About figure skating. Russian figure skaters won five medals at the Sochi Olympics. Post-war period in figure skating

In a world that attracts more and more children into its ranks - future champions, as well as interesting and beautiful to watch on TV or at the ice skating rink.

The emergence of figure skating

The first skates on iron runners appeared in the 13th-14th centuries in Holland, so it is considered the ancestor of figure skating.

After the appearance of skates of a fundamentally new type, popularity came, which incredibly contributed to the rapid development of this sport, which in those days boiled down to drawing various figures on the ice without losing a beautiful pose.

The first set of rules for figure skating was published in England in 1772 and was called “A Treatise on Skating.” It described all the main figures known at that time. Thus, Great Britain secured the authorship of all figures required in figure skating. In addition, in 1742 the first speed skating circles arose here, and official rules for holding competitions were developed and approved.

Sports historians unanimously recognize the American Jason Gaintz as the founder of the modern style of figure skating. It was he who played the main role in its spread throughout the world, and, in particular, in Russia.

Development of figure skating in Russia

In the Russian Empire, figure skating was very popular back in the time of Peter I, who brought the first samples of skates from Europe. It is noteworthy that the Russian emperor was the first to come up with the idea of ​​attaching skates directly to shoes and, in fact, created the prototype of modern skates.

The first Russian manual for figure skaters was published in 1838 in St. Petersburg and was called “Winter Fun and the Art of Skating,” compiled by a gymnastics teacher at a military educational institution G.M. Pauli.

Figure skating itself appeared in Russia in 1865, and at the same time the first skating rink was opened in the Yusupov Garden in St. Petersburg. At that time, it was the most comfortable in all of Russia and immediately became a platform for professional training of figure skaters. And in 1878, the first competition among Russian athletes was held.

The first Russian figure skaters began to appear at the end of the 19th century. The pioneer who took part in international competitions was A.P. Lebedev, who was a lawyer by training.

Nikolai Poduskov took part in the first official competition, which was held in 1896 and took 4th place in single skating, but at the Russian Open Championship in 1901 he took last place.

Georgy Sanders, taking part in the same competitions as Poduskov, took 3rd place, becoming a bronze medalist. In addition, he was the first to perform complex figures of which he was the author, which in turn helped another famous Russian figure skater, Nikolai Panin, who performed them at the 1908 Olympics in London, to win Russia's first Olympic gold.

Of the Soviet champions who won the highest awards at various competitions in figure skating, the most famous are Sergei Chetverukhin (silver at the Sapporo Olympics, bronze at the 1971 World Championships, silver at the World Championships in Calgary (1972) and Bratislava (1973) and bronze at the European Championships in 1969 year) and Sergei Volkov (world champion in 1975, USSR champion in 1974 and 1976).

Famous Russian male figure skaters in single skating

Famous Russian figure skaters have repeatedly become champions and taken prizes in various tournaments - from the Olympic Games to championships of various levels, Grand Prix and Cups.

One of the first best figure skaters in Russia was Alexey Urmanov, a multiple medalist and champion of the USSR, Russia and European champion, Olympic champion in 1994.

At the 1998 Olympics, Russia again won a gold medal in men's single skating, which he won. In addition to the highest Olympic award, this famous Russian figure skater has gold from the Russian Championship, silver and bronze from the World and European Championships.

One of the most famous and best athletes in Russia is Alexey Yagudin, who has the main award for an athlete - gold at the 2002 Olympics. He is a multiple European and world champion, winner of the Grand Prix finals in figure skating.

No less famous is the young single skater Maxim Kovtun, who has several serious victories to his name. He is a three-time winner of the Russian Championship and took silver at the 2015 European Championship.

The most famous and titled figure skater in Russia and throughout the world is Evgeni Plushenko. He is the winner of gold medals at two Olympics (2006 - in singles, 2014 - in team skating), and twice took “silver” at the Olympic Games. Plushenko won the world champion title 3 times, the European champion seven times and the Russian championship 10 times. He also has many other awards and titles.

Plushenko has a number of sporting achievements, and his calling card was performing the most difficult single skating figures at competitions. He has no equal.

Russian male figure skaters are rightfully considered among the best in the world.

Famous Russian women singles skaters

Unfortunately, Russian women's single skating cannot boast of a long history of performances and awards in this sport.

The history of victories began only in 1976 with the appearance of the figure skater. It was she who won the first awards at the European Championships, and subsequently became third at the World Championships.

The first Olympic medal, bronze, was won by single skater Kira Ivanova in 1983.

Success came to the skaters only when, for the first time in Russian history, Irina Slutskaya won the European Championship in 1996. And already in 1999, also at the European Championships, Maria Butyrskaya, Soldatova and Volchkova won all the awards. In the same year, Butyrskaya brought gold to the World Championships.

