Maria Isakova


Maria Grigoryevna Isakova, nicknamed Cinderella of Vyatka, was a World Champion speed skater. She was born in Vyatka, Russian SFSR, and competed for the Soviet Union.
Isakova started skating at a very young age, spending many hours every day on the ice because she liked skating very much. Her speed prompted people in Vyatka to tell her to enter the Soviet Allround Championships. She hesitated but then relented to participated in the 1936 Soviet Allround Championships, pretending to be aged 17 ; she finished fifth. She would finally win in 1944 a silver all-round medal at the Soviet Championships; gold medals would follow the next five years. She also won the prestigious Kirov prize five times from 1938 to 1951.
Isakova participated in the World Allround Championships three times, winning gold every time. This made her the first female speed skater to become World Champion three times and, since her titles were consecutive, the first female speed skater to become World Champion in three consecutive years. For her achievements, Isakova was awarded the Order of Lenin.

Medals

An overview of medals won by Isakova at important championships she participated in, listing the years in which she won each:
ChampionshipsGold medalSilver medalBronze medal
World Allround1948
1949
1950		--
Soviet Allround1945
1946
1947
1948
1949
1951		1944
1950		-

World records

Over the course of her career, Isakova skated one world record on the old Medeo natural icerink at Alma-Ata:
EventResultDateVenue
1,500 m2:29.512 February 1951Alma Ata - Old Medeo

Personal records

To put these personal records in perspective, the WR column lists the official world records on the dates that Isakova skated her personal records.
EventResultDateVenueWR
500 m47.78 January 1952Alma-Ata - Old Medeo46.4
1,000 m1:37.216 February 1951Alma-Ata - Old Medeo1:38.8
1,500 m2:29.512 February 1951Alma-Ata - Old Medeo2:36.7
3,000 m5:21.723 January 1953Alma-Ata - Old Medeo5:21.3
5,000 m9:32.01 February 1949Moscow - TsDKA Stadion9:28.3