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by Ekaterina Gordeeva (Author), E. M. Swift (Author)
The Olympic gold medalist offers a poignant, loving account of her life with her long-time partner and beloved husband, Sergei Grinkov, from their first introduction and successive world pairs skating championships, to their storybook romance and marriage, to the fatal heart attack that took Sergei's life.
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Ekaterina Gordeeva and Sergei Grinkov were the most celebrated pairs skaters of all time. Partners in life as well as on the ice, they were rarely apart. Then, tragically, Sergei died at the age of twenty-eight. Now in her own words, his wife, Katia, tells their remarkable story, in this loving tribute to the exceptional man she idolized, whom she called...My Sergei. They were two mismatched kids teamed by the Soviet regime to perform for the good of the state. She was a tiny, serious girl of eleven; he was a fun-loving boy of fifteen. But they were talented and dedicated, and together they won four World Championships, two Olympic gold medals - and the hearts of millions of fans. Somewhere along the way, between training and competing, the couple fell madly in love, discovering the kind of profound relationship few ever find. Gordeeva and Grinkov (G & G as they were affectionately known) managed to parlay their intense emotions for each other into an exquisite, passionate skating style - one that became even more luminous after the birth of their daughter. Then, without warning, on November 20, 1995, Sergei suffered a fatal heart attack during a routine training session. Katia's dreams lay shattered. They had skated together for fourteen years and Sergei had been her protector. Katia, innocent in the ways of the world, was left to fend for herself and three-year-old Daria. In My Sergei, Katia recalls her storybook romance with Sergei: from first kiss in Russia to young love in Paris...from solemn marriage vows in Moscow to joyous parenthood in America. She tells of Sergei's ideals and aspirations. She shares their experiences as skaters, offering a candid look at the demanding world ofthe ice arena and its thrilling stars. And she speaks eloquently of Sergei's death and her battle to overcome grief, build a new life for herself and Daria, and summon the courage to skate again...alone.