Despite the fact that the best Russian figure skaters Maria Butyrskaya and Irina Slutskaya no longer compete, they are the most famous and legendary figure skaters in Russia to this day.

The leaders of Russian women's single skating are currently Yulia Lipnitskaya and Adelina Sotnikova.

Sotnikova, the first and so far only, won an Olympic gold medal in women's single skating. In addition, she became the winner of the Russian championships 4 times, and twice won silver at the European championships.

Figure skating connoisseurs call Adeline a child prodigy, because at the age of 13 she was already performing the most complex elements of figure skating.

Yulia Lipnitskaya is also an Olympic gold medalist in team competition. In addition, she has received awards of various merits at the World and European Championships, including junior ones.

Yulia is now 17 years old, Adelina is 19, and they are the future of Russian women's single skating.

Best in pair skating

In pairs skating, Russia is much more fortunate in winning titles, regalia and world-famous athletes than in singles.

Even those who are very far from the world of sports know Russian pair skaters by name and face.

Our couple Oleg Protopopov and Lyudmila Belousova won their first Olympic gold back in 1964, and again in 1968. They are the author of many elements that are still included in the mandatory program of performances all over the world. At that time, this couple was the only one who skated like no one else could.

The next couple to conquer the Olympics were Alexey Ulanov and Irina Rodnina - in 1972. Irina Rodnina won her next gold together with Alexander Zaitsev in 1976 and 1980.

The most famous Russian figure skaters - Olympic champions in pair skating are:

Maxim Marinin and Tatyana Totmyanina;

Roman Kostomarov and Tatyana Navka.

The leaders of pair skating today are Russian figure skaters Maxim Trankov and Tatyana Volosozhar, who already have 2 Olympic gold medals (in pair skating and in team competitions) and they are not going to stop there.

Best couples in ice dancing

Ice dancing as a separate discipline was included in the program of international competitions only in 1950.

In this program, Russia (then the Soviet Union) was represented by the famous couple and Lyudmila Pakhomova, who set the tone in dance throughout the world and became world champions 6 times and won gold at the 1976 Olympics.

The first, already Russian, famous dancing couple and Evgenia Platova twice became gold medalists at the 1994 and 1998 Olympics, which made them record holders in this sport.

The couple is well known and their achievements include bronze at the 2010 Olympics, double gold at the European Championships and world champions in 2009.

One of the most famous young dancers, and Elena Ilyinykh, brought Olympic gold, silver and bronze at the European and Russian championships to Russia's medal box. The couple broke up after the Sochi Olympics in 2014.

Today, the best, strongest and most famous figure skaters in Russia in ice dancing are Dmitry Solovyov and Ekaterina Bobrova - champions of Europe and Russia.

One of the most beautiful and difficult sports is figure skating. The Olympics are a particularly difficult and exciting test for an athlete. Many people like to watch the performances of figure skaters, but few people think that behind this beautiful, mesmerizing spectacle lies the hard and daily work of the athletes. How much pain, sweat, failures and tears you have to endure! And how hard it is to get the treasured gold. It is especially difficult for fragile girls performing in singles skating.

A little history

How impressive it looks Women - Olympic champions in this sport - are known throughout the world. But not everyone knows that women's singles skating originated only in 1906. It was then that single competitions for men and women began to be held. And in 1908, women's single skating was included in the Olympic program.

The first Olympic champions in figure skating

The first Olympic champion in women's single skating in 1908 was the Englishwoman Maege Sayers. She is truly an outstanding athlete. She began her performances back in 1901, when women's singles competitions were not allowed at all, so she participated in men's. Moreover, she became world champion twice - in 1906 and 1907. Two years in a row, which not every athlete can do.

Further, in the period after the First World War, the most outstanding athlete was the Norwegian Sonja Henie, who won every competition and Olympics from 1927 to 1936. She was the first woman to master the single axel. These outstanding representatives of the fair sex are the first Olympic champions in figure skating.

Post-war period in figure skating

During World War II, female athletes from European countries did not have the opportunity to train. Only figure skaters from the USA and Canada continued their training. It is not surprising that the next figure skating champion was a Canadian citizen. At the 1948 Games, Barbara Ann Scott won Olympic gold. One of her achievements was the first double lutz in single women's skating, performed by her in 1942.

The 1952 Olympic gold was won by Genette Alwegg from Great Britain. She was also the world champion in 1951. At that time, artistry was less valued, and Genette's performances were always distinguished by clear, perfect execution of jumps and other mandatory elements. This distinguished it favorably from its main competitors. It is noteworthy that Olympic gold again fell into the hands of an Englishwoman.

American stage in women's figure skating

At this stage, the American women will not let go of the gold from their hands. At the 1956 Olympic Games, Tenley Albright became the winner. The next Olympic champion in figure skating in 1960 was her compatriot Carol Heiss, who had previously been a silver medalist in the competition.

