Figure skaters as Taylor Swift songs: Ksenia Stolbova/Fedor Klimov + Coney Island
For the second installment of my new figure skaters + Taylor Swift song analysis series, I chose to write about how one of my favorite underrated songs - “Coney Island” - aligns with the story of one of my favorite underrated pairs - Stolbova/Klimov.
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Break my soul in two Looking for you, but you're right here If I can't relate to you anymore Then who am I related to?
        Ksenia and Fedor were an incredibly skilled team, but they kept their off-ice lives separate, and they frequently asserted that their partnership was strictly a professional arrangement. However, their careers depended on each other; one could not continue at the elite level without the other. Towards the end of their career, Fedor planned to retire and become a coach, but Ksenia wanted to continue competing. While Fedor did not share his personal feelings on the split in 2018 and characterized it as a relatively amicable parting, Ksenia described it as an intensely emotional situation. His happiness depended on his freedom to retire, but her happiness depended on his choice to continue the partnership. Therefore, they were still deeply invested in the partnership even though they weren’t necessarily emotionally invested in each other.
And if this is the long haul, how’d we get here so soon? Did I close my fist around something delicate? Did I shatter you?
        Since Ksenia and Fedor skyrocketed to fame in 2014, they only skated for four seasons as top contenders, and they often missed competitions due to injuries. Therefore, their elite career was short yet tumultuous, and their “long haul” came to an end much quicker than they had expected.
        Although Ksenia’s relentless ambition helped them achieve success, her passion for competition continued burning even after Fedor’s own desire to compete had burned out. Since he was the only male pair skater who was talented enough to help her continue her career at the elite level, she initially tried to convince him to stay in the sport, but he refused. Eventually, they parted ways and stopped speaking to each other, ending their nine-year partnership. Their partnership was already in a precarious position after their recent setbacks, but their differing goals were the last straw, and they fell apart.
And I'm sitting on a bench in Coney Island wondering where did my baby go? The fast times, the bright lights, the merry go Sorry for not making you my centerfold
        Ksenia and Fedor’s career was marked by short bursts of brilliance followed by hardships. This verse reflects on the good times with a sense of nostalgia. Furthermore, the image of sitting alone on a bench is reminiscent of Ksenia waiting for a new partner after Fedor chose to retire.
        Although Ksenia and Fedor avoided many interpersonal conflicts by maintaining a strictly professional relationship, their indifference to each other allowed their paths to diverge. Skating was the only thing that tied them together, and their connection would end when one partner no longer wanted to skate. When Fedor decided to retire, Ksenia tried to salvage the partnership, but Fedor’s life was complete without her and without skating. They were never each other’s centerfolds, but the end of their partnership deeply affected Ksenia because it changed the trajectory of her future.
Over and over Lost again with no surprises Disappointments, close your eyes And it gets colder and colder When the sun goes down
        From 2014 to 2018, Ksenia and Fedor did their best to overcome the obstacles in their path, but they rarely managed to get their feet under themselves before the next problem arose. Despite their immense talent, their career consisted mostly of frustration and disappointment.
The question pounds my head "What's a lifetime of achievement?" If I pushed you to the edge But you were too polite to leave me
        The skating fandom often characterized Ksenia as a cold-hearted diva because of her fierceness and competitive spirit, while Fedor was perceived as a meek, henpecked partner due to his calm, stoic demeanor. Ksenia and Fedor both asserted that these characterizations were greatly exaggerated, but they did admit that Ksenia’s stubbornness and quick temper sometimes interfered in their partnership. Her intensity was both her greatest strength and her greatest weakness – she succeeded because she demanded perfection from herself, but she also held her partner to incredibly high standards. When describing her desire to break out of her comfort zone and push herself to the limit, Ksenia said, “I tried to make Fedor think the same, but failed. At that point I was constantly annoying him. In such cases a person grows a hard skin and stops understanding what you are saying.” Fedor admitted that their polar opposite personalities sometimes clashed, but he ultimately believed that they made a good team, and he chose not to leave her for a less intense partner because he valued her brilliant talent. Likewise, Ksenia later stated that she would not abandon their flawed partnership because they needed each other to reach the next Olympics. Their natures were so different that their partnership could never be ideal, but they valued their shared goal too much to let go, even when they vexed each other.
And do you miss the rogue who coaxed you into paradise and left you there? Will you forgive my soul when you're too wise to trust me and too old to care?
