ivanovich Sautin was born back in 1973 in Voronezh. He was a short, stocky boy, did not know how to swim at all and seemed very angular and inflexible. At the same time, Dima pulled himself up well on the horizontal bar and was well developed physically. The combination of these conflicting qualities led him to the diving section.

He got into sports thanks to the selection system existing at that time in sports schools... Young coaches, who had just graduated from college, went through all schools with frequent nonsense and selected the most promising guys for their sections. Tatiana Starodubtseva, diving coach, also recently received her diploma sports coach and conducted her second selection. Dmitry Sautin also got into this group, being among the sixty lucky ones.

Subsequently, except for him, only one pupil of Starodubtseva, Lyudmila Shiryaeva, grew up to big sports. However, after breaking her leg, she ended her career.

This is how the formation of the legendary Voronezh athlete began, which coincided in time with the coaching activity of Tatyana Starodubtseva.

First victories

The Voronezh athlete progressed rapidly, all specialists were amazed by Dmitry Sautin's jumps. Even as a young man, he could not really fly, but he rotated with incredible speed and almost perfectly entered the water. For this he was even nicknamed "the guy with the lead in his head."

In the biography of Dmitry Sautin, there is an interesting fact about how he was included in the senior national team of the country. Junior from Voronezh, being on children's match USSR - GDR, made such an impression on the coaches that they included him in the application of the main team for the European Cup. Without bothering to thoroughly familiarize themselves with the rules of the tournament, the mentors overlooked the point of the rules, according to which the age limit was set at thirteen years for the participants in the competition.

Nevertheless, the first victories of Dmitry Sautin were not long in coming. Already in 1991, a seventeen-year-old schoolboy won the European Cup, perfectly completing his jumps from a ten-meter platform. Soon he competes at the Continental Championships in Sheffield, from where he takes away the silver medal.

However, in the same year, Dmitry Sautin became a victim of the difficult criminal situation of the early nineties. On the street, he is stabbed, and only the timely assistance provided to him thanks to a friend helped to keep him for the big sport.

Barcelona 1992

At 18, Dmitry Sautin was an iron candidate for a trip to Olympic Barcelona in 1992. By this time, he had already decided on his priorities in diving and showed the best results on a three-meter springboard.

In those years, the Chinese jumpers progressed rapidly, but Dmitry Sautin was able to wedge himself into the struggle for awards and took his first Olympic medal which turned bronze.

Here, an incident occurred with the athlete, which on high level could only happen in the strange CIS team, which already consisted of athletes from different states and was practically not controlled by anyone.

In the final Olympic program by jumping into the water, it was discovered that Dmitry Sautin did not have swimming trunks, which he either forgot or had been stolen from him. Counting on the solidarity of his craft colleagues, the native of Voronezh asked the Mexican Fernando Platas for help.

The Latin American did not abandon his Russian rival comrade in trouble and lent him his spare swimming trunks. In Mexican vestments, Dmitry Sautin performed brilliantly for a debutant and took third place. Then he tried to return the inventory to Platas, but he allowed the Russian athlete to leave the triumphant swimming trunks.

Challenges for the world champion

The knife injury that Dmitry received was not the last test for Russian athlete... The most successful period of his athletic career coincided with a time of physical trauma-related difficulties for Sautin. For divers, problems with the hands become unpleasant injuries. The native of Voronezh did not escape this either.

However, at first there was a successful world championship in Rome in 1994. By that time, Chinese divers had occupied the top positions of this sport and dictated their terms to the whole world. Therefore, the second place of Dmitry Sautin on the three-meter springboard was perceived by his fans on a par with victory, because it seemed that it was simply impossible to surpass the Chinese.

However, already in the next form of the program, the Russian did the almost impossible. On the ten-meter tower, the main struggle was to unfold between the Chinese Seng Shuei and Xiong Ni, with whom the four-time Olympian Gregory Luganis was trying to fight.

Dmitry Sautin was in 22nd place before the final jumps. However, he did the impossible and in his last attempts he managed to show decent results and reach the final. Here, the Russian, who caught the courage, no longer knew equals and took his first gold of the world championship.

iron Man

After the World Championships in Rome, Dmitry was overtaken by an unpleasant hand injury. All the doctors vied with each other to advise him an urgent operation, but this meant a serious failure in preparation for the Olympic Games in Atlanta. The courageous soldier decided to risk his health for the sake of his second Olympics and endured the aching pain in his hands.