The Americans established their own special, recognizable style of skating, which was distinguished by flexibility, plasticity, clarity of movements, spectacular choreography, as well as high-quality and technical execution of the required elements. The next generation of American figure skaters continued to show this style. In 1968, Peggy Fleming became the Olympic champion, and in 1976, Dorothy Hamill received gold.

An athlete from Austria also made her contribution to figure skating. She was the outstanding Beatrice Schuba, who performed the compulsory figures with the highest quality and was the only one who received a score above 5 points for technique. This brought her the coveted 1972 Olympic gold.

Triumph of German figure skaters

Olympic champions from Germany also made a significant contribution to the history of this sport. In the 80s, athletes from the GDR made themselves known. These were strong skaters who brought an innovative, powerful sporting style to skating. At the same time, the artistic abilities of these girls were at a fairly high level.

For 1980, the gold goes to Anette Petch. And after her, her compatriot Katharina Witt leads two Olympics - in 1984 and 1988. This athlete was distinguished by her perfect execution of technical elements and harmoniously structured programs.

A new stage in women's figure skating

Olympic gold returns to the Americans again in 1992. It was brought to the country by Kristi Yamaguchi. She is known for winning the US Championships twice: in singles and in pairs.

A citizen of Ukraine becomes the 1994 Olympic champion. This figure skater amazed the audience and judges with her excellent technique in performing the elements and a very emotional performance.

And again the Americans come out on top. The 1998 Games brought gold to Tara Lipinski, who became the youngest Olympic champion in individual disciplines. Sarah Hughes wins in 2002 with a record number of difficult elements and jumps in her free program.

In Turin, the American figure skating school takes an honorable second place. American Sasha Cohen takes silver. And first place is awarded to Japanese Shizuka Arakawa. She is the first Japanese athlete in women's skating to become an Olympic champion.

The next outstanding figure skater is a girl from South Korea. Kim Young Ah received all the highest titles, which no other figure skater had achieved before. She received gold at the Vancouver Olympics in 2010, won the Four Continents Championship, became a world champion and a leader in the Grand Prix Final.

Olympics in Sochi

The Olympics in Sochi becomes an important stage in the history of figure skating. Figure skating is gaining a valuable innovation. For the first time in the history of the Olympic Games, a team competition is being held. Figure skaters from Russia receive gold in it. The young figure skater Yulia Lipnitskaya takes part in this competition and becomes the youngest Olympic champion. But Yulia was unlucky in the individual competition, and she only became fifth.

The gold still goes to Russia. In the individual competition, the winner is Adelina Sotnikova, another young Russian woman who amazed everyone with her stunning performance in terms of technique, artistry and emotions. Olympic figure skating champions such as Adeline and Yulia receive the first gold medals for Russia in women's singles. Adelina Sotnikova becomes the first winner of the Games from Russia in the individual competition.

Today the whole world will learn the name of the new Olympic champions in pair skating. Let's hope that they will be Tatyana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov, but we also wish our opponents to perform with dignity and please us with beautiful programs. Let's remember those who already hold the title of Olympic champions.
1908. London. Representatives of Germany Anna Hübler and Heinrich Bürger become the first Olympic champions.

1920. Antwerp. And the first post-war Olympic champions were Ludovika and Walter Jacobsson from Finland. At the time of the victory, by the way, the partner was 36 years old and the partner 38 years old.

1924. Chamonix. At the first Winter Olympics, Helen Engelmann and Alfred Berger from Austria won, leaving second the reigning Olympic champions, who were already in their fifties.


1928. St. Moritz. At the previous Olympic Games, the French pair Andre Joly and Pierre Brunet were bronze medalists, but at this one they won gold. Modern figure skating owes a lot to this great couple. They were the ones who invented the mirror step track, and were also very creative and came up with new lifts and rotations.


1932. Lake Placid. At this Olympics, Andre Joly and Pierre Brunet became the first two-time Olympic champions in history.


1936. Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Joly and Brunet did not come to this Olympics in protest against the Nazi policies of Adolf Hitler. The home Olympics were won by the Germans Maxi Gerber and Ernst Bayer. The partner was just over 15 years old at the time of her victory. And if the legendary French did come to the Olympic Games, the German couple would still provide them with worthy resistance. They are the world's first parallel jumpers.


1948. St. Moritz. The only gold medal for their country in figure skating was won by Belgians Micheline Lannoy and Pierre Bonnier.


1952. Oslo. The victory in pair skating was again celebrated by representatives of Germany - Ria and Paul Falk. By the way, they were the first in history to jump a double parallel jump.

1956. Cortina d'Ampezzo. Austrian figure skaters have been very successful in single types of figure skating. At this Olympics, the time has come to finally repeat the success in pair skating. Elisabeth Schwartz and Kurt Oppelt won.

