Ukraine on Ice: the illustrious careers of Alexandra Nazarova and Maxim Nikitin

On August 13^th 2022, Ukrainian ice dancers and Olympians, Alexandra Nazarova and Maxim Nikitin, emotionally announced their retirement from a remarkable career which saw the pair win more than thirty medals across the world of figure skating.

"We are very grateful to everyone who has been with us on this long journey" declared Alexandra, who was working alongside her dancing partner, Maxim, for almost twenty years. Whilst a glistening sporting career under the blazing lights of the ice rink were what Alexandra and Maxim had always wished for, little did they know that their retirement from the sport so dear to them would be against the backdrop of something ever so agonizing.

Earlier in the year, the lives of Alexandra, Maxim and their fellow Ukrainians would change forever. During the dawn of Februrary 24^th 2022, the Russian Federation led by Vladimir Putin launched what was both a shocking and despicable invasion on Ukraine. Millions of lives across the country were turned upside down in just a matter of hours. Dreams and aspirations of the young became under threat while old scars from the past of heartbreak and pain amongst the elderly were reopened once again.

Shortly after returning back to their home city of Kharkiv from the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, Alexandra’s and Maxim’s training program came to an abrupt halt as Russian forces continually pounded their city with constant and deadly artillery fire. Following a number of weeks been stuck in the city under bombardment, Alexandra and Maxim managed to be evacuated to the Polish city of Toruń.

Despite having to miss out on numerous training sessions as well as been physically and mentally exhausted, the pair valiantly continued their training in Toruń and did not let Russia’s invasion of their homeland deter their dreams of competing in what would be their final tournament before retiring – the 2022 World Figure Skating Championships in Montpellier, France.

Following their retirement from ice dancing, Ukraine’s very own ice King – Maxim Nikitin, caught up with Ukrainska Pravda to discuss about his and Alexandra’s distinguished career, the War in Ukraine and what the future may hold for them.

Take us back to where it all began. You were born two years apart from one another in the north-eastern city of Kharkiv. How exactly did your journey into the world of figure skating begin? Did you partake in other sporting activities before you began to skate?

Maxim: When I was a child, I do not exactly remember why or how, but my father accidentally purchased a pair of ice skates for me! Not so far away from our house, every winter, an ice platform was assembled on the street so everyone in the neighbourhood could go to skate. I suppose you could say that my journey commenced there. I took my first steps on the ice itself with my parents. Once I started to feel comfortable balancing on the ice, my parents decided to take me to a real ice rink at a specialist sport school where I was able to train regularly with a coach under a sheltered roof.

How exactly did you first meet one another? Did figure skating provide you with the opportunity to cross one another’s path, or did you know each other prior to that?

Maxim: I believe that I was around four years old when I began to skate at the specialist sports school – Alexandra, who I shall refer to throughout as Sasha, started to skate at the school a bit later on. Her brother actually played hockey at this sports school, so her mother decided to enrol her onto the figure skating register, hence she could partake in classes to keep herself occupied while her mother was waiting for her son’s hockey practice to finish. Sasha and I were trained by the same coach, but since I had already skated for a longer time compared to Sasha, we were in different groups and did not know one another on a personal level. Later on, the woman who was to be our future coach – Galina Churilova, was impressed with how we both trained and suggested to our parents that we should try to pair up together. Then, from that moment onwards, the next chapter of our ice dancing journey began!

Your first major junior title came at the NRW Trophy in Germany where you won two consecutive medals in ’2007-2008’ and ’2009-2010’. What did it feel like to win your first gold medal on the international junior stage?

Maxim: To be honest, it was a very long time ago since that happened, but it’s such a pleasant and emotional feeling that occurs inside of both of us when we remember those times. It was just wonderful and we were extremely proud! It was this first success which inspired us to work even harder and carry on. This achievement truly demonstrated to Sasha and myself that we were more than good enough to compete at the highest level of ice dancing.

We immediately became acquainted with different ice dancers from all around the world, it was our stepping stone to the professional scene. This competition actually happened to be our very first banquet and disco that we had experienced, it was unbelievable! Thank you for helping me to re-live this memory once again, it never ever becomes old.

