When he reached the top, it came as a big surprise. As well to himself. He caught the whole figure skating world off guard - rivals, coaches, journalists, spectators. Alexei Urmanov never won a major title before becoming Olympic Figure Skating Champion in Hamar 1994. And even if some people preferred the Canadian Elvis Stojko, it was perfectly fair, that the Russian took the Olympic crown. Besides, there is not truth in the myth that it was a close decision between Urmanov and Stojko, even the Canadian judge had voted for the Russian.
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All this, the excitement, the journalists, the packed press conference, the cheering crowds seem so far away in the primitive surroundings of the Yubileyniy practice rink in Alexei's hometown St. Petersburg. Condense water is dripping from the ceiling, a heap of broken benches is stapled in the corner. There is no hot water at the rink, the dressing rooms are sometimes closed - no reason known - , dirt lays in the corner, and shy wild cats hide between the rubbish.
The whole facility, built in 1967 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Great October Revolution, looks neglected. The renovation which was undertaken before the 1994 Goodwill Games was superficial, the cooling system broke down even then during the competitions. Now, sometimes there is no ice at all, and the skaters have to move elsewhere. The rink was shut down in spring 1998 for repairs, and no one knew when it would reopen (It finally reopened end of 1999). |
However, this used to be the place, where Alexei practices everyday. The world was different, when Alexei started skating at the age of four. Back then, figure skating was one of the most popular sports in the Soviet Union, there were many possibilities for kids to skate. Practice was free. Alexei fell in love with skating, although he cried at first when his mother dragged him to the rink. And he proved soon to be outstandingly talented. Since many years now, Alexei Mishin coaches Urmanov, and both get along very well. "And if there's a quarrel, it's mostly my fault," Alexei says with this boyish grin that wins him many girls' hearts, "I'm a difficult person!"
Alexei lives with his mother in one of the faceless suburbs of St. Petersburg. He is very close to her. His parents divorced when he was still a little boy, and Alexei isn't in touch with his father any more. Urmanov presented his mother Galina proudly at the 1994 Goodwill Games press conference, where he took the gold medal. "Everything I am, I am thanks to her!" And Mrs. Urmanova, asked what she is feeling when her son is skating, smiled: "I hope only that he doesn't fall." In spite of all hardships, Alexei loves his home and doesn't want to leave Russia as so many other skaters did. |
Urmanov studied at the Institute of Physiculture, and because of practice on and off the ice, he has not much spare time. In his rare free hours, he likes to read detective stories and to listen to music. Later on he would like to work as a coach. |
The sudden success, that came after two European (1992 and 1994) and a World (1993) bronze medal, didn't change Alexei, didn't make him big headed. But it did put a lot of pressure on him in all competitions. He struggled with his confidence, was often superior in practice and faltered in competition. Some of the press called him "a fluke" - was he just lucky to win the Olympics?
No, he had put together two strong performances when it counted in Hamar, and he was better than everyone else on those two days which changed his life in many ways. "I don't have the right to loose," he says earnestly. "People are always expecting me to win, because I'm Olympic Champion. That makes it pretty hard." |
The pressure showed. At the 1995 Europeans, his triple lutz in the short suddenly was a double one. And even a marvelous free - which he won - wasn't enough, Alexei had to settle for silver. But he got a 6,0 for his unique interpretation of "Swan Lake" and rehabilitated himself. At Worlds in Birmingham the same year, his nerves got in the way again, and he finished fourth. He didn't skate at the 1996 Europeans because he was ill. In Edmonton, at Worlds, he was 3rd after the short but dropped to 5thagain. However, he won the first Champions Series Final (today: ISU Grand Prix) in Paris 1996 and beat all his rivals with outstanding performances.
The Europeans in Paris 1997 started not well. Urmanov made a mistake int he short, and was placed 6th. But he pulled himself up to win his first European title and couldn't believe it at first Finally, this talented and unique skater seemed to have regained his confidence.
He went into World as a sure gold medal contender, skated brilliantly in the qualifying, won the short, when fate struck again. Alexei pulled his groin during the short and had to withdrew just minutes before his free skating. The pain - physical and psychical - was overwhelming." This is one of the bitterest moments in his career", coach Mishin said. The real drama unfolded only afterwards, when Alexei fought with the injury for months. He wanted to skate in Nagano and to defend his title, but the injury wouldn't heal and destroyed this dream. He had to skip the whole season. |
Finally he started his comeback with two good performances at the 1998 Goodwill Games in New York, where he finished 2nd. The 1998/99 season had its ups and downs, but is was a comeback, and Alexei never regretted to have returned instead of having turned pro immediately. He skated very good at Skate America and he won Cup of Russia. At Russian Nationals, however, he didn’t do too well – like his competitors by the way. The Grand Prix Final in his hometown of St. Petersburg in March 1999 was one of the most beautiful performances of his refined "Tango" Free Program. The crowd cheered him on endlessly. Clearly, Alexei is the most popular figure skater in St. Petersburg!
Worlds in Helsinki were a difficult competition again, but Alexei stood up and tried his best. A small mistake in the Short was punished severely by the judges. The audience enjoyed his Free Program very much, and Alexei rewarded them with a good performance, even if he didn’t do his planned triple-triple combinations. He had hoped to do better and he was disappointed, because he always demands so much from himself. When the 25-year old skater bowed to the crowd at the end most of them felt that this was to be his last performance at World in his eligible career. |
Finally he decided to turn pro. He had not fulfilled his dream to become World Champion, but apart from that he had won every other title: Alexei is five time National Champion, Olympic Champion, European Champion, Grand Prix Champion, Goodwill Games Champion. He also won numerous international competitions.
When he returned to Germany in August 1999 for a show with Katarina Witt, he officially announced that he will turn pro. Technically, he lost his eligibility on October 23 in Huntington at the ESPN Pro competition. His pro career took off perfectly – Alexei won this competition. He also won his head to head competition against Rudy Galindo at Ice Wars in November. |
End of November, the Russian Federation honored Alexei at a special ceremony at Cup of Russia. Politicians, among them former Prime Minister Evgeni Primakov, delivered speeches, and presented the skater with various things. Alexei even received a big car from a bank. At the exhibition, Alexei debuted his new "Phantom of the Opera" program that includes some magic tricks the spectators never saw in skating before. It was a great show. At this time, the Russian didn’t even know if he was definitely selected for the prestigious "World Professional Championships" in Washington in December.
His name was on the list, then it was removed and returned later. Finally, Alexei was invited and the competition was to become a triumph for him. On his first try, Urmanov took the title and added the titel "World Champion" to his collection. His competitors were illustrious – Alexei beat Olympic Champions Brian Boitano and Ilia Kulik among others. The crowd really liked Alexei’s programs and was stunned to see his unusual and colorful costume for the Phantom program. All this promises a long and fulfilling pro career for Urmanov.
"I skate, because I love it. I don't skate for money. If you skate for money only, it shows", he had said earlier in his career, and it’s still so very true for him. |
