Sergei Ustyugov’s mentor, German specialist Markus Kramer, talks about how the Russian skier is going to prepare for the World Championships, the “purity” of Alexander Legkov and Norwegian asthmatics.
If you think that after winning the intense multi-day race, which replaced the New Year, he finally celebrated all the festive events at once - you are mistaken. The very next morning after conquering Alpe de Cermis, the team had to move to Toblach, to the site of the next stage of the World Cup. And therefore - “we’ll just sit in the bar for a little while, everything is very modest” - as he said. And even then, the lion's share of these gatherings was spent giving interviews.
"USTYUGOV NEEDED AT LEAST A MINUTE OF ADVANTAGE ON THE MOUNTAIN"
Marcus, Ustyugov went into the final climb with a 1 minute 12 seconds advantage over the Norwegian. Hand on heart, were you sure that this advantage could no longer be won back?
A few more races before the finish of the Tour, I said that Sergei needed at least a minute of advantage on the mountain to feel calm. This would be enough to insure in case of poor health, a mistake with lubrication, and the like. But in the end, Sergei didn’t even need that. When I saw him at the top, it became obvious that he was feeling fine and would not give up the victory.
- What did you talk about with him before this ascent?
I asked Sergei not to start too quickly. But at the same time, on the flat part, which took about 3-4 kilometers, I planned a slight acceleration for him. In this segment we wanted to gain a few more seconds from Sundby to make him nervous. And so it happened: by the start of the climb, Ustyugov’s advantage had reached 1 minute 14 seconds, which made it clear to the Norwegian: you are not getting closer, but even the opposite. And from Sergei’s first movements up the mountain, I realized that everything would be fine.
Ustyugov won six out of seven races at this stage race. Did you expect such a phenomenal performance from your student?
Of course not. Before the Tour, we held a very high-quality ten-day training camp in Toblach. The guys fully followed my training plans, the weather was beautiful, everyone was healthy. After that, I thought that Ustyugov was ready to fight for a place on the stage race podium, just like last year. But I didn’t imagine that he would be able to perform so strongly.
"I'M ONE HUNDRED PERCENT CONFIDENT IN THE "CLEANITY" OF THE CAR"
Ustyugov emphasized in almost every interview that this victory was for Russian skiers suspended from the competition. Do you think any of them could also take a place on the Tour de Ski podium if they got the right to compete?
Certainly. If a few days before the start of the multi-day race you asked me who, judging by the training, would be the best in the Russian team, I would say it. He was on the podium at the World Cup in La Clusaz and was in excellent condition. It was a blow to all of us that the guys were forced to stay at home. That’s why Sergei talked about this in an interview.
As a foreign specialist who did not work on the team during the Olympic Games in Sochi, after this story with scratches on test tubes, did you have any doubts about your own students? Did you ask them questions, tried to find out what really happened during the home Olympics?
There has been talk in the Russian press for a long time that Legkov may have some problems. But I have known Alex for many years and am one hundred percent sure that he was and remains a “pure” athlete. I saw and know how he trains, how he treats his body. I don’t understand how an athlete can be responsible for what happens to his doping sample after it has been sealed and handed over to the doping controller? Is this fair and is it the responsibility of the athlete?
- You said that you are one hundred percent sure of Legkov’s purity. What about the other five suspended skiers?
I can only answer for the athletes who trained with me. As a team, of course, we talked about this. And the guys said: “Marcus, we didn’t accept anything, we don’t know anything, we have no idea what happened there in Sochi.” You can check: all the guys in my group had negative doping tests before, during and after the Olympics. It is difficult for me to understand why people who have never tested positive and were “clean” are now not allowed to speak.
How do you feel about the problem of Norwegian asthmatics and personally about Martin Sundby, who served a suspension for overdosing on a prescribed medication? Two-time Olympic champion from Poland Justyna Kowalczyk, for example, called Ustyugov almost the only healthy athlete on the tour.
