Q: Evgeny, if you were in school right now, what would you write in your essay on the subject of  "How I have spent my summer"?

Evgeny: After Worlds in Vancouver I skated on Tom Collins Tour for a couple months. Then I went to Volgograd and spent a week with my relatives  - fishing, boating, playing with my dog. But it didn't last long and I had to return to my routine schedule. It wasn't enough of rest - so, I forced myself to practice. Alexei Nikolaevich noticed that change in my mood and tried to give me more spare time. Sometimes -a couple days, sometimes - a week. At some moment I finally felt how much I missed being on ice, the work and things went back to normal. I started to train with pleasure. 

Q: And, as a matter of fact, you have won GWG being "en vogue"?

Evgeny: No, quite on the contrary- it was pretty hard at the GWG. At the annual Test Skate in Sokol'niki I couldn't do neither a quad nor a 3,5 revolution axel. When I came to Australia it was warm there, everything was in blooming and it helped me out of this mood. Even, though, nothing came out right in practice, I pulled myself together and did it in competition. Including 4-3 combination and triple axel. 

Q: How did Yagudin look in Australia?

Evgeny: He looked great in practice- he did quad salchow, quad toe, triple axel in combinations... But something went wrong for Lyosha in competition.

Q: Did you like the atmosphere at GWG?

Evgeny: The atmosphere was great. The audience was wonderful. The only trouble - it's too far to fly.
It took us 26 hours and two planes to get to Brisbane. 

Q: The Olympics are ahead. Who is going to be your main competitor?

Evgeny: I am my own first and main rival. If I can handle my emotions, if I can detach myself during the performance and skate calmly then shouldn't be any problems. On the other hand, you shouldn't underestimate others. Stojko, Weiss, Goebel, Yagudin, Abt, Klimkin - all of them are able to show high results. And Chinese skaters! They are able to land two kinds of quads "with their eyes closed." Timothy Goebel - can land three. In a word, the one who skates better and cleaner will win the Olympics. 

Q: There are views that, speaking in soccer language, the men's competition will take place on Alexei Yagudin "field" because he is well- known and loved in America... 

Evgeny: I can't complain on a cool response from Americans myself. I've traveled all over America with Tom Collins Tour and everywhere they greeted me very warmly. 

Q: What is the most difficult for you in the Olympic year?

Evgeny: Completing my FP (Smiling) The rest won't be any different then in the last seasons. 

Q: It's not a quite time now in the US. Will it somehow affect the Olympic Games? 

Evgeny: I was shocked by the events happened September. Those who did it are just not human. But the Olympics should take place. If not in America, then somewhere else. 

Q: If you win the Games, you will get yourself all the possible titles in figure skating.

Evgeny: It would be so. But if anybody else wins, I'll get over it. 

Q: Have you already thought what would you do after ending your career in sport?

Evgeny: I will open a restaurant or a discotheque. I guess I'll get such an opportunity. At first, though, I want to skate as much as possible - in amateur sport and then in pro. Until my forties. 

Q: Wow!  Will you enough strength for that? 

Evgeny: I don't know...
 The most important thing is to sleep well before the starts. I used to prepare myself mentally to competition a night before but now I prefer to call somebody and just talk about anything. It helps a lot, you know.