1960. Squaw Valley. At this Olympics, representatives from the North American continent achieved their only success in pair skating. Canadians Barbara Wagner and Robert Paul won.


1964. Innsbruck. With this Olympics, a grandiose and invincible march and total superiority of the Soviet and then Russian school of figure skating begins. The first victory was won by Lyudmila Belousova and Oleg Protopopov.


1968. Grenoble. This time, 2 Soviet couples already claimed gold, but Lyudmila Belousova and Oleg Protopopov won again, and Tatyana Zhuk and Alexander Gorelik became silver. And the two-time Olympic champions, by the way, still perform in various ice shows, despite the fact that she is 78 and he is 81 years old.

1972. Sapporo. The baton of Belousova and Protopopov was picked up by Irina Rodnina and Alexey Ulanov. After the Olympic Games, the couple broke up, as the partner married Lyudmila Smirnova, a silver medalist in these competitions, and then they continued to perform together.

1976. Innsbruck. Irina Rodnina wanted to leave big sport after the breakup of the champion pair with Ulanov, but her coach Stanislav Zhuk paired her with Alexander Zaitsev, with whom she won these Olympic Games. There were no couples in the world that were at least somewhat similar in class to them. Ratings of 6.0 were commonplace for this couple.

1980. Lake Placid. A year before, the couple Rodnina and Zaitsev missed the season due to the birth of their son. In their absence, the American couple won the World Championship, and the American media began a real persecution of the Soviet champions, accusing them of everything that only their imagination told them. The pressure was also felt at the competitions, but Irina Rodnina and Alexander Zaitsev did not give even a chance to doubt that they were the best skaters in the world at that time.


1984. Sarajevo. Soviet couples of a new generation came to the fore. The best of them were Elena Valova and Oleg Vasiliev.


1988. Despite the fact that Valova and Vasiliev remained in big-time sports after winning the previous Olympic Games, they no longer had a chance to win. The whole world was simply in love with the new Soviet couple, who had never known defeat in international competitions. These were Ekaterina Gordeeva and Sergei Grinkov. Valova and Vasiliev remained second.


1992. Albertville. And again, only domestic pairs competed for Olympic gold. In the end, Natalya Mishkutenok and Artur Dmitriev won.

1994. Lillehammer. It was from these games that professional athletes were allowed to compete at the Olympic Games. And several famous athletes of the past decided to take advantage of this opportunity, but only one of them took gold. These were the invincible Ekaterina Gordeeva and Sergei Grinkov.


1998. Nagano. After the last Olympics, the pair Mishkutenok and Dmitriev, who then took 2nd place, broke up. They were also dissatisfied with the decision of the international federation, but still Arthur really wanted to try on the Olympic gold medal again, and with a new partner Oksana Kazakova, in intense competition with the second Russian couple Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze, he realized his dream.


2002. Salt Lake City. It was the turn of one of the most beautiful and incomparable couples in the entire world history of figure skating, Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze, to become Olympic champions, which they did. True, they also gave in to the hysterical North Americans begging for alms, but let’s leave that on the conscience of the international federation and won’t even mention these pseudo-champions.


2006. Turin. In the last decade, a pair figure skating school was finally born and developed strongly, which was able to compete with the Russian one. I'm talking about China. It was in intense competition with them that the entire Olympic cycle took place, but the main competition of the four years was still won by our Tatyana Totmyanina and Maxim Marinin.


2010. Vancouver. And now it has finally happened. The number 13 became fatal for Russia, and it was for the thirteenth time in a row that our country’s athletes failed to win Olympic gold. And then there was not a single couple capable of competing with the Chinese. But let us agree that almost half a century of dominance on the world stage means a lot. And Xu Shen and Hongbo Zhao became Olympic champions. It was with them that the history of success of Chinese athletes in figure skating began, and it would be unfair if these great skaters ended their careers without becoming Olympic champions.

Who will be next will become known very soon, but we can say that this will not affect the historical dominance of our skaters. The medal table in pair skating looks like this
GOLD TO SILVER BRONZE
USSR 8 5 1
Russia 4 2 0
Germany 3 3 6
Austria 2 2 1
France 2 0 2
Canada 1 2 3
China 1 2 2
Finland 1 1 0
Belgium 1 0 0
USA 0 3 2
UK 0 1 2
Hungary 0 1 4
Norway 0 1 0

In our country, figure skating has always been at its best. I propose to remember our most famous figure skaters, world and Olympic champions.

