Mikhail Kolyada

[evanescence9696]

Aleksandra Stepanova (Russian Ice Dancer) shared with us a pic with small Mikhail

https://www.instagram.com/p/BfWcKC9nW8N/

Aleksandra was trained by Valentina Chebotareva up to 7 or 8 years old, then she decided to start ice dancing.

 

[champs]

With the huge burden of Olympic pressure off his shoulder I hope he will have good training, stay injury free and put out two redemption skates at the Worlds including his beautiful 4Lz landed cleanly.

 

[siberia82]

His Team LP (CBC 1080p, but edited down to only his performance and the end of his kiss & cry): https://streamable.com/84fli

I don't have his other Olympic performances because the CBC Sports YouTube channel didn't upload them.

 

[buton]

Aleksandra Stepanova (Russian Ice Dancer) shared with us a pic with small Mikhail

https://www.instagram.com/p/BfWcKC9nW8N/

Aleksandra was trained by Valentina Chebotareva up to 7 or 8 years old, then she decided to start ice dancing.

what a great photo Mikhail is so cute at any age! It's so amusing that these two cute kids from the same kindergarden grown up to figure skating stars. Aleksandra is such a beautifull lady too, though for me it's hard to believe that they are the same age

 

[vorravorra]

Misha gave an interview yesterday to St. Petersburg's Radio Zenit, which has been put up in his VK group. It's 40 minutes long, but the main points have been jotted down and maybe I'll translate it or someone else will.

http://fso.forum.cool/viewtopic.php?id=653&p=16#p261979
(click on the + sign)

Overall it is a positive interview and he sounded like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders so I hope he can indeed turn this page over just like he said before leaving Pyeongchang. But I want to focus for a moment on what he said pertaining to mental preparation for skates and specifically his experiences in the team event.

It is best for him to approach the skates with a cool head cleared from extra thoughts. When emotions get the better of him it all starts to unravel.

The team event was harder for him that the individual event. Before the competition he wanted very much not to let the team down, but unfortunately it went the way it went. His life was turned upside down during those two days between the SP and FS. He is very grateful to the team for not leaving him alone with his thoughts to wind himself even tighter and make it all even worse. They constantly tried to pull him out of himself and cheer him up, and managed to revive him.

Poor Misha! You'd think someone close to him had died based on the description of his reactions. I don't know how he could have possibly skated well in the SP considering where his head was at. "If I let the team down, my life as I know it is over" is not something you want to go out there with. The team was hugely helpful in showing him that no, his life wasn't over, but something needed to be done before the competition to get him out of that mindset. He obviously needed psychological support and didn't get it, at least not enough.

I don't know how many times Misha is going to crash into that "I can't let my country/team/coach/whoever down" wall, he must be aware how counterproductive it is. The situation over the past two seasons seems to have fed into his most negative psychological tendencies. Now the worst that could happen has pretty much already happened, so what else is there to wind yourself into a coil about? Skate for yourself already.

I hope the right lessons will be learned from what sounds like a life-changing experience. Misha obviously needs some serious work with a psychologist and a different way to prepare himself for competitions. (And maybe Valentina should seek some sort of psychological support for herself so she doesn't make it harder for Misha instead of easier with her own reaction to the situation.)

 

[cathlen]

Look like Misha definitely needs help to handle the pressure. Good news is Dima is doing well, so part of the pressure will be on him now, which should lessen Misha's burden. I actually hope that since Javi already said he's not going to Worlds, and Yuzuru with his injury is 99% not going either, that Russian Men will get back 3 spots for Worlds! No pressure though! I'll be happy with good skates

 

[Flyflybutterfly]

Misha gave an interview yesterday to St. Petersburg's Radio Zenit, which has been put up in his VK group. It's 40 minutes long, but the main points have been jotted down and maybe I'll translate it or someone else will.

http://fso.forum.cool/viewtopic.php?id=653&p=16#p261979
(click on the + sign)

......



Vorravorra, thank you very much for your recap. I tried to listen that interview but it was impossible, so thanks for sharing this. After skating the short at team event he had to feel like being in hell. It was really painful for Misha and for those who admire him. I think this time he is aware about it and this should be the beginning of a successful recovery. I do hope it.

