Evgenia Medvedeva | Page 1337 | Golden Skate

Evgenia Medvedeva

I'm really upset I had to work during the entire competition, but I hope you all felt my energy here while celebrating Zhenya!! Really, it's a moment we all deserved and I'm so happy we got it :) Thank you, Zhenya!!!! Seriously, catching up on all of the posts here from most of my favorite users AND having new people come here to gush about Zhenya is so heartwarming and I'm glad we're all in it with Zhenya together ;)

(and yes I'm thinking it, so I'll just say it, she was underscored!!!! wuzzrobbed!!!! ;) whatever we're saying these days)
 
Lurker here, just stopping by to comment as today was so special. I am the first to admit that I became a fan of Zhenya specifically at the time she started to struggle (didn't used to love her skating, objected on principle to some of the Eteri school's methods and rumored methods, etc. etc.) From the moment she didn't just go quietly into the night after the Olympics she captured my attention and watching her take control of her own skating (and the artistic development that living through tough times have endowed it with) have made me a genuine fan of what she puts on the ice. What an unbelievably strong, brave, talented, intelligent young woman. Usually I have favorite skaters that I like to endow with those qualities in my mind, even when I'm not always sure it's true. But Zhenya is the living embodiment of those qualities and it's what's made her one of my favorite skaters. Listening to her press conference today I was struck by how deeply self aware she is; she contextualized her public struggles, the changes she went through, and her process of coming to embrace this new chapter so eloquently I would have thought she was like 40. That she kept going after the Olympics made me a fan (and I did like the AK program); that she went through the raw humiliation of the first part of last season and did not give up, persevered towards a world bronze, then had the awful start to this season and kept going to lay down this fantastic performance today. It must be so incredibly difficult to be an underdog so cruelly soon after having been dominant for two full seasons. Victories now are in some ways so much more impressive than all those victories back then. She has the spirit of Winston Churchill and I'm starting to also think she may also have his ability to play a mean long game, which is the only way for her realistically to get back on top again. It will take a patience and willpower beyond what most young women her age have, but she truly is a warrior spirit. I respect her so VERY much and her courage and vulnerability have added so much raw beauty to her skating. On a less somber note, I thought it was super cute how she rested her head on Orser's shoulder; I am so glad they have such a great coaching relationship, even through all of these challenging times. It's another thing she has been very mature about: identifying and not wavering in the belief that she is in the right learning place, even at the times when there have been no short-term validations. She's just a remarkable person. As a 39-year-old grown adult dealing with some tough times I'm half embarrassed that I'm taking life lessons from a teenager!
 
Erin S said:
Lurker here, just stopping by to comment as today was so special. I am the first to admit that I became a fan of Zhenya specifically at the time she started to struggle (didn't used to love her skating, objected on principle to some of the Eteri school's methods and rumored methods, etc. etc.) From the moment she didn't just go quietly into the night after the Olympics she captured my attention and watching her take control of her own skating (and the artistic development that living through tough times have endowed it with) have made me a genuine fan of what she puts on the ice. What an unbelievably strong, brave, talented, intelligent young woman. Usually I have favorite skaters that I like to endow with those qualities in my mind, even when I'm not always sure it's true. But Zhenya is the living embodiment of those qualities and it's what's made her one of my favorite skaters. Listening to her press conference today I was struck by how deeply self aware she is; she contextualized her public struggles, the changes she went through, and her process of coming to embrace this new chapter so eloquently I would have thought she was like 40. That she kept going after the Olympics made me a fan (and I did like the AK program); that she went through the raw humiliation of the first part of last season and did not give up, persevered towards a world bronze, then had the awful start to this season and kept going to lay down this fantastic performance today. It must be so incredibly difficult to be an underdog so cruelly soon after having been dominant for two full seasons. Victories now are in some ways so much more impressive than all those victories back then. She has the spirit of Winston Churchill and I'm starting to also think she may also have his ability to play a mean long game, which is the only way for her realistically to get back on top again. It will take a patience and willpower beyond what most young women her age have, but she truly is a warrior spirit. I respect her so VERY much and her courage and vulnerability have added so much raw beauty to her skating. On a less somber note, I thought it was super cute how she rested her head on Orser's shoulder; I am so glad they have such a great coaching relationship, even through all of these challenging times. It's another thing she has been very mature about: identifying and not wavering in the belief that she is in the right learning place, even at the times when there have been no short-term validations. She's just a remarkable person. As a 39-year-old grown adult dealing with some tough times I'm half embarrassed that I'm taking life lessons from a teenager!
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Great post! And it is her personality, not just her great skating that made me a fan.
Welcome and post often.
 
