#13
Mercury News
December 12, 2001
Russia deals injustice by keeping Nabokov off its Olympic team
BY MARK PURDY
Mercury News Staff Columnist
Lately, it's been really hard to get mad at Russians. That's so different for those of us who lived through the Cold War. The old Soviet Union was the evil empire. Its citizens were the enemies of apple pie, baseball, hot rods, pinup calendars and all other great American institutions.
Now, forget all that. The Russians are our pals. Heck, their female tennis stars are on our pinup calendars. The Russians stand alongside us in the terrorism war. They open Burger King franchises. They play on our pro hockey teams. We embrace the Russians. Applaud them. Cheer them.
But today, let's make an exception. Let's go back to getting incensed -- at the Russian hockey federation, anyway. Evgeni Nabokov deserves that much.
Nabokov is the Sharks' goalie. He was the rookie of the year last season and has been even better statistically this season. He's a major reason the Sharks are off to their best start ever after 30 games.
And right now, Nabokov is being served a rotten plate of borscht by the people in charge of the Russian Olympic team.
Two months from now, Nabokov wants to play hockey for Russia at the Winter Games in Salt Lake City. As one of the NHL's two best Russian goalies -- Nikolai Khabibulin of Tampa Bay is the other -- Nabokov deserves to make the team.
``That's what we're all playing for, living for, to play in something like the Olympics,'' Nabokov says. ``It's the best players, the best challenge. It's just a great honor.''
But as of this morning, Nabokov is a non-Olympian. He's the victim of an arcane eligibility rule. And the Russian Olympic folks aren't working very hard to overturn that rule. When the cauldron is lit in February, Nabokov will be a man without a team.
I know, I know. So what? Why should we care? It's no skin off our USA goalie pads. In fact, we should be happy that a goalie as good as Nabokov won't be facing the Americans.
Someone, though, has to start screaming on Nabokov's behalf. And apparently, it's not going to be anyone in Moscow.
One of the good guys
So it will have to be me. Ever since Nabokov showed up in a Sharks uniform two years ago, he has been an exemplary member of the team and the community. He does charity work with children on a regular basis. And he recently participated in a bowling event that raised funds for widows of policemen and firemen in New York City.
That's why it stinks to see him get cheated. The story is a typical mess of Olympic bureaucracy and stupidity. But I'll try to briefly explain:
Nabokov was born in Kazakhstan, which then was part of the Soviet Union. When the USSR broke up, Kazakhstan became its own republic. Kazakhstan may be a terrific place. But it has no Olympic hockey team. That's why Nabokov wants to play for Russia.
It makes perfect sense. Nabokov grew up in the Soviet hockey system. He spent three seasons playing for the Moscow Dynamo before the Sharks signed him.
``I've got a Russian passport, not a Kazakhstan passport,'' Nabokov says. ``I love Kamenogorsk, my hometown in Kazakhstan. But I'm Russian.''
Not according to the Olympic pooh-bahs. In 1994, when Nabokov was 18, he was asked to play for a thrown-together squad that represented Kazakhstan in a world championship tournament. The team played at the ``C'' level, the equivalent of NCAA Division III football in America. Nabokov saw action in three games.
Those three games may forever ruin his chance to play in the Olympics. The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) has a rule that as soon as anyone plays for a particular national team, he must play for that team more or less indefinitely. He can't ``jump sides.''
I know what you're thinking. If Kazakhstan has no Olympic hockey team, how can Nabokov even jump from anyplace? Why not let him play for Russia? Well, that could happen. The IIHF has an appeal process. But the Russian hockey federation is in charge of making that appeal.
Support slow to come
And here's where it gets truly upsetting: The Russian hockey federation doesn't seem to care enough to make that appeal. Earlier this month, the federation missed the deadline for submitting Nabokov's documentation.
``It's got to be frustrating for him,'' Sharks Coach Darryl Sutter says. ``But to his credit, he's said all along it's out of his hands. And he doesn't see a whole lot of light out there.''
There's one final chance. Viacheslav Fetisov, a former All-Star NHL defenseman, is the Russian coach and general manager. He's also an assistant on the staff of the New Jersey Devils. According to reports, the IIHF has agreed to hear an appeal from Fetisov on Nabokov's behalf. Fetisov says he will get around to it when he can.
When he can? Good gravy, Viacheslav. Get it done. This is crazy. Some of the NHL's best Russians -- including Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny -- have said they aren't sure if they want to compete in Salt Lake City. Nabokov is eager and ready. If he were playing in Moscow, where every Russian hockey fan could witness his excellence, there would be outrage. But with Nabokov in San Jose, the average Ivan might not even understand the travesty that's occurring.
In fact, do they have sports talk shows in St. Petersburg or Irktusk? Maybe we should start calling them. If Nabokov misses the Olympics, the former evil empire is making a wicked, wicked mistake. As our new pals, the Russians need to know that.
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