No easy ride for Isinbayeva

[rainbowgirl28]

http://au.sports.yahoo.com/060314/3/lf1v.html

No easy ride for pole vault queen Isinbayeva
Tuesday March 14, 12:01 PM


MOSCOW, March 14 (Reuters) - She has been hailed as the queen of athletics and Russia's newest sweetheart, but life does not get any easier for Olympic pole vault champion and world record holder Yelena Isinbayeva.
After adding the world indoor title to an already glittering medal collection, the 23-year-old Volgograd native was probably expecting to receive new accolades.

Instead, she faced a barrage of questions from demanding local press, more interested in a possible tie-up with Chelsea billionaire owner Roman Abramovich's oil company than her sporting triumphs.


To her credit, she took the media blitz in her stride.

Only once Isinbayeva lost her cool when a reporter asked her if she had spoken to former coach Yevgeny Trofimov.

"No questions about Trofimov," she cut the reporter off.

The Russian dropped a bombshell last November, dumping her long-time mentor and hiring Vitaly Petrov, the former coach of pole vault great Sergei Bubka.

Trofimov was spotted in the stands of the Olympic sports complex over the weekend openly cheering for Isinbayeva's main rival Svetlana Feofanova.

The 2003 world champion and Olympic silver medallist won bronze in Moscow -- her first international competition following an 18-month absence through a back injury.


ICY RELATIONSHIP

Another journalist wanted to know about Isinbayeva's icy relationship with fellow Russian. The two, sitting side-by-side, hardly looked at each other during a news conference.

"You see, we're not fighting with each other," Isinbayeva said sarcastically while Feofanova just smiled.

"We're not friends but we don't have to be enemies either."

Isinbayeva, who has been virtually unbeaten for the past three years and has set world records almost at will, was also asked about her apparent slump in form after failing to break her own indoor mark for a third consecutive meet in Moscow.

"Well, I'm not a machine, I'm human after all. But I'll soon prove that I'm capable of breaking records again," she said.

The Russian also had to deny media reports she was offered $6 million to move to Italy and compete for that country.

"No, never. I would never betray Russia, not even for $100 million," she insisted.

"I may not stay in Russia all the time but I'm still based in Volgograd and I don't have plans to move abroad permanently, at least for now," said Isinbayeva, who spends most of her time in Monaco and trains in Italy.

In reference to Abramovich, Isinbayeva said: "There was an approach from his oil company Sibneft for me to represent their brand worldwide but it never materialised. Too bad, it would have been nice to work with him."

[BruceFlorman]

Another report of the same material translated from Russian ...
[quote="RusAthletics.com"]The Record Efforts of Yelena Isinbaeva
12.03.2006

Yelena Isinbaeva successfully bears the heavy burden of superstardom and, as always after the completion of a competition; she was ready to answer all questions from the journalists. First of all she attempted to explain why for the third time in the last several weeks she could not overcome the record boundary.

“In the second attempt at 4,93 I was nearest of all to the record,â€Â

[pelle3]

Competition is good for the sport. Kenenisa Bekele stated last week to IAAF that he does not go out to win every single race. He continued by stating that it is not good for the sport.

Issy has proven to be the absolute very best in her class - the valedictorian of the World School of Pole Vault. I think it is great to see others like Rogowska, Perek, Feofanova, et. al continue reaching higher heights and continue challenging Isinbayeva - who is not a machine - in every way possible. Every failed attempt at equalling or setting a new WR is another opportunity for Issy:s competitors to see that she is beatable - even if it is she, herself, who steers the ship a little wayward once in a while.

So here is to pure competition, less-than-easy rides, and great future results for this event.