Career
Zelenskaya began skiing at the age of 6 in her native Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, on the Kamchatka Peninsula in far eastern Russia. She was coached by Lyudmila Agranovskaya, the famed mountaineer and innovative skiing coach who ran the most successful training center for Soviet (and later Russian) alpine skiers. She also placed on the World Cup podium (top three) in 12 downhill races and one Super G from 1990 to 1997, with her first podium at the age of 18 on December 21, 1990, in Morzine, France.
She placed third in the World Cup downhill standings and tenth overall in 1997, her best year on the circuit.
She also competed in four Winter Olympics (1992, 1994, 1998, 2002) and five FIS Alpine World Ski Championships (1991, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2001), representing the Soviet Union (1991), Unified Team (1992), and Russia (subsequently). World Cup victories.