A simple sprain developed into tendon inflammation, and again his direct competitors come to Dmitry's aid. At the pre-Olympic competitions in Atlanta, Semyon Slabunov offers medical treatment at the expense of the American side to Sautin. Previously, he worked as a sports psychologist for the USSR national team. Later he emigrated to the United States and became a professor at the University of Pittsburgh.

A month's recovery course helped Southin a lot and made him forget about the debilitating pain in his arms. After treatment, the athlete powerfully spent everything before Olympic competition and staked out a place in the elite of divers.

Atlanta

At the 1996 Olympics, Dmitry concentrated on a ten-meter springboard, where he was opposed by Chinese Tian Liang. After compulsory exercises the Russian athlete was four points behind, but in the first final attempt he eliminated the Asian athlete's advantage.

Then the Voronezh diver in the water increased his superiority, until he brought it to 40 points in the last attempt.

After a triumphant return from Atlanta, Dmitry Sautin decided to take up his health and agreed to an operation on the wrist tendons. After recovering, he took up work again and for several years had no equal in diving.

Sydney records

The next four-year cycle for the Olympic champion Dmitry Sautin turned out to be especially successful. He broke one record after another, cementing his status as a sports legend. At the 1998 World Championships, the athlete surpassed his main rival Chinese Tian Liang by 90 points, breaking the unofficial record of an American athlete.

Here, the Russian became the first divers to score 100 points in one jump. The greatest impression on the specialists was made by his series of 11 maximum marks during the free program.

In general, to Olympic Games in Sydney, Dmitry Sautin came up as a superstar and a favorite in several types of programs at once.

Here he took part in singles and synchronized diving from a platform and a springboard.

The Chinese, preparing for the future home Olympics, approached the main starts of the four-year period with maximum mobilization. V personal species they managed to get ahead of the previously invincible Dmitry Sautin. However, he managed to earn bronze both on the tower and on the springboard.

His experiment in synchronous views... The coaches did not fully believe that any athlete would be able to adapt to Dmitry's unique style. However, together with Gleb Halperin, he became the Olympic champion in platform jumping, and then took silver with another partner, performing hardest jumps from the springboard.

Athens

Having won medals in all four types of the Olympic program, Dmitry Sautin became the first athlete in history to conquer this peak.

By 2004, the legendary athlete was over thirty years old, which was considered a critical age for divers. The kind of sport that Dmitry Sautin is engaged in does not provide for such longevity. Athletes lose flexibility, sharpness, the body is worn out by constant overloads, injuries.

However, the native of Voronezh did not obey the usual laws of nature and took another medal at the Games in Athens. At his fourth Olympics, Dmitry Ivanovich Sautin won the bronze medal in ski jumping. And before the main tournament of the four-year cycle, he more than once achieved success at the largest world forums.

Recent years in big-time sports

The tireless Sautin did not age and qualified for the 2008 Olympics, which was his fifth. Prior to this, only a handful of people had achieved such a unique achievement. There were even fewer athletes who left with medals after each tournament.

This time young Yuri Kunakov became his partner in synchronized jumping from a three-meter platform. Despite being late to the training camp due to the birth of his son, Dmitry Sautin confirmed his special status and approached the Games in China in combat uniform.

Against the background of the undivided dominion of local athletes, the performance of the Russian with a young partner, who managed to win silver on a three-meter springboard, turned out to be especially impressive.

The iron athlete was not going to stop, in 2012 he tried to qualify for the London Olympics, however, exhausted from countless injuries, he could not surpass the young and greedy young competitors in the national selection.

The final impetus for the end of his career was the untimely death of Tatyana Starodubtseva, the coach with whom Sautin spent thirty years in professional sports.

Social activity

The legendary athlete possessed indisputable authority in his native Voronezh, not spoiled by excess Olympic champions... Returning to his small homeland, Dmitry Sautin went headlong into public activities and became a member of the city parliament.

The functions of the official are not limited to the activities of Sautin. He oversees a charitable foundation, organizes work in his own diving school.

For many years playing for CSKA, he also rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel, becoming the highest-ranking military athlete.

