Liudmila Bodnieva can hardly wait for the Champions League finals to come. She already won the Gold medal with the Russian national team in December - now she desperately wants the CL title. The 27-year old pivot is playing her third season in ...

PRINT VERSION:

Liudmila Bodnieva can hardly wait for the Champions League finals to come. She already won the Gold medal with the Russian national team in December - now she desperately wants the CL title.

The 27-year old pivot is playing her third season in Krim and she says that it is one of the best organized clubs where everything is run on a high professional level. The last days before the 1st leg match against Viborg Krim went to a spa centre for the final preparations.

Eurohandball.com: How did the last few days look like? Do you make any special preparations before the final against Viborg?

Liudmila Bodnieva: No, not really. We stayed in spa centre in Zrece where we had some training sessions. But mostly we worked on tactics, watching Viborg play and we made a lot of analyses to be as well-prepared as possible.

Eurohandball.com: Would you say that by advancing into the final you reached your goal for the season?

Liudmila Bodnieva: Well, it is nice to be in a final but we all want to go on the top. For me it would be a great disappointment not to win the title - I was already very sad when we lost in the 2003/04 CL final against Slagelse. To me a final is not the highest point - only the title counts.

Eurohandball.com: You could say that in your successful career only the CL triumph is missing?

Liudmila Bodnieva: Well, I won a medal at the World Championships twice - however, you cannot compare the two competitions. The World Championship is a short tournament, whereas the Champions League is played over a whole season and all of your energy and strength is put into this. It is something special to me.

Eurohandball.com: Would you say that Krim is favourite in this “fight”?

Liudmila Bodnieva: This is a final, there is no favourite. We all want the same – to win the trophy. I think Viborg has the same motivation as we do. But a lot also depends on luck.

I do not think that the two victories in the group stage mean anything; this is a completely different situation. I highly respect Viborg and I think they are prepared for everything. Yet, I can promise we will do everything in our power to defeat the Danish team.

Eurohandball.com: Before coming to Slovenia's Krim Mercator you played in Volgograd. How do you feel in Ljubljana, Slovenia?

Liudmila Bodnieva: I feel great. Handball is very popular in Slovenia and it is also much easier for players. It is hard to compare, I played in Russia three years ago and I think things have improved there.

Eurohandball.com: What about Krim, you still have one year of your contract left. What will you do then?

Liudmila Bodnieva: I think this is a great club where everything is highly professional. I would not change anything. It is like a big family – and this is what makes Krim so special. I guess this is also one of the main “weapons” for success. I am satisfied here and I do not think about what to do after.


Interview: Maja Mastnak, SiOL-Sportal