Elizaveta Tuktamysheva: biography
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva amazed her coaches with enduranceElizaveta Tuktamysheva is one of the most skilled pupils of the famous figure skating coach Alexei Mishin. The sportswoman knows well what it means to grow up when your body doesn't belong to you and how to get through the skip of the Olympic Games in your native country. She also knows, how it feels to become the best one in Europe and then to be dropped off of the national team.
Though even such "roller coaster" hasn't made the girl give up. Liza follows the major recommendation of her coach not to relax. Though, she admits that the more conscious her attitude to the competition is, the more she feels responsible. And in comparison with her young rivals, the adult woman has another psychology. The press calls Tuktamysheva the most seductive Russian figure skater.
Childhood and youth
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva was born in the ancient town of Glazov in December 1996. She is Udmurt by her origin. Since childhood, Liza was a very active and vigorous child. At the same time, the girl began to have a strong character since she was small. The girl could hardly burst into tears when she fell and hurt her knees in blood while taking part in the running races with her age-mates.
The climbing frame was the favorite place for Liza's games. The adults were surprised when they saw what their child could do. The girl could pull-up more than 7 times.
At the age of five, her parents took Elizaveta to the figure skating section. They decided that it was an ideal engagement taking into account her flexibility, dynamic energy, and strong character.
Svetlana Veretennikova began to train the girl. Soon the woman became for Tuktamysheva not only her respectful coach but also a true friend. Under the leadership of her coach, the girl began to show excellent results in a short time. She has become the best one in her group The adults as well as the sports coaches who saw her achievement understood the figure skater would have a brilliant future.
Figure skating
At the age of ten, Elizaveta Tuktamysheva appeared on the Cup of Mishin where the competition supervisor noticed her. The young figure won the first place. Right after she received the awards, the founder offered to Liza to train in St. Petersburg, and the girl accepted the invitation.
Since then Elizaveta Tuktamysheva together with her coach regularly visited St. Petersburg where she improved her skills. Svetlana Veretennikova supported Lisa during all the time and helped her to study the innovative technique of Alexei Nikolaevich Mishin.
In 2011 there was a tragedy in the girl's family – her father, the coach of the football team died. The sportswoman was suffering a lot because of the loss of her father. The figure skater dedicated all her honors and awards to her father. She believed that he saw all her achievements and was happy for her.
After this tragedy, the girl's family decided to move finally to St. Petersburg. This event let everybody distract a little bit from the shock. Then Elizaveta Tuktamysheva had two close persons – her mother and her sister Evgenia who also got engaged in the figure skating. The girl’s mother, a Maths teacher, remains the best Liza's friend who supports her daughter in any situation.
Elena Sergeevna was the first one to understand that her daughter would have a great career in the sport. Though at present the woman doesn't accompany Lisa on the competitions – the atmosphere is too tense and nervous there.
Alexei Mishin was attentively watching the achievements of his pupil who puzzled everyone with her endurance. The coach tried to help the young talent not only in the sporting achievements, but also he provided her with the financial support. By means of the Olympic Hopes foundation, the family of Tuktamysheva and her coach Veretennikova have their lodging in the Northern Capital.
Since early years Elizaveta Tuktamysheva differed with her strong character, the absence of conflicts, communicative skills, and good temper. It was always easy for her colleagues and coaches to find a common language with the girl.
Liza really valued the education. In St. Petersburg the girl entered lyceum with profound studying of the Spanish language.
Since the age of twelve, Elizaveta Tuktamysheva carried out the most difficult set of triple jumps without any difficulties for what she was called "the child prodigy of the figure skating." Since 2009 the figure skater won silver and bronze medals one after another. The girl could be permitted to take part in the international competitions only in a year she didn't correspond to the age category.
With the first appearance on the ice in the adult category Elizaveta Tuktamysheva won at the Grand Prix stage at once. In the final, the figure skater was left behind Adelina Sotnikova who was training in the same team. "The adult league" began for the sportswoman before her performance at Japan Open tournament where she won the 1st place. At the age of fifteen, Elizaveta took part in First Youth Olympic Games where she again became the winner.
The year 2014 wasn’t the best one in the sports biography of Elizaveta Tuktamysheva. In the championship of Russia, the figure skater achieved only the tenth position what was one of the worst results during all her sports career. In that respect, the sportswoman didn't take part in the European championship, and at the Olympic Games in Sochi, she even didn't become an alternate participant. During this period Liza got a serious injury. But after the successful recovery period, she began to achieve victories one after another as if she was catching up with the lost time.
Soon Elizaveta Tuktamysheva became the winner of Nebelhorn Trophy in Germany. Later she won the victory at the tournament in Finland, and then at the International Cup of Nice. This winning performance of the figure skater is her special pride. A week later after Nice Elizabeth Tuktamysheva was leading at Grand Prix stage in Chicago at America’s Cup, but unfortunately she received the 2nd place and was left behind Elena Radionova.
At Russian Figure Skating Championship of 2015, the sportswoman has managed to achieve the status of the vice-champion.
In 2015 during the World Cup in Shanghai in the short program "Bolero" the figure skater Elizaveta Tuktamysheva became the first figure skater in the history of the Russian female sportswomen who managed to carry out a very difficult element – a threefold axel, and then to show the perfect threefold Lutz and a cascade from two triple toe loops. The figure skater has set a world record and has become a leader. Her rival Elena Radionova took the 2nd place.
