And by examples it shows what role a fragile woman can play in the life of a strong man, and what she gets instead, coming to the conclusion that what happened is, first of all, a human tragedy, a gap in life.

It is far from always that the death of a person makes one think, build a belated retrospective in his thoughts, recall some events and rethink them anew. But now it doesn’t go out of my head: Lyudmila Belousova is gone. Mila... That's what those who skated nearby always called her, that's how she introduced herself to me when we met her in 1995 at the European Figure Skating Championships in Dortmund. Then it did not even seem unnatural: Belousova was not even sixty, she looked a good two decades younger and left the impression of an unusually modest, very friendly and at the same time slightly shy woman-child. Perhaps this impression was formed because only Oleg spoke in that interview. Oleg Alekseevich Protopopov.

Unlike his wife, he not only did not feel discomfort with an emphatically respectful treatment to himself, but he himself constantly made it clear that he did not consider himself and never considered himself an ordinary skater.

I just know my worth, - he remarked sharply, talking about how he negotiated a fee with representatives of one of the famous American shows, flatly refusing the initially proposed conditions and immediately receiving a much better offer.

Then, to be honest, I was jarred by his phrase: "I know that the Russians would agree to ride for five hundred dollars, but, alas, we are not Russians."

I don't think it was outrageous. Rather, on the contrary: a completely habitual demeanor. Even when Mila and Oleg skated in Russia and were part of the national team for many years, one of the famous skaters of that time noticed that Protopopov always needed an entourage. He always had it: someone wore a camera, someone solved everyday issues, and someone simply admired the idol, since the idol encouraged this in every possible way.

Then it seemed to me that the forced emigration in 1979 left too much an imprint on the character of Protopopov, because of which Lyudmila and Oleg found themselves together against the rest of the world for many years. But as our acquaintance continued, I began to understand: Protopopov was always like that. Irreconcilable, uncompromising, one hundred percent confident in his own rightness and his own superiority, no matter what he does. And Mila - she just served him. Devotedly, every minute, all-consuming. Such unions, as they say, are formed in heaven. And even with the death of one of the spouses can not be destroyed.

That very first conversation we had for a long time sat in my memory. Protopopov categorically told me about his plans to prepare for the Olympic Games in Nagano and speak at them. For an hour and a half that we talked, or rather dived with Oleg (everything he talked about sounded too absurd), Mila did not utter a word. She simply nodded in time with some words and phrases of her husband.

Many years later, I realized that I had made a huge mistake then: I didn’t understand that the door had opened for me, allowing me to look into someone else’s and rather secluded life, to understand who they are - these legendary skaters. This did not involve any assessments, or discussions, or attempts to fit what was heard to certain stereotypes. It took time to pass before the understanding came: Mila and Oleg were just different. Not like everyone else. Although, perhaps, a different wording would be more correct here: they have never been like everyone else.

And the two have always been one. Perhaps that is why, even now, when Mila is gone, it is still impossible to talk about her in isolation from the only person who has been there for more than sixty years and, in fact, was in control of her whole life.

Protopopov (and therefore Belousova too) was characterized by an extremely selfish attitude towards his own sports career. At one time, it was a big revelation for me that the skaters worked for a long time with one of the most prominent coaches of that period, Igor Borisovich Moskvin. Mila and Oleg never mentioned this, and Moskvin himself was never inclined to advertise his own participation in their fate. Aleksey Mishin once very accurately noted this on this score, saying that Moskvin’s work was very incorrectly assessed, first of all, by Oleg himself, who sincerely believed that he was training himself, and allowed himself statements that were quite offensive to Igor Borisovich.

Moskvin himself assessed his work somewhat differently.

I can’t boast of having made this pair, he once told me. - Mila and Oleg made themselves. At a certain stage, I just developed their skating in the right direction.

Perhaps this was the main thing: Belousova and Protopopov, with their unique lyrical and airy style of skating, fit perfectly into the picture, which at that stage turned out to be the most in demand. The world was not yet ready either for the grotesque that Alexei Mishin and Tamara Moskvina were ready to offer, or for the extreme complexity that Stanislav Zhuk, who had not yet become great, with Irina Rodnina and Alexei Ulanov, pondered for days on end. The world just wanted love and beauty. Both Belousov and Protopopov made their calling card.

