At August 21, the Russian national team will start in the 2024 Friendship Cup, where there four matches in five days are scheduled (on Wednesday – against the Venezuelan national team, on Thursday – against BC PARMA, on Friday – against the Colombian national team, on Sunday – the final or the game for 3rd place). We asked the 22-year-old Loko forward to tell us how he feels before his debut in the national team.
- Are you nervous about your debut in the national team?
- It's not that I'm nervous, it's more like joy. I'm the national team for the first time, I have a chance to be on the roster, the 12 people who will be on the roster for the match. So, I plan to give it my all, do everything in my power to make the team win.
- Have you acquainted with some new friends in the national team?
- Of course, I have. I used to only play against these guys, but now we are on the same team, together for three weeks. I have excellent relations with everyone at the training camp.
- What do you pay special attention to during training in the national team?
- At the beginning, when we just arrived in Novogorsk, the first 3-4 days were just getting acquainted, giving our body and muscles some activation after the summer. And now, the training is more of an introductory kind, because the season is just beginning.
- Do you have some spare time? If yes, then how do you spend it?
- There is not much free time, but we have some. What do we do? We go for a walk, we went to the cinema once. When the training camp continued in Turkey, we went to the sea on one of the weekends, then to the shopping center.
- In Perm, the Russian team will have to play a very intensive schedule, including 3 matches in the first 3 days – are you ready for this?
- For sure! I'm always ready to play – whether it's five matches in a row, seven... with days off, without them, it doesn't matter to me.
- How did you react when you knew who became the new head coach of Loko?
- Of course, I was surprised, as was probably the whole basketball society. But I reacted with joy. Andrey Vladimirovich always knows what he is doing, he never gives bad advice. I think that our goals remain the same – to win every match. When Vlad Yemchenko and I return to Loko from the national team, we will probably talk again as a team. I am sure that everything will be great for us.
- What do you expect from the upcoming season?
- Last season, even those teams that no one expected to do so had good results. I think this season will be much more interesting. That's why we'll have to give it our all in every match.
Помимо Темирова, «Локомотив-Кубань» на этих сборах представляет Владислав Емченко. Свои матчи на «Кубке Дружбы» 21, 22 и 23 августа сборная России проведёт в 17:00 по московскому времени. Финал – 25 августа в 12:00 МСК. Транслироваться эти игры будут на сайте РФБ.
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