He ran only 12 races, winning a full set of medals: gold and silver in the relay, bronze in the individual race. He will begin his performance at the World Championships on Thursday with the individual race. In an interview with R-Sport correspondent Elena Sobol, the biathlete talked about how the season turned out for him, what shape he was in before the main start and what changed in his preparation with CSP specialist Andrei Kryuchkov, as well as how they joke in the Russian team young fathers.
"I wish there were more races"
- How are you feeling ahead of the start? Are you tired of waiting in the wings?
Everything is fine! Of course, I wanted to run more races this season, but since we were initially preparing for 20 km, I will try to live up to expectations.
- Did you manage to adapt to the irregular rhythm of the starts?
Sometimes it doesn't quite work out. There seems to be a lot, but a little is missing.
- This year, work in Kryuchkov’s group with Anton Shipulin and those who joined was not as disrupted as last year due to injury?
I think summer was perfect for me! And I more or less completed the entire roll-in. The only thing that there were no starts at the beginning of the season probably had an effect was the lack of combat experience. Because it is during the start that you understand how ready your opponents are, and you can somehow tease yourself at a distance in order to show higher speed. And when you train alone, do speed training, you fight with yourself.
- Have you talked to the coaches about this, so that maybe they could give you more opportunities to start?
The coaching staff made decisions together at each stage. My wishes, of course, were taken into account, but at the same time, this year we have guys who performed well at the IBU Cup, they were pushing someone up. At the beginning of the season, it was necessary to determine the fighting composition that would go to the starts; about 15 athletes had to be “skated” in the first starts.
I would make selections more restrained at the beginning of the season, I would bring not 15, but ten people there. This would be more or less correct, because everyone’s form at the start of the season is different. Someone “shot” at the selection, arrived at the stage and got lost, there is no person. And if one of the leaders fails the selections, he is sent to the IBU Cups - they say, go for a ride - and the person will get lost there... Like skiers, by the end of the season a certain group is formed, which is guaranteed to start next season, say, three stages. I think we should have something like this in our team.
Before the relay here at the World Championships there will be only one start - the individual race. If they put you in a relay race, will you have enough physical condition? Will you have time to “run away” in one race?
I think yes. I don’t just ride here every day, but do some kind of repeated speed training. The training camp in St. Petersburg also went very well for me, all training went according to plan. I don’t see any problems for myself.
“I came to successful shooting with my own head”
- What would you celebrate with a plus sign for yourself this year?
It seems to me that I have made a lot of progress in technology, but there is still room for improvement. There was one failure in shooting in Anterselva, when I “shot” four pieces. The season is not over, but in terms of percentage of accurate shooting I am already doing better than last year. I haven’t looked at the distance speed yet, but according to personal feelings it has increased compared to previous years.
- This year you are running mostly long races. Do you think they are better for you?
There is no such thing as long ones being easier to run. Probably, races are considered from a shooting point of view, such as relay races, individual races, mass starts. Those types where shooting decides much more than movement. Therefore, if I have a predominance of shooting, we decided to prepare for these distances.
Experts often note your shooting qualities. Is this how your relationship with the rifle developed from the very beginning?
No, I won’t say that I started shooting right away. When I came to biathlon, there were many mistakes. I just came up with something with my own head. I won’t say that I have an ideal shooting technique, it’s just... There are thoughts that I have embodied for myself, they suit me.
- How has your work with Andrei Kryuchkov changed? Anton Shipulin, for example, noted that there was more trust.
Yes, there is probably a lot more trust. Last year, at some points, if there was something I was wary of, now I trust completely in principle. I like the fact that we can change some approaches in preparation, improvise somewhere - add something or, on the contrary, remove something. There is no strict plan. We start from a lot - from the state of health and the condition of the track and the weather.
- Do you still train according to your plan, even when you are with the national team?
Yes. I won’t say that the training is radically different. If, for example, the guys have repeated work, then we do it too. The only thing is that the time and duration, the number of segments will differ. For us, this is calculated individually based on who is ready at the moment.
