A Polish champion figure skater who changed her citizenship to Poland in 2019 has claimed that Russian bosses “wanted to block” her switch despite not giving her a chance to go to a “big competition”.
Moscow-born Ekaterina Kurakova, who has skated to songs by artists including Charlie Chaplin, Janet Jackson and Edith Piaf, started out at CSKA in her original home city before deciding to represent Poland in 2017.
The 19-year-old says that some skaters in Russia retire when they are as young as 16 because of the level of competition – a path she could have gone down because bosses told her directly that she would not be sent to major showpieces.
“I thought I deserved a chance but in Russia they refused to give it to me,” she told Onet, adding that she “believed in myself all the time.”“They didn’t even want to send me to the Junior Grand Prix.”
Kurakova wrote to Polish Figure Skating Association president Marek Kaliszek after meeting him at competition in his country’s city of Torun, with arrangements made for the move which she suggested Russian team leaders had initially sought to thwart.
“They knew that I am a good [athlete], after all, and that I could compete with the girls representing Russia,” she explained.
“But when I applied for a residence card in Poland, there was nothing they could do. Of course, they were not satisfied.
Later basing herself in Toronto, Kurakova admits that some of her new national peers seemed confused by her switch, although two strongly supported her in the country she now sees as home.
“I was on cloud nine and my parents were crying,” she reflected. “But they always supported me because they knew figure skating was my whole life.
“When I was recently [training] in Italy, I missed Poland very much. When I come back to Poland, I feel that this is my home.
“I have a boyfriend here and friends that I just love. In the future, I would rather live in Poland than in Russia.”
Since receiving clearance, Kurakova has lifted the Warsaw Cup, won the Four National Championships for three straight seasons, finished 32nd at this year’s World Championships and earned the second of six spots for the Poland team at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
“Poland has given me a great opportunity for which I am very grateful,” she said. “I am very happy about it – I feel better than ever.
“After all, for two years I could not skate, and now I am promoted to the Olympics in Beijing.
“I knew that Poland would be a good choice because I felt that they really needed me here. And that’s probably the most important thing – to feel needed.”
Ex-Manchester United and South Korea star Ji-Sung Park believes he “has to educate the fans” about a chant he says they sing which contains what he describes as a racial insult involving a lyric about eating dog meat.
United supporters sang the song towards Hee-Chan Hwang, the South Korea international who plays for Premier League side Wolves, when they traveled to Molineux for a match in August, according to the former Old Trafford favorite.
The Seoul-born midfielder says that he believes the chant will have made Hwang feel as deeply “uncomfortable” as he does about it, adding that the racial stereotype about Korean people is based on an outdated premise that does not reflect his country.
“I’m really sorry for him to hear that,” the Champions League and four-time Premier League winner told United’s podcast.
Park Ji-sung has asked @ManUtd fans to stop singing that song about him. Tells UTD Podcast: “I have to educate the fans to stop that word, which is usually these days a racial insult to Korean people. In Korea things have changed a lot. I really request the fans to stop.”
“I know the United fans didn’t mean any offense to him but I have to educate the fans to stop that word [dog meat], which these days is a racial insult to the Korean people.
“I have to ask the fans to stop singing that word because it’s not cheering up someone anymore – it’s going to be more discomfort when they hear that song.”
Park acknowledged that he initially liked the song after he joined the club in 2005 because he felt “very proud” by the show of his popularity among the faithful.
The song is crass, at best. Perhaps if they outlawed the consumption of dog meat in Korea it would help.
“But when I heard about the lyric – about eating dog meat – it was very uncomfortable for me,” the midfielder said.
“I was young, I didn’t know the culture here, so it was probably one of the things I had to accept.
“I never thought the fans created the songs with bad meanings. They always make a song to give some energy to the players. That’s my thought. That’s why I accepted it.
Sang it loads yesterday but out of respect to Park I'll try to not sing it anymore
It was sang a lot yesterday and after I was like fuck me this is so racist. There was a Korean lad behind us when it was being sang and I felt so sorry for him
“But time has changed and it is 15 years later. Probably, last summer, listening to one of the Korean players who joined Wolves, and that time the United fans sang my song, I felt I needed to do something.
“Even in Korea, it changed a lot. It is true that, historically, people have been eating dog meat.