Surprisingly, the quiet and wordless Mila has always been the core of the couple in training. It was she who extinguished all Oleg's flashes in endless disputes on ice, and at home she simply turned into a silent fairy - the keeper of the hearth and family.

Mila always supported me too, ”Moskvin recalled. - She was an ideal figure skater: light, beautiful, she did not need to be convinced of something, forced to try some things. She just listened to the task and silently went to do it. Oleg, on the contrary, constantly needed to prove something.

Leaving Russia for Switzerland in 1979, Belousova and Protopopov cut their way back to the only country where thousands of people, despite the disgrace of the skaters, still admired them. In Switzerland, 43-year-old (at the time of departure) Lyudmila and 47-year-old Oleg could only continue to skate. They simply would not have earned anything else for a future life.

While Mila and Oleg rode with me, we were quite friendly, - said Moskvin. - We went on vacation together, lived together at the training camp in a hotel in Voskresensk, where Mila in her room constantly cooked pancakes for everyone on an electric stove, which she constantly carried with her. We often went to ski trips, that is, the relationship was much closer than official.

Then, when they had already left the sport, I heard that they had a conflict with the leadership of the ice ballet, where they then skated. But I never thought that the outcome could be just like that.

In Leningrad, they lived not far from Tamara and me, and, to be honest, I was touched when I received a thick envelope with photographs in the mail. A letter was also enclosed there: "Dear Igor and Tamara! Do not remember dashingly. We hope - see you soon."

There were collected all the photographs where the Protopopovs and I were captured together or in the same company. That is, they did not want their departure to create at least some difficulties for those people who knew them and with whom they were close at one stage or another in life.

Many years later, I asked Moskvin how he felt about the fact that former students, who are already over 70, continue to go on the ice in front of the public.

If a person really loves it, why not? the coach replied calmly. - Take me. If I now suddenly decided to remember my youth and started sailing again on a yacht, who could blame me for this? As for the Protopopovs, I have a certain respect for the fact that people are so dedicated to figure skating. In a way, they remind me of the mathematician who proved the Poincaré conjecture but turned down a big prize. I did not go to receive it only for the reason that I regretted wasting time on the trip, being distracted from my work. Oleg is a normal person in this respect. He always gladly accepted everything that was due to him. But he loved figure skating like no other. They had a great glide with Mila, although that's not even the point. And the fact that this slide was meaningful. filled. Including technically. That's great rarity.

I myself saw Belousova and Protopopov on ice only once - at the 1996 European Championships in Sofia. During the previous year, the skaters performed a couple of times in charity shows, and the organizers of the competition invited the Protopopovs to Sofia not only as guests of honor, but also so that the legendary skaters would take part in the opening ceremony of the competition. Oleg and Mila trained at night: daytime ice was given to the participants, and rehearsals of the opening began late in the evening.

And it was at night that the stands were actively filled with spectators.

My first impression of the skating of Belousova and Protopopov was strong. The two-time Olympic champions did not do jumps, lifts, or throws, and, probably, they could not. But some special magic of the absolute unity of movements, gestures, feelings blew from the ice. The skates glided over the ice without a single rustle. At the same time, the feeling that this skating was not intended for spectators did not leave me: it was too intimate. Apparently, the tribunes felt the same, numb in some kind of mute admiration.

Belousova and Protopopov came to Sofia free of charge. Their performance at the opening ceremony was given by the organizers for one and a half minutes and a little less than half of the ice rink (participants of the festive extras stood on the rest of the ice area).

Since then, I've regretted seeing this more than once. Protopopov went out onto the ice in a straw-colored wig (his artificial hair looked red under the spotlights), his face was covered with a thick layer of make-up with a blush painted on it, and his eyes and lips were lined. His partner was in a short red dress (“We still fit into the costumes we skated in 1968”) with a red bow in her hair.

The contrast with night training was striking: there, on the ice, there were Masters for whom skating was as natural as breathing. Here are two middle-aged people, desperately but in vain trying to hide their age. These attempts - ridiculous, and most importantly, absolutely unnecessary - completely obscured the pair's skating and made us remember the statement of the outstanding Russian choreographer Igor Moiseev: "You can dance at thirty and at sixty. But at sixty you don't have to look at it."

