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On Thursday, figure skaters Anna Shcherbakova and Egor Goncharov became winners of the All-Russian competitions for the Federation Cup in dancing at ice In interviews, the athletes told how they wanted to close down after negative comments, which of the Russian figure skaters shows theater on ice and why they understand Elizaveta Tuktamysheva, who suspended her career.
“This year we clearly felt the negative”< br>— This season, attention is focused on you. Were you ready for popularity?
Anna Shcherbakova: I think so. We will try not to become a star. Although it is too early to say that we are becoming popular. We are only juniors, we still have to work and work to reach the peak.
— Along with popularity comes hate. Have you received negative comments?
АШ: This is where we have come. This year we felt the negativity especially clearly. Perhaps we actually said something we shouldn't have. At that time, they didn’t know that they needed to think through the speech.
— After this, there is no desire to close?
Egor Goncharov: Initially it was, but we took the position that we will work better on our speech, on what we say and how.
ASH: You can answer questions interestingly and not offend anyone. But you really need to work on this.
— Isn’t it a shame that your species is not as popular as the others?
АШ : We understand that ice dancing is more difficult to understand from the point of view of an ordinary spectator. In singles, if you performed a beautiful jump, there will be a big score. It seems like we drove the track well, but got the first level. The audience does not understand why this is so.
— How then to attract an audience?
EG: With something more than just skating. Gorgeous productions, so that there is theater, art.
— How many people manage to show theater on ice?
АШ: It comes with experience. The older the couple, the more obvious this is. The same Sasha Stepanova and Vanya Bukin have a very cool free dance this year, they get used to the character and experience the whole range of emotions. Of course, they are the leaders this season.
— Some criticized their move to Alexander Zhulin. They say they have become like Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov.
EG: I don’t know what people didn’t like. This can be said about everyone. We can say that both Vika and Nikita were striving for someone. But we remember Sasha and Vanya very much.
“It’s scary to leave the usual image”
— Next season, do you plan to perform in masters?
ASH: In dancing, it is customary to be in juniors until the last minute, to gain experience. We have another year in this regard. So let's evaluate all the pros and cons and make an informed decision.
EG: The factor here is not only in international competitions. Going to master is a big step.
— If you do go, are you ready to lose your leader status and have to prove everything all over again?
АШ: We adequately assess the situation and it is quite obvious that we will not be leaders in the masters. But we are ready to work on ourselves.
— Everyone says that in dancing there is a kind of queue. How can young athletes win the competition?
АШ: There really is a queue. To overcome it you need a bit of luck and work. If this is combined, then you can jump over it slightly.
— You have already come into contact with the adult team at the Channel One Cup. Did you manage to become friends with someone?
ASH: It’s hard to say that we became direct friends. We arrived in the morning and departed at 18:00 in the evening. It turned out to be such an adventurous event for us. We talked a little with Anya Shcherbakova, but mainly it concerned the tournament and the relay. Vanya Bukin is friends with our coaches, so he also treated us like a father and supported us.
— How was the decision made to replace your namesake Anya Shcherbakova in the relay? Didn't you feel intimidated by such responsibility?
ASH: It was very spontaneous. The evening before, my coaches received a call with this idea and decided to agree.
EG: I was very worried about Anya, I didn’t want her to let the team down. But she did it one hundred percent. Well done!
— Our figure skaters are increasingly appearing in the media field. At the same time, they have different positioning of themselves. There is the daring Alina Zagitova, Evgenia Medvedeva, who experiments. What is closer to you?
EG: We don’t even know. This just means that it is too early to talk about popularity.
ASH: Of course, the Olympic champions were listed. We haven't grown up to that. We'll watch it there.
— If we talk about new tournaments, would you like to take part in the “Russian Challenge”?
EG: We really wanted to participate. I think if there had been no Grand Prix Final, we would have thought about participating. But the idea itself is wonderful.
— Who did you like best?
EG: I really liked Maria Petrova and Alexey Tikhonov.
АШ: Me too, also Anastasia Mishina and Alexander Gallyamov. Cool number! I read the comments, there are most positive reviews about them.
— Didn’t you see the problem that many took lyrical numbers and simply did not dare to break out of their usual image?
ASH: There is such a thing. We are also sometimes afraid to leave some image. The same “Chess” (last year’s free program, at the 2024 Russian Championships the skaters performed it again — ed.). The image took root very well; it was scary to change such a successful production. But he who does not take risks does not drink champagne.