This program suits me better because it is completely individual. I'll come today, we'll discuss tomorrow's training. She was alone in the plan, but I want to change something a little, that’s no problem. If we think that it would be more correct to do this, we come to a general agreement, then yes.
- Does the fact that you can always adjust your work yourself relieve emotional stress?
Yes. It is impossible to be under the guidance of a coach whom you do not trust. He tells you - go speed up for 10 km, but you know that you don’t need it, and you go and do it anyway. And what will be the result after this? You should always train with complete trust; if there is a misunderstanding somewhere, then there will be no benefit from such training.
"Aren't you a father? You can't join the national team!"
- Not so long ago you and your wife Evgenia Volkova had a daughter, Arina. How did this change your life?
It is now much harder to leave for training camps and competitions. Since children are a great joy in life, it is now much harder to be somewhere for more than a month.
- One might say, a club of young fathers has formed in the national team - you, Anton Shipulin, Evgeny Garanichev, Dmitry Malyshko. Do you sometimes discuss children?
Sometimes we joke that next year the selection criterion for the team will be paternity. “Father? No? That’s it, don’t come!”
“Did it happen by chance that everyone somehow became fathers at the same time?”
Well, yes, I won’t say that everything was planned, like, let’s do it this year! It happened.
- What has changed in your head?
Probably, there was more responsibility.
- How's your wife? Don't you miss training yourself?
Everything is fine, he’s raising his daughter. Sometimes he trains. But without training camps and starts, he doesn’t really get bored. He says he watches biathlon and cross-country skiing on TV, but there is no obvious desire to go running yet.
Russian biathletes are known throughout the world for their brilliant results in this sport. One of them is Alexey Anatolyevich Volkov - a successful athlete, the hope of the team, a favorite of the public.
Biography
Alexey Volkov (04/05/1988) is a native of the city of Raduzhny, which is located in the Tyumen region. Due to the climate and geographical location of the area, one of the popular sports in Volkov’s homeland is skiing. Since childhood, Alexey, together with his younger brother Alexander, was fond of skiing and took part in all city and regional competitions. The first coach of the future biathlete was Andrei Kolisnichenko.
Later, in 2003, the brothers began to engage in biathlon more seriously and began studying at the biathlon school in Nizhnevartovsk, where they were trained by professionals Dubasov Petr and Zelenin Ivan.
In 2009, the young athlete was included in the junior team led by Sergei Altukhov and Valery Zakharov. In the same year, the All-Russian Championship was held in the Tyumen region, where Volkov showed his best side, his achievements were noted by professional athletes. So the athlete was included in the Russian biathlon team, he competed in the World Cup in Sweden. However, this performance was not the best. Alexey Volkov finished 74th.
He improved his performance at the Canadian World Championships. In the individual race, the biathlete was awarded a silver medal.
Thanks to his marksmanship and accurate shooting, Volkov managed to gain a foothold in the Russian national team and continue to participate in world competitions.
2009 was a significant year in the athlete’s life. He took part in many competitions, won his first medals at world championships, and also received a car from the governor of the Tyumen region for the development of sports.
Since 2010, Volkov’s serious professional growth began. At the European Championships in Estonia, he won in all the special disciplines in which he took part: gold in the pursuit, silver in the sprint and relay, bronze in the individual race.
2011 - performance at the European Open Championship. Alexey Volkov was awarded a gold medal in the pursuit and a silver medal in the sprint.
For some time, the athlete competed in single or team races, without being a member of the Russian team.
He participated in the World Cup Championships in Oberhof and Ruhpolding in 2013/2014, where he won prizes. Thanks to these results, he got the opportunity to compete at the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi. There he was a leader in the relay and took the highest gold award in a group with Ustyugov, Malyshko and Shipulin.
Since 2015, he has increasingly competed at world competitions held in Europe. Thus, in the Estonian city of Otepää, Volkov won 2 gold medals and received the status of the best biathlete in the history of the European Championships in terms of the number of gold medals.
Today he lives and trains in Raduzhny. The main activity that Alexey Volkov is involved in is biathlon. Despite the fact that he is included in the Russian national team, the athlete plays for the VFSO Dynamo. The biathlete has high potential and will add to the collection of medals of his native country.