Remembering all this now, I again come to the same conclusion: when dealing with unique personalities, it is hardly worth approaching them with generally accepted standards. I was desperately sorry for Mila when, in 1997, having got the opportunity to talk with the legendary figure skater in private during the World Championships in Lausanne (Oleg was invited to comment on the performances of sports couples that day), she talked about her life in Grindelwald.

- Do you have any favorite women's affairs, I asked her then. She shrugged her thin shoulders.

Except the kitchen. I cook a lot, everything is eaten, usually on the same day. I used to sew, now there is no need for it. We have a small vegetable garden - three beds. At one time they grew cucumbers, now greens. Just like that, for fun. There are also three cherries - my sister brought from Moscow. But the berries are constantly pecked by birds. A stray cat lived for 12 years. When we left on tour, she even cried. And she died two years ago. We buried her right at home, under the Christmas tree.

- What major purchase have you made for yourself in recent years?

None. I do not need anything.

- And what a gift in last time did you give it to your husband?

We don't give each other gifts. It is enough that each other has ourselves. I never even wanted to have children in my life. If we had them, would we be able to ride for so long?

In the same way, I felt sorry for Oleg, who, in the same place, in Lausanne, told how in 1982, when the skaters finished skating in the famous American show Ice Capades, they decided to make a movie instead of buying their own home. About myself.

All the money (according to Protopopov, about a million francs) was spent on the purchase of professional equipment, renting an ice rink, filming. Lighting installations were ordered in Germany. The film (16 hours of pure skating without a single take) was filmed by a 17-year-old skater whose parents moved to Switzerland from Czechoslovakia in 1968. Ludmila sewed costumes for each of the demonstration numbers herself. On the same typewriter brought from St. Petersburg.

I tried to mount the film myself, I made a cassette with a duration of 1 hour and 20 minutes, - said Protopopov. - Everyone who has seen it agrees that the work is extremely professional, and the film itself is unique. We have tried to contact companies that make cassettes or television material of this kind, but everyone wants to get the film for free. If there are wealthy people who can really appreciate what we have, maybe I will agree to sell the film. So far there are no such proposals.

There, in Switzerland, Protopopov began to write a book. When he said that he himself, it happens, reads what is written for hours and cannot tear himself away, I suddenly realized that he would never give this book to any editor in the world: for him it (as well as the film) is a well-behaved and suffered child . And they don’t send their own children to the mess. Or maybe the whole point is that he did not seek to flaunt his life with Mila. He once said that he would never want to see someone auction this life.

When I returned from that championship, I wrote:

"... You can condemn legendary athletes for selfishness, which still happens to show through in their actions and statements. Or you can just envy a couple who have carried fantastic devotion to each other and their favorite sport throughout their lives. What difference does it make what we think about them we?they have earned the right to have their own opinion about the world figure skating, in which, undoubtedly, they will forever remain as his biggest legend ... "

In fact, Belousova and Protopopov in their long sports career, in which, in relation to figure skating, the prefix "after" did not appear at all were not unhappy. Discussing a life in which the fates of the spouses were soldered so tightly that they couldn’t be broken, Oleg Alekseevich once said that until now, no matter what was discussed, he sets himself (and therefore before Mila) only the maximum goals, since the maximum goal disciplines, helps to keep the psyche fresh. He was going to live a very long time, subordinated the whole household way of life to this idea, carefully studied any information about healthy eating about cleansing all vital organs. Trainings, all kinds of recovery activities and even vacations were organically included in the same system, for each of which the couple prepared very carefully.

Unfortunately, Protopopov never managed to force life to play according to its own laws: in 2009 he had a stroke. Then the legendary figure skater managed not only to fully recover, but began to treat himself with redoubled exactingness. But a few years later, Lyudmila was diagnosed with cancer ...

And now she is gone forever, leaving those who knew and loved her with bright memories, and Oleg with a terrible test: to continue living alone. May God give him the strength to...

Oleg Alekseevich Protopopov. Born July 16, 1932 in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg). Soviet figure skater, two-time Olympic champion (1964 and 1968) in pair skating paired with Lyudmila Belousova. Honored Master of Sports of the USSR (1962; deprived in 1979).

In his childhood, he survived the blockade of Leningrad.

