Markus kramer cross country skiing. The head of the Russian ski team: “When an adult man cries, I believe him
website/ Winter sports. Markus Kramer, coach of the Russian national cross-country skiing team, assured that he was ready to sign a new labor agreement with the Russian Ski Racing Federation.
IOC President Thomas Bach is your compatriot, and you can judge him not only in terms of how he is perceived in Russia.
In Germany, he is under pressure from the press. I perfectly understand that it was difficult for him to make a decision on our team in Pyeongchang. It really was a difficult choice. But why did athletes suffer as a result of this choice? As far as I understand from communication with our lawyers, ultimately no one really knows what happened there in Sochi. Personally, it looks more like science fiction to me. I myself was not at that Olympics, but all my athletes say: no one offered us doping, we didn’t give clean urine in advance, and we didn’t even hear about any substitutions. I am 100% sure they are telling the truth.
- Have you regretted your decision to work in Russia? After all, including your reputation was at stake.
Not a drop. I have known Legkov for many years. I have never seen an athlete in my life who trained with such dedication as he did. He works at every workout not even one hundred, but one hundred and ten percent. When I had the opportunity to work with him and with Ilya Chernousov, I had no doubts.
- By the way, about Chernousov. How do you feel about the words of Borodavko, who suspected him of slander?
We talked about this with Borodavko, and he claims that the journalists misunderstood him. It's crazy for me to even think of something like that. Last year we seriously discussed that Chernousov began to train in my group. We met, I showed him our entire plan of fees. My only condition was that he strictly follow it. The option “I will go to this training camp, but not to the next one” did not suit me, because then other athletes in the group would want the same conditions for themselves.
- In the end, Chernousov himself refused to work with you?
Yes, and I understand it perfectly. He has family in Switzerland Small child, biathlete wife ... Ilya thought for several weeks and made his choice. No offense, this is his life and he has every right to do as he sees fit.
- Are you going to extend your contract after the Olympics?
The decision will be made by Vyalbe, but personally everything suits me. Your team has truly become like a second family to me. Not only athletes, but also the service team. These guys work 12 hours a day so we can have best skis. I would be happy to stay and try to take another step forward together. A step towards becoming the best in the world.
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. Prior to that, he had a contract with the German Ski Association and a 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?
Running it coaching career in the late 90s coincided with the appearance of the eccentric Johann Mülegg in German skiing. Over the next two decades, Kramer crossed paths with almost all the Bundesgrands; eTobias Angerer (4 times Olympic medalist), Jens Philbrich (7 World Championship medals), Rene Sommerfeldt (2001 World Championship silver in the marathon), Axel Teichmann (two World Championship victories) collaborated with Kramer for some periods.
Later there was a short job in Italy and a contract with the Swiss during the heyday of Dario Cologna (until 2010). Then another five years - in the national team with the youth, which is now trying to return the glory and honor to German skiing - Jonas Dobler, Peter Charnke, Lukas Begl.
Who brought Kramer to Russia?
A phone call from physiotherapist Isabelle Knaute caught Kramer as he moved from Switzerland to the German Ski Association in the summer of 2010. Isabelle got a job in Russia a few days before the uncompromising Elena Vyalbe sat on her throne, and offered Marcus a collaboration with Legkov, who was looking for a change in a stalled career.
Kramer agreed, but wanted to meet with the Russian ski management. A couple of months later, Vyalbe invited the German to secret negotiations at Sheremetyevo Airport - an agreement was born there that Legkov would prepare for the new season according to Kramer's notes. But in the Russian team.
Later, the German convinced Vyalba of the need for individual work with Legkov and offered to personal trainers a former student of Reto Burgermeister, who recently retired from skiing and worked as a cycling guide in a Swiss sports shop.
Vyalbe and the head of the Center sports training Alexander Kravtsov agreed, but demanded that Legkov's group be loaded with three more skiers - Chernousov, Devyatyarov and Kravtsov's son-in-law - Novikov.
When did Kramer and Ustyugov find out 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. That season, Ustyugov rolled extremely excited and asked not to be reminded of the problems.
Having barely completed the season of torment, Ustyugov called Vyalba and confronted her with the fact of moving to the Burgermeister and Knaute group. It was possible to escape from the close sprint role, no matter how the president of the federation opposed it, only in this way - and in the new Olympic cycle, Ustyugov got 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 the winner of the Tour de Ski. Then they started talking about him seriously as the main hope of Russian skiing.
