Daria Usacheva: “I imagined myself skating the free program, and I felt like dying. Probably now my career is ended. I don’t think I’ll be back on the competitive arena in a year.”
Figure skater Daria Usacheva explained her decision to stop competing.
source: youtube
The 17-year-old Russian athlete is currently involved in coaching activities.
“At some point, I realized everything during training – and this began during the period when I was working on my short program. I was trying to skate it. And I had this feeling… I skate and skate – I knew I can nail the short program. I imagined myself skating the free program, and I felt like dying. I thought, ‘Wow, now I have to recover…’ Also, as I mentioned, I soberly and reasonably assessed my capabilities, especially in professional sports. I realized that probably no,” she said.
“I love skating, and I will skate for the audience in shows and do what I’m currently more passionate about – what I would like more. Plus, it’s a year with the Russian State Exam (EGE), applying for college, and my mom also really wanted me to do well, get into college. I even had thoughts about applying to two universities and getting a second non-sports-related degree. So, I made this decision, and I haven’t regretted it at all. On the contrary, I am convinced that, as they say, ‘listen to your heart.'”
“Can we say with confidence that Daria Usacheva has ended her career?” she was asked.
“Well, probably now, yes. I don’t think I’ll be back on the competitive arena in a year, no. But yes, I really want to skate in shows. I like performing, performing for the audience, showcasing programs, emotions, skating. I often improvise on the ice now, just play music. I enjoy it. I get a kick out of stepping on the ice and coming up with something, skating,” Usacheva replied.
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