He was raised by his stepfather, the poet Dmitry Censor, who saved him and his mother during the war. As Protopopov recalled, the Censor pulled them out of besieged city when they were already on the verge of death.

It was his stepfather who gave him the first skates in his life. However, seriously figure skating he began to study only at the age of 15 - in 1947 with the coach Nina Vasilievna Lepninskaya.

In 1951, he was preparing to take part in all-Union competitions, but was drafted into the army for the Baltic Fleet. He was demobilized in 1956, but during his service he continued to practice figure skating - he was released from the ship for training.

First, he performed in tandem with Margarita Bogoyavlenskaya, with whom he won the bronze medal of the 1953 USSR championship.

In 1954 he began performing with Lyudmila Belousova whom I met at a seminar in Moscow. They decided to just ride together, tried to perform some elements. The athletes seemed to fit each other. Belousova moved to Leningrad and in December 1954, athletes began to train together under the guidance of I. B. Moskvin, for some time - P. P. Orlov. At times they worked together, they themselves set their own programs. By 1957, they were silver medalists of the USSR championship and masters of sports.

In December 1957, the skaters got married and have not parted since.

They made their international debut in 1958. The technical arsenal of the athletes was not rich, besides, inexperience affected, so they got nervous and did not perform very well at the 1958 European Championship - they made mistakes while performing simple elements.

At the 1959 European Championships, they made a fall, the judges gave an average score of 5.0-5.1. At their first Olympics in 1960 in the USA, the pair received scores with a wide discrepancy: from 4.6 / 4.5 by the Canadian judge to 5.2 / 5.2 by the Austrian and Swiss judges.

In the 1960s, the couple grew significantly both technically and artistically. Oleg Protopopov and Lyudmila Belousova invented and were the first to perform many of the elements that later became part of the mandatory competition program for figure skaters around the world. So, for the first time they performed a todes forward on the inner edge, the so-called. "Space Spiral"

The first success came in 1962: the skaters finally won the USSR Championship for the first time (from the eighth attempt!) and took 2nd places at the European Championship and the World Championship, where the pair lost to the Canadian pair O. and M. Jelinek by one referee vote and only one tenth points.

In 1963 the couple staged free program to jazz music, getting average marks already at the level of 5.7-5.8. At the 1964 European Championships in the compulsory program, the couple received higher marks than M. Kilius - H.-Yu. Boimler (Germany), but lost to them in most places, in the free program a couple from Germany also bypassed the Soviet couple and won. At the Olympics-64, Kilius and Boimler were unexpectedly beaten with an advantage of one judicial vote, thanks to high level coordination, synchronicity and harmony of skating, beautiful spirals were performed, a combination of twine and axel jumps in one and a half turns, double salchow, several lifts, including a pronged lasso in two turns. Almost all judges gave marks of 5.8-5.9.

performance by Lyudmila Belousova and Oleg Protopopov

Their programs of 1965-68 became masterpieces, in which the image of lovers is revealed with inspiration, with subtle psychologism, almost absolute synchronism of all movements, amazing beauty and smoothness of lines are achieved. Belousova - Protopopov led the world pair skating along the path of artistic enrichment of programs.

In 1966, the new couple Zhuk - Gorelik, who lost to them at the World Championships by only one referee vote, made up the sharpest competition for them.

At their third Olympics (1968), the couple won both programs. In the free program, rated by journalists as a triumphant, free program to the music of Rachmaninov and Beethoven, the following were purely performed: a combination of a double loop - steps - an axel in one and a half turns, a double salchow, 7 different supports, including a pronged lasso and a lasso-axel, as well as a huge spiral along the length in camel pose, lasting 15 seconds. Only the first starting number in the strongest warm-up did not allow the judges to give scores of 6.0, while six judges gave 5.9 / 5.9, two 5.8 / 5.9, and the score of the judge from the GDR was 5.8 / 5.8 was booed by the audience.

At the 1968 World Championships, almost all the judges scored 5.8 / 5.9, and the judges from the FRG and the GDR both gave 5.7 / 6.0.

However, then the couple began to lose to younger Soviet couples, which made the program extremely difficult. At the 1969 World Championships, the athletes made several mistakes and took third place. In 1970, they were in the lead at the USSR championship after the execution of the compulsory program, but in the sum of two types they remained only fourth and did not get into the national team (later they announced a referee's collusion). At the 1971 USSR Championship, the pair was only sixth, and in April 1972 - the third, but in the absence of the strongest pairs, after which the athletes left amateur sports.