“But these days, particularly the young generation, they hate it. It was there before but these days you really can’t find it. So the culture is changing.”
Now 40, Park made well over 100 appearances for United and played for his country 100 times, including at three World Cup finals, starting with the 2002 edition in which South Korea finished fourth.
Khabib Nurmagomedov has won praise for his coolness after a man leapt towards him during an event in England. The ex-UFC champ was more worried by his experience watching football at Liverpool, which he called “very dangerous”.
Hugely popular Nurmagomedov was nearing the end of a talk in the Yorkshire town of Harrogate when the unknown man jumped on to the stage, initially looking as if he wanted to confront the Russian before holding a camera up in a desperate bid for a photo.
As befits one of the greatest fighters of all time, Nurmagomedov did not appear remotely unsettled by the faintly concerning finale, and several members of his entourage moved in to remove the over-enthusiastic fan from the stage, including one wearing a hat with the Russian flag on it.
“At the end of the interview, the situation was a little tense,” reported one account that has been following Nurmagomedov on his mini-tour of the UK, which has taken in Manchester United’s Old Trafford home and Liverpool’s Anfield as part of a promotion in support of orphans worldwide.
No no no brother don’t do this has anyone ever been less concerned about being attacked https://t.co/r0lVLDDcxj
“Some did not want to sit down and everyone wanted to ask their own question.
“After that, one fan jumped onto the stage. Despite this, Khabib thanked everyone present and said parting words at the end.”
The unflappable-seeming former lightweight champion told the man: “No, no, no, brother – don’t do this.”
He then told the crowd: “Let me talk. I have come from another part of the world to see you guys and I deserve some respect.
“I just want to say… I feel like around the world, big, big support from my people, who have the same views that I have, and I really believe that here we have the same views.
“Please take care of your kids. This is our future. This is most important.”
“When I go to McDonald’s, I feel pressure: ‘who’s filming me?’” he confessed, earning laughter for his endearing honesty.
“If I go with friends, I say, ‘you have to have my back.’ Today, when we came out at Anfield, I was stuck with thousands of drunk Liverpool fans.
“I could not walk. It was people traffic. I felt pressure. And a lot of people were like, ‘ooh, Khabib’ – but they don’t understand who I am. Of course, I feel a lot of pressure. I was ready to fight.”
The teetotal Real Madrid supporter is obsessed with the game and does not feel the tribalism that fans in England are renowned for.
Nurmagomedov acknowledged that a photo with legendary United boss Sir Alex Ferguson may have made Liverpool fans a little wary of him – and footage has also emerged of the powerhouse larking around with star midfielder Paul Pogba and engaging in a good-humored face-off with former captain Rio Ferdinand.
“I go to the stadium to watch and enjoy this beautiful game,” he explained. “Today was very dangerous when I was with Liverpool fans but it was fun. And I was ready to fight.
“It was an amazing atmosphere today but the game was even better. I was rooting for Man City. I just love this sport.
“Manchester, Liverpool, I don’t care. I just love football, sport. I was watching this game – I don’t even blink. You guys can support whoever you want.”
Sharing a snap of himself with $122 million World Cup winner Pogba, Nurmagomedov told the France poster boy: “Be ready for the next time, bro.”
Napoli’s Senegal defender, Kalidou Koulibaly, has called for racist fans to be banned from stadiums in Italy after he says he received a torrent of racist abuse online following his side’s 2-1 win at Fiorentina on Sunday.
Koulibaly, who has long been considered among the top defenders in the Italian top flight, took to social media early on Monday to detail a litany of abuse he received from the stands while conducting his post-match interview at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.
The 30-year-old wrote on Twitter of the various racial insults he says were hurled his way, and called for Italian football chiefs to take action against the ongoing scourge of racist abuse in the game by banning offenders from attending games.
“‘Monkey of sh*t’, ‘Putain de singe’, ‘F*cking monkey’. They called me that,” he wrote on Twitter, via translation.
«Scimmia di merda». «Putain de singe». «Fucking monkey». Mi hanno chiamato così. Questi soggetti non c’entrano con lo sport. Vanno identificati e tenuti fuori dagli stadi: per sempre.
“These subjects have nothing to do with sport. They must be identified and kept out of the stadiums forever,” he added.
