Ekaterina Gordeeva: Biography from Answers.com

From triumph to tragedy and back, Ekaterina Gordeeva (born 1971) is not only a champion ice skater, but also a symbol of grace, strength, and courage.

At age 11, Ekaterina Gordeeva (called Katia by her friends) became one of a pair-a pair of "G's"-Gordeeva and Grinkov. In their 13 years of skating together, Gordeeva and Sergei Grinkov were first co-workers, became friends, then fell in love, married, became parents, and won four World championships and two Olympic gold medals. However, in 1995, the magic tragically ended when Grinkov died of a heart attack. At only 24, Gordeeva became a widow, a single mother, and solo skater. As she told Time writer Steve Wulf, "Skating was the only thing that could bring back my confidence because it's the only thing I can do. I'm so happy to have a place to express my feelings." Fans worldwide, including former Olympic champion and commentator Dick Button were also happy again. Button, in Time, described Gordeeva as "a very elegant snowflake, but one that is made of steel."

Gordeeva was born in Moscow, Russia, in 1971. Her father, Alexander Alexeyevich Gordeev, a folk dancer for the Moiseev Dance Company, wanted Gordeeva to become a ballet dancer. Her mother, Elena Levovna, was a teletype operator for the Soviet news agent Tass. Gordeeva's parents both worked hard and traveled so much that Gordeeva and her sister, Maria, often stayed with their grandparents. Gordeeva's grandmother read Grimm's fairytales to Gordeeva, not knowing that's how Gordeeva would later describe her life-like a fairytale. Gordeeva, in My Sergei, also commented that "I was the luckiest girl on earth, wanting for nothing." At four, too young to try out for ballet as her father had wanted, Gordeeva was invited by a trainer at the Central Red Army Skating Club in Moscow for a skating tryout. By the time she turned five years old, Gordeeva was practicing four times a week. In My Sergei, Gordeeva remembered, "I can't miss it. It's my job." However, pushed by her father, Gordeeva did try out for ballet school at age ten, but failed. She continued skating and one year later was paired with Grinkov.

Gordeeva and Grinkov-"G & G:" The Fairytale Begins

In December 1983, after a coaching change and just one year of training, Gordeeva & Grinkov finished sixth in the Junior World Championships. The next year, they won. Gordeeva was 13 and began to see Grinkov as more than just her skating partner. In My Sergei, Gordeeva recalled, "I remember becoming aware that I found him attractive, and that it was nice to be with him." However, they never spent much off-ice time together. In 1985, Gordeeva & Grinkov had to endure another coaching change. However, this new coach was a tyrant. Stanislav Zhuk, head coach at the Central Red Army Skating Club, pushed Gordeeva & Grinkov too hard, overtraining them while he drank every day. In spite of this, in their first senior level skating competition, Gordeeva & Grinkov finished second. A few months later, at the European Championships, they won. They then also won the World Championships. Yet, Gordeeva was not happy. In My Sergei she reviewed their performance, "we just proceeded from element to element without feeling, intent only on not making mistakes." In 1986, after petitioning the Central Red Army Skating Club to remove Zhuk as their coach, Gordeeva & Grinkov found joy once again in their skating with their new coach, Stanislav Leonovich.

In 1987, Gordeeva & Grinkov continued their winning streak by placing first at the Russian Nationals. However, they were disqualified at the European Championships because they refused to reskate their long program after a problem with their music. They quickly rebounded however, successfully defended their world title and then began their first American tour with skating promoter Tom Collins. Finally, much to the happiness of Gordeeva, Gordeeva & Grinkov spent off-ice time together. In My Sergei Gordeeva remembered a trip to Disneyland, "Sergei bought me some ice cream. A couple of times he he hugged me after a ride, or put his arm around me when we were standing in line. He had never done this before, and it made me excited. This was a wonderful day for me."

Gordeeva & Grinkov's first Olympics in 1988 was filled with nerves, homesickness, and sickness-Sergei had the flu. However, the nerves did wear off, Grinkov recovered, and they skated both their short and long programs successfully and won the gold medal. However, Gordeeva being just 16, was left behind when Grinkov, 21, celebrated with his older friends. In My Sergei, Gordeeva stated, "I don't remember Sergei … probably because I was so wrapped up in the competition."