Related to more "frivolous aspect", I missed his sweet voice.

 

[vorravorra]

Misha gave an interview yesterday to St. Petersburg's Radio Zenit, which has been put up in his VK group. It's 40 minutes long, but the main points have been jotted down and maybe I'll translate it or someone else will.

http://fso.forum.cool/viewtopic.php?id=653&p=16#p261979
(click on the + sign)

......



Vorravorra, thank you very much for your recap. I tried to listen that interview but it was impossible, so thanks for sharing this. After skating the short at team event he had to feel like being in hell. It was really painful for Misha and for those who admire him. I think this time he is aware about it and this should be the beginning of a successful recovery. I do hope it.

Related to more "frivolous aspect", I missed his sweet voice.

If you are referring to the post on FSO with the recap, it wasn't mine.

 

[vorravorra]

On another note, Evgenia's fans are starting a fresh round of hatefest for Misha for robbing Zhenya of an Olympic gold. Expect more in two days.

 

[coldblueeyes]

On another note, Evgenia's fans are starting a fresh round of hatefest for Misha for robbing Zhenya of an Olympic gold. Expect more in two days.

Eh, it will happen either. Most of those fans don't even know what happened in the men's competition before the Olympics, most of them won't pay attention to it after. It'll die down in some days.

 

[Flyflybutterfly]

If you are referring to the post on FSO with the recap, it wasn't mine.

Yes ok, but I was refering to your post here.

 

[Tutto]

Based on the Russian Cup Final results, this is the last we are going to be hearing from Samarin this season. All I have to say about his team's management of him this season should really go somewhere else :noshake: If you think Valentina screwed it up, just look at CSKA. If Misha goes somewhere else, it had better not be there.

It is silly but I had a dream after Mika's team FS that Orser invited him because Javi is retiring and Hanyu will be left without a sparring partner - I had a good laugh in the morning and then thought why not - it could be true!

Edit: I feel sorry for Samarin though not a fan of his skating - the pressure of expectations done it again. I have similar concerns for Dmitri who once the pressure was on showed vulnerability in FS

 

[Tutto]

Poor Misha! You'd think someone close to him had died based on the description of his reactions. I don't know how he could have possibly skated well in the SP considering where his head was at. "If I let the team down, my life as I know it is over" is not something you want to go out there with. The team was hugely helpful in showing him that no, his life wasn't over, but something needed to be done before the competition to get him out of that mindset. He obviously needed psychological support and didn't get it, at least not enough.

I don't know how many times Misha is going to crash into that "I can't let my country/team/coach/whoever down" wall, he must be aware how counterproductive it is. The situation over the past two seasons seems to have fed into his most negative psychological tendencies. Now the worst that could happen has pretty much already happened, so what else is there to wind yourself into a coil about? Skate for yourself already.

I hope the right lessons will be learned from what sounds like a life-changing experience. Misha obviously needs some serious work with a psychologist and a different way to prepare himself for competitions. (And maybe Valentina should seek some sort of psychological support for herself so she doesn't make it harder for Misha instead of easier with her own reaction to the situation.)

I wonder if things were different if they haven't upped the tech so dramatically or not. When I think of another favourite of mine - Gracie Gold I know that her programs were well within her capabilities and yet her head let her down again and again and we know how it all ended. I remember Frank Carroll said that physically Gracie had no limits but she better would start believing in herself. I didn't like the way he kinda of distanced himself from the problem but what he said nevertheless was true - immense talent, no limits but ...
Can a coach instil that competitive spirit not naturally present in a student? I also followed Sasha Cohen's career as closely as it is possible for a fan but I was never able to answer that question...(3 coaching changes btw in her case)
But I don't want even think that Mika too won't be able to reach his full potential because he could not fix this problem

 

[ejnsofi]

On another note, Evgenia's fans are starting a fresh round of hatefest for Misha for robbing Zhenya of an Olympic gold. Expect more in two days.