Erin S said:
Lurker here, just stopping by to comment as today was so special. I am the first to admit that I became a fan of Zhenya specifically at the time she started to struggle (didn't used to love her skating, objected on principle to some of the Eteri school's methods and rumored methods, etc. etc.) From the moment she didn't just go quietly into the night after the Olympics she captured my attention and watching her take control of her own skating (and the artistic development that living through tough times have endowed it with) have made me a genuine fan of what she puts on the ice. What an unbelievably strong, brave, talented, intelligent young woman. Usually I have favorite skaters that I like to endow with those qualities in my mind, even when I'm not always sure it's true. But Zhenya is the living embodiment of those qualities and it's what's made her one of my favorite skaters. Listening to her press conference today I was struck by how deeply self aware she is; she contextualized her public struggles, the changes she went through, and her process of coming to embrace this new chapter so eloquently I would have thought she was like 40. That she kept going after the Olympics made me a fan (and I did like the AK program); that she went through the raw humiliation of the first part of last season and did not give up, persevered towards a world bronze, then had the awful start to this season and kept going to lay down this fantastic performance today. It must be so incredibly difficult to be an underdog so cruelly soon after having been dominant for two full seasons. Victories now are in some ways so much more impressive than all those victories back then. She has the spirit of Winston Churchill and I'm starting to also think she may also have his ability to play a mean long game, which is the only way for her realistically to get back on top again. It will take a patience and willpower beyond what most young women her age have, but she truly is a warrior spirit. I respect her so VERY much and her courage and vulnerability have added so much raw beauty to her skating. On a less somber note, I thought it was super cute how she rested her head on Orser's shoulder; I am so glad they have such a great coaching relationship, even through all of these challenging times. It's another thing she has been very mature about: identifying and not wavering in the belief that she is in the right learning place, even at the times when there have been no short-term validations. She's just a remarkable person. As a 39-year-old grown adult dealing with some tough times I'm half embarrassed that I'm taking life lessons from a teenager!
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Beautifully said. I think this is the best post I‘ve read all day! Thank you for that and thanks for joining the forum to cheer for Zhenya with all of us. Hoping you post often and as long and eloquently as you just did. :)
 
Erin S said:
Lurker here, just stopping by to comment as today was so special. I am the first to admit that I became a fan of Zhenya specifically at the time she started to struggle (didn't used to love her skating, objected on principle to some of the Eteri school's methods and rumored methods, etc. etc.) From the moment she didn't just go quietly into the night after the Olympics she captured my attention and watching her take control of her own skating (and the artistic development that living through tough times have endowed it with) have made me a genuine fan of what she puts on the ice. What an unbelievably strong, brave, talented, intelligent young woman. Usually I have favorite skaters that I like to endow with those qualities in my mind, even when I'm not always sure it's true. But Zhenya is the living embodiment of those qualities and it's what's made her one of my favorite skaters. Listening to her press conference today I was struck by how deeply self aware she is; she contextualized her public struggles, the changes she went through, and her process of coming to embrace this new chapter so eloquently I would have thought she was like 40. That she kept going after the Olympics made me a fan (and I did like the AK program); that she went through the raw humiliation of the first part of last season and did not give up, persevered towards a world bronze, then had the awful start to this season and kept going to lay down this fantastic performance today. It must be so incredibly difficult to be an underdog so cruelly soon after having been dominant for two full seasons. Victories now are in some ways so much more impressive than all those victories back then. She has the spirit of Winston Churchill and I'm starting to also think she may also have his ability to play a mean long game, which is the only way for her realistically to get back on top again. It will take a patience and willpower beyond what most young women her age have, but she truly is a warrior spirit. I respect her so VERY much and her courage and vulnerability have added so much raw beauty to her skating. On a less somber note, I thought it was super cute how she rested her head on Orser's shoulder; I am so glad they have such a great coaching relationship, even through all of these challenging times. It's another thing she has been very mature about: identifying and not wavering in the belief that she is in the right learning place, even at the times when there have been no short-term validations. She's just a remarkable person. As a 39-year-old grown adult dealing with some tough times I'm half embarrassed that I'm taking life lessons from a teenager!
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Everything you said gets a thumbs-up from me. I'm also someone who became a fan only as Medvedeva and her skating matured. She is now one of my favourite ladies. When you watch her now you can see how much work she's put into the basic skating skills — she flies across the ice with seemingly no effort — and reworking the jumps so they can be landed by someone with a mature body. It's still a work in progress, but I can see the improvements with every time out.