Awarded two Orders of the Red Banner of Labor (1965, 1968), Jacques Favard Prize International Union skaters.

Leaving big sport, athletes did not part with figure skating, they worked in the Leningrad Ballet on Ice.

In 1978, the apartment of Belousova and Protopopov in Leningrad was robbed, and all the medals were stolen.

They tried to join the CPSU, as they honestly admitted, for career reasons. But they were not accepted. Oleg Protopopov said: “We waited in line for three years, but they didn’t accept us. They said, they say, the Workers’ and Peasants’ Party, among the candidates there are no less worthy people than you. Yes, on our part it was an opportunistic calculation ... We wrote statements, took recommendations from Tamara Moskvina, director of the St. Petersburg Yubileiny Sports Palace Sergei Tolstikhin, but nothing helped.

Flight from the USSR

On September 24, 1979, Belousova and Protopopov, while on tour in Switzerland with the Leningrad Ballet on Ice, asked the leadership of this country for political asylum and refused to return to the USSR.

In the USSR, athletes were deprived of the titles of Honored Masters of Sports, their names were deleted from all Soviet reference books telling about the Olympic achievements of the USSR, and the athletes themselves were openly called traitors.

Belousova and Protopopov themselves explained their step by the fact that in their native country the couple was not allowed to develop further, they did not want to give up sports and believed that their talent would be appreciated more abroad.

Oleg Protopopov on the reasons for emigration:

“At one time there were rumors that we were asking to come back, but this didn’t happen. Yes, I was born in Leningrad and I wasn’t going to leave anywhere. Once I even told Ekaterina Furtseva, the Minister of Culture, who called Luda and me to Moscow, that I want to die in my hometown, but then circumstances changed, and at some point we felt like we were in a prison. The only way escape was emigration. And this decision, believe me, was not at all easy. We were forced to accept it. As before they were pushed out of big sport.

It's a thing of the past, today, probably, few people remember, but we were preparing for the Olympics-72, we were going to go to Sapporo. The pair Rodnina - Ulanov were considered favorites, our students Smirnova - Suraikin came second, but we could count on a solid third place. Least. I remember convincing Sergey Pavlov, the main athlete of the country: “There is a chance to take the entire Olympic podium! You can't miss the opportunity." Naive bastard! This is me about myself ... They didn’t even think of taking us anywhere: the “bronze” in pair skating was already promised to the GDR team, and for this the Germans promised to support Sergei Chetverukhin in singles competitions, where the positions of the USSR were weaker.

In fact, we were sold, although everything looked quite decent in form. Before the Olympics, the coaching council met and ... Nobody supported our candidacies. The games were won by Rodnina and Ulanov, although Lyuda Smirnova and Andryusha Suraykin, whom we put on a free program, should have won. They skated cleanly, but Ulanov did not complete the obligatory element, did not jump a double somersault, which was a gross violation. Nevertheless, the judges forgave the error. Now such a focus would not work ...

Then they didn’t care about the rules, they did what they wanted. In the 70th year at the USSR Championship in Kyiv, we were in the lead after the first day, and Rodnina and Ulanov were eighth. They ended up winning and we were relegated to fourth place. Is this possible with normal refereeing? We had to crawl on our belly to fall so low!

They lived in Grindelwald.

In 1995, they received Swiss citizenship, after which they were able to perform at the opening of the European Championship in Sofia (1995).

In November 2005, they visited Russia at the invitation of the St. Petersburg Figure Skating Federation.

We attended the 2014 Olympics in Sochi.

In September 2015, 79-year-old Lyudmila Belousova and 83-year-old Oleg Protopopov performed on ice in the United States at the Evening with Champions.

Oleg Protopopov and Lyudmila Belousova. Moscow. 2015

The growth of Oleg Protopopov: 175 centimeters.

Personal life of Oleg Protopopov:

He was married to figure skater Lyudmila Belousova, his ice partner. They got married in December 1957 and lived together all their lives.

They didn't have children.

