home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
- The next great Russian pairs skaters after
- the Protopopovs were Irina Rodnina and
- Aleksander Zaitsev. Although Irina won the
- 1972 Olympic pairs competition with
- Aleksei Ulanov, they split up after the
- Games. Irina found a new partner,
- Aleksander. They fell in love and were
- married in 1975. The next year they won the
- gold medal at the Olympics. In 1978, Irina
- won her 10th straight world championship
- (four with Aleksei, six with Aleksander). She
- took the next year off to have a baby, but the
- pair made a blazing comeback at the 1980
- Olympics. Irina and Aleksander skated
- perfectly, and all nine judges placed them
- first! Irina had won her third Olympic gold
- medal.