The competition hasn't even started, but the performance has: skaters and sponsors arriving to mingle before things kick off tomorrow, reporters hanging around waiting for a chance to scoop an interview or find a new angle to cover for the next few days. It's the kind of thing Yuri dislikes, his natural reticence at being in the spotlight or talking to people he doesn't know choking up all his words and shattering his self-assurance, but Victor has never minded it.
That's not even the right term. He enjoys it. The attention, the questions, the photos. He loves talking about skating, and he's never minded being open about himself and his personal life, and he's still the reigning champion, and that makes him a favorite of the press. He knows that would be a vain thing to say, but that doesn't make it any less true: what might come across as simple arrogance from someone else is often charming, even magnetic, from him.
So he's glad Yuri took the out. He'll have to talk to all of these people sooner or later, but right now, Victor just wants him to rest and focus, and he'll have a harder time doing that when "How do you feel about returning to Russia?" is one of the first questions launched his way, swiftly followed by: "When will you return to skating?"
It's not surprising that the press corp here is focused more on his return than on Yuri's comeback, but Victor's an old hand at deflecting them, easily, with a polite enough delivery that he can appear flattered by their interest but remain firm on this line. "Until the Grand Prix Final is over, I won't comment on any future plans."
He'd looked forward to coming back here, he'd said earlier. As a coach. He might be the problem with the press right now, but he can also be the solution: if he wants them to focus on something other than him, they will. "Right now, I see a lot of potential in Katsuki Yuri's skating. I'd like you all to focus on Yuri at the Rostelecom Cup."
It's a good line, and a firm one, and he's mentally patting himself on the back for directing attention away from himself and towards Yuri, when another reporter leans in, smiling. "If the skater Katsuki has that much charisma, don't you want to face him as a fellow competitor?"
no subject
That's not even the right term. He enjoys it. The attention, the questions, the photos. He loves talking about skating, and he's never minded being open about himself and his personal life, and he's still the reigning champion, and that makes him a favorite of the press. He knows that would be a vain thing to say, but that doesn't make it any less true: what might come across as simple arrogance from someone else is often charming, even magnetic, from him.
So he's glad Yuri took the out. He'll have to talk to all of these people sooner or later, but right now, Victor just wants him to rest and focus, and he'll have a harder time doing that when "How do you feel about returning to Russia?" is one of the first questions launched his way, swiftly followed by: "When will you return to skating?"
It's not surprising that the press corp here is focused more on his return than on Yuri's comeback, but Victor's an old hand at deflecting them, easily, with a polite enough delivery that he can appear flattered by their interest but remain firm on this line. "Until the Grand Prix Final is over, I won't comment on any future plans."
He'd looked forward to coming back here, he'd said earlier. As a coach. He might be the problem with the press right now, but he can also be the solution: if he wants them to focus on something other than him, they will. "Right now, I see a lot of potential in Katsuki Yuri's skating. I'd like you all to focus on Yuri at the Rostelecom Cup."
It's a good line, and a firm one, and he's mentally patting himself on the back for directing attention away from himself and towards Yuri, when another reporter leans in, smiling. "If the skater Katsuki has that much charisma, don't you want to face him as a fellow competitor?"