“I kick out inappropriate parents along with their children”: Plushenko spoke again

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Two-time Olympic champion Evgeni Plushenko spoke in an interview with Sport about the path to silver of the Russian Championship of his student Sofia Muravyova, when Natalya Linichuk’s headquarters will be formed and how he copes with Valery Angelopol and the problematic parents of figure skaters.

Muravyova is one of the best in the world in skating
– Could will Muravyova become a champion in Chelyabinsk?

– Sofia performed the technical content that we planned. For her, it was most important to jump the triple Axel in both the short and free program. She restored this most difficult jump and performed it perfectly during warm-ups. Of course, there is something to work on and where to strive. We will work on quadruple jumps: restoring the Salchow, learning the sheepskin coat. These are the plans for the end of this season. Plus, two triple axels in the free program.

– They were also included in the application in Chelyabinsk. Why didn’t they take risks?

– Sophia is just not ready yet. She already stepped on this rake at the Grand Prix stage in Moscow. I didn’t listen to the coaches and did everything my own way. The risk did not pay off. Now Muravyova is already an experienced athlete who learns from her mistakes and listens to advice. Moreover, I try to listen to athletes.

– In your career, were there cases when you acted contrary to the recommendations of Alexei Mishin?

– The most significant one was the 2000 World Championships in Nice. When you’re young, you always want to do everything your own way. I told Sonya this story in order to warn her against repeating her own mistakes. She listened.

– Muravyova called her mistake on the step path karma, which has been haunting her for the second year in a row. Do you agree with this assessment?

– It's just a stupid mistake. Sonya approached the Russian Championship in good shape, having healed the injuries that plagued her at the beginning of the season. I really wanted to prove myself, starting from the first day of the competition. Her skating skills are level four, and her skating skills are amazing. In this component she is one of the best in the world.

– Is this the result of the work of coach Plushenko?

– We have been working for four years now, but She came to me already with a good base. I already owned a skate then, but I just needed to develop these skills.

– How are you going to survive adolescence?

– I hope that we have already survived it. Although this season there were difficulties not only with Sonya. Learning to cope with puberty. Working with figure skaters is difficult, but no one said it would be easy.

The Linichuk team will be formed for the new season
– You built, built and finally built the Plushenko's Angels Academy in Moscow. What plans do you have for the work of your school?

– We already have about two hundred people in our initial training groups, although we have just opened. We have a huge influx of people wanting to train. Sochi Olympic champion Yulia Lipnitskaya recruited her groups, and the ice dancing department was headed by Natalya Linichuk. We hope that in the near future she will have a full-fledged group. Arina Ushakova works very well with sports couples. There is a base, all that remains is to work.

– Will you invite already famous skaters to your academy, as was the case with Alena Kostornaya and Alexandra Trusova?

– They came to me themselves. I have always said that I am not the initiator of inviting athletes from other groups. I will not change this principle. If athletes want to move to the Plushenko's Angels Academy, they know the phone number to call. I will accept everyone who wishes it.

– How difficult were the negotiations about working with Linichuk, and are you not afraid that she has not worked with high-profile duets for a long time? class?

– When Linichuk returned from the USA, he made her an offer to head the dance department of our academy, and she agreed. We talked for a long time and discussed her work. In general, I’m “playing the long game” and I’m not going to shout at all corners that the dancers from Plushenko’s Angels will start defeating everyone tomorrow. In addition, Natalya Vladimirovna works with our single skaters on gliding and polishing programs. Dancing is good, but having a specialist with such experience in your team is a great help for working with singles.

– The number of specialists working with dancers today is comparable in number to the coaching staff of the football team Zenit, but Linichuk does not have her own team. Is this a problem?

– Now we are in the process of forming such a team. I am sure that by the new season it will already appear. I’m not ready to name specific names yet; everything is currently in the negotiation stage. We are not forcing them.

– Were you not afraid to take Valery Angelopol to your academy after all the scandals associated with his name?– Many believe that excessive enthusiasm for participating in shows prevents skaters from showing all they are capable of in competitions.
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– It doesn’t bother my athletes. You just can't do a show a couple of weeks before the competition starts. Those skaters who participated in them before the Russian Championships in Chelyabinsk really did not show the results that were expected from them. Only they didn’t skate in my shows.

– What was the most difficult thing for coach Plushenko this season?

– Injuries that plagued my athletes. During the preparatory period, I specially took all my skaters to Kislovodsk so that they could breathe and lay the base for the whole season in the middle mountains. But still it was not possible to avoid injuries. This applies not only to Muravyova, but also to Sofia Titova and Veronica Zhilina. Nikita Sarnovsky was injured during the competition – he broke his shoe and tore his ligament. We are slowly dealing with this problem. I’m learning a relatively new profession as a trainer. I specifically started with initial training groups in order to understand and experience this craft. Now they have already raised their own star, a prize-winner of the Russian Championship. This is a new and very interesting page in my life.

– How do you manage to find a common language with the parents of skaters?

– In this environment you meet inadequate characters. Only I immediately kick them out along with the children. The atmosphere in the group should be positive.

– Did you watch the figure skaters’ performances in Chelyabinsk through the eyes of a coach or an Olympic champion?

– Naturally, as a coach . For men, the Russian Championship was one of the most interesting in recent times. And for once the girls had an intrigue!