Savchenko/Szolkowy future in doubt

http://www.eislauf-union.de/PresseerklrungderDEUe.V.zurAngelegenheitEiskunstlaufpaar.html
http://de.sports.yahoo.com/20092006/30/deu-sichert-existenz-trennung-steuer.html

To summarize:

The German federation (DEU) today announced that Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy would not be allowed to work with Ingo Steuer. Even if they found private funding, he would not be allowed to represent Germany by standing at the boards at any competition. (This is a reversal of a previous decision to allow him to go to GP events.)

In so doing, the DEU has met the criteria for the Interior Ministry to unfreeze about 200,000Euro and brought themselves back from the brink of bankruptcy. All skaters were harmed by the frozen funds, but the DEU said it was not pressured to make the decision to dump Steuer once and for all.

The DEU has offered to underwrite the costs for S/S to train with Tamara Moskvina (who would come to Chemnitz) or Oleg Vasiliev (S/S would have to go to Chicago), but so far S/S have not accepted the offer. They have not indicated what they will do, but the DEU has said that if they stay with Steuer, they cannot represent Germany, and their career there would be over.

S/S were scheduled to appear at Nebelhorn next week, but their spot on the roster is currently blank.

Stay tuned!
Anke

Bad news for S&S and Ingo. This could be a career-ender for all of them.

I think Steuer largely brought this upon himself. I am not talking about his original cooperation with Stasi - I am still ambivalent as to the fairness of punishing someone for legal actions more than a decade ago. However, when facts did surface, he did all he could to lie and deny, lie and deny. Furthermore, if he really cared about his students (and girlfriend Alyona's career) more than about his own behind, he would have actively looked for other training options for them, even if it were on temporary basis. He does not appear very sympathetic right about now...

It will be a real shame if Alyona and Robin's career will end. I can't believe that they are turning down an opportunity to work with a coach such as Moskvina... Sad.

Looks like Alyona and Robin have a huge decision to make. I doubt they want to stop skating, so at this point they may not have a choice but to get a new coach. (Which probably will require them to move) Honestly both Moskvina and Vasiliev are excellent pair coaches, and either one of them would be great. And I agree with Ptichka: WHY on earth would they decline being coached by arguably the greatest pairs coach?

Didn't the Federation know about the money issue when they said that Steuer could continue as their coach? I'm trying to think of the reason for the change of mind -- and I would think they knew about the money getting unfrozen at the time they made the original decision.

I understood from the original German announcement by the German Skating Federation, that there has been things mentioned in the press, which the German Federation actually had not decided in that point.