Dmitry Sautin's state awards

The Order of Honor, the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, the Order of Friendship, as well as numerous regional awards are evidence of Dmitry Sautin's recognition by the state of his services to the country.

However, the status of the best diver in the water of the XXI century, officially assigned to him, can be considered especially prestigious. International Federation water sports in 2010. Here, according to the results of the vote, he bypassed the no less legendary Chinese Tian Liang.

A family

The modest, hardworking athlete met his wife only towards the end of his long career. The personal life of Dmitry Sautin has always been hidden from outsiders, only after the birth of his son Ivan in 2008 did the public learn that the iron athlete is the same person as everyone else.

And World Championships. The essence of this sport is jumping from towers with a height of 5 meters, 7.5 meters and 10 meters, from a springboard with a height of 3 meters, while performing various rotations and entering the water with your head or feet. Jumping into the water differs in starting position- with a handstand, from the front and rear racks; by the complexity of execution - the number and complexity of the rotation is determined by the coefficient of difficulty; in the direction of rotation - forward, backward and with screws. The quality of jumps (entry into the water with the least amount of splashes, departure height, etc.) is assessed by the judges using a 10-point system.

V training process elements of acrobatics and gymnastics are used. During the jump, all the muscles of the athlete are involved. Qualities such as flexibility, strength, coordination and grace are developed.

In 2000, the Olympic Diving Games were held in Sydney. The program included four new disciplines: jumping from a platform and a springboard, as well as synchronized jumping from these shells. Russian athletes received 2 gold medals, 1 silver medal and 2 bronze medals. Dmitry Satin won medals in all four apparatus, gold for the jump from a 10-meter platform, silver from a 3-meter springboard and 2 bronze medals in singles.

The leaders of the Russian national team in Athens were Dmitry Sautin (synchronized jumping from a 3-meter springboard and a 3-meter springboard), Vera Ilyina and Yulia Pakhalina(3 meter springboard - synchronized and individual jumps), Alexander Dobroskok(synchronized jumping from a 3-meter springboard and a 3-meter springboard), Svetlana Timoshinini(individual jumps from a 10-meter platform). The debutants were Yulia Koltunova (10-meter platform: individual and synchronized diving), Natalia Goncharova (10-meter platform: synchronized jumping) and Gleb Galperin.

The Olympic Games in Athens showed that there are no weak opponents and that each team strives to show its highest achievements.

Currently Dmitry Sautin is one of the most titled jumpers in the world. He is a Grand Prix winner, champion of the Goodwill Games, multiple world and European champion, winner of World and European Cups. In his collection - three Olympic "bronzes" and "gold" in individual jumps and "synchronized", as well as "silver" in synchronized diving.

Gleb Galperin is an Honored Master of Sports of Russia and two-time bronze medalist of the 2008 Olympic Games in platform jumping (individual jumping, as well as in tandem with Dmitry Dobroskok). He is the world and European champion, as well as the champion of Russia (2003 and 2004).

Vera Ilyina is a Russian diving, winner of the World and European Championships. Honored Master of Sports of Russia and Olympic champion... At the 2000 Olympic Games, Vera Ilyina paired with Yulia Pakhalina showed excellent results. The gap from the second place was 11 points. At the World Championships in Barcelona, ​​this pair won silver. At all Olympic Games Vera Ilyina took part in the final jumps in competitions on a three-meter springboard.

Yulia Pakhalina has been playing for the Russian national team since the age of 15. She won the European Championships in synchronized diving three times and five times in individual diving, as well as once - the World Championships in both disciplines. At the Sydney Olympics, Pakhalina won gold medal in synchronized jump, in Athens in 2004 she twice became a silver medalist. In 2008, at the Beijing Olympics, performing in a duet with Anastasia Pozdnyakova, she became the second in synchronized diving.

Alexander Dobroskok famous athlete, two-time champion Mira, vice-champion of the 2000 Olympic Games. In 2000, in Sydney, he won the silver medal in the synchronized 3m springboard diving. His finest hour is considered to be 2003, when he won two gold medals at the World Championships in Barcelona. He is the winner of the Grand Prix (2003) in jumping from a 3-meter springboard.

Dmitry Dobroskok- Honored Master of Sports of Russia. Paired with Gleb Halperin at the 2008 Olympic Games, he won the bronze medal. 2005 World Champion and 2006 European Champion, multiple champion Russia. The first success was achieved in 2005, when at the age of 21 the Russian jumper became the world champion.

