Daria Usacheva | Page 6 | Golden Skate

Daria Usacheva

Alex65

Final Flight
Joined
Aug 11, 2018
Country
Russia
I love FP Daria. Good luck to her today! She is a wonderful skater and worthy of the podium here.
 

flanker

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 10, 2018
Country
Czech-Republic
Daria is another type of ethereal being, not "angelic" like Aliona, she is more human-like, like a pricess under a spell trying to find her way back to her mortal self.
 

Vemvane

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 11, 2019
Well done to Daria! She had some messy moments, but she held on to the podium, and, oh, I do like her as a skater. She moves through her whole body, and there is something about her extensions when she lands from a jump that is so distinctive - I'll have to rewatch, I think, to try to work out what it is, but it was to do with the height of the free leg in extension, and the softness of her arms. I'm very happy that she was happy with her skate as well, and earned herself a season's best.
 

Edwin

СделаноВХрустальном!
Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 5, 2019
On the press conference Daria looked like some serious badass CEO of huge company.

She did ;-) She is one sophisticated young lady, isn't she? And yet, still looks so natural in this hairdo and subtle make up. Talk about presentation, this is a perfect example of how to present a promising young skater that has all the qualities to be great.
 

Edwin

СделаноВХрустальном!
Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 5, 2019
Nice and informative interview with Dar'ya: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLnv_XFJp34

She talks well and honestly.

She said she started working on a triksel from three weeks before JPGF, and its progressing well, she is jumping without the harness and hopes to premiere it in Russian Cup finals :)
 

DizzyFrenchie

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 9, 2019
Great news!
She is taller than other juniors, which may make it more difficult, but I would miss her elegance, should she be out of the top.
 

Edwin

СделаноВХрустальном!
Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 5, 2019
How exciting! I hope she lands her 3A successfully!

And it means the race for technique is on in her age group. Valiyeva has quads, Khromykh has a quad, Dar'ya will need a triksel to counter. She could be the equivalent of Kostornaya in the 2006 born girls.

But of course, she needs to master and show it first. Training in such a competitive and dedicated atmosphere has its advantages if you can cope with the pressure of achieving.

Then there is Akat'yeva with triksel and quad, perhaps the other 2007 borns are working hard to catch up, and give chase.
 

Edwin

СделаноВХрустальном!
Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 5, 2019
Full transcript of Dar'ya's great video interview here: https://www.sports.ru/tribuna/blogs/zzzjjj/2666215.html

Another source: https://www.gazeta.ru/sport/2019/12/12/a_12861728.shtml

And she is smart:

"- If we talk about the other side of figure skating, then you are already distinguishing yourself by rather mature skating and high plasticity.

- All this thanks to the choreographers who have worked a lot with me. They put a lot of time and energy into all of us. It also seems to me that I can really feel some of the compositions within myself. Music similar to “Je suis malade”, which I skate to in the free program of this season, is very close to me. It's not that easy to skate to, but I like to express it.

The story in this song is very sad, and in it's meaning it may not apply to me, but I enjoy the performance on the ice of such tragic music and this style."

... not only clever but also wise:

"- What do you read about figure skating?

- In social networks I sometimes watch thematic photos and videos. But in general, I try not to read especially about myself or about anyone else, because I don’t really need it. For me, only the opinion of my trainers and parents is important."

#РаботаемДальше seems to be a standard hashtag of the whole of Khrustalniy :)
 

Vemvane

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 11, 2019
Full transcript of Dar'ya's great video interview here: https://www.sports.ru/tribuna/blogs/zzzjjj/2666215.html

Another source: https://www.gazeta.ru/sport/2019/12/12/a_12861728.shtml

And she is smart:

"- If we talk about the other side of figure skating, then you are already distinguishing yourself by rather mature skating and high plasticity.

- All this thanks to the choreographers who have worked a lot with me. They put a lot of time and energy into all of us. It also seems to me that I can really feel some of the compositions within myself. Music similar to “Je suis malade”, which I skate to in the free program of this season, is very close to me. It's not that easy to skate to, but I like to express it.

The story in this song is very sad, and in it's meaning it may not apply to me, but I enjoy the performance on the ice of such tragic music and this style."

... not only clever but also wise:

"- What do you read about figure skating?

