Maryna Kroshyna: “We should clearly understand that tennis is a fine calling card for the country”
During more than 15 years Maryna Kroshyna had defended the colors of Red Banner all over the world (see photo).
An honored master of sports, she won the All USSR tournament five times and the European tournament four times. She won the Junior Wimbledon and went as high as the semi-finals of the US Open. She was a champion of the Universiada and of many other tournaments in Europe and overseas.
Maryna was the brightest in the history of the Soviet sports. How does the tennis star of the seventies live now? The Day met with her in her two-room apartment in Kyiv two hours before training. I see you are still in perfect physical shape?
Yes, I try to keep fit, because in tennis it is very important to show your student the techniques; it is hard to just explain him what to do. Earlier this year you came back from Egypt, where you coached a talented young female tennis player.
Yes, I went to Egypt on a private invitation and on recommendation of my husband's friend. I trained 16 year-old Sara Abaza and took her to the first position in the local female rating. The Abazas is a very old and respected family in Egypt. And they accepted me very well. I also worked with Sara's younger brother, 10 year old Ziad. After my contract expired, I was replaced by my student, Tetiana Matakhniuk.
And what about tennis? Is it now, at the end of the twentieth century, still the game of aristocrats?
Now, especially in the developed countries, tennis is a game not only for the chosen. But in Egypt, just like in Ukraine, there is very great social stratification. Did you have any experience working abroad before going to Egypt?
Yes, back in 1993 I spent four months in Athens coaching the daughter of Oleh Blokhin, the former Dynamo superstar. Ira is a very talented girl, but she does not like to work hard. Everything was too easy for her. She used to tell to her grandmother, "I like tennis, because here I have to work less than on gymnastics." Now she has quit sports and is recording her first album. I believe she will manage it, because she has wonderful flexibility and good voice. Does the state support the former athletes, who brought it so much fame in the past?
Our federation of tennis is presently living through bad days. That is why I have no claims on it. I am retired and my pension is Hr 60. I hope they will raise it to Hr 200, because I am honored master of sports. I do not think any other athlete ever achieved such victories in the international arena as I did. Now we do not suffer from much success. Andriy and Natasha Medvediev's recent results are not very impressive. Natasha is better known doubles player. The return of Andriy Dolhopolov to Kyiv and his work with Medvediev should bring its results after some time. And Olena Tatarkova is making great and rapid progress. Perhaps we can explain Andriy's failures by psychological factors, because he can do everything on the court.
Of course, his sixty-eighth world ranking does not reflect his actual strength. And there was always the lack of experienced sports psychologists. What do you think prevented many Soviet athletes from achieving great success in the international arena, though they won numerous junior tournaments?
Halyna Baksheyeva, Olha Morozova, Natalka Chmyriova (twice), and I won the junior Wimbledon. But objective circumstances prevented us from developing our success. Our participation in the international tournaments was occasional. We had many talented athletes but we fell behind in the methods of their training. The state let tennis have a free ride, just like other kinds of sports. How do you see the future of tennis?
With all weak points of the Soviet system, there were good traditions and a good All-Union training system carried out a couple of time during the year. Now, only in Kyiv and Donetsk there are adequate conditions for tennis development. Ukraine has not specialized tennis magazine. We do not know what state the federation is in. The short articles in newspapers do not give full information about what is going on in Ukrainian tennis. We should clearly understand that tennis is a fine business card for the country. We know more about Martina Hingis and Pete Sampras than about our fellow Ukrainians. Do we have to conclude from this that the future of Ukrainian tennis is shrouded in fog?
Tennis is an Olympic type of sports, so our sports officials should pay more attention to this highly interesting game. I respect soccer, but it is not everything in life.
