From Russia with Love [#34]: Autumn 2019

[Tinami Amori]

I know, Lipnitskaya already broke my heart, but I still plan to enjoy Scherbakova as long as she skates.

Lipnitskaya and Shcherbakova have very different personalities, approach to skating, reasons to skate and goals. I doubt their own pattern in life will mirror itself...

One very important difference is that Anna is skating for herself and herself only, without pressure from parents. Her family situation is such that if she wins gold or not, it will not affect their living standard.

Shcherbakova Anna Shcherbakova GIF - Shcherbakova Anna Shcherbakova ЩеÑбакова - Discover & Share GIFs

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tenor.com

All these girls are very different..

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[kwanfan1818]

Watching her interact with fans, especially young fans, at JGP Richmond last year, Scherbakova struck me as being patient, poised, and chill off the ice.

 

[Marco]

I like all three of Kostornaia, Trusova and Shcherbakova for different reasons and I kind of hope they’re the team because they’re all rare talents. Kostornaia is my favorite though.

Except I feel weird that the world champions Zagitova, Medvedeva and Tuktamyseva (and Euro Champ Samodurova) get left out. I feel esp bad for Tuktamysheva, who did up her game and is producing 3 3axels in a competition now, only to still lose out to Kostornaia who can match her jump for jump and is better in every other aspect.

 

[Finsta]

Don’t feel bad. It’s sport. No guarantees these young girls will be healthy and still competing next year or year after. The older girls are veterans. They will work harder as they are now and if left off team will motivate and work harder. They know the pressures. They know how to deal with it all. The young girls might struggle. Might Have mental issues like Zagitova did last season. Might Have injuries likes Medvedeva has struggles with. Might lose and not deal with losing because winning is all they are taught. Just enjoy it and watch the show

 

[Marco]

Don’t feel bad. It’s sport. No guarantees these young girls will be healthy and still competing next year or year after. The older girls are veterans. They will work harder as they are now and if left off team will motivate and work harder. They know the pressures. They know how to deal with it all. The young girls might struggle. Might Have mental issues like Zagitova did last season. Might Have injuries likes Medvedeva has struggles with. Might lose and not deal with losing because winning is all they are taught. Just enjoy it and watch the show

Sure - just that Tuk skated so well all of last season up til her sickness and was THIS close to making Worlds. She kept training and vindicated herself with break through skates at WTT. She is also showing her consistency on the 3axels and overall so far this season.

I don't even particularly like her skating - but I do root for her as a nice comeback story (for the second time). I mean ultimately it is fair game if she loses her spot to more deserving skaters who outskated her, but I just feel bad for her.

 

[Dobre]

Except I feel weird that the world champions Zagitova, Medvedeva and Tuktamyseva (and Euro Champ Samodurova) get left out. I feel esp bad for Tuktamysheva, who did up her game and is producing 3 3axels in a competition now, only to still lose out to Kostornaia who can match her jump for jump and is better in every other aspect.

No one is left out at this point in the season. (Considering the usual numbers, we will be fortunate if everyone is healthy throughout the season). And just because you are pitted against someone early in the year doesn't tell you a whole lot. As we have seen time & time again. It's who wins when the pressure is on.

 

[Mad for Skating]

Lipnitskaya and Shcherbakova have very different personalities, approach to skating, reasons to skate and goals. I doubt their own pattern in life will mirror itself...

One very important difference is that Anna is skating for herself and herself only, without pressure from parents. Her family situation is such that if she wins gold or not, it will not affect their living standard.

Shcherbakova Anna Shcherbakova GIF - Shcherbakova Anna Shcherbakova ЩеÑбакова - Discover & Share GIFs

Click to view the GIF

tenor.com

All these girls are very different..

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I meant in skating style and body type, not personality

 

[Marco]

No one is left out at this point in the season. (Considering the usual numbers, we will be fortunate if everyone is healthy throughout the season). And just because you are pitted against someone early in the year doesn't tell you a whole lot. As we have seen time & time again. It's who wins when the pressure is on.