According to the couple's explanations, they did not give birth to children, so as not to become hostages Soviet system. Apparently, their plan to escape to the West had matured long ago. Belousova said: “We saw how Viktor Korchnoi suffered. He left for the West, and Bella and her son remained in the USSR. Vitya was actually blackmailed, saying: if you win against Karpov, forget about your family. We know this firsthand, with Bella in Switzerland was the same lawyer as ours. The Soviet system did not forgive those who tried to swim against the current. "

Sports achivments Oleg Protopopov:

Winter Olympic Games: gold (1964, 1968);

World Championships: gold (1965, 1966, 1967, 1968), silver (1962, 1963, 1964), bronze (1969);

European Championships: gold (1965, 1966, 1967, 1968), silver (1962, 1963, 1964, 1969);

USSR championships: gold (1962, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1967, 1968), silver (1957, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1969), bronze (1953, 1954, 1955).

Recently, tennis player Yevgeny Kafelnikov gave a frank interview to journalist Yuri Dudyu, which caused a great public outcry. The Honored Master of Sports of Russia revealed some details of his biography, and also shared his views on the activities of a number of public figures. So, the man spoke about his personal plane, on which he flew to the Champions League match at Luzhniki, held in 2000. Then Eugene specially arrived in Moscow from Stockholm to support Spartak.

According to the athlete, the plane was not a luxury, but a means of transportation that allowed him to significantly save time.

“Maintenance of the board - with flight crew, parking and everything else - cost me 400,000 euros a year. At that time I had a good model - Cessna Citation X (Model 750). The base price was about 17 million euros. And I am the only one who could make money on this: I bought it for 17 million, and sold it for 17.5 million, ”said the man.

The tennis player did not take loans to purchase an aircraft. Yevgeny Kafelnikov received well enough to afford such a purchase without going to banks. And throughout his career, according to the ATP website, he earned 23 million 800 thousand dollars. The athlete had to pay 30% of his income as taxes.

For the first time, Kafelnikov earned a fabulous fee in 1994. “According to the report that ATP provides, you see: career prize money - $ 1,000,000,” the man recalls. As soon as he received a large amount, he set the bar higher. The next goal of the tennis player was to achieve an amount of $ 10 million.

The 90s became a time of rapid development of Yevgeny's career. He was one of the few who walked around with a cell phone instead of a pager. The monthly bill for cellular services was about 3-4 thousand dollars, but this did not bother the man. He also admitted that he did not agree with the criticism of the first president of the Russian Federation. Kafelnikov does not hide the fact that he talked with the politician, and when he retired, the athlete went to his dacha.

“Boris Yeltsin is usually perceived as a person who ruined the country. Only idiots can say that, blame him for all the troubles. The man himself gave power - this also speaks of what kind of structure he was. I am convinced to the marrow of my bones: under Boris Nikolaevich there was democracy ... "- said the tennis player.

// Photo: Izvestia / PhotoXPress.ru

Now, when Kafelnikov himself ended his career - in 2003 the man left the big sport - he is vice president of the Russian Tennis Federation. Many Internet users also know that Evgeny is active on Twitter and Instagram. In his microblog, Yevgeny Kafelnikov supported the decision of the organizers of Roland Garros, who did not issue a special invitation to Maria Sharapova (wild cart).

“I am not aggressive towards her. I am neutral to her... When they say that meldonium is a harmless drug, I don't believe it. She used it specifically for some purpose. Let's say you have heart problems. Then you announce it in advance: I have problems. Then all questions would disappear. But if you didn’t do it before, but continued to use this drug, I refuse to believe that it is harmless, ”the athlete explained.

In a recent interview, Yevgeny Kafelnikov also spoke about his desire to start a family and become a father again. After the athlete officially put an end to the relationship with model Maria Tishkova, about a year has passed. “I am sure that sooner or later this will happen - and probably in the near future,” Sports.ru quotes the tennis player.

We add that in the middle of the zero famous athlete seriously fond of poker and even took part in international tournaments. However, Kafelnikov did not always succeed in winning - it was rumored that the man spent large sums on his hobby. In this regard, he was even suspected of gambling addiction. However, after Kafelnikov got on major competition in Las Vegas, he lost his desire to play cards. For many years now, Eugene has not been fond of gambling.

