Elena Berezhnaya is one of the most famous Olympic champions in figure skating. The girl went in for sports from a young age, she went towards realizing her dream, despite injuries. In the mid-90s, Lena hit her head hard. She was able to get back on her feet and, with her new partner, become the winner of several championships and the Olympic Games.
After finishing her sports career, the star skated on ice arenas with exhibition performances for several years. Now she is engaged in the development of sports in Russia.
Our heroine keeps details about her relationship to herself. No one knows who she lives with now. The star is raising a son and daughter who followed in her footsteps.
Height, weight, age. How old is Elena Berezhnaya
An army of devoted fans want to know about the figure skater’s physical parameters, such as height, weight, age. How old is Elena Berezhnaya? This is a fairly popular query on the Internet.
The future figure skater was born in 1977, so she turned forty, although Elena Berezhnaya: photos in her youth and now are not much different. Lena is incredibly active and athletic, so she looks great.
The Zodiac sign Libra gives a girl punctuality, prudence, observation and incredible performance. According to the Eastern horoscope, Lena received the sign of the wise, stable, bright, insecure Snake, persistent in achieving her goal.
Berezhnaya’s height is low and reached one meter and fifty-four centimeters, and his weight stopped at forty-seven kilograms.
Biography and personal life of Elena Berezhnaya
The biography and personal life of Elena Berezhnaya are simply incredible, since the girl, in general, should not have been in the next world. Little Lenochka was born in provincial Nevinnomyssk, premature and sickly, and therefore weighed only seven kilograms at one year, suffering from dystrophy.
Her father, Viktor Berezhnoy, abused alcohol, so the family broke up when the little girl turned five. The girl was raised by her stepfather Mikhail, who fed, clothed and protected the baby with all his might, considering her his own child.
The mother, Tatyana Berezhnaya, tried to improve her little daughter’s health, trying to send her to gymnastics, ballet or dancing, but they didn’t take her anywhere except figure skating, fearing diagnoses. The four-year-old plastic beauty showed talent and incredible performance, however, coach Nina Ruchkina constantly beat the pupil until her stepfather stood up for her.
Lena has not only an older brother, Alexey Berezhnoy, and a younger brother, Ivan Berezhnoy, who are not connected with sports in any way, but also cousins Victor, Natalya, and Nadezhda, who appeared in the family after the death of their father.
At the age of thirteen, the girl was sent to study at the CSKA boarding school in Moscow together with the coach’s son Sasha, who was later expelled for incompetence. Lena studied with all her might, because she was bullied by older students, and she was the only girl in the dormitory.
Together with Oleg Shlyakhov, she repeatedly took first place and even competed for Latvia. Later, Lena moved to St. Petersburg and continued training. Before the 1996 European Championships, the athlete received a terrible injury when she was hit in the temple by Oleg’s skate blade during training. It is worth noting that the skate pierced the skull and affected the speech center; after craniotomy, the girl learned to walk and talk in a new way. After that, together with Anton Sikharulidze, the figure skater was able to win a huge number of awards, however, then she decided to leave the sport after her partner. Since 2006 she has participated in the shows “Stars on Ice”, “Alone with Everyone”, “Star Ice”, “Ice and Fire”.
She was a deputy, a public figure, the head of the St. Petersburg Ice Theater, and opened her own figure skating school for children.
But the girl was not very lucky in her personal life, because her ice partner Oleg Shlyakhov treated her rather coolly, beat her and threw her flat on the ice out of anger. Their relationship did not work out, although they rented one apartment for two.
Eighteen-year-old Alexey Yagudin and Alexander Domogarov were in love with the girl, but she admitted that her first love was Anton Sikharulidze. He was there in sorrow and in joy, but the couple did not get to the point of marriage and civil marriage, and sport is considered to be to blame for everything.
Head injury
It was not possible to participate in the championship: Elena Berezhnaya received a terrible injury. During training, Oleg Shlyakhov hit a girl in the temple with the blade of his skate. The fragments of the temporal bone touched the lining of the brain. This tragedy happened in 1996.
Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze
Elena had to undergo two serious neurosurgery operations. After that, the girl could neither walk nor speak - she had to learn everything all over again. When this happened, two of Elena’s closest people came to Riga at once - her mother and Anton Sikharulidze, who was only 19 years old at that time. Sikharulidze sincerely believed that Elena Berezhnaya’s terrible fall would not prevent her from continuing her career.
His care and love, sensitive attention and patience, as well as the fact that Anton gave up everything for his girlfriend, put the 18-year-old athlete on her feet. Doctors insisted that figure skating was over for her, but 3 months after the injury, Anton, against all odds, brought Elena back onto the ice.
Family and children of Elena Berezhnaya
Elena Berezhnaya’s family and children are the most precious things in her life, because she came to her quite late. Lena considers her family to be her parents, brothers and sisters, and also Anton Sikharulidze, who became her dearest and dearest person.
The figure skater and her ice partner treat each other like brother and sister; they are family friends and often come to visit each other. Lena claims that she has never had such a warm relationship with any figure skating partner. She and Anton feel each other on some intuitive level and can communicate almost without words.
