Amateur hero

Evgeni Plushenko's second career return to the amateurs is an adventurous but courageous step

One of the main events of the starting European Figure Skating Championship will be Evgeni Plushenko's return to amateur ice. The Olympic champion, three-time winner of the world championships and six-time winner of continental forums has never traveled to tournaments as a tourist...

One of the main events of the starting European Figure Skating Championship will be the return of our famous athlete to amateur ice.

On Monday, in the English town of Sheffield, where Nathaniel Creswick and William Prest founded the world's oldest football club in 1860, the continental figure skating championship starts. But there would not have been increased attention to this tournament if it were not for Evgeni Plushenko, who decided on the second comeback in his sports career in the hope of reaching Sochi and winning a medal worthy of his talent there.

Let me remind you that Eugene hammered the first nail for skates into the wall 6 years ago. Then, in 2006, the repeated champion of Europe and the world, having risen to the highest step of the podium at the Winter Games in Turin, considered his mission in amateur figure skating accomplished and went into the “breakaway”, simultaneously taking up his own ice shows.

But the glamorous life was slowly getting bored, and to surpass Ilya Averbukh, who ate a dog at a dance with the stars and not only, in all honesty, did not really work out. In addition, a divorce from his first wife, Maria Ermak, who managed to give birth to his son, hit not only nerves, but also Plushenko's wallet.

It did not add to the joy that his heirs (Gryazev, Dobrin, Lutai and others), with their antics and falls, in turn brought fans to a heart attack at all tournaments, disgracing both themselves and the country. But, despite various motives, to lace up skates in order to again jump in the name of Russia "sheepskin coats" and "ritbergers", from the execution of which he earned chronic sores no less than money, Zhenya was in no hurry.

He was ready to engage in a dialogue about his return, which meant, first of all, participation in the Vancouver Olympics, only if he and his team (coaches, choreographers, costume designers, doctors) were fully paid for the preparation costs. Of course, Plushenko was not eager to take the rap for everyone and everything, having invested hard-earned money and having no “state insurance” behind his back: the risk of damaging his image and health was huge.

It's funny that at first they managed to persuade the champion to shake the old days and stand up for the honor of the country ... Yana Rudkovskaya and Dima Bilan.

Have you forgotten how at Eurovision 2008, on a specially built miniature skating rink, Evgeny famously danced to the accompaniment of his friend and violinist Edwin Marton? As a matter of fact, Bilan could not have sung his hit Believeme. In fact, the Europeans were captivated by the mini-masterpiece of the fair-haired sex symbol.

One way or another, but the singer tried on the crown, and Plushenko actually won his second wife ...

Looking at these frills, the then president of the federation, Valentin Piseev, who was worried about the medal-like plan and understood that in Vancouver, instead of gold and the usual congratulations, a wooden mac was shining for him, prayed to all the saints and convinced Evgeny to take the skates off the nail and dare, promising to solve the financial issue on their side. Most likely, by that time, in the head of Zhenya, who probably missed the real struggle and victories, his own Napoleonic plan had already matured. Moreover, with his departure, men's skating deteriorated noticeably, and the new-old rivals for the most part resembled unlubricated robots, forgetting about four-turn jumps.

In general, after the wedding with Rudkovskaya, Plushenko, under the leadership of Alexei Mishin, began to seriously prepare for a historical assault. In Tallinn 2010, he tore apart Stefan Lambiel and Brian Joubert, whom he “jumped over” back in Lyon 2006, and also broke his own world record for short program scores (91, 30 points). And it was all the more insulting to be in Canada not on the highest step of the pedestal. Be deserved. But not at the top. The fact that the very fact of performing at the third Games for himself after a long break was drawn to the feat of Hercules could serve as consolation for anyone, but not for Zhenya, who had to look at the American Evan Lysacek from the bottom up ...

Yevgeny even put up for sale a jeep donated by the president and, blaming his loss on the “stupid set of rules”, and also threatening to give everyone the horns in Sochi on emotions, he refused further amateur battles, preferring to ride in demonstration performances and in various shows.

I personally did not believe that he would take up the old again. Of our great champions of the 21st century, Plushenko has suffered perhaps the most. Now not every fan will remember how he lost to Alexei Yagudin in Salt Lake City, although he was the favorite. How, due to an injury that almost put an end to his career, he missed the 2005 World Forum in Moscow. Well, Vancouver ... On the other hand, if Evgeny had won in Canada, he would not have hinted at Sochi. But his silver at the Games, no matter what he said later and whoever was to blame, cracked decently out of pride. And still…

I am sure that even Aleksey Mishin, who has been babysitting Zhenya since school age, was surprised in the depths of his soul by the second and even more adventurous step of his beloved student. And for him, this is also a kind of challenge. After all, his, Mishinsky's, reputation is at stake again. And you will have to work hard for the sake of the home Olympics. And not the fact that everything will end with splashes of champagne.

Returning to the ice at the age of 29 (!) years, after a long pause, having undergone many difficult operations (one more is to be done immediately after the tournament), is not to go out on a green lawn after a night hookah and run 90 minutes jogging with your mouth open. In addition, as you know, figure skating is a subjective sport with a lot of subtleties. Including political ones. And for the mere fact of a comeback, the judges, tired of Russian hegemony for a long period, will not hang a shiny round ball around Plushenko’s neck even at gunpoint. Plus, thanks to the efforts of our specialists, talented guys have appeared in the Old World and in the East, who can not only swing their arms beautifully ...

At the moment, Evgeni Plushenko is ranked 47th in the ISU (International Skating Union) ranking table, which allowed Zhenya to participate in Sheffield, turning a blind eye to his lack of the required number of rating points.

According to Alexei Mishin, "this tournament is a kind of preparation, and the task facing the skater now is to indicate his presence at the highest level." “The current return is not an assault, but a siege,” emphasizes the Professor.

And yet, as Vasily Ivanovich put it, there is a nuance: the Olympic champion, three-time winner of the world championships and six-time winner of continental forums never traveled to tournaments as a tourist. And the speech of the mentor that the loss at the European Championship will not be fatal for the athlete and he will be satisfied with a good rental and, say, bronze, is pure slyness. Neither Plushenko, nor Mishin, nor Russia will be satisfied with this.

PS Competitions for men will be held on Thursday (short program) and Saturday (free program).