Rodninas Thoughts on Football: When Will We See Positive Results? Hope Always Lasts

The Soviet figure skater, three-time Olympic champion, and State Duma deputy, Irina Rodnina, shared her thoughts on football. She expressed that hockey deserves to be a more popular sport, especially given the impressive results of Russian teams in that discipline.

«Football captivates people’s interest more, but hockey has always enjoyed greater popularity, particularly due to its successful outcomes. Considering the volume of questions and the amount of coverage by journalists, football stands as the most popular sport in Russia. There’s popularity, yet a lack of results? A sport can be popular not only when it garners medals and achievements. While those are certainly beneficial and no one disputes that, true popularity is measured by the number of individuals seriously engaging in the sport. Will there come a time when football will start to deliver satisfying results? Hope dies last,» Rodnina’s remarks were reported by Sport24.

In addition to her three Olympic gold medals in pairs skating, the 75-year-old Irina Rodnina has been a world champion ten times, an eleven-time European champion, and a six-time Soviet champion throughout her career.