Jeez how I hate it. It's TEAM EVENT. Not "Mikhail and Evgenia event". We can as well say that Z/E only got 3rd place just as B/S. I don't blame anyone - it's how team event works. Canada has stronger pairs overall and very good men and women. As Zhenya's die to fan I feel disgusted when I read ppl blame Misha.

Also this interview almost broke me. As person who can't deal with pressure from peers I can only imagine Misha's emotions. Good thing he had support from other members of team :luv17: Also I wouldn't mind if media would make Dima new number 1 man as it would take expectations off Mikhail's shoulder and let him just enjoy his skating

 

[vorravorra]

I wonder if things were different if they haven't upped the tech so dramatically or not. When I think of another favourite of mine - Gracie Gold I know that her programs were well within her capabilities and yet her head let her down again and again and we know how it all ended. I remember Frank Carroll said that physically Gracie had no limits but she better would start believing in herself. I didn't like the way he kinda of distanced himself from the problem but what he said nevertheless was true - immense talent, no limits but ...
Can a coach instil that competitive spirit not naturally present in a student? I also followed Sasha Cohen's career as closely as it is possible for a fan but I was never able to answer that question...(3 coaching changes btw in her case)
But I don't want even think that Mika too won't be able to reach his full potential because he could not fix this problem

I don't think it's a lack of competitive spirit per se (although if you hate losing more than you enjoy winning it may be a problem). Misha said in the same interview he likes competitions. And he doesn't have the same problem every time. I think it depends on how much he gets himself worked up over a competition and how much the importance of his performance gets blown out of proportion in his mind. Yes, the team event was important but not a matter of life or death. If you start to obsess over how crucial it is not to fail, you are unlikely to succeed. His mind needs to be prevented from going down that road. If he is made to snap out of it he can do well and enjoy himself in the process. It seems he essentially needs to be made to feel the weight of the world is not on his shoulders, because he is naturally responsible enough to convince himself that it is.

Misha gave a short interview to another radio station, the only new moment is that he still hasn't forgiven himself for popping the axel in the team SP. Misha, please stop already, no point in beating yourself up over that axel now. The main thing is not to work yourself up so much in advance that when something goes wrong all control of emotions and nerves is lost. Which was the problem with that SP and not the axel in particular.

 

[vorravorra]

It is silly but I had a dream after Mika's team FS that Orser invited him because Javi is retiring and Hanyu will be left without a sparring partner - I had a good laugh in the morning and then thought why not - it could be true!

Edit: I feel sorry for Samarin though not a fan of his skating - the pressure of expectations done it again. I have similar concerns for Dmitri who once the pressure was on showed vulnerability in FS

Nerves definitely played a role according to Dima himself, but he also has a longstanding stamina problem which needs to be addressed if he is to succeed. Even nerves of steel will only get you so far if you can barely survive till the end of a FS. And it's not a problem of physical fitness, he is a former cross-country skier who can still run a race. But figure skating requires a different kind of stamina.

With Sasha it's not just expectations, he was pushed too hard physically particularly earlier in the season (right after an injury with subpar stamina). And it didn't help that he is a bit of a "do or die" skater who throws himself into jumps kamikaze style in spite of not really being up to it. He isn't good at pacing himself and his coaches encouraged him not to. And even now, why on Earth go to Japan, go through jet lag and acclimatisation, then come back, go through all that again and then compete straight afterwards? I know people complain that Samarin gets propped up in PCS too much internally, but now they can't even be bothered to. If your PCS drop 10 points between two domestic competitions, they are sending you a message and it's not a salutary one. I hope they don't mess up his season preparation again and he is in a good shape next season with fewer blows to his confidence.

 

[cheerknithanson]

I have some funny story to lighten up the thread: Two days ago I was talking to my family friend's 13 year-old daughter. She said that she saw a Russian skater on there that looked like a character from Game of Thrones. I had a feeling she was talking about Mikhail, so I asked her, did he looked like Geoffrey (That's the only character I know and recognize. I don't watch the show) and she said yeah. So I said, "Oh, that was Mikhail Kolyada."

 

[evanescence9696]

From Ekaterina Bobrova's interview:

- How did the team react to the criticism of Mikhail Kolyada?

