The head of the Russian Cross-Country Skiing Federation (FLGR) Elena Vyalbe called the thoughtless act of Alexander Bolshunov, who went to the start of the World Cup race with a cold. She is quoted by Match TV.
“Today’s decision was wrong, I disagree with him,” Vyalbe criticized the skier’s act. She noted that often an athlete acts rashly because of his youth and a great desire to compete.
According to Vyalbe, Bolshunov himself asked the coaches to declare him for the race. The head of the FLGR clarified that no one in the team can forbid an athlete to go to the start if he feels good after an illness and is ready to compete.
On December 12, in the individual freestyle race at the World Cup in Davos, Bolshunov lagged behind the victorious Norwegian Simen Hegstad Kruger by one minute and nine seconds and took 12th place. Earlier, the Russian withdrew from the sprint due to poor health.
Bolshunov is the 2021 Skiathlon World Champion and four-time Olympic medalist in 2018. Also, the Russian has two victories in the overall standings of the World Cup in the seasons 2019/2020 and 2020/2021.
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