Gerboldt Ilyinykh Katsalapov Leonova where completed. Elena Ilinykh and Nikita Katsalapov brought Russia another bronze medal. Nikita Katsalapov now

Figure skating has always been one of the leading and favorite sports in our country.. The names of domestic athletes can always be seen in the lists of winners of various Grand Prix, Russian, European and World championships, and Olympic Games. One of these names in recent years is Nikita Katsalapov, whose Instagram is becoming more popular every day.

Childhood and early career

Nikita Katsalapov was born on July 10, 1991, he is a native Muscovite. The mother of the future athlete herself was involved in figure skating, but due to an injury she was forced to interrupt her career. Now she saw her son in sports, and at four and a half years old the boy began training at the Aleko ice theater. After some time, he was faced with a choice: to seriously devote himself to figure skating or to continue performing in the theater. Nikita chose sports and began his studies at Sokolniki with Marina Druzik. Then there was a school at V.N. Kudryavtseva.

Katsalapov showed his first significant results in men's single skating - in 2001 he became the winner of the Russian championship in his age group. And from the age of 13 he took up ice dancing seriously.

Nikita Katsalapov was paired with Elena Ilinykh, who had also previously performed in a single program. The duo began training under the guidance of Irina Lobacheva. But this did not last long - the partner turned out to have a rather complex and absurd character. The girl could not accept that she would have to share success with someone, and in 2006 the duo broke up. Elena went to train in the USA with Marina Zueva. But she couldn’t find a partner there and a few years later returned to Moscow. Then they met Nikita again and became a couple. From that time on, their personal relationship and dance career in figure skating began.

During her absence, Nikita studied singles skating with Alla Yuryevna Belyaeva. Since 2007, he trained with Alexander Zhulin together with A. Kabysheva. And already in 2008, serious preparation began in a duet with the Ilins.

Success in the youth team

• 2009 – 4th place at the Russian Junior Championships;
• gold at the Russian Cup final;
• first place at the Grand Prix stages in Hungary and Poland;
• silver at the Grand Prix in Tokyo;
• February 2010 - second place in the Russian Championship;
• first place at the World Championships in The Hague.

These results were achieved through diligent training, despite constant quarrels and scandals due to personal relationships between Nikita and Elena.

Performances for the national team

The debut for the national team took place at the adult stage of the Grand Prix in 2010 NHK Trophy, the duo became fourth. With each performance, the guys demonstrated an increasingly higher level of skill - this soon led to them becoming the best ice dancing couple. The successes continued to please:

• 2011, Russian Championship - bronze medal;
• 2011, European Championship - fourth place;
• seventh place at the World Championships.

After the end of their first season for the senior national team, they completed training under the leadership of Alexander Zhulin and moved to Nikolai Morozov.

The 2011–2012 season began with bronze at the NHK Trophy Grand Prix. The national championship brought them silver, and the European championship brought them bronze. At the World Championships they took fifth place and became the best Russian couple.

The next season brought them 4 silver medals:

The couple achieved their greatest success at the main sports competitions - the Olympic Games in Sochi. The duo won a gold medal in the team competition and a bronze medal in the individual competition.

The last performance of Katsalapov/Ilins was at the World Championships in Japan, where the pair, considered the undisputed favorite, took a disappointing fourth place.

Many fans are waiting for the reunion of the couple, as their bright ice dances have forever gone down in the history of figure skating and are remembered for their high professionalism in performing complex lifts and elements, speed and dynamism, enormous temperament, artistry and passion. And why exactly the couple broke up is at the level of rumors and speculation.

New partner

Despite their successful performances, the couple’s entire time together was accompanied by conflicts and quarrels. Ilyinykh was never able to accept the fact that she needed to share honorary laurels with someone. In addition, both Elena and Nikita are bright leaders by nature, neither of them wanted to give up this position to the other. And in personal relationships, not everything was smooth and ideal. Ilyinykh constantly flirted with other teammates, tried to flirt first with Zhulin, and then with Morozov. And if the romance didn’t work out with the first coach, then with the second, judging by the photos that constantly appeared on the Internet, everything worked out. Nikita could only endure, since the Olympic Games were ahead and if he changed his partner, he would simply miss them.