During the ‘2014-2015’ season, you made the hastily awaited transition from junior competitions to senior competitions. Given it was your opening season on the senior stage, you had some fantastic results, particularly at the Warsaw Cup in Poland and the Golden Spin of Zagreb in Croatia. Did you initially find the step-up in quality a lot more difficult to deal with or did you manage to find your feet right away?

Maxim: As far as I can remember, whilst we were preparing for the competition, we did not notice any particular differences with regards to training and overall standards, however once we arrived at the competition, we immediately realized that everything was a lot more serious and intimidating! There were many different adult athletes, some of which we had only ever seen on the TV before. It was in this moment that we suddenly realized that now we really have to step-up our game.

Despite the fact that you have both collected a total of eighteen different medals throughout your senior career on the international circuit, I can most certainly imagine that your Olympic debut back in the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea was one of your most cherished experiences? Can you explain to us how it felt to finally have the chance to represent your country at the Winter Olympics?

Maxim: Well, the 2018 Winter Olympics were just incredible! If I can sum up that feeling in six words, it’d be; ‘it was a dream come true’. As a child, you lay in bed at night wondering what it must feel like to dance on the ice at the highest echelons of sport. Sasha and I were very much looking forward to this moment, the excitement ran through our bodies like a jolt of electricity. Yet, to explain to you what it feels like as a professional athlete competing at the Olympic Games for the very first time is just not possible. One must experience it in order to feel it. But, what I can tell you was that it was an awe-inspiring experience. We both felt a huge sense of responsibility to represent our country, family, friends and coach – simply phenomenal!

As the Russian forces laid siege to their city, Alexandra and Maxim had no other option but to flee in order to continue their preparations for the 2022 World Figure Skating Championships in Montpellier, France.

The international community looked on in horror as Ukrainian villages, towns and cities encountered a constant barrage of savagery on a daily basis from the Russian army. Murder, torture and rape were amongst the most frequently used adjectives announced by the Ukrainian authorities in order to describe to the world just what their people had to go through. Yet despite the unfathomable War that continued to plague their land, Alexandra and Maxim displayed a type of grit and determination that has been on display throughout this War from the Ukrainian people – they kept on going and did not give up. As the saying goes in Ukraine, "work and you will be strong; sit and you will rot".

Going into 2022 World Figure Skating Championships, both Alexandra and Maxim felt a great sense of doubt, vulnerability and scepticism. ‘We need more time to prepare’, ‘we must stay and support our country’ and ‘we do not have the psychological tools available to us at this time in order to compete’ were just some of the questions that the pair asked themselves. Despite the enormous amount of pressure from the War pressing tightly on the shoulders of Alexandra and Maxim, skaters from all around Europe, particularly French ice dancer – Gabriella Papadakis, vocally encouraged the Ukrainian pair to compete at the Championships. "They did it for their country, I found it magnificent" declared Papadakis, as Alexandra and Maxim decided to compete in the Championships which would turn out to be one of the most emotional moments witnessed in ice dancing history.

Going into the 2022 World Figure Skating Championships in France, what was it that convinced you both to compete in the Championships despite suffering major setbacks with regard to your preparation caused by the Russian invasion?

Maxim: Frankly, we had no idea what to do! At first, the thought of leaving Ukraine did not even enter our minds, it was simply not possible. We both witnessed Russian tanks destroying buildings and decimating our city in front of our own eyes. Sasha and I believed that it was wrong to dance when our fellow Ukrainians are dying because of Putin’s brutality.

However, after many deep conversations between us, we decided together that we should try our best to inform the whole world about exactly what is happening in Ukraine. We felt a colossal sense of responsibility to warn the international community of the immediate danger which lays ahead for all of us. Thankfully, Sasha and I were supported by many of our friends both in social and professional life, they all offered to help us. Following this, the Ukrainian government granted us permission to leave the country – we were going to Montpellier after all.

