Dystrophy, arthrosis, fractures: how skaters pay for sports victories
'08.10.2021'
Source: Lenta.ru report
A couple of years ago, it was impossible to imagine that single skaters would perform quadruple jumps. It was considered a great skill to make several cascades from triple ones. Now for some athletes, quads have become a routine. And the Russian woman Alexandra Trusova successfully copes with four such elements during one performance. At the same time, some experts are talking with might and main about the danger of these jumps for girls, describing in paints what health problems await these athletes.
The consequences of such a load can be unpredictable. Is this so - I figured it out Lenta.ru report.
In 2014, the most difficult element in the free program of the Olympic champion Adeline Sotnikova was the cascade of triple lutz - triple sheepskin coat. A bunch of triple Lutz and Rittberger in the 2018 year led to gold Alin Zagitov. But now it’s clear that at the 2022 Games of the year three turns to win will not be enough.
On October 5 at the Japan Open tournament, Russian figure skater Alexandra Trusova performed four quadruple jumps in a free program without falls. Salkhov, Lutz, cascades of a quadruple sheepskin coat - a triple toe loop and quadruple sheepskin - a triple salchow through an oiler (one revolution jump, used as an intermediate in the cascade). And although officially this attempt will not be counted as an athlete’s asset, since the start is commercial, this is definitely a significant event.
“Sasha determined the development of figure skating for the next hundred years with her program and leaps, which we can be proud of. Nobody in the world reaches this bar, ”the honored trainer Tatyana Tarasova responded to her speech.
But only a year has passed since the moment when Trusova first jumped four in official competitions. This happened at the junior Grand Prix stage in Lithuanian Kaunas in September 2018. Moreover, she immediately swung at Lutz - the most complex and expensive of the elements that men make. Then the whole world gasped when the Russian woman successfully landed two “quad”. Then three. Now four. And, it seems, this is not the limit, because in total in a free program seven jump elements are allowed, including cascades.
“Need to train and pray”
In the world of figure skating, the appearance of quadruples in women's programs has been dubbed the revolution. Despite the fact that men perform jumps in four turns from 1988 years. The pioneer was Canadian Kurt Browning. Among domestic athletes, Aleksey Urmanov in 1990 became a debutant. In 2002, American Timothy Gable for the first time in history left four quadruple jumps in one program.
What is important, the first girl to cope with the quadruple jump was not Trusova at all. Japanese Miki Ando landed the quadruple salchow in the final of the Junior Grand Prix series in the season-2002 / 2003. However, she failed to develop success, and subsequently the skater refused attempts due to injuries. So these ultra-si elements (the quad and triple axels are usually referred to as ultra-si elements) have disappeared from women's competitions for more than 10 years.
Experts have warned about the danger of quads for health for a long time. The International Union of Skaters (ISU) seriously discussed the need to limit the number of quads in men's free skate programs. This happened after the American Nathan Chen at the Olympics in Pyeongchang completed six “quads”. Chen became simply beyond the reach of his rivals (he was prevented from winning gold in the short program), but he was very risky. As a result, the limit was not introduced, but at the next meeting of the ISU Congress it was decided that from now on, athletes in each program will be allowed to repeat the quadruple jump of only one kind, and not two, as before. In addition, the base cost of "quads" dropped by a point or a half, depending on the type of element.
All this was supposedly done in order to show: the risk is not justified. It is more profitable for athletes to jump all triplets cleanly than to go in and fall off the quadruple. For women, such jumps are completely permitted only in the free program, and in the short one they are rated with zero points.
It is insistent that quadruples have an extremely negative effect on the health of skaters, they started talking when young athletes began to teach them en masse. This was acknowledged by Eteri Tutberidze, the first trainer in the world who put on stream the study of these jumps in girls.
“In the case of Trusova, you need to train and pray so that your health does not fail. The cost of the quads was lowered after the junior world championship where she jumped two. Although I don’t know how to lower it? You see, every jump is a huge risk, it cannot be compared with anything. Decreased the cost of the elements, increased the cost of the error. The main reason is that it is very dangerous. This is true. But in this case, it seems to me, quadruples and should cost twice as much. It turns out that the motivation is not to do it. Even in my group there are athletes who understand that you will not earn much with such a big risk, and do not go to jump, ”she said on the air of NTV.
