I think that in general Rus Fed puts more money into fs than any other national fs federation. I've heard that even kids who are just starting often don't have to pay anything for lessons. So everybody who has the talent and the desire can become a figure skater in Russia, which is why they have so many high-level skaters in all the four disciplines, both in juniors and in seniors. Regarding ID, Russia does well in Juniors there too. I think that a big part of the reason so many teams break up later is that there's great competition to get into the national team, and those who don't see any chance of being sent to Euros and Worlds eventually break up in hopes of forming more successful partnerships with someone else or switch federations for less competitive national fields. So in this respect Rus Fed is the victim of its own success. I'm sure if there were no quotas and qualifying for Euros and Worlds were similar to qualifying for GP events, considerably more Russian ID teams would have stayed together.
It's true that they don't win anything in seniors in ID at the moment, but personally I don't think that it has much to do with the level of coaching, vision or fed support in general. I don't think there's anything wrong with Zhulin, Swinin/Zhuk or Kustarova/Alexeeva as coaches. Yes, they may not have huge centers like Novi staffed with all sorts of specialists, but I'm sure they all invite various specialists as needed. It's not like Russian ice dancers don't execute high-level lifts or patterns. And nothing stops them from inviting choreographers, both foreign and domestic, as IZ did during their two years with AK. Even as it is, I think that both BS and SB have had some excellent programs over the years, to say nothing of IZ.
So why aren't they more successful? Well, why aren't SK more successful? They have trained abroad from the beginning. However, neither their programs, nor their technique is better than the other top Russian teams'. I think that all of them do the best they can, but Sinitsina and Stepanova probably just lack the talent to break into top three in the world - and let's face it, the competition at that level is fierce.
It was much easier for Russia when all its coaches stayed home, and there was no serious competition from other countries, unless a couple of super-talented ice dancers happened to live in the same country at the same time, like Torvill and Dean. Bu it's a very rare chance, and so when they left there wasn't anybody to follow into their footsteps. Compare that to the Russian teams which usually placed 1-2-4 at Worlds, so that when the champions left, there was usually a Russian team just waiting to pick up the mantle. But then some Russian coaches transferred that model abroad, and probably improved it a bit, thanks to less supervision from the bureaucrats and more money from different feds and private tuition money. And for the first time Rus Fed found itself with some really serious competition in ID.
Could it improve things by relinquishing some control and allowing their coaches to take plenty of foreign students to bring in more money? Maybe, but let's face it. Nothing could make SB or SK into WCs. And while BS are better technically, they are not WC material either (for one thing, neither of them has the artistic talent for it, not even close, IMO).
IZ are the only ones Russia now has who have the talent that Russian great champions of the past had. But they are the team Rus Fed refuses to support. The only time Rus Fed did support IZ was during their first season, when BS were out with an injury and it wasn't clear if they'd be able to compete again. That year IZ got the scores they deserved (except for their first GP) and supportive press releases. But once BS got back into the fray, and SK's backers decided that they are ready for big time, the Fed's support for IZ evaporated. Just think about it: SK were given state funds to train in America for three years, and when they left this fall, it wasn't for financial reasons, while IZ had to look for a private sponsor, and even then the Fed dragged its feet approving the transfer. However, as BS seemed likely to get a long disqualification and leave the sport, while the other two teams placed 10th and 11th at Worlds, Rus Fed grudgingly let IZ train in Novi (under its close supervision!).
However, as the meldonium case against Bobrova was dropped, the Fed quickly reversed its policy towards IZ yet again, recalling them back and unleashing trolling in the press. I've read members of the Navka forum writing that some people totally didn't want IZ training with Shpilband and did everything to stop it. I've always found it strange that IZ's sponsor was unanimous, because usually businesses do it for publicity. But now I think that it was probably somebody connected with the Fed whom they could pressure to stop funding IZ. Yes, IZ get more personal attention from KA, but it was obvious even before transferring that it couldn't be that way with S. However, they seemed happy there till the last, with Elena posting pics calling S the best coach and saying she loved Chicago.
Elena has incredible talent, and such talent always produces envy and hatred in some people who understand that no matter what they can't compete against it. Even when she skated with K, she had to put up with stuff no other Russian figure skater had to, like having totally invented besmirching articles published about her, articles that were obviously paid for, by somebody who had an agenda. When IK split, I saw on the Russian forums how everybody who had hated them suddenly began supporting SK and transferred all their hatred to IZ, even magnified, because contrary to their expectations she didn't leave the sport, but found herself a new partner, and even better than the former, and they became even more popular than IK had been. And it's not just one or two or three trolls. I've seen FSO change direction 180 degrees during IZ's first season when everybody saw that their potential is huge. I don't think such shifts just happen spontaneously. I also know that there are powerful people in Rus Fed who hate Elena's guts - because their darlings can't compete with her. I've read various people on Russian forums talk repeatedly about certain teams having a pull with the fed and/or about money being involved. And the way IZ have been and are being treated seems to confirm that. That's why I say that Rus Fed's main problem is corruption. I just hope against hope that the anti-IZ faction won't win again.
