The vice-champion of Russia and Europe in men's figure skating last season, 16-year-old Artur Danielian, told Anatoly Samokhvalov about a successful operation in Germany for ankle problems and shared his optimism about his imminent return to the ice.
- Artur, as far as I understand, the operation in Germany was successful?
- Yes, that is right. I would not say that I feel relieved, but I am glad that the doctors identified the true cause of my ankle problem, because before that I had gone through a sufficient number of doctors, their opinions either converged or diverged, but, thanks to our federation, I was sent for a consultation at Munich. Thank you for helping with visas and flights as well. I flew through Turkey , but they didn’t want to let me into Germany for a long time. It was very difficult and funny to overcome passport control at the same time, demanded one paper after another, called the clinic. It was already physically difficult to return, since my leg was in a cast, but my sister and I, who flew with me, were lucky - we got three seats on the plane for two and I was able to comfortably position my leg. Now all that remains is to recover.
- You started the season almost as planned. Something went wrong?
- I already got in shape, everything was fine, I was preparing for the test skates, they put on a new free program, the short one was left the same. The leg bothered me, of course, but not so much that I paid much attention to it. But the loads were all the same reduced, then they were removed completely, again gained momentum. I trained in jumps, and at some point there was severe pain. They began to find out what's what.
- Did the Germans immediately understand what was the matter?
- Yes. Initially, our federation sent them my MRI scans, they looked and said that they understand this problem, that they need to come and, perhaps, they need surgery. We flew to Munich promptly, I was examined by Dr. Schneider , they made me a new MRI and sent me to a specialist who deals directly with operations and who operated on many football players and other athletes. He quickly figured out the specifics of my problem and literally in four days I had an operation. I lay in the hospital for a couple of days and was released.
- How is the rehabilitation going?
- Starting next week, it will be necessary to remove one part that fixes the ankle, and I will begin to gently stretch my leg so that it returns to normal. We coordinate all actions with German doctors, we receive their recommendations, there is no point in speeding up the training process. Of course, I would like to start working on the ice faster.
- Do doctors give forecasts for recovery and how serious is the problem now?
- They said that the problem was solved, it remains to adhere to the recommendations, and then everything will be fine. There are no specific forecasts yet, it all depends on how soon the leg will be developed.
- Does the situation threaten your sports career?
- No longer, everything is fine. The coaches asked me if I was ready for the operation or not, I answered without hesitation that yes. After all, I am only 16 years old, my whole career is ahead, I want to please and delight all my fans. And even before the visit to Germany there was no critical state of affairs, it was just necessary to do something.
- Is there a chance that you can compete this season?
- I hope so because I want to show a new free program, new elements that I would like to restore as soon as possible. In general, I hope for the best and I am sure that everything will be fine. I am always in touch with the coaches, they support me and are waiting for me to resume work.
- Many skaters miss the stages of the Russian Cup for various reasons, apparently, the selection for the Russian Championship will not be very strict. Do you dream to recover by December?
- I will do my best on my own, my coaches, my doctors, as well as German doctors will help me in this, and my leg, which, I hope, will go through a quick rehabilitation without problems.
- Tell us about the new free program.
This is "Scheherazade" staged by Nikita Mikhailov, the program includes three musical parts. The music is very cool, the program is pompous, the costume is awesome! It remains only to go to the start and show it.
- Do you follow figure skating of the current season?
- I follow everyone, sometimes even with tears.
- Even so?
- Little. I shed two tears before the September skates, at which I was as a spectator, because I was preparing for them as an athlete, I was ready to perform, but a couple of weeks before them my leg gave out, and I had to withdraw. Then he decided that the situation was not the end of the world, there was no need for tears, everything would be fine.
- Who do you admire this season?
- I am very happy for Misha Kolyada , he returned and skated both of his excellent programs very cool. The rest of the guys also made progress, they all grew up. Good luck to everyone and get along without injuries! The girls have such a struggle now that it is even impossible to single out someone, and not everyone has performed at the starts yet. We must wait for the Russian championship, when everyone is at their peak and can show their maximum.
- Is it surprising that the skaters managed to recover so quickly, despite the pause due to the coronavirus pandemic?
- No, it’s not surprising, after all, we all did every day, carried out several trainings a day, albeit not on ice. I managed to keep in shape, and then it was only a small matter - to roll out the skates, achieve proper coordination and enter the competition. In the meantime, I want to say thank you to all my fans - for their support, for waiting for me. I hope that after this interview the situation will become clearer to them and they will not worry about me so much. I would like to thank my coaches - Elena Germanovna (Buyanova), Marina Leonidovna (Selitskaya), Uspensky Alexander Sergeevich, Zavozin Maxim Igorevich, Irina Anvarovna (Tagaeva), our federation for their experiences, for their help and everyone, everyone, everyone. Time is very precious now, everything must be done quickly.
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I cant believe AK is touching R & J in any way! But Im sure she will mke it work for her. Eteris junior Maya is also doing a lovely R & J. Hmmmm. That was also announced after it was made public that Sasha was doing Romeo and Juliet. Its not going to be much a normal figure skating season. But the Russian ladies will keep us interested. 
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Maybe they weren't quite ready to compete so soon after all, it was a mess. It's too bad, because I think there was a good FD in there somewhere.
