Angelina Melnikova - Vyacheslav Fetisov interview summary.
I will try to be as detailed as possible and include my own interpretation of what was said, rather than just translate. I found it interesting, but it was quite repetitive and I didn't find him a particularly engaging host.
So, who is Vyacheslav Fetisov?
He is an ice hockey player by trade, turned politician. He was one of the first Soviet players in the NHL and his success led to many others following. He represented the USSR at 3 Winter olympics.
In the early 90s he married Lada Sergievskaya, a Master of Sport in Rhythmic Gymnastics who is now an actor. Lada is the daughter of Valentina Rodionenko and her first husband, Yuri Sergievsky, a professional soccer player.
In his political career, he has most notably been Russia's minister of sport and on the executive committee of United Russia. He is a serving member of parliament and represents Podolsk in the state duma.
He currently hosts an eponymous talk show on Sunday nights, on the TV station Zvezda which is owned by the ministry of defence. The format of the show is just him and 1 guest for 45 minutes.
Introduction to the show
Fetisov welcomes Melnikova, who is holding the mascot stuffie from the world championships. Her medals are on the table in the studio, in a glass presentation box. We are then shown footage of Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow where a welcoming party, plus fans with banners have gathered. Nikita Nagornyy is the first to greet her, he hugs her and presents her with flowers. It is noticeable that he says "from me" which amused me because it felt like he was clarifying that he was acting in a personal capacity and not as vice president of the RGF because of course the RGF cannot acknowledge the performances of neutral athletes. There was a folk band playing, and Nagornyy and Marinov did some traditional dancing together.
My key takeaways from what Melnikova says about gymnastics
- She says its not just her victory but a victory for everyone. She uses we/our a lot.
- The national team has a very pleasant, mutually respectful environment between coaches and athletes.
- When she performs poorly her first reaction is to apologise to her coaches because she hates to let them down.
- She was impressed by her younger colleagues, and says they are much more mature emotionally than she was at that age.
- She talks a lot about 2020/21, of covid and isolation, the uncertainty about competition. The lead up to Tokyo was very stressful. Winning gold felt like a reward for everything that had been endured
- She had considered quitting earlier this year because of the uncertainty regarding neutral status and the ability to compete
- Jakarta was a really positive experience, she felt like she loved the sport again.
- She mentions that the situation is still unresolved regarding neutral athletes competing at 2026 europeans, but that is her next goal.
- She talks quite extensively about the artistry in the sport and how she believes that the current code of points has been effective at increasing the level of artistry.
- She has studied the history of the sport, especially since her acting job portraying a gymnast at the 1980 olympics. She is a big fan of soviet gymnastics.
Angelina and politics
- Fetisov asks her about her run for office and her political ambitions. Instantly her demeanour and body language change and she becomes nervous and stuttering her words.
- He asks her if she was asked to run for office and she says yes. She adds that it was many months before and she didnt think she would be able to compete internationally again. My impression from this and another couple of things she says suggets that she maybe didnt expect to be granted AIN status.
- Once she had the chance to compete, she withdrew from the election.
Summary
If you wanted to dislike Melnikova, you'd really struggle! She is grateful to her coaches, encouraging of her team mates, respectful of her competitors and loves Soviet gymnastics. When she talks about her feelings and emotions, she is very open and genuine. She doesnt talk in platitudes. However it is quite obvious when she has chosen her words very carefully to fit the particular rhetoric. What she really believes or not, we will probably never know.
