Marina Klimova
Biographical information
| Roles | Competed in Olympic Games |
|---|---|
| Sex | Female |
| Full name | Marina Vladimirovna•Klimova (-Ponomarenko) |
| Used name | Marina•Klimova |
| Original name | Марина Владимировна•Климова (-Пономаренко) |
| Born | 28 June 1966 in Yekaterinburg, Sverdlovsk (RUS) |
| Measurements | 165 cm / 47 kg |
| Affiliations | Spartak Moskva, Moskva (RUS) |
| NOC |  Soviet Union  Unified Team |
| Nationality |  Russian Federation |
| Medals | OG |
| Gold | 1 |
| Silver | 1 |
| Bronze | 1 |
| Total | 3 |
Biography
Marina Klimova and Sergey Ponomarenko were the world’s best ice dance couple in the early 1990s. They rose to prominence in 1984 when they won bronzes at both the European Championships and Olympic Games. Soon they rose to be the world’s second ranked ice dancing couple behind Nataliya Bestemyanova and Andrey Bukin, winning silver medals behind them at the World Championships from 1985-87, at the European Championships from 1985-88 and at the 1988 Olympic Games. When Bestemyanova and Bukin retired from the competitive skating after the 1988 Olympics, Klimova and Ponomarenko rose to be the world’s top ice dance couple, winning the World Championships in 1989-90 and 1992, European Championships in 1989-1992 and the 1992 Olympic Games. In addition they won silver at the 1991 World Championships behind the French couple Isabelle and Paul Duchesnay. Klimova and Ponomarenko also won the Soviet Championships in 1985-86 and 1989-90. After the 1992 Olympics, Klimova and Ponomarenko turned professional and won silvers at the 1995 and 1996 World Professional Championships, before retiring from competitive skating in 1997. They married in 1984 and after their retirement worked as children’s coaches in San Jose, California.
Results
| Games | Discipline (Sport) / Event | NOC / Team | Pos | Medal | Nationality | As | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 Winter Olympics | Figure Skating (Skating) | URS |
RUS |
Marina Klimova | |||
| Ice Dancing, Mixed (Olympic) | Sergey Ponomarenko | 3 | Bronze | ||||
| 1988 Winter Olympics | Figure Skating (Skating) | URS |
RUS |
Marina Klimova | |||
| Ice Dancing, Mixed (Olympic) | Sergey Ponomarenko | 2 | Silver | ||||
| 1992 Winter Olympics | Figure Skating (Skating) | EUN |
RUS |
Marina Klimova | |||
| Ice Dancing, Mixed (Olympic) | Sergey Ponomarenko | 1 | Gold |
Olympic family relations
- Wife of Sergey Ponomarenko
Special Notes
- Listed in Olympians Who Won a Medal at the European Figure Skating Championships (4–3–1 1984 Budapest bronze: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1985 Göteborg silver: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1986 København silver: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1987 Sarajevo silver: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1989 Birmingham gold: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1990 Leningrad gold: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1991 Sofia gold: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1992 Lausanne gold: ice dancing (competed for the Commonwealth of Independent States))
- Listed in Olympians Who Won a Medal at the World Figure Skating Championships (3–5–0 1985 Tokyo silver: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1986 Genève silver: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1987 Cincinnati silver: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1988 Budapest silver: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1989 Paris gold: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1990 Halifax gold: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1991 München silver: ice dancing (competed for the Soviet Union); 1992 Oakland gold: ice dancing (competed for the Commonwealth of Independent States))