Sure. My comment was in the context that IF the 3 newly-turned-senior girls all made the team. Not saying that will definitely happen. (although I see a stronger likelihood now that all 3 debuted and scored monstrous points, separately beating Tuk, Med and Zag already when the latter skated cleanish)

 

[hanca]

Except I feel weird that the world champions Zagitova, Medvedeva and Tuktamyseva (and Euro Champ Samodurova) get left out. I feel esp bad for Tuktamysheva, who did up her game and is producing 3 3axels in a competition now, only to still lose out to Kostornaia who can match her jump for jump and is better in every other aspect.

Why do you feel bad for Zagitova, Tuktamysheva, Mevedeva? They had their opportunities and they managed to use those opportunities very well. Their gold medals at Olympics, worlds and Samodurova at Europeans, plenty of other skaters can only dream to have such successful career. I am not saying that they should retire, they should compete if they enjoy it, but I won’t feel bad if they don’t get to worlds this year. I enjoy watching them skating and admire their determination to stay in the sport, but at the same time, I would be quite happy that other skaters have their opportunities. And if the number of spots is unfortunately limited, than I would prefer Scherbakova, Trusova and Kostornaya try their own fight for european and world gold medals.

 

[Tinami Amori]

Why do you feel bad for Zagitova, Tuktamysheva, Mevedeva? They had their opportunities and they managed to use those opportunities very well.

Exactly! nobody is "entitled" to make the world team, or to be "given a medal for previous accomplishments because they deserved it" (unlike some people and even skaters think .... and say.... ). Meritocracy rules..

 

[Tinami Amori]

Some updates on Elena Ilynikh. It does not look like she will be skating with Soloviev even in shows (that's been an obvious fact for while now). Bobrova/Soloviev will continue to perform as a pair in several winter holidays shows (as they recently did in the cities of Crimea, Yalta, Sevastopol, and in Sochi).

Elena will perform in the few upcoming shows of "Rasputin" in the end of 2019 and first part of 2020. The last addition is Hong Kong Arts Festival in March 2020.

The 49th HK Arts Festival 2021年第49屆香港藝術節

Great Performances and More! Best of international and local art performances line up in Hong Kong in Feb and Mar every year - OPERA, MUSIC, THEATRE, DANCE and a lot more.

www.hk.artsfestival.org

Elena's next performance is in Zurich, Nov 15-16, 2019. If anyone wants to see her in "Rasputin", the tickets are on this side. https://poluninink.com/schedule.html

The two of them recently did a commercial for a company "INGLOT", professional theatrical make up company.

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Both looking very "french new wave" lately.....

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[Marco]

I guess maybe I don't feel bad for them as much as for the observation that these recent champions don't get the longeivity or chance to be on top anymore, and not necessarily their fault or due to decline of their own skating - but just that the field is so incredibly deep and young'uns are ready to throw their bodies out for short term glory that champions get left off the team without hesitation.

How hard they must have worked to be where they were, and then one day, someone else passes them by. This is generally true for all sports (and life), but to have others pass them by so fast in figure skating is new. I am probably stuck in the world where Michelle Kwan made 12 consecutive trips to Worlds. Incidentally Evgenia is the only ladies world champion to have defended since Michelle. Other champions that won more than once were able to regain their titles a few years apart (Miki, Mao, Irina...). Liza hasn't been able to even make Worlds again since 2015 when she won.

I feel bad there isn't a way to reconsider per country rules.

 

[TAHbKA]

Admit it, they just have such a compoicated names that we'd.rather have to.remember just one and not learn a bunch every year.
That said, goooo Kostornaya!!!!

