Two days after a Russian report suggested Alex Ovechkin had a lower body injury and may miss the World Cup, the Russian machine was back on social media to post a snippet of his work out. Ovechkin performed thirteen 105-pound squats on camera before tossing the weights forward and running down a track.
work hard 🇷🇺 💪👊! pic.twitter.com/lTHDcNk4I0
— Alex Ovechkin (@ovi8) August 11, 2016
Ovechkin also posted a stick-handling and shooting drill Monday to prove his good health.
Since prominent Russian sports journalist Alexei Shevchenko made his report, the Capitals, the Russian National Team, and Ovechkin himself have all forcefully rebuked the claims.
Ovechkin told his fans to “not believe the rumors” and that he was “doing my usual volume of work in the gym and on the ice.”
Caps spokesman Sergey Kocharov also said there was “no truth” to the claims.
On his vlog Monday, Alexei Shevchenko clarified his original comments and doubled down on his claims, which have been refuted by, well, basically everyone.
“Alexander Ovechkin was injured while playing basketball,” Shevchenko says. “[Ovi] was very unlucky to fall down. There immediately was a suspicion of a serious problem, but further assessment showed there is no serious damage. Nevertheless, the video from Novogorsk is not very convincing. According to my information, he did sprain a ligament, and recovery should take three weeks.”
I look forward to Ovechkin’s next workout video where he skates blindfolded while playing a tuba.
