Where is Maria Mukhortova these days?

[koatcue]

Does anybody know if she has found a partner? Does she skate?Will she participate in R Nats?...And so on:-)

[PashaFan]

I'm so glad you are asking about her !.
I really loved watching her skate with Trankov, they were my favourite pair for the last four years. I was gutted when they broke up.
I did hear that she has taken a season off because of financial difficulties but may still skate again with a new partner.
I think she split from the other man she skated with last season.
I know a lot of people felt she was to blame for the split with Trankov (not being very nice to him) but I still felt she was so talented.
I really hope she comes back, I would love to see her try for Sochi.

[Vash01]

Maria is so talented! It will be a shame if she cannot find a pairs partner. I really liked watching her skate with Blanchard. That partnership ended way too soon, IMO. I am glad she is taking a year off to contemplate and regroup (that's how I see it). I hope the right partner comes along for her soon. May be she still has a shot at an Olympic spot in 2014.

[Kasey]

Perhaps Maria's personality and the situation with Vassiliev (the coach also banging the female partner of the pair) are impeding her ability to find another, suitable partner. It's a pity that it didn't work out with Blanchard, but I don't think that couple was given the time to gel as a partnership, and certainly didn't seem to push themselves on the competitive circuit right out of the gate (I believe only did one Russia cup event prior to their attempt at Nationals). Blanchard was exquisite, and I doubt she is going to find another partner of that caliber.

[judgejudy27]

May be she still has a shot at an Olympic spot in 2014.

It would be a minor miracle. The Russians have super depth in pairs again and the current top 3 are very strong. Barazova & Larionov were just set back by a bad Skate America but they will be fighting for the bronze at Worlds IMO.

[julieann]

Maria is a beautiful skater, if she can manage to find a tall enough partner she could easily work toward 2018. I haven't heard what her plans are; I'm just sorry Oleg isn't training anyone, what a waste.

[ltnskater]

It would be a minor miracle. The Russians have super depth in pairs again and the current top 3 are very strong. Barazova & Larionov were just set back by a bad Skate America but they will be fighting for the bronze at Worlds IMO.

Really? The way I see it, the worlds podium has been set, S/S and V/T for the top two spots, depending on who skates clean/better (and if both skate clean, I REALLY don't know which way the judges will swing, because I don't think the GPF set anything in stone).

Kavaguti/Smirnov have been pretty much awarded the bronze medal, I see B/L and Z/Z really going for the 4th/5th spot, but I can see where you are coming, in the case that K/S make major mistakes, but in that case, I wouldn't necessarily call it fighting for the bronze. But YES, I agree with you that those are the top 3 Russian teams, and it will be very difficult for Mukhortova with any new partnership to beat them.

But back to Maria, it was a shame that she couldn't land the jumps consistently (seems to be a problem with many of the ladies in pairs these days), as Trankov was such a great partner, but she was wonderful to watch, and I loved watching them at the 2010 olympics, especially their short (although with a fall), I loved that program.

[Macassar88]

Really? The way I see it, the worlds podium has been set, S/S and V/T for the top two spots, depending on who skates clean/better (and if both skate clean, I REALLY don't know which way the judges will swing, because I don't think the GPF set anything in stone).

Kavaguti/Smirnov have been pretty much awarded the bronze medal, I see B/L and Z/Z really going for the 4th/5th spot, but I can see where you are coming, in the case that K/S make major mistakes, but in that case, I wouldn't necessarily call it fighting for the bronze. But YES, I agree with you that those are the top 3 Russian teams, and it will be very difficult for Mukhortova with any new partnership to beat them.

But back to Maria, it was a shame that she couldn't land the jumps consistently (seems to be a problem with many of the ladies in pairs these days), as Trankov was such a great partner, but she was wonderful to watch, and I loved watching them at the 2010 olympics, especially their short (although with a fall), I loved that program.

Quite true. Although I do think that Bazarova and Larionov can get a medal in 2018 (I don't think it will happen by 2014 unless Vera can get some consistency on her jumps)

[Vash01]

Maria is a beautiful skater, if she can manage to find a tall enough partner she could easily work toward 2018. I haven't heard what her plans are; I'm just sorry Oleg isn't training anyone, what a waste.

That is a HUGE waste. I am sure Russia wants to get the OGM in pairs back in Sochi, and one of the best coaches is not being used.

[DimaToe]

Maria is a beautiful skater, if she can manage to find a tall enough partner she could easily work toward 2018. I haven't heard what her plans are; I'm just sorry Oleg isn't training anyone, what a waste.

ITA!! What the heck?!?!, if I were a part of a federation, Cough(USFSA)Cough, id try to Oleg to come over and start training some pairs ASAP!!

[loopey]

Maria is a beautiful skater, if she can manage to find a tall enough partner she could easily work toward 2018. I haven't heard what her plans are; I'm just sorry Oleg isn't training anyone, what a waste.

