 Volochkova is a self-confessed ice cream lover |
A Russian ballerina reinstated after she was sacked by the Bolshoi amid reports that she was too heavy has said she will not accept any lesser roles. Anastasia Volochkova was fired in September after the Bolshoi director said she was too large to lift.
She has objected to comments by the Russian culture minister that she should take any "fourth swan" role she is given after winning back her job.
She said: "I have played the leading role in nearly every classical ballet."
 |  Ballet is not an art of kilograms, it is an art of the soul  |
A court ruled that Ms Volochkova, one of Russia's best known ballerinas, had been unfairly dismissed by the Bolshoi, which must pay her the equivalent of $6,400 (�3,700) damages.
The dancer said she was unhappy with culture minister Mikhail Shvydkoi for saying she may now have to accept lesser roles, such as a minor part in Swan Lake.
"The culture minister's statement that now, after being reinstated at the theatre, I can only count on a part as 'fourth swan', is more than surprising," she said
"Legally I should be reinstated into the same position as I was in before."
Lift safely
Ms Volochkova, a self-confessed ice cream lover, defended her physique.
"Height and weight have never been an indication of a ballerina's greatness," she said.
"Ballet is not an art of kilograms, it is an art of the soul."
The management at the Bolshoi claimed the dancer, standing 169 cm (5 ft 7 in) tall and weighing 50 kg (110 pounds), was too big for her male partners to lift safely during performances.
The Bolshoi has said it will appeal the court's decision.
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