 

[Finsta]

I don’t think we get to know the girls or get an attachment to them. They have maybe 2 good senior seasons and they’re gone. I don’t feel bad for them mostly though because it’s their game. The young girls beat them playing by their own rules. The veterans were once these girls and I bet they enjoyed winning when they could

 

[Deleted member 40371]

I don’t think we get to know the girls or get an attachment to them. They have maybe 2 good senior seasons and they’re gone. I don’t feel bad for them mostly though because it’s their game. The young girls beat them playing by their own rules. The veterans were once these girls and I bet they enjoyed winning when they could

Who are we talking about, the top brass is still here. Liza's problem last year was not she was not good enough, her problem was she was 4th among the age-eligible girls. Medvedeva won two worlds in a row, then Olympic silver next year, and bronze the year after, that makes it 4 years. Zagitova has an Olympic title, a world title, and she is still here this year. We don't see them for too long seem like a putdown when dealing with Russian depth when this has been the case all along. Hughes, Meissner, etc they were only around for a very small period. Do you feel more attached to Maria Bell with her 12th, 12th and 9th place finish at worlds? she appears in a lot of world championships, but never in the top 6 athletes.

Then there is the case like Higuchi, who is really struggling after silver at the worlds, Miyahara who I like a lot, but underrotates her jump. Kihara seems to have a loyal following, even though it is her 2nd year as a senior. In the case with these Russian athletes, there is a willful need to paint them as clones of each other, when they couldn't be more different. Also, then we see them bragging about Alysia Liu, who is a first-year junior, so many exceptions to the rule.

 

[Finsta]

I love Tukt and part the reason why is because she has stuck with it. We followed her winning, struggles and later success. Medvedeva earned respect. She won early, experienced heartbreak at Olympic, struggles last season and these are things we all watched and went through with her. Zagitova won off the bat and
almost seemed too much too soon. She is around her 3rd senior season this year so will see how she does. I can’t say she is someone worldwide fans can relate to yet. The previous Olympic champion- gone. Lip/ gone. So many of the amazing talents seem to fade before we get to know them
my comment had nothing to do with American skaters. I like Bell just fine, thanks for asking. Hughes was around a few senior seasons and I was indifferent. But I was talking more young Russian talent and how they fade so fast before we get to know them. Please clarify where I put down any specific skater or how you interpreted any comment as a put down. Maybe you’re easily offended but my post was in no way insulting or bashing. Not towards Russians. Not towards Americans. Not even toward the Japanese skaters that I never commented on, or named to begin with but sadly got dragged into it. Why?

 

[Tinami Amori]

Zagitova won off the bat and almost seemed too much too soon.

"too soon" is YOUR own bias.

She was of age that allowed her participation. She had the content to win by the ISU rules. She won. Next year rules changed (jump order) and she won again.

I can’t say she is someone worldwide fans can relate to yet.

That is your own BIAS again, and i suspect intentional twist of facts.

If Zagitova was not popular world-wide, then major advertisers, Puma, Shiseido, and several others, would not have signed advertising contracts with her. These major companies do very intensive market research on popularity of their subjects, and constantly trace/follow their appeal on social media and in the press.

As of now, Zagitova's Puma commercial has higher viewership and ratings than two other pop-stars that are in the same "product campaign". Zagitova's viewing over last 2 months is close to 2 million hits.

Алина Загитова в PUMA LQDCELL Shatter XT

Олимпийская чемпионка по фигурному катанию Алина Загитова в новой модели для интенсивных тренировок PUMA LQDCELL Shatter XT. Olympic champion in figure skati...

www.youtube.com

The Japanese show organizers also track and trace "appeal of a skater with public", and Zagitova is in the highest rating.

 

[hanca]

I don’t feel that the Russian ladies are around any shorter than skaters from, let’s say, USA.
Sotnikova retired after only two seasons, but that’s understandable. Winning olympics meant that she had many opportunities and she wanted to take advantage of those.
Tuktamysheva is in her ninth senior season.
Lipnitskaya - 5 senior seasons, retired because of eating disorders.
Pogorilaya was competing seniors for four seasons, and retired due to back injury.
Radionova - 5 senior seasons
Medvedeva - is in her 5th season and hasn’t retired yet.
Zagitova- too early to say how long she will last, but she is around even though she won all the major competitions.