On February 18, 1974, the newborn Sochi resident Zhenya Kafelnikov, nicknamed the "prince" for his five-kilogram weight, did not yet suspect what the future held for him: tennis courts, millions of fans around the world, victories in the most prestigious competitions. Of course, all this did not come to him immediately and cost many hours of intensive training.

Love for tennis was instilled in Zhenya by his father, a former volleyball player, who gave little Evgeny to the care of coach V.B. Peschanko. The first training sessions were held, basic techniques were studied, it became clear that Zhenya had a sense of the ball. It was decided to transfer the five-year-old Evgeny to the mentor V.V. Shishkin. The coach immediately fell in love with Zhenya, fell in love as a tennis player and as a person, considering him to be his most promising student. They worked together for about 12 years. Under the leadership of Valery Shishkin, Evgeniy developed as a player. Already in 1981, Zhenya was included in the group " Olympic reserve"with the USSR national team. Kafelnikov achieved his first significant successes in doubles, twice becoming the European champion (under 14 and under 16 years old) paired with Andrei Medvedev. In 1989, 1990 he became the owner of the World Cup as part of the USSR national team - with Medvedev, Tomashevich and Ogorodov. In the spring of 1991, he went on an internship at the Nick Bollitieri Academy, where he played several sets with Pete Sampras for the first time. After a trip to the USA (in autumn 1991), Shishkin and Kafelnikov broke up.

Anatoly Lepeshin became Zhenya's new coach. The mentor initially did not believe in Evgeny, considering the young athlete no different from the others, although even then Shamil Tarpishchev saw and appreciated Zhenya well. He wrote: "Yevgeny Kafelnikov, a talented tennis player, burst into the elite - at the age of 12-14 he was rated higher than Andrei Medvedev."

Forgetting about the initial differences, Lepeshin and Kafelnikov worked together. The coach turned out to be a strong psychologist, a strong-willed person. He helped Zhenya a lot, disciplined him, made him take the matter seriously. And who knows, Zhenya would have achieved such success if at that moment another person had trained him. And the successes were really amazing: victories in the professional tour, winning the Grand Slam tournament - " Roland Garros", both in singles and in doubles. Before Zhenya, none of the Russians had conquered such peaks!

However, in 1998, Lepeshin and Kafelnikov parted ways. Best since 1999 Russian tennis player began to coach Larry Stefanki, a very famous coach who gave impetus to a potentially unexploited talent. And Zhenya won another Grand Slam tournament, " Australian open"! And then, again and again, Evgeny won in various tournaments. Under the leadership of Stefanka Kafelnikov, he became the first racket of the world and Olympic champion. It seemed like the perfect duet. Apparently, something was still wrong: Larry and Zhenya broke up. It did not work out for Zhenya and his wife Masha - he was left alone with his daughter Olesya. Some kind of evil fate - to part with loved ones!

Despite all the hardships, Yevgeny Kafelnikov is an outstanding person and a great athlete. Zhenya loves not only tennis - since childhood he likes fishing, in adulthood began to fly an airplane, and recently became interested in golf. Per professional career he won 26 tournaments in singles and 27 in doubles, became the champion Open championships France and Australia, in 2000 he also won gold at the Sydney Olympics. And in 2002, another dream of Zhenya came true - the Davis Cup. Together with Marat Safin, Mikhail Youzhny and Andrey Stolyarov, Evgeny won the most prestigious team tennis trophy. After the victory of the Russian team in the Davis Cup, Evgeny planned to leave tennis. However, he stayed and spent most of 2003 on tour. He reached the final in Milan, was in the semi-finals at the Masters in Rome, won 2 tournaments in pairs - Indian Wells and Washington. In October 2003, Yevgeny Kafelnikov played his last official match.

For almost two years, Zhenya took a break from tennis - he fished, played golf and poker, raised his daughter Olesya, who, after a divorce from Maria Tishkova, stayed with him, took part in various social events. But the moment came when the love of tennis made him succumb to the persuasion of A. Dmitrieva, who did not leave the hope of dragging Evgeny into the commentator's booth. In 2005 the happy owners of the NTV+ green plate heard Kafelnikov's voice. He became the company's staff commentator.

In plain text:

In 2000, you dropped everything and flew to the Spartak match on your own plane.
- I was in Stockholm, and Spartak hosted Arsenal in Moscow. Tarpishchev called: “I'm going to football. Do you want to join the company? “If I can,” I answer. I specifically asked the organizers to put me to play on Wednesday morning. After the match - immediately to the airport. The football was amazing - we won 4:1! In the terrible frost in the crowded Luzhniki!

