Something was constantly drilled in the base building. The sound was scary and nasty. Moreover, he was heard just from the upper floors, where hockey players live. But in the day mode of the team there is such an item as a quiet hour.
“The guys manage to sleep, only a little,” agreed the press attaché of the FHR, Vladimir Gerasimov. - Then the drill starts to work, and everyone wakes up. That is why we asked Rossport to provide us with accommodation in a hotel during the World Cup.
- Will they really drill in six months ?! - the journalists were amazed.
“And who knows,” the Federation official shrugged.
Meanwhile, hockey players were heading to the dining room for lunch. Alexander Kharitonov, Dynamo striker, looked at his partners with sympathy.
“Aren't you hungry?” - sympathetically asked him.
“So I ate already,” the hockey player admitted good-naturedly. - Not only here, but at the Dynamo base (it is located in Novogorsk, a hundred meters from the Olympic - A.Sh.).
- Do not trust?
- Not. And there the home-made kitchen is more familiar.
Nearby stood the national team coach Sergei Nemchinov and listened in surprise to Kharitonov. Goalkeeper Vasily Koshechkin quickly ran into the dining room and ran back.
- So, march there! - the trainer showed a hand. And Koshechkin almost skipping ran into the hall for press conferences. It looked creepy - the guy’s height is two meters. Reporters presented a new form of the team. It differs from the previous one by three sponsor logos. Now the Russians will not look like ravens next to other European teams, pasted over at the stages of the Eurotour, like Christmas newcomers. And the design has changed little. There were some playful stripes on the sides. They are blue, complement the gamut of the Russian flag.
Kharitonov, who also came to the press conference, continued to joke. He was asked how he plays against Koshechkin in the Russian championship.
“It is terrible, of course,” Alexander smiled. - When you go out one on one with him and he rushes towards him, he becomes uncomfortable.
Vasily smiled shyly, and then told the story of how he wanted to become a field hockey player.
“When we played hockey in childhood, I tried to score goals,” he recalled. - But the coach said that at the gate I will do better. I like it now.
And how, with mentors with such intuition, Russian hockey players cannot win the World Cup since 1993?
Vyacheslav Bykov said that everyone in the team is healthy, and the mood is good. If the coach of the football team said this, then it would be worth the trouble. However, hockey is telling the truth. The coach even honestly admitted why the team does not have Sergei Mozyakin:
- We called him, we wanted to invite. But all his contact numbers did not answer. Tried to contact through the club - also to no avail.
Whether Mozyakin will be disqualified is still unknown. The Federation did not discuss this issue - probably, they also cannot get through. But on the other hand, the official position of the Russian hockey leadership regarding the strange match Metallurg (Novokuznetsk) - Siberia will soon be announced. In it, we recall, the hosts won in overtime guessed for a week.
Meanwhile, Vyacheslav Bykov spoke to the press unofficially:
- Yes, we will win in Finland, do not worry.
- Isn't it too early to take Sergei Konkov to the national team?
- What are Konkov! We were thinking about attracting Alexei Cherepanov to the team.
- He is 17 years old!
- That's why they didn’t. He plays some good matches, and then ... Very unstable. But this is normal at that age. I know from my son. I already have it in the first team.
- In Switzerland?
- Well yes. Soon he will play for the national team.
- For Russia?
“So they didn’t take him here.” Now he is Swiss.
No, it’s still clear why ours won’t win the world championships for so long. And Koshechkin was just lucky.
Alexey Shevchenko