In his characteristic ironic manner, Red and Blue team defender Bogdan Kiselevich told why he chose a vacation in Cherepovets instead of the Maldives, how he partied at Andrei Svetlakov's wedding, and why he was not upset about the Russian national team's result in Euro 2020.
"My wife makes me dig up the whole our plot".
- In recent days in Cherepovets it has been hot over thirty degrees. Now it's twenty-five. I am tired of such a heat. I live near a forest and I bathe in a reservoir: everything is like in a fairy tale. We do something with my kids every day: quests, activities, cooking, playing games, riding bikes, jet skis and quads. But besides recreation, there is a lot of work in our land plot.
- Artem Sergeyev said that every year he plants potatoes with his grandfather.
- For my wife's birthday, we were given plants as a present. Plus she often buys something and makes me dig up the whole plot (laughs), which I do not like very much. My wife plants a lot of flowers, and it's getting harder and harder for me to mow the lot now. She's always watching and taking care of the plants. In this heat, we have to water them all the time. Our two conifer trees didn't take root, because they withered from the heat. It is a pity. But our fir, on the contrary, is growing.
I finally put racks in my garage and cleared out the mess. It turns out that so much time and energy is spent for household activities in normal life.
- Many KHL hockey players have vacation in the Maldives, but you chose your native Cherepovets.
- There was a reference on Instagram that Rospotrebnadzor advised to pay attention to resorts in the Vologda region (laughs). I spend so many hours in an airplane during the season that on vacation I want to relax and just be in one place. I don't like long flights, I prefer something closer to me - Turkey or Greece. And with the weather in Cherepovets as it is now, I'm three hundred meters away from the reservoir. I just get high here. I enjoy mowing the lawn, walking in the woods, riding my quad bike and jet ski. I have everything close by here, there's not much traffic. I like this kind of activity better than flying, traveling, or staying in a hotel. Of course, my wife will make me go somewhere. But I try to postpone it as long as possible, because I don't mind such vacations.
- Now Turkey has just opened.
- If you choose from different directions, the best vacation for us is Turkey. We like it there most of all.
"There are difficult days, and we call to cry to each other".
- How are you preparing for the start of training camp?
- We gathered a small group - Andryukha Svetlakov, Artem Chmykhov, other guys we know from CSKA - we work with them either personally or via video link. We all like it. The first week the emphasis was on exercises to minimize injuries during the season, and now it's more intense training. There are difficult days, and we call each other to complain that our coach is some kind of beast.
I`ve already started to go out on the ice - to remember how it is, so it would not be so hard at the training camp.
- You mentioned Svetlakov. Two weeks ago, a joyous event happened in his life - his wedding.
- What makes you think it was a happy event? That's unnecessary, why do you need a wedding? (laughs)
- Even so. But you were at Andrey's wedding. What were your impressions?
- I'm glad that Andryukha and I go through life together. We started talking when I first came to CSKA. We often share personal things with each other. I was very happy that he invited me to the wedding. I told my wife right away: "Whatever you want, we were invited and we should come, although she wasn't a fan of leaving Cherepovets either.
The wedding was gorgeous - soulful, cool, lots of guests. It was the first time I saw his wife, because he never came to team events with her. Good for him, he's got her so good – she is beautiful. It was obvious how much she put into this party, because Andrey was like - "Set this down, pick that up, that's all, thanks – now, go away". In general - we are delighted! We burnt up from four to eleven.
"We recently played hockey with a friend of mine, and now I'm already rewarding his son."
- During your vacation, you had time to participate in summing up the season of the Severstal school that brought you up.
- It's good that we have excellent relationships with the school, the ice rink, and “Almaz” team. They remember me, they love me, they appreciate me, and they let me use their locker rooms, go out on the ice, treat me like a like a normal person.
I couldn't refuse to participate in such an event, saying that if I was in Cherepovets, I would definitely come. I remember how interesting and important it was for me as a kid when a famous player came to congratulate me at the end of a season. And now I also wanted to do my part.
The making-up was soul stirring. We played hockey with my friend not long ago, and now I'm already awarding his son, who's graduating his first year… how quickly time flies. How important this intergenerational continuity is. It's important to make it a tradition so that the next generations don't forget each other.
I went through the same school and walked along the same tracks. Children see that they can achieve everything, that everything is close. You just have to study and work hard.
- Now there is a soccer Euro. Do you follow the tournament?
- Everyone is surprised, they say: "Let's go out for a beer, let's watch soccer! But I don`t really care about soccer. I remember watching the European Championship, when our team took third place (Euro 2008). Then Guus Hiddink coached team was playing great, I was in love with it. I liked everything, I was glad they played. But then I somehow cooled down with soccer. In principle, I have enough sport in my life to spend my time watching games on vacation. I didn`t have high expectations from Russian national team`s game, so I`m not really upset. It's sad, though.
- Soon CSKA will get together to prepare for the season. Are you hungry before the preseason starts?
- Yes, I do. I miss the guys, the atmosphere, and the coaches. I look forward to seeing the new team again, because I do it all my life and enjoy it.
- What are your expectations for the new season?
- We have to be ready for everything. The main thing is not to think too much, but to work every day, because our task is the highest. Last year we failed to achieve it. We need to make the right conclusions in our preparation and accomplish this task.
- Is there any anger left after the final series of the Gagarin Cup?
- It is painful to discuss such emotions. Everything stays inside. Emotions need to be handled properly, so that later they can help you correct your mistakes. You need to calmly and soberly analyze what you lacked to play better and help the team to win. And then continue to work. Any anger or some other emotion can get in the way during important games of a season. You should have a clear head here.
