Alexander Majorov receives a hero's welcome in his hometown of Luleå

SVT interview: http://svtplay.se/v/2350698/nordnytt/bronshjalten_hyllades

Sveriges Radio interview: http://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=98&artikel=4388474 The page contains two audio files, but one of them is a snippet from the longer version. (I may not understand spoken Swedish, but I can at least recognize when something is being repeated.)

NSD.se article: http://www.nsd.se/nyheter/artikel.aspx?ArticleID=6019778

Kuriren.se article: http://www.kuriren.nu/nyheter/default.aspx?articleid=5826036

Select "Majorov tog brons i JVM" on the right-hand side to watch the 24Norrbotten news clip: http://www.kuriren.nu/24norrbotten/#category=0&date=playlist&clip=0&startTime=0m0s

A Swedish blogger shared some snapshots of Sasha's arrival: http://radhusbloggen.blogg.se/2011/march/da-var-jvm-medaljoren-fran-porson-valkomnad.html




As always, full translations of radio and video clips would be greatly appreciated.

Wow, so much media attention for a junior bronze. And this on the same day as the start of the Swedish Hockey Leauge's final rounds Swedish skating is starved of international medals Bravo Sasha and the Swedish federation(which promise more to come).

The radio interview:
Cute with all the girls from his club screaming and cheering for him… after waiting a looong time for his arrival. Good for him and them it's a school holiday this week.
One day free and sleep for Sasha and then preparing for senior worlds. Leaving for Japan March 16th, getting ready for the preliminary round.

siberia82 said:

As always, full translations of radio and video clips would be greatly appreciated.

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Siberia, which of these interviews have you got translated? The radio interview is the longest and the others tell pretty much the same.

snowflake said:

Swedish skating is starved of international medals

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It has been 80 long years ----Swedish FS fans must be absolutely ravenous for a medal!

snowflake said:

Siberia, which of these interviews have you got translated? The radio interview is the longest and the others tell pretty much the same.

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Unfortunately, no one has volunteered a translation for any of the video or radio clips. If you're willing to work on them, I would suggest that you begin with the 24Norrbotten news report because the website only keeps its videos on-line for one week.

Orion kindly offered to translate the following video :yay::

siberia82 said:

Select "Majorov tog brons i JVM" on the right-hand side to watch the 24Norrbotten news clip: http://www.kuriren.nu/24norrbotten/#category=0&date=playlist&clip=0&startTime=0m0s

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Reporter: Figure skater Alexander Majorov made history this weekend when he won Sweden's first medal ever at Junior Worlds, and tonight, he was greeted with loud cheers from the crowd as he arrived back in Luleå. It was after a great free skate in South Korea that Alexander Majorov won an historic bronze medal at Junior Worlds. He has previously made headlines when he wasn't chosen for the European Championships and told everyone to "go to hell" on Facebook. He later apologized and the Swedish Figure Skating Association responded with an official warning. Only two months later, he was given a spot on the World team and now he has won a bronze medal.

Alexander: Incredibly fun!

Reporter: Did you expect this?

Alexander: Yes and no. Before I went to South Korea, I believed I could make the top three, but when I saw the competition there, I began to doubt. However, after the short program, I felt that I was back in form.

Reporter: When the bronze medallist arrived at Luleå Airport, he was greeted with flowers, posters and loud cheering – unexpected, according to him.

Alexander: I was a bit shocked when I arrived here – everyone from the sports club were here congratulating me!

Reporter: At the end of March, Alexander will travel to Tokyo for senior Worlds, but he doesn't want to speculate on his chances there yet.

Alexander: I don't know yet, we'll see. I'll be training hard in preparation and then we will see how far I will go when I get there. I don't know who my competitors will be yet.



I made a screen recording of the 24Norrbotten news clip before it was taken down (the site only keeps the vids on-line for a week), and the file can be downloaded here: http://www.mediafire.com/?zenz9dyab0iko24

snowflake painstakingly translated this long radio interview!

siberia82 said:

Sveriges Radio interview: http://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=98&artikel=4388474

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R = Reporter, AM = Alexander Majorov, CK = Carina Kelly, IM = Irina Majorov



R: Balloons, flags, banners and plates. Yes, that's what awaited Alexander Majorov when he arrived at Luleå Airport yesterday. And many were there.

