Background
She was born in Vyatka (now Kirov), Russian SFSR, and competed for the Soviet Union.
She was born in Vyatka (now Kirov), 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. Seeing how fast she was, people in Vyatka told her to participate in the Soviet Allround Championships, but Isakova was reluctant at first. She finally gave in and when she participated in the 1936 Soviet Allround Championships, pretending to be aged 17 (she was not allowed to compete at her true age of 15), she finished fifth.
That 1944 allround medal was silver – gold ones would follow the next five years.
Isakova participated in the World Allround Championships three times, winning gold every time. Over the course of her career, Isakova skated one world record on the old Medeo natural icerink at Alma-Ata:
To put these personal records in perspective, the WR column lists the official world records on the dates that Isakova skated her personal records.
However, it took until 1944 before she won an allround medal at the Soviet Championships. She also won the prestigious Kirov prize five times, the first time as early as 1938, the last time in 1951. 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. Foreign her achievements, Isakova was awarded the Order of Lenin. An overview of medals won by Isakova at important championships she participated in, listing the years in which she won each:.
