"Now the main motivation is to make money"

On February 7, the international Russian Winter competition, one of the main winter competitions in Russian athletics, took place in Moscow. Vladimir Nikitin, multiple champion of Russia in long and medium distance running, participated in the men's 3,000 m race. In an interview with Izvestia, the 33-year-old athlete explained why he does not follow the news about the possible admission of Russians to international competitions, and frankly admitted that in recent years he has been participating in competitions primarily because of financial rather than athletic motivation.

— How did you like the past competitions?

"Very well." The atmosphere at the Russian Winter is excellent. I would say that in terms of organization and fan presence, this is the best "Russian Winter" of all that I have participated in.

— Are you satisfied with your performance?

- yes. Ran 7.49 (7 minutes 49 seconds. — Ed.) — that's my readiness for today, you can't jump over your head. But it's good that I ran at my best. Anyway, there is a greater emphasis on the summer season now. The winter season is a passing part for me. Therefore, the mood was not so great. I'm currently, let's say, training on the light. I didn't have a special focus on the "Russian Winter".

— An intermediate stage?

- yes. I initially wanted to skip the winter season, but then the plans changed. And I decided to start in the "Russian Winter" after all.

— What are the goals for the summer season?

— The marathon. I'll run it in Kazan as part of the Russian Championship.

— Are there any plans for the stadium bowl race?

— In summer, they don't run 3 km, as in the "Russian Winter". But I will run for 5 km and 10 km. I will prepare for them.

— What results will you consider successful in the summer?

— If I show my best time in my career, I will be satisfied.

— Do you follow international competitions in your disciplines?

- no. I don't even look at the line-up of the participants, who's running there. My psychology is that if you know less, you sleep better. In order to prepare well for my start, I need to know less about what is going on outside of my training.

— Do you follow the news about the Russians in other sports? Is there any hope that this will affect track and field athletes soon?

— No, no, no, no. I haven't been following such topics for a long time. What's the point? Why follow if the news is the same every year? I have other goals and objectives now. The most important thing is to collect as many commercial launches as possible.

— So there are no problems with motivation for domestic starts?

— There are no problems. To be honest, the main motivation right now is to make money. There used to be an idea when I was young, to run the best possible start, to show the best time. The tasks are completely different now.

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— Are the prize money available in Russian competitions sufficient?

- of course. I live on this money.

— Are you living, not surviving?

- of course. I'm living in affluence now. There is enough money for me and my family. I train, I rest, and nothing else. I can afford all this thanks to the prizes and my sponsors — I got them right after a good debut at the marathon.

— Marathon as a separate sport has been well promoted in the last 10 years and has become essentially a separate sport, where many major starts take place. Is his income good?

— Yes, you can earn a lot of money. More than in the stadium. Actually, the marathon on the highway is my main thing right now. I'm gradually leaving the treadmill.