In the fall of 1988, Gordeeva was diagnosed as having a stress fracture in her right foot. Gordeeva was sad that she could not skate. Yet Grinkov came up with an idea. As Gordeeva remembered in My Sergei, "Sergei asked, "So you like to skate? Come on. I'll give you a little ride." Grinkov picked up Gordeeva and carried her in his arms as he skated their program. By now they were both falling in love and on New Year's Eve, they finally kissed. Because of Gordeeva's stress fracture, they did not skate in the European Championships that year. However, they did skate at the World Championships in Paris-they won and everyone, friends, fans, and judges alike, saw how much they were in love.

Husband and Wife

In 1990, Gordeeva turned 18 and while she had to adjust to a new grown-up body, Grinkov had to live with pain in his shoulder. At the European Championships, skating to "Romeo and Juliet, " Gordeeva & Grinkov won another title. They next won the World Championships, but skated weakly, feeling burnt out. Hoping for more off-ice time together, they rejoined the Tom Collins skating tour. However, tragedy struck-Grinkov's father died of a heart attack. A few months later, Grinkov suggested to Gordeeva that they turn professional. They did and by 1991 they had won their first of three World Professional Championships. However, winning skating competitions was not the only joy in their lives. The couple married on April 28, 1991.

After Grinkov's shoulder surgery, they returned to the skating tour and began their new life together on the road. However, that life was about to change. In January of 1992, Gordeeva discovered she was pregnant. The couple continued to skate for four months, then awaited the birth of their daughter. Five months later, on September 11, 1992, Daria was born. In My Sergei, Gordeeva recollected, "Daria weighed five pounds, four ounces, and was in perfect health. The fact that she had no hair drove me crazy. I was such a sad, funny little mom."

Just 19 days after Daria's birth, Gordeeva was back on the ice. By October, after deciding to leave their daughter with Gordeeva's mother in Moscow, Gordeeva & Grinkov began rehearsals for the Stars on Ice skating tour in Lake Placid, New York. Two months later, Gordeeva & Grinkov successfully defended their World Professional Championship title, but they missed Daria's first Christmas.

Gordeeva & Grinkov returned home to Moscow in May 1993. After petitioning the International Skating Union to reinstate their amateur status, they began training for their second Olympics. With their new long program, Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, they won the Russian Nationals and the European championships. Gordeeva & Grinkov were ready for the 1994 Olympics. However, at the Olympics, they did not skate perfectly-Grinkov had done a single instead of a double jump-still they won their second gold medal. Yet even with their performance not being perfect, Gordeeva stated in My Sergei that she was happy because, "the first gold medal we had won for the Soviet Union. This one we won for each other."

Life After The Olympics

After the Olympics, Gordeeva & Grinkov returned to the professional ice skating world and toured in the United States. However, this tour was different because they had finally found a home in Simsbury, Connecticut. In December of 1994, Gordeeva & Grinkov won their third and last World Professional Championship. The couple took the spring off when Grinkov hurt his back. As they trained later that summer, Grinkov's back continued to hurt, yet Gordeeva & Grinkov completed a tour with Stars on Ice. They then returned to Lake Placid, New York, to practice a new program-a program Gordeeva would never skate with Grinkov.

On November 20, 1995, Gordeeva & Grinkov began a run-through of their new program, but Grinkov had not put his arms around Gordeeva for their lift. In My Sergei, Gordeeva said she thought it was his back again, but Grinkov shook his head then "bent his knees and lay down on the ice very carefully." At 28, Grinkov died of a heart attack. In My Sergei, a few days later at Grinkov's wake, Gordeeva remembered telling 1984 Olympic gold medalist Scott Hamilton, "It was too perfect, maybe. It's only fairytales that have happy endings. Everything was too good with me and Sergei for it to end happily."

A New Life: Skating Solo

On February 27, 1996, Gordeeva began her new life as a solo skater in a televised tribute to Grinkov, A Celebration of a Life. Author E.M. Swift in Sports Illustrated described her performance: "Gordeeva exposed her soul with such gentleness and pathos and strength that no one watching could remain unmoved. This was a rarity: sport, art, and tragedy fused into one." In My Sergei, after her performance, Gordeeva remembered speaking to the audience: "I'm so happy I was able to show you my skating. But I also want you to know that I skated today not alone. I skated with Sergei. It's why I was so good. It wasn't me."

