BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY Robin Szolkowy born 14 July 1976 is a German pair skater. With partner Aliona Savchenko, he is the 2010 Olympic bronze medalist, a four-time (2008, 2009, 2011, 2012) World Champion, a four-time (2007–2009, 2011) European Champion, a three-time (2007, 2010, 2011) Grand Prix Final Champion, and a seven-time (2004–2009, 2011) German National Champion.
Savchenko and Szolkowy scored the first 10.0 ever given by a judge under the ISU Judging System.
Personal life
Szolkowy was born in Greifswald, Rostock district, East Germany. His mother, a nurse, met his father, a Tanzanian medical doctor, when the latter was a student in Greifswald. Although he had seen photos of his father, the two did not meet until March 2008, in Vienna, Austria.
Career
Early career
Szolkowy began skating in Erfurt in 1983 after his mother saw an advertisement for a new skating rink. Originally a singles skater, he switched to pairs when he was 16. Szolkowy's first partner was Johanna Otto, followed in 1997 by Claudia Rauschenbach, daughter of 1980 Olympic gold medalist Anett Pötzsch. Rauschenbach and Szolkowy won the German Junior National pair title three times and the 2001 senior German National pair title but never placed higher than ninth at Junior Worlds. Their coach was Monika Scheibe.
Partnership with Savchenko
Former World champion Ingo Steuer suggested partnering with Aliona Savchenko, the 2000 World Juniorchampion (with Stanislav Morozov). In May 2003, they had a successful tryout in Chemnitz. Three months later, she relocated to Germany and the new team began training in earnest with Steuer as their coach. When they first teamed up, they had to adjust to the fact that they had been taught different basics.After Rauschenbach retired, Szolkowy was unable to find a new skating partner for a year and a half. During this forced hiatus, he participated in synchronized skating in an effort to maintain some of his skills.
In 2004, during their first season together, Savchenko and Szolkowy won the German National title. The two made their international debut as a team at the start of the 2004–2005 season. They again won the German National title, placed fourth at the 2005 European Championships with 158.73 points and sixth at the 2005 World Championships earning 169.02 points.
2005–2006 season
In the 2005–2006 season, Savchenko and Szolkowy earned their first Grand Prix gold medal at Skate Canada, placing first in both programs, and went on win the bronze medal in their first appearance at the Grand Prix Final. After winning their third national title, Savchenko and Szolkowy took the silver medal in their second appearance at the European Championships. They finished 7.79 points behind champions Tatiana Totmianina /Maxim Marinin.
Savchenko received German citizenship on 29 December 2005, making it possible for the pair to compete at the 2006 Winter Olympic Games. Just prior to the Olympics, the National Olympic Committee of Germany decided to exclude their coach, Ingo Steuer, from the Olympic team due to his collusion with the Stasi. After a court battle, he was granted accreditation. Savchenko and Szolkowy finished sixth with 180.15 points. They also placed sixth at 2006 Worlds some weeks later, where they earned 170.08 points overall.
2006–2007 Savchenko and Szolkowy placed third at the 2006 Cup of China and won the 2006 Cup of Russia, qualifying them to the 2006–2007 Grand Prix Final, held in Saint Petersburg. They finished second with a total of 180.67 points, 22.52 behind Shen Xue / Zhao Hongbo, who won gold. In January 2007, they won their fourth German national title.The German Ministry of Interior Affairs continued to put pressure on the German Skating Federation over the Steuer affair. As a result, the pair's coach was denied accreditation for the upcoming competitions but the team won in court. However, the pair's refusal to leave their coach cost Szolkowy his place in the German army, which sponsored his skating. Private sponsors and fans supported the pair.
Savchenko and Szolkowy won the European Championships for the first time, becoming the first German pair skaters to win this title in twelve years; their coach, Ingo Steuer, had won with Mandy Wötzel in 1995. They won the short program with 65.38 points, although Savchenko fell on thethrow triple flip. In the free skate, they set a new personal best of 134.01 points while skating to the soundtrack of the film The Mission. Their combined total of 199.39 points was also a new best, and they finished 19.78 points ahead of silver medalists Maria Petrova / Alexei Tikhonov.