Merits
Alexey Volkov - biathlete, Olympic champion 2014, 6-time European champion, multiple world championship medalist, 8-time Russian champion, 2-time world champion in summer biathlon. He was awarded the honorable mission of carrying the Russian flag at the closing of the Olympics in Sochi.
His “treasury” of medals includes 6 gold medals, 8 silver and 3 bronze.
He has an award of national significance - the Order of Friendship (2014).
Personal life
Alexey Volkov is married and has a daughter, Arina. In addition to sports, he is interested in architecture and history. Loves visiting museums and historical buildings. Graduated from Surgut State University with a degree in physical education. Listens to music, mostly hip-hop and rap.
Conclusion
Today Alexey Volkov is a biathlete, master of sports. Also included in the Russian national team. Alexey came to biathlon from skiing, developing and improving his shooting skills to the highest level. As his mentors note, his skiing and shooting are at the same level, but there is still room for improvement in order to achieve higher and more prestigious results. Volkov became famous and recognizable thanks to hard work and self-improvement.
The rapid career of the Honored Master of Sports, biathlete Alexei Volkov did not go unnoticed by the public. Within 6 years, the athlete became the only six-time European champion and eight-time Russian champion in history. Alexey is an Olympic champion, multiple European medalist and two-time world champion. What is the secret of such success?
Athlete's family
Alexey Volkov (biathlete) was born on April 5, 1988 in the city of Raduzhny, Tyumen region. The parents are not native residents of the city; they came to Raduzhny for production. Alexey's father is an electrician, his mother worked as a machinist.
As the athlete says, he didn’t do well at school; after ninth grade, they simply hinted to him that he wouldn’t finish eleventh grade. But this did not prevent the athlete from graduating from a professional lyceum as an electrician, and then receiving a higher education. Alexey is a graduate of Surgut State University.
Alexey Volkov's wife is a biathlete, master of sports, European silver medalist. Before the wedding, the young people dated for several years; the wedding ceremony took place in April 2014 in Khanty-Mansiysk during the Russian Championship. In October 2015, Alexey and Evgenia had a daughter. The athlete says that children are a great joy in life; leaving for training camps and competitions for a long time is now much harder.
Skiing is a childhood hobby
Alexey started ski racing at the age of 9. The first coach is Andrey Kolisnichenko. In 2003, a biathlon school was created in Nizhnevartovsk, which recruited successful skiers. In the same year, Alexey’s father was awarded a trip to the World Cup, where Alexey Volkov saw such competitions live for the first time. The athlete recalls that upon his return, when the coach came to sign up for the section, Alexey, without hesitation, switched to biathlon.
The athlete recalls that they were running cross-country in the park, and he wanted to ski. After three weeks he got bored with it, so he stopped attending the biathlon section. A year later, his younger brother Sasha went to biathlon school, his coach invited the best skiers to the team training camp, including Alexey Volkov.
The biathlete says that at that time leaving Raduzhny was a huge event. The coach promised to take Alexey to the training camp, provided that he did not miss a single training session during the year. At that time, the young athlete didn’t even think about the Olympics. I just understood: if he trains well, he will be able to go to training camps.
First training camps
Alexey Volkov (biathlete) remembers the first training camp in 2003 in Kazakhstan well. He recalls that at that time it was difficult to find equipment, and it all came down to a cap and gloves. At the same time, the athlete was engaged in polyathlon - this is skiing over a ten-kilometer distance, pneumatic shooting while standing from 10 m and pull-ups. Therefore, the athlete shot well.
Alexey persuaded the coach to take him to the training camp in Khanty-Mansiysk, since due to his age he no longer qualified for the group. The athlete went to the training camp at his own expense. Then he took first place at the Championship, which surprised everyone, since it was his first competition. So Alexey got into the regional biathlon team.
Rapid success
Alexey Anatolyevich Volkov joined the junior team in April 2009 and became a real find at the national championship - he was ahead of all participants in the number of medals. In addition, he wins the prize of the governor of the Tyumen region - a car - and becomes the youngest winner of such a prize. In December of the same year in Sweden, the athlete participates in the World Cup.
