Russian coaches defended the skater Alena Kostornaya. Recently, among the fans, the topic of the possible removal of the European champion from the competition has begun to be discussed in connection with her loud transition from Eteri Tutberidze to Evgeny Plushenko. According to the supporters of punishment for the athlete, this measure should prevent a repetition of this situation in the future.
The first thought that in figure skating it is necessary to impose sanctions for changing the coach in the midst of the offseason was expressed by the famous choreographer Ilya Averbukh. On August 13, he noted that such actions of athletes affect the rights of specialists and should be suppressed, and for transitions, certain periods should be introduced, as in team sports.
“The transfer window must be clear, the coach must understand with which line-up he is entering the new season. If such rules apply, in the situation with Kostornaya, the athlete must skip a year. So that a person understands the responsibility for such a transition format. After all, Tutberidze's headquarters not only devoted time to her, but, it turns out, took it away from others. The same Anna Shcherbakova and others would get more attention if it were known that Alena was leaving before June 1. And there should be compensation for such transitions. If a skater or her parents enter into a contract that stipulates compensation for a billion dollars - okay, that's a billion, ”Averbukh told Sport-Express.
It should be noted that the transfer window already exists in Moscow figure skating. True, it does not concern the transition from one coach to another, but the change of the club. Skaters who are members of the Moscow national team have the right to change their sports organization from April 1 to May 31. At the same time, athletes must notify the Moscow Figure Skating Federation (FFKKM) about their transfer, and if they are among the candidates for the Russian national team, the FFKKM, in turn, will need to communicate their position regarding the transition to the Figure Skating Federation Russia (FFKKR).
In the case of Alexandra Trusova, who also left Tutberidze this offseason, the transition was formalized, and now she represents the Angela Plushenko Academy. The departure of Kostornaya became known only on July 31 from Tutberidze's post on Instagram. In this regard, the FFKKR noted that the transfer of the European champion will be considered by the organization's executive committee in September and, most likely, she will still have to represent the Sambo-70 club. However, this does not mean that Alena will not be able to train under Plushenko.
But, if the transition from one organization to another can be considered a formality (for example, Evgenia Medvedeva is still a member of Sambo-70, although she has been training in Canada for more than two years), then the change of coach directly affects his interests, and it is this step by Kostornaya became a reason to talk about her removal. True, Averbukh himself later clarified that he did not call for punishing this particular athlete, but only spoke of the need to toughen the rules for the future.
“I only said about the need for clear rules of transitions, which could include a clause on skipping the season. And now, if these rules were in effect, Alena really would have to go on a break. Now she will perform, and every success to her, like the rest. You just need to understand that the current "rules" of transitions allow you to do what business was doing in the 90s. And this can lead to monopolization of the figure skating market by two or three clans. Pandora's Box has already been opened, and we have little time to fix something. Nobody wants to enslave the skaters - they just need clear rules of the game, ”Averbukh said.
At the same time, many experts in figure skating noted that it is wrong to remove Kostornaya because of her transition, albeit not entirely correct. Coach Alexander Zhulin reacted negatively to this idea, despite the fact that he himself faced similar situations in his career.
“How to skip the season? That is, you want to say that Alena Kostornaya should miss a whole year because of this transition? It's too harsh. Again, I agree with all the points that a coach should not suffer from a change in the mood of his students. But at the same time, you can't be cute. If an athlete decided to leave the coach, he will do it sooner or later, connecting some kind of connections. I know this from my practice, figure skaters also left me. By the way, one recently returned, ”Zhulin said.
Honored trainer of the USSR Tatyana Tarasova also opposed Kostornaya's disqualification. She recalled that such a step would lead to the decline of Russian figure skating.
“My position is that you cannot cross. But not to such an extent as to remove Kostornaya. It happened! Suspending the European champion for the whole season is more expensive! This does not mean that they should not do what is written in the rules. But we, unfortunately, do a lot without rules, ”Tarasova told Sport24.
Emotionally, the Olympic champion in ice dancing Natalya Bestemyanova reacted to the idea of removing Kostornaya. In her opinion, the athlete should have the right to change the coach at any time.
“The removal of Kostornaya is impossible. Alena is not a serf, is she? She does not change the country, but stands for Russia. Kostornaya is the best sportswoman in the country. Is she in chains? Can't decide who to train with? Rave. Contracts must be signed. An athlete can change a coach at any time of the year if he is uncomfortable, ”the former athlete told the Championship.
Finally, the Olympic champion in pair skating Irina Rodnina recalled that the ability to deprive an athlete of competition is simply absent in the documents of the Russian Figure Skating Federation.
“Why should Kostornaya miss the season? On what grounds? You can go to the coach at any time, she does not change the organization. The transfer window only applies to organizations, not coaches. A coach is not an organization. People who argue that she should miss the season - let them read the federation charter. The blow will only be at those who write such nonsense, ”Rodnina said.