“Disappointing. I didn’t manage to do what I’d planned,” said Oleksandr Okipniuk of his performance in the final of the team ski acrobatics tournament

On his feelings after the start

“Disappointment. That’s it. Disappointment that I didn’t manage it, that I couldn’t do what I wanted to. There are no excuses — it’s simply a job left undone,” said the athlete.

On his state of mind and the reasons for the mistake

“Today I was more emotional, unstable. I don’t know exactly what influenced it. I need time to analyse it. I made a mistake as soon as I hit the take-off. I felt myself being carried along strongly, just like yesterday, and subconsciously I automatically pushed my shoulders forward. That’s what prevented me from rotating properly through the flip,” commented the freestyle skier.

On risk and team tactics

The athlete emphasised that the team did not deliberately reduce the difficulty:

“It was a standard jump. But we had a plan: if we’d made it to the super final, we intended to repeat yesterday’s routine with more complex spins,” the athlete noted.

On his state of health

The previous day’s performance took its toll on the athlete:

“Yesterday had a significant impact on my health. I felt much worse today, even though the physios and masseurs did their very best. There were a few falls — you saw two yesterday, and another two happened during the warm-up and training. They’ve made themselves felt today,” concluded Oleksandr.

The National Olympic Committee of Ukraine wishes our athletes a speedy recovery and successful performances in the future. We are confident that today’s experience is an important step forward for the Ukrainian team.