European Russia (also Western Russia or Central Russia) refers to the western areas of Russia that lie within Europe, comprising roughly 3,960,000 square kilometres (1,528,560 mi²), larger in area than India, and spanning across 40% of Europe. Its eastern border is defined by the Ural Mountains and in the south it is defined by the border with Kazakhstan. This area includes Moscow and St. Petersburg, the two largest cities of Russia.

Roughly 78% of the entire Russian population (about 110,000,000 people out of an approximate total Russian population of 141,000,000) lives in European Russia, at an average of 27 persons per km² (10.5 per mi²). However, 75% of Russia's territory lies within Asia and accommodates only 22% of its population at 2.5 persons per km² (0.95 per mi²).

The term "European Russia" was used in the Russian Empire to refer to traditional East Slavic territories under Russian control, including what is now Belarus and most of Ukraine (Dnieper Ukraine).

Russia ⁱ/ˈrʌʃə/ or /ˈrʊʃə/ (Russian: Россия, tr. Rossiya; IPA: [rɐˈsʲijə] ( listen)), also officially known as the Russian Federation (Russian: Российская Федерация, tr. Rossiyskaya Federatsiya; IPA: [rɐˈsʲijskəjə fʲɪdʲɪˈratsɨjə] ( listen)), is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects. From northwest to southeast, Russia shares borders with Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland (both via Kaliningrad Oblast), Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia, and North Korea. It also has maritime borders with Japan by the Sea of Okhotsk, and the US state of Alaska by the Bering Strait. At 17,075,400 square kilometres (6,592,800 sq mi), Russia is the largest country in the world, covering more than one eighth of the Earth's inhabited land area. Russia is also the eighth most populous nation with 143 million people. It extends across the whole of northern Asia and 40% of Europe, spanning nine time zones and incorporating a wide range of environments and landforms. Russia has the world's largest reserves of mineral and energy resources and is the largest producer of oil and natural gas globally. Russia has the world's largest forest reserves and its lakes contain approximately one-quarter of the world's fresh water.

Anna Vladimirovna Sidorova (born February 6, 1991; А́нна Влади́мировна Си́дорова in Russian) is a curler from Russia.

She was named late to the Russian Olympic Team for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada. Originally Olga Jarkova was named to the team; however, Jarkova was taken out at the last minute and Sidorova was added to the team. For the fifth match, against the USA, and the sixth match, against Switzerland, Sidorova replaced Ludmila Privivkova as skip. She also replaced Ludmila Privivkova in the 8th Game against China as the Skip. Sidorova thus became the youngest skip at the games, since British skip Eve Muirhead, while also 19 years old at the time, is ten months older.

In addition to playing third on the Russian Olympic Team Sidorova has also skipped her own team on the World Curling Tour (with Olga Jarkova throwing second stones). She joined up with Privivkova's team in 2011.

2010 Vancouver Olympic Games

Ludmila Privivkova, Skip

Nkeiruka Ezekh, Second

Ekaterina Galkina, Lead

Julia Viacheslavovna Lipnitskaia (Russian: Юлия Вячеславовна Липницкая;schol. Julia Vjačeslavovna Lipnickaja, also romanized as Yulia Lipnitskaya; born June 5, 1998 in Yekaterinburg) is a Russian figure skater. She is the 2012 World Junior Champion, 2011–12 Junior Grand Prix Final champion, 2012 Russian senior silver medalist and the 2012 Russian junior champion. She holds the record for the combined total and free skate scores on the ladies junior level.

Lipnitskaia trained in Yekaterinburg until 2009 when she and her mother discussed her future, concluding they should either relocate for her skating career or leave the sport. Lipnitskaia moved with her mother to Moscow and joined Eteri Tutberidze's group in the spring of 2009. Her flexibility comes from her background in rhythmic gymnastics, which she practiced as a child. In the 2009–2010 season, she placed 5th on the junior level at the 2010 Russian Championships. She was 4th on the senior level the following season at the 2011 Russian Championships. She also competed at the national 2011 Russian Junior Championships but withdrew from the competition after the short program.