“I want to show everything I’m capable of”: the Narva figure skater will take part in the Estonian Championship

2023-12-28 14:00:49

Polina Kurochkina and her coach Victoria Spelman, who also started figure skating at the figure skating department of the Narva Paemurru sports school. Photo: From the personal archive of Polina Kurochkina

Polina Kurochkina first stepped on the ice when she was not yet three years old, and today she is one of the best in the figure skating department at the Narva Paemurru Sports School. The girl would also like to connect her future with ice.

This year, 18-year-old Polina was selected for the first time to compete at the Estonian Figure Skating Championships in 2024 and also became a candidate for the Estonian Figure Skating Team. The championship will take place in February. “NG” asked Polina in what mood she was preparing for it. “I want to show as best as possible everything that I have achieved and what I am capable of and at the same time enjoy the fact that I am participating in all this,” the girl answered.

The ice hall was next to the house
Where did it all start? Polina told NG that when her parents first took her to figure skating, they had no ambitious plans for her sports future. The choice of the sports section happened almost by accident. “Since the Ice Hall was close to our house, my parents went there to skate and took me with them. Then they decided to send me to figure skating, as it is good for my health. And you don’t have to carry it far – it’s convenient. I don’t remember my first steps on the ice. My mother told me that during the first training sessions I didn’t show myself in any particular way: at first I crawled on the ice more than I skated,” she says.

Polina really got involved in this sport when she was 11-12 years old: she started winning competitions and was praised by her coaches. But most importantly, she felt that she liked skating herself and wanted to do it as best as possible. And the workload for figure skaters is considerable: every day there are two training sessions, one early in the morning before school starts, the second after.

The training includes not only ice, but also general physical training and exercises at the machine, where dance movements are practiced. Skaters have only one day off per week. “At competitions, a demonstration performance lasts only 3.5 minutes, but we begin preparing for it in the fall. This is quite difficult: to fulfill all the requirements, not to get lost anywhere, not to get confused – without good preparation a person cannot cope with such stress,” says Polina.

Used to a strict schedule
Not everyone can maintain such a rhythm, and some of the girls with whom Polina started together quit figure skating. But Polina says that she has no problem combining sports and school – she started studying at the Vanalinna State Language Immersion School, and is now studying at the Narva Estonian Gymnasium. Moreover, a year ago Polina also became interested in folk dancing and goes to rehearsals of the Yun-Ost dance ensemble several times a week. How does she manage everything, and is there a desire to rest and slow down?

“At competitions, a demonstration performance lasts only 3.5 minutes, but we begin preparing for it in the fall. This is quite difficult: to fulfill all the requirements, not to get lost anywhere, not to get confused – without good preparation a person cannot cope with such stress.

“For so many years, I’ve gotten used to a clear schedule. I think that on the contrary, playing sports gives you energy: the more you do, the more you want. When the Yun-Ost ensemble came to our school and began inviting us to classes, I thought: why not try? During figure skating classes at the barre, we study classics, tango, and modern dances – all dances, except folk ones. And I wanted to try to master folk dances. At first I didn’t even think it was so great, but now I really like it,” says Polina.

“Our star”
How much pressure does the responsibility of representing Narva at the Estonian Championship put on her? Polina says that she receives support primarily from her family and friends, who always follow her successes and are sincerely happy for her. But sometimes she hears words of approval from complete strangers. “Recently at a store, a female cashier recognized me and began to praise me for representing Narva well at competitions. It was unexpected, but very pleasant,” says Polina.

Next year Polina graduates from school, and NG inquired about her plans. “I am going to enter Tallinn University, and in the future, perhaps, I will become either a physical education teacher or a figure skating coach. Moreover, I already had to help the coach and work with kids who were taking their first steps on the ice. They try so hard, they are so interested that it is a pleasure to work with them. I think that in the future I would like to teach children what they really like,” she answered. Has Polina thought about becoming a figure skating coach in Narva in the future? “I’m not making such far-reaching plans yet, but I probably wouldn’t be against working in Narva. This is a good option,” the girl answered.

Judging by the interest in posts about the successful performances of Narva figure skaters, which “NG” regularly posts on its Facebook, many citizens are now interested in this sport – each post collects hundreds of likes and tens of thousands of views.

One of the most experienced coaches of the figure skating department of the Narva Paemurru Sports School, Natalya Ryseva, who has been working at the Narva Ice Hall since its opening, told NG that she has also recently noticed that interest in figure skating in Narva is growing. This is evidenced, for example, by the interest in the annual ice concert that Narva figure skaters give at the Ice Hall at the end of the year.

A lot could be said about the professional coaches and athletes who started figure skating in Narva.

For example, one of the current coaches of the Narva Ice Hall, Victoria Spelman, who now coaches Polina Kurochkina, is also a student of the Narva figure skating department, a student of Natalia Ryseva. “But for us, the main task has always been not achievements in themselves, but the development of children. We strive to instill a love of figure skating; our children enjoy the fact that they can skate beautifully. Although we are, of course, happy about the sporting successes of our students. Polina is our star, and we are proud of her,” said Natalya Ryseva.

The post “I want to show everything I’m capable of”: a Narva figure skater will take part in the Estonian Championship first appeared on gazeta.ee.