Elena Berezhnaya

Elena Berezhnaya
Berezhnaya with Sikharulidze
Personal Information
Country Represented	Russia (1996-2002) Latvia (1992-1996)
Full Name	Elena Viktorovna Berezhnaya
Native Name	Елена Викторовна Бережная
Born	October 11, 1977 Nevonnimyssk, Soviet Union
Home Town	St. Petersburg
Age	47 years
Club	Yubileyny Sport Club
Languages	Russian
Career Info
Former Partner	Anton Sikharulidze (1996-2002) Oļegs Šļahovs (1992-1996)
Former Coaches	Nina Ruchkina, Tamara Moskvina
Former Choreographers	Alexander Matveev, Alexander Zhulin, David Avdish, Igor Bobrin
Former Training Locations	Moscow Nevinnomyssk St. Petersburg Riga, Latvia Colorado Springs, USA Hackensack, NJ, USA Stamford, CT, USA
Began Skating	1983
Retired	2002
Physical Description
Height	154 cm (5' 1")
Gender	Female
Eye Color	Dark Blue
Ethnicity	Russian

Elena Viktorovna Berezhnaya (Russian: Елена Викторовна Бережная; born October 11, 1977) is a Russian retired competitive figure skater. With former partner Anton Sikharulidze, she is the 2002 Winter Olympic champion, a two-time World champion (1998 & 1999), a two-time European champion (1998-2001), the 1997-98 Grand Prix Final champion, and a four-time Russian champion (1999-2002).  

Her 2002 Winter Olympic win was not without controversy. In the days following the event, it was reported that a judge from the freeskate, Marie-Reine Le Gougne, had allegedly broken down and claimed she was forced to place Berezhnaya / Sikharulidze ahead of silver medalists Salé / Pelletier under duress of the French figure skating organization, as part of a deal for Anissina / Peizerat to win the ice dance Olympic event. Le Gougne's freeskate vote was subsequently discarded, leaving both Salé / Pelletier and Berezhnaya / Sikharulidze as the Olympic champions.  

Programs

With Sikharulidze

Season	Short Program	Freeskate
2001-2002	La Califfa by Ennio Morricone choreo. by Igor Bobrin	Meditation (from Thaïs) by Jules Massenet performed by Nigel Kennedy choreo. by Igor Bobrin
2000-2001	Meadowlands by Lev Knipper choreo. by Igor Bobrin	City Lights by Charlie Chaplin choreo. by Igor Bobrin
1999-2000	Radetzky March by Johann Strauss I choreo. by Alexander Matveev & David Avdish	Valse Sentimentale (from 6 Pieces) by Pyotr Tchaikovsky choreo. by Alexander Matveev & David Avdish
		Initial FS: I Will Wait for You (from The Umbrellas of Cherbourg) by Michel Legrand
1998-1999	Happy Valley by Vanessa-Mae, Andy Hill, & Pamela Nicholson performed by Vanessa-Mae choreo. by Alexander Matveev	Concerto for Coloratura and Orchestra by Reinhold Glière choreo. by Alexander Matveev
1997-1998	Swan Lake by Pyotr Tchaikovsky choreo. by Alexander Matveev	Dark Eyes by Adalgiso Ferraris choreo. by Alexander Matveev
1996-1997	Seid umschlungen, Millionen! by Johann Strauss II choreo. by Alexander Matveev	Dark Eyes by Adalgiso Ferraris choreo. by Alexander Matveev

Exhibitions

Season	Music
2001-2002	The Kid by Charlie Chaplin choreo. by Igor Bobrin
2000-2001	El Farol by Carlos Santana & K. C. Porter performed by Santana Smooth by Itaal Shur & Rob Thomas performed by Santana choreo. by Alexander Zhulin
1999-2000	You're the Boss by Mike Stoller covered by Brian Setzer & Gwen Stefani
	Te Vas by Flavio Santander performed by Carlos Ponce
	Let Me Be Your Wings (from Thumbelina) by Barry Manilow
1998-1999	The Impossible Dream (from Man of La Mancha) by Mitch Leigh covered by Luther Vandross
1997-1998	Barcelona by John Tesh
1996-1997	Elegie Op. 3 No. 1 (from Morceaux de Fantaisie) by Sergei Rachmaninoff performed by The Bekova Sisters

