Akhanteva (though she is only 14 cm shorter than him), Mukhametzianova, Kostiukovich, Geinish (when she finds out that Chigiriev is not that great)…
2022-23 Russian Pairs Figure skating
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I used to have a lot of hope in Chigiriev. Elegant, tall, good jumps, but it has become apparent that he doesn't have the physical strength and hasn't been able to build it over the years either. Being able to lift a person in the second half of a program is a rather important skill for pair boys, which he doesn't quite seem to have. I really thought that Mozer had struck gold with Kostiuk/Chigiriev, but of course she had to split them up too just to change the partnerships around. But I don't think Geinish's suitors will have to wait for her to find out that he isn't that good - Mozer will probably split GC up within a season or two max.
Oh and add Labazina to the list. I don't see the partnership with Nazarychev lasting too long.
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I have to admit that I don’t understand why Mironov paired with Sobinina and Nazarychev with Labazina. Labazina used to be a pretty decent skater a few years ago, but since she moved to the USA and then came back, she has been suddenly more like average/under average. Sobinina looked pretty decent for a while with Volodin, but then towards the end of the season she became less consistent, and we haven’t seen her for a while. I would expect both Mironov and Nazarychev to choose stronger partners.
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Moreso that one of the defining factors of both Mironov and Nazarychev is their charisma and artistic expression, ,which few pair boys have. So yes, puberty and whatever else happened in these past few years has taken its toll on Labazina, and she doesn't seem to have much passion for skating on the ice. It's hard to envision what kind of programs they will skate, and how they will emote to them. In addition, Nazarychev struggled to throw/twist Artemeva, and I don't think Labazina is any tinier. As for Mironov, it's true that Sobinina looked good with Bakhmat, but we heard about her injuries with both partners, and she doesn't have either of his signature point-getters - charisma or lutz/flip jumps. Nowadays, espeically in Russian juniors, it seems more customary to get in a partnership knowing that it may not last longer than a season.
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Interview of Kadyrova/Kolesov by Tatjana Flade
(Guessing it was done before the test skates since we now know the SP music is Carmen.)
I like how they look together, hopefully we see some clean performances soon.
(Guessing it was done before the test skates since we now know the SP music is Carmen.)
I like how they look together, hopefully we see some clean performances soon.
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I think discussion about Kadyrova/Akhanteva/Kostiukovich/Mukhametzianova would be a good time to mention how despite the increasing number of girls coming into pairs with triple triples and the "elder" triples, they seem to lose these jumps during puberty even faster than singles girls lose their jumps. And rarely are they ever restored to even a fraction of their previous state. I wonder what could be a potential remedy to this issue, since more coaches are pairing people up with the bet that they will perform difficult sbs jumps
And on the topic of Balchenko's new partner, is Lina Kudryavtseva still skating competitively?
And on the topic of Balchenko's new partner, is Lina Kudryavtseva still skating competitively?
I don’t think they are losing jumps because of puberty even faster than singles girls. There was always some percentage of female skaters who lost jumps and didn’t manage to get them back after puberty. In pairs, jumps are just one element in SP and two in FS, so the pair skaters don’t spend so much time on them as they do on jumps because they have to keep working on their pair elements too. In singles, the skaters spend most of the practice time working on jumps; in pairs they have to practice lifts and twists and throws, so suddenly there is not as much time to spend on side by side jumps. Which doesn’t make it easier for the pairs ladies going through puberty.
I am not sure if Kudriavtseva would be such a price for Balchenko. Ok, she can jump triples, but she can’t land triple throw to save her life. I don’t recall a competition in the past few years where she landed all three clean triple throws (one in SP and two in FS). Usually she pops it and that is expensive.
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I would tend to agree that Kudriavtseva won't be ideal for Balchenko. If she even is still skating competitively, it seems like she has a hard time skating with anyone besides Spiridonov. Her triple jumps are nice when she lands them, but it isn't consistent, and as someone who has all the triples, it wont' be ideal to pair with a girl who only has inconsistent 3S and 3T. The throws are a huge issue - they were better in this past season, but if she isn't popping then she's also costing a lot of points and confidence by taking some spectacular fall. Oh, and she's not quite as tiny as she was when Spiridonov first dumped Atakhanova.
Well, it may be an unpopular opinion, but I never understood why Balchenko was rated so highly. Ok, if he wasn’t in Russia, he would probably be easily the country’s national champion (if he had a semi-decent partner), but within the context of Russian pair skating, I always thought that he was just an average male partner. There is so many much better male partners… Naturally, Morozov, Kozlovski, Galliamov and Khodykin, but I think also those who haven’t had the opportunity to prove in seniors their full potential yet, such as Rakhmanin, Rylov, Nazarychev, Mironov, Briukhanov, Kolesov, Sviatchenko… I think as a male pair partner, he would be lucky to be in top 10 within Russia.
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Someone who is over 17 years old and has solid jumps would be even more ideal. I won't hope for too much though.
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It's just really an issue of height for the main part. A lot of his failed partnerships would not have failed had the girl not outgrown him. In any other country he would be a top pairs guy, and probably one of the top singles guys too despite his complete lack of charisma. He does have strength to handle pairs elements, unlike some like Nazarychev or Kolesov who just don't have the physical strength despite possessing height.
This is where I disagree. The reason why Balchenko’s partnerships were losing points in pair elements is in my view that he is lacking strength. For example, when Kadyrova struggled to land throw jumps - often it is about how the male partner throws the female partner. The same issue was with Stolbova/Klimov, when towards the end of their partnership suddenly Stolbova struggled to land the throw jumps because Klimov had shoulder injury. Artemeva/Nazarychev and Akhanteva/Kolesov did not have those issues, and they had no issues with lifts, so I don’t think Nazarychev or Kolesov are not strong enough. You keep making excuses for Balchenko that his partners got too high for him, but I don’t recall seeing Szolkowy or Han struggling with Savchenko and Sui, and the height difference was much smaller than what Balchenko had with Kadyrova. Maybe Balchenko (or his fans) should stop the excuses and he should spend more time in gym. Or he can accept that his lack of strength goes against him.
ETA: I don’t recall seeing Malikov complaining about Petushkova’s height either. If Malikov manages, why can’t Balchenko?
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Kadyrova/Kolesov's Carmen SP
Kadyrova/Kolesov's gala
Kadyrova/Kolesov's gala
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Boikova/Kozlovski's new SP: Hit the road Jack by Ray Charles
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Honestly, I had most fun watching his partnership with Geinish. It seemed really like a great match for performance side. I regret their split, though I understand that jumps and throws didn’t have enough stability. But it didn’t look hopeless. However, I just can’t remember his new partner. Perhaps, they will work great together. It’s a good year to experiment.
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Ooooh. Thank you for sharing!!!
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