Boris Stenin
Encyclopedia
Boris Andrianovich Stenin (17 January 1935 – 18 January 2001) was a Soviet
speed skater
, speed skating coach, and speed skating scientist.
Living in Sverdlovsk
, Stenin met and married fellow skater Valentina Stenina
(Valentina Miloslavova before their marriage) during the early days of his speed skating career. They would remain married until Stenin's death in 2001, more than 40 years later.
, then his wife Valentina became World Allround Champion, then he himself became World Allround Champion
(with a rather large margin of 2.758 points over the second place score), and then at the 1960 Winter Olympics
in Squaw Valley
, he won bronze on the 1,500 m, while Valentina won silver on the 3,000 m. For his accomplishments he received the 1960 Oscar Mathisen Award
.
1961 brought few major results for Stenin, but in 1962, he won gold at the Soviet National Allround Championships and bronze at the European Championships (in which he won one distance, the 1,500 m). Two weeks later, at the World Championships, he was in first place after three distances (with reigning World Champion Henk van der Grift
in second place), but a 14th place on the final distance (the 10,000 m) made him end the World Championships in fourth place.
In 1963, Stenin became Soviet Allround Champion for the third and last time. Meanwhile, the Norwegian
top skaters had increased their training loads significantly – using new methods introduced by coach Stein Johnson
– and the results showed at the European Championships that year: Stenin finished fifth behind four Norwegian skaters (Nils Aaness
, Knut Johannesen
, Per Ivar Moe
, and Magne Thomassen
). Having analysed the Norwegian methods, Stenin started training harder, but he over-trained and injured himself. As a result, he was not selected for the Soviet Olympic team. This marked the end of Stenin's speed skating career and the start of his career as a coach.
and Stenin was invited to become one of the coaches of the Soviet national team. Despite having studied the world's best speed skaters in recent years, Stenin still did not have extensive practical knowledge and after the 1968 Winter Olympics
in Grenoble
, he went to work at an institute for Physical Education
. During his years there as a post-graduate student and a teacher, Stenin published a book in which he scientifically analysed how the top speed skaters train and how this affects them physiologically
.
In 1973, Stenin was invited to be a coach for the national women's team – this time with a lot more influence and responsibility than he had had during his previous work as a coach for the national team. The Soviet women at the time had been winning a lot less than they had in recent times before, but training with Stenin as their coach, skaters such as Tatyana Averina
, Vera Bryndzei
, Natalya Petrusyova, Nina Statkevich
, Galina Stepanskaya
, and several others soon started producing results, and during the next ten years, many world records holders, Olympic Champions, World Champions, European Champions, and various other major accomplishers were female Soviet skaters. But when the Soviet women team won "only" three bronze medals (two by Natalya Petrusyova and one by Natalya Glebova
) at the 1984 Winter Olympics
in Sarajevo
, Stenin was fired.
degree in 1994. He continued his scientific and teaching work in speed skating until his death in 2001.
Stenin published more than 60 scientific works and won many awards. At the time of his death, he was a member of the technical committee of the International Skating Union
, as well as holding several other positions.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
speed skater
Speed skating
Speed skating, or speedskating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in traveling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skating...
, speed skating coach, and speed skating scientist.
Living in Sverdlovsk
Yekaterinburg
Yekaterinburg is a major city in the central part of Russia, the administrative center of Sverdlovsk Oblast. Situated on the eastern side of the Ural mountain range, it is the main industrial and cultural center of the Urals Federal District with a population of 1,350,136 , making it Russia's...
, Stenin met and married fellow skater Valentina Stenina
Valentina Stenina
Valentina Sergeyevna Stenina is a former speed skater who competed for the Soviet Union.Born Valentina Miloslavova in Babruysk , she fled to Sverdlovsk – taken by her mother – in 1941 because of World War II...
(Valentina Miloslavova before their marriage) during the early days of his speed skating career. They would remain married until Stenin's death in 2001, more than 40 years later.