- In social networks I sometimes watch thematic photos and videos. But in general, I try not to read especially about myself or about anyone else, because I don’t really need it. For me, only the opinion of my trainers and parents is important."

#РаботаемДальше seems to be a standard hashtag of the whole of Khrustalniy :)

Thank you for sharing the links to the transcript!

I agree with you, Daria comes across as intelligent and wise beyond her thirteen years. She has a poise and a grace when she skates that seems to have carried through to the interview, where she is so articulate. (I'm judging this through the distorted lens of Google translate, so, haha, maybe I am very wrong!)

She seems to be a sweet girl, though, with respect for her competitors and training mates, and the typical Tutberidze approach to her own skating - she made mistakes, she knows she can improve on herself and do better. It's a nice take on being self-critical, because it's not I made mistakes, I'm not good enough, but I made mistakes, which means I can do better. On the more domestic side of things, she is clearly proud of her older sister, which was heart-warming, while it was a little sad to read that there is less time to visit her grandparents now; it makes you appreciate the sacrifices skaters and their families make to pursue their competitive careers. The way she landed up at Khrustalny, on the other hand, made me laugh, because it goes to show what small decisions things can pivot on, such as the convenience of the commute!

This was fun to read, and I really appreciate your sharing the link, Edwin.
 

Edwin

СделаноВХрустальном!
Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 5, 2019
Interview with the Bronze medalist of the junior Grand Prix final of 2019, Dar'ya Usachyova: about the medal and the Tutberidze group!

Russian figure skater Dar'ya Usachyova for the first time took part in the Grand Prix series among juniors and immediately won Bronze in the final, losing only to Kamila Valiyeva and Alysa Liu. In an interview with Gazeta.Ru, the girl told how she moved from Khabarovsk to Moscow and got into the group of Eteri Tutberidze on the second attempt, why she was shaking for the first time on ice under Alina Zagitova, what she was brought from Japan by Olympic medalist 2018 Shoma Uno and what elements of ultra-si she is preparing to show this season.

-- What were the expectations from the Grand Prix Finals, given the strength of your rivals - Kamila Valiyeva and Alysa Liu - and what do you think about the result?

- I am glad that in my first year of competing at international competitions I was able to win a bronze medal in the Grand Prix finals.

In advance of this tournament, I expected that it would be far from easy, but at the same time there was a desire to try very hard to get into the top three. I achieved this goal and could perform even better, rise even higher.

-- The difference in scores with Alysa Liu, who jumped a quadruple Lutz and triple Axel, in the end turned out to be very small ...

- Yes, these are all my mistakes.

-- Nevertheless, before the awarding ceremony, the three of you with Kamila and Alysae, it seems, had a very nice chat.

- We taught Alysa Russian words. She tried to learn the word “Hello” - it didn’t work, but she was able to say “Hello” (laughs).

I also saw a photo in which Liu held the Alina poster in honour of Alina Zagitova during the women's free program. It's nice that our group is supported all over the world - even by my rivals.

-- How are you doing with ultra-si?

- I began to learn the triple Axel two to three weeks before the Grand Prix finals. It turns out already not bad. I hope to learn this jump before the Championship of Russia among juniors. I would like to achieve this goal, because now without ultra-si you're going nowhere.

Already I go into the triple Axel, without a fishing rod. So far I'm falling, it is under rotated, but I hope that I will soon show a clean exit.

-- If we talk about the other side of figure skating, then you are already distinguished by rather mature skating and high plasticity.

- All this thanks to the choreographers who have worked a lot with me. They put a lot of time and energy into all of us. It also seems to me that I can really feel some of the compositions within myself. Music similar to “Je suis malade”, which sounds in the free program of this season, is very close to me. It's not that easy to skate under it, but I like to express it.

The story in this song is very sad, and in its meaning it may not apply to me, but I enjoy the performance on the ice of such tragic music and this style.

-- Is there a dream to take any specific composition for your program?

- Probably not. Our trainers always pick us such music that you just understand - this is what you need, I wouldn’t find music like that.

When I first heard “Je suis malade”, I thought at first that it would be difficult and I could not express it. I myself would never have chosen that. But it turned out that it is not so difficult and even interesting. At the moment, this is my favorite program of all time.

While working on the production, I watched Adeline Sotnikova skate to this music, and I really liked how she interpreted it.

