This will be the second major tournament for Russian athletes after being cleared to return to the international arena. Secretary General of the Russian Aquatics Federation Radmir Gabdullin told TASS earlier that Russian athletes were departing to Paris with high hopes. In an interview with TASS, he revealed he believes he's capable of winning the European Championships as well. "We will soon be competing at the European Championships, where we have not been for five years. After Efimova qualified for the European Championships, she admitted that she had pondered retiring, but decided to carry on.