Before Serhiy Semenov put his own name forward to become the head coach of Ukraine’s men’s biathlon team, he was helping to find someone else for the job. He spoke to several possible candidates before considering another option: why not try it himself? He discussed the idea with his wife, Swiss biathlete Aita Gasparin, and eventually decided to give it a try - and was the one chosen to lead the team.

Semenov had spent much of his sporting career thinking about training. Even as a junior, he studied his training diaries, trying to understand what worked and what made him better. Over time, he developed his own ideas about how he wanted to train, while also looking beyond the system he knew - at how athletes and coaches in other countries approached training.

That habit of questioning and comparing stayed with him through a career that brought him a World Championship medal and the small crystal globe in the Individual. Looking back, he also knows what he would have done differently: “I know I made mistakes during my career, but bitter experience is still experience. And one thing I learned is that not every training session has to kill you and drain all your energy. Yes, you have to give everything, but you have to do it smartly.”

Learning to listen

His years as an athlete shaped his ideas about coaching through both successes and mistakes. Taking charge of the Ukrainian team gave him the chance to put them into practice, but first, he wanted to understand the athletes he would be working with. Before discussing what each of them wanted to improve, he studied roughly two years of their previous training data, starting with the “bare numbers”.

Those conversations helped him develop his initial plan, but Semenov also wants athletes to speak openly when they disagree with him. “I really don’t want it to be that when the coach leaves the room, they say something different. It’s not about having no disagreements – they will be there anyway. But I don’t want things to be left unsaid.”

Athletes see the training plan in advance and can question it. Semenov explains why he has included a particular session and why it is needed at that point, while the athlete can explain why he sees things differently. Sometimes that is enough for Semenov to change the plan. “I told them that I don’t have that much experience yet. I’m ready to learn together with them.”

Not every athlete finds that easy. Some hesitate to challenge a coach, others can sense that something isn’t working but struggle to explain why. Semenov expects them to work on that, too. “Listen to yourself and try to explain to me what you feel. I’ll listen.”

For Semenov, though, this goes beyond speaking up to a coach. The group has eight athletes and three coaches, and training takes around four hours a day. The coaches cannot watch everyone all the time. “If during those four hours you can’t think and concentrate on what is happening in training, it will be difficult to become a really good athlete. You can do something because the coach told you to, or because your teammate is doing it. At some level, that will help. But you won’t show 100% of what you can do if you don’t “switch yourself on”. I can’t do that for everyone. I want to teach them so they can do it themselves.”

The difference lies in small details

To help them do that, Semenov asks each athlete to set three goals every month: one physical, one for shooting and one in an area of their choice. “At first, they didn’t understand it, and some still don’t. Some say: ‘I want to win the test race.’ No. That’s the final point. But how do you want to get there? What are you missing? Analyse your training process and identify that small component you need to improve.”

In shooting, for example, that could mean working on the correct position, reload or trigger. At elite level, the difference often lies in small details. “There can be 100, 200 of these little details. I’ll see only 10. Only the athlete can see the other 190. I’m trying to get them to analyse these things themselves. It isn’t easy, but I want them to learn.”

For Dmytro Pidruchnyi, however, taking an active role in his own training is nothing new. After ten years with Slovak coach Juraj Sanitra and several seasons training individually, he is used to analysing his preparation and having a say in how he trains. Now, back in full-time group training, the former world champion is working alongside many younger athletes. “There are a lot of young guys, and it is interesting to work with them. I can learn a lot from them, and I can also give them something from my own experience.”

From teammate to coach

That experience also shapes the way Semenov works with Pidruchnyi, his former teammate. He expects Pidruchnyi to discuss training decisions openly and explain when he sees things differently: “Not because we are friends. It’s because he worked independently for many years. He has the experience, he can listen to me, and he can make his own case.”

For Pidruchnyi, the change in roles felt natural. “I worked with Serhiy for many years when he was an athlete, and even then I learned from him and listened to him. So, when he became my coach, it wasn’t a difficult change for me. Our relationship simply moved to another level.”

The roles have changed, but the dialogue remains: “Before we do the training, we can discuss it. If we see it differently, each of us gives his arguments. I can explain from my experience and from what I feel whether this training suits me. Serhiy explains why we need it and why we need it now.” Semenov has the final say.

Pidruchnyi remembers another side of Semenov from their years as teammates: his willingness to help others. “There was always something you could learn from him. If something wasn’t working for you, he could help, give you a hand. He treated his teammates not only as competitors, but as friends, as people you could help. Because the stronger the team becomes, the stronger the competition within the team, and the better the results can be.”

Now Semenov wants to bring the same approach to the group he coaches. “First of all, I want to build a real team. I want them to help each other, stand up for each other and pull each other forward. I want them to learn from each other’s strengths and help each other improve. For me, the most important thing is that we work well together and help each other grow.”

Building a strong team is only part of what Semenov hopes to achieve. He also wants to see every athlete improve, even if that does not immediately bring medals. “Even if an athlete has more confidence on the start line, that is already progress. Not being afraid to go up against the biggest names in biathlon and trying to challenge them. Even if you lose, as long as you fight until the finish, we are on the right path. You don’t become a world champion straight away. For me, success is when an athlete realises he has taken a step forward — and when I can see that everyone on the team is making progress.”

Photo: IBU/Osolodkina