In the USA, there seems to be an intrigue with Russian figure skating coaches. I've even heard figure skaters and their families state that to make it in our sport that they "need a Russian!"
It has been proven that the coaching techniques that came from the Soviet figure skating "machine" did work. Russian pair and ice dance champions reigned internationally for decades.
What are your thoughts? Do you need a Russian to make it in figure skating?
A Russian Figure Skating Coach - Photo by JO ANN Schneider Farris
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IN MY EXPERIENCE———–YES, YES, YES !
MY COACHES HAVE A BETTER WORK ETHIC AND GIVE SO MUCH ENCOURAGEMENT THAT I AM ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH MORE.
I agree with Elaine. Nearly all of the Russian coaches I have had the pleasure of meeting or seeing in action have a very strong work ethic and are very encouraging. Another benefit is that the Russian coaches who had the experience of the state paying their expenses have likely had access to training methods/techniques that are still not in wide use here.
Have you ever just watched a Russian coach? If so you know the answer is the Russians know how to skate and how to tell a student how to skate… and there is no nonsense without being bitchy.