With Šļahovs

Season	Short Program	Freeskate
1995-1996	Orange Blossom Special by Ervin T. Rouse & Gordon Rouse	Where Have All the Flowers Gone? by Pete Seeger Music by John Miles
1994-1995	Beat It Smooth Criminal by Michael Jackson	Where Have All the Flowers Gone? by Pete Seeger Music by John Miles
1993-1994	In the Mood by Wingy Manone	Overture (from Jesus Christ Superstar) by Andrew Lloyd Webber

Exhibitions

Season	Music
1995-1996	Endless Love by Lionel Richie performed by Diana Ross & Lionel Richie
1994-1995	Beat It Smooth Criminal by Michael Jackson

ISU Results

With Sikharulidze

2001-2002 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	FS	Total
February 8 - 25	2002 Winter Olympics	1 0.5	--	N/A	1 N/A
December 13 - 16	2001-02 Grand Prix Final	2 0.8	1 0.6	2 2.0	2 3.4
November 22 - 25	2001 Cup of Russia	3 1.5	1 1.0	N/A	1 2.5
November 15 - 18	2001 Trophée Lalique	1 0.5	1 1.0		1 1.5
September 4 - 9	2001 Goodwill Games	1 0.5	1 1.0		1 1.5
2000-2001 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	FS	Total
March 17 - 25	2001 World Championships	1 0.5	2 2.0	N/A	2 2.5
January 21 - 28	2001 European Championships	1 0.5	1 1.0		1 1.5
February 15 - 18	2000-01 Grand Prix Final	1 0.5	2 2.0	2	2 2.5
November 23 - 25	2000 Trophée Lalique	2 1.0	1 1.0	N/A	1 2.0
November 16 - 19	2000 Cup of Russia	1 0.5	1 1.0		1 1.5
November 2 - 5	2000 Skate Canada	1 0.5	2 2.0		2 2.5
1999-2000 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	FS	Total
February 6 - 13	2000 European Championships	2 1.0	1 1.0	N/A	1 2.0
January 13 - 16	1999-00 Grand Prix Final	2 1.0	5 5.0	1	3 6.0
November 4 - 7	1999 Skate Canada	1 0.5	1 1.0	N/A	1 1.5
October 27 - 31	1999 Skate America	4 2.0	3 3.0		3 5.0

1998-1999 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	Total
March 20 - 28	1999 World Championships	1 0.5	1 1.0	1 1.5
March 5 - 7	1998-99 Grand Prix Final	2 1.0	2 2.0	2 3.0
January 24 - 31	1999 European Championships	1 0.5	WD
December 2 - 6	1998 NHK Trophy	1 0.5	1 1.0	1 1.5
November 26 - 29	1998 Cup of Russia	1 0.5	1 1.0	1 1.5
October 29 - November 1	1998 Skate America	1 0.5	1 1.0	1 1.5
July 29 - August 1	1998 Goodwill Games	1 0.5	1 1.0	1 1.5
1997-1998 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	Total
March 29 - April 5	1998 World Championships	2 1.0	1 1.0	1 2.0
February 7 - 22	1998 Winter Olympics	3 1.5	2 2.0	2 3.5
January 11 - 18	1998 European Championships	1 0.5	1 1.0	1 1.5
December 18 - 20	1997-98 Grand Prix Final	2 1.0	1 1.0	1 2.0
November 13 - 16	1997 Trophée Lalique	1 0.5	1 1.0	1 1.5
October 30 - November 2	1997 Nations Cup	2 1.0	2 2.0	2 3.0
1996-1997 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	Total
March 16 - 23	1997 World Championships	3 1.5	12 12.0	9 13.5
January 21 - 25	1997 European Championships	4 2.0	3 3.0	3 5.0
December 12 - 15	1996 Cup of Russia	5 2.5	5 5.0	5 7.5
November 15 - 17	1996 Trophée Lalique	2 1.0	3 3.0	3 4.0