I am a trainer and not an expert in such matters. Now I also have to read a lot, study all the emerging information in order to form my opinion. For now, it seems to me that the rules should be clearer and understandable to everyone. What exactly can be taken, in what dosage, during competitions or only during the training period... But believe me, I would happily discuss only my work, and not all these matters that cause great harm to the reputation of our sport.
"IN KOREA, ATHLETES HAVE NOTHING TO DO"
The World Championships in Lahti start on February 22. Do you have a plan to maintain Ustyugov’s current super shape for another month and a half?
When you work with an athlete, it is very difficult to plan anything. More precisely, the plan can be one thing, and then the reality is completely different. Now it is important that Sergei recovers as quickly as possible after the Tour. He will perform at the next stage of the World Cup in Toblach, then we will hold a training camp in Austria, perform at the World Cup stage in Falun and again sit down for a training camp, this time in Norway. There I plan to include speed training and a direct lead-up to the World Championships. The plan, it seems to me, is good, but now it is important that nothing prevents it from being carried out.
- Do I understand correctly that you are not planning any trips to Pyeongchang during the pre-Olympic week?
No, I think that leading athletes have nothing to do there. There are too many flights. It is enough for the servicemen to get acquainted with the route. It’s important for them to understand in advance what the snow structure is like there, what’s going on with the weather, and the like. And even a week of training before the competition will be enough for athletes to adapt. There is no point in transporting them so far a whole year before the Olympics.
Ustyugov’s first coach, Ivan Bragin, said that he was ready to easily sacrifice the fight for victory in the overall World Cup for the sake of Lahti gold. Do you share this approach?
Certainly. The title of prize-winner, or even more so world champion, is much more important than a place in the overall World Cup standings. The World Championships are held only once every two years, the pinnacle of any season. For me personally, this is the most prestigious thing this year.
One of Ustyugov’s previous mentors, Isabelle Knaute, called Sergei the most talented athlete she has ever worked with. Will you subscribe to this statement?
Sergei is certainly a great talent. But also, for example, Legkov and Belov also very gifted. Ustyugov is distinguished, first of all, by his versatility - he is very good in sprint and distance, in speed skating and in classics. Only a few people all over the world are endowed with this quality of running equally well at anything - ,. Ustyugov has every chance to stand on a par with them.
- Is it true that Sergei has a complex character and is not easy to work with in training?
It is very important for me that an athlete not only mechanically perform the work, but also thinks. Every time I say why we do this or that exercise, what goal can be achieved with its help. Sergei is always very interested in such explanations. In addition, he is extremely motivated, asks questions, for example, about movement techniques, and tries to achieve the ideal in everything. Personally, it is very easy for me to work with such a person.
Davos - Russian skiers who are allowed to participate in the Olympic Games will do so.
The German coach of the Russian team, Marcus Cramer, spoke about this in an interview for Dagens Nyheter.
He continues to insist on the innocence of the suspended skiers, and he may have an acute crisis in the leadership system.
At times, somewhere in the distance, in a hotel in Davos, Switzerland, a pianist plays the piano, several tourists laugh in unison on the sofas in the lobby, and at a rustic pine-wood table, the leader of the Russian ski team tries to pull himself together after the news received about days ago.
Russia as a nation was excluded from the Olympic Games. But Russian athletes can participate in competitions under a neutral Olympic flag.
This was the decision of the International Olympic Committee after the story of large-scale state-led doping, which culminated in the 2014 Olympic Games held in Russia itself - in Sochi.
“The feeling is very difficult. Especially considering that we don’t know which athletes will be allowed to start and which ones will not. We don’t know what rules the group that will make the decision will be guided by,” says Markus Kramer.
“The skiers are in a bad mood. Their dream and main goal was the Olympic Games, and now, on December 7, they don’t know whether they will be allowed to go to the start line. Of course, it’s hard to focus on today’s training.”
