Alena Kostornaia

[Vemvane]

?! Wait, does she mean she's going to continue skating after 2022, or does she literally mean next year as in after January?

She has spoken before about skating beyond the end of this season.

https://olympics.com/en/news/alena-kostornaia-exclusive-beijing-tutberidze-surgeon

Relevant part:

OC: In 2018, you told R-Sport that you dreamed of being a neurosurgeon, but then recently said that you changed your mind, (and) wanted to dedicate your whole life to figure skating. Tell us about these dreams and where you stand on them now.

Kostornaia: It's really simple: Figure skating is not a sport in which you can skate up to thirty years and win. Yes, you can skate, you can please the audience, participate in shows, but you won't be in first place because there are 15-year-old girls who produce a bunch of quadruples. They have a lot of power and energy. There's no stopping them.

"I’ll try to go through this season (and then) through the Olympic season. And then I will start fulfilling my (medical) dream. Maybe I will skate in shows; I always wanted to go on some long tour for almost a year, it is my dream. And then I will start realising my dream to become a neurosurgeon."

Can't find the interview where she said she would skate beyond the Olympics, alas, but she has spoken about that. If I can find that specific interview/post/video/whatever it was, I'll update this post with it.

 

[nussnacker]

Can't find the interview where she said she would skate beyond the Olympics, alas, but she has spoken about that. If I can find that specific interview/post/video/whatever it was, I'll update this post with it.

It was after Russian cup final this year.

I wouldn’t take every word 15-16 year old says as any serious commitment. They’re at an age when they are still figuring themselves out, their opinions might change rather quickly. Maybe her interest in medical field would fade and she’ll find continuing FS as a better career for herself?
I’m really enjoying seeing her fight and grit every competition. It’s a lot easier to give up sometimes, thinking that maybe all hope is gone, but she’s still showing flight every time she goes out.

 

[Vemvane]

Video from the ISU YouTube channel (may be geoblocked).




Been staring at the StSq to see what she missed, but the camera angle does not help me at all. Wondered if there was a bobble after the clockwise twizzles, but on a rewatch, decided it wasn't a bobble; also wondered if she hopped one of the turns just before the knee slide, but again, decided after a rewatch that it was just the way the light flicked along the blade that had made me think it was a hop. (Do I know what actually makes a StSq Lvl 3 vs Lvl 4? No. Am I going to read up the rules? Not today. )

Anyway, not important, not when she was so radiant with joy after that skate. To see her beaming and pleased with her performance is what really matters.

 

[LadyScarlatta]

?! Wait, does she mean she's going to continue skating after 2022, or does she literally mean next year as in after January?

I hope she continues, I was sad that maybe this would be her last GP, I have not yet recovered from Medvedeva to add Kosto.

 

[Scott512]

I hope she continues, I was sad that maybe this would be her last GP, I have not yet recovered from Medvedeva to add Kosto.

Skaters from Russia in the ladies discipline would be competitive for much longer if they had more of a system like tennis and golf do. But this 3 maximum rule just kills these skaters careers and in Russia they literally have probably probably 15 the top 20 lady skaters in the world.

I mean are people really upset that Roger Federer and Serena Williams are still playing tennis at 40 years old? No.

It was nice to see Carolina Kostner skate so long. I don't expect anywhere close to the longevity of career for Aliona that she had but it would be nice if Aliona could skate a few more years competitively. This girl is such a beautiful figure scaked I want to see her win but more importantly I want to see her skats competitively for a few years. If she can't score 240 points or 250 points to beat the top girls so be it.

As for AK when it comes to the Grand Prix final she needs to be doing one triple axel in the SP and 2 in the free skate.

 

[DizzyFrenchie]

It was after Russian cup final this year.

I wouldn’t take every word 15-16 year old says as any serious commitment. They’re at an age when they are still figuring themselves out, their opinions might change rather quickly. Maybe her interest in medical field would fade and she’ll find continuing FS as a better career for herself?
I’m really enjoying seeing her fight and grit every competition. It’s a lot easier to give up sometimes, thinking that maybe all hope is gone, but she’s still showing flight every time she goes out.

