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"Extreme" doping? What is the regular kind?
I actually know someone who used to skate in "Holiday on Ice" for a long time and then was working behind the scenes. And he told me that even at HoI they had weight checks every other day and whenever someone had gained "too much" weight they were told to lose it ASAP. So yes, not only a purely Russian "custom".
Not sure what it is like now, but I did a short stint in Disney on Ice years ago (and immediately got injured) and they had a narrow range skaters were allowed to be in and did either weekly or bi-weekly weigh-ins (can't remember which). It was a shitty practice that screws with your head even though I was asked to gain a couple pounds before joining. While I was there there was one skater who went overweight by their standards and they punished her by taking her out of all the corps numbers and made her wear the heavy character costumes instead. I remember her crying in the dressing room and the company manager telling her she was acting lazy and she should work harder during practices to burn off the extra weight so she could be part of the regular corp again.Ice Capades did the same thing in North America. Anyone know what the current practice is in the Disney shows?
This is not blame shifting! It is about fairness and not allowing people to speak about Eteri like she is unique or special kind of evil when she is doing coaching handbook! This all from the coaching handbook. Maybe informal unwritten but still. You can just read the gymnastics thread to hear exact same stuff from American gymnasts. Why? Because it’s the coaching handbook. Especially coaching handbook of girls.I find it troubling that some people like to shift the blame - 'but other people do it too'. Rather than focusing on the fact the interview came from Anna, a Russian, from one of the more notorious training groups.
From the number of broken bones, injuries and other issues coming out of that camp, it's pretty alarming when you think about it over the years.
At the 2019 SKAM, I was sitting with an ER doctor, and asked her what she thought of Anna's performance. She said, the costume change was dramatic, but not as much as how malnourished she looks.
Julia L also talked about only being allowed to drink liquid meals during the 2014 Olympics and had limited water.
That would be about 88lbs for me. Jesus Christ. I haven't weighed that since high school. That's horrifying.In Russia there is an idea of “perfect weight.” Apparently it is your height in cm - 110 = perfect weight kg.
Russian ballet schools follow this and weight guidelines are openly talked about. Dancers can be expelled from ballet academies bc of weight. https://melmoth.blog/post/142675479933/vaganova-ballet-academy-heightweight-requirement
Not an excuse for Eteri but harsh weight standards seem to be a Russian thing.
118 pounds for me. I got down to 123 when I almost died from sepsis and I looked like a skeleton - and I’m small-boned. I’d like to weigh ten pounds less than I do, like a lot of women, but I can’t imagine being healthy 28 pounds less.That would be about 88lbs for me. Jesus Christ. I haven't weighed that since high school. That's horrifying.
We all know disordered eating, weigh-ins, and starvation are common in our sport and it affects the men and the women. I can't imagine what all this malnourishment does to their bodies once they retire. It's a lifelong sentence, in a way.
That would be about 88lbs for me. Jesus Christ. I haven't weighed that since high school. That's horrifying.
We all know disordered eating, weigh-ins, and starvation are common in our sport and it affects the men and the women. I can't imagine what all this malnourishment does to their bodies once they retire. It's a lifelong sentence, in a way.
Do I have to be a specific height or weight?
No. Although in casting we may be filling a position that requires a certain height. We look for a healthy, fit look and evaluate appearance on an individual basis.
I'm at 118-120, which is a bit high for me but as you know I am STUPIDLY SHORT. Like most skaters are tall compared to me except the juniors.118 pounds for me. I got down to 123 when I almost died from sepsis and I looked like a skeleton - and I’m small-boned. I’d like to weigh ten pounds less than I do, like a lot of women, but I can’t imagine being healthy 28 pounds less.
I think the most damaging thing was that skaters were starting to turn the corner on weight until Eteri.The "other people do it too" is just to point out that body shaming and disordered eating in figure skating are way more widespread than one coach, and that Russian coaches and teachers are notorious for sticking to their idea of "perfect weight."
Harsh coaching becomes a cycle too. Like Aljona Savchenko complained about the harsh coaching and weight shaming she experienced, but apparently became even harsher when she coached herself.
Eteri is not alone about weight. Her problems that DO seem unique to her are her jump technique teaching which does seem to have an expiration date, feuding in the press with teenaged former students, and extreme doping.
Even the Disney Parks are bad about this - the face characters have to fit one exact size. I know a seamstress who does the princess dresses for the parks. There's only one pattern made for each dress because it's a requirement of the job to fit into it.Not sure what it is like now, but I did a short stint in Disney on Ice years ago (and immediately got injured) and they had a narrow range skaters were allowed to be in and did either weekly or bi-weekly weigh-ins (can't remember which). It was a shitty practice that screws with your head even though I was asked to gain a couple pounds before joining. While I was there there was one skater who went overweight by their standards and they punished her by taking her out of all the corps numbers and made her wear the heavy character costumes instead. I remember her crying in the dressing room and the company manager telling her she was acting lazy and she should work harder during practices to burn off the extra weight so she could be part of the regular corp again.
BTW I was asked to join shortly after a try-out I showed up on a lark to while the show was traveling- they needed an emergency replacement for a skater who left due to -wait for it- anorexia.
Of for sure. There's more muscular skaters in Russia like Liza - and although Liza was called fat (in what universe?) she never seemed to be forced to be that skinny.Mine would be 62kg, and that would actually be all right if on the thin side, but it's obviously a very dangerous concept, to have a one-size-fits-all.
I don't think anyone is saying this is a uniquely Russian problem - that would be deluded - but it does seem that it is far more culturally ingrained and culturally acceptable in Russia and the problem seems far worse.in those camps, particularly Eteri's.
From the National Eating Disorders Association"I'm pretty sure" means nothing here. It's a perception. And you contribute to the problem, since girls bodies is all you talk about.
Boys have bodies too. In all shapes. And from what i can see, body shaming boys is also being normalized. You constantly see comments about their size, how small/tall/muscular/not muscular they are, comments about their as* and legs and so on. Maybe it's a "cultural norm" that it's somehow shameful for boys to talk about how they keep themselves fit. It's also expected that they have a certain amount of muscles (i did see comments toward pairs men that they "should go to the gym" ). You think these things happen automatically to boys and they don't have to make sacrifices, counting calories, doing extreme workouts and diets or?
Since there's almost no talk about this, how do you wanna know the problem is more widespread in girls?
In fact, North America and Europe would probably laugh at these tactics if they weren't so horrific. Athletic training here - including for skaters in healthier environments (and at USFS Champs Camp) focuses a lot more on gorging yourself in a healthy manner. Eat lots of protein. Drink lots of water. Eat calories pre/post workout to prevent dehydration and exhaustion.
Ha, interesting... You know, that made me think of the military. I know the US military, for example, has weight standards and the service members are supposed to adhere to them, otherwise they get placed in a "Body Fat Composition" program aimed at losing the extra weight. I think they can be ultimately separated from the military with a "dishonorable" type discharge...Not about athletics but I was a flight attendant (stewardess) in the 1970s and we were weighed once a month. We were allowed a 5 lb. increase and then we got a "weight letter". I never heard of anyone getting a letter for weight loss. The insane part of it is we (myself included) didn't think anything of it.