Alexey is distinguished by his constant desire to win. The 2010 European Championship brought the athlete medals in four disciplines. In February 2011, participation in the European Championships brought him silver in the sprint and gold in the pursuit. In December of the same year, Alexey Anatolyevich Volkov took part in the race and won the competition. The biathlete’s sports career is rapidly rising:
- In 2012, Alexey won the individual race and the pursuit race in Uvat, took second place in the mass start, and became a six-time national champion in the relay team race.
- In 2013, Alexey was the silver medalist of Russia; the relay race brought the athlete a silver medal.
- In 2014 he received silver in the individual race.
- In 2015, he became the Russian silver medalist in the pursuit, relay and mass start.
- In 2016, he took second place in the relay at the World Cup.
The World Cup started in November 2016 in Sweden and will end in March 2017 in Norway. The Russian team took second place in the mixed relay. Alexey Volkov also plays on the team. The biathlete says that after the IBU Cup there was only 2 days for recovery. I didn’t feel very good, but I was pleased with my performance. There are plans to participate in the IBU Cup individual race in Arber.
Russian biathlete Alexey Volkov joked about the fact that the team wins medals in the main competitions when he runs the race.
“Sometimes the guys joke that as soon as I come to the relay, we either get prizes or win. So today I decided to make a joke.
After the finish, Anton shouted: “I am your mascot, you should take me to the Olympics in Korea.” Seriously though, the team is probably less nervous when I run the first stage. You can rarely expect serious mistakes from me,” Volkov said.
Alexey Volkov is truly the luckiest relay athlete; he is at the first stage - a necessary condition for victory at the main start of the season. Judge for yourself:
2011, World Cup - did not participate, silver;
2012, World Cup - did not participate, 6th place;
2013, World Cup - did not participate, 4th place;
2014, Olympic Games – first stage, gold;
2015, World Cup - second stage, 4th place;
2016, World Cup – did not participate, 6th place;
2017, World Cup - first stage, gold.
You know Nefartov very well. Evgeny Garanichev, taking into account the Olympic mixed doubles, entered penalty loops in five (!) relay races in a row at the main starts. When Evgeniy was not in the lineup, the team took gold.
In an interview with the chief editor of the sports editorial office of RIA Novosti, Denis Kosinov, he told how he copes in training without Anton Shipulin, how he works with the new head coach of the Russian national team Anatoly Khovantsev and how he reads sports news.
“It’s enough for me to be told my last name”
As you know, there are no World Cup winners among the current Russian biathletes. The last Russian to win this prize was back in 1996, the current president of the RBU, Vladimir Drachev. However, at the Winter Sports Center "Pearl of Siberia", where the country's summer biathlon championship was held, one could see a World Cup winner, and even a three-time one. True, not a biathlete, but a rock climber. Tyumen resident Stanislav Kokorin had just returned home after another tournament and stopped by Zhemchuzhina to watch the biathlon and cheer for his fellow countrymen. With his arrival, the audience for the final day of the competition increased to twelve people.
But why be surprised? The first half of the working day, individual races... However - honor and praise to the organizers - everything went as if there was a full house in the stands, and the world elite on the track and shooting range. The presenter at the stadium commented with genuine enthusiasm on what was happening for that same dozen fans, which included the most titled Russian climber.
But even our elite was not all there. After the training camp in Sochi, the coaches of the national team did not order the athletes to run in all the championship races, and literally a few people from the team chose the most difficult one. With even greater enthusiasm, the presenter exclaimed to the entire surrounding forest: “Super-titled! Olympic champion! Honored Master of Sports! Alexey Volkov!”
Alexey was just getting ready to go to the start zone at that moment, and, adjusting his helmet, irritably said: “Super-titled!” He turned to his smiling opponents, sat down and playfully spread his arms, just like a character from the movie “Kin-dza-dza”. And he went to the start with the look of a man detached from the matter.
You clearly didn't like this show. But that’s how it is! You are truly an Olympic champion. Why such an irritated reaction?