EG: In some ways, this is overcoming oneself and a big step. Rolling out the lyrics again is a simple step; it will influence the judges more than a bright, positive image.
— How not to be afraid to go out of character?
EG: Self-development, when an athlete can easily enter into any image.
— Can this be learned or is it natural?
АШ: I think it’s partly natural.
EG: But if you leave your comfort zone and try on more and more take on new images, it will be easier each time.
— The number of Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron with elements of Vogue became innovative in figure skating. Why is something like this rarely used in Russia?
EG: Firstly, it is very difficult to perform Vogue like this, this is the highest level. The guys did a very good job. Maybe in Russia someone could do the same, but still everyone decided to take a different path.
— Now there is a struggle between the Russian and Montreal dance schools. Is it possible to develop without copying someone?
EG: You need to go your own way. You can take something positive and add your own. But copying is wrong, it’s just a path to nowhere, because you can’t do better.
“We understand Elizaveta Tuktamysheva”
— Name the strengths of your duet.
АШ: It seems to me that our couple has cool programs. We always have them of high quality. I would also highlight honesty with the audience. We try to sincerely convey all emotions.
EG: Patience. The season was mentally difficult, it came in waves, physically it was also difficult towards the end.
— Do you quarrel often?
EG< /strong>: There are misunderstandings, but this is more due to fatigue. At the beginning of the season, with fresh strength, this does not happen at all; at the end, sometimes there is tension.
АШ: We need to take a break from each other. It happens that we get together with the guys from the skating rink; we recently went to play “Mafia”.
— Do the coaches tell you what to do in a given situation?
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EG: If something happens between us, they usually don’t interfere. But they always say that they are open to dialogue, we can discuss complaints between us or the team.
— If you don’t like something, can you say so?
АШ: We can openly talk about this. Of course, if something doesn’t work out for me, the coaches say: “Let’s work better and insert this or that element.” But they always listen.
EG: It is very important that the coach listens to the athlete. It seems to me that misunderstanding is born precisely because of the inability to listen.
— Anya studied in the group of Irina Zhuk and Alexander Svinin, but now you are with Ekaterina Rubleva. Why did you make this choice?
АШ: It so happened that my ex-partner went to study, at that moment he was just passing the Unified State Exam, and I skated alone for three months. But Egor also separated from his partner, and our parents brought us together. We agreed that I would come for a tryout in their group, and we immediately found contact.
— What is Ekaterina Borisovna’s strength as a coach?
EG: She is very ambitious, result-oriented. I would say that she is the engine. In our team, everyone is responsible for something, and so Ekaterina Borisovna pulls everyone together, even when we are exhausted.
— Is she strict?
ASH: I rarely get scolded (laughs). In fact, no one swears for no reason. If we start to mess around and ruin the elements, she can. We deserve it.
— This season many couples have mixed up. What do you see as the main reason?
EG: Many people say that this is due to the lack of international starts. But I think that this is not a reason. There are many junior pairs that do not compete at international competitions, but they hold on.
АШ: When moving to masters, pairs often break up.
— Because of what?
АШ: It’s hard to survive the recession — you were a leader, but now you are lagging behind.
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EG: We need to wait a year or two, but people don’t have enough patience.
— How are you doing? motivate without international tournaments?
АШ: We haven’t won everything in Russia, we have room to grow. We still have enough motivation, but I understand adult athletes whose eyes don’t sparkle.
EG: But this can be said about those who have already won the Russian championship and international competitions . And those who did not win should be full of desire.
— So you understand Elizaveta Tuktamysheva, who suspended her career?
EG: Yes, she is already a world champion, a Russian champion. She won these titles almost 10 years ago. It is not surprising that she wants something more or to repeat this result.
— Some say that medals are not as important as clean performances.
ASH: Maybe others think so, but for us it’s not true. First of all, before starting, you always want to skate the program cleanly and with pleasure. But then you sit and wait for good points and more medals.
— In figure skating, everything is built on a lot of work. But what do you do in your free time?
ASH: I really like to read. Huge Agatha Christie fan, I just love it. It seems to me that I have read more than 90 percent of her works. From Russian classics I like “The Master and Margarita” and “Fathers and Sons”.
EG: I like to listen to music, I watch a lot of concerts, I study how music is written. I have a specific taste. Athletes record rap, I would record rock.