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Winner of the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, skeleton athlete Alexander Tretyakov, in an interview with Sport, remembered happy emotions and communication with the President of Russia, a beautiful Italian dream and spoke about doubts about admission to the 2026 Games.
— You called the victory in Sochi the happiest day of your career. Has your opinion changed in ten years?
— No, of course. Olympic gold is the dream of every athlete. And the emotions that were at the award ceremony were already forgotten after about a month. Because you start preparing for other competitions and try to leave all the emotions and memories in history. And you’re already thinking about some new results and achievements.
— How were you greeted in your native Krasnoyarsk?— We flew on a flight on which there were many Olympic champions and medalists. At the airport we were met with flowers by the leadership of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and the city. And everything was organized very well.
— Have you often been invited to celebrations in the region?
— Of course, there were many such meetings. Including with the mayor of the city, and with the governor of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, and with deputies of the Legislative Assembly of the region. I think I went everywhere back then. And the questions were sometimes almost the same — about the Olympics, emotions after the victory, preparation for the Games and future plans.
«We began to learn many times more»
— Then you have probably become one of the most popular residents of Krasnoyarsk?
— In the city, after the victory, people began to recognize me about several times more. They congratulated us and asked us to take a photo or give an autograph. And for such requests I had to make calendars with my image.
— You said that at the competitions books help you to distract yourself. What genres do you prefer?
— We have competitions at the Olympics for two days, and it is very important to be able to completely escape from thoughts about them: how you perform, how much you lose to your competitors or how much you win. And books help me. I read everything — our classics, various stories, and science fiction, if I’m in the mood.
— After the first day, you were in the lead by a fairly comfortable margin of half a second. Were you able to rest peacefully before the two decisive races?
— I slept well, I managed to completely detach myself from everything: and where where I am and how I perform. I had dinner, read a little and fell asleep peacefully, not thinking about anything.
— And after the victory?
— Then it was due to the fact that I was very tired, probably for the first time in the whole month I had a lot of impressions: that everything was finally over, and that I managed to win the Olympics, and that such a burden had been lifted from my shoulders. And I fell asleep with a light heart.
— How did the regional government reward you?
— There was a cash bonus from the leadership of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. But it is less than from the government of our country.
«A quick start is half the success»
— You set a unique achievement by showing the same starting acceleration time in all four attempts. How is this even possible?
— In my opinion, one of the girls also showed four identical results in Sochi . I prepared for every attempt, tuned in and gave it my best. In addition, this was facilitated by weather conditions, which were the same for two days in a row in the evening. I went into every race with a good attitude, that’s the whole secret.
— How much does the best acceleration result, in your opinion, ensure victory in the attempt?
— I beat the silver medalist by a total of only 0.8 seconds, of which at the start the total of four attempts was 0.4. Four tens at the start and four tens at the end of the route. It turns out that I got 50 percent of the lead due to good overclocking. But at the same time, you also need to understand that usually a tenth of an advantage during acceleration results in much larger numbers at the finish line. And if you don’t go into any mathematical calculations, then half of the lead and success was achieved by me at the start of the races.
— A Canadian won at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, at the Games in Sochi — you, and in Pyeongchang — a Korean. How much better knowledge of your route and noticeably greater roll-up than that of your rivals can be assessed as a percentage of victory?
— In this case, everything is more difficult to translate into numbers. But it gives you more confidence and peace of mind when piloting the track has already been brought to automaticity. And the feeling of confidence and calmness then results in an advantage in competitions. And it gives you a very significant plus.
«Criticism of Russia is always popular in Latvia»
— It was not offensive to read the Latvian media, which wrote that the organizers of the Games did something with the time, because it is almost impossible to show the same acceleration four times in a row. And Latvian Martins Dukurs, who became the second, also hinted at this.
