You're right of course...
But if you were a coach when Baiul was 12 like Zmievskaya, you would have thought she was a skating angel sent from heaven to save us all. She was so talented, which is the topic of this thread. The obvious potential you see during childhood. Some skaters had it all from the beginning but somehow didn't realize their potential. It's a constant theme everywhere. Johnny Weir comes to mind. Baiul isn't so much an unusual case, but rather an extreme case. Her life is a result of all elements of failure, but lucky for her she scraped the OGM before she went to hell.
Yet talent isn't all that it takes to get to the top. Hard work, definitely luck, and support (actually just a certain level of popularity) from others.
Maria B. was told she had no talent and that she should quit. But she was talented, albeit limited, and still reached as much success as stiff knees and delicate nerves could take her.
I agree that Baiul must have seemed like some miracle to Zmievskaya. I don't doubt Oksana's talent, but such talent takes service if it is to be maintained. Baiul did not continue serving her talent, alas. Even with the change in her body, she could have continued to be a breathtaking skater, but she did not seem to put in the work for it.
As for Plushenko, his artistry works just fine for me. It's a different kind from, say, Lambiel's or Takahashi's, but there's more than one kind of artist. I think he's one of the skaters who truly strives to express something on the ice.