Nowadays they are famous Ilya Zakharov and Evgeny Kuznetsov, who took second place at the 2011 European Championships in synchronized jumping from a three-meter springboard, losing to athletes from China. This allowed the Russians to get to the London Olympics. Ilya Zakharov started his professional career in 2007. In the German city of Aachen, he won first place in individual performances. Paired with Kuznetsov, he won silver. At the moment, he, together with the Russian national team, is preparing for the 2012 Olympic Games.

Russian diving athletes are a worthy team capable of remaining among the world leaders and glorifying the great traditions of Russian sports at international competitions of all levels.

Kirill Stadnichenko

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Interview

On the eve of March 8, UNIAN talked with one of the best Ukrainian athletes in diving - European champion and world championship medalist Yulia Prokopchuk, who spoke about the peaks of her career, motherhood, how diving became popular after the European Championship, and how strong she remains competition with rivals at the most prestigious world starts.

Jumping into the water is not the best popular view sports in Ukraine. At the same time, for many years, Ukrainian athletes regularly bring the country medals of world and European championships. And if earlier the "base" of domestic diving was unconditionally considered Zaporozhye, now talented athletes are increasingly appearing in other cities.

Yulia Prokopchuk from Kiev has delighted the audience for 10 years successful performances at the world and European championships. From the bronze of the European Championship 2006 in Budapest to the gold of the European Championship 2016 in London. The last Olympic cycle was also marked by two World Cup medals - bronze in the individual tournament in Bracelon-2013 and silver in the team tournament Kazan-2015.

It is curious that Yulia Prokopchuk's specialization is jumping from a 10-meter platform. And as a child, as the athlete herself admitted, it was very difficult for her to overcome her fear and jump ... from the side of the pool.

Multiple European champion and medalist of world championships Yulia Prokopchuk told in an interview with UNIAN about the takeoffs in her great career, the increasing popularity of this sport after last year's European Championship in Kiev and the prospects for its development, as well as rivalry with representatives of China at the most prestigious world starts.

My husband and I have such a tradition - we always celebrate Women's Day at the Murakami Japanese restaurant. At the same time, we go to the same institution - at the same address. Tradition is already three years old. And I think that this year we will not change our tradition, we will go to celebrate. Only three of us, with a child.

Do you have any food preferences?

Traditional Japanese dishes - sushi, salads ... Nothing special, impressive.

Does your family generally like holidays?

Yes. I love the holidays so much. I like it when the company gathers, everyone walks, has fun, everyone smiles, rejoices.

What surprises is your husband preparing?

Trains. I don’t know yet how it will be this time. Let's see how the day begins.

Do you often have "off-hours" holidays, on ordinary weekdays?

Now, to be honest, it’s not a bit up to that. In our life, a child takes a lot of time - there are more surprises and attention to him than to each other. In general, we are lovers of pampering ourselves with gifts, throwing something unusual to each other, making a surprise.

In the midst of sports career husband was not seen as often as we would like?

There was not much time, of course, but, for example, the tradition of celebrating in "Murakami" appeared when I was an athlete. That is, I tried to spend more time with my beloved during my sports career. Now, of course, I am completely immersed in the family.

You have moved away from active performances since your son was born about a year ago. I heard that you are already teaching him to swim ...

Of course. So far - in the bath, but we are already teaching him to dive, swim, develop physically. We try to make him a strong man.

Are you preparing a sports career for your son?

In any case, I want him to do some kind of sport, sport is in our blood. I don’t know what kind of sport he wants to do - diving, football, something else. It is too early to talk about it now, he is still small. But he should go in for sports in any case.

What about professional career don't think about it yet. In general, I am not a fan of planning for the future. Everything has its time.

Is your husband an athlete?

No, he's with professional sports not connected in any way.

When you think of returning to big sport? Or will the fan no longer see Yulia Prokopchuk on the springboard?

I haven’t thought about it yet. I spend time with my child and I like it ...

And still?

Return to sports? ... I don't think so.

Will you be a coach in the future?

I want to be a coach. I like it. But as a jumper ... I want to devote myself more to my family ...

But can't you imagine life without sports?