- We were upset because of the attack on Misha. People did not understand under what pressure he was skating. First of all, it was his first Olympics. Even European and World championships are not like this. Secondly, it was men-singles that opened team event in Korea. It was important for him to show a good result so that we could understand what to claim. Unfortunately, Misha did not get over his nerves a little. And it turned out as it turned out. But there was no criticism from the team. We did not even discuss his perfomance. We communicated on abstract topics - discussed films, serials, food. No need to reproach him for the mistakes that everyone has sometimes. Moreover, even if he had skated everything clean, it would have not brought us gold. Everybody performed at the maximum of his capabilities. And we are happy with our silver.

Source: https://news.sportbox.ru/olympics/s...la_gubami_k_medali_na_ceremonii_nagrazhdenija

 

[coldblueeyes]

From Ekaterina Bobrova's interview:

- How did the team react to the criticism of Mikhail Kolyada?

- We were upset because of the attack on Misha. People did not understand under what pressure he was skating. First of all, it was his first Olympics. Even European and World championships are not like this. Secondly, it was men-singles that opened team event in Korea. It was important for him to show a good result so that we could understand what to claim. Unfortunately, Misha did not get over his nerves a little. And it turned out as it turned out. But there was no criticism from the team. We did not even discuss his perfomance. We communicated on abstract topics - discussed films, serials, food. No need to reproach him for the mistakes that everyone has sometimes. Moreover, even if he had skated everything clean, it would have not brought us gold. Everybody performed at the maximum of his capabilities. And we are happy with our silver.

Source: https://news.sportbox.ru/olympics/s...la_gubami_k_medali_na_ceremonii_nagrazhdenija

Katia is a class act. And it doesn't surprise me the level-headedness of this russian team - I think they knew from the start that the gold would be hard to get this time, and more than anyone else they do know what it is to compete under pressure, which most of the fans have no idea about.

 

[Tutto]

I don't think it's a lack of competitive spirit per se (although if you hate losing more than you enjoy winning it may be a problem). Misha said in the same interview he likes competitions. And he doesn't have the same problem every time. I think it depends on how much he gets himself worked up over a competition and how much the importance of his performance gets blown out of proportion in his mind. Yes, the team event was important but not a matter of life or death. If you start to obsess over how crucial it is not to fail, you are unlikely to succeed. His mind needs to be prevented from going down that road. If he is made to snap out of it he can do well and enjoy himself in the process. It seems he essentially needs to be made to feel the weight of the world is not on his shoulders, because he is naturally responsible enough to convince himself that it is.

Misha gave a short interview to another radio station, the only new moment is that he still hasn't forgiven himself for popping the axel in the team SP. Misha, please stop already, no point in beating yourself up over that axel now. The main thing is not to work yourself up so much in advance that when something goes wrong all control of emotions and nerves is lost. Which was the problem with that SP and not the axel in particular.

I am sure that axel will haunt him forever unfortunately, yes it was not a matter of life and death situation but it was a one off event in any athlete's career. I am sure Mika would not feel so bad if it happened in the individual event but to let the team & country down - it is the worst nightmare scenario for someone so conscientious & responsible as Mika. My worst fear at the time was that they would not let him skate the LP... but he was and skated well (the second part of that LP is actually my favourite as there is no errors at all and it shows how that program could shine if skated clean). Had it not happened I don't know his confidence could have been affected forever. If mental problems could be resolved by simply telling ourselves this and that oh the world would be a different place. E.g I've been suffering from insomnia for over 10 years and I can't count how many times I heard from people - it is all in your head, you just need to tell yourself stop and go to bed and fall asleep. Any fellow sufferer could empathise how you feel hearing it from people who clearly have no clue what they are talking about. Of course it is all in my head, it is how to re-program your brain is the question. So the confidence issues for skaters once the doubt is in your mind it is a slippery slope...
I actually like the fact that he is talking about his experience and not bottling it up. Hope there will be some changes and he is getting professional support, it might though take longer to see any results so I am not too optimistic about Milan. But lets hope for the best. The situation with so many skaters not going there is so very favourable and it would be such a pity not to end a season on a high note.