— I don’t know, it’s just that in Latvia such words are in demand and will be popular. And Martins took advantage of such preconditions from the public and, apparently, even tried to justify his defeat in this way. I don’t remember that at the Vancouver Olympics he, who also came second, complained about the Canadians that they had done something wrong.
I think that not everyone in Latvia would like it if he started complaining about Canadians. And complaining about Russians in this country is always in demand and relevant. And this point of view will always find more supporters than opponents. Apparently, that’s why he did so.
— At the same time, at the Olympics, the father of the brothers Martins and Tomas Dukurs, coach Dainis, admitted that he saw you on the track and you won in a fair fight.< /strong>
— I don’t really care what he thinks, it’s his personal opinion. I don’t want to listen to every person, I don’t want to clutter my head with all these opinions. If they have any information, then they should easily contact the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) so as not to turn out to be ordinary idle talkers. And so these are all words.
“I was ready that they would not be allowed to participate in the Games in Korea”
— Alexander, three years after the victory International Olympic Committee (IOC) disqualified you. CAS then again recognized him as the champion of the Games, but what were your feelings at the moment of being deprived of gold?
— When I was not allowed to participate in the Olympics in Pyeongchang, I somehow calmly accepted this information. For some reason I had a feeling that this would happen — after I was cleared by CAS. And I wasn't surprised. I rested, gained strength and began to prepare for the next season. In which, by the way, he won the overall World Cup. This became a good motivation for me — to perform well and prove that it’s too early to write me off (with a smile).
— In Sochi, were you able to visit other competitions and support our athletes?— After I won, I went to hockey when we beat the Slovaks. He also took part in meetings with fans and other events. And of our guys, he communicated with those whom he knew before.
— Was there any memorable gift that sank into your soul?
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— I don’t remember anything special. So nothing stuck (laughs). But I was very pleased when ordinary people congratulated me and even thanked me for the positive emotions that I gave them. It was a good time then, kind and positive. I don’t know the exact statistics, but they told me that after the victory, a lot of young guys came to skeleton, having seen our sport for the first time at the Olympics in Sochi.
— Where were you honored?
— Vladimir Putin awarded us (Tretyakov was awarded the Order of Friendship — approx.) immediately in Sochi, the day after the closing of the Games. He congratulated me on my victory and asked if I was scared. I answered no, and we laughed.
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— What impression did your communication with the head of state leave?
— Emotions and impressions were only the most positive. After the award ceremony, we went to the Olympic Park to plant an alley of trees. And Vladimir Vladimirovich after that once again congratulated all our winners and medalists of the Games.
“I don’t plan to change the country”
— Under the conditions of sanctions, some Russian athletes are starting to compete for other countries. What is your position?
— I don’t plan to change my citizenship, but this is the choice of every person. Nobody made such offers to me.
— You said earlier that since your first Olympic Games in 2006 were held in Italy, it would be nice to round out the sports cycle by participating in the 2026 Olympics, which will also take place in this country. Are these plans still there?
— There are such thoughts. But everything depends on what the situation in the world will be and whether we will be allowed into the Olympics without any conditions, with a flag and anthem. And the current restrictions are unpleasant and unacceptable.
— Speaking in a neutral status is not your option?
— Yes, in my opinion, they won’t even give me neutral status. After all, the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation does not express such a desire. My job is to train, and I don’t even read the news on this topic. If there is any good news, they will tell me it immediately. And reading something negative is not interesting. At the same time, our team is quite strong and competitive. We compete with each other, and new athletes grow up.
— Young people don’t step on your toes, don’t have reverence for your regalia?
— No, this is a sport, and you can’t put pressure on your opponents with authority. You must constantly prove your level of skill on the track — with high speed and good seconds. And young people are really growing gradually, going fast and sometimes winning.
— What is your impression of the Games in Sochi?
— Then everything was organized at the highest level, the home Olympics gives me only positive emotions. Of course, there was great joy in those moments when one of our guys or girls won a medal. The Olympic Games in Sochi were unique and forever etched in my memory.
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