The Gordeeva & Grinkov fairytale has ended. However, Gordeeva continued to not only skate in professional competitions and TV specials like Beauty and the Beast and Snowden on Ice, as well as in the Stars on Ice tour, but she also wrote My Sergei, a memoir of her and Grinkov's life together. In February of 1998, CBS televised an adaptation of this memoir with Gordeeva as narrator. This TV movie showed both the on-and off-ice magic of "G & G" and offered one last look at their fairytale. In May, her second book, A Letter for Daria, was published and the Target department store launched its "Katia" fragrance line.

Gordeeva has become a symbol of grace, strength, and courage not only for ice skating fans, but also for her daughter, Daria. In My Sergei, Gordeeva promised Grinkov, "I will always take good care of her. She'll be the happiest girl ever." Gordeeva also believes, as she told Joanna Powell in Good Housekeeping, that Daria "is a gift from God. When Sergei died she was such a help because she needed attention and I had to take care of her. I think she drove me back to a normal life." As Gordeeva continues to live this normal life, she offered this advice in My Sergei to everyone, "Try to find happiness in everyday. At least once, smile to each other everyday. And say just one extra time that you love the person who lives with you. Just say, 'I love you."'

Olympic medalist
Gordeeva and partner, late husband Sergei Grinkov compete in 1994.
Medal record
Figure skating
Competitor for Soviet Union
Gold	1988 Calgary	Pairs
Competitor for Russia
Gold	1994 Lillehammer	Pairs

Biography

Often called "Katia", Gordeeva was born in Moscow, Soviet Union (now Russia) to Alexander Alexeyevich Gordeev and Elena Levovna Gordeeva. She has a younger sister, Maria Alexandrovna Gordeeva (born 1975), who lives in Moscow.^[1]^[2] Gordeeva began skating at the age of four, in skates many sizes too big, wearing multiple pairs of socks because skates small enough for her feet were unavailable in the Soviet Union.^[3] Her father wanted her to be a ballerina, but she wanted to skate.

Pairs career

Gordeeva began figure skating at age four, when she entered Children and Youth Sports School of CSKA in Moscow.^[4] She was not a particularly strong jumper, and in August 1981,^[5] coach Vladimir Zaharov paired 10-year-old Gordeeva with 14-year-old Sergei Grinkov. Their ages at the time they were paired actually became something of a mystery for fans (and are still reported incorrectly more often than not). The source of the mystery was an inconsistency between articles that cited their ages as 10 and 14, and articles published after his death, and indeed Gordeeva's book (ghost authored by E.B. White), which stated that they were 11 and 15 at the time. It wasn't until a dedicated contributor to the fan club newsletter, with the help of Marina Zoueva (their principle choreographer), tracked down and asked the coach who paired them. Thanks to Zaharov's original coaching notes, the mystery was solved and the exact month they were paired became known.^[5] At one point a coach insisted that Gordeeva pair with someone else, because Grinkov frequently missed practice. She refused. Instead, the pair changed coaches.^[6]

They won the 1985 World Junior Figure Skating Championships in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The following year they won the first of their four World Figure Skating Championships. They are one of the few pair teams (indeed, skaters) to win back-to-back Junior and Senior World Championship titles. They successfully defended their World title in 1987 and then won gold at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Alberta, Canada,^[7] in spite of a nasty accident. In November 1987, Grinkov caught a blade on the ice during a practice session and dropped Gordeeva on her forehead.^[8] She was hospitalized for a time, but they were still able to compete in, and win, the 1988 Winter Olympics which began the following February.^[9] After a fall in their long program, they took silver at the World Championships in 1988, but reclaimed the title in 1989 and 1990. They turned professional in the fall 1990, winning their first World Professional Championship in 1991. They also won that title in 1992 and 1994.