The 2011 World Figure Skating Championships has ended. Unfortunately, Russia does not have gold medals this year, but we have promising young athletes: Alena Leonova(4th place) and Ksenia Makarova(7th place) - in women's single skating,Arthur Gachinsky received a bronze medal - in men's, Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov - “silver” in ice dancing, and a dance duet Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitry Solovyov took 6th place. The results are not encouraging, but all the athletes are young and have high potential, I hope that they will meet the 2014 Olympics in good athletic shape.
In our country, figure skating has always been at its best. I propose to remember our most famous figure skaters, world and Olympic champions.

Lyudmila Belousova and Oleg Protopopov. Two-time Olympic champions (Innsbruck-64 and Grenoble-68), four-time world and European champions, six-time USSR champions. It was Lyudmila Belousova and Oleg Protopopov who became the founders of the wonderful school of Soviet figure skating. In 1964, they won the first gold medal in the history of Soviet figure skating. . The Soviet sports leadership was not favorably disposed towards this duo. Despite this, Belousova and Protopopov continued to shine on the ice until 1969, when the young couple Rodnina-Ulanov loudly announced themselves. In 1979, an event occurred that changed their lives. During a tour in Switzerland, Belousova and Protopopov decided to stay there. Their names were deleted from all Soviet reference books telling about Olympic achievements.


Lyudmila Pakhomova And Alexander Gorshkov- the first Olympic champions in ice dancing, Olympic champions in ice dancing in 1976. World champions 1970-1974, 1976. European champions 1970-1971, 1973-1976. Champions of the USSR 1969-1971, 1973-1975. Pakhomova - USSR champion 1964-1966. They left the world dances that are impossible to forget. Dances that are destined to live a long life, like true works of art.


Irina Moiseeva and Andrey Minenkov- champions of the Soviet Union (1977), two-time world champions (1975, 1977) and European champions (1977, 1978). For ten years, the couple performed under the guidance of novice coach Tatyana Tarasova, in 1976 they became second at the Olympics in Innsbruck, losing to the famous Pakhomova-Gorshkov. In 1979, Moiseeva and Minenkov changed coaches, and Lyudmila Pakhomova became the new mentor of the couple. However, soon, no more than six months later, this commonwealth also disintegrated. In recent years, Elena Matveeva, a former ballerina of the Bolshoi Theater, has been working with them. On November 27, 1983, in a solemn ceremony at the Luzhniki Sports Palace at the Moscow News tournament, Moiseeva and Minenkov said goodbye to sports.

Olympic champion Irina Rodnina, who was included in the Guinness Book of Records as an athlete who did not lose a single competition during her sports career. Three-time Olympic champion: in 1972 she won Olympic gold in Sapporo paired with Alexey Ulanov, in 1976 - in Innsbruck and in 1980 - in Lake Placid - paired with Alexander Zaitsev. 11-time European champion (1969-72 paired with Ulanov and 1973-78, 80 paired with Zaitsev). 10-time world champion (1969-72 paired with Ulanov and 1973-78 paired with Zaitsev). Multiple Union champion. Awarded the Order of Lenin. Has 2 Orders of the Red Banner of Labor, Order of Merit for the Fatherland, 3rd degree .

Sports destiny Igor Bobrin things didn't go very well: he won four championship medals of the all-Union rank, took 6th place at the 1980 Winter Olympics, and the American public was dissatisfied with the judges' assessments. He became the European champion in 1981, but then left the sport. Igor was a favorite of the public for his talent as a true artist on ice; he is one of the most original and artistic skaters. His demonstration performances with programs have gone down in history "Sleeping Cowboy"(see link), “Garson”, “Musketeer”, “Man of a Thousand Masks”, “Pair Skating”, etc. On February 2, 1986 he created the Ice Miniatures Theater; is its artistic director and director, and was the choreographer of programs for a number of figure skaters.

Evgeni Plushenko- Olympic champion in 2006, two-time silver medalist of the Olympics (2002 and 2010), three-time world champion and six-time European champion in men's single skating, Honored Master of Sports of Russia. Plushenko became the first skater in history to show the combination of a quadruple toe loop - triple toe loop - triple loop (at the Russian Cup in 2002), the first among men to perform a Bielmann spin, a triple Axel-Oiler-triple flip cascade (2001). Evgeniy is a favorite of the public, he is a very artistic athlete, his numbers are memorable (Sex Bomb, a number to the music of Paganini 5 with violinist Edwin Marton, etc.), and he has not yet completed his sports career.

