The Olympics are coming soon in Tokyo, which means it’s time to remember sports that are undeservedly paid attention to only once every four years. However, unexpected success in Japan can greatly change interest in any discipline. For example, a medal from Evgenia Kosetskaya, a multiple champion of Russia and one of the best badminton players in Europe, is likely. This season, Evgenia became the first Russian woman in history to reach the super final of the world tour, which means she confirmed her status as a contender for the Tokyo 2020 podium.
Almost all countries have badminton club leagues
— As I understand it, you are now in an active phase of preparation for the Olympics. Are you at training camp?
— Right now I’m training in Kazan. More precisely, in Bolgar, this is a city 150 kilometers from Kazan, the ancient capital of Tatarstan. A beautiful old city on the Volga, it’s nice here.
— Is the gathering in Bolgar a one-time event or already a tradition?
— We have annual training camps here in the summer. Not necessarily in Bolgar, we also practice in Rybnaya Sloboda, in Tetyushi, in Aksubaevo. This is the second time I’ve come to the training camp in Bolgar. It’s very cool to train and at the same time have the opportunity to look at something beautiful. On a day off, don’t just lie in your room, but go for a walk in the old city, to a museum or on the Volga, and take a swim. Many people living in Kazan have not yet reached this place, but we are lucky, we train here and at the same time enrich ourselves culturally.
— I heard that your next plans should be matches in Denmark. What kind of tournament is this?
— I’m not going for a short tournament, but to play for my club in the Danish league. There are club leagues in almost every country where badminton is developed. I previously played in France and Switzerland, and also in Russia, for the last two years I have been playing for a club from Denmark. I can say that the Danish league is the most difficult and prestigious of the European ones, well, this is not surprising, given that Denmark ranks very highly at the world level in badminton. The matches on the calendar are arranged very conveniently; they usually fall on dates when there are no international competitions, and it costs nothing for the players to come and play for the club. In France, for example, the matches fall on weekends when international tournaments usually have finals/semi-finals, so it was difficult to adjust the schedule. There are no such problems with Danish teams, because all their efforts are aimed at the professional development of badminton.
— Is Denmark the only power in Europe close in level to Asia?
— Definitely one of the closest, although there is also a good mixed doubles team from France, the Germans also have good players, the Bulgarian women’s pair, and don’t forget about ours: our mixed doubles and men’s pair are European champions. It’s just that the Danes have more stable results, there are original, strong players in all categories, and the same ones can take their place. This is great, and this is what ours lack so much - reserve.
There is a lot of attention and finance in badminton in Russia
— Who do you see as your main competitor before Tokyo? Is it traditionally Chinese, Japanese and Korean?
— Almost all Asians are always Chinese, Japanese, and Koreans. The Indonesians are good, the first racket of the world is now from Taiwan, one of the most talented singles players I have seen. He does incredible things on the court.
— Is it really possible to fight the Chinese?
“I think it’s really possible to fight everyone, if only you have the desire and perseverance.” Nothing is impossible, many European guys prove this, including ours. So everything is real.
— Are there any chances that badminton will someday be as popular in Russia as it is in Denmark and Asia?
— Now in Russia there is quite a lot of finance in badminton, a lot of attention. In Tatarstan, they don’t spare anything at all so that we can train calmly and show excellent results: training camps, training complexes, and sports schools with equipment for children. Everything is in our hands, we just need to train. I know about the club in Moscow, Khimki, there are also a lot of young and good guys there, with whom they try to work individually. Therefore, I think that everything is ahead of us and badminton will still show itself in Russia.
Then we need to not stop there and continue to popularize badminton, look for interested people, educate good coaches so that as many children as possible can take part in it. The Danes and Asians have a huge bench to choose from. Competition produces the strongest. Our young guys also have potential, they are interested in developing, they strive to be better, to be first. We need to help them so that in the future they will be supported by parents, federations, and possibly sponsors. It is important that talents are not lost on the road to big-time sports.
I found out about the super final prize money after the tournament
— This season you were in the finals of the world tour. As far as I understand, for the first time in history a Russian woman has reached such a high stage in women’s singles. How big an achievement is this?
