Alexander Kozhevnikov: “Hockey unites everyone”

By Vestnik Kavkaza

On September 11th a charitable hockey match between “People’s Friendship” of HC “Legends of Hockey” and HC “Menora” will take place in Moscow. Children from orphanages will visit the match for free. The hockey club “Menora” was established by the Moscow Jewish Community Center, and it is headed by an Honored Master of Sport of the USSR, double Olympic champion Alexander Kozhevnikov. According to him, Menora will soon open a children’s sporting school where children will study for free.
Alexander Kozhevnikov told Vestnik Kavkaza about the development of hockey in the North Caucasus and the unifying force of sport.

- Please speak about the development of hockey in the North Caucasus.

- We are friends with the head of Ingushetia, Yunus-Bek Yevkurov. I know he is a hockey fan. I believe certain problems will be settled, and he will build a hockey rink. I know that he had such an idea when we visited him. Hockey unites everybody! I know there is a rink in Chechnya. And every region has a desire to develop this kind of sport.

- Today Russia and Ukraine have difficult relations. How can sport influence the settlement of the situation in the region?

- We all go in for sports since childhood. We are friends, we communicate. Two years ago a match was held, devoted to the game between the USSR and Canada in 1972. We were happy to see each other, we solved certain problems. Today veterans are travelling a lot. The same situation is in sport: you organize international tournaments, you are rivals, but after a match you always communicate and become friends. We visited Switzerland. The trip was organized by Vyacheslav Fetisov and Yuri Vorobyev, while Gennady Timchenko participated in it; and we talked to members of the Ukrainian parliament there. Friendship unites people; it is easier to find a common language, as all athletes have a similar mentality. It makes them respect each other. Sport is a unifying ground, and the same goes for politicians.

- You are the head of the hockey club “Menora.” What are the prospects and plans of your team?

- Our club is promising. Now we will play the second match [of the charitable hockey match “People’s Friendship”, the first game took place on June 1st]. Later we plan to conduct an international match in Kazan. Then we will establish a school for all religions on the basis of Menora. Our plans for the next year, for New Year's Eve, are to hold an international tournament between Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus and Russia. Menora will make the tournament permanent. Mainly it will connect with children. First, it will be a children’s tournament, and then there will be a match between adults. We will develop in this direction.