So not sure what the above poster means by not having enough time to get to know them. Is five years not enough? I quite like the variety. For me, it is better if they keep changing who is at the top and each of them has a chance of getting some medals, than being stuck with watching someone boring for 10 years. It is heartbreaking if they are forced to retire because of illness or injury (Pogorilaya and Lipnitskaya), but that happens in other countries too, e.g. Gracie Gold.

 

[Tinami Amori]

How hard they must have worked to be where they were, and then one day, someone else passes them by. This is generally true for all sports (and life), but to have others pass them by so fast in figure skating is new.

As you said, it is true in every sport, in sport in general, and in many activities.

Young and better one come, and replace the old guard. It's normal, it's evolution. To control it artificially is AGAINST "nature" and principles of life.

I don’t think we get to know the girls or get an attachment to them.

"Getting to know the athletes" and "having time to get attached to them" is NOT AN ATHLETIC principle or requirement. It is someone's "personal preference" and NOTHING MORE. Different people have different "personal preferences" - some would like to see "new, young, better, more difficult" as much as possible.

There are those who are interested in "personalities" in the sport, and those who are mainly interested "in the sport itself". Sport "itself" will always move forward, and because it is physical, the younger and stronger will get ahead, and contribute more to the Sport itself, than "some like personalities for sake of personalities".

I feel bad there isn't a way to reconsider per country rules.

The only fair way to solve "this issue" is to eliminate country quotas, and to introduce entry to major competition events by RANKING and/or "points of some kind" earned as a result of individual's past performance.

Tennis has the best system - entry by rank regardless of country, and qualifying rounds for those without ranking.

 

[Tinami Amori]

Eteri Tutberidze's group has a very young new prospective star: Elena Kostyleva.
This is the last video of her performance earlier in 2019, just before the transfer.

Her idol is "Zagitova" and her programme is "Carmen"...

Елена КОСТЫЛЕВА エレーナ・コスティリョワ Открытое первенство СШОР ЦСКА "Призы Деда Мороза"

www.youtube.com

Елена КОСТЫЛЕВА エレーナ・コスティリョワ ЦСКА имени С.А.Жука "День Победы"05.05.2019г

www.youtube.com

 

[Ka3sha]

Channel 1 interview with Stanislava Konstantinova
(great interview, beautiful video and gorgeous Stasia )

Станислава Константинова: характер, смелость и желание стать звездой

История российской фигуристки Станиславы Константиновой — о бесконечном терпении, катании сквозь слезы, изменении отношения к себе, жизни за пределами льда и...

www.youtube.com

Started skating at 6 y.o., she really loved it and they came for the try-out to Figure Skating Academy at St Petersburg, then Chebotareva surprisingly took Stasia in her group even though Stasia was pretty bad at that time. Stanislava says that her mom still can't believe how everything turned out and that Stasia was accepted. She was much weaker than other skaters, her spins sucked - she had to spend 2 hours on her weekend working just on spins.

Speaking about rivalry she recalls an unpleasant story from few years which took place ago at Russian Junior Nationals. She was in a very good shape, came prepared and ready to compete, but had a huge bloody callus on her foot - couldn't stand on her right foot at all. Small piece of silicon was the only thing that could help and right before the competition she realized that someone had stolen that silicon piece. After the event one of her friends brought her that piece of silicon and said that someone asked her to give it to Stasia and etc. It was a mess.

But her main rival at that time was her own health, and that's why she couldn't progress as much as she wanted and move to seniors at 15 and etc. She had to deal with a chronic knee injury for 6 months, then they started treating it, so she had to skate and practice through tears and severe pain. And right after that new problem appeared - with both meniscus - she couldn't jump for three months and worked only on her spins. Says that she is grateful to Chebotareva as she never pushed Stasia to work more and gave her time to heal her injuries.
She didn't truly appreciate that at that time, but now realizes that she can call herself a healthy athlete because she had a chance to heal all injuries in time.