Alexey Yagudin - Olympic champion in 2002, four-time world champion (1998, 1999, 2000 and 2002), three-time world champion (1998, 1999, 2002), two-time winner of the Grand Prix finals in figure skating. For many years he trained with Alexei Nikolaevich Mishin, who made Yagudin the world champion among juniors (1996), and then among adults. Mishin gave Alexey the technical basis for his jumps. Having become the 1998 world champion, Yagudin changed his coach. Under the leadership of Tatyana Anatolyevna Tarasova, he became the world champion in 1999 and 2000. Only at the World Championships in Vancouver in 2001 was he defeated by his main rival Evgeni Plushenko. Laureate of the National Sports Award "Glory" in 2002 in the category "Best Athlete of the Year", Knight of the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, IV degree (2003)

Pair Alexey Tikhonov - Maria Petrova was created in 1988. Their first achievement was the gold of the Grand Prix stage in Germany (1998), World champions in figure skating (2000), Silver medalists of the World championship (2005), bronze medalist of the World figure skating championship (2003, 2006), European champions in figure skating (1999, 2000), silver medalists of the European Figure Skating Championship (2004, 2007), bronze medalists of the European Figure Skating Championship (2002, 2003, 2005, 2006), champions of Russia (2006). They could not conquer only the Olympic podium...
Having completed their sports careers in 2007, Alexey Tikhonov and Maria Petrova continued to delight the audience with their performances. They repeatedly took part in ice shows organized by Channel One: “Stars on Ice”, “Ice Age”, “Ice Age-2”, and Alexey Tikhonov discovered his talent as an artist - he participates in television projects and plays in the theater. The couple has a daughter.

Tatiana Navka and Roman Kostomarov - first became world champions in ice dancing in 2004 at the World Figure Skating Championships in Dortmund (Germany), 2006 Olympic champions, two-time world champions, three-time European champions, three-time winners of the Grand Prix finals and three-time Russian champions. Tatyana Navka and Roman Kostomarov have been skating together since 1998. True, at one time their duet broke up, Roman began performing with another partner. And only after Tanya gave birth to her daughter Alexandra in May 2000, Roman again invited her to train together. Honored Masters of Sports, one of the most artistic couples in the history of Russian figure skating.

Tatyana Totmyanina and Maxim Marinin- world champions (2004, 2005). Silver medalists of the world championships (2002, 2003). In 2004, at the World Figure Skating Championships in Dortmund (Germany), Tatyana Totmyanina and Maxim Marinin became world champions in pairs skating. After winning the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, the skaters ended their amateur sports careers.

Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze- Olympic champions in pair skating (Salt Lake City, 2002), silver medalists of the 1998 Winter Olympics, two-time world champions (1998, 1999), two-time European champions (1998, 2001), 4-time Russian champions (1999, 2000, 2002). Elena Berezhnaya's sports career was tragic - in 1996, during a training session, while performing a spin, partner Oleg Shlyakhov hit her on the head with a skate - the temporal bone was broken, and fragments damaged the lining of the brain. Berezhnaya underwent two neurosurgical operations, after which she learned again not only to walk, but also to speak and read. She learned to skate again with a new partner - Anton Sikharulidze, who supported her throughout the postoperative period.


Irina Lobacheva - Ilya Overbukh - world champions in ice dancing (2002, Nagano), European champions 2003, Russian champions (1997, 2000-2002), silver medalists of the Russian championships (1998, 1999), silver medalists of the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City . Ilya and Irina became a couple in 1992, got married in 1995, and had a son, Martin, in 2004. Unfortunately, the couple broke up.
Now Irina Lobacheva takes part in television projects, is the organizer (together with Ilya Averbukh) of a joint ice show, and is also involved in coaching.

Irina Slutskaya- two-time world champion (2002,2005), the first seven-time European figure skating champion in history, Honored Master of Sports. During her career, Irina Slutskaya won 40 gold, 21 silver and 18 bronze medals. At the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, she received second place, losing by one judge's vote to American Sarah Hughes. Many famous coaches and skaters still consider the results of the refereeing of these games to be unfair.


Maria Butyrskaya— under the guidance of coach Elena Tchaikovskaya, she was the first Russian figure skater to rise to the highest step of the world podium. Two-time European champion, 1999 world champion in women's singles. Maria is the oldest and most mature representative of women's singles skating, winning the world champion title at the age of 27! She was able to prove to coaches and judges that age is not a hindrance to achieving her great goals.

In the last century, when our state was still called the Soviet Union, the whole world knew the names of the skaters - our compatriots. Oleg Protopopov and Lyudmila Belousova, Irina Rodnina, Andrey Bukin and Natalya Bestemyanova, Alexander Gorshkov and Lyudmila Pakhomova - these athletes had world fame. Today, Russian figure skaters, of course, although they are not considered the best on the planet, show decent results, their performances continue the traditions of Russian ice skating. The most famous, best skaters of Russia are presented in today's article.

History of figure skating

First, a little about the history of figure skating. Skates first appeared in Holland in the 14th century; this country is considered the birthplace of this sport. Ice skating was constantly improving, skates were changing their shape. The main indicator of skill was the ability to draw various figures with runners and at the same time maintain balance in beautiful poses. In England, back in 1772, a “Treatise on Ice Skating” was published; since then, this country has been assigned the authorship of all the main figures of ice skating. Sports historians consider Jason Gainz to be the founder of modern figure skating. This American played a leading role in the development of the sport around the world, including in Russia.