When Ustyugov started training with Kramer
In September 2016, almost a year after Kramer officially moved to Russia, the news suddenly broke out - three skiers who trained with Burgermeister and Knaute moved to Kramer, and their former group disbanded. One of these skiers was Ustyugov.
There were rumors about dissatisfaction with the volume of previous and future loads, about strained relationships with coaches, but neither Ustyugov, nor Belov and Volzhentsev explained the reason for such a decision for a long time.
Only in January, having already won the Tour de Ski with one wicket, Ustyugov admitted that Knaute and Burgermeister often had to listen to reproaches of laziness and unprofessionalism, no matter how hard the work was done. There were so many quarrels that I had to run away.
What is the secret of training Kramer
Kramer uses a complex 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 Cramer at work noted a scrupulous attitude to planning and scientific support. His training programs analyzed by specialists from the Leipzig Institute of Science and Sports (by the way, Kramer’s assistant is CSP analyst Yegor Sorin), lactate is constantly monitored (some skiers even wondered why in previous seasons blood was taken 2-3 times per season, and almost daily under Kramer), and athletes are constantly offered new exercises.
However, Cramer does not torment the team with overloads: the same Ustyugov is still doing the volume training work about 900-950 hours a year is the standard for a skier of his age.
- We have no secrets. We train a lot and hard, we adopted something from the Norwegian system. My approach is to develop more individual programs and communicate well with each athlete. It is very important to receive feedback and keep the dialogue going. This is what I changed in the command.
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 not better than Norway, but we are getting closer.
You can take Ustyugov as an example of how hard they work. He has not been home since November 6th. He does his best to be as good a skier as possible. He sacrificed his home life in order to succeed because it is better to train in the Nordic and Central European countries than in Russia. It's too cold there.
What did Kramer give Ustyugov and Russian skiing?
faith in own forces- perhaps the main changes took place in Ustyugov's head. He finally gained calmness 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 a little 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. Exclusive Team Russia.
The season is almost over. Only the Russian championship remains, 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 - sprint for men and women. I will arrive the day before. It is very interesting for me to look both at the athletes from the national team and at the nearest reserve. The level of competition will be high. Two years ago I went to the Russian Championship in Tyumen, and last year - in Khanty-Mansiysk.
Announced that the competition will take part Olympic champion Sochi-2014 Alexander Legkov, one of the leaders of the national team Sergey Ustyugov and other skiers who could not take part in Olympic Games. Are you interested in their shape and mood?
Certainly. Ustyugov did not go to the Olympics, he was sick, he did not train enough before the last stages of the World Cup and, as a result, missed them too. I would be glad to see him in the ranks again. Let's talk to the guys about next season.
- What about the future in a more distant future?
Sergey Ustyugov is young(April 8, he will be 26 years old.- Team Russia) . He must prepare for the Beijing Olympics. As for the 34-year-old Legkov, it is clear that he will not be able to perform in four years, but I hope he will find motivation for himself for another season. Ahead, after all, the World Cup in the Austrian Seefeld.
You said that you would like to sign a new contract with the Russian Ski Racing Federation. When can 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 to work in the national team. I, in turn, am very motivated, because I know that Russia has a strong and promising team, which in the future is able to show good results. I hope to be able to work with her for the next four years.
- Four years? So far, you have signed contracts for a year.
Now we are talking about a four-year agreement.
- How does your family in Germany look at it?
She has always supported me. My daughter is already 23 years old - she has an independent life. The wife knows that the work of a coach is connected with business trips. This has been going on for over 30 years, so nothing new is happening to them.
- Do you have an apartment in Moscow?
Well, what are you? 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 these are the features of the work.
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 we got it right from the start. The young team fought, strived for the maximum result, the skis were well prepared - and the athletes seemed to have grown wings. They felt that they were able to compete with the best and beat them.
In addition, the guys fought for each other, and for those who stayed at home. They wanted to show that the Russian ski team is strong, that they are successful without doping.
You apparently dreamed of one or two medals after Ustyugov, Legkov, Vylegzhanin, Matveeva, Chekaleva and other leaders were not allowed to the Games. And before that?
