# Maria Petrova (figure skater)

Maria Igorevna Petrova (Russian: Мария Игоревна Петрова; born 29 November 1977) is a Russian pair skater. With partner Alexei Tikhonov, she is the 2000 World champion and a two-time (1999, 2000) European champion

## Career

Petrova was a sickly child and her doctor recommended she take up a sport; her parents got her into figure skating when she was seven. She started out in singles but always preferred pair skating and admired Ekaterina Gordeeva / Sergei Grinkov so she made the switch to pairs at 13.
She initially competed with Anton Sikharulidze with whom she is the 1994 and 1995 World Junior Champion. They split in 1996 and she teamed up with Teimuraz Pulin, winning the silver medal at the 1997 World Junior championships.
Petrova teamed up with Alexei Tikhonov in the summer of 1998. Together, they won the World Championship in 2000. They placed 6th at the 2002 Winter Olympics and 5th at the 2006 Games. They won a silver medal at the 2005 Worlds, and a bronze in 2006.
After making the decision to retire following the 2006 Worlds, Petrova and Tikhonov eventually consented to compete one more year at the Russian Skating Federation's request. During their final season, they finished 6th at the Grand Prix Final, and withdrew from the World Championships due to injury.
Petrova and Tikhonov trained in Saint Petersburg with Ludmila Velikova. After retiring from competition, they performed in ice shows, including Russian television project Ice Age.

## Programs
### With Tikhonov

| Season | Short program | Free skating | Exhibition |
| 2006–2007 | Sarabande by George Frideric Handel (modern arrangement) | Moonlight Sonata by Ludwig van Beethoven | |
| 2005–2006 | Sarabande by George Frideric Handel (modern arrangement) | Winter from Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi Fellini soundtracks | |
| 2004–2005 | Tango by Astor Piazzolla | The Circus Princess by Emmerich Kalman | You Present Me Roses (Russian: Ты дарила мне розы) by Nochnye Snaipery |
| 2003–2004 | Music by Baxter | Mister X The Circus Princess by Emmerich Kálmán | You Present Me Roses (Russian: Ты дарила мне розы) by Nochnye Snaipery |
| 2002–2003 | Rainy Blues by Raimonds Pauls | Symphony Dances by Sergei Rachmaninoff | Black Cat, White Cat |
| 2001–2002 | Adagio from The Nutcracker by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky | Chess by Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson et al. | |
| 2000–2001 | Russian Fantasie Francesca de Rimini by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky | Le tourment Vision de Paradis by Saint-Preux Gospodin Oformitel (film) Diva by Jean-Michel Jarre The Fifth Element by Éric Serra Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi | |
| 1999–2000 | Francesca de Rimini by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky | Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi Mr. Bureaucrat (film soundtrack) | |
| 1998–1999 | Doctor Zhivago by Maurice Jarre | Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi | |

### With Sikharulidze

| Season | Short program | Free skating | Exhibition |
| 1994–1995 | | Romeo and Juliet by Sergei Prokofiev | |
| 1995–1996 | sound of nature from Swan Lake by Pyotr Tchaikovsky | Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi | |

## Competitive highlights
### With Alexei Tikhonov

Results :
| International ||||||||||
| Event | 1998–99 | 1999–00 | 2000–01 | 2001–02 | 2002–03 | 2003–04 | 2004–05 | 2005–06 | 2006–07 |
| Olympics | | | | 6th | | | | 5th | |
| Worlds | 4th | 1st | 4th | 4th | 3rd | 4th | 2nd | 3rd | WD |
| Europeans | 1st | 1st$^†$ | 4th | 3rd | 3rd | 2nd | 3rd | 3rd | 2nd |
| Grand Prix Final | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 5th | 3rd | 3rd | 2nd | 4th | 6th |
| GP Bompard | | | | | | | 2nd | | 1st |
| GP Cup of China | | | | | | 3rd | | 1st | |
| GP Cup of Russia | | 1st | | 2nd | 2nd | | | | 2nd |
| GP NHK Trophy | 5th | 1st | 3rd | | 4th | 1st | 1st | | |
| GP Skate America | | | | | | 2nd | | | |
| GP Skate Canada | 2nd | | 3rd | | | | | 2nd | |
| GP Sparkassen/Bofrost | 1st | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | | | | |
| Goodwill Games | | | | 3rd | | | | | |
| National ||||||||||
| Russian Champ. | 2nd | 2nd | 2nd | 3rd | 2nd | 2nd | 2nd | 1st | |
| GP = Grand Prix; WD = Withdrew $^†$Pairs champions Elena Berezhnaya / Anton Sikharulidze were stripped of their title. ||||||||||

### With Teimuraz Pulin

International :
| Event | 1996–1997 | 1997–1999 |
| Nations Cup 1 | | 1st |
| NHK Trophy | | 1st |
| Blue Swords | 1st | |
| Winter Universiade | 2nd | |
| International: Junior |||
| Junior Worlds | 2nd | |
| National |||
| Russian Champ. | 1st | 1st |

### With Anton Sikharulidze

International :
| Event | 1992–93 | 1993–94 | 1994–95 | 1995–96 |
| Worlds | | 8th | 6th | |
| Europeans | | | 6th | 5th |
| NHK Trophy | | | 7th | |
| Skate Canada | | | | 2nd |
| Trophée de France | | | | 5th |
| Goodwill Games | | | 7th | |
| International: Junior |||||
| Junior Worlds | 2nd | 1st | 1st | |
| National |||||
| Russian Champ. | | 6th | 2nd | 4th |
| Russian Jr. Champ. | 1st | | | |