Gordeeva and Grinkov won almost every competition they entered. In the 31 competitions whose results are known at the senior and professional levels, they finished first 24 times, and never lower than second from the time they won their first senior world title. They are one of the few pair teams in history to successfully complete a quadruple twist lift in international competition.^[10] They landed the difficult element with ease at the 1987 World Championships. They also completed the element at the 1987 European Championships, but due to a problem with Grinkov's boot strap and a misunderstanding about the rules (the referee signaled them to stop (going so far as to turn off their music) but they continued skating), they were disqualified from that event.^[10] They stopped performing the quad twist because it was not significantly improving their marks, making the added physical stress unnecessary.^{[citation needed]}

By 1989, the skating partnership had blossomed into romance. They shared their first kiss on New Year's Eve 1988. They were married in April 1991. Their state wedding was on April 20, and the church wedding was on April 28. From November 1991 through April 1992, they toured with Stars on Ice for the first time. On September 11, 1992, their daughter, Daria Sergeyevna Grinkova, was born in Morristown, New Jersey. Shortly after Daria's birth, Gordeeva recommenced training for the new season of Stars on Ice, which premiered in November 1992 and continued through the following April.

When a new ISU rule allowed professional skaters to regain their Olympic eligibility, the pair decided to return to amateur competition for the 1993-94 season and skate in the Olympics. In 1994, the couple won their second Olympic gold medal in Lillehammer, Oppland, Norway.^[7] Arguably the most influential, celebrated, and highly decorated pair team in the history of the sport, many consider them to be the greatest pair team ever to take the ice.^[11] They are often referred to simply as "G&G".^[12]

After the Olympics, the pair returned to professional skating and moved to Simsbury, Connecticut.^[7] During the 1994-95 season, they toured with Stars on Ice, this time as headliners.^{[citation needed]} That year, Gordeeva was named one of the "50 Most Beautiful People" by People Magazine.^[13] That summer, Gordeeva and Grinkov were chosen for induction into the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame and the pair planned to return to Stars on Ice for their fourth season with the tour.

On November 20, 1995, Sergei Grinkov collapsed on the ice and died at age 28 from a massive heart attack.^[14] The pair were on the ice in Lake Placid, New York rehearsing for opening night of the upcoming tour. Doctors later discovered that Grinkov had a congenital heart condition which caused his death.^[7]

Solo career

My Sergei : A Love Story Book Cover

In February 1996, Gordeeva returned to the ice, this time as a solo performer.^[15] Her first solo performance was a tribute to her late husband,^[7] skated to the 'Adagietto' section of Gustav Mahler's 'Symphony No. 5'. The number was publicly performed only twice, first at a preview performance at the Minto Skating Club in Ontario, Canada,^{[citation needed]} and then on February 27, 1996, in a televised tribute to Grinkov, called "Celebration of a Life,"^[11] in which numerous skating luminaries took part. Gordeeva has said that she felt as if she skated with Sergei that night, that she was "double strong" because she felt him with her.^[6] The same year, with the aid of author E. M. Swift, she told her story in a book titled My Sergei: A Love Story.^[3] In February 1998, CBS aired an eponymous docudrama based on the book. She published a second book in April, 1998, titled A Letter for Daria.

In 1998, she told an interviewer that "My life of great skating, and skating with him, is over, ... I don't try to go now for Olympics. I take skating for a job."^[16]

Gordeeva returned to Stars on Ice as a solo skater in 1996 and toured with the show every year until 2000, when she took time off to give birth to her second daughter in June 2001. She has returned to the tour as a guest star many times, but has never returned to full-time touring. In addition to tours and shows, Gordeeva competed successfully as a professional solo skater, finishing as high as second place at the World Professional Championships (in 1998). She stopped competing in 2000, but continues to skate in professional skating tours, shows and competitions. While she has never returned to pair skating as a full-time endeavor, she has performed pair elements in many shows through the years with partners including Artur Dmitriev, Anton Sikharulidze, David Pelletier, and John Zimmerman. For the 1998-1999 season of Stars on Ice, she and fellow Russians Ilia Kulik, Elena Bechke, and Denis Petrov performed a quartet which showcased her pair skills, and in 1999-2000, she and Kulik skated a romantic duet during the tour. She also briefly returned to pairs skating during the 2008-09 season when she participated in a Russian reality television show called "Ice Age 2," which is similar to the American Show "Skating with Celebrities" or a figure skating version of "Dancing with the Stars." She was paired with Russian actor Egor Beroev, and together they won the show.

