By Yegor Glebov
“Nobody has set a task for our team to win a particular number of medals. We expect, and we hope, that our sportsmen will get on the podium in Sochi. There are forecasts of rating agencies, but we are not going to do the same. We expect that nearly 10 Belarusian sportsmen will get into the top 6-8 of the strongest in their sports,” noted Mr. Ryzhenkov.
“The overall result is influenced by many factors, such as psychological mood, general condition, and preparation of sports equipment. Therefore, we cannot say that if an athlete fails to get on the podium, he or she has not necessarily done the full amount of work,” said Maxim Ryzhenkov. He also added that the state, for its part, did everything needed to ensure the preparation of the Belarusian team. “No federation has declared that something was not made available, or that there was something that they lacked. For this reason, we may have fairly high hopes for our athletes and for their most successful performance,” noted Mr. Ryzhenkov.
The First Vice President of the National Olympic Committee of Belarus, Igor Rachkovsky, added that the leading Belarusian participants had undergone medical examinations abroad. “These are four people, including biathletes Darya Domracheva and Nadezhda Skardino, and also freestylers. They have undergone functional examinations in a well-known clinic in Israel. It was necessary to determine what changes were necessary to include in the preparations of the leading Belarusian competitors,” Igor Rachkovsky explained. “All of us are waiting for results. They may have very good results. It is possible to say the same about Sergey Dolidovich, the leader of our team in the cross-country ski race.”
According to the forecasts of international rating agencies, Belarus can count on 5 medals in Sochi: 4 medals in the biathlon and 1 in freestyle.
