In March 2024, the athlete moved six (!) three-and-a-half-meter railway carriages. The total weight of the hitch was almost 130 tons. And at the same time, due to a technical breakdown, the cars were braking. This, however, did not affect Alexey in any way; it only added intensity to the next achievement. So what motivates the hero, who again and again pushes the boundaries of his strength and capabilities?
– Alexey, at what point in your life did you decide that what you wanted to do was such an extreme sport (moving heavy objects)?
Alexey Teplyashin: In our family, my father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brothers – they are all very strong and strong, they led a healthy lifestyle and played sports in one way or another. It’s all about the environment in which I grew up, which, of course, had a great influence on me. And I liked it too.
Before, after school, my friends and I would go to the stadium, hang from the horizontal bars, even with weights, and do some acrobatic exercises. I started to think about taking this seriously when I saw the Russian show “Strong Men”. Its participants performed various manipulations with objects, for example, twisting metal structures. Later I saw competitions of extreme power, also held in Russia. I became interested, began to study this area and became interested.
– Tell us a secret: how do you prepare? What does it take to be as strong as you are?
Alexey Teplyashin: First of all, of course, you need a psychological and moral attitude. You set a goal, a task and go towards it. And if there is no desire, no aspiration, then simply nothing will happen. And, of course, constant training and a healthy lifestyle. And speaking of goals, the next one is to try to move the plane. Of course, it will not be a Boeing, but a Yak or AN with an average weight of 25-35 tons. At the same time, you need to understand the difference between the same cars and an airplane. The details are different! When you pull cars there is friction between iron and iron, but here there is contact between rubber and asphalt, so it will be a little tougher.
I must note that I am not preparing for each of my achievements alone: I work very closely with the national public-patriotic movement “Fatherland” and its leader Sergei Toropov and the public association of veterans of the internal troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs “Sarmat”.
– How does your family feel about this hobby?
Alexey Teplyashin: My son and daughter, who are six and nine years old, are watching me, they are also trying to exercise. They wake up in the morning and the first thing they do is start exercising. But the most important thing in what I do is to set an example of a healthy lifestyle. And not only for children, but also for adults. There are situations when both acquaintances and complete strangers come up to me and say that they have seen my performances and that they also want to do extreme sports, and ask me for advice. Others prove that they have already achieved some success, and all this is thanks to my example.
– Is there any practical application for your skills? Does your wife use them? I don’t know, moving the wardrobe, for example…
Alexey Teplyashin: There is such a thing! Friends sometimes ask for help, to drag something. There were times when friends called and complained: “Lesh, where have you been? We had to push the car, the wheel got stuck, we tried in every possible way and it was barely possible.
– Isn’t it offensive?
Alexey Teplyashin: No. This happens rarely, no one abuses it. So why not help?
– Do your children’s classmates pay attention to what you do?
Alexey Teplyashin: In principle, the younger generation is interested in extreme sports. Especially – participants of patriotic movements. Moreover, the questions they ask are quite correct. For example, what kind of load and what muscle group should be applied in order not to get injured and at the same time perform this or that manipulation. But, unfortunately, compared to neighboring Kazakhstan or Russia, this sport is not very developed in our country.
– What is the reason? Are people afraid to decide on something like this?
Alexey Teplyashin: On the one hand, of course, everyone is afraid of something. And at the same time, they are capable of a lot. But the limits of these possibilities can only be measured by trying their luck. But that is not the problem.
Unfortunately, in Kyrgyzstan there is no federation of extreme strength, as it is correctly called. And even those records that I achieve, seem to exist and at the same time they are not. That is how I am: invisible. Because there is no one who records this officially, again because there is no corresponding federation. Only it can recognize my achievements.
I have contacted the President of the Russian Federation of Extreme Forces Vasily Grishchenko, I am consulting with him in terms of organization and I hope that soon I will be able to complete all official procedures and Kyrgyzstan will have its own extreme federation.
– Good luck with this! Surely this sport will have more fans after the creation of the federation. Do you have fans personally? Do they take autographs?
Alexey Teplyashin: It happened a couple of times (smiles).
They ran out of the car, came up to me and said: “Brother, you are our strongman, hero, you are the one who pulled the cars out! Let’s take a photo with you!” Of course it’s nice. And unexpectedly. But I probably have more idols too. This is, for example, Kazakhstani Sergei Tsirulnikov, multiple national record holder and multiple world record holder in strength numbers. Another hero from the neighbouring republic is strongman Alman Suleiman. He often comes to visit us in Kyrgyzstan. I take my example from them.
At the same time
An exercise by Alexey Teplyashin that anyone can do. With each hand, without any help, we take a newspaper or any other sheet of paper and begin to crumple it hanging down. Didn’t work? Again! Yes, it is difficult, it involves different muscle groups and forces you to concentrate on the process. But, firstly, it is “catchy”, and secondly, according to Alexey, it develops motor skills and attention very well. And, of course, parting words from our guest: under no circumstances should you start practicing extreme power sports without prior consultation and preparation. So as not to inadvertently injure yourself.