No matter how many stones are thrown into Valery Karpin's garden, it is clear that he is working productively. Another thing is that, perhaps, one of the players is dissatisfied with his tactical, technical actions. But that's their problem. Karpin copes with his functions, I don’t think he should leave the coaching post. His finest hour has not yet arrived.

“For me, as a fan, it will be more pleasant to watch than all these foreigners, legionnaires who are serving a number,” Kafelnikov added. The interlocutor of the agency is sure that one of the pupils of the club will gladly take the place of Dziuba. “A holy place is never empty. I am sure that there are young talented guys in the Spartak school who play in duplicate, they will gladly take this place and will try with great zeal to establish themselves in the first team,” Kafelnikov said.

On February 18, 1974, the newborn Sochi resident Zhenya Kafelnikov, nicknamed the "prince" for his five-kilogram weight, did not yet suspect what the future held for him: tennis courts, millions of fans around the world, victories in the most prestigious competitions. Of course, all this did not come to him immediately and cost many hours of intensive training.

Love for tennis was instilled in Zhenya by his father, a former volleyball player, who gave little Evgeny to the care of coach V.B. Peschanko. The first training sessions were held, basic techniques were studied, it became clear that Zhenya had a sense of the ball. It was decided to transfer the five-year-old Evgeny to the mentor V.V. Shishkin. The coach immediately fell in love with Zhenya, fell in love as a tennis player and as a person, considering him to be his most promising student. They worked together for about 12 years. Under the leadership of Valery Shishkin, Evgeniy developed as a player. Already in 1981, Zhenya was included in the Olympic reserve group under the USSR national team. Kafelnikov achieved his first significant success in doubles, twice becoming the European champion (under 14 and under 16) in tandem with Andrei Medvedev. In 1989, 1990 he became the owner of the World Cup as part of the USSR national team - with Medvedev, Rybalko and Ogorodov. In the spring of 1991, he went on an internship at the Nick Bollitieri Academy, where he played several sets with Pete Sampras for the first time. After a trip to the USA (in autumn 1991), Shishkin and Kafelnikov broke up.

Anatoly Lepeshin became Zhenya's new coach. The mentor initially did not believe in Evgeny, considering the young athlete no different from the others, although even then Shamil Tarpishchev saw and appreciated Zhenya well. He wrote: "Yevgeny Kafelnikov, a talented tennis player, burst into the elite - at the age of 12-14 he was rated higher than Andrei Medvedev."

Forgetting about the initial differences, Lepeshin and Kafelnikov worked together. The coach turned out to be a strong psychologist, a strong-willed person. He helped Zhenya a lot, disciplined him, made him take the matter seriously. And who knows, Zhenya would have achieved such success if at that moment another person had trained him. And the successes were really amazing: victories in the professional tour, winning the Grand Slam tournament - Roland Garros, both in singles and in doubles. Before Zhenya, none of the Russians had conquered such peaks!

However, in 1998, Lepeshin and Kafelnikov parted ways. Since 1999, the best Russian tennis player has been coached by Larry Stefanki, a very famous coach who gave impetus to a potentially unfinished talent. And Zhenya won another Grand Slam championship, "Australian open"! And then again and again Eugene won in various tournaments. Under the leadership of Stefanka Kafelnikov became the first racket of the world and the Olympic champion. It seemed like the perfect duet. Apparently, something was still wrong: Larry and Zhenya broke up. It did not work out for Zhenya and his wife Masha - he was left alone with his daughter Alesya. Some kind of evil fate - to part with loved ones!

Despite all the hardships, Yevgeny Kafelnikov is an outstanding person and a great athlete. Zhenya loves not only tennis - since childhood he likes fishing, in adulthood he began to fly an airplane, and recently he has become interested in golf. During his professional career, he won 24 tournaments in singles and 25 in doubles, became the champion of the French and Australian Opens, and in 2000 he also won gold at the Sydney Olympics. However, Zhenya has one unfulfilled dream - the Davis Cup. It remains to wish Evgeny that it come true: we want to look at Zhenya with the "Silver Salad Bowl" raised high above his head!

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