Berezhnaya's children are late and welcome because they appeared too late. Currently, Elena devotes herself entirely to the kids and her family and little students, who consider her their second mother. At the same time, her Instagram page is littered with photos and videos of Tristan and Sophia-Diana, which are filled with pride and love.
Olympic Games
In 1994, Elena Berezhnaya performed for the first time at the Olympic Games, which took place in Hamar, Norway. The Russian woman performed in pairs with Oleg Shlyakhov. One of the main competitors of the pair were representatives of Ukraine Elena Belousovskaya and Igor Malyar, but in the end they took only 16th position. In turn, Berezhnaya and Shlyakhov took 8th place.
Elena Berezhnaya at the Olympic Games in Salt Lake City
In 1998, at the Olympics in Nagano, Japan, Berezhnaya and Sigarulidze took silver, and in 2001, they took second place at the World Championships in Vancouver, Canada. In 2002, the guys won the Olympics in Salt Lake City. After a terrible injury and a long period of rehabilitation, this became a real breakthrough in the figure skater’s sports biography.
Sikharulidze and Berezhnaya twice became leaders of the world figure skating championship - in 1998 and 1999. Russian fans remember them as four-time champions of the country - the couple won the Russian championships in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002.
Son of Elena Berezhnaya - Tristan Cousins
Elena Berezhnaya’s son, Tristan Cousins, is the beloved and long-awaited first-born, who was born in 2007, immediately after his parents got married. The baby received not only a rare name and the affectionate family nickname Chok, but his mother realized that she could no longer risk herself and began to live only for the sake of her boy.
The boy studies at a regular school quite well, and at the same time he studies at Elena Berezhnaya’s school. He loves his skates and ice, trying to become a world champion.
Tristan is a very active guy, he plays football and is constantly on the move, and he also hates it when someone contradicts him about anything or makes comments.
Daughter of Elena Berezhnaya - Sofia - Diana Cousins
The daughter of Elena Berezhnaya - Sofia - Diana Cousins - was born in 2009, she was born in America. It is worth clarifying that Elena wanted to give the baby a wise name - Sofiyka, and her husband insisted on a more international option - Diana, so at the family council a compromise was found and the girl received a double name.
The active and very persistent little girl received the best from her parents; at the age of three she started skating. Now Sofia-Diana wants to connect her life with figure skating and become a champion; she studies at her mother’s school and is making incredible progress.
The girl is a great student and loves spending time with her beloved dad, and she also draws wonderfully.
Personal life
In addition to ice triumphs and a media career, there was also a place for love in Elena Berezhnaya’s life. For a long time, fans of Sikharulidze and Berezhnaya were waiting for the guys to get married, because their tender and reverent relationship was visible to the naked eye. Anton was always there, supporting his partner, without hiding his sympathy. However, after the end of their careers, the skaters' paths diverged. As Berezhnaya herself said, they spent so much time together and knew each other so well that over the years love grew into something else. The skaters became like brother and sister, which both do not regret.
The athlete's chosen one was British figure skater Stephen Cousins, whom the girl first met at the European Championships in 1993. Cousins performed a singles program. The couple came to a close relationship when they found themselves on the same tour in America. Although at first Berezhnaya did not pay any attention to the man, the Briton still managed to win the heart of the Russian woman.
Soon Elena and Stephen began dating, after which the Briton invited the Olympic champion to become his wife. Steven Berezhnaya gave birth to two children - a son, Tristan, who was born in 2007, and in 2009, a daughter, Sofia-Diana. But, alas, the marriage did not last long - the couple separated in 2012.
Elena Berezhnaya's ex-husband - Stephen Cousins
Elena Berezhnaya's ex-husband, Stephen Cousins, appeared in life in 2006, when he was still living with his first wife, Kristina Lenko. After meeting Berezhnaya, the guy realized that you can just chat with a girl and have fun.
The very next year, the couple got married, and their babies appeared one after another. The famous British singles skater was an eight-time British champion over the years. He was six years older than his chosen one and was not inferior in skill.
By the way, the young people met at the Berezhnaya ice show, but they first met back in 1993 at one of the European Championships and never even said hello when they met. Elena admitted that she always considered Stephen to be a very mediocre skater until she began performing with him in the same show program.
In 2012, Elena suddenly announced that their couple had decided to separate and live separately for some time. To the great regret of fans, a divorce occurred in 2014, but the guys managed to maintain friendly relations for the sake of their common children.
Achievements
Winter Olympic Games:
- 2002 – Salt Lake City (USA) – 1st place
World Championships:
- 1998 – Minneapolis (USA) – 1st place
- 1999 – Helsinki (Finland) – 1st place
European Championships:
- 1998 – Milan (Italy) – 1st place
- 2001 – Bratislava (Slovakia) – 1st place
Grand Prix Final:
- 1998 – Munich (Germany) – 1st place
Skate America:
- 1998 – Detroit (USA) – 1st place
Skate Canada International:
- 1999 – Saint John (Canada) – 1st place
Elena Berezhnaya latest news 2017-2018
Elena Berezhnaya can find out the latest news 2017-2018 on the Internet, since she finished her sports career and is doing what she loves. Elena opened a sports school for little skaters because she believes that talented skaters should be trained practically from the cradle, so that they do not need to be retrained later.