Even under Peter I, figure skating became popular in the Russian Empire. The emperor himself brought skates from Europe. It was Peter I who came up with the idea to attach skates directly to shoes; in fact, this became the prototype of modern skates. All Russian figure skaters know that in 1838 the first Russian manual for figure skaters was published; it was compiled by Pauli. The first skating rink was opened in Yusupov Garden in 1865. This is where the skaters began to practice professionally. In 1878, the best figure skaters in Russia took part in the competition.

Figure skating is actively developing in Russia, one generation of champions is being replaced by another. Today our country has something to be proud of. We present the best modern representatives of this sport.

Alexey Urmanov

Russian male singles skaters have always been considered a strong link in our country. One of these skaters is Alexey Urmanov. The skater’s homeland is Leningrad, where he was born in 1973. From an early age, his mother took him to the skating rink, where he began to learn the basics of figure skating. Alexey's first world championship took place in 1990, here in the junior competition he received a silver medal.

Since 1991, Urmanov has been a member of the Russian national team, in which he won bronze at the national championship. Participation in competitions in Albertville did not bring results, the guy began to train even harder to achieve the highest skill. Alexey devoted himself completely to training, and this often led to injuries. Anyone could envy the athlete's willpower. Thanks to perseverance, he became the European champion in 1997.

It was thanks to Alexei Urmanov that many fans became ardent fans of figure skating. His artistry touches many. Alexey always turns ice skating into a small performance, where in a few minutes the audience manages to experience a lot of touching impressions.

Ilya Kulik

Ilya Kulik is a native of the capital, born in 1977. At the age of five he began studying in coach Gromov’s group. Later, Viktor Kudryavtsev became his mentor, who trained many champions.

Ilya Kulik lived up to the expectations of his coach and already in 1990 he won a competition in Norway, where the most talented skaters competed. The Russian Junior Championship in 1994 brings victory to Kulik, and he also deserves silver in the adult championship. This opened the door for him to join the national team.

In 1995, Ilya Kulik took part in the European Championship for the first time, unexpectedly snatching victory from Urmanov. In the new season (1995-96), Ilya begins to study with Tatyana Tarasova. An experienced choreographer makes numerous adjustments to his performances, adding complex elements, including the famous triple axel, performed twice in a row. However, unable to cope with his excitement, Ilya fails the European Championship. But at the world championship the skater manages to win silver. Kulik begins to prepare for the Olympic Games. Intensive training next season under the leadership of Tarasova gives the expected result - Olympic gold. After this triumph, Ilya moves on to professional sports and continues to delight his fans.

Alexey Yagudin

Alexey Yagudin was born in St. Petersburg (Leningrad) in 1980. He began skating at the age of four with coach Alexander Mayorov, and Alexander was under his wing until he was 12 years old. Already at the age of 13, the boy began to take pride of place in competitions. In 1996 he won the World Championship. In 1997, Alexey conquered the European Championship. At the Olympic Games in Nagano, with the participation of Russian figure skaters (men), Yagudin managed to take 5th place. Since 1998, he began training with the famous Tatyana Tarasova. He trained in the USA, participated in many tournaments, from where he returned as a winner.

The championship, held in Vancouver, turned out to be unsuccessful for the skater. He was injured and barely managed to make it to 5th place. The fight for the champion title has not stopped. After treatment, Alexey returns to training again. His skill reached second place after Evgeni Plushenko. The next world championship brought him gold.

The Olympics in Salt Lake City brought triumph. Yagudin performed brilliantly, the judges' scores were the highest and he won. In 2002, health problems began again, and in 2007, during performances in Germany, due to an injury, the skater was forced to interrupt the performance.

After treatment in the USA, the athlete returned. He began to be active in show business. He performed in an ice show, starred in a TV series, and judged a KVN game.

Maxim Kovtun

The young but already famous Maxim Kovtun was born in 1995 in Yekaterinburg. With the mentorship of Buyanova and Tarasova, the athlete won the highest award, the Grand Prix for Emerging Talents. He has the title of Master of Sports, Champion of Russia.

Maxim’s family is athletic and from the age of 4 his father began taking him with him to sports school. The older Kovtun brothers are also active figure skaters and participate in a variety of ice shows.

The boy's first coach was Voitsekhovskaya. In the famous competitions where young Russian figure skaters participate, Maxim managed to win the Crystal Skate. Already at the age of 15, the skater performed an axel in three turns. At the Olympic level among juniors, he wins silver.

In 2012, under the mentorship of Tarasova and Vodorezova, Maxim took fifth place in the national championship. At international skating in Zagreb, where he was sent, he also skated fifth place.