You know, the first six months were very difficult ... I constantly wanted to climb the tower, jump, missed the old lifestyle. But now I already like spending time with my child, family ...

In the future, I want to train children, teach them to jump into the water, transfer their knowledge and experience. But, again, I will not guess. And suddenly, in a month, in a year, something completely different will turn up. Therefore, it makes no sense to say firmly that I will be a coach. But, of course, I want to do something in addition, besides the family.

For ten years, you have consistently won awards at the European championships, and then the World Cup. You can name best year your career, peak?

It's hard to name a specific year. Peak form is, rather, individual competitions in which I showed nice results... And throughout the year there can be ups and downs in a career, this is a very long period of time.

Then let's single out a separate tournament where you showed the brightest jump in your career, or achieved a significant result?

The most memorable tournament is the 2013 World Cup in Barcelona, ​​where I won the bronze medal. Then there was something like euphoria inside me. I was very pleased with my performance. And from this - and a reward. That bronze for me was akin to gold. The emotions were so bright, simply indescribable.

The best result? Perhaps this is the 2016 European Championship in London, when I took gold. Then I had record amount points, set a personal record. The feeling was that I was jumping light, everything was so good.

By the way, shortly after the tournament in London there was Rio 2016, where you were left without a medal. As well as at other Olympics. What was missing at the Olympics?

Confidence ... Skill and desire, a great desire, was always with me. I think this is a purely psychological state. Games are always tremendous stress.

The title of the world champion has not obeyed you either, unlike the gold medal of the European Championship ...

We had very strong athletes from China. If you can fight and win at ordinary tournaments with them, then at the world championships you have no options. They know how to psychologically tune in to the most important starts. I repeat once again, for me the bronze medal of the World Cup in Barcelona-2013 was like gold.

Now, judging by the results of the last major competitions, the Chinese are no longer so stable. The jump is not always clear and perfect. But a few years ago, in my time, unfortunately, it was almost impossible to fight them.

Last olympic tournament in Rio took place outdoors. There is also the famous open air springboard in Barcelona, ​​where you won your bronze medal. How different are indoor and outdoor competitions?

Yes, a lot. The indoor pool has four walls, a roof over your head - no wind, no sun, no rain. In the pool, there are more comfortable conditions for competitions, where you can concentrate on the jump, fully experience it. Nothing bothers you, nothing distracts you.

On the street, the sun may shine in your eyes, already distracted, somewhere the breeze will blow ... You cannot fully concentrate, thoughts are constantly “walking”.

So you prefer to compete indoors?

Personally, I love indoor pools. For complete confidence in your jump. It is, of course, sometimes lucky in the outdoor pool. You jump - and everything is fine. But, it is better when, you are completely confident in your jump.

How do your opponents react to different pools?

This is all individual. Comes to the smallest detail. You jump all the time in the same pool - everything is fine. You come to another and understand that absolutely nothing works for you. It happens that different types concrete in different pools. Where it is tougher, in another pool it is softer. There is something else ... There are a lot of nuances that can affect the performance of an athlete in the most unexpected way. And not necessarily he showed bad result because at the moment he is in bad shape.

Jumping into the water for the layman is enough extreme view sports. At what age do children need to start practicing this sport "according to science" in order to achieve a result over time?

As they say, the sooner the better. It is advisable to bring children at the age of five, when they can still be "stretched", to make them professional stretching, which is necessary when performing the elements of the jump. It is also important to lay down the "physics" at the initial stage. And only then you can go out for jumps, for more professional level... Therefore, children can be brought in at the age of 5-6. The later, the harder it will be to go through all this and "catch up" with peers.

How long does it take between the start of training and the first jump?

In principle, elementary jumps can be started from the very beginning, gradually transferring to more complex ones. But this is still purely individual. There is a child who is afraid to make jumps, and a gradual approach is needed for him, the coach must prepare him for this jump. And there is a child, whom you propose to make a jump, and he went and jumped without any problems. That is, here, too, a lot depends on the child himself.

Do the jumps start from the meter jump?

First of all, children are taught to swim. And then the youngest children first jump from the side, and then there is a meter-long springboard, etc. - increasingly. From 3 meters in height and above.

Yulia Prokopchuk won the gold medal of the European Championship / photo by Xsport

I remember that during an excursion for journalists, in the training room near the pool, there were some kind of foam rubber mats. Are they used in beginner training?