Koulibaly’s outburst was matched by his Nigerian teammate Victor Osimhen, who called for parents to educate their children about the evils of racism.
It was also reported that Osimhen was subjected to racist abuse during the same game.
speak to your kids,your parents make them understands how disgusting it is to hate an individual because of the color of their skin NOTORACISM❌
parla con i tuoi figli, i tuoi genitori fanno capire loro quanto sia disgustoso odiare un individuo per il colore della sua pelle pic.twitter.com/sV8udBXzBU
“Speak to your kids, your parents – make them understands how disgusting it is to hate an individual because of the colour of their skin. NO TO RACISM,” he wrote online.
The vitriol in the stands was also noted as being “unacceptable” by Fiorentina director general Joe Barone, who was reported to have issued personal apologies to both Koulibaly and Osimhen, as well as Fulham loanee Andre-Frank Zambo-Anguissa, who was also targeted by the crowd.
The nature of the abuse hints that racism still festers within Italian football and comes shortly after AC Milan filed an official complaint with league authorities over alleged racial abuse directed at two of their players, Franck Kessie and Tiemoue Bakayoko.
Meanwhile, the mayor of Florence, Dario Nardella, has issued a public apology to the trio of Napoli players.
Victor, André-Frank, Kalidou: a nome di #Firenze vi chiedo scusa. Chi ieri ha offeso i calciatori del @sscnapoli allo stadio non rappresenta la città e non rappresenta la @acffiorentina, che ha subito preso le distanze. Negli stadi non c’è posto per l’ignoranza e la stupidità. pic.twitter.com/g2j9jpwZRQ
“Victor, Andre-Frank, Kalidou: on behalf of #Firenze I apologize,” he wrote on social media, again via translation.
“[Those] who yesterday offended the Napoli players at the stadium do not represent the city and does not represent [Fiorentina], who immediately distanced [themselves from it]. There is no place in stadiums for ignorance and stupidity.”
And it seems as if the latest racial storm in Italian football might affect change of some description after the Italian Football Federation announced that an investigation into the allegations of abuse.
“In relation to the racist expressions addressed by Fiorentina fans to the Napoli player Kalidou Koulibaly, the Federal Prosecutor, having acquired the reports of its inspectors and having listened to the player, has opened an investigation,” it said in a statement.
“In the next few hours, further investigative acts will be carried out by acquiring the relevant documents from the Florence Police Headquarters.”
A Russian wrestler says he has achieved a lifetime goal after winning gold at the World Wrestling Championships 2021, beating a feared American opponent who had won his first four matches by a combined score of 41-0.
Russian and European freestyle champion Abasgadzhi Magomedov had claimed he was willing to die on the mat before taking on Daton Fix, an Oklahoma fighter who calls himself the ‘greatest ever’ and had whitewashed all of his adversaries on his way to the final in Oslo.
Some analysts had suggested that Magomedov would require an exceptional performance to beat Fix, who had won all of those bouts by technical fall, taking under two minutes in each of his last three encounters.
Behind after the first period, Magomedov took a shot-clock point to make it 2-1 and a takedown with less than 90 seconds remaining as he won his fourth major gold medal of the year and the eighth of his outstanding career.
“I [had targeted] this gold all my life and today this hard long-term work has paid off,” the Dagestan-born star said afterwards.
“Thanks to my family for their support and faith in me, thanks to everyone who participated in my training – coaches, gym partners, all the personnel of the Russian and Dagestan national teams.
“Special thanks to all fans – your support motivates me in the most difficult moments.”
The 61kg king continued his remarkable run this year, winning all 18 of his bouts.
Magomedov had beaten Mongolia’s Tumenbilegiin Tuvshintulga and Turk Emrah Ormanoglu on technical falls on his way to the semifinals, in which he beat Japan’s Toshihiro Hasegawa 10-0.
His victory at the Russian National Championships in Ulan–Ude in March was a successful defense of the title he won for the first time in 2020.
A former US national champion at 57kg, Fix said he was “so thankful for all of the love and support” he had received in the build-up.
“For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to be the best in the world,” added the 2019 Pan American Games winner.
“Although I have to settle for second this year, I know that I am right there. God’s plan for me has always been bigger than my own. I am more motivated than ever and cannot wait to get better.”
Magomedov is now aiming to help Russia win again in the team event at the championships.
