Roman Semerninov: “Every day in Loko is unforgettable!”

How hard was it to decide to leave Loko?

Incredibly difficult. I spent 9 years at Lokomotiv, went all the way from a youth teams to first assistant to the head coach of the main team. Now it's time for me to take a step up to the next level in my coaching career. And I am very grateful to Andrei Vladimirovich Vedishchev for his understanding of my aspirations.

Where do you go now?

I have no answer yet. I had several offers, but I thought it was wrong to negotiate when I had a valid contract with Lokomotiv. Now I'm free of contractual obligations, and I'll start speaking with these clubs.

Will you continue your work at Russia men's U20 team?

My agreement with the Russian Basketball Federation is still valid. And here I would like to express my deep gratitude to the management of Lokomotiv for giving me the opportunity to combine work at the club and the national team. I learned a lot from working with the best Russian prospects. I hope that Lokomotiv also benefited from this.

What will you remember first about working at Loko?

Oh, it's so hard to choose! Every year, every day at Loko was unforgettable: sometimes it was the joy of victory, sometimes the sorrow of defeat. But there were many times more good moments. I remember how we became Russian champions with Loko-2000, how we won the Russian 3x3 Cup with the guys born in 2000, how we played back from -24 in the final game of the Russian Championship with Loko-2004. It’s great to see how many guys I coached became professional players of a good level. Over these years, we won 8 sets of medals with different youth teams. Plus, of course, silver in the VTB United League, when we knocked out CSKA in the semi-finals. The past season was also full of indescribable emotions: incredible comebacks and victories, a crazy series with Zenit. I am proud to have been part of the Lokomotiv Kuban system for so many years. I want to express my sincerest words of gratitude to the entire team of the club: the coaching and medical staff, the players, the media, the office, the fans – everyone I have crossed paths with over these years. I am happy that we have so much to remember. And I hope that someday I will return to Lokomotiv with new experience.