Ruslan Goncharov

Olympic medal record
Competitor for Ukraine
Figure skating
Bronze	2006 Turin	Ice dancing

Ruslan Goncharov

Grushina & Goncharov in 2004.
Personal information
Full name	Ruslan Nikolaevich Goncharov Ruslan Mykolayovych Goncharov
Country represented	Ukraine
Born	20 January 1973 (1973-01-20) Odessa, Ukrainian SSR
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Former partner	Elena Grushina Elenora Gritsai
Former coach	Nikolai Morozov Tatiana Tarasova Natalia Linichuk Gennadi Karponossov A. Tumanovski
Skating club	Sport Military Club Odessa
Retired	2006
ISU personal best scores
Combined total	213.95 2005 Worlds
Comp. dance	41.30 2005 Worlds
Original dance	63.23 2004 Cup of Russia
Free dance	109.48 2005 Worlds
Medal record Figure skating Ice dancing Competitor for Ukraine Olympic Games Bronze 2006 Turin Ice dancing World Championships Bronze 2005 Moscow Ice dancing European Championships Silver 2006 Lyon Ice dancing Silver 2005 Turin Ice dancing Bronze 2004 Budapest Ice dancing Grand Prix Final Silver 2005-2006 Tokyo Ice dancing

Ruslan Nikolaevich Goncharov (Russian: Руслан Николаевич Гончаров or Ukrainian: Руслан Миколайович Гончаров Ruslan Mykolayovych Goncharov; born 20 January 1973 in Odessa, USSR) is a Ukrainian ice dancer. With partner Elena Grushina, he is the 2006 Olympic bronze medalist, 2005 World bronze medalist, and two-time (2005, 2006) European silver medalist.

Career

Goncharov began skating at the age of six. He was originally a single skater but grew too tall and switched to ice dancing when he was 13. He first competed with Elenora Gritsai but the partnership ended due to health problems.

Having trained in the same group in Odessa, he and Elena Grushina were paired together in 1990. They finished fourth at the 1992 Junior Worlds. They were 18th in their senior Worlds debut at the 1994 World Championships and 15th at their first Olympics in 1998. They won their first Grand Prix medal, silver, at 1999 Skate Canada International.

Grushina and Goncharov trained with Natalia Linichuk and Gennadi Karponossov in Newark, Delaware for several years. They were 9th at the 2002 Olympics and 6th at the 2002 World Championships. In the summer of 2002, they changed coaches to Tatiana Tarasova and Nikolai Morozov in Newington, Connecticut. During the 2002–03 season, they won three gold medals on the Grand Prix series, at 2002 Skate America, 2002 Skate Canada International, and 2002 Trophée Lalique. They qualified for the Grand Prix Final where they finished fourth. They were also fourth at the 2003 European Championships and fifth at the 2003 World Championships.

During the 2003–04 season, Grushina and Goncharov won three silver medals on the Grand Prix series, at 2003 Skate America, 2003 Cup of China, and 2003 NHK Trophy. They qualified for the Grand Prix Final where they again finished fourth, but a couple months later they won their first European medal, bronze, at the 2004 European Championships. They were fourth at the 2004 World Championships.

During the 2004–05 season, Grushina and Goncharov competed at one Grand Prix event, 2004 Cup of Russia, where they won the silver medal. Since they only competed at one event, they did not earn enough points to qualify for the Grand Prix Final. They won their second European medal, silver, at the 2005 European Championships. They capped off their season by winning their first World medal, bronze, at the 2005 World Championships.

During the 2005–06 season, Grushina and Goncharov competed at two Grand Prix events. They won silver at 2005 Skate Canada International and gold at 2005 Trophée Eric Bompard. They qualified for their third Grand Prix Final and came away with their first medal at the event, silver. They won their third European medal, silver, at the 2006 European Championships. At the 2006 Olympics, they were fifth in the compulsory dance but placed third in the original and free dances to capture their first Olympic medal. They retired after the Olympics.

Personal life

He and Grushina were married in 1995 and divorced in 2008.

Programs

(With Ruslan Goncharov)

Season	Original dance	Free dance	Exhibition
2005–2006	Carneval of Batreada (samba & rhumba) by Peter Prade	The Feeling Begins (from Passion) by Peter Gabriel	Adagio by Lara Fabian
2004–2005	Maybe Next Time (Foxtrot, Charlston) by Liza Minnelli Life is a Cabaret (Quickstep)	Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi
2003–2004	Sing, Sing, Sing (Swing) Summer (Blues) produced by Robert Kraft	Hanging / Escape by Craig Armstrong
2002–2003	The Blue Danube by Johann Strauss II Polka (Strauss)	Quixote by Bond
2001–2002	Libertango by Ástor Piazzolla España Cañí by Pascual Marquina	Selections by Montserrat Caballé and Sergei Rachmaninoff arranged by Freddie Mercury
2000–2001	I'm Broadway Baby from Fosse (Foxtrot) Sing, Sing, Sing (Quickstep)	Gladiator by
1999–2000	Maria by Ricky Martin Eres Todo En Mi by Ana Gabriel	Spente Le Stelle by Emma Shapplin
1998–1999	Masquerade Waltz by Aram Khachaturian	Songs from the Victorious City by Anne Dudley and Jaz Coleman
1997–1998	Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley & His Comets	Unknown Ukrainian folk dances
1995–1996	El Torro Rojo performed by C. Willems and Manuelo Montez Orchestra	Jiger performed by Glen Miller and Max Gregor Orchestra

Results

(ice dance with Elena Grushina)

Event	1992–93	1993–94	1994–95	1995–96	1996–97	1997–98	1998–99	1999–00	2000–01	2001–02	2002–03	2003–04	2004–05	2005–06
Winter Olympic Games						15th				9th				3rd
World Championships		18th	22nd	16th		13th	8th	7th	8th	6th	5th	4th	3rd
European Championships			14th	13th	13th		7th	8th	7th	8th	4th	3rd	2nd	2nd
Ukrainian Championships	2nd	3rd	2nd	3rd	2nd	2nd	1st			1st		1st	1st	1st
Grand Prix Final											4th	4th		2nd
Skate America				8th							1st	2nd
Skate Canada International							4th	2nd	4th		1st			2nd
Cup of China												2nd
Trophée Lalique											1st			1st
Cup of Russia					9th					3rd			2nd
NHK Trophy								4th	4th	5th		2nd
Nations Cup					10th
Karl Schäfer Memorial	3rd
Nebelhorn Trophy			2nd
Skate Israel				2nd
Winter Universiade									1st

(with Grushina for the Soviet Union)

Event	1991–1992
World Junior Championships	4th

External links

• Official site
• Ruslan Goncharov at the International Skating Union
• Care to Ice Dance? - Grushina & Goncharov