аAfter the short program…

Annika Hocke — Robert Kunkel at ISU Grand Prix Final 2019—2020

— Okay, so let's make this story-like. Let's just start from the beginning, how did you end up on the ice and what happend after that, up until your pair skating experience.

— (Annika) So we start from the beginning-beginning?

— (Robert) From the really beginning?

[both chuckle]

— From the really beginning! Briefly, but yeah.

— (Robert) Okay.

— (Annika) Yeah. I'll just start. I got on the ice at an outdoor rink which I went to with my mom. She just though it'd be nice if my daugher would try to skate outside: it's winter time, why not just go. She didn't intend to put me into figure skating, but when I was on the ice I just fell in love. I saw skaters, they had an outside rink for people who are not skaters, and inside there were some people training, and doing spins, and I just… yeah, I just fell in love. After that I went to practice there, and then of course started with single skating. And when I was 16 and a half, 17 I switched to pairs. Within 16 I tried some pair skating but was more focused on singles, and then at 17 I started with Ruben and we skated together, and after that now I'm here with Robert.

— And what about you Robert?

— (Robert) I started at 5, and at the age of 6 I went to a special sports school and continued with single skating. I don't know if I wanted it or my mom, but I just had fun and continued skating all the time. When I was 14 or 15, I think 14, I started pair skating with my first partner. We did one novice season and three junior seasons. And this spring I teamed up with Annika and now we're sitting here!

— If you don't mind talking about it, how did your previous partnerships go, did it end well, etc?

— (Annika) We definitely had a great time together, we achieved a lot in a short time. But… maybe it was because of that, but it just didn't work out anymore, we had completely different personalities, and I guess sometimes it works, but for us it didn't really work out. And in the end I think it's better that we went in different directions, because I was pretty unhappy, and now skating is fun again! [laughs]

— (Robert) We had a lot of trouble last season and after Junior Worlds my partner had an injury and a surgery. At the time when she wasn't on ice Annika already split with her partner, we did some elements together to stay fit. She was a pair skater with no partner, and I already had no partner at the moment, although we were still officially together. And it worked so well that I decided to end previous partnership and to start something new.

Annika Hocke — Robert Kunkel at ISU Grand Prix Final 2019—2020

— So it immediately worked well in terms of your techniques, synchronicity, no big adjustments needed to be done?

— (Robert) Elements weren't that good in the beginning, but the mindset and certain basis on top of which you could build something was there. Nobody was supporting us in the beginning, yet we had the same goals, and that's why we thought it could work. We started against all recommendations, and here we are, first German junior pair in this competition.

— Before all this, though, one of you already had quite a career. Annika, you went to major senior events and even Olympics. Tell us about that experience.

— (Annika) The first year I kind of got thrown into the senior events and big competitions. It was all new and just amazing and fun. And I guess I gained a lot from that experience, it made me a lot more confident, it helps me every time I step on the ice.

— Do you feel this too, do you feel the support that's coming from her, given that experience?

— (Robert) I think she gives me a lot of confidence. She already knows how to skate in from of that crowd, and I'm not yet.

— Do you have any problems with not being the one who supports as traditionally that's more of a male role?

— (Robert) I think in the XXI century it's not that much of an issue. And still I'm the one who's lifting her up on the lifts, not the other way around. [both laugh]

— (Annika) I have to rely on him there, yeah!

— That haven't changed yet! Okay, what about this moment, being here at the Junior Grand Prix Final, what does it mean to you guys? Is this a step on a ladder, is it just yet another event, is it life changing exerience?..

— (Annika) We really didn't expect this, it wasn't our plan. We just felt like we had fun again skating, we liked working again, working together and achieving something. It was like a funny idea to maybe go here, but in the end it worked out, and sometimes I forget that it's really a big achievement, actually, that we made it in such a short time. And of course I wished for a perfect competition, but still it was a good competition and I have to remind myself of that. It's a big step. No junior German pair have ever made it before. And it's what we want to improve and work on, and it makes you more hungry for big competitions like that.

— (Robert) As for the programs here I'm not 100% happy, because I made some mistakes, or at least one mistake. When we teamed up for us it was a goal to do the Junior Grand Prix, despite everyone saying that we can't do it, it's too soon. We achieved that goal, we won two medals. Also something no German junior pair have ever done. And to be here, to compete here is… It was a dream! And it came true. Once we got here it felt normal, because we did it. And we wanter to skate clean here.

— You mentioned before that you had technical issues, but the your mindsets were aligned. Would you say that's what got you to this point so rapidly? Or is there some other secrets that you could reveal?

— (Annika) Yeah, for sure (about the mindset). No, not really (about secrets).

— (Robert) The technical stuff was moving along very quickly. We even learned some new throws: Annika haven't done tripple Lutz throw before, for example. I've never done some of the lifts before, some twists. This isn't like taking a new weight in a gym, you know, it's two people new to each other.