They are used by both adults and children alike. This is a preparation for a jump in the gym. First, there is a warm-up in the hall, acrobatic training, trampoline, then the athlete performs certain elements of the jump in the hall when he jumps into foam rubber. And then already in the pool - he jumps into the water. The difference is that you need to land in the foam rubber with your feet, and in the water with your hands, you need to "tighten" the jump. This is all done in order to learn how to navigate in space.

Admit it, did you personally have a fear of the first jump in your life?

Of course it's scary. It was very scary, I was generally a coward. And I was very afraid to jump.

That is, you and your coach had certain psychological tests, classes ...

You know, I will say this, of course, a lot depends on the coach, but until the athlete rebuilds himself, until he is ready to jump morally and psychologically, little can come of it.

And at what age did you personally begin to study? Where? And who was your first coach?

In general, I have been practicing since 4.5 years rhythmic gymnastics... When I came to the diving section at the age of 8, I was already prepared in physically, in terms of stretching. I was taught only to swim and jump from the side. So I passed smoothly First stage[preparation] in the previous section and paid more attention to jumping.

I had my first coach, Grigory Ivanovich Morgun, who taught me the basics of jumping. Then, unfortunately, he was gone. I moved on to Andrey Vasilyevich Rudenko, who had already coached me almost to the end of my career and with whom I won all my medals, for which I am very grateful.

Last year, the European Championship was held in Kiev. It turned out to be a very bright and colorful show. Everyday life of Ukrainian divers - are they also full of training in such excellent conditions as in the LIKO pool? Or does everyone have their own problems? To what extent do other pools meet international standards - in Zaporozhye, Kharkov, other cities?

Leading jumpers, members of the Ukrainian national team, train in this pool, it is used daily. The difference is that before major international competitions, it is “made beautiful” so that it “shines” on TV cameras. Regarding standards, since the European Championship was held here, it certainly meets all international standards. The only thing that the organizers of the European Championship lacked were places for spectators. Nobody imagined that there would be such a big excitement and there were constant problems with a lack of places. If we compare our pool in purely sports parameters with others where international starts are held around the world, we have a similar pool. Complies with all standards.

As for other cities of Ukraine, I have not competed in Ukraine outside of Kiev for a very long time, I have not traveled around the country. Therefore, it is difficult for me to say what has changed there and in which direction - it has become radically better, or worse ...

As for the capital, I personally started training in Kiev basin CSKA Moscow on Vozdukhoflotsky prospect. Now I train at LIKO. By by and large, only these two pools are used in Kiev for training for jumping water.

Has the excitement around diving after the European Championships in Kiev increased? People came, watched beautiful competitions, started bringing children to the diving section?

Yes, they took a lot of children, there were queues. Even people called me, asking for advice on which coach to go to. The main thing is that all this does not disappear. So that the excitement remains and diving is as popular as it was six months ago, when the European Championship just ended.

Does the state represented by the Ministry of Youth Sports somehow help Ukrainian divers? Got attention and financial support?

Of course, the state does not stand aside. We are paid for numerous trips to competitions abroad. The state pays scholarships to the winners and prize-winners of the World and European Championships, which is also a good help. At the same time, our Federation pays the fees here, domestically, when we prepare for international starts. Leading athletes are provided with discounts on housing purchases, which is also important.

And what kind of attention from the NOC, considering that diving - olympic look sports?

National Olympic Committee also constantly supports us. In particular, it is very pleasant when you are celebrated as the best athlete of the month. I myself have received such awards. This is pleasant even not so much from a material point of view (although, and this, of course, is very important), but from a moral point of view. You are loved, appreciated, respected, your success is being watched. Believe me, this is very important for an athlete.

Plus, I cannot fail to note such a fact as the very good personal attitude of the head of the NOC of Ukraine, Sergei Nazarovich Bubka, to the athletes. I had a problem with my arm, the injury turned out to be serious, and the president of the NOC found an opportunity to put me in touch with a doctor who helped me a lot, gave a massage course, went with me to Rio and “led” me directly to the start of the competition. As a result, I was able to recover and fully host the Olympic competitions. The human factor is very valuable in the relationship between athletes and NOCs.

Kirill Stadnichenko

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