Cross-country skiing. Pyeongchang (Korea). XXIII Olympic Winter Games. Women. 4 x 5 km relay race
1. Norway (Ingvild Ostberg, Astrid Jacobsen, Ragnhil Haga, Marit Bjoergen) – 51.24,3.
2. Sweden (Anna Hogh, Charlotte Kalla, Ebba Andersson, Stina Nilsson) – lag 2.0
3. RUSSIA (Natalia NEPRYAEVA, Yulia BELORUKOVA, Anastasia SEDOVA, Anna NECHAEVSKAYA) – 43.3
4. Finland (Aino Kaisa Saarinen, Kerttu Niskanen, Rita Lisa Roponen, Krista Parmakoski) – 1.02,6
5. USA (Sophie Caldwell, Sadie Bjornsen, Kikkan Randall, Jessica Diggins) – 1.20,5
6. Germany (Stephanie Beler, Katharina Hennig, Victoria Karl, Sandra Ringwald) – 1.49,4
The decision to put Anna Nechaevskaya on the final stage of the relay was bold and, as it turned out later, the most correct. Before the Pyeongchang Games, 26-year-old Nechaevskaya's best achievement was 14th place at one of the stages of this year's Tour de Ski. Just two weeks before the start of the Games, she became the 34th in the skating mass start - that is, in a race that is just the most similar to the relay stage. And just two years ago, Nechaevskaya was sent home from the national team for hopelessness. Then she performed at the stages of the Cup of Russia, without having her own coach or even a service person nearby.
Already in Pyeongchang, Nechaevskaya made a mini-breakthrough, rising to tenth place in the skating "cutting". But even the best cup result in her entire career still seemed like an insufficient reason to trust Anna with the finish. There is, after all, a much more experienced and titled Anastasia Sedova, or the bronze medalist of the sprint Games Yulia Belorukova, finally.
But Vyalbe and the coaches decided to take a chance. Our only chance for a medal was to arrive at the fourth stage in the group of leaders. And it is desirable to break it in such a way that as few teams as possible remain behind. It is extremely difficult to catch up in the women's relay, where the stage is only 5 km. That's why Vyalbe decided to detach all the best for the first three stages. And then to hope for Nechaevskaya – was not! In the end, what difference does it make if we finish fourth or tenth?
Debutante Nechaevskaya coped with her task perfectly. She did not chase the Swede and Norwegian, who rolled forward in the fight for gold, but she did not let the Finnish woman running behind her get close to her. "Hold on, hold on!" Elena Vyalbe whispered to her from the stands, clenching her fists. "Hold on!" a young man who had specially arrived in Pyeongchang shouted at the top of his voice. And Anna withstood, rolling out to the finish line third, in proud solitude. Our most beautiful ski finish of these Games. It's a pity that the flag could not be taken.
THEY SHOUTED AT ME TO GRAB THE MEDAL WITH MY TEETH
– How did you feel when you were told that you were running the last stage of the relay? – Nechayevskaya's question.
– I was in shock. I'm not a sprinter, it's hard for me in the final showdowns, so I usually run the third stages in relays. She asked: "Maybe it's not worth it? Why are you throwing me under the knives?" But they explained to me that the girls should make a start so that it would be easier for me. They said that she should run her race, not fuss. When I saw who I was going to run with at my stage, of course, I got nervous. There are such monsters there!
– Did you know that our team is in the lead after the first two stages?
- I didn't really see it, because I had already started warming up. And I tried not to look on purpose, so as not to waste emotions. In general, initially I asked the girls, most importantly, not to let the Finnish team get close. They had a sprinter running at the last stage (Krista Parmakoski. – Note "SE"), it would be extremely difficult for me to fight with her at the finish. I needed a groundwork, and I got it.
– That is, you did not initially dream of winning over Sweden and Norway?
