Zhenya ON ice, ... everything else

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dimitra
view post Posted on 11/9/2009, 11:04 by: dimitra





wow great great interview with plush and mishin, they explain lots of things about his programs
Ximena did a great translation on epd, http://evgenyplushenkodevotion.yuku.com/sr...-GP-Nats--.html

http://www.baltinfo.ru/tops/Odin-den-s-Evg...schenko-104170/
11.09.2009.

One day with Evgeny Plushenko

The correspondent of "Evening Petersburg" has looked how our famous countryman-skater prepares for the Vancouver Olympics and his wedding to Yana Rudkovskaya.


Plushenko's wedding approaches, the Turin Olympic champion marries a second time - this time to the producer Yana Rudkovskaya. Pre-wedding worries, however, has not prevented Evgeni to prepare new programs for the Olympic season: the Petersburger is commited to compete at the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver.

No turning back

Will Evgeni Plushenko return to amateur? This year, all doubts have disappeared.
We not only heard the statement that Plushenko will perform at this or other competition, but we also saw his name in the official document of the International Skating Union (ISU) - in an application to participate in the stages of the "Grand Prix".
This mean there is no turning back from the ice anymore.

Every day, except weekends, Evgeni trains twice at Yubeliny. So we agreed that we will meet with him during his morning training.
However, at 11 o'clock Zhenya wasn't in the ice rink. His coach, Alexei Mishin was in a "jobless" status. But every cloud has a silver lining and Alexei has kindly agreed to talk in "for that guy."

- This week, Evgeni worked a lot so I told him "We need to rest, take the day off, and then well he called me yesterday late at night and tells me: let's take the night training as well".

Alexei Mishin talked about Evgeni's program this season.

- The short program - is from the soundtrack of "The Pianist" a piece by Chopin. We wanted to make like a "legend", in this program we want to reflect the good and the evil. And there is one part that it's poweful and agreesive, we even try to symbolically reflect the emblem of Nazism. But symbolically reflect, under the law of course. I want to expand on this question since I don't want to leave it in the narrow concept of fascism. It's the general rejection of a totalitarian regime. This is what we wanted to express -on one hand, the struggle, the fight, the pressure of totalitarianism and on the other, that when the pressure is there, that pressure generates resistance.

As for the long program, it is with the music of tango, created by famous Hungarian violinist and composer Edwin Marton. «Tango amor», the tango of love.

- Tango - it's been Zhenya's old dream. Tango is, foremost, an eternal dance. Plus, the tango is one of the musical forms that is different from the rest. There's brightness, expressiveness and a wide range of opportunities for a person to see the world through art.

Well, it means that Mishin and his pupil decided no to follow the line of the current reductionist tendencies:

- Before, when we made a program, we tried to make some brilliant miniature. And now we want to score points for complex elements and thus make the program outstanding. It is very difficult. But we try.

About the complexity of programs, by the way, everything is going fine. The combination 4-3, triple axel, one of the most difficult triple jumps, the lutz, steps and spins of 3rd and some of 4th level in the short program. And in the free, a 4-3-3, another quad, two triple axels. Not to mention the footwork and spins.
So the complexity is in order.

- Do you think it was easy to work with a man who has not skate in four years? Was it difficult to put together a program or not?

What kind of question is that, of course it was difficult! After all shows are not skating. You do one jump, a simple triple and the rest "showy feet". And then there was the extra weight, 80 kg. But now we are close to 72 kg.
When we asked him what was his role in Zhenia's return to amateur, Mishin replied:

- My part was to wait. A man waiting. Because only the deep conviction of the athlete's return could be productive. To entice him to lure him to it, turn unsuccessful. And umpromising.

Alexei Nikolayevich goes back to his business in Yubeliny, and we continue to wait for Zhenya, who has enjoyed the opportunity and is relaxing at the cottage. I wonder whether he would come on his motorcycle "Yamaha R6», that goes 200 kilometers per hour?

