The European Championships will start this Friday in the Olivia Hall in Gdańsk. With what hopes will you participate in these competitions?

Our goal will be to maximize this potential and support this trend. This was demonstrated by the last World Cup competition. We don’t assume we’re fighting for specific spots because it’s a short track and anything can happen here. In Gdańsk, we will aim for the highest positions.

On December 17 and 18, the last World Cup competitions of the season took place in Almaty. What our team’s preparations for the European Championships look like after returning from Kazakhstan.

Before the end of the previous year, we had a short training camp in Białystok, and since the beginning of January we have been training in Gdańsk, where we are preparing for the European Championships in the Olivia hall.

SEE ALSO: World Cup in Zakopane: Why will “only” six Poles be successful?

Our federation will be able to register five female athletes and five female athletes in this competition. Are you and coach Gregory Durand planning any changes from the squad that played in the World Cup?

No, at the moment there will be no such changes. In the Men’s World Cup, we had six players, so Paweł Adamski, Łukasz Kuczyński, Michał Niewiński, Diane Sellier and Neithan Thomas were signed up to start the European Championships, and Mateusz Mikołajuk will be the first reserve. The following girls will debut in Gdańsk: Natalia Maliszewska, Nikola Mazur, Hanna Sokołowska, Kamila Stormowska and Gabriela Topolska.

The format of the European Championship competition has changed…

Yes, there will be no all-around format, which means that the three competitors entered for individual starts will not have to “run” all the distances. Thanks to this change, we have the possibility of alternating these three places in each individual race among the five competitors that we have entered to start. We can decide who will start at a given distance just before the start. The possibility of such a choice is a very comfortable situation for us.

The leader of our team is Natalia Maliszewska, who next season confirms her membership in the world top. Among men, Dianne Sellier has become such a leader, who, like Maliszewska, achieves excellent results in the 500 meters, and recently – as the first representative of Poland – won the World Cup in Kazakhstan at this distance.

We moved forward with the whole team. Two Latvians Kruzbergs and Berzins train with us as guests, which introduces such a positive rivalry. It makes the group stronger. For us, this is such a stimulus for even more intensive work. We have the opportunity to increase our intensity and possible repetitions during training. We are advancing step by step. We have potential, because it is a group that has undergone a solid selection.

In addition to the individual races, we will also see our team in the three relay events: women’s, men’s and mixed. The results achieved by our teams this season give us reason to be optimistic.

I would like to say that it will happen in Gdańsk, but everything will come out during the competition. The relay competition is very demanding and the ultimate success depends on many factors. Starting with the fact that those who make the fewest mistakes will win. And even the little ones. If the fans support us and the walls help us, we can try to perform well. Nobody is going to inflate balloons because it doesn’t help anyone. We will support our relay teams and keep our fingers crossed for them. We have put a lot of work into preparing for these competitions and let that translate into the results we will achieve.

I mentioned the historic victory in the 500 meters in the World Cup by Diane Sellier, the first medal in the competition of this rank was won by our mixed relay team, which in Kazakhstan, starting with the composition of Michał Niewiński, Diane Sellier, Kamila Stormowska and Gabriela Topolska finished the competition in third place.

Then, Natalia Maliszewska and Łukasz Kuczyński did not participate in this competition. Now we are working hard to build the optimal form for the European Championships and depending on the times achieved during these preparations, the form presented, but also the layout of the day, we carefully select the composition of each relay and each distance individually. competition. We are pleased to be able to change the start lists for each distance and in each competition almost immediately before the start. It is really a great comfort for us.

We know that the quality of the ice during the competition will have a significant impact on the times achieved, and therefore on the results obtained. What is the current situation at Olivia Hall?

It will depend on the organizers, the thickness and temperature of the ice and the temperature in the room. For now, the ice “holds” firmly and is therefore not too fast. The leg while rolling is not “relaxed” and therefore there is not much slippage. There is still time before the start of the competition, so this may still change. Two years ago, during the European Championships, which also took place in Gdańsk, it was very cold and the hall was strongly heated. Now the weather is completely different, but that can still change. For now, the ice is normal and we have time to get used to it properly.

The possibility of preparing in this establishment can be an additional advantage for you?

Certainly, even if it will not be the decisive factor. This will be determined by the layout presented during the competition and hopefully we start the competition in optimal form.

We recently welcomed the New Year 2023. Do you have any special requests?

I wish everyone good health and as few unpleasant surprises as possible. At the same positive news, lots of joy and smiles. Fans are invited to support us in the Olivia hall, and those who will not be in Gdańsk, keep their fingers crossed for us in front of the televisions.

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