Why has Alena Leonova fallen off the map? | Golden Skate

Why has Alena Leonova fallen off the map?

coppertop1

On the Ice
Joined
Sep 19, 2006
I saw that Alena Leonova isn't in the running for the Olympics this year. That's pretty sad, it wasn't long ago she was the leading lady of Russian figure skating. She was the top finisher at the 2010 Olympics and Silver Medallist in 2012. What happened to her? Why has she fallen? Is she injured? Is she out of shape? It seems that like Artur Gacinski, she's struggled since winning her medal.

I hope this isn't the end of her, maybe she can take inspiration of her idol, Irina Slutskaya, who was written off then bounced back.
 
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penguin

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 31, 2012
I actually think Leonova has gone as high as she was ever going to make it. She really benefited by peaking at a time when there wasn't much competition for her at home -- all the top Russian ladies today are several years younger and only started rising as Leonova started declining. I think she should be happy with her World medal, it was well won but probably not going to be repeated.
 

hippomoomin

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 30, 2012
I agree that she has reached her full potential and was lucky to medal at worlds. Considering Akiku is a better skater overall and she only got a bronze medal, Leonova was very lucky.
I did like the way she tried very hard to sell her program every time, though sometimes over acted.
 

FSGMT

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 10, 2012
Technically, the main reason is that she doesn't have a consistent 3T+3T combo anymore and that most of the younger Russian girls have better jumps and better spins... Overall, she isn't skating disastrously right now, it's just that her 5-triples programs with low GOEs can't hold her up against Sotnikova, Lipnitskaya, Radionova etc
 

lcd

Match Penalty
Joined
Mar 11, 2007
The answers seem pretty obvious, no? I think an interesting question will be whether she "sticks it out" and has the kind of later 'mature skater' renaissance that strong overall athletes like Akiko Suzuki had. I mean, these 'baby ballerinas' have plenty of risks/uncertainties ahead for them. At least, Alena has gotten past her puberty and development phase WITHOUT transformation of her body into an unreasonable form and without major injuries along the way.
 

coppertop1

On the Ice
Joined
Sep 19, 2006
The answers seem pretty obvious, no? I think an interesting question will be whether she "sticks it out" and has the kind of later 'mature skater' renaissance that strong overall athletes like Akiko Suzuki had. I mean, these 'baby ballerinas' have plenty of risks/uncertainties ahead for them. At least, Alena has gotten past her puberty and development phase WITHOUT transformation of her body into an unreasonable form and without major injuries along the way.

I think the answers are all spot on. Yeah, that may be her advantage. It's easy to get excited over the likes of Lipnitskaia and Radionova but when they develop it remains to be scene what happens. Question is will Leonova stick it out for that to happen. If the baby ballerinas survive puberty and develop into mature young women they will be incredible. I think it's true she's just been surpassed, there wasn't as much depth when she was at her peak. The Russians sent her to the Worlds in 2009, when she was the Junior World Champion, feeling she was their best hope to get two spots for Vancouver.
 

gmyers

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
Technically, the main reason is that she doesn't have a consistent 3T+3T combo anymore and that most of the younger Russian girls have better jumps and better spins... Overall, she isn't skating disastrously right now, it's just that her 5-triples programs with low GOEs can't hold her up against Sotnikova, Lipnitskaya, Radionova etc

Exactly. She lost her 3/3 so fell off the map. It's very simple. She wasn't dumped by anyone or is being Politically dropped it's just she lost a major technical ability. Maybe because she did battle an extremely bad diet where she was like "I eat once a day! It's so great!" no it was not great.
 

blue_idealist

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 25, 2006
Technically, the main reason is that she doesn't have a consistent 3T+3T combo anymore and that most of the younger Russian girls have better jumps and better spins... Overall, she isn't skating disastrously right now, it's just that her 5-triples programs with low GOEs can't hold her up against Sotnikova, Lipnitskaya, Radionova etc

Yes, she isn't horrible by any means but it's just that those young girls are all so great.
 

coppertop1

On the Ice
Joined
Sep 19, 2006
Exactly. She lost her 3/3 so fell off the map. It's very simple. She wasn't dumped by anyone or is being Politically dropped it's just she lost a major technical ability. Maybe because she did battle an extremely bad diet where she was like "I eat once a day! It's so great!" no it was not great.

Yikes!! Not good, athletes need energy. Maybe that's why she fell down to 13th, behind Sotnikova and Tuktamysheva. I didn't think it was political, just more due to the depth in Russia now. It's sport, almost everyone gets replaced.
 

Trewyn

Medalist
Joined
Dec 10, 2008
Leonova *always* had messy landings on her jumps. But she was often pretty consistent during the GP season, with a triple-triple and lots of pizzaz. Yet she failed to ever even medal at *Europeans* - so yeah, not exactly the deepest of fields for Ladies. It's a miracle she got a World silver medal. I believe she should have placed fourth there, behind Akiko's silver and Ashley's bronze. I believe that's the way it would have turned out if Ashley hadn't made an error in the SP and made the final warm-up group. (Alena was behind Ashley in the LP) But she got lucky and then afterwards indeed fell right off the map. No Olympics in her future, for sure. But she'll always have World silver.
 
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