Nevertheless, the effect of these elements on the girls' body has not yet been studied in detail. NBC Sport wrote: “They are turning the quadruple jump into a key element of individual skating, promoting the technical side of their discipline, which seemed unimaginable just three years ago. It is too early to say what female figure skating will lead to. To five jumps? Hip replacement? Dominating the ice teenagers? "
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"Our body is not designed to jump quadruple"
Domestic experts have repeatedly publicly asked similar questions. Alexander Zhulin, for example, advocated raising the age limit in tournaments. In his opinion, the rules according to which girls from 15 years can compete at an adult level are discriminated against by older skaters.
“Chasing quadruple jumps is a huge chance to get injured. Skaters strive to win everything by age 15, and then what? How can Carolina Costner (32-year-old Italian - world champion and five-time European champion. - Approx. "Lenta.ru") or the same Evgenia Medvedeva compete with 14-15-year-old athletes who sandal quads without understanding anything? It is technical, but they are unformed girls, ”TASS quoted him as saying.
A similar opinion was expressed by Rafael Harutyunyan, who trains Natan Chen: “Let's see what happens with these girls next. Will they do these jumps in 18-19 years? Now their body has not yet formed, and the bones are still growing. What will happen to them in 40 years? Maybe they need new hips? It seems to me that physiotherapists should speak out on this topic until a catastrophe occurs, ”an NBC specialist quoted him as saying.
But can a “catastrophe” really happen? Lenta.ru asked about the possible consequences of performing the “quads” by the girls. Natalia Chelnokova, an orthopedic traumatologist at the Russian Federal Medical and Biological Center, who performed the duties of a sports doctor of the Russian national figure skating team. According to her, the most common injuries of skaters are injuries to the spine and lower extremities, and usually the right leg, on which athletes land from jumps.
“These are various injuries of the ligamentous-capsule apparatus of joints, muscles, fractures, hematomas and soft tissue bruises. If we talk about the spine, then these are injuries in the lumbar spine. The problems are aggravated by the fact that in figure skaters, as in gymnasts, due to choreography and stretching exercises, the natural curves of the spine are deformed, and this leads to the onset of scoliotic disease. Jumping, on the other hand, provokes the appearance of intervertebral hernias; in some situations, a compression fracture can also occur. And there are also myositis (inflammation of one or more skeletal muscles. - Approx. "Lenta.ru"), Because the temperature on the rink is usually around 17 degrees, and this leads to hypothermia.
We discussed the differences between the quarter and triple jump with a famous figure skating coach. So, the triple is easier to perform for athletes with an O-shaped structure of the lower extremities, and the quadruple - with an X-shaped. The latter is more common in girls. At the same time, they need to more carefully monitor their weight, since its increase leads to a decrease in jumping ability and the occurrence of injuries. Here Japanese athletes are most suitable for performing these jumps: they are genetically lighter, they have a different diet, they are not prone to weight gain. The coach usually says to our skaters: “We don’t eat”. But refusal to eat some girls leads to anorexia. As a result, organ dystrophy and irreversible changes occur. Sportswomen do not understand, they are all losing weight and losing weight, because the coach said so.
In general, it is hard for adults to compete with girls. So far, we see the unconditional leadership of children with their quads (at the 2019 Russian Championship, the juniors took the entire podium, and Anna Shcherbakova won, who performed a quadruple purely; Olympic champion Alina Zagitova, who does not own ultra-si elements, became the fifth. - Approx. "Lenta.ru"). That is why the line-up of singles in the national team is being updated so quickly.
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If we talk about injuries with an increase in the number of quadruple jumps in the program, then its percentage will undoubtedly grow. The more revolutions in a jump, the more power the athlete pushes off the ice, the more power he lands. To understand what kind of stress a skater experiences when landing, you need to see modern skate shoes. They are very tough. Why? Because otherwise they will break, they will be torn apart upon landing. Also skates without insoles, hence flat feet. In addition, skaters usually develop arthrosis (degenerative joint disease associated with slow degeneration and destruction of intra-articular cartilage. Approx. "Lenta.ru").
