Hockey player Alexander Ovechkin turned 40 years old

Russian hockey player, captain of the National Hockey League (NHL) club Washington Capitals Alexander Alexander Ovechkin celebrated his 40th birthday on September 17. The athlete has broken many records in the course of his career, the most important one was set this spring. Pavel Kuznetsov, a correspondent for Izvestia, spoke about the athlete's path.

"With my family. Preparations for the season will already be underway, so we will be in Washington. We'll celebrate with family and friends," Ovechkin said about plans for the anniversary celebration.

As Roman Rotenberg, Deputy General Director of HC Dynamo Moscow, noted, the hockey player is "in crazy shape" and can score more goals than this season.

Despite 20 years abroad, Ovechkin is primarily a Russian athlete. At the same time, no one cancels it or deprives it of the Russian flag — they are talking about it all over the world. For example, US President Donald Trump called Ovechkin a great man and a great player, and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico called him a "phenomenon."

"It seems to me that hockey players today, including Sasha, are a symbol of Russianness or something. These guys are not shy or hiding from the fact that they are citizens of the Russian Federation," said Vyacheslav Fetisov, a State Duma deputy and two—time Olympic champion.

Three—time Olympic champion, ten-time world champion, President of the Russian Hockey Federation Vladislav Tretyak pointed out that Ovechkin is not just an athlete, he is a whole sporting phenomenon.

"You've done a lot over the past 40 years, you've done a lot for our country, for the whole hockey world. I don't remember those people who were called a legend during their lifetime. Of course, it may be so immodest for you to listen, but it really is," Tretyak said.

"We will only be glad when Ovechkin returns to Dynamo

Roman Rotenberg, head coach of the Russia 25 national team, member of the Board of Directors of Dynamo Moscow, talks about his new job and future

On April 18, Ovechkin scored the 897th goal of his career. Thus, he updated the record for goals in regular NHL matches. On August 17, he entered the Russian Book of Records as the best sniper in the history of the regular league championships. On August 27, the hockey player's sniper record was recognized as the best goal in the 2024/25 season.

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