At least, the skater did not plan a further career with the Ilins. In April 2014, he wrote a statement to the Figure Skating Federation about changing his partner to Victoria Sinitsyna. The new duo began their training in the USA with Marina Zueva and in the same year made their debut at the Grand Prix stage in Russia.

Despite the short existence of the couple, they already have prizes:

• silver at the Russian Championship and the Skate America Grand Prix stage in the 2015/2016 season;
• bronze at the Cups of Russia Grand Prix stage (2015/2016);
• bronze at the Russian Championship in the 2016/2017 season.

At the moment, the couple is preparing for the new Olympic season, having started their performances with third place in the Challenger series in Minsk.

Nikita Katsalapov on the Internet

Despite his busy training schedule, the athlete actively maintains social accounts. Nikita Katsalapov’s Instagram has 21 thousand subscribers, and their number is constantly growing. There he posts photos and videos from his performances, training, recreation and social events.

On the VKontakte network, the group “Nikita Katsalapov” is dedicated to the skater: photos, videos from performances and current information are posted by his fans.

Nikita Katsalapov is under close attention from all kinds of media. Everyone is interested not only in his career, but also in his personal life, which the athlete prefers not to talk about after breaking up with the Ilins.

Nikita Katsalapov is a Russian figure skater who, with his sports biography, proved that any obstacles, no matter how difficult they may be, can ultimately become a step upward to new achievements. The athlete is familiar with the feeling of triumph and the bitterness of failure, but Nikita is not even going to give up, preparing to take the next Olympic peaks.

Childhood and youth

Nikita was born on July 10, 1991 in Moscow. Already at the age of four, the boy first went on the ice, and since then figure skating has become the main thing in his life. Nikita Katsalapov’s mother, who took her son to the sports section, is also a professional figure skater. However, due to a serious injury, the woman had to say goodbye to the sport.

In addition to figure skating, Nikita was attracted to acting. The boy played on the stage of the Aleko children's theater. At some point, Katsalapov was faced with a choice: ice or theatrical stage. Nikita chose figure skating and was right.

At first, the talented skater trained under Marina Druzik, then Natalya Lubinskaya became the mentor of the novice athlete. Like many pair skating stars, Nikita Katsalapov started with singles and achieved good results. But then the boy’s mother insisted that her son try his hand at ice dancing. The boy’s mother also helped him find Nikita’s first partner.

Unfortunately, Nikita and Lena at first could not find a common language, and after some time Ilinykh left to train in the United States. Nikita continued to prepare for single performances.

Figure skating

In 2007, Nikita Katsalapov, already a fully established figure skater, began training with an eminent mentor. Perhaps, from this time a professional sports career began for the young man. Katsalapov’s new partner was Angelina Kabysheva. However, this couple did not work out either: the skaters skated together for only a year.

Around this time, Elena Ilinykh returned from America. The skaters decided to try to pair up again. And they succeeded: the 2010-2011 sports season brought Katsalapov and the Ilyins “gold” at the Junior World Championship, as well as victory in two stages of the Youth Grand Prix.

Immediately after these successes, the Katsalapov-Ilyin couple began performing in adult competitions. The first test for the skaters was the European Championship, in which, under the leadership of the well-known Nikolai Morozov, they first won a bronze medal and then an honorary “silver”.

In an interview, Elena Ilyinykh repeatedly emphasized that Nikita Katsalapov is a reliable partner who is always ready to provide insurance and lend a shoulder. However, it was not without conflicts. According to the Ilyins, when both partners have been skating alone for a long time, it is quite difficult to adapt to the second person and, if necessary, give up leadership in the pair.

In 2014, Nikita Katsalapova and Elena Ilinykh were considered the main favorites of the Russian ice dancing team. And even despite the previous failure at the World Championships (where the couple only received ninth place), the partners approached the 2014 Olympics in excellent shape. The competition in Sochi is fierce. The main rivals of the Russian skaters were Fabian Bourzat and Nathalie Pechalat, a couple from France, as well as Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir from Canada.

