"I want to perform under our flag and anthem"

The Russian Highway Cycling Championship was held in Kazan for the second year in a row. Over the course of five days, from July 1 to July 5, five sets of awards were awarded in the capital of Tatarstan. Marina Komina, a representative of the Samara Region, won the women's group race at a distance of 128.7 km. In an interview with Izvestia, she shared her emotions about the success, talked about the atmosphere of the tournament, assessed the chances of an early admission to the international arena and explained why she was not competing in a neutral status.

— How would you rate your performance at the Russian Championship?

— 10 out of 10 points. What I went for, I got. A year ago, the Russian Championship didn't work out a bit. But now I've done the work on the mistakes. And it turned out to win the race.

— What was the error correction process?

— That year I had a different feeling and a different feeling of the race — there was some kind of lethargy. Maybe I was a little overexcited before the competition. And this year I've been preparing more seriously, and I've come to the championship much better. Therefore, all the puzzles turned out so that she took the gold.

— How do you like the track in Kazan?

— I really like it. We have slightly changed the route compared to last year — we have made a paving section on it. I enjoyed riding it. You could see how the athletes went through it in different ways, how everyone was "knocked out" on it - it seemed to be short and with a slight slope, but still 13 laps of the race and 13 times it was interesting to go through the paving stones and uphill. It made me feel good.

— Can you call it the best track in the country after Moscow in Krylatskoye?

— Krylatskoye has a more mountainous route anyway — you can accelerate faster there. And there are a lot of turns in Kazan — the track is quite technical. There was no mistaking it anywhere. If you put your foot wrong, you run into the line, and you can fall awkwardly out of the blue, losing all advantage. And in Krylatskoye, everything is decided directly in the race.

— Was it difficult to drive in broad daylight in the heat below 30 degrees?

— It's good that it didn't rain. On the contrary, hot weather suits me personally. It's better for me than driving in the cold. Therefore, when I saw that it would be hot during the race, I was only glad. Moreover, I am from Samara, where the weather is almost the same as in Kazan. So I was ready for this. I just made myself some ice and isotonics—I knew it would save me. And I don't need anything else.

— What would you say about the atmosphere of the competition, where we had to finish near the wall of the Kazan Kremlin?

— It was a thrill. At first, I didn't quite understand where the finish line would be. For some reason, I set myself the mood so that he would be on the paving stones. And when, during the race, after driving a few laps, I saw the finish line, I thought it would be such a beautiful victory against the background of the Kremlin (smiles). I really wanted to raise my hands in victory against the background of a white wall — in principle, I did it.

— Have you been following the news about the recent admission of adult Russian cyclists in neutral status, the return of the flag and anthem to young men? Do you believe that you will be able to fully perform at this level soon?

— It would be good to perform without a neutral status. I don't have one.

— Have you applied for it?

"She didn't." I will be happy to perform under our flag and anthem. To speak without a neutral status — I'm all for it.

— Did you not submit it for reasons of principle, or did you not expect to be admitted at that time?

— I didn't submit it for my own reasons. After all, patriotism suits me better (smiles).

— Do you believe that you will be able to perform under the Russian flag soon?

— I think not this year. But maybe in the next one. It seems to me that cycling should already be allowed. In the fall, the World Cup will be in Canada — I can't really believe that they won't let us in there without a neutral status. But there are chances for competitions in other countries. There are quite a few countries that don't mind seeing us with their flag.

— And the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles? Do you believe that there will still be time to compete for the selection there, if there is a full-fledged admission with a flag in the next six months?

— We need to score points. Basically, I managed to score 220 points last year. And this year I managed to score due to a victory in a multi-day race in Vietnam. But it is also necessary to calculate how many points are needed for selection, and to study the qualification system in more detail in order to say for sure. In the meantime, I have just finished competing at the Russian Championship and I want to take a deep breath after this victory.