As Speed Skater
Stenin trained at VSS Trud ('Labour') in Sverdlovsk. Having been selected for the Soviet national team in 1957, Stenin steadily made progress and after a few international competitions in 1958 and 1959, he had a great year in 1960: He became Soviet Allround Champion, then he won silver at the European Allround ChampionshipsEuropean Speed Skating Championships
The European Speed Skating Championships are a series of speed skating events held annually to determine the best allround speed skater of Europe. The International Skating Union has organised the European Championships for Men since 1893 and the European Championships for Women since 1970. The...
, then his wife Valentina became World Allround Champion, then he himself became World Allround Champion
World Allround Speed Skating Championships
The World Allround Speed Skating Championships are a series of speed skating events held annually to determine the best allround speed skater of the world...
(with a rather large margin of 2.758 points over the second place score), and then at the 1960 Winter Olympics
1960 Winter Olympics
The 1960 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VIII Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event held between February 18 and 28, 1960 in Squaw Valley, California, United States. In 1955 at the 50th IOC meeting, the organizing committee made the surprise choice to award Squaw Valley as...
in Squaw Valley
Squaw Valley, California (Ski Area Valley)
Olympic Valley in the U.S. state of California is an unincorporated community located in Placer County northwest of Tahoe City along Highway 89 on the banks of the Truckee River near Lake Tahoe. It is the home of the Squaw Valley Ski Resort, the site of the 1960 Winter Olympics...
, he won bronze on the 1,500 m, while Valentina won silver on the 3,000 m. For his accomplishments he received the 1960 Oscar Mathisen Award
Oscar Mathisen Award
Since 1959, the Oscar Mathisen Award is awarded annually for outstanding speed skating performance of the season...
.
1961 brought few major results for Stenin, but in 1962, he won gold at the Soviet National Allround Championships and bronze at the European Championships (in which he won one distance, the 1,500 m). Two weeks later, at the World Championships, he was in first place after three distances (with reigning World Champion Henk van der Grift
Henk van der Grift
Hendrik van der Grift is a former speed skater.Henk van der Grift participated in the 1960 Winter Olympics. On the 500 m, he finished 10th and he fell on the 1,500 m. Not satisfied with training facilities in the Netherlands, he lived in Norway for a while, working as a car mechanic...
in second place), but a 14th place on the final distance (the 10,000 m) made him end the World Championships in fourth place.
In 1963, Stenin became Soviet Allround Champion for the third and last time. Meanwhile, the Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
top skaters had increased their training loads significantly – using new methods introduced by coach Stein Johnson
Stein Johnson
Sten Jean Johnson is a former Norwegian speed skating trainer and athlete. He was born in Bergen and is the nephew of Sonja Johnsson....
– and the results showed at the European Championships that year: Stenin finished fifth behind four Norwegian skaters (Nils Aaness
Nils Aaness
Nils Egil Aaness is a former speed skater from Norway.Aaness competed on the Norwegian national team from 1959 to 1965, and thus became part of the Norwegian speedskating revolution under the trainer Stein Johnson...
, Knut Johannesen
Knut Johannesen
Knut Johannesen is a former speed skater from Norway.-Biography:Born in Oslo and representing the skating club ASK there, Johannesen won the World Allround Championships in 1957 and 1964, the European Allround Championships in 1959 and 1960, and won the Norwegian...
, Per Ivar Moe
Per Ivar Moe
Per Ivar Moe is a former speed skater from Norway.-Biography:In 1963, 18 year old Per Ivar Moe won bronze at the European Allround Championships, an achievement he would repeat the following year . In addition, in 1964, he became the first in 8 years to beat Knut Johannesen at the Norwegian...
, and Magne Thomassen
Magne Thomassen
Magne Thomassen is a former speed skater from Norway. He participated in international championships over a period of more than ten years...
). Having analysed the Norwegian methods, Stenin started training harder, but he over-trained and injured himself. As a result, he was not selected for the Soviet Olympic team. This marked the end of Stenin's speed skating career and the start of his career as a coach.