-- Some images for programs pop up in your head when you listen to music?

- There haven’t been those where I could find something right away for my program. I just listen to the music that young people usually love now. I like foreign performers - Imagine Dragons, Sia, Billy Ailish ... It is Eilish's songs that I have now in my favourites, she is very close to me.

-- Any ideas to stage an exhibition routine under Billy Ailish?

- So far we have not thought about such a production, but maybe I want to try.

-- You were born in Khabarovsk - not the most common place to start a skater's career.

- I spent about three to four years in Khabarovsk. I got up on skates there, learned to skate and from there already moved to Moscow to train in Khrustalniy.

We moved not only because of my career, but, in particular, because my older sister had to study in Moscow. Everything came together there: my parents wanted to develop me in sports, and give my sister a decent education. By the way, she has already graduated from Moscow State University and is working, so everything is going well.

And in Khabarovsk, I still have my grandparents. Previously, every year over the summer we went to visit them for two weeks, and once even for a month. But now, unfortunately, there is not enough time at all.

-- After moving to Moscow, did you immediately get into Khrustalniy?

- Mom told me that initially they wanted to put me in CSKA, but she drove past Khrustalniy and saw that this skating rink was close enough to our house. Then we tried to get there. The group was already closed at that time, but they still told us: “Come.”

I coped with what I was asked to do, and began to train at Khrustalniy with Oksana Mikhailovna Bulycheva.

I remember very well about that period that when I became a bit older and participated in this competition called "Young Skater", we somehow sat in the locker room, and here - bang! - they tell us: "We are going to the tournament." Everything was very unexpected, but I liked it.

- How did you eventually transfer to the group of Eteri Tutberidze?

- With Oksana Mikhailovna I skated for a very long time, learned all double jumps from her, started learning triple jumps and after that at some point we decided to go to see Eteri Georgiyevna.

Then I hadn’t jumped triples yet, and, naturally, they didn’t take me to the Tutberidze group.

After that, I skated for a year with Tsareva Anna Vladimirovna, learned all the triple and 3 + 3 cascades. Then I again went to see Eteri Georgievna, and this time they accepted me.

I remember I came to the assessment on Friday, when the younger group had a day off, and they sent me to skate with the elders.

Just at that moment, Alina Zagitova was on the ice - she was working on her short program under the Phantom of the Opera. When my turn at skating arrived, I was very worried, everything shocked me.

It was worse than any exam at school (laughs). I was afraid I would fall, couldn't do anything. But on this adrenaline I never even fell in training, I managed everything. It was scary, but I liked that everything turned out, that I did everything almost on a par with the rest.

-- Who made the greatest impression on you then in the group?

- Alina Zagitova, I've always admired her - even before moving to the Tutberidze group, and I still do. Her hard work, perseverance, the fact that she never gives up and continues to work ...

The stubbornness of Sasha Trusova is very impressive - the way she learns more and more new jumps, not wanting to slow down.

In general, I greatly respect the industriousness of all the girls - and Ani Shcherbakova, and Alyona Kostornaya. None of them rests on their laurels, and this really motivates.

-- Yevgeniya Medvyedeva said that she had never seen such a hard worker as Alina ...

- Yes, I also got this impression. There is a feeling that Alina never stops.

In our group, if you did not skate the program cleanly, you need to do it again until you show it without errors. And Zagitova always left training only when she did everything perfectly.

There wasn’t such that she didn’t finish something, she was never ever lazy. She was always very hardworking. Her confidence and motivation are striking.

-- You and the other girls never asked Zagitova for advice? Maybe she shared the secret of victories?

- Alina gave us technical advice - on how to breathe and so on. But how to win - no, we didn’t ask.

-- How did you get used to the new style of training in the Tutberidze group?

- It was hard. The whole first year was exciting and scary. For the first time I was given a program immediately by Eteri Georgievna and Daniil Markovich themselves. I was worried that I would do something wrong, and I really did something wrong (laughs). But our coaches have a lot of patience and perseverance.

The result was two very beautiful programs, for which I am very grateful. However, joining this process was really difficult. I think that it is still not easy for all of us, because it is a lot of work.

The fundamental difference between classes in other places and the Tutberidze group is that here everyone works continuously. There is no such thing like you jumped something and then just go, relax for a few minutes. We only rest after training.