Gordeeva has signed several endorsement contracts, the most notable of which was with Target and led to two perfumes ("Katia" and "Katia Sport") which were sold through Target stores.^[17] Gordeeva and her daughter, Daria, appeared in the 1997 holiday movie "Snowden on Ice" and Gordeeva appeared in the 1998 sequel, "Snowden's Raggedy Ann and Andy Holiday Show". She has represented Rolex and also appeared with Daria in a "Got Milk?" ad.^{[citation needed]} In 2001, she was the subject of a Lenox figurine called "Katia's Celebration of Life", which depicts her performing a layback spin in the tribute she skated for Grinkov.^[18] She also appeared in the 2003 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue as a featured athlete.^[19] Also in 2003, she appeared on the ice for the first time with Daria. The pair performed a duet during a Mother's Day show and have taken the ice together several times since then, including two different versions of Amy Grant's 'Children of the World' at Kristi Yamaguchi's Family & Friends shows in the fall of 2005 and 2006. During that show in 2007, the mother-daughter duo became a trio when they were joined by Gordeeva's younger daughter, Liza, and all three skated together to 'Homesick' performed live by the Cheetah Girls. Daria gave up figure skating in 2007 to pursue other interests. She also joined her high school lacross team. Liza continues to skate. Katia also continues to honor the memory of her late husband in her efforts to raise heart disease awareness. During the Fall of 2007, she starred in "Skate for the Heart" a show designed to raise awareness of heart disease. She skated in honor of Sergei. In the fall of 2008, she flew to the United States from Russia during the taping of "Ice Age 2" in order to headline Skate for the Heart a second time. This time, she dedicated a number to the memory of her father, Alexander Gordeev, who died of an unexpected heart attack in the spring of 2008. In addition to her skating, Gordeeva has ventured into the arenas of coaching and choreography.^[14]

Personal life

On June 15, 2001, Gordeeva gave birth to her second daughter, Elizaveta Ilinichna Kulik (also called Liza, a diminutive of the name Elizaveta, pronounced LEE-za), whose father is 1998 Winter Olympics men's gold medalist Ilia Kulik.^[1]^[20] Gordeeva and Kulik married in a private ceremony in San Francisco on June 10, 2002.^[21] They resided in California for several years before moving to Avon, Connecticut in 2003.^[22] The family returned to the Los Angeles area in the Summer of 2007 and currently reside in Newport Beach, California. Gordeeva, Kulik, Daria and Elizaveta made their first televised appearance as a family for Kristi Yamaguchi's Friends and Family in 2005, and they repeated that appearance in the 2006 and 2007 versions of the show.^[15] She and her family speak Russian at home, and travel to Russia frequently.^[14]^[23]

Competitive highlights

Pairing with Sergei Grinkov

Event/Season	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994
Winter Olympics	-	-	1st	-	-	-	DNC	-	1st
Soviet/Russian Championship	2nd	1st	DNC	DNC	DNC	-	-	-	1st
European Figure Skating Championships	2nd	DQ	1st	DNC	1st	-	-	-	1st
World Championships	1st	1st	2nd	1st	1st	-	-	-	DNC
World Professional Championships	-	-	-	-	2nd	1st	1st	-	1st

