Two-time world champion Evgenia Medvedeva again became a student of Eteri Tutberidze.
The athlete returned to the coach, whom she left after the Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, which brought her two silver medals.
She thanked her former mentor Brian Orser and said that she had already started working at the Khrustalny skating rink in Moscow.
“I am very grateful to Brian for the work done.
At the moment, I am simply grateful to him for his understanding, since he reacted with the deepest approval to my decision.
We have maintained good, warm relations, no conflicts.
I'm glad that I did it.
Now Eteri Georgievna and I are doing well.
We met, talked and started work today, ”Medvedeva said on the First Channel.
The reunion of one of the most successful duets of a coach and a student was reported on Wednesday morning by the media familiar with the situation.
At first, not everyone believed in such a sharp turn in relations between Medvedeva and Tutberidze.
Olympic champion Alexei Yagudin admitted that it was a big surprise for him.
"Wow cool.
Honestly, I absolutely do not care who and where returns, but I have not heard this before.
I'm surprised.
When there is official information, we will comment in detail, but for now we can say that I am also returning to big sport, ”Yagudin compared in a conversation with RIA Novosti.
Soon, information about Medvedeva's transfer to Tutberidze was confirmed at the Sambo-70 school, which the athlete has represented throughout her career.
The director of the educational institution, Rinat Laishev, said that they had already held their first joint training a few days before the stage of the Russian Cup in Syzarni, in which Medvedev will take part.
Unlike Yagudin, coach Inna Goncharenko was not surprised by the return of the two-time world champion to her former coach.
She noted that the skater had no other path, since it was with Tutberidze that all her main career successes were connected.
“If this is reliable information, there is a rational grain in it, given the talk about raising the age limit.
Girls begin to look to the future, and there is no past without it.
If Zhenya had good luck with Eteri Tutberidze, it is quite logical that she, having assessed the situation, decided to return to where there was success.
If this happens, I can only wish you luck.
The only question will be in the decision of Eteri Georgievna, how psychologically and morally she will be able to understand and accept this, ”said the TASS coach.
Honored trainer of the USSR Tatyana Tarasova agreed with Goncharenko.
According to her, the decision to resume cooperation was “wonderful” and “the only correct one”.
Three-time Olympic champion Irina Rodnina noted that the coronavirus pandemic affected Medvedeva's departure from Orser.
Because of this, the athlete had to stay in Russia and find herself a mentor in Moscow.
“They will determine for themselves whether this is correct or not.
Now the situation is difficult, whether there will be a competition or not.
I understand that there are problems in Canada.
This coronavirus ... Probably, something leaves its imprints, ”Rodnina said to Sport24.
Olympic champion Maxim Trankov named as the reason for the transition the financial problems that Medvedev began to experience in connection with the pandemic.
The former athlete noted that the skater left for the best coach in the country and the world at the moment.
“This news came as a surprise to everyone.
But if you analyze the situation, then this can be called the right decision.
All of our athletes who train outside of Russia have serious problems with movement and funding.
And many began to make alternative decisions.
If we talk about choosing a coach, then returning to Eteri Georgievna is the only right decision, because Evgenia has shown all the main results in her life under the guidance of this specialist, ”Trankov recalled.
He also noted in a conversation with the "Championship" that so far Medvedeva has little chance of surpassing her classmate and the current champion of Russia Anna Shcherbakova, whom she will have to meet at the first stage of the Russian Cup.
According to Trankov, the two-time world champion has not yet finished her free program.
At the same time, vice-world champion Alena Leonova expects Medvedeva's career to go uphill after returning to Tutberidze.
According to her, the athlete will be able to compete with the current leaders of women's single skating.
“Surprising - that's not even the right word in this situation.
If she leaves Orser without conflict, then that is very good news.
Returning to Tutberidze will give Medvedeva a certain impetus in her career.
I can say with confidence that under the leadership of Tutberidze, Medvedeva has a chance to fight for the first places with Trusova and other girls, we should wait for her more confident performance, "Leonova shared her opinion.
The famous choreographer Ilya Averbukh believes that both of them will benefit from Medvedeva's reunification with Tutberidze.
He also revealed that the conflict after the breakup was not as strong as many fans thought.
“I think this is a very correct and reasonable decision on the part of Zhenya.
It's great that a great coach and a great athlete are reunited again.
It is also in terms of reconciliation in figure skating for future athletes.
I wish you the best in this collaboration.
I think that both Eteri Georgievna and Zhenya will benefit from this.
It's good that big people are above some small-town ambitions.
We are all professionals, and all conflicts are invented by the press more than they actually exist.
Both the coach and the athlete are aimed at high results.
This is not a communal apartment that some fans immerse us in.
A very good answer to them on how the sport really works, ”Averbukh said.
Alla Shishkina, two-time Olympic champion in synchronized swimming, did not stay away from this news.
In making Medvedeva's return possible, she noted the role of Tutberidze, who forgot about the difficult parting with her student in 2018.
"What a news.
This is what Eteri Georgievna means - a wise woman who was able to forgive and accept a student, ”Shishkina wrote on Instagram.
Olympic medalist Irina Slutskaya, on the contrary, called for an end to the discussion of this topic.
According to her, the transition of skaters from one coach to another is not a significant event that can be widely discussed.
Slutskaya noted that the main thing for Medvedeva is to achieve victories.
“I don’t know the attitude of the athlete to the coach, the coach himself.
It's impossible to get into someone else's head.
I can only comment on the rental and other things related to figure skating.
It seems to me that everyone is already tired of the scandal being inflated from work situations.
If an athlete has made a decision, it means that it is more comfortable, more convenient and useful for him.
It's great to have a choice.
We outsiders cannot know why this is happening.
Therefore, let's leave this topic and wish the athlete excellent results!
If Evgenia has victories, it doesn't matter what transitions were made earlier, ”concluded Slutskaya.