“Indeed, I made it to the finals for the first time on my own, and in general in the history of our badminton this happened for the first time in the women’s singles. But let’s be honest: if it weren’t for the pandemic and the associated difficulties, cancellations and postponements, I would hardly have been able to play so successfully. Nevertheless, I performed well in several tournaments and honestly won my place in the finals.
— The prize fund of the Super category tournament is one million dollars. Have you received the biggest prize money in your career?
“I didn’t even know that I had a chance to get to the finals, and then it was a discovery for me that there was a prize fund at this tournament. For some reason, I was always sure that the super final is something like a world championship, where the top eight simply get into it, and that in itself is just very cool and prestigious. I didn’t think about any money until my friends opened their eyes to me. And yes, after the tournament I found out how much I earned. The money, I must say, came in very handy, because I am now building a house in Kazan, and this is not easy and financially very, very difficult. So thank fate, it helped.
— Don’t you miss competition within the country? You usually win the Russian Championship confidently.
— I’ve already talked about the level of our team, it’s actually not bad. There are a lot of good young guys who need to be given a path into big-time sports. As for my performances at the Russian Championship, sometimes it seems that everything is calm, there will be no problems. But when I start playing, as the tournament progresses, I get bored, and I start doing all sorts of nonsense, playing three games with someone, or relaxing a lot. I create a show for people, one might say, I keep everyone on their toes. I understand that this is impossible, so in recent years I have been trying to perceive both the Cup and the Russian Championship as a training cycle, I give myself full-fledged training, sometimes I even get up to play in the second category, so as not to let myself go. That is, in addition to singles, for example, play mixed doubles.
buy badminton rackets for children
— Is Tatarstan now the leader in Russian badminton? A separate large badminton center was built in the republic, many athletes and coaches were invited, and a whole echelon from Chelyabinsk.
— It’s impossible to say for sure that Tatarstan is the undisputed leader. Moscow, Moscow region, Tatarstan, Ufa badminton players, Nizhny - in all these regions there are a lot of good players. Rather, over the past five years, Tatarstan has grown very much in professional badminton, and everything is only moving forward, this is true. The badminton center, coaches, new players are helping - all this is a huge contribution, and so far everything is working very smoothly and confidently. But we should talk about the results a little later.
It’s better to hold the Olympics at least this way than not at all
— If I’m not mistaken, your parents are doctors. Are they facing a pandemic?
— Yes, I have a family of doctors. The younger sister even worked in the red covid zone, and so did the father. They are in Chelyabinsk, helping the city cope with the epidemic. Mom is also a doctor, but she is now with me in Kazan and does not work. More precisely, he works as my personal doctor, I would say so. Fully responsible for my recovery and health. Plus, as I already said, since I’m building a house, she watches everything that happens there. In short, she does everything in her power to make it easier for me and I can concentrate only on sports.
— How serious do you think the situation in the country and the world is now? In terms of the spread of coronavirus.
“I think that everything is, of course, serious, but there is no need to panic. We just need to accept the fact that we currently live in such realities. It's okay, we'll manage.
— Are you worried about your health? Are you planning to get vaccinated or avoid crowded places?
“I got vaccinated at the end of March, and initially I had neither fear nor hysterics that I might get infected somewhere. I think my parents also have a strong influence here; they clearly explained to me how to behave and what to do, that there is no need to panic. I was always sure that two relatives would definitely cope with my treatment and help me.
— Before the Games in Tokyo, the Japanese introduce many restrictions. How do you feel about them and is it worth holding the Games in this format?
“I believe that the Japanese have the right to introduce such restrictions, since the Games are being held on their territory. And, of course, I recommend everyone to follow the rules in the foreign country they come to play. And yes, I think that the Games need to be held. Actually, this is a strange question. So you love your job? Now imagine being deprived of it. Not very pleasant, perhaps? So we love ours. Every time I repeat how lucky I am in life to find what I love and also call it my job. So it’s better this way than nothing at all, but you get used to all the restrictions, tests, surveillance and everything else. In any case, let's be honest, athletes are always in sight, everyone is always watching us. This time it will just be legal, they will add a little more control and a little more responsibility. It's OK.