From 2021 to this day, she has been participating in television programs and is a State Duma deputy from Stavropol and United Russia.
Another favorite and winning project of Elena Berezhnaya is the Axel cafe in her hometown of Nevinnomyssk, where you can drink a cup of green tea with delicious healthy pastries.
Anton Sikharulidze and Elena Berezhnaya love story began a long time ago, when the guy and girl studied at the St. Petersburg figure skating school. At first they met in the corridors after training, then Anton began to show Lenochka signs of attention, which angered his ice partner, who considered her property and often beat her. By the way, Berezhnaya did not believe that St. Petersburg’s first handsome man could pay attention to her, but he began to protect the girl from his partner’s attacks, protect her from everything and secretly invite her on dates.
Anton and Lena began dating, but they didn’t show it because they were rivals. Later, the romance grew into a strong passion and affection, but even the guys never entered into a civil marriage. After Berezhnaya’s injury, received on the eve of the European Championship, Sikharulidze was nearby all the time, helping to rehabilitate, reading books and talking about what was happening outside the hospital.
Since 1996, the guys began performing together and even toured the States with their own ice show. They took part in the European Championships and the Olympic Games, where they won gold, but their victories were constantly associated with scandals, including doping ones.
In 2006, the couple realized that their relationship had developed into a brotherly and friendly one, while Anton left figure skating for family reasons. After that, Lena tried to skate alone, but realized that it was time for her to leave figure skating.
Sikharulidze and Berezhnaya are family friends, he is a welcome guest in Lena’s house, and her little son calls the guy simply and cheerfully - Grandfather Anton.
It was rumored that Anton and Lena began to live together in 2021, but this is just a fantasy of the couple’s fans. By the way, Berezhnaya is the first person to whom the guy tells about his new passion and asks for advice.
Carier start
The biography of the famous figure skater began in 1977. The girl was born on October 11. The little girl started figure skating at the age of three. The famous coach Stanislav Zhuk drew attention to the child’s plasticity and talent. He immediately invited the promising girl to join his group.
From the age of thirteen, Elena’s training continued in Moscow. Lena was the only girl in the sports dormitory. Oleg Shlyakhov became her partner on the ice. They looked very impressive. However, the relationship between the young people was not easy.
The skater was of the opinion that the man is always right, and tried to explain his beliefs only from a position of strength. The press started talking about Shlyakhov’s tyranny. All the club skaters stood up for the fragile Elena. As a result, Oleg moved to Latvia with his partner.
The couple showed increasingly better results. The guys became the best, won various tournaments, and reached higher and higher standards. In 1998, the famous coach Tamara Moskvina drew the attention of the couple. Under the guidance of an experienced mentor, the athletes began training in St. Petersburg.
Oleg and Elena began to communicate as equals. The partner has become more tolerant. However, the situation soon became the same again. Two-time junior champion Anton Sikharulidze stood up for the girl. Oleg began to insist on moving to Latvia. Elena decided to leave her overly tough partner immediately after the European Championships.
Instagram and Wikipedia Elena Berezhnaya
Elena Berezhnaya’s Instagram and Wikipedia have been available for a long time and are intended primarily for communication with fans.
The Wikipedia article reveals to us little reliable information about the figure skater’s childhood, parents and education, but quite a lot of data about training, partners, injury, life after the end of her sports career, as well as sports achievements.
More than 15,500 people have subscribed to her Instagram profile and enjoy every new photo or video. By the way, almost all of them are dedicated to family life and children, who are photographed from all sides, as well as to the children’s favorite sports school of figure skating.
Return to sports
The pair of skaters Sikharulidze-Petrov had already broken up at that time. At first, Anton didn’t even think about pairing up with Berezhnaya. It happened naturally, with both skaters thinking about working together at the same time. Tamara Moskvina became the couple's coach. This collaboration marked the beginning of the career of a new triumphant duo, which soon captivated many figure skating fans and spectators around the world.
Immediately after figure skaters Berezhnaya and Sikharulidze paired up, victories rained down on them like from a cornucopia: 1997 brought the duo bronze at the European Championships in Paris.
Having become professionals in 2002, the guys played in this role until 2006 - it was then that they announced that they were ending their sports career. And on November 13, 2002, at the Olympic Golden Rings ceremony, the first prize in the category “Portraits of Salt Lake City Athletes” went to the film “Roses for Elena Berezhnaya.” Channel One filmed this film to tell the world about the difficult and brilliant journey of the Berezhnaya-Sikharulidze duo.
After leaving professional sports, Berezhnaya and Sikharulidze toured the United States with the “Stars on Ice” show, after which they safely returned to St. Petersburg. In the year of her retirement from sports, Elena participated in the show “Stars on Ice”, where she performed together with the actor. In 2008, Elena became a participant in the “Star Ice” show on RTR; Elena Berezhnaya’s partner was the famous pop singer. When her faithful ally Anton Sikharulidze finally retired from figure skating, Elena performed in various ice shows in single skating.