Initially, of course, I counted on more - at least five medals, as in Sochi(At the home Games, Russian skiers won one gold, three silvers and one bronze.- Team Russia) . But for the youth team, it seemed to me that a much more modest result would be 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 servicers, who had the opportunity to test the snow and study the tracks. Was this experience helpful?
Yes, it has been very helpful. Then the stage of the World Cup in Pyeongchang in skiathlon was won by Pyotr Sedov, who is part of the group of athletes who train with me. This is a thoughtful guy who knows how to notice the subtleties of the track. He told me in detail about its features, noted what you need to pay attention to. We also studied the sprint track.
In general, our team had a very high-quality preparation for the Olympic Games. And already in the course of them, the servicers showed themselves perfectly. Although I had to work in a truncated composition compared to the World Cup stages. I was the only coach, so together with the manager Yuri Charkovsky, from morning until late at night, we were engaged in the entire organizational routine. It wasn't easy.
- What result in Pyeongchang surprised you in the first place?
Bronze medal by Denis Spitsov for 15 km freestyle. I knew that this young guy showed good results at the World Cup. But the Olympic Games are a special case. In general, he gave me a big surprise. And then they pleasantly surprised with Alexander Bolshunov, taking silver in team sprint. But we took the risk. It was planned that Alexei Chervotkin would run in tandem with Bolshunov. But after the 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 not only the men's, but also the women's four would perform successfully, since the results of the skiers have so far been rather modest. And the young girls gave battle to the strongest. Natalya Nepryaeva led the race from the first stage, Yulia Belorukova was the first to pass the baton.
Bolshunov, like Chervotkin, arrived in Pyeongchang after an illness - and suddenly immediately won a bronze medal in the sprint. Do you have an explanation for this?
Coach Yury Borodavko did a very good job. After Bolshunov and Chervotkin were discharged from the hospital, he flew with them to the Austrian Seefeld and watched them recover step by step. Chervotkin arrived in Korea a few days later than Bolshunov, and this was the right decision for Yuri. He knows very well what is best for his skiers.
Not only did you take a risk in the team sprint, but also earlier when you included Chervotkin in the relay team. Was the risk justified? Still, Alexei did not pass his stage in the best way.
There was certainly a risk, because it was not known exactly how ready the athlete was. But we did the right thing, I think. Chervotkin was not in the best, but still in pretty good shape. If Ustyugov and Legkov had come to Pyeongchang, there would have been more choices. And so we didn't have many opportunities.
The whole country regretted that Bolshunov could not win the marathon. Did he make a mistake by deciding not to change his skis before the finish line?
100 percent. Obviously, he thought: "While Niskanen will change skis, I will run away into a small gap." Bolshunov is a young racer who has run a marathon infrequently in his career. His mistake is understandable. He won't let her next time.
- Over the past season, the backlog of our ski team from the Norwegian team decreased?
Undoubtedly. In the standings of the Nations Cup following the results of the World Cup stages of this season, Norway is the first in both men and women. Russia as a whole is third, but among men it is in second position. I was talking the other day in Falun with Norwegian coach Arne Hetland of the Tour, the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic champion. He praised our relay team and said bluntly that Russia is now the main competitor.
Sergei Ustyugov's mentor, German specialist Markus Kramer, talks about how the Russian skier is going to prepare for the World Championship, Alexander Legkov's "cleanliness" and Norwegian asthmatics.
If you think that after the victory in the tense multi-day race, which replaced the New Year's Eve for him, he finally celebrated all the festive events at once - you are mistaken. The very next morning after the conquest of the Alps de Cermis, the team had to move to Toblach, the venue for the next stage of the World Cup. And therefore - "we will only sit a little in the bar, everything is very modest" - as he said. And even then, the lion's share of these gatherings was taken by the distribution of interviews.
"USTYUGOV WAS NEEDING AT LEAST A MINUTE OF ADVANTAGE ON THE MOUNTAIN"
Markus, Ustyugov went to the final climb, having 1 minute 12 seconds of advantage over the Norwegian. Hand on heart, were you sure that this advantage was no longer viable?
A few more races before the finish of the Tour, I said that Sergey needs at least a minute of advantage on the mountain in order to feel calm. This would be enough to insure against bad health, lubrication errors and the like. But in the end, Sergei did not even need this. When I saw him at the top, it became obvious that he feels fine and will not give up the victory.
