– Nurdin, you were at the head of the federation relatively recently, did you have the opportunity to take a fresh look at the athletes, to assess their potential?
Nurdin Medetov: Regarding the potential, I would say it is enough to succeed in major international competitions. We have a lot of talented guys with a great desire to work. There are also significant successes. For example, quite recently, the children’s team of Kyrgyzstan took second place in the team at the qualifying phase of the Asian Tennis Championship, which was held in Bahrain. David Mogilevsky won the first tournament. According to the results of the second, Eva Gavshina took eighth place, Kamila Aripova – fifth, Sultan Satykeev – seventh place. In addition, the boys have the “money” twice.
In October 2022, after a break of almost ten years, the Republic Championship took place. Competitions were held on the “Tie-Break” courts. I admit that we did not expect the number of participants to be so large. We even had to introduce age restrictions. But still, the tournament brackets turned out to be complete.
The championship was held under the auspices of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and the Sports Events Directorate “Zhashtyk” of the Department of Physical Culture and Sports of the relevant Ministry of Kyrgyzstan. The tournament was voluntarily supported by sponsors – mobile operators, a number of industrial companies and construction companies. Alright, that suggests that tennis in Kyrgyzstan is about to flourish. The main thing is not to stop there and move forward. This is possible if the support continues and becomes even more important.
Unfortunately, with the preparation of international competitions, everything is much more complicated. I would say there are problems.
- What exactly?
Nurdin Medetov: The lack of a sufficient number of courts, national centers, professional coaches and a weak tennis school. Here are the main problems of this sport in the republic and the reasons for the failures of current Kyrgyz players in major tournaments.
There are only a few professional tennis coaches in our country. Another difficulty is that they are not prepared in our republic, only abroad. The Kyrgyz State Academy of Physical Culture and Sports once had a special department, but later it was abolished. The reasons are unknown to me. Last year I tried to create it again, but to no avail. To prepare a coach – for tennis or any other sport – you need qualified specialists in physical education.
- What if you trained coaches by attracting foreign specialists – online?
Nurdin Medetov: We use this method, but only for athletes. We pass special courses prepared by IFT. The International Federation provides us with a platform for training beginner tennis players.
For 2023, the IFT has given us a quota, according to which a female tennis coach will travel to Spain in May to improve their skills within the framework of the special program of the International Olympic Committee “Women and Sport”.
- Is it possible to organize a tennis department or at least a course on the basis of the Olympic reserve school?
Nurdin Medetov: We are working on this issue. In principle, yes, but a special program is required.
- What about tennis referees?
Nurdin Medetov: The situation is the same with judges as with coaches. We have discussed this issue with Amir Borhein, who is the ITF coordinator for Central Asia, as well as with the Kazakh tennis federation. Everywhere we were welcomed, and this year several sports referees will be trained abroad.
- Should the referee himself be able to play tennis?
Nurdin Medetov: It is not a mandatory condition. World practice has shown that there are many sports referees who have never held a racket in their hands. It is important to know the rules of the game and to be objective.
- In one of your speeches, you expressed the idea of ​​developing tennis in the regions. It is a very expensive sport and people in rural areas do not live well.
Nurdin Medetov: It is important to develop the right approach here. It is necessary to identify talented children in the regions and support them. Work in this direction is already being carried out by our subsidiary in Osh. We are helping him with equipment, and in 2022 we are organizing specialist consultations on the construction of a covered court.
- Does the State provide aid for the development of tennis?
Nourdin Medetov: As far as possible. The Ministry of Tourism and Sports during the national championship last year provided a set of medals and diplomas, and also organized the refereeing. In 2023, we were promised to allocate 400,000 soms.
- How can girls play tennis in these regions of Kyrgyzstan where religious traditions are strong? Are there any restrictions here?
Nurdin Medetov: In Islamic countries, girls were not allowed to play tennis for a long time. The reason is the clothes of the athletes. Now the situation has changed and this sport is becoming more and more popular. Sports uniform? Well, they invented a Muslim swimsuit – a burkini. Why not do the same with a tennis outfit?
key question
- How to identify talented children in villages where there were no tennis courts in the past?
Nurdin Medetov: Six months ago we organized the “First month free” campaign for those who want to play tennis. Anyone could come to court and try their hand. During the campaign, we tried to identify the most capable children.
We want to try to organize tennis lessons in schools, as well as establish cooperation with physical education teachers. But again, there is a shortage of coaches in the country. Who should take care of talented children?
The problem also has a financial aspect. Developing a world-class athlete is an expensive process. If we are talking about a competitor to become one of the best rackets in the world, it takes an average of about one hundred thousand dollars per year. In Kyrgyzstan, it is almost impossible to find such a source of funding.