However, he knows something else. Something that might concern Swedish biathlon team coach Wolfgang Pichler.
“The coaches, doctors and physiotherapists who were on the Russian team in Sochi will not be able to attend these Olympics,” says Markus Kramer, who joined the team in 2015.
“I will lose at least three coaches and another four to five people from the management team. It will be very difficult to get organized for the Olympic Games. It’s good that our skiers have a chance to participate in Olympic competitions, but for many athletes it is important that their coaches are with them at this large-scale tournament.”
Dagens Nyheter: Have you already started looking for new managers?
Markus Kramer: No, I only learned about the leaders today. We'll have to start from scratch.
— Do skiers have motivation to go to the Olympic Games?
- Yes. The Russian people are proud of their nation, and it is important for Russian athletes that today they received support from the Russian government in connection with this trip. This gives them motivation.
We have many talented young skiers. This is the future of Russian long-distance skiing. If we are not able to participate in the Olympic Games, this will mean problems for the sport in Russia in the future.
— Do you think the Russian team in Sochi used doping?
“I can only say what my skiers have already said. They say there was absolutely no doping.
Context
You can't survive the Russian winter without the Olympics
Itromsø 07.12.2017I'll write on my helmet that I'm Russian
The Washington Post 12/06/2017Russian skiers are cool and doping-free
Dagens Nyheter 10/26/2017Suspend everyone or none
Dagens Nyheter 01/05/2017Russian sports are corrupted, but so are the Olympics
The Guardian 12/07/2017 Nobody asked them to take additional tests. Nobody told them that any samples needed to be replaced.Markus Kramer started talking about the Olympic champion at the 50 km distance, Alexander Legkov. He is among the skiers suspended by the International Ski Federation and the IOC.
— Legkov won the last race before the Olympic Games in Dobbiaco, and samples were taken from him then. Why did he need to dope if he was already a winner? It was also tested in Lahti, immediately after the Olympic Games.
— But if there was doping, perhaps the athletes simply didn’t know about it?
- It's possible. I always ask skiers: “What happened?” and they always answer: “Marcus, I didn’t take any doping.”
— What can you say about the information of Grigory Rodchenkov (former head of the anti-doping laboratory in Sochi, and now a key IOC witness) that skiers rinsed their mouths with a doping mixture that should not have been detected?
— Alexander Legkov says that he never met this person and did nothing of the kind. I got to know Alexander well, traveling with him 250 days a year, and I trust him.
- But you can do something secretly, behind your back?
- Yes, everyone can do it. But when you travel together so much, you become kind of like family. When a grown man cries and says he knows nothing about any sample manipulation, I believe him.
I think the problem is that so much of it seems to be based on information from one person, Rodchenkov. But we don’t know whether he’s telling the truth.
In my opinion, the IOC is most responsible for the safety and testing of samples during the Olympic Games. Not Russia as an Olympic country and certainly not the participants.
I don’t understand why so much time has passed and we still haven’t learned anything new. They (IOC) say they believe that we (the Russian team) know what happened in Sochi, they have Rodchenkov's words and scratch marks on the test tubes. But there are no positive results.
— But traces on test tubes are a violation of doping rules, right?
- Yes, but I have heard forensic experts say that such marks can occur during production or when the test tube is closed.
It seems strange to me that some of those who participated in the Sochi Games are suspended, while others are not. If the samples were switched, why did they choose one skier and not another?
— How do you ensure that skiers stay motivated and concentrate on training?
“I hope they don’t pay too much attention to everything that’s going on around them.” They can read about it on the Internet, but I try to talk to them only about what they need to do to develop.
— How many of them will take the starting line at the Olympic Games, do you think?
“I hope six women and six men.”
— And they want to go and compete under a neutral flag?
— Those with whom I managed to talk have the motivation to go. Especially because they want to show that they are clean and can still achieve good results, they believe that this is important for Russian skiing.
