Former CV lacrosse player and Harrisburg Academy assistant coach Eugene Arkhipov is currently playing in the World Games with Team Russia. Eugene was kind enough to take some time while in Denver and answer questions with us on what his experience with lacrosse in Moscow and the World Games has been like.
(INTERVIEW AFTER THE JUMP)
When did you first start playing lacrosse and what attracted you to the game?
I first started playing at the Harrisburg Academy around 6th grade if I'm not mistaken. Really the only reason I played is because I loved sports and the Academy didn't offer any other sports in the spring other than tennis. A couple of the guys said i was fast and should try this new sport, so I had nothing to lose, and I liked the challenge so I signed up.
What are some of your fondest experiences/memories of the sport?
Never losing in the CV vs Harrisburg Academy/Trinity rivalry as a player/coach
Starting all throughout my career until college
Getting to RIT
Making the top star Fab 40 university division
Playing for capital region at the keystone games from middle school to high school
Making all-league selections a few times
Playing for the Russian national team at the FIL world lacrosse championships
Being from Russia, what was your experience like moving to the United States and then returning many years later?
Moving to the states wasn't my choice and since i was a kid and i didn't know any better, I couldn't really value it properly. But returning gave me perspective, especially since I lived and traveled in Europe beforehand. It would have to be something big for me to move back. Life is way better in Russia in all aspects except sports infrastructure. Capitalism took over Russia, and people have to pay for everything, including field time.
Where there any lacrosse clubs, teams, or leagues that you got involved with right away?
There weren't any real clubs, just a couple of guys throwing around in Moscow, and St. Pete. As soon as i got involved i wanted something more, so i decided that growing the sport was my calling.
How prevalent is the sport in Moscow and Russia?
Not prevalent at all. Nobody cares about sports in Russia, after the fall of the soviet union, people started caring more about money than sports (in the USSR sports were free). and playing any sport costs a lot of money. It is more of a hobby than a way of life or anything serious. But now, its slowly changing back to the old mentality.
Is it experiencing the same level of explosive growth as it has the past ten years here in the states?
Absolutely not, there's no school teams, the infrastructure is different. Schools don't want to sponsor any sports, you have to pay for everything, and everyone is so busy and the city is so big its hard to get from one end to the other. For example a ride on the metro from one end of the city to the other could take as long as 1.5 hours. so 3 hours two way is quite a lot of time when you count in going to work/school or whatever else people do.
How did you first become involved with the national team?
The national team kind of fell in my lap. The guy that started throwing around with people in Moscow decided he wanted to go to the World Championships in Denver because we couldn't make the Manchester games. And since I was the only one left in Moscow and I had interest we started to go around Europe to tournaments and train the guys. The other guys seemed interested too so we just followed fate.
At what point did the World Championships seem like a real possibility?
About 2012 it became somewhat of a real chance, and the legitimate interest was there.
What have been some of the major obstacles in getting your program to Denver?
Money, lack of practices, poor organisation by our team organizers.
What has the experience at the World Games been like for you and your team?
We all are in awe, and we are all loving the experience.
Fondest memory so far?
Getting the first victory for the Russian National Team against Argentina.
How do you see the sport and your career continuing after the FIL games?
We'll see where it leads me, experience tells me that it can be unpredictable, so expect anything, good or bad.
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