Notice a theme? Many of my favorite skating memories were from the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and the mens final was no exception. Alexei Yagudin of Russia gave a memorable performance in a win over his countryman and rival Evgeni Plushenko. His program to the music from The Man in the Iron Mask was a perfect combination of athleticism and artistry. He included a quad toe loop and a quad toe loop combination, but his jumping ability did not detract from his performance quality as it does with many other skaters. My favorite element of this program is the footwork which was almost ahead of its time. We see incredible footwork from a lot of skaters these days, but in 2002 under the old 6.0 judging system, footwork like this was rare.
Hi, isn't Alexei unforgettable? I saw him few times back then and did not forget ever since. Lately those memories came to me so strongly I google him, his wife or so nearly every day, that's how I found your interesting site. Looking for his favourite music :) And him and Tania, what a lovely marriage they are! The most Russian language since my primary school, haha. When I first saw them in a video being interviewed together I did not know they were married, I knew them as World Champions, each in a different category and thought they were invited together to the program. I then noticed their sparkling interest in each other, their mutual respect and their passion and I thought they seemed strongly in love! What an amazing discovery was it to find they had been married and such genuinely wonderful together! Tatiana is such a wonderful woman from what I have listened to and seen. They have been so inpiring! I am preparing to create a post dedicated to them on what they have meant to me over time. I also admire what Alexei is up to these days - his attitude have inspired and challenged me a lot! Hope you have a bit of space for long comments like this :) All the best for you, Lady BackStage Barbie!
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