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  • 5 weeks ago
From shopping mall ice rink to Olympic gold: the rise of Kazakh skater Mikhail Shaidorov

After winning Kazakhstan’s first Olympic gold medal in figure skating, Mikhail Shaidorov became a global sensation and one of the country’s most celebrated athletes.

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READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2026/07/15/from-shopping-mall-ice-rink-to-olympic-gold-the-rise-of-kazakh-skater-mikhail-shaidorov

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00:00a year ago, I could even imagine that I could grow in a figure skating and
00:08so I could grow in a piece of gold. I got it. I try to go every day and go
00:14forward.
00:19I started skating in the shopping center. My dad started to train my father.
00:26It was 8-9 years ago.
00:29I went to school for training.
00:33I trained myself.
00:34Because sometimes my father didn't have enough time.
00:38He trained other children.
00:40My father gave me a very good base.
00:43And thanks to this base, of course, I managed to go further.
00:48In 2022, I didn't get to go to the Olympics because of my traumas.
00:53But I went to this Olympics, to show you what I did for these 5 years.
01:00These 5 years were very difficult for me.
01:03And trauma, and mistakes, and different moments.
01:08The Olympics season is always the most difficult.
01:11Starting in June, I felt a bit of a pressure.
01:17In August, it was a bit of a colossal pressure.
01:20When I came to the Olympics, I had a lot of pain in my legs.
01:26I was already here.
01:28I was already a top sportsman.
01:30I just want to get pleasure from these tournaments.
01:34I enjoy these moments.
01:35Before the Olympics, I started training for three days.
01:38Before the Olympics, I started training for four days.
01:40It was the fifth, the fifth, the fifth, the fourth.
01:46I trained for three days.
01:49Because I understood that you need to risk.
01:51To win a medal.
01:55In the beginning of the season, I planned to do it.
01:58But I didn't work.
01:59Of course, the risk was very high.
02:02But since I gained experience for the last few years, I realized that I can do it.
02:09So, I believed in myself.
02:11I just came out and realized that now I will prove everything.
02:15This is what I went for these five years.
02:17And in the 15th, the 13th, I became a champion.
02:27I didn't believe in it.
02:29I believed in it.
02:29Because I understood that I was just skating.
02:33It was really cool.
02:34But to still believe in it, that you are an Olympic champion.
02:37It's very difficult.
02:38I was very proud of the President.
02:40And for the citizens of the country, it's the most important thing.
02:44I was very proud of the President.
02:45I was very proud of the President.
02:48It was very cool.
02:50And when the skating was on the peak,
02:57for me, it was the most important thing.
02:59I was able to raise the flag of our country.
03:05And a lot of people in the world just united.
03:11They celebrated the country.
03:12They celebrated the country.
03:13They celebrated me.
03:14And it was, of course, the most important victory for me.
03:24I had to do it.
03:24By the time you played a year ago, I was out,
03:26I could not think about it.
03:28I was able to grow in a figure would have been in this sport.
03:30And I could be able to win the Olympic gold.
03:32But I got it.
03:33And I try to go on and every day.
03:36I want to try something new.
03:41I want to work with other specialists.
03:43work with new choreographs, and of course, I understand that there is a lot of potential if I want to
03:50do it in a new season.
03:53So, I want to open the new book, open the new book and start it again.
04:06Now, I plan to create my new show. I hope that the first place in the first place will be
04:13in Almaty.
04:14And I want to make it very cool. And now, I'm doing this. I want to create my new show
04:21and invite my friends and many world stars,
04:26who can come to Kazakhstan, my friends.
04:29And, of course, for me, it's sport. I'm going to go to Grand Prix.
04:34And, of course, I plan to do some new elements, do something new.
04:40For me, this is the main thing.
04:42I want to develop this sport, to develop a figure of skating,
04:46so that young children from Kazakhstan saw this and motivated them.
04:52Now, for me, it's important to be in our country to develop a figure of skating.
04:56I'll be right back.
04:58I'll be right back.
04:59Now, in the next couple of weeks, the live cars out here.
04:59You can see some new cars.
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