The life-threatening illness of Olympic champion Roman Kostomarov even pushes the discussions about the former European champion Kamila Valiyeva, who is suspected of doping, into the background in Russia. More and more details about the drama about the ice dancer are published.
Roman Kostomarow has already lost the two feet that carried him to the Olympic victory in Turin in 2006 through an amputation. The former ice dancer has not yet given up the fight for his life, but there have been fears for the former top athlete in Russia for weeks. A coronavirus infection that initially seemed manageable developed into severe pneumonia and massive circulatory disorders. The tragedy surrounding the ice dancer, who was once bursting with strength, has long since pushed the ex-European champion Kamila Valiyeva, who is suspected of doping, out of the headlines.
Also because the Moscow gazettes outdid each other with more horror news. Kostomarov is apparently only alive because the doctors amputated parts of his hands as well as his feet. An additional blood poisoning seems currently under control. And yet the severe clinical pictures have apparently led to further massive health problems. Respiratory and kidney problems as well as a cerebral hemorrhage were recently reported, the lens of the right eye supposedly had to be removed.
Kostomarow’s wife Oksana Domnina, who was the 2009 ice dance world champion with her compatriot Maxim Schabalin, hasn’t given up hope. “Even in the scariest dream, we could not have imagined that there could be such a turning point in our lives. But now it is so and we will overcome everything,” wrote the 38-year-old on social networks for her 46th birthday her husband on February 8th. Kostomarow and Domnina are parents to a 12-year-old daughter.
The fact that there is so much sympathy for Kostomarov’s fate is partly due to the popularity of figure skating in Russia. But Kostomarov was and still is in the spotlight as a private player, because he won his three world championships and two European titles alongside Tatjana Nawka. The 47-year-old has been married to Russia’s government spokesman Dimitri Peskov since 2015.
