"We are hungry for the games and the atmosphere of the big tournament"
Water polo remains the only major team sport in which Russia is not only allowed to participate in international competitions, but also performs in a full-fledged status. The Russian women's national team has made it to the finals of the elite World Cup tournament, which will be held on July 22-26 in Australia with the participation of eight teams. National team leader Ekaterina Prokofieva became one of the main characters of the final match of the second division of the World Cup against China — 18:17. She has been playing for the Russian national team since the mid–noughties, winning gold at the 2008 European Championships, bronze at the 2009, 2011 and 2017 World Championships, and bronze at the 2016 Olympics. In an interview with Izvestia and Sport-Express, Prokofieva spoke about her childhood in Volgodonsk, the difference in mentalities between generations, and the state of water polo in Russia.
"Talking about the low working capacity of zoomers is a generalization"
— You have been at the top of water polo since the end of the noughties, and the sport is now in a unique situation — the only team sport with access to the international arena. How is he living now? Is it growing, falling, staying at its level, or are there more people walking?
— People walk, but it all depends on different factors — a specific city, club, advertising. It's one thing when a club acts on its own, it's another if there's outside help. If our sport was shown on TV, everything would be more global. People would know when and what was going on. It's a bit more difficult for us, we have to do it on our own, to throw links on the Internet, roughly speaking.
If you look back, there is more attention to this sport now. I won't say that everything has changed and the stands are full, but there are people who are interested in this, and they come. Views are growing, but not globally, it is still only in the process of development. It is difficult for us to compete with other team sports, we are lagging behind.
— Do you think the product you can offer competes with other types? If not with football and hockey, then at least with basketball and handball.
— In terms of entertainment and competition, it's definitely not worse. If a person is encountering water polo for the first time, there is a misunderstanding of the rules, but those who delve into it, they are interested. We had a very spectacular playoff, for example (in the final of the Russian championship, Prokofiev's team lost 6-7 in the decisive match of the series, almost equalizing the score in the end. — Ed.). You can focus on camera work, of course, the picture from other views is better, emotions, close-ups, communication with the stands. I think water polo has potential. And the major world tournaments are showing very well.
— You recently mentioned that "girls of a different mentality" come to sports. What do you mean, they didn't have time to work out in the ruined pools that you had? If there were.
— Of course, there were. That's where they came from, actually (laughs). There is a certain difference in the mentality of people from different generations, this is normal. But I don't want to make much sense of it— she thinks that way, and I think differently. It's hard to deny it, but it's also strange to focus attention. This does not prevent us from giving ourselves equally to what we love.
Talking about zoomers and their low efficiency, for example, is all generalization. There is no need to row all of them under one comb. I wouldn't say that the new generation works any worse. On the contrary, it's great to exchange thoughts, I share my experience and worldview with the young, and they share their moments with me. It turns out harmoniously. This applies to both technical aspects of water polo and life aspects. I can ask, "Why is that? But it was different with us." It is necessary to be able to observe and draw knowledge from communication with the new generation. Live and learn forever.
— You are also a playing coach, you educate young people, it turns out. High or energy-consuming?
— One does not interfere with the other. It's difficult, but I like it. Sometimes the work is conflictual, if there is a need to shout and speak more sternly, I can do it. If you start to relax, sometimes you need to be guided on the right path. But I won't raise my voice unnecessarily.
— There is an idea that this is the difference between mentalities: they used to be tougher on the right path.
— I was lucky to have my first coach. He was strict, but everything was balanced, and there was gentleness too. I've never been forced to study. And the coaches who get in my way never get in the way, I can find a common language with everyone.
"Becoming the mayor of a city—why would I do that?"
— Is the collapsed pool that you came out of in your native Volgodonsk?
— In principle, I haven't had many pools in my career. Yes, I started in Volgodonsk, it was about twelve and a half meters wide. And when I got older, I just stood at the bottom. You don't get much exercise for water polo. So I had to grow, which meant that I had to change the conditions to better ones.
At the age of 18, I joined KINEF-Surgutneftegaz. Kirishi has all the working conditions, starting from the pool and ending with the equipment in the gym. For a long time they were going to build a good swimming pool in Volgodonsk, but they never did.
— Although they certainly promised.
— There were opportunities, a lot of conversations, but, unfortunately, it didn't work out. It's a pity, because a lot of our international players came out of Volgodonsk, several Olympic participants grew out of this small pool (besides Prokofieva, Anna Grineva and Anna Ustyukhina represented Volgodonsk in the 2016 bronze team. — Ed.).