Savchenko and Szolkowy made their third World appearance at the 2007 World Championships. Second in the short program and third in the free skate, they won their first World medal, a bronze. Their total score was 16.11 points behind gold medalists Shen / Zhao.
2007–2008 season
In the 2007–2008 season, Savchenko and Szolkowy won gold at the 2007 Skate Canada, silver at the 2007 Cup of Russia (second to Zhang Dan /Zhang Hao), and gold at the 2007 NHK Trophy. At the 2007–2008 Grand Prix Final in December 2007, Savchenko and Szolkowy scored 72.14 in the short program, setting a new world record, and a season's best of 127.09 points in the free skate to win the pair title with 199.23 overall, eight points ahead of silver medalists Zhang / Zhang.
In January 2008, Savchenko and Szolkowy successfully defended their European title. Finishing first in both segments with a total score of 202.39 points, they won their second European title by a 32.98-point lead over silver medalists Maria Mukhortova / Maxim Trankov. At the 2008 World Championships, held in Gothenburg, Sweden, they placed second in the short program, 2.36 points behind Zhang / Zhang of Chin, and first in the free skate, 6.74 ahead of Jessica Dubé / Bryce Davison. Overall, Savchenko / Szolkowy finished 5.04 points ahead of silver medalists Zhang / Zhang and won their first World Championship title.
2008–2009 season
In the 2008–2009 season, Savchenko and Szolkowy won both of their Grand Prix assignments, the 2008 Skate America and the 2008 Trophée Eric Bompard. They took the bronze medal at the 2008–2009 Grand Prix Final, earning a season's best of 70.14 in the short program and placing third in the long program with a score of 114.95. Overall, they earned 185.09 points to finish 6.40 points behind gold medalists Pang Qing / Tong Jian.
In late January 2009, they competed at the 2009 European Championships as the defending champions. After placing second in the short program, 2.98 behind Maria Mukhortova / Maxim Trankov, they won the free skate with a season's best score of 132.43 points and won the competition overall with a total of 199.07 points, 16.30 points ahead of silver medalists Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov. This earned Savchenko and Szolkowy their third consecutive European title.
Savchenko and Szolkowy went to the 2009 World Championships as the defending champions. Despite Savchenko fighting a flu, they tallied a personal best 72.30 points in the short program to take the lead by a margin of 3.36 points over Kavaguti / Smirnov. They also won the free skate with 131.18 points. A throw triple salchow on the last beat of their music in the long program ensured victory. They finished with a combined total of 203.48 points, another personal best, and won by almost 17 points over silver medalists Zhang Dan / Zhang Hao. Savchenko / Szolkowy were the first German pair since Marika Kilius / Hans-Jürgen Bäumler (1963 and 1964) to successfully defend a World Championship title.
2009–2010 season
Savchenko and Szolkowy began the 2009–2010 season at the 2009 Nebelhorn Trophy. They finished first in both segments and earned the gold medal with a total score of 185.99 points. At their first Grand Prix of the season, the 2009 Trophée Eric Bompard, the pair placed first in the short program with a new personal best score of 72.98 points, leading by 6.1 points over Maria Mukhortova / Maxim Trankov, but finished fourth in the free skate with 101.44 points. Overall, they won the bronze medal with 174.42 points, 18.51 behind gold medalists Mukhortova / Trankov. On the plane back to Germany, Steuer suggested scrapping their long program to You'll Never Walk Alone, which had been recorded for them by André Rieu's orchestra in Maastricht. Although they had worked on the program since May, Savchenko said it "just didn't suit us", so they decided to prepare a new one to the soundtrack of Out of Africa.
At the 2009 Skate Canada, Savchenko and Szolkowy won the short program, improving their personal best to 74.16 points, and leading the rest of the field by 8.36 points. They also won the free skate with a score of 132.55 points, placing first overall with 206.71 points, 21 ahead of Mukhortova / Trankov. They set a new world record for pairs' combined total under the ISU Judging System. It was also the first time a judge gave a 10.0 under the Code of Points.
