ATTILA ELEK’S INJURY

Message on the forum on 27^th January

Yesterday we talked to Attila in the break of free dance and asked him what happened. He said that actually they were practicing a step of 0 difficulty when the edge of his skate stuck (or what… - Sh.) and his ankle twisted. He didn’t look very desperate – but his brother and father did, Nóri even cried.

Message on the forum on 1^st February

The traces of jumps and spins remained on the ice like they were little craters; even after resurfacing (that’s what it’s called, isn’t it? – Sh.)! Though the ice was being resurfaced for about an hour before competition, it really needed it. When they were ready it actually looked like it’s supposed to look after resurfacing.

ARTICLES

Dunno where it’s from

Even more painful than the weak performance of the ladies, Nóra Hoffmann and Attila Elek had to withdraw from the seventh place before the free dance. While practicing their free dance Friday morning, because of an unfortunate move, Attila broke his ankle. He traveled home on Saturday and, as it turned out, he had suffered a splint-bone break, which has been operated on: eight clams and a plate have been implanted into his left foot. “We don’t yet know when we can start practicing again, but definitely not for two months, because my foot will be in plaster – so we will miss the World Cup in March” – said Attila Elek, who will be substituted by his younger brother György and his partner Zsuzsanna Nagy in Japan.

07. 01. 31.

Attila Elek and Nóra Hoffmann: Together through thick and thin

Budapest – Nóra Hoffmann (22) doesn’t leave her partner to himself. She went from the airport straight to her partner Attila Elek, lying in hospital with a broken splint-bone. Nóri stands by Attila in trouble, she will even teach her injured partner to walk with crutches.

Only a few hours separated the pair from reaching the best result of their life at a senior world competition. They were standing in seventh place after the original program and experts said they could even move forward after the free dance.

But the low quality of the ice dissolved their dreams in the morning practice before the competition.

The edge of the skate and so my foot stuck on a flaw of the ice – Attila told the story. – I suffered a splint-bone break, the bone was fixed with eight clams and a plate. My foot was in such pain on the first night that I couldn’t sleep at all. But now I feel much better. The doctors say that if everything goes fine, I can go home on Thursday.

Attila’s recovery will take at least 4-5 months, the ice dance pair can’t participate in the March World Cup.

I had a similarly serious injury when I was small – Nóra said. – When Attila fell, I knew there was big trouble. I ran to take him a towel but I was crying so bitterly that I couldn’t even ask if he could stand up. But how could he have?

We lost a mint of money because of this injury. We had been working all summer, we took credit so that we could practice and pay for the foreign trainers. Had we finished the competition, the European Skating Federation would have paid us $7-8000, not to mention the pénzdíjas meghívásos* competitions – we had to cancel everything. But now that’s all not that important, what really matters is that Attila can walk as soon as possible. I know how to walk with crutches, so I’ll teach him.

Nemzeti Sport 02.01. Hoffmann, Elek: Carrying-on in autumn soonest

The trouble happened in Warsaw at the Europeans, at the practice before the free dance. The ice dance pair, Nóra Hoffmann and Attila Elek could have achieved the best results of their life; they were standing in seventh place after the original dance.

The dream dissolved. What makes it worse that it would not really have been a dream, it was already reality. They arrived to the Europeans in good trim, the waltz they performed as compulsory dance was beautiful, and their tango of the original was fantastic. And then it happened…

“We were doing our program at the practice before the free dance. We didn’t know what happened exactly, and we still don’t. My skate must have stuck in a flaw in the ice. I knew at once it was serious, because I had even heard the crunch. My splint-bone broke; eight clams and a plate are fixing my left ankle. I can only lie because of the plaster; I can only start walking in six weeks. That’s when I can start strengthening my leg…”

And this is a long time. Especially that – not considering physical pain (which is not small) – Attila has to strengthen mentally too. And not only he, but Nóra has to do so. “The time coming now will be very difficult for both of us – she said. I’m trying to help him. I think the most difficult is to get over it mentally. I don’t yet know what I will do in the next few months. I will certainly train, but I obviously can’t do it so intensely as we did together in the past months.”

Hungary’s best ice dance pair can surely not compete in this year’s season. They are not going to the Worlds in Tokyo either. “We’ve had such a good season – Elek went on –, we did well at the Grand Prixs, our training for the Europeans went well and we ran good programs there too. Considering this, it is even harder to accept that the season has ended for us – and that it has ended like this.”

MTI / origo.hu 01.29. Worlds in March in Japan

“We don’t yet know when we can start training again, but it won’t be until the plaster is removed from my foot, which is about two months, so we will miss the Worlds in March”, said Attila Elek, who will be substituted by his brother György and his partner, Zsuzsanna Nagy at the competition.

“I’m very sorry for Hoffmann and Elek, because they have improved very much in the past year and this could be clearly seen about their results too – their earlier best result was a tenth place, and now they could have achieved one of the first six places.” – said Jurek about the two-time junior world silver medalist pair. The head of the discipline added, she thinks that everything will be different at the worlds: “One lady and one ice dance pair can go to Japan. Juli is the lady, because she did better than Viki at the nationals and Europeans as well, and in ice dance the currently 20^th Zsuzsanna Nagy and György Elek pair can participate because of Attila’s injury. By the way, I believe that Juli will do very well at the Worlds, as there’ll be less pressure on her because she didn’t do so well at the Europeans. The problem is that she could have won a gold medal with a perfect performance in Warsaw, but in Japan this probably won’t even be worth a medal, because of the stronger field with the Japanese and American participants.

* Sorry for that one – if anyone knows the English for it, please go ahead and tell me. (A competition for which skaters are paid and to which they are invited… that’s my solution :P)