Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: “As long as everything is fine with my body, as long as I feel the desire and strength to continue skating, jumping, improving, I want to show it.”
Interview with Elizaveta Tuktamysheva. About new season, new programs and motivation to continue her career.
The main question before each competitions, especially before the start of the season: how is your health? They said that you caught a cold before the test skates?
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: Yes, I felt a little unwell. Now I’ve already recovered, although there are small consequences. My shape is not optimal, I did not have time to fully recover, but the main thing is that I am here and now, and I am ready to perform.
It’s gonna be not an ordinary. What is your motivation for it?
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: Show my programs. I have a new artistic image, I want to bring it, if not to the ideal, then at least show the idea that we wanted to convey with the choreographers. Plus I love to compete. It’s good that we have such an opportunity. As long as everything is fine with my body, as long as I feel the desire and strength to continue skating, jumping, improving, I want to show it.
Have you thought to take a break, maybe for half a season? Recover, heal, just relax?
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: I like to skate, it can be said that it’s my hobby. I don’t come to training like to hard labor, they bring me pleasure. Why interrupt what you enjoy?
This season is completely domestic. Did you have any hope that we would be allowed to participate in international competitions?
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: I always have hope. You can’t do without it.
The Channel One made very cool prize money even for Russian competitions. For the victory at Russian Nationals – 2.5 million rubles, for the “gold” of the Grand Prix final – 1 million, for the victory at the Grand Prix stage – 500 thousand. Is it a shock?
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: Yes, serious prize money. When they announced that we would have a Grand Prix, I assumed that some money would be paid. I’m glad these assumptions turned out to be true. Money is never redundant. This is a good bonus and a plus for motivation.
About programs
This season, the figure skater’s free program is to composition “Loneliness” by Igor Krutoy. In a short one, Tuktamysheva will perform to a remix of Nina Simone’s song Feeling Good.
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: There is no task to be in one hundred percent shape now at the test skates, so I’m preparing quite calmly. My shape for the beginning of the season is not bad – I will not say that this is my best shape for competing, but for the beginning of the season it is quite good.
The main thing is that we have two programs, two new programs. We try to focus on the presentation in order to show spins, steps, programs in good quality.
Elizaveta also shared her opinion about her artistic image in the free program.
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: It seems to me that this is not entirely new – this is such a deep image for me, and we worked with Elizaveta (Navislavskaya), who teaches acting at the Boris Eifman Theater and shows how movements can show emotions.
This is a slightly different work, it seems to me that this is a step forward in development. This is not only music, program, jumping – it will also be feelings. It will be a little different, you’ll see.
About life
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: I learned to balance between sports and rest and not to dwell on one figure skating alone.
I live my life, enjoy. I don’t live for the sake of sports. I live for life. It’s different for every person. There are people who, on the contrary, need to give everything they have completely, and then there will be a result.
I tried to do this and realized that the final point is that I put all of myself: if the result is not very good, then I will reproach myself for it very much. I didn’t get any benefit from this, and it’s hard for me to live like this. Why live like this when it’s hard for you?
I even have better results when I can be distracted, when I rest, when I completely switch from figure skating. But this is for me – because I am a person who cannot do the same thing.
We have one life and it is necessary, especially at my age, to spend it in such a way that later at your 30th you don’t regret that you ruined your whole life for the sake of figure skating and, as a result, didn’t really live.
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