Windsurfing. Interview with Olya Raskina

My path to professional sport didn’t start with windsurfing right away. I came to it over time, at a more conscious age. At first I was snowboarding, and I loved it! It was at that age when your blood is boiling and you want to conquer the whole world. My friends and I went to Elbrus, to Krasnaya Polyana – we went everywhere. I really liked freeride – the virgin land, the speed. There were no parks in Russia at that time, and I could only train abroad.

During my university studies, I worked in France. I took my winter session early and went to the mountains until the end of March. Then I got sponsors, I skated and was the face of the resort, and the Norwegian company Bataleon helped me with equipment, which was in short supply in Russia. And in general at that time (in the 90s) the system was organized differently – there were no coaches, no federation and no sponsors. No one understood from which side to enter professional snowboarding. I was training by myself, and often it all ended in injuries, I made some mistakes all the time. That’s why I went from snowboarding to windsurfing.

Still, I found water softer and more pleasant than snow, and windsurfing itself was something new and interesting.

As soon as I graduated from university and got a diploma of translator (it was a kind of informal agreement with my parents – first to finish my studies and then to choose my future path), my friends and I went on vacation to Dahab – the mecca of world windsurfing. This trip became a decisive event in my life. Not only did I start windsurfing, but almost immediately I got a job offer, accepted and spent six months there. Then there was another season in France, a knee surgery after an unfortunate fall, and in April I returned to Dahab with a strong belief that this time I would stay there longer. After all, I found the water softer and more pleasant than snow, and windsurfing itself was something new and interesting.

As a result, I stayed in Egypt for seven years, until the beginning of the revolution. I had a permanent job at a Russian station, and I traveled a lot around the world. First I worked as a manager, then as an instructor – I wanted to spend more time on the water. I thought: why sit at a computer in an office when there is the sea and the sun is shining?

I learned all the details in practice. I started with the smallest wave, with basic tricks. And then I strung them like beads, one to another, one to another, one to another. Everything has to happen gradually. I’ve never had a coach, and I don’t have one now either. We travel with my husband, and it helps me a lot that he shoots everything on video – at the end of the day you can watch and analyze your mistakes. Also the guys who skate better are in touch. They are always ready to help, advise and guide. I often send them videos and wait for comments.

After a year or two of windsurfing I first went to the “Russian Wave” – a major project of Seva Shulgin and his partners, which includes competitions in all water sports – from wake to windsurf. I wanted to test myself and take part in freestyle. It was my first competition and my first win. Then I wondered what the world stages were like. Of course, there was incredible competition and my first world tour experience was purely for participation, but it gave me a good start and a huge motivation to move on.

From that moment my development as a professional athlete began. All the big brands come to these big competitions, and when a new person appears, motivated and with a great desire to win, he never goes unnoticed. I was supported by JP Neil Pryde back then and I am still with them. I am also already representing the Red Bull and ROXY brands.

Besides training and competing, I also have my own projects. We created Windsurf Beauties Camp, a camp for girls where everyone windsurfs, learns, has photo shoots and makes videos. It’s my hobby, my brainchild that I do throughout the year. This year we’re going to Portugal, Eisk, Egypt, Greece and Mauritius – all windy and the coolest places.

Nowadays I try to appreciate every free minute, every second. When you have a child, you realize how valuable, expensive and irretrievable time is.

Now I try to appreciate every free minute, every second. With the arrival of a child you realize how valuable, expensive and irretrievable time is. Now it seems to me that so much of it was wasted! But it was possible to learn 10 languages, to speak fluent Chinese, to be a neurosurgeon, to drive a Kamaz, to have time for everything! Of course, a baby requires a lot of energy, and when you have free time, you are already tired and exhausted. So when we go somewhere to train and I have two or three hours while my son is sleeping or while my husband is working with him, I do my best, and in the evening I can hardly walk and brush my teeth with a trembling hand (glimlacht).

This sense of time changes our attitude to everything familiar, you begin to look more seriously at familiar things. I realize that I can’t go to a party now, sleep until lunch tomorrow and then go for a ride. Since maximum strength is required, even a glass of wine can be unnecessary – in the morning you risk waking up not at all awake and fresh. I used to go somewhere for three months or six months and I was in no hurry to go anywhere: if I wanted to go for a ride, I didn’t want to go for a ride – the return flight is still a while away. Now the trips are like short intensives.

We don’t have any plans for our son’s sporting future, but since all this equipment – from skateboards to surfboards – is at home, he will probably start to show interest and try something himself in time. Of course, I will not only worry, but I will also be pretty strict about making sure that the child wears a helmet, kneepads and other necessary protection. It’s good that we are far from motorcycling, that’s where my heart would go straight to my heels, but as for other extreme sports – we’ll see. It seems to me that if a child starts practicing from a young age, of course he will have a fantastic balance, style, experience and a different sense of fear.

Anyone can master windsurfing under the guidance of Olga Raskina, silver medalist of the World Championship and pro rider of the Roxy and Red Bull teams. Olga’s free master classes in Zavidovo will be held on July 8 and August 12. To take part in a windsurfing master class, you need to send an application to [email protected].

For those who wish to continue their training there will be a camp in the waters of Leta in Yeisk. More information about the camp can be found on the website olyaraskina.ru.