Tatiana Volosozhar

Tatiana Andreyеvna Volosozhar (, ; born 22 May 1986) is a Ukrainian-born Russian pair skater. With Maxim Trankov, she is the two-time 2014 Olympic champion in the pairs and in team events, the 2013 World champion, a four-time (2012, 2013, 2014 and 2016) European champion, the 2012 Grand Prix Final champion, and a three-time (2011, 2013 and 2016) Russian national champion. They have also won six events on the Grand Prix series.

Volosozhar competed for Ukraine with Petr Kharchenko in 2000–04 and with Stanislav Morozov in 2004–10. She and Morozov are four-time Ukrainian national champions (2005, 2007, 2008 and 2010) and finished as high as fourth at the World Championships. In December 2010 she was granted expedited Russian citizenship, as both her parents are Russian.

Volosozhar and Trankov are the historic World record holders for the short program, before the scoring change in the 2018–19 season. They are the first figure skaters to win two gold medals at the same Olympics, having taken gold in pairs and in the inaugural team event.

Early years

Volosozhar began skating at the age of four. The instructors at her skating class were initially dismissive, saying she was overweight, but gave her three months and eventually agreed to keep her. At age 14, she switched from singles to pairs, to her father's dismay.

As a junior, Volosozhar skated for four years with Petr Kharchenko. They trained in Dnipropetrovsk in very poor conditions until they were able to move to Kyiv in 2003; Volosozhar was accompanied by her mother. Their coach in Kyiv was Galina Kukhar. The pair won several medals on the Junior Grand Prix circuit and were the Ukrainian national champions in 2004. That same season, they finished fifth at Junior Worlds and 14th at senior Worlds. They split at the end of the 2003–04 season.

Partnership with Morozov

Volosozhar and Stanislav Morozov teamed up prior to the 2004–05 season and were coached by Galina Kukhar. In their first season together, they were silver medalists at the Winter Universiade and finished fifth at the European Championships. Volosozhar/Morozov began the 2005–06 season with a win at the 2005 Karl Schäfer Memorial and placed 12th at the 2006 Winter Olympics. In 2006–07, the pair finished fifth again at the European Championships and fourth at the World Championships.

During the 2007–08 season, Volosozhar/Morozov came close to winning a medal at the European Championships but placed ninth at the World Championships. At the end of the season, the pair changed coaches and began working with Ingo Steuer in Chemnitz, Germany. Conditions in Ukraine had steadily deteriorated until there was only one good rink, although Morozov said reaching it was not simple, "You can't get to the entrance; you need to jump over holes, it's like a precipice." After moving to train in Chemnitz, they won their first Grand Prix medals—silver at the 2008 Cup of China and bronze at the 2008 Cup of Russia—and qualified for the 2008–09 Grand Prix Final, where they placed fourth. They also placed fourth at the 2009 European Championships and were sixth at the 2009 World Championships.

In the 2009–10 season, Volosozhar/Morozov won a bronze medal at the 2009 Cup of China and silver at the 2009 Skate America. They again placed fourth at the European Championships and then came in eighth at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Morozov retired from competition before the 2010 World Championships. The pair performed in shows together in the spring of 2010.

Partnership with Trankov

Beginnings

Volosozhar decided to continue her competitive career. In March 2010, rumors emerged that she might team up with Maxim Trankov. Trankov later said that he had been interested in skating with Volosozhar since 2006.

The head of the Ukrainian trainers' council admitted there were no partners for her in the country who could compete at a high level, and on 14 May 2010, it was reported that Ukraine would not interfere with her decision to compete for Russia. Russian coach Ludmila Velikova confirmed that Russia had attempted years earlier to persuade Volosozhar to skate under its colors, however, the Ukrainian skating federation believed she would be successful with Stanislav Morozov.

Volosozhar left her previous training base in Germany to train in Moscow, beginning training with Trankov the week of 17 May. They are coached by Nina Mozer. Stanislav Morozov is their assistant coach, helping them with their elements. Igor Tchinaev was their short program choreographer, with Nikolai Morozov choreographing the long program. Nikolai Morozov also worked with them on their stroking to reduce energy loss. The pair had some differences in technique—Volosozhar had to change pace on the entry to the twist as well as adapt to a different hold during throw jumps, while Trankov had to adjust his jumps to match his new partner.

2010–2011 season

Volosozhar/Trankov initially performed in domestic Russian cup events and other tests. In late December 2010, they won gold at the 2011 Russian Championships, defeating Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov, the reigning national champions and World bronze medalists.

Per ISU regulations, Volosozhar was barred from international competition for one year from her last event representing Ukraine, the 2010 Winter Olympics. As a result, the pair missed much of the 2010–11 season, including the Grand Prix series and the European Championships. She became eligible for international competition on 16 February 2011, in time for the Mont Blanc Trophy, where the pair competed in order to meet the ISU's minimum technical score requirements for the World Championships. They did so easily and won the event by a sizable margin. The pair decided to fly in early for the World Championships and landed in Tokyo three hours before the earthquake. The event was rescheduled and moved to Moscow.

At the 2011 World Championships, Volosozhar/Trankov placed third in the short program, second in the free skate, and won the silver medal behind 2009 champions Aliona Savchenko / Robin Szolkowy and ahead of the defending champions, Qing Pang / Jian Tong. It was the first World medal for both partners. The pair are one of few in modern times to reach the World podium in their first season together and in their first appearance at a major international event. Media coverage of the event noted their fast development and their potential for the future. Volosozhar said, "We didn't even think about the silver medal (before Worlds). We thought, maybe we can get the bronze. The result was completely unexpected for us. The most impressive moment of the championships was how enthusiastic the spectators were even before our short program, and I'll never forget how they gave us a standing ovation after the free program."

2011–2012 season

During the off-season, Volosozhar/Trankov performed in shows and prepared for the new season in Novogorsk, as well as a few weeks in New Jersey. In the summer, Trankov sustained a shoulder injury while skating on unsharpened blades since no one with the expertise was available at the time; As a result, they stopped working on lifts for a while.

Volosozhar/Trankov began the 2011–12 season with wins at their two September competitions, the 2011 Nebelhorn Trophy and the 2011 Ondrej Nepela Memorial. Trankov partly tore a groin tendon at the Nepela Memorial. On the Grand Prix series, the pair won Skate Canada with a combined score of 201.38 points and then won the 2011 Trophée Eric Bompard to qualify for the Grand Prix Final. Trankov's inguinal rings (groin) injury caused them to change a pair spin at the Grand Prix Final. Volosozhar/Trankov were the leaders after the short program but placed second to Savchenko/Szolkowy in the free skate and were awarded the silver medal — only 0.18 of a point separating the two teams at the end of the competition. At the post-event press conference, they said they would miss Russian Nationals in order to recover fully from their injuries.

At the 2012 European Championships, Volosozhar/Trankov placed first in both programs and won their first European title. They were eighth in the short program at the 2012 World Championships in Nice

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