Maria Sotskova announces retirement from competitive skating

flanker said:

I've already replied similar question in RLT. According to wiki the average age for women at their first marriage in Russia is 24.9. Also 27.4 for men, so Misha Kolyada is still below average in his 25

Although common habit in developed countries today is having marriage and kids late in the 30s (because "career" is so important, right), having kids early has many advantages, above all you are just fit for them

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It's not really about "career", women just want to be independent and having a life, this is not necessary being a "wife and mother"...... And the thing in developed countries is also, that many people can't afford having a family or even living on their own. That's why so many over 30 are still living with their parents. Having a secure job is rare, without a secure job you can't have your own place for living, ect.

Flying Feijoa said:

Hope this is not too off-topic, but is it common in Russia for people in their late teens/early twenties to marry and have children? I heard about Betina Popova and Denis Khodykin's engagement recently and was quite surprised as he's just turned 21 (she is 23). Anna Pogorilaya also got married at 20. Julia Lipnitskaya is expecting a child at 22. It makes Kolyada's marriage (at 25) seem quite late in contrast.

In Western Europe and Asia the opposite is true, people tend to marry later (or not at all), making some governments very nervous about future population growth rates. That might explain Yuna, Mao and Carolina.

Back on topic, good luck to Masha in her new life and career! Hope to see her choreography work someday

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You don't have to be married to have children....

Russian ladies are in a class of their own. They remind me those chinese terracota warriors, there're so many and so good that they look like an army and scare anyone competing against them. And they look so similar... until you pay attention to them and discover that each one of them is amazingly unique.
I didn´t pay much attention to her until I saw her FP for the olympic season. In my memory she will always skate to Debussy's Claire de Lune, looking stunning in a grey dress. I loved that program, it was perfect for her.
Their skating career fly so quickly, they are not adults yet when the success arrives (yes, being the third russian lady is a success!) and the next thing they have to schedule it's their retirement.
Best wishes for this new chapter in her life!

She was always a pleasure to watch. But the last season was just one big struggle, no surprise here. Best wishes...

Sad to see her career end. The competition within Russian ladies skating is no joke.

I'm sorry to hear that, because I loved watching her skate, but it's a logical decision considering both the current state of affairs and the competition in Russia at present. I wish her every success in her future endeavors!

Imo as much as CSKA gave her a bit of reputation boost, and allowed her to continue working on edges and skating skills (she had enough basis to switch to Ice Dance in my opinion by that point), i've to say the extremely boring programs didn't work in her favor, they made her look bland, while in juniors she tried more different styles.

At the Olympics she could have skated to something like La La Land and make a bigger splash, that Claire De Lune was really the definition of generically lovely. Amazing dress though.

By the time they started to work on more interesting programs, her career was already on the way out sadly.