Medals
An overview of medals won by Stenin at important championships he participated in, listing the years in which he won each:| Championships | Gold medal | Silver medal | Bronze medal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter Olympics Speed skating at the Winter Olympics Speed skating has been featured as a sport in the Winter Olympics since the first winter games in 1924. Women's events were added to the Olympic program for the first time in 1960.-History:... |
1960 (1,500 m) | ||
| World Allround World Allround Speed Skating Championships The World Allround Speed Skating Championships are a series of speed skating events held annually to determine the best allround speed skater of the world... |
1960 | ||
| European Allround European Speed Skating Championships The European Speed Skating Championships are a series of speed skating events held annually to determine the best allround speed skater of Europe. The International Skating Union has organised the European Championships for Men since 1893 and the European Championships for Women since 1970. The... |
1960 | 1962 | |
| Soviet Allround | 1960 1962 1963 |
1961 |
As Speed Skating Coach
In 1964, at the age of 29, Stenin started to work as the speed skating coach for the local team of Sverdlovsk. Within two years, the team of Sverdlovsk became the champion of the Spartakiad of the Peoples of the USSRSpartakiad
Spartakiad initially was the name of an international sports event that the Soviet Union attempted to use to both oppose and supplement the Olympics...
and Stenin was invited to become one of the coaches of the Soviet national team. Despite having studied the world's best speed skaters in recent years, Stenin still did not have extensive practical knowledge and after the 1968 Winter Olympics
1968 Winter Olympics
The 1968 Winter Olympics, officially known as the X Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1968 in Grenoble, France and opened on 6 February. Thirty-seven countries participated...
in Grenoble
Grenoble
Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...
, he went to work at an institute for Physical Education
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
. During his years there as a post-graduate student and a teacher, Stenin published a book in which he scientifically analysed how the top speed skaters train and how this affects them physiologically
Human physiology
Human physiology is the science of the mechanical, physical, bioelectrical, and biochemical functions of humans in good health, their organs, and the cells of which they are composed. Physiology focuses principally at the level of organs and systems...
.
In 1973, Stenin was invited to be a coach for the national women's team – this time with a lot more influence and responsibility than he had had during his previous work as a coach for the national team. The Soviet women at the time had been winning a lot less than they had in recent times before, but training with Stenin as their coach, skaters such as Tatyana Averina
Tatyana Averina
Tatyana Borisovna Averina was a Soviet Russian speed skater. After getting married, her name would also appear as Tatyana Barabash .-Short biography:...
, Vera Bryndzei
Vera Bryndzei
Vera Vladimirovna Bryndzei is a former speed skater who competed for the Soviet Union....
, Natalya Petrusyova, Nina Statkevich
Nina Statkevich
Nina Andreyevna Statkevich is a former speed skater who competed for the Soviet Union.Nina Statkevich trained at VSS Trud in Leningrad. She won many titles – she was World Allround Champion, European Allround Champion twice, Soviet Allround Champion four times, and Soviet Sprint Champion...
, Galina Stepanskaya
Galina Stepanskaya
Galina Andreyevna Stepanskaya is a former speed skater who competed for the Soviet Union....
, and several others soon started producing results, and during the next ten years, many world records holders, Olympic Champions, World Champions, European Champions, and various other major accomplishers were female Soviet skaters. But when the Soviet women team won "only" three bronze medals (two by Natalya Petrusyova and one by Natalya Glebova
Natalya Glebova
Natalya Glebova is a Russian speed skater who competed for the Soviet Union in the 1984 Winter Olympics and in the 1988 Winter Olympics.She was born in Kemerovo....
) at the 1984 Winter Olympics
1984 Winter Olympics
The 1984 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIV Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated from 8–19 February 1984 in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. Other candidate cities were Sapporo, Japan; and Gothenburg, Sweden...
in Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
, Stenin was fired.
As Scientist
Returning to the institute for Physical Education where he had worked before, Stenin took up his scientific and teaching work again and became head of the speed skating department at the institute. From 1984 onwards, Stenin published many works on speed skating, took part in many scientific conferences, and he earned a Ph.D.Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
degree in 1994. He continued his scientific and teaching work in speed skating until his death in 2001.
Stenin published more than 60 scientific works and won many awards. At the time of his death, he was a member of the technical committee of the International Skating Union
International Skating Union
The International Skating Union is the international governing body for competitive ice skating disciplines, including figure skating, synchronized skating, speed skating, and short track speed skating. It was founded in Scheveningen, Netherlands in 1892, making it one of the oldest international...
, as well as holding several other positions.