Swimmer Prigoda Discusses the Impact of Chikunovas and Kornevs Experiments in Non-Profile Distances

Russian swimmer Kirill Prigoda shared his thoughts on the experiments involving non-specialized distances by swimmer Evgenia Chikunova and Yegor Kornev at the 2025 Russian Swimming Championship held in Kazan.

«I am regularly involved in experimenting; those who follow my performances know that I compete in a variety of events, including individual medleys and longer distances like the 800m and 1500m. However, at this championship, there is an emphasis on core distances, and athletes need to meet specific standards regardless of whether there are international competitions scheduled or not.

The fact that these athletes are incorporating additional races into the main session is beneficial for them. There are very few opportunities for preliminary races during the short-course season, which often presents challenges in training. Therefore, it’s essential to participate more; otherwise, with only one or two races, you find yourself needing to reach peak performance too quickly. In terms of preparation, that isn’t sufficient.

I approach everything with enthusiasm; this competition is one of the first we’ve had after a break, and naturally, I’m prioritizing events that I’m familiar with to help me build my race rhythm. For instance, in Belarus, I plan to additionally compete in both the 200m and 400m individual medley, which will help me regain my competitive spirit and will be a great way to apply that to non-standard training,» Prigoda’s words were conveyed by correspondent Rustam Imamov from «Championship».