Who hasn’t heard the motto of the family team “Dad, Mom, I am a Sports Family”? Surely there is no such person. But not only contests, family events and holidays are held under such a slogan. And there is a real sports family, where dad, mom and children are skaters. This is the family of Alexander Mayorov.
A family
Alexander Mayorov was born in Leningrad on July 19, 1991 in the family of Alexander and Irina Mayorovs, figure skating trainers. Sasha has a younger brother Nikolai, he is also engaged in figure skating.
The athlete’s father, Alexander Mayorov Sr., grew up in Leningrad. He worked as a coach and rode up to 25 years old (played for the Petrel club). In 1984, he and another trainer announced the recruitment of children in the section. There, the mother of the future Olympic champion Alexei Yagudin brought her son - so Mayorov Sr. became the first coach of an outstanding skater.
Mom - Irina Mayorova - choreographer and also figure skating coach. She graduated from the University of Leningrad. At one time she worked as a choreographer, led a ballet studio. Now he is at the head of the ballet school in Lulea and trains at the figure skating club.
From Petersburg to Lulea
In the early 90s, the Mayorovs were offered work abroad. At first they lived like this: half a year in Russia, half a year in Sweden. They finally moved to Sweden when Sasha was 4 years old. There Alexander Maiorov went to kindergarten, then - school and university (decided to become a sports doctor). Engaged in karate - received a blue belt. But at the age of 16, time became scarce, and he began to devote more time to figure skating.
The family lives in the north of the country in the small town of Lulea. There is practically no figure skating in it, there is only an ice rink. Alexander has to train alone. It's very hard. The father helps, as far as possible, providing the son with sparring. According to Mayorov Sr., Sasha copes well and significantly advanced the Swedish position in figure skating.
Figure skating club
Sweden could not claim serious achievements for a long time, since there is a different specificity, and this sport is quoted differently. Not like in Russia. There is practically no figure skating - there are amateur clubs that are created by parents. They find like-minded coaches, and with their money they maintain a club. There are very few sponsors. But there are many enthusiasts, and everything is going on at the national level.
Clubs are managed by parents. No director. And the coach walks everywhere and solves issues so that athletes are comfortable. How else? Figure skating is a very difficult sport, one can say individual. Here, the coach takes the athlete literally by the hand from the very first step and leads him on. The conditions are rather complicated, but now there is a development trend.
The Figure Skating Federation works very hard - they conduct courses and seminars, and increase the level of a coach. The Federation helps with trips to competitions, and engage in training camps. You can apply to the Swedish Olympic Committee, where there is a support fund for athletes. But not everyone gives a scholarship and athletes also do not receive a salary. Costumes have to be sewn by ourselves. But sometimes sponsors help with this.
Fight for ice
Until age 15, Mayorov Alexander rode in the most uncomfortable hours, only 3 times a week. Since there was a kind of “struggle for ice” - club time counted on hockey, curling, and general skating. But according to my mother, choreographer and trainer of the skater, Irina Mayorova, they nevertheless achieved and got their ice floe. Now Alexander has those hours for training that are convenient for him. And the commune helps a lot in this.
Alexander himself says that figure skating became an integral part for him when his parents began to train. No one forced him to become a skater. I just spent a lot of time on ice, and then everything somehow went by itself. I never even wondered what could come of it. And now, "matured" to the World Cup, jokes Alexander Alexandrovich Mayorov.
First successes
The first triple jump was performed at age 11, and at the 2012 championship he became the second Swede to complete the quadruple toe loop. The debut of Alexander Mayorov took place in 2007 in Zagreb, where he came to finish 11th. He won his first tournament in 2010, taking the Grand Prix among juniors. Sasha got into the history of figure skating in Sweden when he won bronze at the 2011 World Junior Championships. This is the first Swedish medal in 75 years under the auspices of the ISU.
At the tournament in Nice Mayorov, Alexander took second place. But he was forced to interrupt the season due to his father’s illness, so he did not prepare for the European championship. But he did not refuse to participate - in the short program he significantly improved his achievements. At Finlandia Trophy entered the top ten, and in the Swedish championship took first place.
Alexander competes in Sweden, although he has dual citizenship. They received a letter from Russia that the country does not claim Sasha and does not object to speaking out for another country, recalls Alexander Mayorov. The skater began to take part in international competitions, and the question of choosing “sports citizenship” was not raised.
There is no victory without a fight
At the Moscow Grand Prix in November 2016, his nose began to bleed, but it was decided not to stop the performance. Alexander courageously skated the program and took 11th place. Father and coach say that Sasha’s potential has become much higher. He copes well with himself, and they will analyze, look for the reason for the unsuccessful performance. They will work and, if possible, go forward. Since Sasha has big plans, and this must be seriously prepared.
Alexander Mayorov (photo above) sets himself the goal of being selected for the 2018 Olympic Games. He believes that all the successes he achieves are a motivation not to stop and move on. As the skater says, if you are not trying to do something, you will never learn anything new.
The family, says the athlete, fully supports his aspirations. They are always there, help in every way with advice, thanks to the family he overcomes difficulties. When asked what advice he would give to a beginner skater, Alexander says: “Just go out on the ice and jump, jump and jump until you succeed!”