Handball player Shishkarev: I think we will compete at a major tournament no earlier than 2026
The captain of the Russian handball team, Daniil Shishkarev, spoke about his exclusion from international tournaments. He shared his opinion in an interview with Lenta.ru.
“I think that we will take part in a major international competition no earlier than 2026,” said Shishkarev. According to the handball player, the suspension will have a very negative impact on all sports except hockey and the Continental Hockey League (KHL), which, in his opinion, is self-sufficient and continues to attract strong foreign players.
Shishkarev also spoke about the motivation to participate in friendly matches in conditions when the Russian national team is not preparing for official matches. “As for motivation, it doesn’t happen from day to day. It happens that you are tired of the routine and training – then you begin to think, what is all this for? But time passes, you put on the jersey of the national team, again you experience emotions that move you forward,” said the player.
Shishkarev recalled his first emotions when he learned about his suspension from international tournaments. “There was no anger, there was resentment, because a fairly easy road to the World Cup was opening up for us – we had to play either Slovakia or Belgium. Based on the balance of forces, we understood that we would most likely beat both of them,” said the handball player.
Shishkarev is a two-time winner of the Handball Champions League as part of the Macedonian “Vardar”, he was awarded the medal “For Services to Macedonia”. The 35-year-old athlete is also a bronze medalist at the Club World Championship and a six-time Russian champion.
On February 15, the Russian youth hockey team asked the International Hockey Federation to return them to the World Championship. “Our team has already missed three youth world championships,” said the athletes, recalling that in 2022 the tournament was not completed due to the coronavirus, and in 2023 and 2024 they were not allowed in due to security problems. They called the letter a cry from the heart.
Source: Lenta
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