Possible Khokhlova/ Andreev partnership | Page 3 | Golden Skate

Possible Khokhlova/ Andreev partnership

bekalc

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 1, 2006
I don't necessarily mean the trial balloon scenario in an entirely negative way, and I'm not entirely convinced that it's right..just leaning that way. I would hope no skater was simply being used by their federation. Maybe Jana truly has no feasible option for a partner in Russia at this time. Z/S are indisputably at the top of the coaching field now.They would be fools to leave behind what they worked so hard to build. They've made lives for themselves, formed emotional, as well as professional ties where they are. They have as much talent available to them as a coach could wish for.

They've said they would be willing to take on a Russian team, but the RSF may want to be completely sure they treat all their students equally before they commit a team they see as already having great potential to them. ( Didn't many of us feel B/A were given short shrift by Linichuk once D/S came under her wing ?)I think the RSF would want to be sure their team wouldn't find themselves in such a situation. They know they couldn't hope for favoritism , but maybe fairness would be enough. They'd want to be sure though.

The only problem with this theory is I'm not sure that a partnership that involves Marina's own son, is a suitable "test ballon." Frankly I worry that this situation is going to hurt some of Russia's extremely talented junior teams, with the Russians pushing Fedor/Jana, even if the other teams are better.

I don't think focusing one team of coaches is the way to go for Russia. I don't think ONE pair of top coaches was what made the Soviet system successful. I think it was the fact that training was based big time on talent, not your money. (although politics played a role). And the fact that they not only had strong top coaches, but they had strong lower level coaches working with their young skaters developing strong basics. The Russians might not be able to convince Igor and Marina to come back, but they just might be able to convince some of their other coaches to come back.. The US economy isn't going so well, and well Igor and Marina have pretty much a political strangelhold on US dance. The Russians might be able to convince a talented coach like Angelica Kryolov to come back if the price is right... They could also have their other very successful coaches help train younger coaches too. I think it would be just foolish for the Russians to sacrifice Jana, or some of their young ice dancers future success for the hopes of getting one team of coach.

And besides I have a feeling if the Russians were able to establish a successful system that was more humane but based on their old system of developing talent (like subsidized lessons). People like Igor and Marina might 10 years from now, actually be more interested in coaching Russians. They know how well that system works.

And really Zhulin is starting to develop a quite strong team himself. He's doing great work with his young teams and there's talk that he's even having Stavisky working with his young teams....I just think things are already looking up for them in Ice dance with their younger talent, and they need to focus on those things, and building a new system. Not on one group of coaches.
 
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colleen o'neill

Medalist
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
:laugh:I think the main problem with the test balloon theory is that probably none of us is used to thinking along as politically complicated lines as the RSF.

And I'm not fearful for their younger teams..I don't think the RSF will particularly beat the drum for Jana, they'll most likely still keep their focus for the future where it seems to be now, on B/S and I/K...( who knows what's going on with Rubleva /Shefer..someone said somewhere that they were thinking over their situation) But they won't dump Jana either, they'll keep neutral 'til they see what kind of magic Z/S can work..and to see whether their coaching star stays ascendant as Sochi approaches.

At some point, Z/S will reach the limit of how many teams they can handle at one time..the RSF may partly be making sure they have a toe in the door, so they could sub in another partner for Jana if she and Fedor come up short , or maybe a whole other team, if their younger teams don't progress as hoped under their current coaching arrangements....or if their coaching scene doesn't develop as quickly as they'd like....( I wish we had a dizzy smiley )

I don't think at all that the RSF would want to bet on just one coaching team , but if one coaching team should enjoy a really long term dominance,( particularly in Ice dance where Russia has it's own history of long term dominance ) they wouldn't want to be shut out.
 
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riardo

Rinkside
Joined
Mar 27, 2010
It looks like RSF is not that confident in I/K's chance to be ready to fight for Gold in Sochi. In this situation, they are trying to have an alternate option of more well-known and established athlete to be under the radar just in case. That's what they have always done- they always have two top teams supporting each other. I still think I/K are the favorites with RSF, but they are still an unknown entity and till they prove themselves. So I think Kokhlova is smart girl by doing this, even though she does not have many options anyways.
 