You sought the help of Canadian music editor – Hugo Chouinard, as you both felt that it was simply not right to dance to joyful songs while your fellow Ukrainians where been ruthlessly attacked and murdered. After holding a number of talks with Hugo, you opted to select Ukrainian singer Jamala’s song – ‘1944’, which contains many references to the persecution of Crimean Tatars by Joseph Stalin, and a remix of a song that became a popular anthem amongst the Ukrainian people when the War began – ‘Oi u luzi chervona kalyna’, which translates to – ‘Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow’. I have no doubt that dancing to such anthems must have brought each and every hair on your body to a stand. If you can, tell us in your own words about what your mind and body felt while dancing to these songs? What exactly did it mean to you?

Maxim: I must tell you that we did not contact Hugo directly, he himself offered to lend us a hand and we are extremely grateful that he did that! We sent Hugo a selection of different music and in return he sent us a masterpiece. Unfortunately, we were not able to use the version of the song with the voice of our President – Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Hugo’s efforts were absolutely commendable.

What did our minds and bodies feel like while dancing along to these songs? In a strange kind of way – it was terrible and we felt a great deal of pressure. The responsibility itself was daunting, to us we were also going out there to fight for our country, just in a different way.  As soon as Sasha and I began to dance on the ice, the only thought running through our minds was the fact that our families are in Ukraine and people are dying each and every day. It was a capitulating emotion that contained within it both bitterness and determination.  We fought not for scores and places, we fought for our homeland and the Ukrainian people – for life itself.

As you completed your final dance segment, tears began to stream down the faces of you both, your emotion was visible for all to see. The crowd stood in ovation while you hugged one another, there was a roar louder than usual and Ukraine flags could be seen all around the arena. How did it feel to see the crowd not only support you, but your country as well?

Maxim: I can truthfully tell you that it was the best and worst moment of my life all at the same time! It’s rather difficult to explain it to you. After all, this was a competition, everyone there was a rival to us. But, suddenly, in that moment, as we finished our performance, both sets of coaches and fellow competitors stood to applaud us! This was a moment were sport took a backseat – this moment was bigger than sport.  Even when I reminisce about it now, I can feel tears preparing to advance down the side of my cheeks.  But, above all, during that moment, Sasha and I understood that Ukraine will win the War, sooner or later the whole world around us would stand against Russia’s offensive.

What was the main reason for you both retiring from ice dancing? Undoubtedly the War brought along a lot of distress and psychological tension, but are there any other reasons for retiring at such a young age?

Maxim: Well, in the end, we had competed in many competitions since a young age. We managed to achieve many things – even our childhood hopes and dreams could not have prepared us for the unbelievable journey that we endured together! When push came to shove, we both wanted to hang our skates up at the end of the season, we did not finish our ice dancing careers because of the War. I myself even thought about continuing the journey, to continue to display to the world what the Russian Federation really is and does. That being said, Sasha and I decided that we had already done everything that we possibly could as athletes and for that reason – we need to continue to move forward in our lives. Myself and Sasha believe that we can do and contribute a lot more to Ukraine, not only as athletes.

Many of your followers would very much like to know what you have planned for the next stage of your lives? Do you have any particular hobbies or activities that you like to engage in now you have a less restricted schedule without having to train on a daily basis?

Maxim: Figure skating is well and truly involved in my future plans! I am not ready to leave this beautiful sport fully just yet. I’m currently involved as a coach and I’d like to develop my skills in that specific area. Sasha and I are now helping Ukrainian athletes as both coaches and choreographers! When our nation has defeated Russia and won this War, there is a lot of work to do in order to improve the level of figure skating across Ukraine. Victory is imminent, I can almost taste it. Despite the current situation, the future of Ukraine is a bright one – I really believe that.

It has been almost ten months since the most recent Russian invasion of Ukraine began. Sorrowfully, the War appears as though it will continue into the winter months. Ukrainian winters are often harsh – temperatures plummet, terrains freeze and ice forms. If you could pass a message onto your fellow countrymen and countrywomen to help them to get through the winter time, what exactly would you say to them?

Maxim: As you all know, the situation in Ukraine at the moment is extremely difficult. In many places across the country, there is no light, heat or water to drink, but us Ukrainians – we will not break!  We shall never be controlled by Russia, nor will we accept them. Ukraine is a strong nation with courageous people – we will not and cannot be defeated. A lot of our hope and strength comes from the Ukrainian army, thanks to them, us, the people, have only grown more stronger and robust – glory to Ukraine!

Cameron Reed