Unfortunately, the winners in ice dancing were Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White. The Canadian pair took second place, and the pair of Katsalapov and Ilinykh took third place at the Sochi Olympics. But in team competitions, Katsalapov and the Ilyins had no equal, and the athletes achieved the coveted “gold”.

In the same year, figure skating fans were shocked by rumors that Nikita and Elena. Soon this information was confirmed. The athlete became Nikita Katsalapov’s new partner. Elena Ilinykh began skating with Ruslan Zhiganshin, and in 2017 Anton Shibnev became the skater’s partner.

The first joint performances turned out to be unsuccessful for the renewed Katsalapov-Sinitsina couple: once Nikita even dropped his partner. However, failures did not scare the skaters. Already in the next sports season, the pair of Katsalapov and Sinitsina seriously announced themselves, receiving the first awards. The athletes took second place at the Skate America Grand Prix stage. The next stage, held in Russia, brought the couple second place. But the skaters finished the World Championships only in ninth position.

After some time, Nikita Katsalapov had to undergo shoulder surgery. Fortunately, this had virtually no effect on the athletes’ training schedule, and already in September 2016 the couple took fourth place at the Cup of China. A week later, the skaters showed the fifth best result among the participants of the Grand Prix stage in Sapporo, Japan. But the European Championships were much less successful for Katsalapov and Sinitsina: the athletes finished in the top ten skaters.

Personal life

The handsome figure skater (Nikita Katsalapov’s height is 180 cm and weight is 76 kg) tries not to advertise his own personal life. However, there is information that the athlete’s first love was Elena Ilyinykh. According to rumors, the reason for the couple’s separation was not only sporting contradictions, but also discord in the romantic relationships of the skaters. At that time, Nikita and Elena trained with Nikolai Morozov, who allegedly became the hero of Elena’s new novel.

But there is no information about Nikita Katsalapov’s new novel yet. The skater is already credited with having a relationship with his new partner Victoria Sinitsina, but Nikita himself has not confirmed this information.

Nikita Katsalapov now

Now Nikita Katsalapov and Victoria Sinitsina are preparing for the main sporting event - the 2018 Olympics, which will be held in Pyeongchang, Korea.

Fans can only follow the news and photos of Nikita in "Instagram" and other social networks, as well as cheer for your idols. The athletes themselves are confident that they are approaching the competition in excellent shape.

Awards

• 2012 - bronze medal at the European Championships in ice dancing
• 2013 - silver medal at the European Championships in ice dancing
• 2014 - silver medal at the European Championships in ice dancing
• 2014 - Olympic gold medal in team competition
• 2014 - Olympic bronze medal in ice dancing

Nikita Gennadievich Katsalapov(July 10, 1991, Moscow, USSR) - Russian ice dance figure skater. Olympic champion 2014. Honored Master of Sports of Russia.

Since the second half of 2014, she has been paired with Victoria Sinitsina.

Katsalapov achieved his greatest success in 2010-2014 in tandem with Elena Ilinykh. Nikita is the 2014 Olympic champion in team competitions, bronze medalist in ice dancing at the 2014 Winter Olympics, bronze medalist at the 2012 European Championships, silver medalist at the 2013 European Championships, three-time silver medalist at the Russian Championships 2012, 2013, 2014; world junior champion 2010. As of February 2014, the Ilinykh-Katsalapov pair took 7th place in the ranking.

As of April 26, 2015, the Sinitsina/Katsalapov pair ranks 62nd in the International Skating Union (ISU) rankings.

