Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov: We don’t chase records, It’s more pleasant to have a title
Interwie with Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov.
This is your debut Olympics, and you are going to Pyeongchang as the first pair of the national team. Do you feel the excitement, responsibility?
Vladimir: We try not to dwell on it. In addition, after the European Championship, confidence appeared. We feel our strength. In Moscow, we skated the free program really cool. But this is not a feat for us, not something of the “wow” category. This is normal. We showed what we have prepared at trainings. And before the Olympics the main thing is not to lose shape, not to get sick, to reach the milestone.
Zhenya, you once said that you are ready to suffer pain and injuries for the sake of participating in the Games …
Evgenia: There is a dream not just to be a participant, but to fight for “gold.” When you have been doing your favorite thing since four years, spend almost all your life on the ice, train every day, it really becomes a goal. You go to this goal through pain, tears. Last season I had to endure a lot, we spent most of the time skating on painkillers because of an injury. This season there were also problems. But all this is overcomed.
You won the European Championship, but didn’t the performance in the short program become a shock? The same can be asked about the unsuccessful Grand Prix final.
Vladimir: The first line is the main thing. We skated our free program perfectly. And we discussed the skate of the short program, analyzed, corrected the details. So, I think, there shouldn’t be any problems.
The failure at the Grand Prix final I also would not called a frustration or a shake-up. The Olympic season is intense, competitions go one after another: Grand Prix Finals, Russian Championships, European Championships, Games. Perhaps, at the Grand Prix Final was a decline – both physical and emotional. Therefore, the performance was a failure. We were champions, but became the fifth. Although for some reason they didn’t count our pair spin. We lacked these points to reach the third place. Even with mistakes we could have taken “bronze”. We can say that the judges took away the medal. But we did not focus on this.
Even in a pairs it happens that someone makes mistakes more often. Is this an excuse for sorting out the relationships?
Evgenia: We work in pair and the result is common, regardless of someone’s mistakes. If you make claims to each other, nothing good will come of it. Only support and a joint discussion of the problem is needed. It’s wrong to be offended and blame each other.
And the fact that Vova often improvises in the free program, isn’t it confusing?
Evgenia: On the contrary, it only gives positive emotions. You see, how your partner makes some new, even unexpected movements, gestures and I want to play along. It motivates. It becomes even more interesting to skate the program. Even when I tell about it, I smile.
Vladimir: We prepared the program well, and this gives freedom. When there is a safety margin, it turns out to relax: you can add a gesture, communicate with the audience, judges, not just focus on the steps and elements.
You can dance to Christina Aguilera, but in the short program you have Rachmaninoff. How is it possible to combine?
Vladimir: We try to change from year to year, not to show the same style on the ice. We do not want to be a one-sided pair. We want variety. Well, and so that the audience liked us. We can skate almost everything. We can do classics well – widely, musically. We also like dance things. And when you do something with pleasure, then the result is better.
You have mastered the quadruple twist. How did you achieve that?
Evgenia: It is a hard element that requires concentration, it takes a lot of energy. But now we are doing it in the working mode. Consistently perform both in trainings and competitions.
Vladimir: We found an approach to the element. But in shows, we will not do it anyway. This is a really dangerous and risky element.
Maxim Trankov would like someone from Russian pairs to beat his world record in a short program. Do the scores matter for you?
Vladimir: If we have a masterpiece performance, then the record will be. We have the appropriate content. But we are not chasing it. It’s more pleasant to have a title.
What was it like to train in the same group with the two-time Olympic champions?
Vladimir: It left its mark. We saw how they were preparing for the Olympics in Sochi. It’s one thing to watch athletes when they are at the peak of their shape at the main competitions. Another is to see the entire training process from the inside. It helps. We still keep some things in our mind and use them.
Like Tanya and Max, you are a couple not only on the ice, but in life too. What are the pros and cons of such a relationships?
Evgenia: Advantages are that you know a person better. You can discuss some moments at home, tell about your worries more frankly.
Do you discuss sports things at home?
Vladimir: It seems to me that all skaters constantly talk about figure skating, wherever they are.
by Anna Kozina for rg.ru
Related topics: Evgenia Tarasova Vladimir Morozov, interview, pairs
“We can skate almost everything. We can do classics well – widely, musically.”
My favorite part, definitely :)
Good luck to them, though. Good luck to all the hard-working people out there.
Good luck to Evgenia/Vladimir!