InoSMI materials contain assessments exclusively from foreign media and do not reflect the position of the InoSMI editorial staff.
Alexey Avdokhin - about the German coach Markus Kramer.
Who is Markus Kramer?
The 54-year-old German coach joined the headquarters of Russian skiers in the fall of 2015. Before that, he had a contract with the German Ski Union and secret collaboration with Alexander Legkov (about five years), who worked not only according to the plans of Burgemeister and Knaute, but also according to Kramer’s notes.
Who did Kramer work with before Russia?
The launch of his coaching career in the late 90s coincided with the appearance of the eccentric Johann Muehlegg in German skiing. Over the next two decades, Kramer crossed paths with almost all the Bundesgrandes; eTobias Angerer (4-time Olympic medalist), Jens Filbrich (7 World Championship medals), Rene Sommerfeldt (2001 World Championship silver in the marathon), Axel Teichmann (two World Championship victories) collaborated with Kramer at some point.
Later there was a short work in Italy and a contract with the Swiss during the heyday of Dario Cologna (until 2010). Then another five years - in the native team with young people who are now trying to restore glory and honor to German skiing - Jonas Dobler, Peter Tscharnke, Lukas Begl.
Who brought Kramer to Russia?
A phone call from physiotherapist Isabelle Knaute caught Kramer at the moment of his transition from Switzerland to the German Ski Union in the summer of 2010. Isabel received a job in Russia a few days before the uncompromising Elena Vyalbe sat on her throne, and offered Marcus cooperation with Legkov, who was looking for a change in his stalled career.
Kramer agreed, but wanted to meet with the management of Russian skiing. A couple of months later, Vyalbe invited the German to secret negotiations at Sheremetyevo airport - there an agreement was born that Legkov would prepare for the new season using Kramer’s notes. But as part of the Russian national team.
Later, the German convinced Vyalbe of the need to work individually with Legkov and offered former student Reto Burgermeister, who had recently completed his skiing career and was working as a cycling guide in a Swiss sports store, as a personal trainer.
Vyalbe and the head of the Sports Training Center, Alexander Kravtsov, agreed, but demanded that Legkov’s group be supplemented with three more skiers – Chernousov, Devyatyarov and Kravtsov’s son-in-law, Novikov.
When did Kramer and Ustyugov learn about each other's existence?
Perhaps earlier, but it all started after the Olympic nightmare in Sochi, where Ustyugov fell in the sprint final and was not trusted with other races. Ustyugov finished that season extremely nervous and asked not to be reminded of his problems.
Having barely completed the season of torment, Ustyugov called Vyalba and confronted her with the fact of transferring to the group of Burgermeister and Knaute. It was only possible to escape from the cramped role of a sprinter, no matter how much the president of the federation opposed it, in this way - and in the new Olympic cycle, Ustyugov became acquainted with Kramer and his training programs in absentia.
The results came almost immediately - Ustyugov finally reached the cup podium in a long race (15 km at the stage in Rybinsk), and a year later he became a winner of the Tour de Ski. Then they started talking about him seriously as the main hope of Russian skiing.
When Ustyugov began training with Kramer
In September 2016, almost a year after Kramer’s official move to Russia, news suddenly broke out - three skiers trained by Burgermeister and Knaute moved to Kramer, and their previous group disbanded. One of these skiers was Ustyugov.
There were rumors about dissatisfaction with the volume of previous and future workloads, about strained relationships with coaches, but neither Ustyugov nor Belov and Volzhentsev explained the reason for this decision for a long time.
Only in January, having already won the Tour de Ski by one wicket, Ustyugov admitted that he often had to listen to accusations of laziness and unprofessionalism from Knaute and Burgermeister, no matter how hard the work was done. There were so many fights that I had to run away.
What is the secret of Kramer's training?
Kramer uses a comprehensive methodology, in which much is taken from the Norwegian system - individual programs for each athlete, constant communication in search of feedback.
