The venue of the meeting between Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and the winners of the 4th Winter Spartakiad of Russian school students was Olympic Reserve School No.2 on Malaya Filevskaya Street.
Putin looks into the Olympic future
That the meeting took place in Moscow is a tribute not only to it being the capital of our city but recognition of its team's victory in the Spartakiad. One in every three top winter athletes representing a score of Russian regions wore maroon-and-white tracksuits.
Vladimir Putin enjoyed making a round of the school. He assessed it both as the Prime Minister and an athlete. The equipment and methodology used by Moscow's Olympic reserve schools promise a breakthrough in the training of athletes.
Take, for instance, the anti-doping unit. It turned out that in spite of the numerous articles on that topic not all our colleagues are conversant with it. The head of the Innovative Sports Technologies Centre of the Moscow Sports Committee, David Chichua, challenged the journalists to pass a quick test. One had simply to press a "yes" or "no" button. One of the journalists promptly "turned down" a representative of WADA who had come to administer a test as she was preparing to go to a party or do some shopping. In response the gadget promptly issued a red card. Young Moscow athletes who will compete in the 2010 Games in Singapore where 1,300 samples will be processed would never do that: they have already learned how to behave with WADA representatives.
Mr Putin showed great interest in the compartment where high mountain conditions are simulated and, upon entering the recuperation room, he said with gusto: "I like it here". And indeed, the medical couches fitted with all sorts of equipment promise to put you into a state of nirvana within minutes. The Prime Minister has practically no time to relax. Perhaps such meetings with children enable him to unwind.
One could see that Vladimir Putin had come to meet the young people without a tie in every sense. His apparel was modest, the way a father might be dressed taking his family for a walk in a park or to the cinema. Sitting on a bench together with the children, he talked in a low voice and tried to remember everyone's name. He had something kind to say about every sport. He said that his favourite sports were skiing and hockey, much to the joy of the legendary skiers Yelena Vyalbe and Mikhail Devyatyarov, who were present at the meeting.
The Moscow ice hockey players looked very proud. "What club do you support?" they asked Mr Putin. Guess what the Prime Minister replied? It is the team he only recently congratulated on winning the match against Canada at the world championship.
The star of the "Golden Puck" team, Lyudmila Belyakova, her dark eyes sparkling, said the Prime Minister should pay attention to women's hockey. As the captain of the Moscow ice hockey team, she had won the Spartakiad and was eager to go to Vancouver. She wants to pursue her hockey career not just in a Russian, but in a Moscow club. Judging from her confidence, the country's leaders will soon be calling the chief coach of the national women's team.
Some nationwide matters were also discussed. Answering a question from a young man, the Prime Minister explained in detail what would happen to army sports. He reassured them that young men approaching army call-up age need not worry about their future. He backed Minister Vitaly Mutko when he said that the most talented young sportsmen should be given sizable grants.
The official part of the meeting did not last very long, and as soon as Vladimir Putin proposed taking a group photograph the young people converged on him with their cell phones and cameras. "Folks back home told us they wouldn't let us in without a picture with you," one of the girls said. Vitaly Mutko was quick to act, volunteering to take pictures with the cameras thrust upon him from all sides.
The Prime Minister spotted tiny Adelina Sotnikova. He had good reason to: in addition to her small height and huge eyes, that CSKA athlete working under coach Yelena Vodorezova, had already won the adult Russian figure skating championship. And this at the age of 12. So far youthful Adelina has no right to compete internationally, but she would certainly give them all a run for their money in Sochi, which Vladimir Putin urged all those present to do too.
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BY THE WAY
Lyudmila Belyakova set a record in the second all-Russia tournament among girls born in 1994-1996. The captain of Spartak team scored 44 goals and 14 assists during seven matches. The spearhead Spartak threesome of Belyakova-Konyayeva-Bocharova has 61 goals to its credit. In the game against Energia (Neryungri) our captain scored the hundredth goal in women's team tournaments.
By Valentina Shirokova