She said last year that she aimed at doing one more season after Beijing.
This year after it was known that she would enter University of Physical Education, she explained that she meant to get a degree in Physical Education (4 years) before starting medical studies. I don't remember well if she implied she would compete during these four years or if I understood it like that but I felt she meant to compete next cycle. Physical Education studies allow to go on competing while it's probably impossible to compete while studying Medicine.

 

[Azikin]

I think it was a smart move to go for the 2A instead of the 3A in the SP today. Aliona looked like the confident, charismatic Aliona I wanted to see, and she was 100% selling the program to the audience!

I think she could've been scored a bit higher, but oh well... she scored almost the same as she did at IDF 2 years ago in the SP!

Agreed. She was great today. I think they play it smart, so that she gets to GPF comfortably. That and 3A is probably not very stable at the moment..

 

[Vemvane]

Bless.

 

[patee]

Guys, it seems we did a very good job of lifting Aliona's spirit! It was the Aliona we've wanted to see so much at a major competition again: confident, graceful, sassy, entertaining and most important of all, she was apparently happy on the ice and there was fire in her eyes! I really hope we'll see this Aliona tomorrow too! Fingers crossed! (And again, do send her your positive and supportive energy!)

 

[nussnacker]

Just saw a video of Aliona and Anna next to Eteri about to go on their 6 min warm up.
Aliona was teaching Eteri how to do some TikTok dance apparently never a dull moment with Aliona!

 

[patee]

Just saw a video of Aliona and Anna next to Eteri about to go on their 6 min warm up.
Aliona was teaching Eteri how to do some TikTok dance apparently never a dull moment with Aliona!

Can you give us a link? Would love to see it!

 

[patee]

 

[nussnacker]

Can you give us a link? Would love to see it!

Aliona explaining :“…you do this with one hand, then a triangle (?), and then this hand goes up and down“
Eteri learning: „…up and down“
Eteri: „then someone will say I’m from some kind of a sect“

 

[demarinis5]

Fabulous skate from Alena! She was definitely my favorite today.

 

[patee]

Aliona explaining :“…you do this with one hand, then a triangle (?), and then this hand goes up and down“
Eteri learning: „…up and down“
Eteri: „then someone will say I’m from some kind of a sect“

Haha! Thank you! Adorable!

 

[patee]

Happy & Beautiful

 

[patee]

Aliona explaining :“…you do this with one hand, then a triangle (?), and then this hand goes up and down“
Eteri learning: „…up and down“
Eteri: „then someone will say I’m from some kind of a sect“

Here's the full version!

 

[nussnacker]

Here's the full version!

I died when Eteri started repeating the dance moves after Aliona

 

[McBibus]

I died when Eteri started repeating the dance moves after Aliona

thanks!
More proof that Aliona is something else (something more).

The most condifedent and sassy Aliona since 2019.
I was happy all along the skate and even more seeing her reaction after it.

I don't think she's been coached down: she's been well coached in her choice.
I do love she wanted to do it her way but then chose to follow Eteri's lead.
She never follows blindly and that is very good to me (even if it may not help sometimes).

The strategy seems to secure the GP final with "basic" content, building confidence in the programs and go to attack in the final with more traning and on a major stage that would be bad to miss out.

Let's send and for tomorrow.
I'm going to Venice for the week end so I will miss out the rest of the competition, so I will send my votes for the FS now:
Go and enchant the world my Queen

 

[Lzbee]

Haha I was wondering what she was doing with Eteri. It was very cute.

This weekend, I am fulfilling my dream of seeing Aliona skate live and it was wonderful. She is very loved with this crowd in France and got the biggest cheers. I hope it will give her strength for tomorrow's FS. it's very promising that she wanted to do the 3A here so I'm hoping that means it's been going okay in practice.

I must say, she is one of the few ladies today who skated with the satisfying ripping sound of deep edges. She's not quite up to full power yet but I can see some of old Aliona shining through and she was enchanting.

Hoping for a great skate tomorrow as well!