Dmitri SAUTIN: I will never jump from 27 meters

Dmitri Sautin, two times Olympic champion, many times World and European champion in diving, talks about World Aquatics Championships.

Would you say Kazan infrastructure is ready to host World Aquatics Championships?

D.S.: It was ready even before the Universiade. I visited the Aquatics Palace in April, when the first test competitions took place there. I was so glad seeing it back then. To be honest, I am jealous of you - I have not been able to achieve the start of a pool construction in Voronezh for past seven years, despite the fact that there is land for it and the design specifications and estimates are ready.

I heard there will be some changes for the 2015 championship: two additional three meter springboard will be installed. FINA rules require three of them, you currently have two.

Do you work as a coach?

D.S.: Yes, a bit. I have just started this year. I work with Diana Chaplieva. We have coaching teams; I mostly work with Elena and Nikolai Drozhzhin. This year, we were joined by Artem Yermolaev, my colleague from Voronezh. He is a young coach who already got a group of 100 children here. I hope we will see young Kazan diving stars in time.

Are there many diving schools in Russia?

D.S.: We have 12 regions with diving schools. This year, Astrakhan, Smolensk and Tatarstan joined the list.

What do you think about television shows like Vyshka (Celebrity Splash)?

D.S.: This project really promoted our sport. In September, Gleb Galperin opened several fly diving schools in Moscow. We hope it will be possible to open a similar school in Kazan.

World Aquatics Championships will feature high diving. Have you ever jumped from 27 meters?

D.S.: In Sevastopol, I jumped from 18-meter-high cliff. This was a long time ago. It took my breath away. I cannot imagine what 27 meters feel like. I think I will never jump from there. This is the height of a ten-storied building, it is no laughing matter.

You will take part in Olympic torch relay in 2014...

D.S.: When International Olympic Committee found out that I am a deputy at Voronezh Oblast Duma, they excluded me from the list of torchbearers immediately. I went to the Olympic Committee, met with Maria Kiseleva and asked to find out why did that happen. She did all she could to put me back on the list.

So, I am supposed to carry the torch in Voronezh on the 18th of January, honoring my homeland.