| Rank | Event | Year | Location | |
| Olympic Games | ||||
| 3 | Women | 2000 | Sydney, NSW, AUS | |
| 5 | Women | 2004 | Athens, GRE | |
| 7 | Women | 2008 | Beijing, CHN | |
| World Championship | ||||
| 3 | Women | 2011 | Shanghai, CHN | |
| 3 | Women | 2009 | Rome, ITA | |
| 3 | Women | 2007 | Melbourne, VIC, AUS | |
| 3 | Women | 2003 | Barcelona, ESP | |
Hobbies
Listening to music, skiing, ice fishing and reading books. (Athlete, 30 Jul 2007; USC Trojans, 01 Jan 2004)
Occupation
Athlete
Education
Communications - University of Southern California, United States
Language(s) spoken
English, Russian
Club name
KINEF Surgutneftegas , Kirishi, RUS
Coach
Aleksandr Kabanov [national] (RUS) (Athlete, 16 Aug 2010)
Position and style
Defence (Zagreb2010, 29 Aug 2010)
Handedness
Right (Zagreb2010, 29 Aug 2010)
Other sports
Her mother played basketball at the college level. (Athlete, 16 Aug 2010)
Debut
1997 European Championship (Spain) (Athlete, 16 Aug 2010)
Additional information
Start of sporting career
Started in 1993 in Chelyabinsk. (Athlete 2007)
Reason for taking up this sport
Because it is the only aquatic team sport.
Because it is interesting and difficult. (Athlete , 01 May 1999; Athlete 16 Aug 2010)
Ambitions
To win an Olympic gold medal before retiring. (kirishinews.ru, 06 Apr 2012)
Most memorable sporting achievement
Winning Gold at the 2006 European Championships in Belgrade, Serbia. (Athlete, 16 Aug 2010)
Winning a bronze medal with the Russian team at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney and scoring the game-tying goal with 2:19 left on the clock in the game against The Netherlands which Russia won 4-3. (USC Trojans, 01 Jan 2004)
Most influential person in career
Her coaches. (Athlete, 16 Aug 2010)
Sporting philosophy / motto
"You are as good as your last game." (Athlete, 16 Aug 2010)
Awards
Named 2002 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Player of the Year. (USC Trojans, 01 Jan 2004)
Earned first team All-America honours in 2001 after leading the team with a school record of 103 goals. (USC Trojans, 01 Jan 2004)
Was named 2001 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Co-Player of the Year. (USC Trojans, 01 Jan 2004)
She was voted the Best Player at the 1998 Junior European Championships in England. (Athlete, 01 May 1999)
General
EARNING COACH'S PRAISE
Her coach at USC, Coach Vavic, said she was one of the best players in the world. "She is amazing in terms of her ability to play any position. She is a player that can dominate a game. Sofia is one of the best athletes that I have had the opportunity to coach," said Vavic in 2003. (USC Trojans, 01 Jan 2004)
PREVIOUS UNIVERSITY
Before moving to the University of Southern California, she studied Psychology at Chelyabinsk State Technical University in Russia. She chose to attend a US college for a new experience in water polo and education. (USC Trojans, 01 Jan 2004)
CAPTAINCY
She captained the national side at the 2010 European Championships in Zagreb, Croatia. (Zagreb2010, 29 Aug 2010)
Previous Olympics
Beijing 2008, Athens 2004, Sydney 2000
