Name Alexandra Stepanova Country represented Russia | Began skating 1999 Skating club UOR No 4 Moscow Height 1.68 m Training locations Moscow | |
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Native name aleksandra Nikolaevna Stepanova Full name Alexandra Nikolayevna Stepanova Coach | ||
Former choreographer Igor Pivorovich Combined total 160.952015 Europeans | ||
Alexandra Nikolayevna Stepanova (Russian: Александра Николаевна Степанова; born 19 August 1995) is a Russian ice dancer. With partner Ivan Bukin, she is the 2015 European bronze medalist, a three-time medalist on the Grand Prix series, a two-time Finlandia Trophy champion (2014, 2016), and a three-time Russian national medalist (2017 silver, 2015 and 2016 bronze). On the junior level, they won the 2013 World Junior Championships, 2012–13 JGP Final, and 2014 Russian Junior Championships.
Contents
- Personal life
- Early years
- 201011 to 201112
- 201213 season World Junior title
- 201314 season Senior debut
- 201415 season European bronze
- 201516 season
- 201617 season
- Programs
- Competitive highlights
- Detailed results
- References
Personal life
Alexandra Nikolayevna Stepanova was born on 19 August 1995 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Her mother is a former volleyball player and her father a speed skater.
Early years
Stepanova began learning to skate in 1999. As a single skater, she struggled with jumps because of her long legs, leading her coach to redirect her into ice dancing. Since there was no dance school in Saint Petersburg, she moved to Moscow. Stepanova was partnered with Bukin in 2006 by coaches Irina Zhuk and Alexander Svinin. She had no previous partners.
2010–11 to 2011–12
Stepanova/Bukin debuted on the Junior Grand Prix series in the 2010–11 season. They won both of their events and qualified for the 2010 JGP Final, where they won the bronze medal.
Stepanova/Bukin won both of their 2011–12 JGP events, Romania and Italy. Their placements qualified them for the JGP Final where they placed fourth in the short and second in the free dance to receive the bronze medal. They won silver at the 2012 Russian Junior Championships. Stepanova/Bukin then competed at the 2012 World Junior Championships and won the silver medal.
2012–13 season: World Junior title
In 2012–13, Stepanova/Bukin won gold medals at their JGP events in Turkey and Germany, qualifying them for the JGP Final in Sochi, Russia. They won the gold medal in their third appearance at the final. Stepanova/Bukin withdrew from the 2013 Russian Junior Championships due to Bukin's cold and sinusitis. They were assigned to the 2013 World Junior Championships where they won the gold medal, more than seven points ahead of French ice dancers Gabriella Papadakis / Guillaume Cizeron. After the event, the duo and their coaches discussed whether to move up to the senior level.
2013–14 season: Senior debut
Stepanova/Bukin decided to make their senior debut in the 2013–14 season. They were assigned to one 2013–14 Grand Prix event, the 2013 Skate Canada, and finished eighth. They came in fifth at the 2013 Winter Universiade. At the Russian Championships, Stepanova/Bukin finished sixth on the senior level and won gold on the junior level ahead of Yanovskaya/Mozgov. They were assigned to the 2014 World Junior Championships but withdrew due to illness.
2014–15 season: European bronze
Stepanova/Bukin began the 2014–15 season with a gold medal at the 2014 Finlandia Trophy, an ISU Challenger Series (CS) event. Their first Grand Prix medal, bronze, came at the 2014 Skate America. At the 2014 Rostelecom Cup, they finished 5th. Stepanova/Bukin took bronze at the 2015 Russian Championships and were assigned to the 2015 European Championships in Stockholm. They were awarded the bronze medal in Sweden, ahead of Elena Ilinykh / Ruslan Zhiganshin. They ended their season at the 2015 World Championships in Shanghai, finishing 9th.
2015–16 season
Stepanova/Bukin had planned to begin the 2015–16 season at the 2015 CS Finlandia Trophy, however, they withdrew because Bukin's off-season illness had slowed their preparations for the season. At the 2015 Trophée Éric Bompard (GP), they placed third in the short dance, which was accepted as the final result following the competition's cancellation due to the November 2015 Paris attacks. They finished fourth overall at their next GP event, the 2015 NHK Trophy. Stepanova/Bukin edged out Ilinykh/Zhiganshin for the bronze medal at the Russian Championships in late December in Ekaterinburg and finished as the third Russian team, in 5th place, in January 2016 at the European Championships in Bratislava.
Stepanova/Bukin were assigned to the 2016 World Championships in Boston after Ekaterina Bobrova / Dmitri Soloviev withdrew due to a positive doping sample. They finished 11th in the competition after placing eleventh in both the short and free dance.
2016–17 season
Stepanova/Bukin started their season on the Challenger Series, at the 2016 CS Finlandia Trophy. Ranked first in both segments, they earned personal best scores and won the gold medal by a margin of 7.07 points over silver medalists Madison Hubbell / Zachary Donohue. Their Grand Prix assignments are the 2016 Skate Canada International and 2016 Cup of China.
Programs
(with Bukin)
Competitive highlights
(with Bukin)
GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix
Detailed results
Small medals for short and free programs awarded only at ISU Championships. At team events, medals awarded for team results only.