Alena Zavarzina facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Alena Zavarzina
Алёна Заварзина

Zavarzina in 2009
Personal information
Full name	Alena Igorevna Zavarzina
Nickname(s)	Superzina
Nationality	Russian
Born	(1989-05-27) 27 May 1989 (age 36) Novosibirsk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Height	1.77 m
Weight	66 kg
Sport
Country	Russia
Sport	Snowboarding
Event(s)	Parallel slalom, parallel giant slalom
Club	Krasnoyarsk Academy of Winter Sports
Coached by	Denis Tikhomirov
Retired	31 August 2018 (age 29)
Achievements and titles
World finals	Gold medal in parallel giant slalom at La Molina 2011 Silver medal in parallel giant slalom at Kreischberg 2015 Bronze medal in parallel slalom at Sierra Nevada 2017
Olympic finals	Bronze medal in parallel giant slalom at Sochi 2014
Highest world ranking	1st in Parallel Giant Slalom World Cup (2017) 2nd in Parallel World Cup (2017)
Medal record Women's snowboarding Representing  Russia International snowboarding competitions Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 0 0 1 World Championships 1 1 1 Junior World Championships 0 1 1 World Cup Event 1st 2nd 3rd Parallel Slalom 1 1 3 Parallel Giant Slalom 3 3 2 Olympic Games Bronze 2014 Sochi Parallel giant slalom World Championships Gold 2011 La Molina Parallel giant slalom Silver 2015 Kreischberg Parallel giant slalom Bronze 2017 Sierra Nevada Parallel slalom Junior World Championships Silver 2009 Nagano Parallel slalom Bronze 2008 Valmalenco Parallel giant slalom

Alena Igorevna Zavarzina (born 27 May 1989) is a Russian former snowboarder. She was really good at two types of snowboarding races: parallel slalom and parallel giant slalom.

Alena became a World Champion in 2011. She also won a bronze medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics in parallel giant slalom. She won four World Cup races during her career. In the 2016/17 season, she won the top prize for parallel giant slalom in the World Cup. She also earned a silver and another bronze medal at the World Championships.

Alena Zavarzina's Snowboarding Journey

Alena Zavarzina started snowboarding when she was 10 years old in her hometown, Novosibirsk. At first, she competed in big air events. Later, she switched to alpine snowboarding, which is more about racing down slopes. She first competed in National Championships when she was just 11 years old in 2000.

Starting Out: Europa Cup Success

Alena first competed in a World Cup race on 23 October 2006. This was a parallel slalom race in Landgraaf, where she earned her first World Cup points. For the next few seasons, she mostly raced in the Europa Cup. She won three Europa Cup races in the 2007/08 season and finished third overall.

In 2008, she won a bronze medal in parallel giant slalom at the Junior World Championships. The next season, she finished second overall in the Europa Cup. These good results helped her get a spot at the 2009 World Championships in Gangwon. She also won a silver medal in parallel slalom at the 2009 Junior World Championships in Nagano.

Big Wins: World Cup and World Championship Title

Alena became a regular competitor in the World Cup during the 2009/10 season. She won her first World Cup race in parallel giant slalom in Telluride, Colorado. This was also her first time on the World Cup podium. She finished second in another race in Stoneham, Canada, and ended the season in eighth place overall.

At the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Alena just missed out on reaching the final rounds. Her teammate, Yekaterina Ilyukhina, won a silver medal in the same event.

The 2010/11 season started very well for Alena. She reached the podium twice in her first two races. She even helped Russia achieve a clean sweep of the podium in a parallel slalom race in Limone Piemonte.

At the 2011 World Championships in La Molina, Alena won the gold medal in parallel giant slalom. She was only the second Russian snowboarder to become a World Champion. During the parallel slalom event at the same championships, she unfortunately injured her right knee. This injury ended her season early. After her big win, Alena was given the special title of Honoured Master of Sports of Russia.

Overcoming Injury: Olympic Bronze Medal

After her injury, Alena worked hard to get back to her best. The 2011/12 season was tough, but her results started to improve in the next season. She didn't win any World Cup medals that season, but she did finish fourth twice.

At the 2013 World Championships, she couldn't defend her World title. She was knocked out in the quarter-finals in parallel giant slalom.

Alena Zavarzina with Vladimir Putin after the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

The 2013/14 season also started with challenges. In January 2014, just a month before the Olympics, she broke her left arm during a race. Even with a brace on her arm, she competed at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. She won a bronze medal in parallel giant slalom! This happened just minutes before her husband, Vic Wild, won a gold medal in the same event for men. It was a very special moment for them both.

A few days later, in the first-ever Olympic parallel slalom event, she finished thirteenth. After the Olympics, Alena received an award called the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" for her amazing achievements.

More Medals and a World Cup Title

After four years without a World Cup medal, Alena returned to the podium in December 2014. She finished third in a parallel slalom race in Montafon. At the 2015 World Championships in Kreischberg, she won a silver medal in parallel giant slalom. She finished fifth in the parallel slalom event.

