Russia is preparing its return.
Jelena Välbe has a new role, but she remains in an influential position in the Russian Ski Federation. ZumaWire / MVPHOTOS
Russia believes it will return to international skiing competitions soon.
The new ski boss who replaced Jelena Välbe in March Dmitry Svishchev claims to have received it from the president of the International Ski Federation (Fis). From Johan Eliasch personal congratulations to Pesti.
– It’s amazing how quickly they responded. He wrote: “We believe that the new association will develop sports, international sports, and Russia will become an important part of the great skiing family”. We are not against this. Now it is important that actions follow congratulatory messages, says Svishchev in Russian In an interview with MatchTV.
The Russian boss says that he will attend the FIS congress in Belgrade in June, where he plans to ask FIS to take Russia back to international competitions.
He says that Välbe also plays a big role in the new ski association.
– How could we get along without Jelena? I couldn’t even imagine it. We discuss various tasks with him every day. And it’s not me who gives him tasks, he gives them to me.
Tough talk
Välbe says in his own in his interview to the same media that he will also participate in the Fis Congress in June.
– I hope that I will have the opportunity to talk with the management and members of Fis. Maybe we will get to hear what kind of thoughts they have about whether Russia will participate in international competitions, Välbe thinks.
– Considering that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has started to warm up, the international competition organizers must also warm up. At the end of the day, the decisions depend a lot on the IOC’s activities.
He claims that Fis is the subject of widespread criticism, especially on the cross-country side.
– Especially in men’s competitions, where there is no competition. Because of that they lose money and sponsors. Even fans don’t show up as much as before. We hope that next year will be more successful for us, when we gradually start to return, Välbe adds.
Russian skiers have been out of Fis events for years because of the war of aggression started by Russia. From 2025, Russian athletes have been allowed to participate in Fis events without country codes and with certain conditions.
