Azerbaijani gymnast Mikhail Malkin won gold medal at the Baku World Cup.
The two-time world champion shared his impressions with Idman.biz.
- How difficult was the final?
- The day did not start as expected. Like I was a little sleepy. I even thought that the final would start a little late and I would have time (laughs). In the first final, I tried to make my moves difficult combinations, but for some reasons it failed. But it allowed me to get into the top four and compete for the win.
- So, what was the plan at the decisive moment, what combination did you want to implement?
- I wanted to apply the elements that gave me victory in the World Championship. These are very difficult moves and you have to do them well. I haven't used it in two months. Therefore, head coach Adil Huseynzade did not advise me to do these elements at first. But after a few minutes, I approached him and said, "Come, let's take a risk." He thought for a few seconds and answered: "Okay, Misha, do it!"
- Was it psychologically difficult to make this decision?
- There was excitement. I know the danger of all the difficulties in this combination, but I had already decided. This is not an exercise that you changed your mind and did. It is not easy to show what you can do at a crucial moment. While gathering speed, I could hear the support of my teammate Adil Hajizade. Everything was successful.
- Two Azerbaijani athletes took place on the podium...
- I said that we had such a plan in the qualification stage. We aimed to win gold and silver. Now we aim to win gold as a team at the European Championship to be held in Portugal. Of course, we will try to achieve the highest result in individual competitions.
- What are your plans for the near future?
- We will continue training to maintain our sports form. We want to improve our combinations, make everything 10/10. We must be fully prepared for the European and world championships.
Zaki Feyzullayev
Idman.biz