In other words, good players could come out of our city, and the coaching staff was strong. It would be better for the development of water polo if a center appeared there. Moreover, this is the Southern Federal District, where many people live and where there is no federal center. That means it's not needed that way.
— As I understand it, Volgodonsk is not only about sports, there is also a serious industry there.
— Yes, including the nuclear power plant. But it all depends on the people. This can change very quickly — you just need to have someone who wants to develop the appropriate sport. This is how almost all species live, except football. We don't have such people.
— Would you like to become such a person?
— Yes, maybe I would like to. The desire is present, it's just that we need opportunities of a different order. If there were, the pool would have been standing a long time ago.
— They call you from some administration and offer you to run for mayor of Volgodonsk. Your reaction?
— It's funny! You looked the other way. To manage such complex matters — no, of course, why would I do that? It seems to me that such opportunities exist in a different way, and there are more interesting and strategically minded people in this sense than me.
"The windows were shaking during the explosion"
— Athletes grow up quite early — they travel as teenagers without parents and the like. Did you grow up early?
— I was called up to the youth national team at 14, the training camp lasted for three months. That's why, yes, I started living alone early. Of course, it's scary, and it made me grow up earlier. I could have been left alone to make porridge. But it's always a matter of choice. If you want to develop in your business, learn to be independent and leave. No, you can stay a child longer. But it's not a fact that you'll grow up in the city where you were born. I love my city very much, but I wanted to become a successful water polo player, so I left.
— What was it like in Volgodonsk in the nineties?
— If you're talking about all sorts of groups on the streets, then they passed a little earlier than me. Although I also fell under these circumstances. There were clashes between the districts, people went to communicate, so to speak, and there were many of us on both sides. It was an interesting childhood, even an aggressive one, and I went through a lot of things. Let's call it "garage hopping." It wasn't easy, I had to grow up faster, stand up for myself, it's true.
Volgodonsk is notorious for the 1999 terrorist attack. Do you remember those days in the city? Has the conflict in the Caucasus affected you much?
— I lived in the old city, and the explosion occurred in the new city, but even our windows were shaking. I remember feeling uneasy. But it affected the parents more. We kids took it as fun—I know how that sounds, and as I grew up, I realized how big the problems were around us.
And then we joined houses, watched the entrances, made schedules — which family would walk around the houses with a lantern until one o'clock in the morning. And we thought: "Wow, we're going for a walk, we don't have to sleep! You can look at the stars!" The older ones weren't having fun, of course. For a long time, the city lived in tension. No one wanted this to happen again, so at least they tried to do something on their own.
— We also had a house blown up very close by, I remember it was the same thing. At least people got to know their neighbors.
— We didn't have an apartment building after all, so people knew each other. And we communicated by voice, and not like now, there was no Internet as such. Things are a little different now. That very different mentality.
— But now you have TikTok.
— I was, but when they started to introduce these restrictions on the Internet, it became uninteresting. There are enough content platforms where you can laugh. 95 different applications are not needed for this.
— The World Cup superfinal is just a month away. How important was it to get into it?
— Of course, it is important. And long-awaited. We understand perfectly well that it will not be easy after four years without matches at this level. You can watch water polo on TV and say: yes, in general, it has not changed much. But that's the theory. And when you step into the water, you will understand in practice what has happened in four years. You need to experience this for yourself. It was difficult to understand this from the second division.
On the other hand, we are hungry for games and the atmosphere of a big tournament. For many, he is the first, the first opportunity to prove himself. Someone can do it, someone can't, it's life, but everyone wants to try. That's why we're all working madly at the training camp in Kislovodsk right now — we've been waiting too long.
— In the world of water polo, too, in the shadows, so I understand? Swimming is much more important for the international federation.
"That's right. Everyone does their best. Water polo needs to be developed in our country, starting from the regions, and for World Aquatics it is not in the first place. There's some money in it, but it's not serious. Similarly, in our country, we do not have awards, as in other types. Probably, there is progress, it has become better than before, but they still need to be engaged and engaged. Even the Olympic medal didn't change anything globally — my life didn't change after it either.
— What are your plans — to compete until the end of the Olympic cycle, then?
— It's funny to say about the Olympic cycle that I'll be old enough to keep playing. Life will show. I'm still playing, and then we'll see. But I'm happy now, everything is happening the way I want it to. The main thing is that I do what I wanted to do.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