-- Who is the nicest coach from your group?

- They are all nice. No bad ones - only demanding (smiles). There is no such thing that coaches are constantly strict: it all depends on the situation and on how you work. When it is necessary to motivate, they can say something impressive, when it is necessary to defuse the situation, they joke a lot.

Not only Daniil Markovich, but also Sergey Viktorovich Dudakov, and Eteri Georgiyevna often joke during the general physical training or on ice, but our work is first and foremost.

-- In the summer, the silver medalist of Pyeongchang 2018, Japanese Shoma Uno, came to your group to intern.

- When I first saw Shoma for real, I had a shock. Previously, I watched him only on TV, but here he is - standing next to me.

Prior to our personal meeting, I knew that he was very small - there is data on this subject on the Internet - but still thought that visually he would be taller. But it turned out that Shoma is almost my height (laughs).

I took a picture with him at the very end, before his departure, because I was afraid to approach him, but Uno was very kind. He generally does not have the feeling that he is a star: we took his picture without any problems, exchanged gifts. He brought me a magnetic bracelet around my neck - it was very nice. I spoke with him in English, but he didn't really understand (laughs).

-- Is it true that Shoma sleeps a lot - including in the middle of a training day?

- Personally, I didn’t see him sleeping - only a photo from Lisa Tursynbayeva on Instagram. But in general during the day at the training camp, many sleep from fatigue, because such loads are still unusual.

-- Now that the season is in full swing, fans probably write to you?

- Often. After the competition, there are now a lot of references to stories, and me and Kamila still can’t make them out. Many ask for an autograph and a photo together - it's nice and unusual, I haven't had this before. Even when my mother and I walked around Turin, picking gifts for the New Year, they recognised me and asked me for a picture. It seemed they were Italians, but they tried to speak Russian (laughs).

-- What do you read about figure skating?

- In social networks I sometimes watch thematic photos and videos. But in general, I try not to read especially about myself or about anyone else, because I don’t really need it. For me, only the opinion of my trainers and parents is important.
-----
From: https://www.sports.ru/tribuna/blogs/zzzjjj/2666215.html adapted from: https://www.gazeta.ru/sport/2019/12/12/a_12861728.shtml which is a transcript of: https://youtu.be/gLnv_XFJp34

Bonus video: interview of Kamila togehter with Dar'ya: https://youtu.be/9xiL8pWxkJY
 
Last edited:

Edwin

СделаноВХрустальном!
Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 5, 2019
It always fascinates me how mentally mature these young girls are.

Their training environment is demanding physically, emotionally and intellectually, and all that are subjected to it grow under it, one of the benefits of the Tutberidze Effect, total dedication to figure skating in all its aspects.

When they are received at home by caring and loving parents, who are genuinely interested in and committed to their children's careers, the young athletes are raised even more in their personalities. It all adds up. Some are better at dealing with media than others, but in general the Khrustalniy skaters behave well.

The know they are part of world's elite in figure skating but don't brag about this, remain reasonably modest and honest, which is a real asset in people this young.
 

Vemvane

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 11, 2019
And a very cute little dog too! Daria looks very happy in those photos; well, she looks a little more formal in the first, but by the last one she is definitely having fun. Thank you for sharing the link.
 

Vemvane

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 11, 2019
Daria's SP performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6EizjJIWSE (and with Ted Barton's commentary: https://youtu.be/gPdd4ZZxPYM?t=4023)
Daria's FP performance: https://youtu.be/TH5E14tnC9A?t=7491

For me, Daria is such a marvellous young skater. She really does seem to connect with her music, not necessarily in terms of being perfectly musical, always keeping to the rhythm, but in the way she expresses it. Seeing how good she is right now, as a junior, makes me want so very much for her to have a long and successful senior career, so that she can grow into this talent.

Also, the flexibility in her back during her layback spins is astonishing - she just folds right over as supple as a cat, while staying pretty neatly centred as well; I think she's quite a good spinner. I was so happy to see her complete a clean FP - may she continue to grow in confidence and consistency with her jumps, so that she can have more wonderful clean free programmes in the future. She is just such a pleasure to watch, and I am happy that she made it to the podium here at Nationals and will be off to Junior Worlds. The more of Daria's skating I get to see, the happier I shall be.
 
Top