In the 2015/16 season, Alena won her second World Cup race, a parallel slalom in Winterberg. This was her only medal that season, and she finished eighth overall.

Alena had her best World Cup season in 2016/17. She won two parallel giant slalom World Cup races in Bansko and Bokwang. She also got a third-place finish in Carezza. At the 2017 World Championships in Sierra Nevada, she won a bronze medal in parallel slalom. With this, she had won a gold, silver, and bronze medal at the World Championships throughout her career. At the end of the season, Alena won the overall title for parallel giant slalom in the World Cup for the first time!

Final Olympics and Retirement

Alena started the 2017/18 season well with a fourth-place finish. She then earned a medal in January 2018, finishing third in a parallel giant slalom race in Rogla.

Alena Zavarzina at the podium after winning gold at the 2018 Russian Championships, her last official competition.

Alena was one of the Russian athletes allowed to compete at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. She faced many challenges and said that "unequal conditions" were created for Russian athletes. At the Olympics, she qualified for the main round in parallel giant slalom. She finished fourth, just missing out on a medal. She mentioned that she had to take many tests during her time in Pyeongchang.

After the Olympics, Alena continued to compete. She finished second in two more World Cup races in Scuol and Winterberg. She ended the season in sixth place overall.

On 31 August 2018, Alena Zavarzina announced she was retiring from competitive snowboarding. She explained that she faced difficulties with support and new medical rules that made it impossible for her to continue competing. She also mentioned that she felt there was not enough support for the sport from some organizations.

Alena Zavarzina's Life Outside Snowboarding

Alena was born in Novosibirsk. She studied visual arts and later graduated from the management department of the Moscow Technological Institute in 2017. After she retired from snowboarding, Alena went to Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design to study art direction. She finished her studies there in 2022.

Alena married Vic Wild, who became a double Olympic champion, in 2011. Vic Wild was a former member of the U.S. snowboarding team but later competed for Russia. In December 2021, Alena announced that she and Vic Wild had divorced. However, they remain friends, and Alena even designs snowboards for Vic's company.

Alena has also been a brand ambassador for companies like Toyota Russia and S7 Airlines. In 2017, she was chosen to be a member of the International Ski Federation (FIS) Athletes' Commission. She was also an ambassador for the 2019 Winter Universiade in Krasnoyarsk.

In 2021, Alena wrote a book about her life called "Unsportsmanlike Conduct: How to Fail Without Screwing Up". In her free time, she enjoys photography and painting.

Alena Zavarzina's Race Results

Alena Zavarzina in 2009.

Here are some of Alena Zavarzina's top results from her career.

World Cup Season Titles

Alena won one World Cup title in her career:

World Cup Season Standings

This table shows how Alena ranked in the World Cup each season:

World Cup Race Podiums

Alena won 4 World Cup races and stood on the podium 13 times!

No.	Season	Date	Location	Discipline	Place
1	2009–10	17 December 2009	Telluride, United States	Parallel Giant Slalom	1st
2		24 January 2010	Stoneham, Canada	Parallel Giant Slalom	2nd
3	2010–11	10 October 2010	Landgraaf, Netherlands	Parallel Slalom	3rd
4		10 December 2010	Limone Piemonte, Italy	Parallel Giant Slalom	2nd
5	2014–15	18 December 2014	Montafon, Austria	Parallel Slalom	3rd
6		14 March 2015	Winterberg, Germany	Parallel Slalom	3rd
7	2015–16	6 March 2016	Winterberg, Germany	Parallel Slalom	1st
8	2016–17	15 December 2016	Carezza, Italy	Parallel Giant Slalom	3rd
9		5 February 2017	Bansko, Bulgaria	Parallel Giant Slalom	1st
10		12 February 2017	Bogwang, South Korea	Parallel Giant Slalom	1st
11	2017–18	21 January 2018	Rogla, Slovenia	Parallel Giant Slalom	3rd
12		10 March 2018	Scuol, Switzerland	Parallel Giant Slalom	2nd
13		17 March 2018	Winterberg, Germany	Parallel Slalom	2nd
Source:

Alena Zavarzina's Olympic Results

Alena won one Olympic medal, a bronze!

Year	Age	Parallel  Slalom	Parallel Giant Slalom
2010 Vancouver	20	N/A	17
2014 Sochi	24	13	3
2018 Pyeongchang	28	N/A	4
Source:

Alena Zavarzina's World Championships Results

Alena won three medals at the World Championships: one gold, one silver, and one bronze!

Year	Age	Parallel  Slalom	Parallel Giant Slalom
2009 Gangwon	19	—	21
2011 La Molina	21	32	1
2013 Stoneham	23	9	5
2015 Kreischberg	25	5	2
2017 Sierra Nevada	27	3	5
Source:

See also

In Spanish: Aliona Zavárzina para niños