Football in the hall for choreography and quadruple jumps on the ice

However, Plushenko showed up in his "Audi R8", capable of accelerating to 300 kilometers per hour!
His high-speed quality machines are very helpful, when he was arriving to the city; he realized that he has left his skates in the trunk of another car, so he had to "fly" to the country and back. However, Evgeni got the time to train at three o'clock.

- Sorry, I could not warn you about the cancellation of the morning training- he says to us. - You didn't leave your cellphone number.

We have nothing to say but admit our own fault.

Zhenya changes clothes in Alexei Mishin training room and goes to the dance hall. Through the open door we can see, as he hugs Yuko Kawaguchi and talks to her. But just then, he sees our photographer, asked not to take pictures and closes the door ...
Perhaps, he believes that the movement, which looks impressive on the ice, on the floor in the hall that can still be seen in the mirrors will look somewhat like a caricature?
Somewhere after 20 minutes of doing exercises in the hall, Evgeni appears on the training rink, which is already in full work - Lisa Tuktamysheva with his coach, under the watchful supervision of Alexei Mishin and Andrei Lutai is performing his short program.

Evgene starts skating around the rink and gradually starting to jump. Starts with a loop, first a double, then a triple. Alexei Mishin, who is been talking with Lutai, begins to tape Zhenya on video. Meanwhile, Plushenko complicates his jump content, a lutz, some combinations, a triple axel. He jumps some quads, often successfully. However, after a fall on his quad, Mishin comes up to him on the ice, and explains something in his inimitable style. There may be magic words because Zhenia does not make any more errors while jumping.

After his jumping training ends, Zhenya starts with the ending of his long program, the footwork and the spins. Choreographer David Avdysh is vigorously gesticulating at the side, offering to Plushenko other variants for his hands and body movements. Indeed, some of the gestures of the choreographer are repeated by Zhenya on the ice and they look very organic.

16.15 The training comes to an end. First impression: that Zhenya feels "hungry for the sport, hungry for victory," as Yana Rudkovskaya has said, and there are no doubts about it. And his movements are so expressive, not for nothing that his arms were compared with the hands of Maya Plisetskaya. The only thing his landings still look somewhat heavy. The sound of the skate blades still gives away the excess weight. However, it is just temporary, no one doubts about it.

After leaving the ice, Evgeni goes to his dressing room, and then to the studio: to try on new outfits. Journalists are not allowed in this "intimate" procedure, since the fees for the exclusives designs have not been paid yet.

"My dream is to skate to Tango"

After training, Evgeni finds the time to talk with our correspondent. This is how the programs are and about the upcoming changes in his personal life. By the way, as it turned out, the short program, which so enthusiastically talked Alexei Mishin, may change.

- New season. You return to the amateur sport. For how long have you trained?
- Four months.

- You had a fairly significant break in your training.
- Significant of course. Three years, it's quite a lot. It's a big deal, of course, but it's okay. The important thing is that I want this.

- How are your feelings? Are you drawn into work?
- My feelings are good. Finally, as I already said, I've remembered the adrenaline, the good atmosphere. This new process is a new life. So everything is fine, everything's great. Now I'm gradually getting into work, because there are some problems, mostly my health. There's a slight injury. Therefore, the main thing is that I don't get hurt. If I don't get anything hurt, then it will work out

- Tell us about the programs that we are going to see ...
- I do not exclude that in competitions I will skate a new program. In any case, the short program is likely to be new.

- That's not the one that Mishin said, from Chopin?
- Not that one, probably a new one. But now everything depends on Edwin Marton - if he has time to compose it.

- So we won't see, as Alexei Mishin said, the confrontation against a totalitarian regime?
- Yes. That was the idea. But, unfortunately, in the short program, it can not be realized. Because it's only 2 minutes 50 seconds, and it is impossible to do a little performance. In the arrangement, it should be dramatic - hatred, anger, fighting But, unfortunately, there's simply not enough time to just make it happen.

