“The best cure for fear is to choke yourself with work”: Irina Rodnina - 70
2019-09-12T15:05:41.443Z
The legendary Soviet figure skater Irina Rodnina celebrates her 70th birthday. A native of Moscow got into the sport by accident: in her childhood she suffered from pneumonia many times, and at the age of five, on the recommendation of doctors, her parents brought her to the ice rink. There, her first coach Yakov Smushkin drew attention to a talented girl. Interestingly, until 1964, the athlete was a loner. In 1969, together with Alexei Ulanov, Rodnina achieved her first successes at the international level, having won the gold of the World Cup and European Championship, and three years later the pair took Olympic gold in Sapporo. In a duet with Alexander Zaitsev, she twice excelled at the Games and six times at the world championships. After completing her professional career, Rodnina was engaged in coaching and politics.
Source: russiart