Evgeni Plushenko exclusive: The coach of Kostornaia and Trusova says, we are ‘a very powerful team’

The competitive fire that helped drive Russian figure skater Evgeni Plushenko to two Olympic gold medals is still burning as a coach – on and off the ice.

“Sometimes we run (to see) who is faster,” me or (Alexandra 'Sasha' Trusova), Plushenko told Olympic Channel in an exclusive interview, cracking a wry smile. “But she is second, (and) I am first, of course. So she needs to work a little bit on that.”

The Plushenko team, including Trusova and fellow ladies' singles skater Alena 'Aliona' Kostornaia, isn’t afraid of hard work, as the camp sets its sights on Beijing 2022 and the Olympic podium, a place both Sasha and Aliona would like to end up.

“It's very important, and it's our goal to be on the podium in the Olympic Games,” Plushenko confirmed. “And of course, it's ... the bottom line for what we (are) working (for). We are working for that.

Possible, indeed, yet far from a given. In mid-2020, Trusova and Kostornaia made the switch from coach Eteri Tutberidze (Trusova in May and Kostornaia in August), before the following figure skating season was disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

In the midst of a truncated international season, Kostornaia was second at a Russian-heavy Rostelecom Cup, where Trusova finished fourth. A few weeks later, Trusova finished third at Russian nationals (behind Tutberidze skaters Anna Shcherbakova and Kamila Valieva), while Kostornaia sat the event out having contracted the coronavirus and still needing time to recover.

Both skaters are no doubt among the top six in the world, but the Russian field has grown increasingly competitive, with the ladies singles team set to feature three Russian skaters at the Olympics next year. The question looms: Will Trusova and Kostornaia be among them?

Plushenko addresses that topic, as well as the technical successes – and challenges – of his athletes, his own coaching goals, his eight-year-old skating son and much, much more in a wide-ranging exclusive interview.

The transcript below has been edited for clarity and length.

Plushenko on... Alexandra 'Sasha' Trusova

Olympic Channel (OC): We mention the running with Sasha (Trusova), but there was also the video of you all playing hockey on the ice, too. How did that come about?

Evgeni Plushenko: We play hockey, we play football, we play table tennis. We run.

When we make the summer camp in Russia this year, we ran together, we dance, we do the running game in there, too. I try to be with athletes all the time. If I feel okay, I mean, my back, my neck... (smiling).

So I try to jump with them. I try to run with them. ... I have my ice rink so we can go and play.

OC: The world championships are just around the corner (set for 22-28 March in Stockholm). Are you focused on it? [Note: As of 27 February, the Russian team is yet to be named.]

Plushenko: We are preparing for the competition with Sasha, with Aliona. Well, we (have been) preparing all season for worlds.

I have a very great team, a very powerful team. My athletes, my students, they would like to stay on the podium, of course. For example, Sasha, she would like to jump five quadruples (at worlds) and we'll work on that. She did the quadruple loop in this season.

I mean, when we practice on the training, she didn't make (five quads) yet in the competition. But very soon she will. She will.

OC: Can Trusova maintain her quads for next year’s Olympics?

Plushenko: Well, we will try, for sure.

That's her goal. That's her idea. And of course, my idea, too. Because she's a very strong athlete. I think the strongest in the world.

Plushenko on... Alena 'Aliona' Kostornaia

OC: What about Alena Kostornaia? She’s had a challenging year with being sick and trying to return to full health. What do you think sets her apart with her skating?

Plushenko: She can skate fantastic. I mean, the choreography she is performing... the charisma, her skills, her spins.

If she (can add), for example, right now, a triple Axel in her program, she will be on the podium for sure.

But (the way) she performs for the audience, for the judges... I think nobody can do it like that. She's special. She's special. For example, I tell you, she didn't skate because she was sick for two to three weeks. And after three weeks, we just start working. And she came and she starts to jump easy. She starts to skate. You know, she is figure skating (right away). She was (back to) her programs. Aliona? A fantastic skater.

OC: Will she have a triple Axel for Worlds? And do you think she can add a quadruple jump to her repertoire in time for the Olympics next year?

Plushenko: For sure... without triple Axel, it will be hard to compete (for a medal). (Adding one) is possible. If she will be healthy, then she will make triple Axel for sure.

For the Olympic Games, she needs a quadruple jump, and she can make (one). When she came to me, to my school, it was summertime, and she was injured. We waited two weeks with this injury, (but) then again, start program with old injuries.

It's very important to be healthy, you know, in our sport. But I know, Aliona is ready to learn a quadruple jump. But a little bit later, a little bit later...

OC: Which quad jump?

Plushenko: That's going to be secret (smiling).

Legacy of Evgeni Plushenko - the coach

OC: One thing that connects you and Trusova is quads. Do you know which of you jump them higher?

Plushenko: (Smiling) I never jump quadruple Lutz in a long program. I try once, and I fell. But she did many times. The quad Sal... she makes it look easy. Quad flip, also I was never able to jump in the competition. In practice, I made it, but not in the competition. But I think (Trusova’s) quads are fantastic: It's fast. It's high. It's a lot of speed.

OC: Before PyeongChang 2018, you and your wife Yana Rudkovskaya made predictions on who will win. What about Beijing 2022, now as a coach, will you make such predictions?

Plushenko: I said Zagitova would be first, Yana said Medvedeva would be first. So, it's one- zero (shows a winning point with the hand). I mean, at this time we're not going to be betting, it's not a good idea. It's our skaters. Who is going to be stronger will take first and second.

OC: What kind of legacy do you want to leave in figure skating? And would you rather have it be as a legendary athlete or coach?

Plushenko: As an athlete, everybody knows me. A lot of people know me. I'm the second man in figure skating who make four Olympics medals. It’s not bad I don’t think.

OC: And who is your biggest competition as a coach?

Plushenko: Alexei Mishin, my old coach. ... He has been coaching for 55 years! I told him, ‘I will try. Maybe not 55 years, but I will try.’

Like father, like son: Passing on a passion

OC: Your son, Alexander 'Sasha' Plushenko, is eight and is quite the talented skater. What is it like for you to coach him and also be his father?

Plushenko: Well, first of all, I'm father and he is son only at home. On the ice, I am coach and he’s student. Only like that it is possible to work.

Now he's eight. Now we start working seriously. So it's two practices a day, choreography... Before it was, not for fun, but I'm not pushing him. (When) he finishes the practice, go please play or watch the movie or watch the cartoon and relax. So now's a little bit different, it's time to work.

This is important, you know, so I would like to give him the same life, what I got from my parents, for example, from my mom, from my father. I would like to give him the same life. It's a fantastic life, a beautiful life.

Plushenko’s son joins for part of the interview.

OC: Hi Sasha, what is your biggest dream in figure skating?

Plushenko (to his son): What is your dream? How many Olympics do you want to make?

Sasha: Five.

OC: Who is your biggest inspiration in figure skating?

Sasha points at Plushenko.

Plushenko: Father, yes, but also Sasha (Alexandra) Trusova, Alena Kostornaia.

Sasha: Kostornaia... at the moment not so much, but Sasha, yes.

Plushenko: But Alena is also really cool...

Sasha: Yeah.