I thought Rostelecom was case in point of everything that's wrong with the scoring system as it stands. Evgenia should have won here. Two clean programs and fierce interpretation (and no little tech content) should have put her on the top of the podium — especially against someone who fell twice in the freeskate. I defy anyone to say they actually enjoyed watching Trusova more than Evgenia in this competition, and that's all I'll say on the subject here in Evgenia's thread.

I very much admire that she's trying to get a quad, but it makes me a little sad, too, because I wonder what we could see from her if she put all that focus on the artistic side of her skating, but I totally understand and respect that she knows that without a quad she has little chance of even making it out of her country's nationals. Which is to the eternal shame of the scoring system and the sport.

It's so frustrating that one bad program (the short at Skate Canada) will keep her from the Grand Prix Final, where she certainly deserves as spot, in my opinion. Actually, if it was up to me, I'd have both her and Mariah Bell there, but c'est la vie.

Looks like I'm going to be scouring YouTube for footage from Russian nationals, and I only hope the federation sends her to a few more competitions this season.
 
And a post-script: I'm also a huge fan of her sportsmanship. I love how she interacts with her former training mates and I love how she quieted the audience yesterday so they would stop screaming when Mariah was about to start skating. I love that she can fiercely and un-self-consciously celebrate her well-earned accomplishments in the moment, and then immediately pivot to being a supportive and respectful competitor. She's a relentless warrior against the ice and her own demons, but never against the other skaters. Just pure class.
 
Yaaaaasss I can finally comment! I'm so over the moon for her! That was another beautiful performance. Had to change my Avatar, will always love my Yuna but I want to cherish this moment!

And yeah I do think she was underscored a bit, the PCS should have been at least 76 imo (and 37 yesterday). It wouldn't have made a difference to her placement so not complaining obviously but just saying... it's what she deserves. ;)

God if only she hadn't been dealt such a rough draw we could've seen her at the final but hopefully next year! Now that she is learning to trust her new training and not revert back to the old way.
 
Erin S said:
Lurker here, just stopping by to comment as today was so special. I am the first to admit that I became a fan of Zhenya specifically at the time she started to struggle (didn't used to love her skating, objected on principle to some of the Eteri school's methods and rumored methods, etc. etc.) From the moment she didn't just go quietly into the night after the Olympics she captured my attention and watching her take control of her own skating (and the artistic development that living through tough times have endowed it with) have made me a genuine fan of what she puts on the ice. What an unbelievably strong, brave, talented, intelligent young woman. Usually I have favorite skaters that I like to endow with those qualities in my mind, even when I'm not always sure it's true. But Zhenya is the living embodiment of those qualities and it's what's made her one of my favorite skaters. Listening to her press conference today I was struck by how deeply self aware she is; she contextualized her public struggles, the changes she went through, and her process of coming to embrace this new chapter so eloquently I would have thought she was like 40. That she kept going after the Olympics made me a fan (and I did like the AK program); that she went through the raw humiliation of the first part of last season and did not give up, persevered towards a world bronze, then had the awful start to this season and kept going to lay down this fantastic performance today. It must be so incredibly difficult to be an underdog so cruelly soon after having been dominant for two full seasons. Victories now are in some ways so much more impressive than all those victories back then. She has the spirit of Winston Churchill and I'm starting to also think she may also have his ability to play a mean long game, which is the only way for her realistically to get back on top again. It will take a patience and willpower beyond what most young women her age have, but she truly is a warrior spirit. I respect her so VERY much and her courage and vulnerability have added so much raw beauty to her skating. On a less somber note, I thought it was super cute how she rested her head on Orser's shoulder; I am so glad they have such a great coaching relationship, even through all of these challenging times. It's another thing she has been very mature about: identifying and not wavering in the belief that she is in the right learning place, even at the times when there have been no short-term validations. She's just a remarkable person. As a 39-year-old grown adult dealing with some tough times I'm half embarrassed that I'm taking life lessons from a teenager!
Click to expand...

What a beautiful post! You expressed many of the same things I feel about Evgenia. She really is a remarkable person.