Ptichka

Forum translator
Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 28, 2003
And the difference between the Americans and the Russians, is that in the case of the Russian coaches, a lot of their training was given to them for free by the government. And all governments are financed directly or indirectly by their people. So indirectly the Russians can feel like they paid for those coaches knowledge. Which can lead to how new feelings.
Nah. Sure, the government paid for the training - but it also took the lion's share of any prizes.
It's this whole "patriotism" argument. It reminds me of a story my dad like to recount. He was on some business trip (this was in Russia in the 80's), staying at a hotel. He wrang for a cup of tea, but his floor's attendant wasn't there, so he went onto another floor to ask that floor's attendant for the tea. Later on, his floor's attendant reproached him - "How can you be so unpatriotic to your floor!" Seriously. No irony.
 

Ituriel

On the Ice
Joined
Apr 18, 2009
From the Elena Vaytsehovskaya's blog:

"And tomorrow in the "RC" - figure skating. Pretty great stuff, the essence of which lies in the fact that pairs of Jan Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski no longer exists. The decision, confirmed by all parties concerned, so it is - the official information."

http://blog.sport-express.ru/users/v...post125743649/
 

colleen o'neill

Medalist
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
:laugh: Aha! ..well. As fun as it's been to speculate , so far... It seems nothing we say can possibly come up to the richness and juiciness of what gets written in Russian..I hope you Russian speakers continue to keep us up to date...Please ? ( I love the translations ..Thank you, thank you , thank you.))
 
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Wicked

Final Flight
Joined
May 26, 2009
How much experience does Fedor have in ice dance? I can't imagine it would be easy for a singles skater to make this transition.
 

gmyers

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
What about possible relatives in Moscow? It could be due to the partnership with Khoklova or it could be personal.
 

cloudkicker09

Final Flight
Joined
Oct 30, 2006
This is the BEST NEWS EVER!!!! Fedor going back to his roots and skating for Russia, and Khoklova, skating with a really hot partner, OMG: I HAVE TO CHEER FOR RUSSIA: Now where did I put my Bubbe's flag? FEDOR IS GOING TO COMPETE AND POTENTIALLY MEDAL: RUSSIAN POLIKING DO NOT FAIL HIM NOW!!!!

Khoklova and Andreev, WOW it even sounds sexy!!!!!


Ps to those who doubt Fedor's experiance in ice dance, he did pairs a while back, also he is classically trained by his mother, Marina Zueva one of the best coaches and choreographers in the world.
 
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Joined
Aug 16, 2009
I just noticed this thread. Thanks, Ptichka, for your usual fine job translating.

I always found Andreev to be a bit of a gadfly--now skating singles, now pairs with Jenny Kirk, now racing cars, now modeling. (The modeling seemed to suit him best!) From what you all say, it sounds as though his training regimen is somewhere in Christopher Bowman territory. (I say that with a heavy heart.) It must be hard for Zoueva not to be able to count completely on her son right now, with the risk she'll be taking in terms of her reputation if she decides to work with him as an ice dancer.

On the other hand, one of you mentioned Sofia Coppola and the debacle of Godfather III Keep in mind that some years after that, she directed Lost in Translation and almost became the first woman director to win an Oscar. So maybe Andreev has figured out how to buckle down. One can only hope!

in a way, being that good-looking can be a curse. You can be tempted to rely on that and coast on everything else. That's something that makes me respect really gorgeous skaters who are successful. (You can supply many names from your own lists of Top Beautiful People in Skating.) They must know that they're pleasing to look at, but they still work like dogs to get to their goals.
 

colleen o'neill

Medalist
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
:biggrin: cloudkicker..what a refreshing post .

I've just been sitting back on this for a while...There seems to be so much 'living in denial' going on. C'mon , you guys , relax and enjoy it.

