21 September 2023 , 13:41
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New feature-length figure skating Netflix documentary Harley & Katya is proving a huge hit with viewers, with many praising its unflinching honesty and sensitive handling of a heart-breaking tale.
The titular duo competed for Australia between 2015 and 2020, with the early years proving particularly fruitful, including bagging a gold at the Junior World Championships in 2017 which teed them up to compete at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
But the pressure became unbearable, with injury troubles, health issues and coaching changes bringing a heart-breaking end to their glowing skating career together. Katya Alexandrovskaya sadly died by suicide on July 18, 2020.
Prior to her death, it was said Katya was battling depression, with the documentary detailing her downward spiral into heavy drinking, which seriously impacted her health. In early 2020, Katya sought treatment for epilepsy, which prompted her to dissolve her partnership with Harley and bow out from figure skating just a month later.
Not even five months after retiring, Katya took her own life at her Moscow home at the age of just 20, leaving behind a note in Russian that said, “Lyublyu,” which translates to “love.”
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What happened to Harley?
Twenty-six-year-old Australian Harley Windsor is still competing in the world of figure skating, and partnered with another Russian-born skater, Maria Chernyshova, in August 2021. The duo competed during the 2021-22 skating season, but after failing to achieve any success, the pair parted company at the end of the campaign.
In July this year, Harley announced he would switch allegiance to compete for South Korea, where he would be partnered with Canadian-born Korean skater, Cho Hye-jin, for the upcoming season.
Praise for Harley & Katya
Originally shown on ABC Australia in December last year, Harley & Katya was released on Netflix earlier this month. With a healthy 7.4 on IMDB, viewers have really taken the heart-breaking tale to their hearts.
Pik923 posted: "Devastatingly brilliant. This was well researched and well investigated with great interviews. (It tells the story of) the life of young children who have a passion, a huge passion where their entire life is devoted to one thing. Bring a box of tissues to your screening."
Alephnullfidusachates said: "It is an exceptional look into the raw toughness of two highly skilled individuals that come together from two sides of the world with differing cultural backgrounds for the resolute purpose of bonding their hard-earned strengths to form a spectacular winning partnership.
"I found this documentary totally engaging in so many ways as it takes you through all the aspects necessary to make it to competition level and all the seesawing effects of winning and losing. But it was the visceral psychological effects that initially creep up slowly and then shatter so quickly that will chill you to the bone and pull at your heartstrings."
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