Pavel Kulizhnikov

www.facebook.com/pav.kulizhnickov

Club / Team	Central Sports Army Club [RUS] / Krasnodar Regional Centre of Olympic Preparation in Winter Sports [RUS] / Monchegorsk Sports School of Olympic Reserve [RUS]:
Reason for choosing this sport	His father took him to the local ice rink where he first tried ice hockey before trying speed skating. "I actually started training at the speed skating club in summer camps off the ice. I really fell in love with the sport, when I finally got to skate on real clap skates with a real skinsuit."
Name of coach	Dmitry Dorofeyev [personal, national], RUS
When and where did you begin this sport?	He began speed skating at age 12 in Kolomna, Russian Federation.

Nicknames	Pasha, Kalashnikov (VK profile, 21 Apr 2016; rsport.ru, 15 Feb 2015)
Hero / Idol	Canadian speed skater Jeremy Wotherspoon. (Athlete, 06 Nov 2014)
Ambitions	To win medals at the Olympic Winter Games. (Athlete, 31 Jul 2017)
Awards and honours	He was named Sportsman of the Year at the 2020 National Sports Award held by the Ministry of Sport of the Russian Federation. (minsport.gov.ru, 09 Dec 2020) He has received the title of Honoured Master of Sport in the Russian Federation. (minsport.gov.ru, 29 May 2020)
Injuries	He suffered a groin injury following his victory in the 500m at the 2020/21 World Cup event in Heerenveen, Netherlands, and missed the same event on the following day of the competition. (isu.org, 31 Jan 2021) In December 2020 he contracted a COVID-19 infection and could not compete at the 2021 European Championships in Heerenveen, Netherlands. (isu.org, 20 Jan 2021) In 2019 he twisted his right ankle and missed the first three events of the 2019/20 World Cup. (matchtv.ru, 30 Dec 2019) In June 2018 he underwent meniscus [knee] surgery and returned to training in July 2018. (tass.ru, 27 Jul 2018; sport-express.ru, 22 Aug 2018) A groin injury forced him to miss the 2017 European Championships in Heerenveen, Netherlands. (schaatsen.nl, 01 Jan 2017) He required surgery ahead of the 2015/16 season after injuring his collarbone during a training camp in Calgary, AB, Canada. (tass.ru, 01 Sep 2015)
Other information	SANCTION He tested positive for the prohibited substance methylhexanamine at the 2012 World Junior Championships in Obihiro, Japan. He was stripped of the gold and bronze medals he won at the tournament, and suspended for a two-year period. He was eligible to return to competitive action in March 2014. (theguardian.com, 08 Mar 2016; isu.org, 31 Aug 2012)