I really like this discussion going in right now, many interesting viewpoints! So, thank you for that, everyone.
I’d like to add my own:
Perfection can be boring. I‘ve found that, ironically, my favorite skaters, the ones I really care about on a personal level, tend to be those who many label as having a “difficult personality“. Yulia Lipnitskaya, Zhenya Medvedeva, Ashley Wagner and now Aliona. There‘s not a lot I haven‘t heard. They‘re drama queens, attention seekers, emotional, can’t keep their mouths shut, too extroverted, too introverted, obnoxious, pretentious, liars...
And honestly? A lot of the time, when people say “difficult“, all they mean is having agency. Knowing what you want and going for it without regrets is often met with a certain disapproval, especially by those who want these girls to be the typical “ice princess“ - a delicate fairy, quiet, diplomatic, obedient, always nice to everyone. Now, there‘s nothing wrong with being like that but there‘s nothing wrong with having edges as well. For someone like me, who often hides her emotions behind a smile and only lets the real thoughts shine through in the sarcastic undertone of her answers, it is very refreshing to see someone as young as Aliona being so unapologetically herself.
I‘m not saying she‘s perfect because she isn‘t. She makes a lot of mistakes - visible mistakes - and she can behave disrespectfully. But in the end, we‘re all made of different shades. Isn‘t that a great thing? I appreciate diplomacy, sure, but sometimes this kind of perfection frustrates me as well. “I want to thank my coaches and my fans and I‘ll work hard.“ Of course! But what do you REALLY think? Now, I realise that none of these athletes is obligated to tell me anything. (and if I were in their shoes, I’d probably keep my mouth shut, too. Keeps the haters at bay) But that‘s why I appreciate it even more if they choose to speak frankly.
We‘re living in an era (and not just in relation to figure skating) where every word you say, can be twisted and misunderstood. And if you‘ve made that experience a few times, of course, you‘re going to be more careful. I think that‘s a problem. Really, it‘s easier said than done, but I feel like we‘d all live a little easier if we were more accepting of imperfection. Both in actions as well as in words. We‘re humans, we make mistakes - the important thing is to learn from them! That obviously doesn‘t mean we should let go of our filter completely, with no regard for the feelings of others. But a little less demand for perfection and more appreciation for honest imperfection would hurt no one. On the contrary.
In short: I like Aliona (and the others I have mentioned) because she‘s not only a phenomenal skater but because she has edges and is not afraid to show them. And if some call her “difficult“ for that - good for her. In most cases it just means she‘s been honest to others and herself and they can‘t handle it. The truth isn‘t always diplomatic and neither are we. As long as we don’t hurt anyone with that honesty (and this is probably the most important point and something everyone has to learn - knowing when it‘s okay to be frank), I say: Deal with it.
thus they speak their mind. of course not totally. otherwise we would hear an other level of interesting things 
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