Maria Pavlova (figure skater)

2021–2022 season

In September 2021, it was announced that Pavlova had teamed up with Hungarian pair skater, Balázs Nagy and that they would represent Hungary together, coached by Dmitri Savin and Fedor Klimov.^[7][8]

Making their debut at the Budapest Trophy, where they were seventh, they then competed twice on the Challenger series, finishing fifth at the 2021 CS Denis Ten Memorial Challenge and thirteenth at the 2021 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb.

After winning the silver medal at the 2022 Four National Championships and the Hungarian Championships, Pavlova/Nagy made their debut at the European Championships, finishing eleventh.^[7]

2022–23 season: Debut of Pavlova/Sviatchenko, first national title

In November 2022, it was announced that Pavlova's partnership with Nagy had dissolved and that she would continue to represent Hungary with fellow Russian-born pair skater Alexei Sviatchenko. They were coached by Dmitri Savin and Fedor Klimov and primarily train in Sochi due to the shortage of elite-level training rinks for pair skaters in Hungary.^[9][2]

Pavlova dealt with injuries that caused them to miss the early part of their first season together.^[10] The pair made their debut at the 2022 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb, finishing ninth. Pavlova/Sviatchenko went on to win gold at the 2023 Four National Championships and the 2023 Hungarian Championships.^[11]

At the 2023 European Championships in Espoo, Finland, Pavlova/Sviatchenko skated two clean programs, placing sixth in the short program and fourth in the free skate, finishing in fifth place overall. They then competed at the 2023 Bavarian Open and the 2023 International Challenge Cup, taking gold and silver, respectively.^[11]

At the 2023 World Championships in Saitama, Japan, Pavlova/Sviatchenko delivered two strong performances, placing eighth in the short program and seventh in the free skate, finishing in seventh-place overall.^[11] Their results were the best for a team representing Hungary in decades.^[10]

2023–24 season: Grand Prix medalists

Pavlova/Sviatchenko competed twice on the Challenger circuit to begin the season, coming fifth at the 2023 CS Nebelhorn Trophy before winning the bronze medal at the 2023 CS Finlandia Trophy.^[11] They were then invited to make their Grand Prix debut at the 2023 Skate Canada International, where they finished fourth in the short program after a spin error. They then moved up to second after the free skate, taking the silver medal. This was the first ever Grand Prix medal for a pair representing Hungary, and the first in any discipline since Júlia Sebestyén's bronze medal at the 2009 Skate America.^[12]

They were again fourth in the short program at the 2023 Grand Prix of Espoo, but another second-place free skate won them the bronze medal.^[13]

The team's results on the Grand Prix initially had them finishing as first alternates to the Grand Prix Final.^[14] They were called up to compete at the Beijing event following the withdrawal of German team Hocke/Kunkel, and came in fourth at the event.^[15]

Pavlova/Sviatchenko competed next at the 2024 European Championships, finishing fourth in the short program, less than two points back of third place. They came third in the free skate, winning a bronze small medal, but remained fourth overall, 1.66 points behind bronze medalists Ghilardi/Ambrosini of Italy. They expressed dissatisfaction with the judging of their performances, with Pavlova saying "our motivation goes down every time we keep getting these scores."^[16]

Finishing the season at the 2024 World Championships in Montreal, Pavlova/Sviatchenko came sixth in the short program. They moved up to fourth after the free skate, which she called "very motivating for next season."^[5]

2024–25 season: Grand Prix silver

Pavlova and Sviatchenko began the season by competing at the 2024 Lombardia Trophy and the 2024 Shanghai Trophy, where they won bronze and gold, respectively.

Going on to compete on the 2024–25 Grand Prix series, they placed fifth at 2024 Skate America.^[17] “This wasn’t our best skate for sure," said Pavlova. "We were both a bit sick ahead of this competition. We have some time now to regroup and will be better at the next competition.”^[17] They went on to take silver at the 2024 Finlandia Trophy.^[11] Pavlova said after the event that Sviatchenko was dealing with a back injury and were not able to practice lifts before coming into the event. "I am surprised that our scores are still higher than at Skate America," she said. "We know though that the judges don’t forgive any mistakes, and we need to practice more.”^[18]

Going on to compete at the 2025 European Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, Pavlova/Sviatchenko placed third in the short program and fourth in the free skate, finishing fourth overall, only 0.44 points behind bronze medalists, Metelkina/Berulava. The following month, they competed at the 2025 World Championships in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, where the placed eighth overall after finishing sixth in the short program and eighth in the free skate.^[19][20]

2025–26 season: European bronze, Milano Cortina Olympics

Pavlova and Sviatchenko opened the 2025-26 season with a bronze medal at 2025 Grand Prix de France. "We were just really happy to be here, to start the season, and to compete again so we weren't really thinking about medaling," said Pavlova.^[21]

Three weeks later, the team took silver at 2025 NHK Trophy, posting a new personal best in both the short program and total score. "I think we are working in the right direction and we just want to continue to improve on everything," said Pavlov. "But we are very happy with the results and our second place.”^[22]

The following month, Pavlova and Sviatchenko placed fifth overall at the 2025–26 Grand Prix Final. "We're feeling good," said Pavlova after the free skate. "It was our first clean skate this season, and we're proud of that. We're going in the right direction forward."^[23]

In January, the team won the bronze medal at the 2026 European Championships, becoming the first Hungarian pair team to medal since Marianna Nagy and László Nagy in 1957 and the first skaters from Hungary to medal since Júlia Sebestyén in 2004.^[24] "It's been a long time since pairs' for Hungary earned a medal," noted Pavlova. "So, I think it's a big achievement for us and for the country. It's an amazing feeling!"^[25]

The following month, Pavlova and Sviatchenko placed fourth overall at the 2026 Winter Olympics in their debut at this event. The team earned new personal best scores in each segment at this event, and said: “We’re very proud because a lot of people from Hungary are supporting us,” said Pavlova. “Yesterday I got a lot of messages from Hungarian fans, and it made us feel very proud. I think they’re proud of us for what we achieved out there, and we hope that more people will start figure skating in Hungary and that there will be more pairs for sure.”^[26]

In March, Pavlova and Sviatchenko competed at the 2026 World Figure Skating Championships where they placed fifth. The team finished fourth in the short program and sixth in the free skate. “I’m truly exhausted,” said Pavlova after the short program. “This was our first experience to be at the Olympics and then Worlds after the Olympics. I think we always questioned why people withdraw from Worlds after the Olympics. It happens every four years, and we didn’t know why. But now that we experienced it, we understand—because you gave it your all. You gave 100 percent."^[27]