Kamila Valieva who is she? Interesting facts about figure skater

Russian single figure skater Kamila Valieva at the age of 14 became the world champion and set more than one record. But her name could remain unknown to a wide range of sports fans, since the girl was close to despair, and there was a period when she even wanted to retire from figure skating after an injury. Thanks to the support of her mother and the coaches, who from childhood brought up the character of Kamila and developed her abilities, Valieva achieved success and became one of the main favorites for the 2022 Winter Olympics.

These and other interesting facts about Kamila Valieva.

The record might not be

In November 2021, at the Grand Prix stage in Sochi, Kamila Valieva managed to set a world record three times, which was one of the notable events of that season. However, the path to the success of the young athlete was not always easy: the obstacles and difficulties that Kamila had to face more than once made the girl think about ending her career. Few celebrity fans know that before moving on to Eteri Tutberidze, Valieva almost left figure skating.

Figure skating appeared in the life of the future champion when she was 3.5 years old. Parents brought the girl to the coach Ksenia Ivanova, and from the first lessons she saw the potential, noting Kamila's unchildish determination and responsibility. Then the family had to move to the capital, where new coaches and achievements were waiting for her. However, the athlete failed to achieve stable results for some time.

After a leg injury in the 2017 season, Kamila had doubts about her abilities and fear of difficult elements. The recovery process was difficult and lengthy. The parents of the young figure skater understood that something urgently needed to be done, and decided to show their daughter Eteri Georgievna. Before the show, Kamila decided for herself: if nothing works out, it’s not scary. But Tutberidze liked the skater, and she agreed to take her to her team as soon as she saw her first skate.

Once in an interview, coach of Valieva admitted that she sympathizes with skaters who were close to despair. Kamila says that she did not have a complete disappointment in sports at that moment, but she wanted to challenge herself and find out if her efforts were worth something or if she should leave and try other directions. It turned out that the girl’s doubts and worries were in vain: Tutberidze believed in Kamila and accepted her into her team, which made the athlete very happy and inspired.

First coach

The first coach of the champion Ksenia Ivanova said in an interview that Kamila was different from her peers at the age of 4. Interesting facts about Kamila Valieva include the fact that the girl’s mother from an early age was seriously involved in her development and brought up the necessary qualities in her.

Ksenia Semyonovna recalls that she immediately noticed in her ward a developed quick wit, a serious attitude to business, perseverance and the ability to go towards the goal. Also, already at that age, Camila had excellent athletic abilities: stretching, arcs and eversion. The correct approach of parents played its role: the work done gave good results. Ksenia Ivanova notes that she keeps in touch with her former student and sincerely rejoices at her results and achievements.

"Girl on the Ball"

Some time after the transition to Eteri Tutberidze, they began to talk about Kamila Valieva as a promising athlete who amazes the imagination with ballet data and a reference quadruple sheepskin coat. The program of demonstration performances “The Girl on the Ball”, which Eteri Georgievna staged for her in 2018 based on the famous painting of the same name, made a splash at the Junior World Figure Skating Championships in Tallinn. With this program, Valieva performed again in the next season.

The number that brought victory to the skater and a record 74.92 points was highly appreciated even by the granddaughter of the Spanish and French artist Pablo Picasso , who saw this performance. On her page on the social network, Diana Picasso wrote words of congratulations to the Russian athlete and noted that Kamila "paid tribute" to the famous work of art in the most beautiful way. The artist's heiress also invited the skater to the Picasso Museum in Paris.

Ballet and gymnastics

At the age of 4, Kamila Valieva was engaged not only in figure skating: her mother also took her daughter to ballet and rhythmic gymnastics, where the main emphasis is on stretching. The athlete is sure that this played a role and had a positive effect on her abilities. “Then it was already easier - in training there was no need to stretch separately,” the skater notes.

Ballet classes also helped the girl in the future: together with the coach, they tried to diversify her program on ice and included puffs and leg transfers, used a ballet tutu as an element of the outfit. But it didn’t work out for a long time to study in three sections at once: once the mother asked her daughter to make a choice and decide what she likes more. Camila chose figure skating and notes that she never regretted her choice afterwards.

Favorite dishes

From the interview of the athlete, several more interesting facts about Kamil Valieva are known. She is Tatar by nationality, was born and grew up in Kazan. The Valiev family respects Tatar customs and traditions and loves national cuisine. Kamila said that her favorite dishes are Tatar noodles, kystyby, echpochmak. When there is free time, the girl helps her mother and grandmother in the kitchen, learns to cook herself.

Favorite items

The figure skater also said that from the school curriculum she likes the exact sciences more: they are easier for her than the humanities. Kamila's favorite subjects: mathematics and algebra. Due to constant training, Kamila does not attend classes at school: she has to study individually with tutors, and for this she needs to get up early in the morning every day. The girl shared that she dreams of a perfect weekend, without a tutor, but such an opportunity rarely appears due to her busy schedule. 

Board games

At the end of the selection of interesting facts about Kamila Valieva, we add that the figure skater loves to play board games in her free time. At the training camp, athletes often play Monopoly, cards, Uno and others. It helps to forget about the excitement and get distracted. The figure skater notes that she wins more often, but in case of defeat she tries to treat it with humor, because the game is not to get angry, but to have fun.