– I wanted to, of course, but so far it's very difficult. At first, I didn't plan to let them go and fell in behind Stina Nilsson. But then Norwegian Marit Bjoergen started walking around us, Nilsson followed her, and I couldn't do anything at the exit of the climb. The coaches, in principle, immediately warned me not to rush anywhere on the first ascent. There is a very insidious part of the distance, you can "get drunk" so that then you can barely walk at all. So I decided to work to my best and not chase anyone.
– Did it feel like we had few coaches here and there was no one to drive you around the track?
– I didn't pay attention to it. The roar of the stands, the support of the audience – it was so great! They shouted at me along the highway: "You're ours! Fight to the end! Grab this medal with your teeth!" Thank you very much to our service team, which has been preparing skis for us excellently throughout the Olympics.
THERE WAS A BEAR WALKING NEAR THE HOUSE
– Before this Olympics, your best result at the World Cup was 14th place. Did you expect such a breakthrough from yourself?
– Of course not. I didn't make any plans about the Olympics at all. This year is very difficult for me, I shed so many tears... I don't want to talk about it now. There are personal reasons and sports-related reasons, all mixed up. Maybe it wasn't worth paying attention to much, but I'm a girl. You save up-you save up everything in yourself, and then emotions spill out. At that moment, I didn't understand at all what to do next, where to go, with whom to work next. Thanks to my mom and my boyfriend Nikita, who convinced me that everything would be fine.
– Just two years ago you were kicked out of the national team and you performed alone at the stages of the Russian Cup. And now you are an Olympic medalist. Some kind of fairy tale turns out...
– Then, too, there was a difficult period in my life. But in the same year I managed to win the Russian championship and return back to the team. Maybe such difficult moments harden me and make me even stronger?
– Who is your coach now?
– During the entire preparatory period, I trained with my personal trainer, Alexey Nikolaevich Zorin, with whom we have been working together since 2007. But since the end of December, I began to prepare for the Olympics with the coach of the Marcus Kramer group, Egor Sorin. I am very grateful to both of them for their support.
– You and Denis Spitsov are almost fellow countrymen, both from the Vologda region.
– He's Vozhegodsky, and I'm from Verkhovazhye, the village of Teply Ruchey, it's 200 km from Vologda. My parents still live there. Mom is also an athlete, she was a member of the USSR national ski team. But she never forced me to train, and Dad even said: "Better study, why do you need these skis!" But when the results appeared, of course, everyone began to support me.
– What is your village like?
– One-story wooden houses, mushrooms, berries, bears. Personally, I have not seen a bear, but they say he walked near the house.
MOM SAID SHE WAS STILL SHAKING
– How did the houses react to your medal? Before the press conference, you just had time to talk to your family by phone.
– Mom and Dad are crying! Mom said she was still shaking. They also say that during our race in the village there was not a single person on the streets, everyone was watching. Now the whole Upper Class is crying with me.
– How did it happen that your young man got to Pyeongchang?
– He just put me in front of the fact that he arrives here on February 13. However, he is not allowed to enter the Olympic village, we see each other in the entrance area or on neutral territory. But still, it's a huge support.
– Before the relay race, did you touch the Olympic medal that Yulia Belorukova won in the sprint for luck?
– When Yulia brought the medal, we immediately grouped around her and held it for good luck. Maybe it helped?
– You have an amazingly friendly team, there is no such thing in any other sport.
– Because the girls are very open and sociable. We don't have any anger or envy towards each other. We have fun together, we joke, we don't lose heart if something doesn't work out.
– You specialize in skating style. In biathlon, what was your countryman Spitsov's name?
– A year ago I was offered this option. They convinced me that with my skating there would be excellent chances, and I would learn to shoot quickly. But I was scared: suddenly it won't work out, and I won't be able to go back to skiing anymore.
– There have been many difficult moments in your career. How many times have you thought that maybe you should give up everything and do something else?
– I have such thoughts after every unsuccessful race. But literally half an hour passes, I cool down and begin to understand: "And where will I go without skis? This is my life, my everything."