- Now about the long program. Mishin said that is your long-cherished dream - to do the tango.
- It's true, this is really my long-cherished dream. I did a little bit in 2001, it was a small piece in my program, a tango. And when I did that part, the audience received it well. And it's probably time to do the whole program to Tango, done by Edvin Marton.There is passion, suffering and. With it you can, show yourself in all its glory.

- Now on the technical side. Remember, two years ago, you said that figure skating has turned into a way that one could become a world champion, without a quad. You anticipated then what happened, since four months later, Jeffrey Buttle was champion of the world.
- Nevertheless, I am going to do two quad and I'll jump them. Why? Because one can not go back. No. This is just silly, it's funny. If you reach a certain level, you have to keep it. So - one quadruple, is simply necessary. A second quad, I still have to do it, I am working on it in training. It is very difficult. But I'm trying to.

- The same type?
- Yes, two quadruple toe loop.

- Who do think is your main rivals?
- Everybody. The world. Now there are ten people - that's for sure. Canada, America, Japan, and the Czech Republic, and France ... In every country, there's two good athletes - this will be exactly ten skaters. And why - because the new system is equated to us all. Although the judges there are sometimes some selectivity , over some completed elements, about under rotation. So it is necessary to skate so the judges won't have any doubts left.

- Is it true that the Russian Nationals are going to be held in St. Petersburg?
- Yes, I know that it will be here. Initially they had planned, the federation, at least, planned in Kazan. But I don't know why they changed. It's good though, I do not have to go anywhere! In fact I said to Valentin Piseev: "If you make a championship in St. Petersburg, then I think, you'll have a full house."

- Nevertheless, you prefer to train in "Yubeliny"...
- I always train in "Yubeliny". Since I was 11 and I came here, so I still train here. Here there are good conditions; at least the quality of the ice is good, and the heating of it. That's the most important. Even though it takes me longer to arrive to Yubeliny than to the Academy.

On his wedding and Yana Rudkovskaya

Evgeni and Yana's wedding, who is scheduled to Moscow on September 12, will not be for "just the close ones" as reported in the press. "150 guests, including all the stars, all of our friends, is that just the close ones?"- snorted Plushenko. However, the remaining details of the ceremony Evgeni is prohibited to talk about since he has an exclusive contract with a magazine.

- Will you go into a honeymoon?
- After the wedding on September 13 I'm going to Novogorsk and will train in Novogorsk. My wife will come there. The 19 and 20 we have performances in Moscow.

- What are your requirements for the wife of a top-level athlete?
- In Yana I have found my second half. Finally. She understands that it is always busy, a lot of emotions, constant lack of sleep, all the time, that I get…I don't know, in a good mood, in a bad mood. She gets involved in this and she understands it. Moreover, she is also a creative person. She's very important to me. Along Dima Bilan, she won Eurovision and she has done a lot for him. She knows the show business, and creativity. And also, sorry for this, she is not just a 19-20 girl. No, she is a woman who has lived some life, and she understands what life is. That is very important to me.

- Does she create home comfort? For example, does she cook?
- Of course. But we just do not have enough time. We do not eat at home. Well, she cooks breakfast, if we have decided to sleep on the weekends and stay at home out of town, she can cook any food, kebabs fry - she can do it all.

- Do you have the same taste?
- Yes.

- Is she your stylist? Marton said that, sometimes he goes with you into the store, help each other to choose a shirt ...
- Well, I'm happy to go to the shops with my friends. I and one walk. As for Yana, yes she helps me get dressed, and I ask her, sometimes to help me select something, then something, then something or gather some things and make a set of my wardrobe.

- She was not here today ...
- She was sitting with my mother upstairs in our room. And looking from above, through the glass.

Edited by cekoni - 12/9/2009, 02:24
 
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