Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: “I consider myself lucky; my psyche hasn’t been broken. I wasn’t afraid to step onto the ice. I never had such things that I jump because of fear. I jumped because I enjoyed it.”
Translation of Elizaveta Tuktamysheva’s comments about child’s psyche in sports.
original source: fontanka.ru dd. 23d November 2023
“Q: Does high-performance sports break a child’s psyche?
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: High-performance sports are about overcoming challenges. It’s a discipline where there are days when you don’t want to go to practice, but you must because without that routine, you won’t achieve high results. I don’t know to what extent others’ psyches are affected. I consider myself lucky; my psyche hasn’t been broken. I am mentally healthy. I’ve never been physically punished, and I wasn’t scolded much unless there was something I didn’t understand in my childhood. Overall, I approached training adequately and gave my best effort. Then, Alexei Nikolaevich (Mishin) came into my life. I wasn’t afraid to step onto the ice. I never had such things that I jump because of fear. I jumped because I enjoyed it. I think there are athletes who were pushed too hard. But, it’s probably better to ask those who have openly discussed their psychological problems. He (Mishin) didn’t break me. Figure skating is my favorite activity, and I continue to do it and watch it because I genuinely love it.
Q: What was the most severe punishment from a coach in your practice?
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: Once, they simply didn’t let me onto the ice because I had laughed with a friend for too long in the evening. I was a little rebel; I was more interested in having fun. There wasn’t that much discipline, and besides, I went to the training camp alone. And so, they didn’t let me onto the ice the next morning because I had gone to bed late.
Q: By the way, about ‘sleep.’ You mentioned that your immediate plans include participating in shows and sleeping a lot. How does Elizaveta Tuktamysheva sleep?
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: I need to turn off the phone or put it on silent mode. I am a very light sleeper, and if any vibration occurs, for example, at six in the morning, I immediately wake up, and then it’s challenging to fall asleep again. It must be dark. A little ventilation before sleep to make the bed cool. And take a small toy or crumple a blanket to hug. I hate getting up early in the morning. Now I sleep for about ten hours, and I really like it. Waking up at ten in the morning is finally happening in my life.
Q: When a child grows up — this is the case with music schools as well as sports — at some point, they want to shed the burden. At this moment, motivation is crucial. Where did your motivation come from?
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: As soon as I started attending training camps with Alexei Nikolaevich, I understood how vast and diverse our world is. It was essential for me to see it, meet other people, understand their mentality, and communicate. I realized that by staying in Glazov and living a typical provincial life, I wouldn’t get that. I always had the motivation to break out and travel the world. I understood this around the age of 12–13.”
Related topics: Elizaveta Tuktamysheva
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