References

^ ^a ^b "Ekaterina Gordeeva and Sergei Grinkov, Biography" (in Russian). gordeeva.com. http://www.gordeeva.com/about/index.shtml. Retrieved 2008-11-30.
^ Voznesyuh, Dmitriy. "Ekaterina Gordeeva is going to spend a vacation in Moscow" (in Russian). Sportcom. http://sportcom.ru/sport/figurkat/news463d8a33.htm. Retrieved 2008-01-28.
^ ^a ^b "Love of her life", People, March 25, 1996, http://www.pairsonice.net/gordeeva/magazines.php?mag=People, retrieved 2007-11-12
^ Tatiana Tarasov and students. (In Russian)
^ ^a ^b Yu, Sylvia. "Marina's Muse." Grace & Gold Newsletter: The Official Publication of the Gordeeva & Grinkov Fan Club. Winter 1999. pp. 1&4.
^ ^a ^b "Love on Ice", AMI Specials, April 11, 2000, http://www.pairsonice.net/gordeeva/magazines.php?mag=AMI%20Specials, retrieved 2007-11-12
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Then & Now: Ekaterina Gordeeva, CNN, June 22, 2005, http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/05/16/cnn25.tan.gordeeva/index.html, retrieved 2007-11-12
^ Gordeeva, Ekaterina. My Sergei: A Love Story. Warner Books Inc., 1996. ISBN 0-446-52087-X.
^ Dadygeen S. (1988). "A secret of success" (in Russian). Soviet Sports. http://www.gordeeva.com/media/successecret_88.shtml. Retrieved 2008-12-07.
^ ^a ^b Sheluhin A. (1988-02-28). "Ekaterina's Smile" (in Russian). Soviet Sports. http://www.gordeeva.com/media/katiassmile_88.shtml. Retrieved 2008-12-07.
^ ^a ^b "Right on Target", International Figure Skating, July/August 1996, http://www.pairsonice.net/gordeeva/magazines.php?mag=International%20Figure%20Skating, retrieved 2007-11-12
^ Kantrowitz, Barbara. "Beyond the Tears." People. December 11, 1995 Accessed 2007-11-12.
^ "Ekaterina Gordeeva", People, May 4, 1994, http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20108023,00.html, retrieved 2007-11-12
^ ^a ^b ^c Korobatov, Yaroslav (2007-11-01). "We didn't want to advertise our love affair with Ilia Kulik" (in Russian). Komsomolskaja Pravda. http://www.kp.ru/daily/23995.3/78012/. Retrieved 2008-01-28.
^ ^a ^b Vaytsehovskaya, Elena (2003-10-14). "Interview with Ekaterina Gordeeva" (in Russian). Sport Express. http://www.sport-express.ru/art.shtml?75862. Retrieved 2008-11-30.
^ Lopez, Steve (January 26, 1998), "Life After The Glory", Time Magazine, http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,987720-1,00.html, retrieved 2007-11-12
^ "Right on Target", International Figure Skating, March/April 2000, http://www.pairsonice.net/gordeeva/magazines.php?mag=International%20Figure%20Skating, retrieved 2007-11-12
^ "Seen and Heard", International Figure Skating, October 2002, http://www.pairsonice.net/gordeeva/magazines.php?mag=International%20Figure%20Skating, retrieved 2007-11-12
^ SI.com - Swimsuit Collection - Ekaterina Gordeeva
^ "Ekaterina Gordeeva: I don't want to loose ties with my homeland" (in Russian). sports.ru. http://www.sports.ru/others/figure-skating/6037423.html. Retrieved 2008-01-28.
^ "Ekaterina Gordeeva", People, January 13, 2003, http://www.pairsonice.net/gordeeva/magazines.php?mag=People, retrieved 2007-11-12
^ "Balancing Act", International Figure Skating, January/February 2004, http://www.pairsonice.net/gordeeva/magazines.php?mag=International%20Figure%20Skating, retrieved 2007-11-12
^ "Interview with Ekaterina Gordeeva" (in Russian). sports.ru. http://www.sports.ru/others/figure-skating/5886263.html. Retrieved 2008-01-28.

Bibliography

It has been suggested that A Letter for Daria be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)

It has been suggested that My Sergei: A Love Story be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)

Gordeeva, Ekaterina. My Sergei: A Love Story. Warner Books Inc., 1996. ISBN 0-446-52087-X.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ekaterina Gordeeva

Olympic champions in figure skating - Pairs

1908: Anna Hübler & Heinrich Burger · 1920: Ludowika Jakobsson & Walter Jakobsson · 1924: Helene Engelmann & Alfred Berger · 1928: Andrée Joly & Pierre Brunet · 1932: Andrée Brunet & Pierre Brunet · 1936: Maxi Herber & Ernst Baier · 1948: Micheline Lannoy & Pierre Baugniet · 1952: Ria Baran & Paul Falk · 1956: Sissy Schwarz & Kurt Oppelt · 1960: Barbara Wagner & Robert Paul · 1964: Ludmila Belousova & Oleg Protopopov · 1968: Ludmila Belousova & Oleg Protopopov · 1972: Irina Rodnina & Alexei Ulanov · 1976: Irina Rodnina & Alexander Zaitsev · 1980: Irina Rodnina & Alexander Zaitsev · 1984: Elena Valova & Oleg Vasiliev · 1988: Ekaterina Gordeeva & Sergei Grinkov · 1992: Natalia Mishkutenok & Artur Dmitriev · 1994: Ekaterina Gordeeva & Sergei Grinkov · 1998: Oksana Kazakova & Artur Dmitriev · 2002: Elena Berezhnaya & Anton Sikharulidze and Jamie Salé & David Pelletier · 2006: Tatiana Totmianina & Maxim Marinin