- What did you talk to him about before this ascent?
I asked Sergey not to start too fast. But at the same time, on the gentle part, which took about 3-4 kilometers, I planned for a slight acceleration for him. In this segment, we wanted to win Sundby a few more seconds to make him nervous. And so it happened: by the start of the ascent, Ustyugov's advantage reached 1 minute 14 seconds, which made it clear to the Norwegian: you are not getting closer, but even vice versa. And already by the first movements of Sergei uphill, I realized that everything would be fine.
Ustyugov won six out of seven races in this stage race. Did you expect such a phenomenal performance from your student?
Of course not. Before the "Tour" we had a very high-quality ten-day training camp in Toblach. The guys completely fulfilled my training plans, the weather was fine, everyone was healthy. After that, I thought that Ustyugov was ready to fight for a place on the stage podium, just like last year. But that he would be able to perform so strongly - I did not expect.
"I'M ONE HUNDRED PERCENT SURE IN LEGKOV'S "CLEAN""
Ustyugov emphasized in almost every interview that this victory was for Russian skiers who had been suspended from the competition. Do you think one of them could also take a place on the podium of the Tour de Ski, if they got the right to speak?
Certainly. If you had asked me a few days before the start of the stage race who, judging by the training, would be the best in the Russian team, I would say - this is. He was on the podium at the World Cup in La Clusaz and was in excellent condition. For all of us it was a blow that the guys were forced to stay at home. Therefore, Sergei spoke about this in an interview.
As a foreign specialist who did not work in 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?
Talk that Legkov might have some problems has been going on in the Russian press for a long time. But I have known Alex for many years and I am one hundred percent sure that he was and remains a "clean" athlete. I saw and know how he trains, how he treats his body. It is not clear to me 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 within the area of 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 be responsible for the athletes who have trained with me. In the team, of course, we talked about it. And the guys said: "Marcus, we didn't take anything, we don't know anything, we have no idea what happened in Sochi." You can check: all the guys from my group had negative doping tests before, during and after the Olympics. It's hard for me to understand why people who never tested positive and were "clean" are now not allowed to speak.
How do you feel about the problem Norwegian asthmatics and personally to Martin Sundby, who served a suspension for an overdose of the medicine prescribed to him? Double Olympic champion from Poland, Justina 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 information that appears in order to form my opinion. So far, it seems to me that the rules should be clearer and more understandable for everyone. What exactly can be taken, in what dosage, during the competition or only during the training period ... But believe me, I would be happy to discuss only my work, and not all these things that cause great damage to the reputation of our sport.
"THE ATHLETES HAVE NOTHING TO DO IN KOREA"
The World Championship in Lahti starts on February 22. Do you have a plan to keep Ustyugov's current super shape for another month and a half?
When you work with an athlete, it is very difficult to plan something. More precisely, the plan can be one, and then the reality is completely different. Now it is important that Sergei recover as quickly as possible after the Tour. He will perform at next step 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-in to the World Championships. The plan, it seems to me, is good, but now it is important that nothing prevent it from being carried out.
- I understand correctly that you are not planning trips for the pre-Olympic week in Pyeongchang?
No, I think that the leading athletes have nothing to do there. There are too many flights. It is quite enough for servicemen to get acquainted with the track. It is important for them to understand in advance what kind of snow structure is there, what is with the weather and the like. A week of training before the competition is enough for athletes to adapt. It makes no sense to carry them so far a whole year before the Olympics.
Ustyugov's first coach, Ivan Bragin, said he was ready to easily sacrifice the fight for victory in the overall World Cup for the sake of Lahti's gold. Do you share this approach?
Certainly. The title of a medalist or, moreover, a world champion is much more important than a place in the overall standings of the World Cup. World Championships are held only once every two years, this is the peak point 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 had ever worked with. Will you subscribe to this statement?
Sergey is definitely 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 the sprint and at a distance, in the skate and in the classics. Units all over the world are endowed with this quality equally well to run anything -,. Ustyugov has every chance to stand on a par with them.
- Is it true that Sergei has a complex character and it is not easy to work with him in training?
