Alina Zagitova: biography
Alina Zagitova is a young Russian figure skater who achieved great success in single figure skating and was awarded the title of Master of Sports of Russia.
Alina Zagitova was born on May 18, 2002 in Udmurtia, in Izhevsk. Being the eldest daughter of the famous trainer Ilnaz Zagitov, Alina is a Tatar girl. The figure skater is not the only child in the family. She has a younger sister Albina, who lives in Izhevsk.
Alina owes to her parents for her sports career. Her father is a coach of the ice hockey team "Izhstal". Alina's mother is not connected with sport, but she has been dreaming of figure skating all her life. Perhaps, that is why she decided to realize her unfulfilled dream in her daughter. As you know, the girl was named Alina in honor of Alina Kabaeva.
The future sportswoman began training at 5 years old, serious training began at the age of seven. Before that Alina just skated on the ice, even 6-7 times saying goodbye with enthusiasm. When the girl understood that she was well at skating, the hobby turned into a serious business. The sportswoman began to train in the Izhevsk Youth Sports School (which she attended until 2015). The first coach of the future figure skater was Natalia Alekseevna Antipina.
Up to 10 years, Alina could not win a single award. But then she met Eteri Georgievna Tutberidze.
Zagitova quickly broke into the sports world, surprising her opponents and showing amazing results. The video of her performances is the best proof of that!
Career
Zagitova met the well-known coach during the competitions in Moscow. According to Alina, she did not perform very well then. Being late for the train the girl persuaded her mother to go to Eteri Tutberidze. The coach after a brief conversation told the athlete to come after the celebration of New Year.
But relations with Tutberidze did not work out, and Alina went to Anna Tsareva's group. Later, a period of injuries followed: firstly, the girl broke her arm, and then a leg. After a long period of recovery, Alina had to re-learn how to skate. The figure skater once again tried to get into the group of Tutberidze at the SSC "Sambo-70", and this time her wish came true. Today, the athlete also trains with Sergei Dudakov.
Zagitova is in the group with the outstanding figure skater Evgenia Medvedeva - the winner of world records and the world champion of 2016.
Achievements
Participation in February 2016 in the championship of Russia, where Zagitova surprised the jury with a complex program, which included jumping and cascading. Alina's debut brought her 9th place. Perhaps her surprising plasticity is a result of her low height (152 cm).
Participation in the junior Grand Prix in France. In Saint-Gervais the figure skater managed to win her opponents by 16 points in two programs, gaining 194.37 points. She demonstrated confident skating and jump elements (performing triple rytberger and triple lutz).
Winner of bronze at the next stage of the Junior Grand Prix in Slovenia.
She got to the junior final of the Grand Prix in Marseille. After the confident performance in St. Gervais, many experts expected that the athlete could not overcome the excitement and emotions, but Alina showed excellent results.
In Marseille, the athlete arrived a day later than the other skaters, as she forgot to register her parents' permission to travel abroad. According to the figure skater, the unpleasant incident motivated her to win. Tutberidze’s mentee won the Junior Grand Prix final, having won both short and free programs. In total, the girl managed to score 207.43 points.
Participation in the Russian Championship in December 2016 in Chelyabinsk, brought the figure skater a silver medal. Zagitova became a real opening of the season. She managed to perfectly perform a complex program, and the most complex elements the athlete showed at the second part of her performance. The figure-skater managed to score 221.21 points, while Medvedeva scored 233.57 points. After the Championship, in an interview with journalists, Alina confessed that she was very pleased with the second place, and Evgenia Medvedeva encouraged her to strive for higher results. Experienced athletes said that the second place was a serious result for the girl.
In 2016, the sportswoman won the status of the Master of Sports of Russia in figure skating. By the end of 2016, the 14-year-old figure skater took the 83rd place in the ranking, created by one of the oldest sports federations - the International Skating Union.
Alexander Zhulin - a well-known coach and two-time winner of the Olympic Games, appreciated Zagitova's performance at the Russian championship in Chelyabinsk. Zhulin is delighted with Zagitova's technique and believes that Alina has great potential. In the future, when the athlete will participate in international competitions, she will be a real threat to her opponents.
At the European Championships in 2018 in Moscow Zagitova made a real furor. In a short program, Alina won Evgenia Medvedeva, becoming the champion of Europe.
On the 24th of March 2019 it became known that Alina Zagitova for the first time became the world champion at the competition held in Saitama, Japan. After this Alina became the first female figure skater who won all major tituls in female ice-skating - Olympic Games, Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final, World Figure Skating Championships and European Figure Skating Championships.
Personal life
The 14-year-old sportswoman lives in Moscow with her grandmother while her parents are in their native Izhevsk. It is the grandmother who shows the skater her mistakes and supports her. Alina is always training, and it is not known whether she has a boyfriend at the moment.
The athlete posts photos of her personal life in Instagram and Vkontakte. New photos are regularly posted in her group in Vkontakte, and in Instagram the girl publishes photos from holidays and trainings. So, in autumn 2016, Alina went to Egypt. There is no official page of Zagitova in Twitter.
Interesting Facts
- Parents up to one year could not name their daughter. One day, while watching TV, they saw Alina Kabaeva's performance. And the parents decided to call their daughter Alina.
- Alina began her trainings with Eteri Tutberidze not once. Three months after the start of training, Eteri Georgievna expelled Zagitova. The coach admitted that she made this decision, because the figure skater did not understand the training system.
- During the trip to Marseille, the sportswoman lost her phone. Alina searched everywhere, but could not find the phone. Later, she found it unexpectedly.