Nikita began figure skating at the age of 4 at the Aleko children's ice theater. While participating in various theater productions, he simultaneously studied various elements on ice under the guidance of his mother, who was seriously involved in figure skating with the Kudryavtsevs, but was injured and ended her career. When the question of choice arose - sports or theater, Nikita chose sports. Then he started studying at Sokolniki in Marina Druzik’s group. And after 1.5 years he began training at the school of Viktor Nikolaevich Kudryavtsev in the group of Natalya Petrovna Dubinskaya. In single skating, Nikita achieved good results among boys of his age: in 2001 he was the winner of the Russian championship in a special program. At the age of 13, at the insistence of his mother, he switched to ice dancing. His partner was also former singles skater Elena Ilinykh, with whom he began training under the guidance of Irina Lobacheva, who had completed her career in amateur sports. But various disagreements and a lack of ability to find a common language ultimately led to the breakup of the couple. Elena went to the USA for 2 years in the Zueva/Shpilbanda group, and Nikita spent the first year after breaking up with the Ilyins skating alone - doing choreography, dancing, general physical training under the guidance of Alla Yuryevna Belyaeva. In the summer of 2007, Alexander Zhulin, with whom Nikita was already familiar, came to Moscow: together with the Ilyins, they came to him for a master class in America. So Nikita began skating in a group with Zhulin, who paired him with Angelina Kabysheva. A year later, the couple broke up, and in 2008 Nikita again became a couple with Elena Ilyinykh, who returned from the USA to Moscow for the winter holidays.

Junior achievements

At the 2009 Russian Junior Championships, Elena Ilinykh/Nikita Katsalapov took fourth place. This was followed by a victory at the final of the Russian Cup in Tver, after which the skaters entered the country's junior team.

The duo began the 2009-2010 season with convincing victories at the Junior Grand Prix stages in Hungary and Poland. The couple immediately loudly declared themselves on the international stage. In the final of the Junior Grand Prix series in Tokyo, Ilinykh/Katsalapov won silver medals, losing only to another Russian pair - Ksenia Monko/Kirill Khalyavin. The students of Alexander Zhulin lost to the same pair, students of Svetlana Alekseeva, Elena Kustarova and Olga Ryabinina, at the national championship in February 2010 in Saransk. After the Russian Junior Championships, the athletes, along with their coaches and choreographer, fully concentrated on training. After analyzing the mistakes and setting priorities, we decided to focus on technology. At the World Championships in The Hague, the couple’s progress was obvious: the athletes, who had been performing together for only a year and a half, received fourth levels for all elements of the dances performed. The result was victory at the World Junior Championships with a lead of almost 16 points over the competitors.

First season at senior level

For the 2010-2011 season, Ilinykh/Katsalapov chose music from the ballet Don Quixote for their free dance. They made their senior Grand Prix debut at the 2010 NHK Trophy, where they finished fourth. The couple won their first medal at the Grand Prix stages at a stage in Moscow called “Cup of Russia”. At the 2011 Russian Championships, they were second after the short dance to the duet Ekaterina Bobrova/Dmitry Soloviev, but took fourth place in the free dance, and finished the competition in third place behind the duets Bobrova/Soloviev and Ryazanov/Tkachenko. However, their bronze medal was enough to earn them a spot in their first ever European Championships.

At the 2011 European Championships, Ilinykh/Katsalapov set new personal records in the short dance (60.93), free dance (92.55) and total (153.48), this result allowed them to take fourth place in their debut continental championship. They fought with the Ryazanov/Tkachenko duo for a second ticket to the 2011 World Championship. As a result, Ilinykh/Katsalapov won the right to represent the country at the World Championship for the first time in their lives. They finished seventh in this competition. After the end of the season, they ended their collaboration with Alexander Zhulin and Oleg Volkov to begin working with new coach Nikolai Morozov. During the off-season, they spent some time in the United States in preparation for the new season.

2011-2012 season

In the new season, Ilinykh/Katsalapov were assigned to two stages of the Grand Prix 2011 NHK Trophy and 2011 Trophée Eric Bompard. At the NHK Trophy, despite the injury of their partner, the couple took third place. At the Trophee Eric Bompard stage, Elena and Nikita came fourth. In 2012, at the Russian Championship the couple won silver medals. At the 2012 European Championships, Ilinykh/Katsalapov finished in seventh place after the short dance, but set a personal best in the free dance, resulting in a score of 153.12 points, thereby becoming medalists at the European Championships for the first time. At the World Championships, the couple took 5th place, becoming the best Russian couple in the tournament. At the end of the season, they took part in the World Team Trophy 2012 tournament.