World champions in figure skating – Pairs

1908: Anna Hübler & Heinrich Burger · 1909: Phyllis Johnson & James H. Johnson · 1910: Anna Hübler & Heinrich Burger · 1911: Ludowika Jakobsson & Walter Jakobsson · 1912: Phyllis Johnson & James H. Johnson · 1913: Helene Engelmann & Karl Mejstrik · 1914: Ludowika Jakobsson & Walter Jakobsson · 1922: Helene Engelmann & Alfred Berger · 1923: Ludowika Jakobsson & Walter Jakobsson · 1924: Helene Engelmann & Alfred Berger · 1925: Herma Szabo & Ludwig Wrede · 1926: Andrée Brunet & Pierre Brunet · 1927: Herma Szabo & Ludwig Wrede · 1928: Andrée Brunet & Pierre Brunet · 1929: Lilly Scholz & Otto Kaiser · 1930: Andrée Brunet & Pierre Brunet · 1931: Emília Rotter & László Szollás · 1932: Andrée Brunet & Pierre Brunet · 1933–35: Emília Rotter & László Szollás · 1936–39: Maxi Herber & Ernst Baier · 1947–48: Micheline Lannoy & Pierre Baugniet · 1949: Andrea Kékesy & Ede Király · 1950: Karol E. Kennedy & Peter Kennedy · 1951–52: Ria Baran & Paul Falk · 1953: Jennifer Nicks & John Nicks · 1954–55: Frances Dafoe & Norris Bowden · 1956: Sissy Schwarz & Kurt Oppelt · 1957–60: Barbara Wagner & Robert Paul · 1962: Maria Jelinek & Otto Jelinek · 1963–64: Marika Kilius & Hans-Jürgen Bäumler · 1965–68: Ludmila Belousova & Oleg Protopopov · 1969–72: Irina Rodnina & Alexei Ulanov · 1973–78: Irina Rodnina & Alexander Zaitsev · 1979: Tai Babilonia & Randy Gardner · 1980: Marina Cherkasova & Sergei Shakhrai · 1981: Irina Vorobieva & Igor Lisovsky · 1982: Sabine Baeß & Tassilo Thierbach · 1983: Elena Valova & Oleg Vasiliev · 1984: Barbara Underhill & Paul Martini · 1985: Elena Valova & Oleg Vasiliev · 1986–87: Ekaterina Gordeeva & Sergei Grinkov · 1988: Elena Valova & Oleg Vasiliev · 1989–90: Ekaterina Gordeeva & Sergei Grinkov · 1991–92: Natalia Mishkutenok & Artur Dmitriev · 1993: Isabelle Brasseur & Lloyd Eisler · 1994: Evgenia Shishkova & Vadim Naumov · 1995: Radka Kovaříková & René Novotný · 1996: Marina Eltsova & Andrei Bushkov · 1997: Mandy Wötzel & Ingo Steuer · 1998–99: Elena Berezhnaya & Anton Sikharulidze · 2000: Maria Petrova & Alexei Tikhonov · 2001: Jamie Salé & David Pelletier · 2002–03: Shen Xue & Zhao Hongbo · 2004–05: Tatiana Totmianina & Maxim Marinin · 2006: Pang Qing & Tong Jian · 2007: Shen Xue & Zhao Hongbo · 2008-09: Aliona Savchenko & Robin Szolkowy