It is very important for me that the athlete does not just 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. Sergey is always very interested in such explanations. In addition, he is extremely motivated, asks questions, for example, on the technique of movement, tries to achieve the ideal in everything. Personally, it is very easy for me to work with such a person.
The name of the German coach Markus Kramer is hardly known to a wide circle of people, but in the world of cross-country skiing it is very popular. This specialist brought up several strong athletes, his students demonstrated the most high results at major and prestigious competitions. One of these wards is the Swiss Dario Cologna, who in 2010 won gold at the Olympic Games in Vancouver.
For the past few years, Kramer has been working with the Russian national team. And now he is preparing the team, including Alexander Legkov and Yevgeny Belov, who have been banned for life from participation in the Games, for the start of the new Olympic season. The first stage of the World Cup will be held in Finland from 24 to 26 November, but for now the group is working in the Swedish Gällivare, where competitions will be held under the auspices of the International Federation from 17 to 19 November skiing(FIS). Cologna, as well as three-time Olympic champion Markus Hellner from Sweden and world champion Alex Harvey from Canada are planning to perform at this tournament.
Russian skiers disqualified by International Olympic Committee(IOC), but they have the right to compete in competitions under the auspices of the FIS, so they will compete on an equal footing with everyone at the tournament in Swedish Gällivare.
In between intensive training, RT managed to chat with Kramer, who did not hide his indignation at decisions taken for Russian skiers.
“There is no doping - only their hard work! They are highly motivated and work hard. Skiers undergo so many doping tests before, during and after the season! In fact, literally this morning, anti-doping service officers took samples from us. We have no problem with doping!” — assured the German specialist.
- Training of Russian skiers led by Kramer
“I have been training them since 2010, when Alexander Legkov first contacted me after the Vancouver Olympics. Any modern coach constantly takes samples from his athletes. It is absolutely impossible that they could have taken doping at some point, and I did not pay attention to the results of their tests and did not suspect anything. The decision of the IOC Disciplinary Commission is based on the testimony of Grigory Rodchenkov, who told how he prepared anabolic steroid cocktails for athletes, including for my skiers. But in our sport, such cocktails are of no use, any specialist will tell you this. Yes, and taking it before the Olympics is pure madness, ”said the coach Russian team.
At a distance of 50 km at the Olympic Games in Sochi, Legkov took first place, and Maxim Vylegzhanin became second. However, the IOC annulled their results. As a result, the title of champion passed to the third-placed Russian Ilya Chernousov. Kramer believes that the situation in which one athlete takes doping, and his compatriot does not, is impossible.
“We spend 250 days a year training, traveling and competing, mostly outside of Russia. Over the past few years, my athletes have been drug tested dozens of times, and the results have always been negative. Legkov generally passed a thorough doping test immediately upon arrival in Sochi. The IOC took away the medals from him and Vylegzhanin. It turns out that the championship title should go to Chernousov. But this is absurd: Ilya and Legkov trained side by side for four years! Can you imagine one being doped and the other not? Everyone is talking about urine samples taken during the Sochi Olympics. But after all, in addition to this, blood was taken from the athletes for analysis. What happened to these samples? Were they checked? And if so, where are the results? Kramer wonders.
Opponents of the German specialist may well claim that Kramer is protecting the Russians because they pay him. The coach has a ready response to such comments.
“If anyone has any suspicions, I invite everyone to come to our training base and see what we are doing there. There is no doping and never was! If someone has positive tests, if someone is caught doping, this, of course, can and should be condemned. But if the tests do not show the presence of doping and never did, then making clean athletes suspects is a very bad practice, ”he said.
- Russian skiers in training
Kramer is trying to find an answer to the question of who could benefit from the removal of Russian skiers. Initially, he ruled out a political motive in this story.
“Now it seems to me that someone is looking for a reason to remove Russia from participation in the Olympic Games. At the same time, it does not matter what exactly can (or cannot) be dug up. Athletes in this case are just pawns, the least protected. But convicting one athlete is not enough to remove an entire country from the competition. So they are trying to remove as many athletes as possible and settled on skiers. I would not want to be like them and make accusations against anyone without convincing evidence. But if you read and hear about corruption in the IOC, about how sports officials took bribes for the right to host the Olympics in this or that city ... How can you trust such people from this system to judge athletes? Kramer asks a rhetorical question.