Not exactly irritated. It just always amuses me when they list a bunch of regalia. For some this may sound like it. For me, it’s enough for me to say my first and last name.
- Why? After all, you honestly won all these titles. You are deservedly an Honored Master of Sports.
Let's just say I'm not a fan of all this. I am not one of those who shout that I am such and such. I have regalia, there are cups and medals on the shelf at home, and that’s it. They are and are. I will never say again that I have won something. Well, people know and they know. If they don't know, it doesn't matter to me.
- “It doesn’t matter” is one thing, but you even performed some kind of pantomime.
Let's just say I laughed. I won't say that this offends me. I was just in a cheerful mood and decided to make a joke.
After twenty minutes, Alexei’s mood was not cheerful. However, it wasn’t sad either. Having made two misses while lying down, he drove one more lap, shot clean standing and left the race with a sense of accomplishment. Well, no one insisted. It’s good that biathlete Volkov didn’t quit the race completely. The scandals of last winter led many to the conclusion that it was time to end their careers. Since they still won’t let me go to the Olympics.
- Have you watched the Olympic biathlon broadcasts?
Yes, I watched everything.
- Isn't this masochism? “I should have been in his place” and so on...
Not really. Our boys and girls were there, I was sincerely worried and rooting for them. I didn’t particularly look at the others, but I was very interested in how our team would perform.
- It didn’t matter how well we performed.
Of course, I was worried about them. Sometimes we corresponded with the same Anton Babikov. But I didn’t understand what kind of situation they were in there, and I didn’t want to remind myself once again. Therefore, we rarely communicated.
"Stopped self-criticism"
- After not being allowed to participate in the 2018 Games, the question did not arise, why are you doing biathlon?
Even though I consider myself mentally strong, this really knocked me down. When we were at the European Championships, they announced to us that there was no chance of participating in the Olympics. Four years of preparation, and... Okay, I was at the Games in Sochi, I brought gold from there. What about the younger guys who have never been to the Olympics? And this is news for them! It turns out that they need to study for another four years in order to try to go to the Games and win prizes there! Many were in good shape, and whether they will have this shape in four years is the question.
It was all a little sad. I can say that it was only towards the middle of summer that I began to more or less digest all this. I barely swayed.
- In what sense do you mean “digest”? No motivation?
It was there, but it was weak. I didn’t understand what goals I was setting for myself and what I wanted. And in general, do I want to continue training?
- It turns out that such thoughts lasted for six months?
- How did you go to training every day for six months? How's it going to work?
I went out and set some goals for myself. There was not one large-scale goal, I solved some immediate problems that helped me spend the day with at least some desire to train.
Which? You are a purposeful person and you proved it by becoming an Olympic champion. And so - there is no big goal. What could be a small daily goal?
There are different goals. Improve the technical element. Go to a certain weight of the barbell if strength work continues during the week. You can come up with a lot of things like this.
- But why? It looks like a man who grinds out a key, but there is no lock. At all. Where should I put it?
Now, let’s just say, the summer championship went well for me. There is some desire to train more aggressively. I have an understanding of where I'm going.
- Great! For what?
For the World Cup and the World Championship.
- What convinced you? What made you continue to train and even see a big goal again?
Don't know. I can not answer this question. Maybe somehow everything has eased up. Let go. I stopped engaging in self-criticism.
- Have you followed the news related to the restoration of RUSADA?
Almost not. I scroll through the news feed, not sports, but general. At most, I come across one sports news a day, so I read it.
But this is an important topic. The restoration of the SBR and normal participation in competitions depend on the restoration of RUSADA.
So at what speed do we now have all sorts of sensations coming out! I wouldn’t be surprised if in a week they close something here again. Anything can happen. Therefore, it is better not to hope again. We restored it - good, we move on with our lives.
"There is a plan - let's go"
After the Sochi Olympics, which ended for our biathletes with a victory in the men's relay, team leader Anton Shipulin went to self-training under the guidance of coach Andrei Kryuchkov. However, it is very difficult to work alone, and the specificity of cooperation was that Kryuchkov was not always next to Shipulin. Anton invited Volkov to join him, he agreed. They worked like that for quite a long time. But now everything has changed.
