12
Anastasia Skukhtorova
and her journey up
and around the world
There must be a very few
pole dance fans these days that
have never seen at least one
photo or a video of Anastasia
Skukhtorova, the winner of the
2nd Pole World Cup 2012/2013.
You can find Anastasia in most
photo banks if you search for
„pole dance“, there are frescoes
of her on the walls of a pole
dance studio and you could
even recognize her on the poster
for the 2nd Czech pole dance
championship. These days
Anastasia travels all around
the world to teach, perform and
compete. We were interested in
her journey to success and so we
interviewed her on the occasion
of her last visit to Czech republic.
did you have a job?
PM: I read on your Facebook
page that in the beginning you
used to train 6-7 hours 3 times a
week. I hear many people nowadays complaining that they have
no time to work out. I personally
think it’s just an excuse however I
would still like to ask you how did
you manage to squeeze so much
exercise into your schedule. Were
you still a student back then or
A: Hm, a lot. I think I have been
traveling already for 2 years and
a half.
I really love Mexico and Brazil, Cyprus, Australia and Brno - Dance
Life Expo. I think it was one of the
best experiences.
But actually people are so lovely
everywhere we go. Very friendly,
kind, taking care.
We love them all!
A: Yes, it is true. I didn’t have
any friends, boyfriends or time
to relax for a really long time. I
was tired and exhausted. But
it was totally worth it - I had an
aim to be a champion. To make a
performance that people will remember. It was an “Angel” act for
World pole sport championship in
Zurich 2010.
PM: Now you travel a lot to give
classes around the world. How
many countries have you been to
this year and what was the most
interesting experience so far?
PM: There are many successful
Russian pole dancers, do you
think there’s a difference
in-between how pole dance is
being taught in Russia and elsewhere?
A: Oh I think everywhere is different. And everywhere you can find
the same.
Russia is a very big country. So
competition inside is huge!
If you want to be good you need
to work really, really hard.
PM: Which one of your victories
do you prize most?
Every competition is important
for me, not because of the prize,
but because of the experience,
the stories and the new friends.
PM: What has been your biggest
challenge in pole dance so far?
Everything for me is a challenge
- because when I started I didn’t
have anything - no dance background, no power, no flexibility, I
was no artist - nothing.