We are creating a unified system and a team moving in one direction”: Luca Bormolini on the new project in Kazakhstan
— How did the summer preparation with the Kazakhstan national team go?
— This summer I traveled to Kazakhstan almost every month, and the preparation is going well. We used the first part of the summer to build the working group. We conducted a series of tests to understand the athletes' qualities and thus started creating the Youth and Junior groups. I was called by the Federation, and specifically by General Secretary Manas Ussenov, to build a youth system. We also worked on creating a team of coaches who will collaborate on the project. Now we have a team of technicians working together following a common line, so I would say it went well.
— What approach did you decide to give to the project after these first meetings?
— In Kazakhstan, many different cultures and ethnic groups coexist. One of the challenges is precisely managing to bring everyone together and make them work in a coordinated way. Moreover, Kazakhstan is a truly huge country, so we had to modify my previous working method a bit to adapt it to its geographical conformation. For some athletes, for example, returning home after a training session or gathering can mean spending two or three days on a train. This is why we revised the organization of the camps: the goal is to make them a bit longer, taking into account the distances between the localities where the athletes live and where we train. This way we can avoid very long journeys and make the work more effective.
If you search the Internet, you can see how the Shchuchinsk center is a huge facility that has nothing to envy from European ones. On the contrary, the track is very long and in some points, it is even twenty meters wide. It is a truly beautiful center, where we stay during training. We have another center in Almaty, in an area closer to the border with Kyrgyzstan. It is located at a slightly higher altitude and therefore allows us to organize training camps at altitude as well. These are the two main federal centers.
At the regional level, the various local entities have a great desire to grow. I have already seen some projects to build new structures and other centers in the different regions, so as to guarantee athletes optimal training conditions even when they are at home. Currently, in fact, some of them have practically no facilities available. Consequently, to practice biathlon and train on cross-country skis, they are forced to move and live in training camps.
— What is the current competitive situation? Are there any athletes who could compete with the seniors?
— The idea behind this project is to create a connection between the Grand Tour and the path that leads to the World Cup. The Grand Tour is a circuit dedicated to the youth movement, with races both in running and cross-country skiing and with the air rifle. It features numerous stages and is truly an important project. Subsequently, athletes can aim for the path towards the World Cup.
In the past, however, there was a missing intermediate step between the youth circuit and the top international level. Our idea is precisely to fill this void through the Youth and Junior Project, whose main objective will be the 2030 Olympics. We are therefore working on a long-term project.
As for the athletes, there are good ones. We have carried out several tests and the results show good aerobic, strength, and shooting capabilities. The potential is there. Naturally, it will take some time to get used to the new training system, because it is quite different from the one followed in the past. I must be honest, however: I am finding a lot of cooperation from all the coaches. I try to be as transparent as possible and to share the programs and the work we do with everyone. Not because our method is necessarily better, but because it represents the line we have decided to follow. In this way, the coaches from the different regions can also better understand our approach and maintain the same guidelines when the athletes return to train in their respective territories.
— Will you participate in IBU Cup or Youth Cup races?
— Actually, we will take part in some races. We will be present at the Alpen Cup in Val Martello, and immediately after we will participate in a Coppa Italia Fiocchi race in Forni Avoltri.
