May 2002
From Blades on Ice (June 2002 edition):
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS WITH EKATERINA GORDEEVA
by Blades on Ice
Q: What do you remember most about your Olympic experience?
A: "Definitely the actual performances and the feelings Sergei and I had afterwards, particularly after skating the free programs, knowing we had skated well and feeling we had won."
Q: How would you describe your Olympic experiences? How was each different?
A: "Our two Olympics felt so different. In 1988, we were so young and everything was much easier for us. THough we were world champions, going into the Olympics we really didn't feel like favorites because there were also two great, experienced, Russian teams (Elena Valova & Oleg Vasiliev and Larisa Selezneva & Oleg Makarov). We were so young and didn't expect we could land on top. So because of this, we really didn't feel the pressure like in 1994.
" In Lillehamer, Sergei and I put so much pressure on ourselves because it was totally our decision to come back, to reinstate. Plus, we wanted to win so much for each other. We had skated well all season, but the build-up to skating at the Olympics was much harder the second time."
Q: How did you cope with the pressure of the Olympics?
A: "We talked a lot with our coaches, which made it easier. But, I think it's easier for a team to handle the pressure. You have someone else who's going through what you are and you can talk about it to each other, calm each other."
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