Her parents give her everything she needs for life and training, so she spends her prize money on fun stuff like cosmetics, clothes, shoes

She is 19 now and says that body still сhanges from time to time. With age stretching becomes much harder, back hurts just from some simple exercises. Now she spends all her day thinking about her health and weight. Weight is another issue as you have to control what you eat, the quality of food, the amount of water and etc. For example, she stopped eating fruits and sweet yogurts in the second half of the day. Says that her family helps her a lot, they have only healthy food in their fridge.
[alert on her phone - time to drink water ]
She is a completely different person off the ice - much more confident, resilient, is no longer shy or ashamed of her appearance.

Sometimes current situation in Russian ladies skating depresses her - "what are you doing here with your triples, when others jump quads?"
But she also knows that for now she has to show everything she can do. Triple axels and quads are difficult and if any skater at the age of 19 would learn and land quad jump for the first time, that would be super cool. She wants to skate for a long time, to progress. At this GP series she just wants to show her best and do everything they had worked on.
Of course she wants to be a figure skating star, but realizes that you have to show great results and win medals in order to become one. She knows that her main problem is that she had never showed her best in competition, had never been pleased with her skate. Wants to wake up one day and say to herself - "wow, Stasia, you are a star! That was cool, great, wow!" . But to achieve it she needs to become stronger, stricter to herself and more confident.

 

[Jeschke]

Thanks so much @Ka3sha

 

[Tinami Amori]

Channel 1 interview with Stanislava Konstantinova
(great interview, beautiful video and gorgeous Stasia )

Станислава Константинова: характер, смелость и желание стать звездой

История российской фигуристки Станиславы Константиновой — о бесконечном терпении, катании сквозь слезы, изменении отношения к себе, жизни за пределами льда и...

www.youtube.com

Wants to wake up one day and say to herself - "wow, Stasia, you are a star! That was cool, great, wow!" . But to achieve it she needs to become stronger, stricter to herself and more confident.

Stanislava Konstantinova is one of the hardest working skaters, nice, non-confrontational, self-critical, intelligent. She never starts any scandals, never throws "shades" at other skaters, never blames anyone.

She has been unfairly accused of "special patronage" with all sorts of rumors and gossips, while Chebotareva's group and the coach herself is one of the few who don't play games or do any manipulations. That whole group is a bunch of hard working decent people!

I hope she has a great skate in Las Vegas!!! i

 

[starrynight]

I think with the turnover, it's easier to handle if the older skaters regress or slump.

But the difficulty this season (and it's quite unique I think) is that Zagitova, Tuktamysheva and Medvedeva are probably the best they have ever been in their careers and have been working very hard to improve.

For example, Tukt has the best technical arsenal ever and the best program (SP) of her career and Zagitova has found seniors artistry and confidence.

But some or all of their seasons are going to end in December and that's a shame when they have all improved so very much.

 

[Finsta]

Everyone has their own opinions on skaters and what makes them like them. Some like the young girls that dominate for a season or two and then disappear. Some don’t. It doesn’t make one preference any less to that person that your own biases or opinions. The main difference is that most don’t try to shove their preferences for or against a skater down others throats. We just want to enjoy the skating and appreciate the girls for what they are- strong athletes. I find it disturb that some can’t let others have own thoughts.

 

[Finsta]

also, I’ve read that Alena has a stalker that made her very uncomfortable last week. This is what I worry for in the young girls.

 

[Tinami Amori]

also, I’ve read that Alena has a stalker that made her very uncomfortable last week. This is what I worry for in the young girls.

At the Finlandia event, after the Medal Ceremony, Aleona was gliding along side of the rink boards, signing autographs and taking pictures with fans. An older man came up to the boards and got in line to get an autograph and to take photos.

When his turn came, and Aleona signed his autograph and stood next to him to take "selfie", he started to hug her too strongly and pull towards himself, using his hands to to pull her very close to his face and body. trying to do "chick to chick" and kiss er. Aleona pulled away. Then came back and stood a bit at a distance to let him still take a photo (she felt under obligation to be nice to fans at an official function). Later someone posted that "some old man is tweeting/IG-ing photos of him kissing Aleona's picture and calling her his wife".

There were some attempts to make this story "dirty against Aleona", but that got put down quickly.

 

[Vash01]

I think with the turnover, it's easier to handle if the older skaters regress or slump.