A program was developed especially for Maxim, in which he does five jumps with four rotations.

Evgeni Plushenko

Singles skater (Russia) Evgeni Plushenko was born in the Khabarovsk Territory in 1982. As a child, he and his parents moved to Volgograd, where he began figure skating. For further training, the boy has to move to St. Petersburg. There he hones his skills at a sports school. In 2005, Evgeniy graduated from Lesgaft University of Physical Education.

The first sports victory was in the 1996-97 season. At the World Junior Championships, Evgeniy became the winner. Then he took third place at the World Championships, second at the European Championships. He became the world champion in 2001 and repeated his results in 2003 and 2004. Plushenko won the European Championship five times. He has more than a dozen gold medals in his sports collection.

In 2008, Evgeniy and Dima Bilan performed at Eurovision, winning again. Evgeni Plushenko leads an active social life.

Roman Kostamarov and Tatyana Navka

Famous Russian figure skaters Roman Kostamarov and Tatyana Navka are considered one of the most beautiful and artistic couples at our skating rink. Roman and Tatyana were invited to perform by coach Linichuk. At that time, the athletes were in Delaware. For some time, their duet broke up, Roman performed with the figure skater Semenovich. But as soon as Navka returned to the ice after the birth of her daughter in 2000, the couple reunited again and began to show very impressive results. In 2004 in Germany they became world champions. Then they became Olympic champions, became Russian champions three times, and European champions the same number of times. The result is three-time world champions. Athletes actively take part in show business and become participants in ice shows. Roman appears in films and television projects.

Anton Sikharulidze and Elena Berezhnaya

Famous Russian figure skaters Anton Sikharulidze and Elena Berezhnaya did not immediately start skating together. Until 1996, Elena performed with Shlyakhov. After receiving a severe head injury, Berezhnaya was literally on the verge of death. She recovered with difficulty and went back onto the ice, learning to skate again. Anton became her new partner, who supported her in everything. Together they managed to achieve incredible success. Their coach was Moskvina. Soon the couple achieved significant success at competitions in Paris. Further victories rained down on the athletes: prizes at the Olympic Games in 1998, then in 2002. They won the Russian championships for four years in a row from 1999 to 2002.

In 2006, Sikharulidze decides to leave sports and go into business. As an amateur, he still goes on the ice. He took part in television shows. Anton Sikharulidze headed the Committee on Physical Education and Sports for several years.

Ilya Averbukh and Irina Lobacheva

Famous Russian figure skaters Ilya Averbukh and Irina Lobacheva not only had a joint sports career. Lived in America. This couple was married and had a son, Martin. Unfortunately, after returning to Russia, the sports couple also broke up. But figure skaters managed to leave a significant mark on the history of big sport. During the period from 1993 to 2002, the star couple became national champions four times and winners of the World and European Championships. They won silver at the 2002 Olympics.

Sports injuries made themselves felt, and skating gradually faded away. Returning from America, Ilya created the Ice Symphony company. He became the organizer of famous ice shows and television projects that were so loved by viewers. He achieved great results in the production field.

Irina Slutskaya

Russian figure skater Irina Slutskaya was born in 1979 in Moscow. From the age of four she began training at the Moskvich sports club. At the age of six, coach Gromova began working with her. Already in 1993, Irina won the junior category at the Russian Championships and became a bronze medalist at the World Championships. In Sofia in 1996 she received the European champion title.

In 1998, Irina became a participant in the Nagano Olympics and came in fifth place. In 1999, Ira married Sergei Mikheev, at the same time her sports career was going up. Slutskaya takes prizes in all competitions and performs brilliantly in Salt Lake City.

For some time, Irina Slutskaya leaves the sport due to injuries, but soon returns and regains her position as a leader. The ultimate goal is the Olympics. Russian figure skaters perform at the games in Turin in 2006, here Slutskaya wins bronze. This victory cost the athlete a lot of effort. With this, she ended her sports career.

Alexey Tikhonov

Alexey was born in Samara in 1971. The skater's first coach was Vera Birbraer. Following her instructions, at the age of 16, Alexey went to Sverdlovsk, where he trained with Rennick for a year. After this, Tikhonov arrived in the capital and became Zakharov’s student. Next in the biography is life in Japan. Upon returning to his homeland, Alexey began to participate in an ice show under the leadership of Tarasova.

The first victory in 1989 was a bronze medal at the World Championships paired with Irina Sayfutdinova. In 1998, he began performing in tandem with Petrova, a year later they became European champions, and confirmed the title in 2000. At the Russian Championship for four years (from 1999 to 2005) he was a silver medalist. The main victory was the gold medal at the World Championships in 2000. He repeatedly became a silver and bronze medalist at championships and Grand Prix. In 2007, the couple announced their retirement.