Nikolai Morozov

Nikolai Alexandrovich Morozov (Николай Александрович Морозов; born 17 December 1975) is a Russian former competitive ice dancer, figure skating coach and choreographer.

He represented Russia, Belarus and Azerbaijan in competition.

Representing Azerbaijan, they placed 21st at the 1994 World Championships.

In the 1994–95 season, Morozov began competing with Ekaterina Gvozdkova for Russia.

They won the bronze medal at the 1995 Lysiane Lauret Challenge.

Morozov teamed up with Tatiana Navka in 1996.

They represented Belarus.

At their first practice at the 1997 World Championships, he sustained a torn meniscus in his knee but they finished 14th at the event and he then underwent surgery.

Navka/Morozov earned an Olympic berth by winning gold at the 1997 Karl Schäfer Memorial.

He is a former competitive ice dancer who appeared with Tatiana Navka for Belarus at the 1998 Winter Olympics, placing 16th, and at the 1998 World Championships, placing 10th.

Earlier in his career, he competed with Olga Pershankova for Azerbaijan and with Ekaterina Gvozdkova for Russia.

Morozov was born in Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union.

90 seconds into their free dance at the 1998 Winter Olympics, nearly three-quarters of the floodlights turned off but Navka/Morozov did not interrupt their performance.

They finished 16th at the Olympics in Nagano, Japan, and 10th at the 1998 World Championships in Minneapolis.

They were coached by Alexander Zhulin and Bob Young at the International Skating Center in Simsbury, Connecticut.

When Navka decided to skate with another partner, Morozov tried skating with another woman for three months but then decided to retire.

After his competitive retirement, Morozov became a coaching assistant for Tatiana Tarasova, with whom he choreographed for Alexei Yagudin, Barbara Fusar-Poli / Maurizio Margaglio, and Isabelle Delobel / Olivier Schoenfelder.

He was formerly married to French ice dancer Caroline Douarin, with whom he has a daughter, Annabelle Nicole, born in 2001.

In 2002 or 2003, he left Tarasova and began coaching and choreographing on his own.

Morozov initially coached in Newington, Connecticut and later at the Ice House in Hackensack, New Jersey (United States).

He was married to Canadian ice dancer Shae-Lynn Bourne from August 2005 to July 2007.

He briefly dated his former pupil Miki Ando while he was coaching her.

He coached Shizuka Arakawa to the 2006 Olympic gold medal and Miki Ando to two World titles.

He returned to Moscow after the Russian government asked him to help in the preparation for the 2014 Sochi Olympics.

He was based mainly at the Novogorsk national training center near Moscow and spent some time in New Jersey during summers.

His current and former students include:

Ladies' single skaters

Men's single skaters

Ice dancers

Pair skaters

His current and former choreography clients include

GP: Champions Series (Grand Prix)

(with Navka)

In May 2016, Morozov married another student of his, Vasilisa Davankova.

In July 2019 during an interview Davankova revealed that she and Morozov were divorced.

Morozov's parents introduced him to skating when he was five after doctors advised them that he needed more exercise.

He was a singles skater until the age of 16 when he took up ice dancing.

He spent one year working with coach Natalia Linichuk in Switzerland and was paired with Olga Pershankova.