With Šļahovs

1995-1996 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	Total
December	1995 Skate Israel	2 1.0	2 2.0	2 3.0
November 23 - 25	1995 Nations Cup	4 2.0	3 3.0	3 5.0
November 14 - 17	1995 Trophée de France	1 0.5	1 1.0	1 1.5
October 17 - 22	1995 Skate America	3 1.5	3 3.0	3 4.5
1994-1995 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	Total
March 7 - 12	1995 World Championships	7 3.5	7 7.0	7 10.5
January 29 - February 5	1995 European Championships	5 2.5	5 5.0	5 7.5
December 8 - 11	1994 NHK Trophy	4 2.0	4 4.0	4 6.0
November 15 - 19	1994 Trophée de France	3 1.5	2 2.0	2 3.5
November 3 - 6	1994 Skate Canada	1 0.5	2 2.0	2 2.5
October 26 - 31	1994 Skate America	4 2.0	4 4.0	4 6.0
July 23 - August 7	1994 Goodwill Games	4 2.0	4 4.0	4 6.0
1993-1994 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	Total
March 20 - 27	1994 World Championships	11 5.5	6 6.0	7 11.5
February 13 - 25	1994 Winter Olympics	9 4.5	9 9.0	8 13.5
January 17 - 23	1994 European Championships	6 3.0	9 9.0	8 12.0
November 4 - 7	1993 Skate Canada	unknown		4
October 27 - 31	1993 Piruetten	3 1.5	4 4.0	4 5.5
August 31 - September 3	1993 Nebelhorn Trophy	2 1.0	2 2.0	2 3.0
1992-1993 Season
Date	Competition	SP	FS	Total
March 9 - 14	1993 World Championships	15 7.5	13 13.0	14 20.5
January 12 - 17	1993 European Championships	8 4.0	8 8.0	8 12.0
November 26 - 29	1992 Piruetten	unknown		2

Medal Record

(In chronological order)

With Sikharulidze

Type	Competition	Season	Level
Gold	2002 Winter Olympics	2001-02	Senior
Gold	2002 Russian Championships	2001-02	Senior
Silver	2001-02 Grand Prix Final	2001-02	Senior
Gold	2001 Cup of Russia	2001-02	Senior
Gold	2001 Trophée Lalique	2001-02	Senior
Gold	2001 Goodwill Games	2001-02	Senior
Silver	2001 World Championships	2000-01	Senior
Silver	2000-01 Grand Prix Final	2000-01	Senior
Gold	2001 European Championships	2000-01	Senior
Gold	2001 Russian Championships	2000-01	Senior
Gold	2000 Trophée Lalique	2000-01	Senior
Gold	2000 Cup of Russia	2000-01	Senior
Silver	2000 Skate Canada	2000-01	Senior
Gold	2000 European Championships (DQ)	1999-00	Senior
Bronze	1999-00 Grand Prix Final	1999-00	Senior
Gold	2000 Russian Championships	1999-00	Senior
Gold	1999 Skate Canada	1999-00	Senior
Bronze	1999 Skate America	1999-00	Senior
Gold	1999 World Championships	1998-99	Senior
Silver	1998-99 Grand Prix Final	1998-99	Senior
Gold	1999 Russian Championships	1998-99	Senior
Gold	1998 NHK Trophy	1998-99	Senior
Gold	1998 Cup of Russia	1998-99	Senior
Gold	1998 Skate America	1998-99	Senior
Gold	1998 Goodwill Games	1998-99	Senior
Gold	1998 World Championships	1997-98	Senior
Silver	1998 Winter Olympics	1997-98	Senior
Gold	1998 European Championships	1997-98	Senior
Gold	1997-98 Grand Prix Final	1997-98	Senior
Silver	1998 Russian Championships	1997-98	Senior
Gold	1997 Trophée Lalique	1997-98	Senior
Silver	1997 Nations Cup	1997-98	Senior
Bronze	1997 European Championships	1996-97	Senior
Silver	1997 Russian Championships	1996-97	Senior
Bronze	1996 Trophée Lalique	1996-97	Senior

With Šļahovs

Type	Competition	Season	Level
Silver	1995 Skate Israel	1995-96	Senior
Bronze	1995 Nations Cup	1995-96	Senior
Gold	1995 Trophée de France	1995-96	Senior
Bronze	1995 Skate America	1995-96	Senior
Silver	1994 Trophée de France	1994-95	Senior
Silver	1994 Skate Canada	1994-95	Senior
Silver	1993 Nebelhorn Trophy	1993-94	Senior
Silver	1992 Piruetten	1992-93	Senior

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elena_Berezhnaya

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anton_Sikharulidze

https://web.archive.org/web/20071007201807/http://www.pairsonice.net/profileview.php?pid=6

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_Winter_Olympics_figure_skating_scandal

https://www.nytimes.com/1998/11/01/nyregion/russian-champions-on-the-stamford-ice.html

https://archive.li/TbMV3

http://source.fsonline.ru/index.php/bios/pairs/archive/549-p-rus-bersik