Performing a jump in four revolutions, the athlete experiences a greater overload in fractions of a second than an astronaut in orbit. Now we decided to go according to the principle “faster, higher, stronger”, to learn these quads, but at some point it will all end. Someone gets seriously injured, that's all. In an amicable way, it is necessary to talk about it. Maybe now we don't hear about serious injuries, just a little time has passed. After all, figure skaters have degenerative changes in their tissues anyway. Even the MRI standards are different for them. What is abnormal for an ordinary person is normal for them. Our body is not designed to jump quadruple jumps.
Why don't doctors sound the alarm? Good question. The doctors in the national team refer the athletes to specialists. They study injury data and bring it to the attention of coaches. In figure skating, athletes are simply not particularly taken care of. It is generally difficult to communicate with coaches. I once said: "Your skaters need to be given a rest." To which the answer was: "They can do much more." While there are victories, they will turn a blind eye to everything. The country needs a result at any cost. Doctors can not always intervene, because, roughly speaking, they are not given. Some coaches say: “Go ahead, we will figure it out ourselves, we have goals and objectives,” the specialist explained.
“Four will be needed soon by everyone”
However, the athletes, who have already mastered the fours, got a taste, and it will be difficult to stop them. It is unlikely that young skaters in the pursuit of medals and records can assess all the risks. And it cannot be denied that the transition to quadruple jumps is a development of sports that must continue.
“I will be selected [in the national team] that year, when the Olympics will be, like everyone else. And if then everyone will jump in fours, I will learn five, ”promises Trusova. About whether this is possible and what will be the women's figure skating in the future, Lenta.ru asked Alena Leonova, silver medalist of the 2012 World Championship, of the year.
“Lenta.ru”: Is it possible to complete a five jump without insurance?
Alena Leonova: Hard to say. Perhaps it will come to this, but imagine what kind of strength is needed for this. Of course, if there is a reserve on the quad, you can try to twist further. But I doubt it. Until we see an axel with four turns, it is difficult to talk about fives (a triple axel is a jump of 3,5 turns and the most expensive element of the triple. - Approx. "Lenta.ru").
You said that if you are planning to jump quadruple, this will be the last jump in your life.
- Yes. (He laughs.) For me it is very traumatic. I can't even imagine. I'm afraid to spin, it's just scary. I’m not 15 years old.
Some experts say that quadruple jumps are simply deadly for athletes. Is this really so?
- In that year, the cost of quads was reduced, as it is believed that it is very dangerous. Last season, men put five such jumps in the program and simply killed themselves. They fell, it turned into some kind of rockfall. Reducing the cost of jumps, in theory, should have forced athletes to abandon them. But I don't think quads are that dangerous for those who already own them. It is clear that athletes are falling. The same Shcherbakova often falls off the lutz. But you have to be able to fall. Figure skaters know what they are doing. They know, apparently, that they will not get injured. It is not known what will happen in two years, when they grow up and will do the same. But at this stage, they have confidence. From the attempts that I have seen, I can say that there is no big risk of injury.
Maybe you need to limit the number of quads in one program to protect the skaters?
- I do not think. Quadruples are spectacular. It's great, it's cool that the girls are so good that they compete with each other to see who will jump the most. I don’t know if it’s worth allowing the girls to jump quads in the short. But it seems that soon it will be possible.
Without a quadruple jump in the future will it be possible to win?
- Now everyone will focus on quads, they will urgently begin to learn them, because without them it will be very difficult. Of course, the components also play a role. But in the technical part, Sasha Trusova already beats everyone at the expense of four quads, and over time she will develop a second mark. She has just reached the adult level, and the second grade is being held for her so far. But this is temporary. Sasha will begin to receive a lot, these will be exorbitant amounts. Quads will soon be needed by everyone.
It turns out that adult athletes generally have no chance to compete with 15-year-old girls?
- It turns out like this. But no one is to blame that they learned quads. We can't blame them for that. This deserves only praise. The main thing is to avoid injuries.