European champions in figure skating – Pairs

1930–31: Olga Orgonista & Sandor Szalay · 1932: Andrée Brunet & Pierre Brunet · 1933: Idi Papez & Karl Zwack · 1934: Emília Rotter & László Szollás · 1935–39: Maxi Herber & Ernst Baier · 1947: Micheline Lannoy & Pierre Baugniet · 1948–49: Andrea Kékesy & Ede Király · 1950: Marianna Nagy & László Nagy · 1951–52: Ria Baran & Paul Falk · 1953: Jennifer Nicks & John Nicks · 1954: Silvia Grandjean & Michel Grandjean · 1955: Marianna Nagy & László Nagy · 1956: Sissy Schwarz & Kurt Oppelt · 1957–58: Věra Suchánková & Zdeněk Doležal · 1959–64: Marika Kilius & Hans-Jürgen Bäumler · 1965–68: Ludmila Belousova & Oleg Protopopov · 1969–72: Irina Rodnina & Alexei Ulanov · 1973–78: Irina Rodnina & Alexander Zaitsev · 1979: Marina Cherkasova & Sergei Shakhrai · 1980: Irina Rodnina & Alexander Zaitsev · 1981: Irina Vorobieva & Igor Lisovsky · 1982–83: Sabine Baeß & Tassilo Thierbach · 1984–86: Elena Valova & Oleg Vasiliev · 1987: Larisa Selezneva & Oleg Makarov · 1988: Ekaterina Gordeeva & Sergei Grinkov · 1989: Larisa Selezneva & Oleg Makarov · 1990: Ekaterina Gordeeva & Sergei Grinkov · 1991–92: Natalia Mishkutenok & Artur Dmitriev · 1993: Marina Eltsova & Andrei Bushkov · 1994: Ekaterina Gordeeva & Sergei Grinkov · 1995: Mandy Wötzel & Ingo Steuer · 1996: Oksana Kazakova & Artur Dmitriev · 1997: Marina Eltsova & Andrei Bushkov · 1998: Elena Berezhnaya & Anton Sikharulidze · 1999–2000: Maria Petrova & Alexei Tikhonov · 2001: Elena Berezhnaya & Anton Sikharulidze · 2002–06: Tatiana Totmianina & Maxim Marinin · 2007–09: Aliona Savchenko & Robin Szolkowy

World Junior champions in figure skating – Pairs

1976: Sherri Baier & Robin Cowan · 1977: Josée France & Paul Mills · 1978: Barbara Underhill & Paul Martini · 1979: Veronika Pershina & Marat Akbarov · 1980–81: Larisa Selezneva & Oleg Makarov · 1982–83: Marina Avstriskaia & Yuri Kvashnin · 1984: Manuela Landgraf & Ingo Steuer · 1985: Ekaterina Gordeeva & Sergei Grinkov · 1986–87: Elena Leonova & Gennadi Krasnitski · 1988: Kristi Yamaguchi & Rudy Galindo · 1989: Evgenia Chernisheva & Dmitri Sukhanov · 1990–92: Natalia Krestianinova & Alexei Torchinski · 1993: Inga Korshunova & Dmitry Saveliev · 1994–95: Maria Petrova & Anton Sikharulidze · 1996: Victoria Maxiuta & Vladislav Zhovnirski · 1997: Danielle Hartsell & Steve Hartsell · 1998–99: Julia Obertas & Dmitri Palamarchuk · 2000: Aliona Savchenko & Stanislav Morozov · 2001: Zhang Dan & Zhang Hao · 2002: Elena Riabchuk & Stanislav Zakarov · 2003: Zhang Dan & Zhang Hao · 2004: Natalia Shestakova & Pavel Lebedev · 2005: Maria Mukhortova & Maxim Trankov · 2006: Julia Vlassov & Drew Meekins · 2007: Keauna McLaughlin & Rockne Brubaker · 2008: Ksenia Krasilnikova & Konstantin Bezmaternikh · 2009: Lubov Iliushechkina & Nodari Maisuradze

Russian champions in figure skating – Pairs

1993: Evgenia Shishkova & Vadim Naumov · 1994: Ekaterina Gordeeva & Sergei Grinkov · 1995: Marina Eltsova & Andrei Bushkov · 1996: Evgenia Shishkova & Vadim Naumov · 1997–98: Marina Eltsova & Andrei Bushkov · 1999–2002: Elena Berezhnaya & Anton Sikharulidze · 2003–05: Tatiana Totmianina & Maxim Marinin · 2006: Maria Petrova & Alexei Tikhonov · 2007: Maria Mukhortova & Maxim Trankov · 2008-09: Yuko Kavaguti & Alexander Smirnov

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Ekaterina Gordeeva

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