But the difficulty this season (and it's quite unique I think) is that Zagitova, Tuktamysheva and Medvedeva are probably the best they have ever been in their careers and have been working very hard to improve.

For example, Tukt has the best technical arsenal ever and the best program (SP) of her career and Zagitova has found seniors artistry and confidence.

But some or all of their seasons are going to end in December and that's a shame when they have all improved so very much.

It is sad that the three Russian ladies that would be left off the world team could medal at worlds but they may not medal at the Russian nationals.

 

[zebraswan]

There are only 3 medals given out at Worlds, so even if half of them switched countries and all got to go, they wouldn't all be getting medals. Sport has never been fair...that's life. I can think of a lot of things sadder than the plight of these poor talented figure skaters. If they're still able to skate at a competitive level. that's more than a lot of their peers can say.

 

[Mad for Skating]

Channel 1 interview with Stanislava Konstantinova
(great interview, beautiful video and gorgeous Stasia )

Станислава Константинова: характер, смелость и желание стать звездой

История российской фигуристки Станиславы Константиновой — о бесконечном терпении, катании сквозь слезы, изменении отношения к себе, жизни за пределами льда и...

www.youtube.com

Started skating at 6 y.o., she really loved it and they came for the try-out to Figure Skating Academy at St Petersburg, then Chebotareva surprisingly took Stasia in her group even though Stasia was pretty bad at that time. Stanislava says that her mom still can't believe how everything turned out and that Stasia was accepted. She was much weaker than other skaters, her spins sucked - she had to spend 2 hours on her weekend working just on spins.

Speaking about rivalry she recalls an unpleasant story from few years which took place ago at Russian Junior Nationals. She was in a very good shape, came prepared and ready to compete, but had a huge bloody callus on her foot - couldn't stand on her right foot at all. Small piece of silicon was the only thing that could help and right before the competition she realized that someone had stolen that silicon piece. After the event one of her friends brought her that piece of silicon and said that someone asked her to give it to Stasia and etc. It was a mess.

But her main rival at that time was her own health, and that's why she couldn't progress as much as she wanted and move to seniors at 15 and etc. She had to deal with a chronic knee injury for 6 months, then they started treating it, so she had to skate and practice through tears and severe pain. And right after that new problem appeared - with both meniscus - she couldn't jump for three months and worked only on her spins. Says that she is grateful to Chebotareva as she never pushed Stasia to work more and gave her time to heal her injuries.
She didn't truly appreciate that at that time, but now realizes that she can call herself a healthy athlete because she had a chance to heal all injuries in time.

Her parents give her everything she needs for life and training, so she spends her prize money on fun stuff like cosmetics, clothes, shoes

She is 19 now and says that body still сhanges from time to time. With age stretching becomes much harder, back hurts just from some simple exercises. Now she spends all her day thinking about her health and weight. Weight is another issue as you have to control what you eat, the quality of food, the amount of water and etc. For example, she stopped eating fruits and sweet yogurts in the second half of the day. Says that her family helps her a lot, they have only healthy food in their fridge.
[alert on her phone - time to drink water ]
She is a completely different person off the ice - much more confident, resilient, is no longer shy or ashamed of her appearance.

Sometimes current situation in Russian ladies skating depresses her - "what are you doing here with your triples, when others jump quads?"
But she also knows that for now she has to show everything she can do. Triple axels and quads are difficult and if any skater at the age of 19 would learn and land quad jump for the first time, that would be super cool. She wants to skate for a long time, to progress. At this GP series she just wants to show her best and do everything they had worked on.
Of course she wants to be a figure skating star, but realizes that you have to show great results and win medals in order to become one. She knows that her main problem is that she had never showed her best in competition, had never been pleased with her skate. Wants to wake up one day and say to herself - "wow, Stasia, you are a star! That was cool, great, wow!" . But to achieve it she needs to become stronger, stricter to herself and more confident.

Thank you so much for the translation! Stasya is one of my underdog favorites and I wish her the best. She’s such a fascinating person, and she always looks stunning.