2012-2013 season

Ilinykh/Katsalapov won silver at the home stage of the Grand Prix 2012-2013. In 2012 at the NHK Trophy tournament, Ilinykh and Katsalapov came third after a short dance. Ilinykh fell ill before the free dance due to food poisoning, but the couple did not withdraw from the competition and continued to fight for high positions. They finished second at this stage and won a silver medal, which helped them qualify for the 2012 Grand Prix Final, which took place in Sochi. In the final they took sixth place. At the 2013 Russian Championship, Ilinykh/Katsalapov won the silver medal behind the duet Ekaterina Bobrova/Dmitry Soloviev. At the 2013 European Championships, they took second place in the short dance and first place in the free dance, but this was only enough for a silver medal. They lost only 0.11 in the fight for gold medals, losing to the same Bobrova and Solovyov. Ilinykh/Katsalapov finished in 9th position at the 2013 World Championships.

Olympic season

Ilinykh/Katsalapov participated in the NHK Trophy Grand Prix tournament, where they took fourth place. At their next event, Trophee Eric Bompard, they skated remarkably well in both routines and broke personal bests in both dances, scoring 171.89 points and winning the silver medal ahead of hosts Nathalie Pechalat/Fabian Bourzat.

At the 2014 Russian Championships, Lena and Nikita, having made a gross mistake in the free dance, again took second place, again losing to Bobrova and Solovyov, and then, due to an error on twizzles, they missed the gold medal at the 2014 European Championships, scoring 1.1 points less than gold medalists Cappellini/Lanotte. At the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Elena and Nikita were entered into the free dance team competition. The teammates performed excellently, becoming contenders for the gold medal. Ilinykh/Katsalapov skated their program brilliantly, updating not only their personal record, which was now 103.48 points, but also became Olympic Champions in team competitions. In the individual competitions, Ilinykh/Katsalapov won a bronze medal, losing only to the two best duos of recent years, Meryl Davis/Charlie White and Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir. They showed their best results in the short dance, scoring 73.04 points, and in the free dance, scoring 110.44 points. The overall result was 183.48 points. At the World Championships in Japan, which took place from March 24 to March 30, in the absence of Meryl Davis/Charlie White and Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir, Ilinykh and Katsalapov were the main favorites of the competition, but due to an error in the short program, Lena and Nikita took only fourth line.

Start of performances with Victoria Sinitsina

During the World Championships in Japan, news appeared that Katsalapov would be skating with Victoria Sinitsina from the new season. At first, the message was denied, but on April 11, the information was confirmed; on this day, Katsalapov submitted an application to the Figure Skating Federation to create a pair with another partner, Victoria Sinitsina. The new duet is training in the USA with Marina Zueva. In a short dance (flamenco and paso doble), Vika and Nikita used music by Manolo Carasol and Michel Legrand. The free dance is set to the music of rock guitarist Gary Moore - “Did you ever feel Lonely” and “The Messiah will come again”. The couple made their debut at the Russian Grand Prix stage and stopped one step away from the podium. At the NHK Trophy, the couple performed unsuccessfully, Nikita dropped Victoria from the support, and then the skaters tore off the support. As a result, Sinitsina/Katsalapov took seventh place. At the Russian Championship the couple took only fourth place.

2015/2016 season

At the Skate America Grand Prix series stage, Victoria and Nikita took second place, updating personal records in both the Short and Free Dance. The guys received 62.76 points for the Short Dance. And in the Free Dance 99.45, while they were deducted one point in the Short Dance, and two points in the Free Dance for overexposed lifts. This is the first joint medal for Victoria and Nikita.

Programs

(with E. Ilinykh)

Sports achivments

(with V. Sinitsina)

(with E. Ilinykh)

Awards and sports titles

• Order of Friendship (February 24, 2014) - for his great contribution to the development of physical culture and sports, high sporting achievements at the XXII Olympic Winter Games 2014 in Sochi.
• Medal "For Military Valor" II degree (Ministry of Defense, 2014) - for his great contribution to the development of physical culture and sports, high sporting achievements at the XXII Olympic Winter Games in 2014
• Honored Master of Sports of Russia (February 10, 2014)
• Master of Sports of Russia of international class (May 23, 2011).