Does anyone know if this is by choice? Does he only want to train senior pairs that are contenders? I find it hard to believe that Stas Morozov can show up in Russia, and within months have a Junior pair on the GP circuit, and Oleg not be coaching anyone. Has to be by choice right?

If he is patient through this season, I suspect he may get a senior pair after this season, that wants to change coaches. The Russian teams 3-6 have taken a minor step back this season compared to last season. Will the Russian Federation try to stop the downward trend by making changes?

[bek]

Does anyone know if this is by choice? Does he only want to train senior pairs that are contenders? I find it hard to believe that Stas Morozov can show up in Russia, and within months have a Junior pair on the GP circuit, and Oleg not be coaching anyone. Has to be by choice right?

If he is patient through this season, I suspect he may get a senior pair after this season, that wants to change coaches. The Russian teams 3-6 have taken a minor step back this season compared to last season. Will the Russian Federation try to stop the downward trend by making changes?

Well isn't Oleg (can't state for sure) still coaching in Chicago or at least a good part of the time. And Stan is in Moscow. If you want to coach young Russians, you kind of need to be coaching in Russia. How many parents of younger kids are going to be gunho about their kids leaving the country. Its one thing when your child is older more established.

[Vash01]

Does anyone know if this is by choice? Does he only want to train senior pairs that are contenders? I find it hard to believe that Stas Morozov can show up in Russia, and within months have a Junior pair on the GP circuit, and Oleg not be coaching anyone. Has to be by choice right?

If he is patient through this season, I suspect he may get a senior pair after this season, that wants to change coaches. The Russian teams 3-6 have taken a minor step back this season compared to last season. Will the Russian Federation try to stop the downward trend by making changes?

I would love to see I&M move to Vassiliev. They have definitely taken a step back this season.

[quiqie]

Does anybody know if she has found a partner? Does she skate?Will she participate in R Nats?...And so on:-)

It has been rumored that she skates in shows with Artur Minchuk (ex-partner of Ksenia Stolbova and Anna Silaeva).

[Cherub721]

Well isn't Oleg (can't state for sure) still coaching in Chicago or at least a good part of the time.

So whom does he coach in Chicago? Just adult skaters and kids? I'm surprised an American pair doesn't go to him, they could use his technical skills and most of them don't have to worry about getting any more boring (the common criticism of T&M and M&T).

[hanca]

Maria is a beautiful skater, if she can manage to find a tall enough partner she could easily work toward 2018. I haven't heard what her plans are; I'm just sorry Oleg isn't training anyone, what a waste.

Are you saying that is not training anyone at all, or did you mean he is not training anyone who competed this year internationally? Because that's a big difference. He may have some young pairs but needs a few years to make them ready...

And in regards to Maria, I agree that she looked beautiful on the ice, but if she didn't manage to get to the complete top with Trankov, I don't think she can reach it with anyone else. I think finding a tall partner is not the only problem that stands in her way. Landing jumps is also a problem...

[PashaFan]

I do think Maria had a confidence problem but look at another Maria.
Maria Butyrskaya. She was like that, then in 98/99 she turned it around.
Maybe Maria needs a partner like Arthur Dimitriev.
He always took care of his partners even when they were in poor form.
Some skaters just need that extra care.
The talent is there. I think it would be a real shame to lose a skater like her.
I would much rather watch Maria than some others.
Let's not forget Maxim made errors too, it was not just her.
A good partner that she connects to may be the big difference for her.

[hanca]

I do think Maria had a confidence problem but look at another Maria.
Maria Butyrskaya. She was like that, then in 98/99 she turned it around.
Maybe Maria needs a partner like Arthur Dimitriev.
He always took care of his partners even when they were in poor form.
Some skaters just need that extra care.
The talent is there. I think it would be a real shame to lose a skater like her.
I would much rather watch Maria than some others.
Let's not forget Maxim made errors too, it was not just her.
A good partner that she connects to may be the big difference for her.

Maxim definitely made some errors, but in majority times it was her jumps that kept them lower. That was also the reason why they did not place any higher at the Russian nationals and that's why they lost the funding. I quite understand why the Russian federation would not want to spend so much money on their pair number 7, if they had six better ones.

[Vash01]

And in regards to Maria, I agree that she looked beautiful on the ice, but if she didn't manage to get to the complete top with Trankov, I don't think she can reach it with anyone else. I think finding a tall partner is not the only problem that stands in her way. Landing jumps is also a problem...

It takes two to make a pair successful. Some pairs are just not well matched and with other partners they do much better. Maria Petrova, for example. With Anton S. who was a superb skater, she did not make it very far. With Tikhonov she won a world championship in 2000.

[hanca]

I wouldn't compare Maria Mukhortova with Maria P though. What were Maria P's issues? Was it also that she was unable to land her jumps with Anton S. and then suddenly she became very consistent jumper with Tikhonov? No, I didn't think so.