Shipulin has not yet decided whether he will compete in the coming season or whether he will continue his career at all. And Volkov, not burdened by such doubts, returned to the general group, training under the leadership of Anatoly Khovantsev, the head coach of the national team and the senior coach of the men's team.
- You worked together with Anton Shipulin for a very long time. Is it easy for you to cope without your usual partner?
Well... Now we have a bigger company. You won't be bored. Antokha and I sometimes correspond and laugh more often. For now, he himself doesn’t even know whether he will continue or not. Time passes, training is underway, time will tell what condition he will be in.
- The team was headed by Anatoly Khovantsev. How comfortable are you working with him?
It's generally comfortable with him. I've known him for quite a long time, and there are no problems. We discuss everything, you can always come up and talk. We always find a compromise.
What can you say about his training system? Khovantsev told how Dmitry Malyshko in the first year of working together did not understand how it worked. How suitable is the system proposed by Khovantsev for you?
As the championship shows (Russian Summer Championship - ed.), I spent the summer profitably. I add more from collection to collection. And I can roughly imagine how much reserve I still have. I'm just wondering if I can approach the start of the season in the shape I need.
Your caution in your assessments is completely understandable. Evaluate the method itself. Are you comfortable in the training process?
The main thing is to believe. There are some really interesting workouts that I didn’t understand at first. Now understanding is coming, so everything is comfortable.
- Can you give an example of something that you didn’t understand at first?
The very beginning was a little unclear. May was spent on self-training. We arrived for the first training camp in June. Nobody knows who prepared how. Whether you did something or not did it is unknown. But it turned out that there was one general plan, everyone was immediately put under the same brush. It doesn't matter what shape you're in. It doesn’t matter whether you were sick or not. There is a plan - let's go. So at the first training camp it was unclear and a bit difficult, but then we got into it. Everything is fine.
- Any other innovations from the coaching staff?
Special strength training on roller skis. I almost never did this. Not the training itself, but the way it is carried out. I mean that the loads are distributed precisely over time, and not over kilometers.
“I’ll step aside and find something else to do.”
In principle, there was nothing new in this method for Alexey. The distribution of loads over training time was also adopted in the Kryuchkov-Shipulin-Volkov mini-group. But in addition to the general direction, there are many details. However, that’s what experience is for, to quickly adapt to new conditions. This is especially important for an Olympic champion. Especially for a matured champion.
You are no longer the same young man who won the Olympics in Sochi. And you perceive life more consciously. Is sport still the most important thing in your life?
No, I wouldn't say so. I wouldn’t say at all that sport was ever the main thing in life for me. Yes, I like him, but there are more important things. For example, family. The main thing is that sport is something you love. If you like to exercise, you exercise. So far there is a result. As soon as the result goes away or I stop liking it, I’ll just step aside and find something else to do.
- They say that you have to put your whole soul into sports, otherwise there will be no results. Do you disagree with this?
I put everything in. If you do this just for yourself, and don’t spend this time with your family, then it’s a waste of time. And if you are going to play sports, then invest in it to the fullest.
- Can we say that after the summer realization you have already got into a rut and went as expected?
Probably yes. I think this will happen.
- “Most likely...”, “I think that...” Where does such uncertainty come from? You are a clear person!
Well, how clear is it? I can’t yet imagine what awaits us at our first training camp in the snow. I don’t even know the approximate plan. I understand that it will be different from how they worked before, but I don’t know what the differences will be. So for now we can only believe that everything will be fine.
You concentrated on continuing your career and set a goal for yourself. What shape do you feel in now? How similar is Alexey Volkov from 2018 to Alexey Volkov from 2014?
Now I have become more technical, I have gained strength... (Sighs) But as I grow, so do my rivals. What matters here is how much I grow in comparison with them. If they add 20% and I add 10, then I lose another 10, right? Compared to my 2014 self, I have grown. But the question is how much the rivals have grown.
- So do you have an answer to this question?
For now, I can not say it. Tomorrow will be the day, there will be food. Let's go to the start and see.
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