Irek Rizaev: now I am doing everything to get to the Olympics

From September 22 to 24, the Russian BMX Freestyle Championship and Championship took place at the Rosa Khutor ski resort. This event was the first official competition in our country after the inclusion of BMX freestyle park discipline in the Olympic Games program.

We managed to meet and talk to one of the participants, a young athlete of Red Bull BMX team Irek Rizaev and talk about training, plans and the nearest Olympics.

– Not so long ago you became an athlete for the Red Bull team. How does it feel to be an athlete for a big brand?
– Great! As soon as I started cycling professionally, I dreamed and aspired to be a member of the Red Bull team. It’s really cool because the attitude changes. You are called to competitions, the support from the brand is very strong. And it becomes easier to progress further. So there are a lot of benefits.

– How much time a week do you spend on training? Is it only BMX training or is there just physical training in the gym?
– It varies really. I ride and train basically every day. At least three hours a day. Of course, OFP is important too, but I focus more on BMX training.

– Where do you prefer to train?
– In Krasnodar, there is a good ground there. Also in Kazan, sometimes in Moscow, and I go abroad from time to time.

– If we talk about different countries and opportunities for skating, how comfortable is it for you to skate in Moscow? And which cities, in your opinion, have all conditions for BMX development?
– In Moscow it’s comfortable to ride in summer, while the open parks are open. The rest of the six months, probably while it’s cold, there is practically nowhere to ride. Even in summer, unfortunately, Moscow doesn’t have the best skating grounds. I believe that the best conditions for skating are in Krasnodar. I think the training park here is one of the best in Russia.

The discipline in which Irek performs is called BMX Park. This discipline combines both street elements (built park figures imitating street obstacles (stairs, banks, rails, ledges, wall rides, etc.) and classic park elements (bowls, mini-ramps, quartering).

– Recently you visited BMX tournament in Rosa Khutor. What are your impressions of riding in the mountains?
– Yes, Russian BMX Championship was held in Sochi on the Olympic venue. The venue is good, the only disadvantage is that there are no training figures there yet. The event itself was held at a high level, everything was pleasant. The president of the Russian Cycling Federation even came to visit us, he is ready to help us and send us to the Olympics.

– BMX is now part of the Olympic program. Do you have a desire to take part in the Olympics someday?
– Yes, of course I do. Now I am training, soon I will go to the BMX World Championship in China. I repeat that I have a desire and it is huge, now I am slowly doing everything to take part in the Olympics.