#ARCTIC. #SIBERIA. THIS IS TAIMYR. Fourteen-year-old Alan Badalov, a hockey player for the Norilsk national team, presented a prize to the best player of the Channel One Cup. In the decisive match, the national team Russia 25 beat the national team of Kazakhstan with a score of 5:2. The best player of the Cup according to the official partner of the Russian Hockey Federation (RHF), the Nornickel company, was striker Valentin Zykov.
The Russian Hockey Federation, of which Nornickel is a partner, is hosting matches of the 2023 Channel One Hockey Cup. The competition took place at the ice palace in St. Petersburg from December 14 to 17. The traditional New Year’s tournament was attended by two domestic teams – Stars with Major Hockey League and Russia 25, as well as their rivals from Kazakhstan and Belarus.
This year, the Russians regained the trophy for the first time since 2020, the Belarusian team, which won last year, took second place, Kazakhstan was in third place, the team of stars and the MHL finished in fourth place.
Alan Badalov flew to the Channel One Cup from Norilsk along with his coach – the athlete has been playing hockey for nine years in the local Umka team and is already being called up to the city’s junior team, where he scored 14 goals in one of the matches.
“I have long dreamed of seeing the best players in our country, meeting the legendary Vladislav Tretyak, and the opportunity to present an award to the best player of the Channel One Cup – striker Valentin Zykov – is something incredible. I will train hard to lift all kinds of cups over my head. Many thanks to Nornickel for this New Year’s gift”, said Alan Badalov after the award ceremony.
For five years, Nornickel has been cooperating with the Russian Hockey Federation as an official partner and general partner of the national hockey player training program Red Machine. One of the significant areas of cooperation was a specially made program for the development of hockey in the Arctic regions.
“We thank our reliable partner Nornickel for its comprehensive support of national hockey – from professional to amateur. The head of the company, Vladimir Potanin, sincerely loves hockey and puts a lot of effort into its development and popularization. It’s also nice that starting this season, our own team from Norilsk is also playing in the MHL; a base is being created for the full development of children’s and youth hockey, which means that the future of our country’s hockey glory will actively grow in the regions”, emphasized the three-time Olympic champion , ten-time world champion, the FHR president Vladislav Tretyak.
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Text: Angelika Stepanova, Photo: Inna Sadovskaya
