Sovetsky Sport. May 15, 1971. This conversation took place yesterday with the help of employees of the Moscow international telephone exchange shortly before the start of the European Gymnastics Championships.
In Madrid, Georgy Bogdanov was on the phone, and in Moscow our correspondent was S. Belyaeva. Their conversation took place eight hours before the Soviet gymnasts took to the platform.
Q: Which apparatus do our gymnasts start their performance on at the championship?
A: On floor exercise.
Q: Are you personally satisfied with this draw result?
A: How can I be happy here? I injured my leg yesterday, and now I've been moved to the reserves... But the guys, you could say, were lucky. The Olympic gymnastics program begins with floor exercises. Many, including our athletes, structure their training sessions accordingly.
Q: Who is competing in the same group as the Soviet gymnasts?
A: The Czechoslovakian sportsmen.
Q: Ninteen-year-old Nikolai Andrianov will be competing on the team instead of you. How did he react to the turn of events, and how is he feeling?
A: He's standing right here, smiling. And this is his first performance at a major international competition.
Q: How many training sessions did our team hold, and where did they take place?
A: Three training sessions. Two on May 12, and one yesterday. They took place at the Palacio de Deportes, the arena where the European Champion is being held.
Q: How did you like the Sports Palace?
A: It's very interestingly designed. But most of our attention, of course, was focused on the quality of the platform and the equipment. They left a favorable impression; the rest depends on the gymnasts themselves...
Q: Which of your opponents did you see during the training sessions?
A: Well, I paid the most attention to the Polish Kubica brothers and the young gymnast Szajna. They are all very strong and of course can provide serious competition. I didn't notice any particular innovations in their programs, but then again we don't always reveal all our cards during training either. In the GDR team, I liked Koste the most.
Q: Are the athletes staying together in the same hotel?
A: No, we're scattered across different hotels. In our hotel, the Claridge, we saw Norwegian, Romanian, and Czechoslovakian gymnasts.
Q: Is there a sense of anticipation for a major sporting event in the city or at least in the vicinity of the Palacio? How are ticket sales going?
A: Every time we went to the Palacio, we were surprised by the quiet atmosphere that prevailed there. None of the residents seemed interested in the athletes, or in tickets for that matter. And the Palacio is huge. However, the Spaniards' lukewarm attitude towards gymnastics is understandable. After Blume, who tragically died in a plane crash, there were no outstanding gymnasts in the country.
Q: All sports fans in their homeland wish Mikhail Voronin, Viktor Klimenko, and Nikolai Andrianov great success.
A: Thank you to everyone.