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"2010 Games could be toughest yet for Russia" – official
Published: 13 January, 2010, 13:10
Edited: 09 March, 2010, 18:39
The team of Russia (from left to right Ivan Tcherezov, Evgeny Ustyugov, Maxim Tchoudov and Nikolay Kruglov) biathlon
(4.2Mb) embed videoTAGS: Sport, Olympics, Vancouver-2010
The 2010 Olympic Games, which kick off in Vancouver on February 12, could be the most challenging ever for Russia, according to Vice President of the Russian Olympic Committee Vladimir Vasin.
The nation is currently represented by the generation of the 90s, a decade that saw sparse development. But with increased investment the situation should improve soon.
Meanwhile, Vasin remains optimistic about the Vancouver Olympics.
“We have the grounds to hope that our skiers can compete – they show it today and it’s their duty to do so. Our biathletes also do well. Just take the recent women’s races. The women’s speed skating team won a World Cup leg in Canada and the figure skaters are not to be forgotten. We also have World Cup winners and podium finishers in bobsledding. So if you take this wide range of disciplines there’s quite a lot to look for,” Vasin said.
Another item on the agenda was doping, and the official pledged that there would be no positive tests from the Russian team in Canada.
”All athletes will be ‘clean.’ Our country has a very strict approach towards this issue. It is better not to go to the Olympics than to engage in scandal and disgrace yourself. At the moment we have no reason not to trust our athletes,” he said.
Athletes from the USSR and Russia have won 260 medals, including 111 golds, throughout the history of Winter Olympics – more than any other nation.
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It is very sad to see the Russian team so weak. I have been studying the Olympic Games for several years, since 1987, when I was a 13 years old boy. My big passion was USSR and I loved to see such a strong country win so many medals in Winter and Summer Olympic Games. However, political changes finished USSR and a new order began in. Now It is very sad to see Russia winning so few medals (13 in 2002 and 22 in 2006) while United States won 34 in 2002 and 26 in 2006. Now, Russia only medal chances are in biathlon, cross-country skiing (yet, very weak against Follis, Kuitanen, Kowalczyk, Northug, Bauer), figure skating and Hockey. In speed skating, the Russian will see the dominant presence of USA and Netherlands in men's competition and the powerful teams of Netherlands, Canada and Germany in women competition. It is hard to believe USSR was a dominant force in this sport and gave to the world so great skaters like Grishin, Skoblikova, Averina, Kositchkin, Schilkov, Petruseva, Stepanskaya, Petruseva, Kulikov, Malkov, Fokitchev. In Biathlon I don't believe Tchoudov and Ustyugov will stop the dominant Norway's Ole Einar Bjorndalen. Even US, without any tradition in this sport, will have many medal chances with Tim Burke, world cup leader. In Bobsleigh, Zubkov will have many problems with USA and German athletes, and luger Demtchenko will face the powerful Germans and the Italian Zoeggeler. Today, Russia is not favorite to top the medal tally, a role USSR often played on. USA, Canada, Germany and Norway are the top winter powers. I believe USA or Canada will top the medal rankings, and Russia will be in the second team, in the same side of South Korea, China, Sweden and Switzerland. If Russia achieve 20 medals, It will be doing a good presentation while USA and Canada will fight to break the magical 30 medals barrier. I don't believe Russia will be a dominant country in 2014 Sochi's Olympics. It is sad, but is real!
England win in vancouver.