And the joy on her face today after she skated so well was just lovely to see!
 
I feel as though today a new Evgenia was born. Now we get to watch this new persona grow.

It wasn't a case of her returning to what she was. This is a different skater with a stronger foundation to grow from. As she said, she is not going to jump on broken bones any more. She will build a body that can withstand the demands. Brian and Tracy will build the skating technique that produces the results. For me, it is truly a breath taking athletic journey to witness. No disrespect to Tiger Woods but if Evgenia can climb this mountain and claim a World or Olympic Gold, it will be jaw dropping fantastic.
 
Even though Zhenya's out of the gpf I feel like this performance was all I've wanted for her. After how much she's struggled, to be able to put up a performance like that, in Russia, and to articulate how hard it has been for her and how much she has grown... Her mental strength is off the charts, I can't wait to see what she does next!
 
See scenes from warming up in the dry hall: www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UtX5nJ0UKM , BOrser quietly watching over Yevgeniya. Every skater and coach going about their business.

I am not quite sure if the athletes and coaches really appreciate being observed even in their private sphere of warming up.
 
Thanks for sharing this video, Edwin. It's certainly interesting, getting a glimpse into each athlete's warm-up routine, and seeing how different they are from each other, and also what similarities they share. I do agree, though, that it seems like an intrusion, being filmed in the warm-up, but then again, at equestrian competitions, the warm up is typically in the open and anyone can watch, so I guess it is a part of sport.
 
Thank you, Erin S, rain, Mrtko and mercybuckets for stopping by at Zhenya's fan fest! It is lovely to hear your perspective and your story of discovering Zhenya! :)
Welcome and post often :D
 
Vemvane said:
Thanks for sharing this video, Edwin. It's certainly interesting, getting a glimpse into each athlete's warm-up routine, and seeing how different they are from each other, and also what similarities they share. I do agree, though, that it seems like an intrusion, being filmed in the warm-up, but then again, at equestrian competitions, the warm up is typically in the open and anyone can watch, so I guess it is a part of sport.
Click to expand...

This off ice warm up should be off limits to media IMO. Notice how Aleksandra shrugs the presence of a TV camera off at first, but moves away after a while, uncomfortable being 'looked over the shoulder'. Yevgeniya no doubt watched everything in the mirrors, perhaps taking this spot to do her routine on purpose.
 
Erin S said:
Lurker here, just stopping by to comment as today was so special. I am the first to admit that I became a fan of Zhenya specifically at the time she started to struggle (didn't used to love her skating, objected on principle to some of the Eteri school's methods and rumored methods, etc. etc.) From the moment she didn't just go quietly into the night after the Olympics she captured my attention and watching her take control of her own skating (and the artistic development that living through tough times have endowed it with) have made me a genuine fan of what she puts on the ice. What an unbelievably strong, brave, talented, intelligent young woman. Usually I have favorite skaters that I like to endow with those qualities in my mind, even when I'm not always sure it's true. But Zhenya is the living embodiment of those qualities and it's what's made her one of my favorite skaters. Listening to her press conference today I was struck by how deeply self aware she is; she contextualized her public struggles, the changes she went through, and her process of coming to embrace this new chapter so eloquently I would have thought she was like 40. That she kept going after the Olympics made me a fan (and I did like the AK program); that she went through the raw humiliation of the first part of last season and did not give up, persevered towards a world bronze, then had the awful start to this season and kept going to lay down this fantastic performance today. It must be so incredibly difficult to be an underdog so cruelly soon after having been dominant for two full seasons. Victories now are in some ways so much more impressive than all those victories back then. She has the spirit of Winston Churchill and I'm starting to also think she may also have his ability to play a mean long game, which is the only way for her realistically to get back on top again. It will take a patience and willpower beyond what most young women her age have, but she truly is a warrior spirit. I respect her so VERY much and her courage and vulnerability have added so much raw beauty to her skating. On a less somber note, I thought it was super cute how she rested her head on Orser's shoulder; I am so glad they have such a great coaching relationship, even through all of these challenging times. It's another thing she has been very mature about: identifying and not wavering in the belief that she is in the right learning place, even at the times when there have been no short-term validations. She's just a remarkable person. As a 39-year-old grown adult dealing with some tough times I'm half embarrassed that I'm taking life lessons from a teenager!
Click to expand...

What a wonderful post! Thank you!
 
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