        “Paradise” is the 2014 Olympics because it was the best moment of Ksenia and Fedor’s careers. Fedor helped Ksenia chase her dream to the elite level, but he chose to retire before they could achieve their ultimate goal. Therefore, he brought her to paradise, then left her. I personally relate the second line to 2017 Worlds. Ksenia and Fedor had a disastrous short program and landed in 13th place, then started laughing at the end of the program. Although they usually held themselves to high standards, they forgave each other for their mistakes because they realized that they had fallen too far to salvage anything.
'Cause we were like the mall before the Internet It was the one place to be
        When Ksenia and Fedor first emerged onto the scene in 2014, they were lauded as a young, promising team in comparison to their more seasoned teammates, Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov. After Volosozhar/Trankov left the sport, Ksenia and Fedor took their place as Russia’s top pair. However, their injuries in 2016 hindered their progress. While they were recovering, their teammates Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov started building momentum, and by the time Ksenia and Fedor returned to competition, Tarasova/Morozov had closed the gap on them. I interpret Ksenia and Fedor as “the mall” – something nostalgic – and Tarasova/Morozov as “the Internet” – something shiny and new.Â
The mischief, the gift-wrapped suburban dreams Sorry for not winning you an arcade ring
        Volosozhar/Trankov’s career was the definition of “gift-wrapped suburban dreams”. Their superb skating, Olympic victory, and love story are the picture-perfect “Olympic dream” that many young skaters dream about. Although Ksenia and Fedor’s Olympic story wasn’t as romanticized by the media, the 2014 Olympics was a fairytale for them. However, they never managed to claim their “arcade ring” – in this case, a World or European title.
Over and over Lost again with no surprises Disappointments, close your eyes And it gets colder and colder When the sun goes down
        Once again, the chorus reinforces how their career continued to slip away despite their efforts to reclaim their position at the top.
Were you waiting at our old spot In the tree line by the gold clock Did I leave you hanging every single day? Were you standing in the hallway With a big cake, happy birthday Did I paint your bluest skies the darkest gray? A universe away
        Shortly after the partnership dissolved, Ksenia told the press that Fedor did not try to get in touch with her after her ankle injury forced them to withdraw from Worlds. While she was injured, she waited for him to return because she assumed he only needed a short break from the sport. The image of waiting at their “old spot” by the “gold clock” alludes to a nostalgia for a happier past. Ksenia wanted to continue skating because she craved another taste of the Olympic glory she’d found in 2014. Fedor no longer desired that feeling, but Ksenia could not yet let it go. The image of standing in the hallway with a birthday cake suggests bringing gifts to someone in hopes of rekindling a relationship. However, nothing would persuade Fedor to return to competition; their dreams were “a universe away” from each other. Furthermore, Ksenia made her public debut with her new partner at the Russian Open Test Skates on September 7, 2019 – which is coincidentally Fedor’s birthday.
And when I got into the accident, the sight that flashed before me was your face
But when I walked up to the podium, I think that I forgot to say your name
In this verse, Taylor suggests that she thinks of her ex-lover in desperate times, but not in peaceful ones. In the chaos of a car accident, his face flashes in her mind because she is reaching for something to anchor her, but when she is happily receiving an award, she forgets to thank him because she doesn’t need his support. I personally think this lyric clarifies the difference between needing someone and wanting someone. Ksenia and Fedor desperately wanted different things in life, but they could not have achieved their Olympic dream without each other. In hard times, they relied on each other, but when Fedor found happiness outside of skating, he no longer needed to rely on her. Their career was held together by mutual needing rather than mutual wanting, and it fell apart when they no longer needed each other.
Disclaimer: I don’t want to make it sound like this “needing vs. wanting” dynamic is abnormal for a partnership; it’s perfectly normal to maintain a strictly professional relationship. I only focused on it because Ksenia and Fedor were always very honest about the highs and lows of their relationship, and I always found it interesting to hear them talk about how they made it work. Both of them fought to hold onto their partnership as long as possible, and I don’t think either side is fully to blame for why it eventually ended. My favorite memory of Ksenia and Fedor will always be their joyful performances at the Olympics in 2014, and “Coney Island” is all about that nostalgia for a simpler time before the hardships set in. For me, this song perfectly captures the complexities of Ksenia and Fedor’s story.