Everyone who came across Kramer at work noted his scrupulous attitude to planning and scientific support. His training programs are analyzed by specialists from the Leipzig Sports Science Institute (by the way, CSP analyst Yegor Sorin works as Kramer’s assistant), lactate is constantly monitored (some skiers even wondered why in previous seasons blood was taken 2-3 times per season, and under Kramer almost every day ), and athletes are constantly offered new exercises.
However, Kramer does not torment the team with excessive loads: the same Ustyugov still performs about 900-950 hours of training work per year - the standard for a skier of his age.
- We have no secrets. We train a lot and hard, and we have adopted some things from the Norwegian system. My approach is to develop more individualized programs and communicate well with each athlete. It is very important to receive feedback and constantly engage in dialogue. This is what I changed in the team.
I made it clear that Russian skiers can be the best without doping. You can beat the Norwegians without cheating. Now athletes understand this. We are no better than Norway, but we are getting close.
You can take Ustyugov as an example of how hard they work. He hasn't been home since November 6th. He does everything to be the best skier he can be. He sacrificed his home life to achieve success because it is better to train in Northern and Central European countries than in Russia. It's too cold there.
What did Kramer give to Ustyugov and Russian skiing?
Believing in one’s own strengths – perhaps the main changes occurred in Ustyugov’s head. He finally gained calm and confidence, turned into a self-sufficient skier who is not afraid of anyone or anything, but on the contrary, looks at those around him slightly condescendingly, from the height of the strongest.
The German specialist sums up the results of the Olympic Games and talks about his prospects in Russia. Team Russia exclusive.
The season is almost over. All that remains is the Russian Championship, which will be held in Syktyvkar from March 24 to April 1. Are you planning to go there?
Necessarily. The championship starts on Saturday. The first starts are sprints for men and women. I'll arrive the day before. I am very interested to see both the athletes from the national team and the nearest reserve. The level of competition will be high. Two years ago I went to the Russian Championship in Tyumen, and last year to Khanty-Mansiysk.
It was announced that Sochi 2014 Olympic champion Alexander Legkov, one of the team leaders Sergei Ustyugov and other skiers who were unable to take part in the Olympic Games will take part in the competition. Are you interested in their form and mood?
Certainly. Ustyugov did not go to the Olympics, he was sick, did not train enough before the last stages of the World Cup and ended up missing them too. I will be glad to see him in action again. Let's talk to the guys about next season.
- And about the future in a more distant future?
Sergei Ustyugov is young(On April 8 he will turn 26 years old.-Team Russia) . He must prepare for the Olympic Games in Beijing. As for the 34-year-old Legkov, it is clear that he will not be able to compete in four years, but hopefully he will find motivation for one more season. The World Championships in Seefeld, Austria, are ahead.
You said that you would like to sign a new contract with the Russian Ski Federation. When might this happen?
We discussed the issue with President Elena Vyalbe, including the other day in Falun. It remains to agree on some details. The President wants me to continue working in the national team. I, in turn, am very motivated because I know that Russia has a strong and promising team that is capable of showing good results in the future. I hope to be able to work with her for the next four years.
- Four years? Until now, you have signed contracts for a period of one year.
Now we are talking about a four-year agreement.
- How does your family in Germany look at this?
She always supported me. My daughter is already 23 years old and has an independent life. The wife knows that the work of a coach involves business trips. This has been going on for over 30 years, so nothing new is happening for them.
- Do you have an apartment in Moscow?
What are you doing? Housing in Germany. Training camps and competitions are often held in Western Europe, including relatively close to home, and then my wife sometimes joins me for a few days. Sometimes, however, you have to spend 4-5 weeks away from home, but this is the nature of the job.
In Pyeongchang, Russian skiers won eight awards - three silver and five bronze. Did you expect such a result?
