‘Quickly they’re going to be touchdown QUINTUPLE jumps’: Former determine skater Anna Semenovich defends girls’s quad-jump craze

Pop star and former ice-dancer Anna Semenovich has hailed Russia’s nationwide college of determine skating as “unmatched” and claims that quad-jumps in girls’ singles occasions are an integral a part of the game’s improvement.

Semenovich is a widely known singer in Russia and the previous soloist within the extraordinarily fashionable lady band ‘Blestyashchiye’. However few know that earlier than switching to point out enterprise Semenovich was a proficient ice-dancer who dreamed of Olympic medals till a knee damage spoiled her plans.

READ MORE: Alexandra Trusova enters the Guinness E book of World Information for unimaginable quad-jumping abilities

In an unique interview with RT Sport, Semenovich talked about her profession and break up with companion Roman Kostomarov. She additionally weighed in on quite a lot of points, together with elevating the age restrict in girls’s skating and the affect of quad-jumps on youngsters’ well being.

She was launched to determine skating by her dad and mom in a bid to remedy her arthritis, which pressured a younger Anna to spend a number of months in hospital. Her coaches initially did not suppose she would developed right into a top-class skater, however Semenovich’s stamina and willpower to win lastly made her some of the promising ice-dancers within the nation.

“I began skating on the age of three. I used to be recognized with a critical sickness – rheumatoid arthritis – which saved me in hospital for a number of months,” Semenovich advised RT Sport. 

“In an effort to keep away from critical problems, medical doctors really useful my dad and mom introduce me to sports activities. My father wished me to turn out to be a skier, however ultimately I went to a determine skating college, although the coaches didn’t need to settle for me as a result of I used to be very small in comparison with different youngsters within the group. However my father satisfied them to let me in, saying that I might skate only for well being causes, however not compete.

“By the age of 9 I had turn out to be top-of-the-line skaters in that group regardless of nobody taking me severely. I actually didn’t just like the state of issues and I used to be actually motivated to show that I wasn’t the ‘lame horse’ within the group.

“So once I turned 10, I grew to become one of many high skaters within the group and my coaches handed me on to the legendary specialist Natalia Dubova, who had coached sensible skaters together with Marina Klimova and Sergei Ponomarenko, Alexander Zhulin and Maya Usova, Evgeni Platov and Oksana Grishuk.”

Semenovich mentioned that being an inventive skater and passionate dancer, she most well-liked ice dancing to different determine skating disciplines.

“I’ve all the time been creative. I used to be very versatile and danced very properly, most likely due to ballroom dance courses, which I additionally took. So, on the age of 10, when skaters select disciplines to compete in, I used to be instantly picked up for ice dancing by my coaches,” Semenovich mentioned.

Speaking about her break up with companion Roman Kostomarov, who ultimately received the 2006 Olympic gold medal with one other skater, Tatiana Navka, Semenovich mentioned she wasn’t harm by the choice to half methods.

“There can be no insults and offences in sport. Sport is basically powerful and athletes ought to understand what dangers to take. In fact once I began to have troubles with my knee Roman determined to get again with his earlier companion Tatiana Navka with whom he received the Olympic Video games. I couldn’t practice at full energy as a result of my knee damage to turn out to be an Olympic champion. Those that need to attain that stage ought to take powerful choices generally. I fully understood his motive, there have been no onerous emotions,” she added.

Semenovich, who’s an Worldwide Grasp of Sports activities, mentioned she was not stunned by the current controversy surrounding Alexandra Trusova’s break up with famed pundit Eteri Tutberidze, including that the choice to change to a different coach has all the time been accompanied by a scandal if it includes a high class skater. In Might, Trusova give up Tutberidze’s camp, inflicting outrage within the Russian determine skating neighborhood with some specialists even labeling her a ‘traitor’.

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“It has all the time been a extremely publicized occasion, when a well-known athlete decides to alter coach. When Grishuk and Platov left Dubova to work with Tatiana Tarasova it was additionally an enormous scandal. However then they grew to become Olympic champions. Each athlete needs to attain good outcomes. She or he wants to coach within the applicable environment to assist win medals for our nation. That’s why generally athletes have to take powerful choices to develop and conquer new heights,” the retired skater mentioned.

Speaking about one of many burning points in trendy determine skating – elevating the ladies’s age restrict – the present enterprise star mentioned she will’t perceive the overall consensus that the girls’ occasion has all the time been ‘younger’ when it comes to the rivals’ age.

“I’m not the one to resolve whether or not the age restrict needs to be raised or not. However I believe that 15-year-old women are already mature sufficient to carry out at senior stage. What does it imply? Somebody can have youngsters at a younger age, however skaters will not be sufficiently old to win Olympic medals? These are double requirements.

“Why is nobody speaking about Tara Lipinski who received the world championship at 14 years outdated? Why does no person keep in mind Oksana Baiul who claimed an Olympic gold on the age of 16? This has all the time been a younger occasion, I don’t perceive why folks began speaking concerning the age restrict now,” she mentioned. 

Responding to criticism voiced by some overseas pundits concerning ‘inhumane’ strategies of coaching kids, Semenovich mentioned that kids themselves need to win medals, even with out being pushed onerous by their coaches.

“Why has Russian determine skating college been criticized? This can be a legendary college which is really unmatched. No one is torturing youngsters at coaching. A child both goes to a skating rink, or not. Youngsters need to obtain excessive outcomes themselves.

“It’s fairly regular that feminine skaters have began to land quads. A while in the past we had been amazed by triple jumps. ‘Oh my god, this skater threw a triple Salchow!’ However now, that is only a triple Salchow which may be simply performed by eight-year-old youngsters. That is known as progress. 100 years in the past planes didn’t fly, however now we deal with them as one thing regular. Quickly skaters will begin touchdown quintuple jumps, this solely implies that the game is growing,” the previous skater mentioned.