Sledge Spotlight: Vadim Selyukin

Team captain Vadim Selyukin will lead Russia’s squad at the 2013 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships A-Pool next week. 04 Apr 2013

Vadim Selyukin is the captain of Russia's ice sledge hockey team.

ⒸNPC Russia

By IPC

Vadim Selyukin is ready to captain Russia’s first team to have ever competed at the IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships A-Pool next week in Goyang, Korea.

Editor’s note: Every Wednesday in the lead-up to the 2013 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey A and B Pool World Championships this season, Paralympic.org will publish its Sledge Spotlight, allowing the public to meet the faces behind the helmets. Each week, we will feature one ice sledge hockey player, giving fans a chance to get to know them better.

Vadim Selyukin is ready to captain Russia’s first team to have ever competed at the IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships A-Pool next week in Goyang, Korea.

The 36-year-old took has been a part of Russia’s programme since it first started nearly three years ago, having taken up the sport after being severely injured in an explosion in Tajikistan while voluntarily serving in the Russian Armed Forces.

The top five finishers from the Championships, which run from 12-20 April, will qualify for the Sochi 2014 Games, though Selyukin and Russia will automatically qualify as the host nation.

“All our hopes now are directed toward winning at Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games,” Selyukin said. “It can be said, that we are driven by the dream to stand on podium in Sochi.

“We feel that we are strong enough to compete with strongest teams in the world. We understand that it will be very hard to do, but we will put all our efforts together and strive toward victory.”

The Russians are coming off a very successful performance at the 2012 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships B-Pool in Novi Sad, Serbia, winning gold just two years after starting up their programme.

The players are currently training at their local clubs as well as together at their training base in Alexin, Russia.

Despite being the team captain, Selyukin insists the entire starting lineup is talented and there will be no focus around a central star in Goyang later this month.

“There are no outstanding players at the moment,” Selyukin said. “We are constantly working and improving our skills, hoping to demonstrate the best results possible.

“A lot of hard work is being done, by our clubs and our national team. We receive a lot of support from massage therapists, experts, doctors, and other support staff, too.”

Here’s a closer look at Vadim Selyukin …

Wears jersey number: 17

Daily training routine: Breakfast. Workout on the ice. Lunch. Inside exercises. Ice training again. Massage, sauna. Dinner. Relaxing walk outside.

Family: Has a wife named Irina and a daughter named Katya

Best performance: Helping Russia win gold at the 2012 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships B-Pool in Novi Sad, Serbia