Nikita Katsalapov - photo

Nikita Katsalapov is a Russian figure skater. In 2014 he won gold at the Olympic Games in Sochi in the team competition. At the same time he became an Honored Master of Sports of the Russian Federation. Today his partner is Victoria Sinitsina, the choreographer is S. Petukhov, and the coaches are E. Tchaikovskaya, A. Zhulin and P. Durnev.

early years

Nikita was born in 1991, on July 10, in Moscow. His mother was a professional figure skater, but due to an injury, the woman said goodbye to the sport. Katsalapov first stepped on the ice at the age of 4. Later, the future champion became interested in acting. For some time Nikita played in children's plays at the Aleko Theater, but when life presented him with a choice, the guy, without hesitation, chose sports.

Katsalapov’s first coach was M. Druzik, who was later replaced by N. Dubinskaya. Initially, he performed single acts, but soon Nikita’s mother found him a partner in the person of E. Ilinykh. Unfortunately, Lena went to the USA to train because she did not find a common language with 13-year-old Katsalapov. The boy, in turn, returned to single numbers.

First sporting successes

In 2008, the couple and Nikita Katsalapov, whose photo is below, returned to the ice. Soon the skaters became part of the Russian youth team thanks to their victory at the Cup final in Tver. In 2010, Ilinykh and Katsalapov won a silver medal in the Grand Prix final in Tokyo. At the same time, in The Hague, the couple won first place at the World Figure Skating Championships.

Subsequent performances with the Ilins

In 2010, Nikita and Elena made their debut at the adult stage of the Japanese NHK Trophy. The skaters took 4th place. The couple achieved the same result at the 2011 Russian Championships in free dance. In the end, this competition ended in third place for the Ilins and Katsalapov. This allowed them to get to the 2011 European Championships. At the competition, the couple took 4th place.

Then the skaters reached a new level and got the opportunity to represent Russia at the 2011 World Championships. Elena and Nikita managed to win a respectable seventh place. Soon followed by a change of their coach to N. Morozov and preparation for new competitions. The 2012 World Championships ended in fifth place for Nikita Katsalapov and Elena Ilinykh. In 2014, at the Sochi Olympics, figure skaters faced worthy opponents in the form of the Canadians Virtue/Moir and the French Bourza/Pechal. The pair received only bronze, but in the team competition they won the long-awaited gold medal.

Katsalapov Nikita and Sinitsina Victoria

The first joint performances of the skaters turned out to be failures. In 2015, Nikita and Victoria took 2nd place at the Grand Prix stage of the Skate America tournament. In addition, the skaters once again updated their personal records in the free and short dances. In 2016, at the European Championships, the couple came in fourth place. In the spring, Katsalapov underwent shoulder surgery and underwent a rehabilitation course.

For the 2017 Russian Championship, the couple trained with Oleg Volkov. They demonstrated new dances to the audience of the Open Skates in September 2016. At the international start of the Cup of China, V. Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov were awarded fourth place. Soon they competed at the NHK Trophy in Sapporo and took fifth place. At this stage, E. Tchaikovskaya joined the coaches of Victoria and Nikita. The Russian Championship, held in Chelyabinsk, ended with a bronze medal for the skaters. They achieved the same result in Minsk during the Challenger series. Participation in the NHK Trophy 2017 tournament brought them fourth place, and from the stage that took place in the USA, the couple returned with a bronze medal.

As for the personal life of Nikita Katsalapov, there is practically no information on this matter. The athlete does not like to flaunt his personal affairs and relationships.

Olympic champions Elena Ilinykh and Nikita Katsalapov took to the same ice for the first time after a loud breakup. At the Luzhniki International Sports Complex they did not communicate easily, but they also pointedly turned away from each other.

TV series "Parting"

Katsalapov and the Ilins broke up immediately after the Olympics in Sochi - and for the average person it was a shock. After all, we watched all these films-stories about the most beautiful pair figure skating. Here, Lena and Nikita win a children's tournament. Now, they are still very small, but they are already kissing each other right on the ice, in front of the cameras. They don't hide their feelings. And then there’s this Sochi fairy tale, why diverge?..