R: Why are you here at this moment?

- To cheer for Sasha's bronze placement.

R: What will you do when he arrives then?

- Well, scream. (She and her friends laugh.)

R: And here is one carrying a lot of flowers. What's your name?

- Viktoria.

R: Why are you here?

- Because Sasha is arriving. (She giggles.)

R: So, how big is his achievement, then?

- Very big.

R: What will you do when he comes?

- Cheer.

R: Do you figure skate as well?

- Oh, yes!

R: Who is your big idol, then?

- I don't know, I have a lot. Sasha is one of them.


"Now they must come. Now, now, no more patience. Now they should come..." (Screams, shouts and applauds.)

R: Expectant figure skating fans were waiting and waiting, but finally Sasha arrived.

"Congrats Sasha!"


R: How do you feel coming home, getting such a reception?

AM: It's fantastic, it's really fun. I didn't expect this.

R: How did you expect the arrival to be?

AM: Well, as it always is; my mom stands here with my little brother and says welcome home.

R: Was it a shock with so much people?

AM: Yes, it was. That's to say, I didn't imagine it.

R: Did you have time to digest what you actually achieved over there?

AM: Yes, I actually have. Well, now I just have to focus on real Worlds, so... but, I must try to digest it away even more because it's hard to continue practicing when it went well. That is the most tricky part. Yeah, but it's just keeping on, aiming for the next competition.

R: Will it be hard to re-focus before next Worlds?

AM: Well, I don't know yet. We'll see how it goes this week. But mostly it's easier to take on practice after it went badly. Then you crave to practise. You really want only to practise. But I will try to re-focus until tomorrow and start training again.

R: Did you believe, when you went, that you would succeed like this?

AM: Well, at first, before the short program, when I arrived, then I was out of shape in everything. I didn't think I would qualify. The short went well even though I had a bad training session. Then my body came to life the same day.

R: What did you think then after the short program, when you knew you had a chance to medal?

AM: Well, after the short program, it felt good. Then I knew I could fight for the top three, top four.

R: If you look forward to senior Worlds, which is pretty close, what are your expectations?

AM: Well, I don't know. I'll try to go for it and skate clean and then we'll see how far it takes me.

R: It was a bit of a storm between you and the federation before. Do you see this medal as a revenge?

AM: No, I don't. Because all that happened before, that was only... it grew to big... absolutely not a revenge. It's fun to show that you are good in Sweden also. Particularly to show that Swedish skaters are developing.

R: Carina Kelly, from the Swedish Figure Skating Federation, was present at Luleå Airport to meet Alexander. And she was impressed.

CK: Yes, it's fantastic, it's awesome, it's hard to put words on it! We have been waiting for so long, well, since 1932. And all this hard work that especially he has done and his family. Yes it's... I feel... I have tears in my eyes. No, but it's fantastic!

R: What does this medal mean to Swedish figure skating?

CK: It means very very much. Because the federation has since many years had this goal, to medal at the big events. And this is only the beginning. That's how I look at it. There are many junior skaters coming up as well. We will certainly see more medals at big events. That's what I think.

R: And among the receivers there was, of course, also mom, as well as coach, Irina Majorov. And she was affected by the reception of her son.

IM: It feels awesome, I think. I am glad, I am proud. I am happy about it all. It was very touching to see them all... the many who had come here with their feelings, beautiful banners and flowers. Thank you for everything.

R: How nervous were you at home following the competitions?

IM: I tried to stay strong and not have bad thoughts, I knew that he was capable. I tried to send him good feelings. You can, you can (and then "you can, you can" in Russian, I think). You have to start showing at some point what you can do. So, I wasn't nervous. But the last minutes, when he had skated his program and he called home and said: "I got 195 points and is in first place at the moment with four boys left to go," I realized that he would be at least in 5th place. And I couldn't get online, Internet. And I was shaking and shivering and waiting until Carina Skoog, from the federation, called and told me he was third. And I started to cry. That was fun.