Their placements in their two 2009–2010 Grand Prix events qualified them for the 2009–2010 Grand Prix Final that was held in Tokyo, Japan, in December 2009. Savchenko and Szolkowy placed second in the short program with 73.14 points, 2.22 behind Shen Xue / Zhao Hongbo. However, they finished fourth in the free skate with 127.24 points. They won the bronze medal overall with 200.38 points, 13.87 behind gold medalists Shen / Zhao. Savchenko developed a flu during the Grand Prix Final which worsened and forced the pair to withdraw from German Nationals.
At the 2010 European Championships, Savchenko and Szolkowy led in the short program with 74.12 points, by just 0.2 over Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov. They placed second in the free skate with a new personal best 137.60 points, 1.63 behind gold medalists Kavaguti / Smirnov, who consequently placed first in the free skate and overall. Overall, Savchenko and Szolkowy earned a new personal best score of 211.72 points.
At the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, Savchenko and Szolkowy earned their personal best score of 75.96 points in the short program, yet only placed second. Shen / Zhao took the top stop with a world record short program score of 76.66 points. They placed third in the free skating with 134.64 points, 7.16 behind Pang Qing / Tong Jian, who placed first in that segment. Overall they won the bronze medal with 210.60 points, 5.97 behind gold medalists and Olympic champions Shen / Zhao and 2.71 behind silver medalists Pang / Tong.
Savchenko and Szolkowy ended their season at the 2010 World Championships. They placed third in the short program with 69.52 points, which was 5.76 behind leaders Pang / Tong. In the free skate they placed second with a score of 135.22 points, 0.89 behind Pang / Tong, who also won that segment to capture the gold medal. Overall, the team totaled 204.74 points to win the silver medal. Following the Olympics, Savchenko and Szolkowy both concluded they would like to continue competing at least another season.
2010–2011 season
After performing in fifteen shows, Savchenko and Szolkowy began training for the 2010–2011 season in May 2010 in Chemnitz. The pair experimented with a throw quad flip in training. Steuer said, "It did work sometimes, but it needs extremely high concentration."] In September 2010, Savchenko stated that they "plan to continue through 2014, but you never know if our bodies will work as we like them to work."
Savchenko and Szolkowy won 2010 Skate America by over 20 points and 2010 Trophée Eric Bompard by 14 points. On their way back from France, the airline lost their luggage containing their skates, resulting in concerns the pair would be forced to withdraw from the Grand Prix Final. Skates are not permitted as part of hand luggage because the blades are considered potential weapons. The airline found their luggage a few days later. They placed first in both the short and long program at the 2010–2011 Grand Prix Final to win the title.
At the European Championships, Savchenko and Szolkowy won the short program by almost three points, receiving a perfect ten for performance and execution from one of the judges. In the long program, the pair received zero points for a spin after an error by Savchenko; they placed second in the free program by less than a point, finishing first overall to win their fourth European title ahead of 2010 champions Kavaguti and Smirnov. Their training ice was scheduled to be melted in late March, after they would normally have left for the World Championships, however, the competition was postponed to late April. They were able to get their ice time extended until Easter, with the city and sport association negotiating the finances.
At the 2011 World Championships, Savchenko and Szolkowy were in second place following the short program. They went on to win their third World Championships with a record-breaking free skate. Their total score was also a new world record. With this win, the pair capped off a season in which they won every event they entered.
2011–2012 season
Savchenko and Szolkowy took up the new option of competing at three Grand Prix events during the 2011–2012 season. They are entered in 2011 Skate America, 2011 NHK Trophy and 2011 Cup of Russia. In October, they confirmed Pina and Angels & Demons as their new music selections and said they were practicing a throw triple Axel, successfully executed in international competition by only one previous pair, Americans Rena Inoue / John Baldwin at the 2006 Winter Olympics. At Skate America, Savchenko and Szolkowy attempted the throw triple axel in the short program but experienced a hard fall. They were given credit for completing the revolutions and finished in 5th place, 3.4 points off the lead. They rebounded to place first in the free skate and won their second consecutive Skate America title and third in their career. They added a reverse lasso lift to their free program but performed only a double twist because they were still working on a new entry to the triple.
