Idman.biz
Nurid Shakaraliyev has become one of the main discoveries of the European Ski Mountaineering Championship held at the "Shahdag" Tourism Center. The athlete, who started skiing just a year ago and has been participating in competitions for less than six months, managed to take fifth place in the prestigious U18 category.
Idman.Biz presents an interview with the talented skier.
- You became fifth at the European Championship after training for only a year. How do you assess this result?
- Yes, but there are many competitions ahead and I want to repeat my success next time as well. My dream is to raise the Azerbaijani flag to the highest step of the podium.
- How did you get into this sport?
- In the village of Anig, in the Gusar region where I was born, many were skeptical about my occupation, asking, "What do you need this for?". I am sure that now someone will say, "Look, you see, only fifth place" (laughs). But there will also be people who will sincerely rejoice in my name.
The love of sports was instilled in me by the head coach of the team, Filip Gaget. He taught everything from scratch to me and other children from our region. For the first five months, I just learned how to walk properly on skis, and only after that we practiced going downhill and uphill. He is like a real mentor and supports us in every field: both in sports and outside of sports. Even in matters of nutrition. Now we know exactly which diet helps the result.
- You are in the 11th grade. Aren't you afraid that military service will stop your career?
- I will not leave sports. Even if I have to take a year off, I will definitely come back. Of course, it would be very good if conditions were created for training athletes like us during service. Unlike boxers or wrestlers, we don't just need a hall - we need mountains and snow. For this, it is necessary to get into military units located in mountainous areas, which requires the support of the relevant authorities. But in any case, I will not leave mountain mountaineering.
- What is the main advantage of this sport? Why should schoolchildren get involved in it?
- First, it's incredibly interesting. Secondly, you are constantly in the mountains, in the fresh air, and training does not seem difficult to you. Because you breathe with all your might, you absorb the clean oxygen that is not in halls and closed areas.
Of course, when you are involved in this sport, you also forget about computer games and social networks, as in other sports. You enjoy training, competitions and successes. You learn to overcome failures, you want to be better and you train more. Moreover, all this happens against the backdrop of magnificent nature, and that nature itself gives a person great energy.