How anyone can assume Fedor has had no experience in Ice Dance with his background , is beyond me. It's true that when he was younger, he struggled with many of the pitfalls common to people who have a lot of talent ,or multiple talents ,but to whom success ,at first ,comes too easy...They often fall into thinking that talent is enough to get you through ; or they can't quite decide which talent to focus on . Sometimes the talent that comes most naturally to them is the one they most take for granted...add personal beauty into the mix and the fact that in sport ( or dance for that matter ) people have to face these challenges and make important decisions at a young age , and it becomes quite the obstacle course .

Leading into the '08-'09 season , we were given to understand that he'd realized how much he missed skating and had re-committed to it .( The more cynical among us might read that as realizing that of the things he'd tried, skating offered the best options for a long term career ;) ). Since then, as far as I can tell, he hasn't backed off or let up, but kept trying one avenue after another..willing to do what it takes. It remains to be seen how he'll acquit himself, but I wouldn't write the whole thing off at this stage of the game.

I know I've said it before, but I can't believe that the other principals involved , Marina , Igor , Jana, would risk their time and reputations to satisfy a whim , some crazy idea with no potential.

The Russian Fed has seen the tapes, Jana has requested the partnership, Fedor first tweets that he's going to FL. ( where Igor just happens to be vacationing ) to work on choreography , then a few weeks later , he's tweeting from Moscow. Well , you can pretend these things are all unrelated, but I think you might as well face up to it..all that's missing is the Russian Fed's formal blessing...but if they weren't informally in favour , he wouldn't be in Moscow now.:rolleye:

It's bound to be entertaining.
 

shine

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
Does Andreev have great skating skills even for a singles skater? Wouldn't it be far easier for him to switch to pairs than dance? Especially considering his height..
Even Tiffany Stiegler, who I had thought was one of the best SKATERS outside of non-ice dancers, was not able to have a successful transition to ice dance...
 
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Joined
Aug 16, 2009
I believe he did at least train in pairs for awhile, with Jennifer Kirk. I don't know what came of it. Anyone remember his track record in pairs, and why he stopped?

I remember when Tiffany Stiegler skated as an ice dancer. I had high hopes for her. She's one of the most frustrating stories in skating: great talent, huge presence on the ice from the age of twelve or even earlier, but bad luck with pairs partners. At least skaters like BeBe Liang and Kimmie Meissner had their moments in the sun as senior skaters, and a spot in the medals listing. Stiegler is probably remembered only by the few of us who were lucky enough to see her quick, promising appearances as a child and then her even briefer attempt at ice dance ranking in a Nationals competition in which she and her partner came in fourth, if I remember correctly. I'm glad to see her name mentioned here on GoldenSkate.
 
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shine

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
But besides the fact that both are paired skating, ice dancing and pairs skating are two very different decsiplines................

I loved Tiffany Stiegler. I think she should've started as a singles skater right from the start. She would've been a bright star instead of struggling with her partner's inconsistency and than her own height issues as a pairs skater.
 

cloudkicker09

Final Flight
Joined
Oct 30, 2006
Can someone PLEASE translate into English what they said about Fedor, I am so excited about this partnership!!!
 
Joined
Feb 15, 2007
Can someone PLEASE translate into English what they said about Fedor, I am so excited about this partnership!!!

The text paragraphs about Jana and Fedor translated with http://www.online-translator.com/Default.aspx/Text :
[...]
Yana Hohlova trains in Moscow with the new partner Feodor Andreevym.
[...]
Yuri Nagornykh, the deputy minister of sport says: […] In the most nearest plans – a meeting with Yana Hohlovoj and its new partner Feodor Andreevym, this dancing pair also trains now in Moscow ».
[...]

The rest of the text is mainly about the new pair Tatjana Volosohar/Maxim Trankov ( Ukrainian federation released her, obtaining Russian citizenship for Volosohar underway) and Yuko Kavaguti (after arm surgery training again with Alexander Smirnov).
-----------
Does it mean it is now official that Jana trains with Fedor? Until now I thought she might decide against Fedor and choose someone else.
 

Ptichka

Forum translator
Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 28, 2003
I think it's Andreev who was on the fence, not Khokhlova. She doesn't really have anyone else - just ask Domnina how it is...
 
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