But breakups are a matter for adults. And in this case, it is by no means a matter of figure skating itself. The lump of reasons is so large and it creates so many people, grievances, relationships that you can make a series based on it, but it’s better not to break it up overnight. It’s easier to accept the fact: Nikita wanted to leave - Lena couldn’t change anything. As a result, however, of separation, another pair of Sinitsina/Zhiganshin broke up. Victoria went to Katsalapov, Ruslan to the Ilyins.

For the next six months, Nikita and Lena did not see each other and avoided questions about the separation, but the Grand Prix draw in Moscow revealed a joke: on November 14, the Ilinykh/Zhiganshini Katsalapov/Sinitsina couples will take to the ice in the aquatic group. And on Thursday they already trained on the same ice.

Cold War

-Can you imagine a personal meeting with Lena on the ice in Moscow? How will it go?- Nikita was asked directly at the base in Novogorsk, and he was forced to answer.

Yes, I can imagine a bunch of different options - I have a rich imagination. But I'm sure everything will be fine. - Katsalapov laughed on Wednesday. But on Thursday he turned a stone face.

The couples went out to the skating rink one after another and waited for about ten minutes until the ice was poured. They were crowded in a narrow corridor, and if it had been wider, they would probably have scattered to different corners. During the entire rolling, Ruslan, Elena, Nikita and the Victorians did not even talk - they never looked at each other.

It got to the point of ridiculousness. People from the friendly world of figure skating, who had just leaned on the sides and cheerfully discussed the latest news, saw Lena and Nikita, and also began to play the Cold War. They each took apart a pair for “handling” - and forgot about friendship.

There was hope that the guys would look at each other at least on the ice.

We keep track of all our rivals in order to understand what level of readiness they are at and compare them with ourselves. So we saw Elena and Ruslan’s skate at the last stage of the Grand Prix,” Nikita also said on Wednesday. - Were there any thoughts? Certainly. One way or another, at times I put myself in Zhiganshin’s place, imagining what I would do this way and what I would do differently. But these are exclusively working moments. No special emotions.

On Thursday, Nikita could see every nuance of the opponents' performance. For example, how Elena dances her favorite “Carmen.” The Ilyins, in turn, could appreciate Nikitin’s blues.

But, looking at the training of other couples, the guys continued to turn their faces away from each other.

The meeting showed that the resentment has not gone away and is unlikely to ever dry up. On the one hand, we cannot say that this is bad for the country - we got two extremely motivated couples who have something and someone to prove. On the other hand, one cannot assume that athletes are people without a soul.

Ilinykh: “Love still wins”

Before the start of the Grand Prix, it was Elena Ilinykh’s turn to speak. She spoke about the breakup through a proposal.

We are a new couple, so we don’t set super goals for the season,” said Elena, standing next to Zhiganshin. Ruslan was silent throughout the interview. - We want to do a clean rental. It is important to surprise the audience so that the judges get used to us. I think our dances are interesting. The short program is “Carmen,” which I have long wanted to bring to life. Free, to the music “Secret Garden” – a love story between a man and a woman. There are quarrels, partings, separations, but love still wins.

-Can the last passage be applied to your relationship with Katsalapov?

No, this is a completely different image. Now we have begun a new life with Ruslan, a new couple has been born. And we don’t want to prove anything to anyone - only to ourselves. I won’t lie, just skating is not for us. The goal is to eventually be on a pedestal and not leave it.

OUR HELP

Elena Ilinykh is a Russian figure skater who currently competes in ice dancing with a partner. Previously she performed with, with whom she became an Olympic champion in the team championship. Born on April 25, 1994 in Aktau (Kazakhstan).

Ilinykh - world champion among juniors (2009/10), champion of Russia (2014/15), silver medalist of the Russian Championship (2011/12, 2012/13, 2013/14), silver medalist of the European Championship (2012/13, 2013/14) .

Nikita Katsalapov– Russian figure skater, currently competing in ice dancing as a partner. Previously performed with, with which he became an Olympic champion in the team championship. Born July 10, 1991.

World junior champion (2009/10), silver medalist at the Russian Championship (2011/12, 2012/13, 2013/14), silver medalist at the European Championship (2012/13, 2013/14).