The same year the current champion of Europe and world in the figure skating visited Switzerland where she worked on the new program with the prize-winner of the Olympic Games Stéphane Lambiel. Her victory in the final of Grand Prix of that year became the first one for ten years of single Russian skating performers.
In November of 2016, Elizaveta Tuktamysheva took the 4th position in the rate of the 4th International Skating Union (ISU).
The figure skater began the season of 2016/2017 at German Nebolhorn tournament. After the short program she received the 1st place, but in the end she couldn't stay the leader and took the 2nd place.
In October the champion performed at Finlandia Trophy tournament where she managed to get to the three of prize-winners. In autumn of 2016, the Russian sportswoman performed at Grand Prix of Canadian Federation Cup, having taken the second place. And in November she participated in the second stage of Grand Prix in Beijing where she managed to win the 3rd place.
In December of 2016, Elizaveta Tuktamysheva took the second place that time at Golden Spin of Zagreb in Croatia. But during the same month in the persistent competition in Russian championship in Chelyabinsk, her results decreased to the 8th place. The middle of the season brought to the figure skater a silver medal at the final of Cup of Russia.
The choreographer of the figure skater Tatyana Prokofieva was really impressed by the performance of her pupil and called it the best one since the times of the European championship of 2015.
Moreover, one more coach joined Liza’s command – it is Adam Sole. Tuktamysheva confesses that with her new choreographer everything coincided from the first minutes – the choice of the music, gestures. "Sometimes it happened, that he has just had a thought and I already was telling these ideas ", - the figure skater admits.
Personal life
In the social networks, the figure skater leads regular correspondence with her admirers. On her Instagram page, there are often published the photos by which her fans can judge about the changes in the private life of Elizaveta Tuktamysheva.
The fans of the figure skater vividly discussed the photos where smiling Liza appeared in embraces of the 18-year-old figure skater Murad Kurbanov.
By hearsay, Tuktamysheva calls her beloved Masya, in reply the guy calls his darling Baby. The admirers of the figure skater began to talk about the romantic relations which connected the couple. Allegedly, Elizaveta has to go from St. Petersburg to Moscow all the time to see the young man. But, according to some other information, the figure skaters are just friends.
In 2015 in the social networks there appeared the gossips about the new love affair of the girls. That time it was the love affair with Andrei Lazukin, the first Russian performer of quadruple who is also skating in her group. But in fact, nobody except the young people knows what relations they have.
Elizaveta who is tender and fragile at first sight ( the girl is 157 cm tall) tries only to look like that. By her own words, on ice, the ice skater "thinks and behaves like a man" in the sense that she doesn't show her weak sides. Tuktamysheva combines her training with the studies at Lesgaft University. Teachers have done her a favor and allowed her to pass the sessions without attending the lectures. When Liza can't attend the lectures, she takes individual lessons and works in her free time from the training on the ice.
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva at present
Having failed the trial competitions on the Olympic Games in Korea, Liza has come to the vise conclusions that to skate for the sake of the fourth anniversary of the Olympic Games is not her final goal. The figure skater is encouraged by the tournaments in general; she appears on ice to get pleasure and to feel the spirit of the rivalry. And it's just impossible to compare the emotions with something else when you achieve good results in the competitions.
In September of 2018, the Russian national team carried out the control performances of the programs prepared by the figure skaters for the season. Singles have concentrated all their attention on the competition with Alina Zagitova and Evgenia Medvedeva.
This situation even plays to Elizaveta's hand; nobody prevented her from concentration. She was skating flawlessly just with a small mistake on the cascade of two triple jumps.
Alina and Evgenia have fallen during the performance of their program, and the Olympic champion has fallen for two times. The press hasn't lost the opportunity to note that Tuktamysheva had received the chance to return to the elite of figure skating if she would be so stable.
Two months later Elizaveta enriched her assets of the prizes with the golden medal at Lombardia Trophy in the Italian Bergamo and Finlandia Trophy in Challenger series. During the first competitions of the judge scored the Russian figure skater 206.07 points. It wasn't the maximum, but the figure skater felt confident in her forces.
Liza's wish to prepare well for the second championship has led to the fact that figure skater appeared on ice with the cold. The girl got sick shortly before the start, and the figure skater estimated her performance as dull and not emotional. Elizaveta has got used to the fact that the final performance is bright and expressive. Nevertheless, Tuktamysheva has included her threefold crown axel to both programs though the jump was included only to the short program during the preparatory period.
The Grand Prix stage also took place in Canada with the participation of the Russian figure skaters.
There Evgenia Medvedeva and Daria Panenkova appeared on the ice together with Tuktamysheva. Liza left her rivals behind and won the gold medal. Evgenia rose from the 7th position after the short program to the third. Tuktamysheva's victory was finished with the brilliant demonstration performance which caused a mighty furor. Elizaveta tried herself in the role of the stewardess and was skating to the song "Toxic" remaining at the end of her performance only in the underwear.
Achievements
- Gold medal of the Championship of Russia of 2013
- Gold medal of the World Cup 2015
- Gold medal of the European championship 2015
- Silver medal of World Cup Team 2015
- Silver medal of the Championship of Russia 2015
- A gold medal of Warsaw Cup and the International Cup of Nice – 2015
- The silver medal of Nebelhorn Trophy – 2016
- Silver medal of Zlatnapirueta Zagreb-2016
- Silver medal of Russian Cup final -2016
- Bronze medal of Finlandia Trophy-2017
- Bronze medal of Zlatnapirueta Zagreb-2017
- Gold medal of Lombardia Trophy-2018
- Gold medal of Finlandia trophy-2018
