Wolfgang Pichler: Iourieva’s results are not good enough for national team

Wolfgang Pichler, the new head coach of the women’s national team, spoke on how the team’s work would be organized, admitted that he does not want Olga Zaitseva to end her career, and shared his opinion Ekaterina Iourieva’s results.

About Ekaterina Iourieva: «Everybody has made mistakes in their lives, and I am no exception. Iourieva has already served her punishment. My personal attitude to her doesn’t matter now, but the fact is that she will not be able to take part in the Sochi-2014 Olympics. Have you seen her results this year? In my opinion, they are not good enough to speak about the national team. In any case, the road to the team is not closed for anybody.»

About Olga Zaitseva: «I will write an e-mail to Zaitseva immediately after the conversation with you. She is an admirable athlete, a true leader. And I really want Olga to continue her career. I’m even ready to make some concessions. Zaitseva has a child, and I understand perfectly well that she cannot be present in the training camp all year long.»

About his work with the team: «Here is the scheme according to which we will be working: two weeks at the training camp, a week at home. The first recovery training session will be held in late May in Kemer, Turkey. Then we are going to Ruhpolding. Everybody will get some homework for the periods between the training sessions, and I will monitor sportswomen’s performance through the Internet.»

About his assistants: «A young Russian coach, who speaks some German, will assist me. I will also have a translator. It is unlikely that I will soon learn Russian, but I’m sure I will be able to explain everything I need to the athletes», Pichler said in an interview with Sovetsky Sport.