They attempted the throw triple axel again in the short program at 2011 NHK Trophy but Savchenko took another hard fall. They finished third at the event. Savchenko and Szolkowy rebounded to win the 2011 Rostelecom Cup. They qualified for the 2011–12 Grand Prix Final. Although they did not attempt it in Russia, they said they had not ruled out the triple axel. They also said they were considering missing the German Championships in order to rest. At the Grand Prix Final, Savchenko and Szolkowy won the gold medal with a total score of 212.26, defeating Volosozhar and Trankov by a margin of only 0.18 points. Savchenko and Szolkowy missed their nationals with the German Skating Union's okay and continued to work on the throw triple axel. Savchenko ruptured a muscle fiber in her left upper thigh as a result of a fall in training on January 12, 2012. Due to Savchenko not being fully fit, the pair considered withdrawing from the 2012 European Championships (pairs event January 25–26) or reducing the level of planned difficulty but said they feared a withdrawal would result in a one-year ban from competition if they performed in February 2–8 Art on Ice shows, a significant source of income (around 80,000 euros)[57] for the pair which receives no funding from the German federation. By the start of the competition, Savchenko was able to land jumps and throws but spins aggravated her injury, causing the pair to withdraw before the short program on January 25.
At the 2012 World Championships in Nice, France, Savchenko / Szolkowy were first in the short program on March 28.[60] After falls on previous competition attempts, Savchenko landed the throw triple Axel for the first time in their career but her free foot touched the ice.[60] On March 29, Szolkowy lost a court case seeking reinstatement to the Bundeswehr which funded his sports career until 2006 – the court stated he did not have an authorized coach.[61][62] Savchenko and Szolkowy were second in the free skate on March 30 but finished first overall. They won their fourth World title – becoming the fifth pair in the post-World War II period to do so – by a margin of 0.11 points over silver medalists Volosozhar and Trankov.[63]
2012–2013 season[edit]
Savchenko and Szolkowy began the season with gold at the 2012 Skate Canada International, although Savchenko had a flu.[64] Officials elected not to impose a deduction after Szolkowy violated the regulation against men wearing tights.[64] Steuer said they would consider making some adjustments.[64] Their colorful costumes received a mixed reaction, with one Canadian journalist describing them as "something that looked like the cat threw up", however, Szolkowy said he was pleased with the results of their collaboration with a Chemnitz design studio. On 8 November 2012, it was announced that Savchenko and Szolkowy had signed a three-year agreement with their first major sponsor, ThomasLloyd, a Swiss investment banking group. Szolkowy said that they no longer had to worry about finances.[65] The pair said they were uncertain if they would compete at their second Grand Prix assignment, the 2012 Trophée Eric Bompard, due to Savchenko's illness. Savchenko's cold having developed into a severe sinus infection, the pair confirmed their withdrawal a week later. Since ISU rules do not allow another GP event to be given if skaters withdraw for any reason from an assignment, this also meant they would not qualify for the Grand Prix Final in Sochi. They won silver medals at both the 2013 European Championships and the 2013 World Figure Skating Championships.
2013-2014 season
Savchenko and Szolkowy were assigned to the 2013 Cup of China and the 2013 Rostelecom Cup as their Grand Prix events. They finished second in the short program but won the free skate to claim the Cup of China title, making them only the second pair to win all six Grand Prix events.
Training, shows, and awards
Savchenko and Szolkowy have trained mostly in Chemnitz since teaming up. They train twice a day, six days a week. Ingo Steuer has served as their sole coach and choreographer throughout their entire career together and he also cuts their music and sharpens their skates. Savchenko designs the pair's costumes. The ice rink in Chemnitz is typically melted from the start of April to mid-May; they train in Dresden if they need ice time during this period.
Savchenko and Szolkowy have toured in multiple ice shows around the world, including the 2009 Ice All Stars, All That Skate, the 2010 Art on Ice in Lausanne, Switzerland, and shows in Davos, Oberstdorf, and Ingolstadt.
In October 2011, Savchenko and Szolkowy were awarded the public prize at Germany's tenth and final Unity Prize ceremony. In January 2012, they were voted Saxony's Sports Team of 2011.
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