Of course not! When we flew to Korea, I thought that maybe we would win one or two medals. But everything worked out for us from the very beginning. The young team fought, strived for the maximum result, the skis were well prepared - and the athletes seemed to have grown wings. They felt they could compete with and beat the best.
In addition, the guys fought for each other and for those who remained at home. They wanted to show that the Russian ski team is strong, that they achieve success without doping.
You apparently dreamed of one or two medals after Ustyugov, Legkov, Vylegzhanin, Matveeva, Chekaleva and other leaders were not allowed to attend the Games. And before that?
Initially, of course, I was counting on more - at least five medals, like in Sochi(at the home Games, Russian skiers won one gold, three silver and one bronze.-Team Russia) . But for the youth team, it seemed to me, a much more modest result would have been good.
A year before the Olympic Games, the ROC organized a trip to Korea for the World Cup for a group of specialists from the ski federation, including service providers, who had the opportunity to test the snow and study the slopes. Was this experience useful?
Yes, it turned out to be very useful. Then the Skiathlon World Cup stage in Pyeongchang was won by Pyotr Sedov, who was part of a group of athletes who train with me. This is a thoughtful guy who knows how to notice the subtleties of the route. He told me in detail about its features and noted what I needed to pay attention to. We also studied the sprint track.
In general, our team had very high-quality preparation for the Olympic Games. And already during them, the servicers showed themselves to be excellent. Although we had to work with a truncated roster compared to the World Cup stages. I was the only coach, so together with manager Yuri Charkovsky, we were engaged in all the organizational routine from morning until late at night. It wasn't easy.
- What result in Pyeongchang surprised you first?
Denis Spitsov took bronze in the 15-kilometer freestyle. I knew that this young guy showed good results at the World Cup stages. But the Olympic Games are a special case. In general, he gave me a big surprise. And then they pleasantly surprised Alexander Bolshunov, taking silver in the team sprint. But we took a risk. It was planned that Alexey Chervotkin would run together with Bolshunov. But after his illness, he was not 100 percent ready. Therefore, we decided to use Spitsov.
Another surprise is the women's relay team. It was important for me that the four would perform successfully not only among men, but also among women, since the results of the skiers have so far been quite modest. And the young girls gave battle to the strongest. Natalya Nepryaeva led the race from the first stage, and Yulia Belorukova was the first to pass the baton.
Bolshunov, like Chervotkin, came to Pyeongchang after an illness - and suddenly immediately won a bronze medal in the sprint. Do you have an explanation for this?
Coach Yuri Borodavko did a very good job. After Bolshunov and Chervotkin left the hospital, he flew with them to a training camp in Seefeld, Austria, and watched how they recovered step by step. Chervotkin arrived in Korea a few days later than Bolshunov, and this was the right decision by Yuri. He knows very well what is best for his skiers.
You took risks not only when determining the team sprint lineup, but also earlier when you included Chervotkin in the relay team. Was the risk worth it? Still, Alexey did not go through his stage in the best way.
There was certainly a risk, because it was not known exactly how ready the athlete was. But I think we did the right thing. Chervotkin was not in the best shape, but still in pretty good shape. If Ustyugov and Legkov had come to Pyeongchang, there would have been more choice. As it was, we didn’t have many opportunities.
The whole country regretted that Bolshunov failed to win the marathon. Did he make a mistake by deciding not to change his skis before the finish?
100 percent. Obviously, I thought: “While Niskanen is changing skis, I’ll run into a small gap.” Bolshunov is a young racer who has not run many marathons in his career. His mistake is understandable. Next time he will definitely not allow it.
- Over the past season, has the gap between our ski team and the Norwegian team decreased?
Without a doubt. In the Nations Cup standings at the end of the World Cup this season, Norway is first in both men and women. Russia overall is third, but among men it is in second position. I spoke the other day in Falun with the Norwegian Tour coach Arne Hetland, Olympic champion in Salt Lake City 2002. He praised our relay team and directly said that Russia is now the main competitor.