Annika Hocke — Robert Kunkel at ISU Grand Prix Final 2019—2020

— And what do you think are the reasons for that, how did it happen?

— (Annika) For me the most important thing is communication. That's what made this partnership for me… like I thought this could really work out and get really good. We always give each other feedback. Even though, of course, we have coaches, but it also works when there's no one there: we don't scream at each other, we just talk about what happened, analyze it. It's very important, sometimes I have a completely different feeling and say that a throw was really bad, but he says no, it was good. Then we'd have to find some middle ground and see how we can work it through.

— (Robert) I would add that it's communication, of course, but it's also just hard work. We really try to train a lot and do a lot of run-throughs…

— (Robert) In such short time before our first Junior Grand Prix event our free skating routine was performed… it was the third time ever. We didn't have time to do any more before, because the free program was finished just about half a month before that.

— Do you train extra on ice, off ice, both?

— (Robert) We do a lot of off-ice training. We have 2 hours of ice a day, 1 hour off ice before ice with lifts and strength and also flexibility training. And we do extra things like dancing, ballet, yoga, all these funny things.

— Since this is all going so well, what are your plans, what's your vision of the future, what are you hoping to achieve?

— (Robert) Just grow every year and also have fun with the sport and with each other on ice.

— Let's get a little bit more personal, tell me about your families, are they also into figure skating?

— (Annika) I would say my mom pretty much into figure skating, but just because I started skating, she wasn't before, she didn't even really know the sport. But she's a sports journalist and she wants to know everything about sports. And since I started figure skating she learned about it and sometimes she sees things even better than I do. She knows every jump, the whole judging system.

— Do you have any siblings?

— (Annika) No, I'm the only child.

— Okay, what about you?

— (Robert) My family is not that much into figure skating. They like the sport, my mom was a fan of Katarina Witt and all German figure skaters. But they're not like figure skating coaches or anything like that. They're no experts, but they like the sport.

Annika Hocke — Robert Kunkel at ISU Grand Prix Final 2019—2020

— What else should we know about you? Hobbies, some weird stuff, anything that comes to mind.

— (Robert) It was on the ice, it wasn't a private matter, it was on the ice.

— (Annika) Yes!

— No aggression involved?

— (Annika) No-no-no! Just a twist.

— That happens.

— (Annika) Yeah, it does… Other than that I really enjoy doing yoga. I started it about two years ago. I know it's like a trend right now, but it's… I like to go there on weekends. I even make him go some time! So, that's something. Other than that I really like baking, especially at the Christmas time. Yeah, I enjoy that!

— And judging by the facial expression you just had you don't like yoga?

— (Robert) It's… okay, but I'm not as much in love with yoga as she is.

— (Annika) For me it's relaxing, and for him it's hard work.

— (Robert) For me it's very hard. But I try to continue, to get as flexible (chuckles) as Annika (both laugh)! No, but it's good for me, it's just hard for me. I like sports in general. Squash, boxing, stuff like that. I'd like to go to the beginning of the interview and add that I'm very proud of my partner, because she was ill here, right after short program and yesterday and today. And I couldn't even feel it, so she gave me a lot of confidence!

— (Annika) Ah…

— (Robert) If I would be that ill I don't think I could make through more than three elements.

— (Annika) But you lift me! [laughs]

— (Robert) Yeah…

— You caught a cold or something? You don't look ill…

— (Annika) Yeah, that's the make up.

— You hide it well!

— (Annika) It's also easier with adrenaline. But I don't know, I think I caught some sort of virus, because after the short program I just felt like breaking down, but today it was okay.

Annika Hocke — Robert Kunkel at ISU Grand Prix Final 2019—2020

— Anything else you'd like to add? Like maybe you're interesting in some manner I wouldn't think of asking?

— (Annika) Well, I wouldn't say we're boring, but we're normal people: he goes to university, I go to school. I'm finishing next year. And we just love skating…

— (Robert) Where is this going to be published?

— It's for a Russian online media.

— (Robert) I don't know what Russian community needs to know about us. [Annika laughs]

— There was like 5 Russian pairs here and you guys!

— (Annika) Yeah!

— (Robert) Yeah, the Russians are crazy with working, so they're…

— (Annika) We know their dominance in figure skating skating… it's…

— (Robert) We had seminars in Sochi and Novogorsk, and they are a big inspiration of how we can improve and train to be on the same level.

— Who did you work with?

— (Robert) Dmitry Savin and the Mozer team.

— Was it good?

— (Annika) Yes, for sure.

— (Robert) Yeah, we continue working with Dmitry. He did a seminar in Zagreb, he's also coming to Berlin. He's a great help for our team.

— Okay, thank you both so much for doing this!

— (Annika) No problem, thank you!