Russian figure skaters went through the skating rink – Sport – Kommersant

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The Russian team won the second gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in the team figure skating tournament, which lasted for three days. Domestic figure skaters won ahead of schedule, and Kamila Valieva, who closed the competition, entered the ice already in the status of an Olympic champion. The Russians were ahead of the US team with 74 points (65), the team from Japan closed the top three (63).

At the team figure skating tournament, the Russian team won a victory that could have eluded it only under an incredible set of circumstances. Before the final competitive day, the domestic team was ahead of foreign competitors, including the Americans and the Japanese, with a solid margin. The Russian figure skaters had to strike the last blow by presenting their free programs in three genres – sports couples, ice dancing and women’s single skating.

The Russian team decided to do without substitutions and included in the application those who won points for her in the short program. For this reason, probably, domestic figure skaters, already exhausted, could not avoid mistakes.

World Champions Anastasia Mishina and Alexander Gallyamov, who did not fail the whole season, they seemed to give the worst rental. By the middle of the program, the partner’s legs began to tremble, and at the end of the performance, the Russians made a terrible mistake that was not characteristic of them. On the descent from the final support, Gallyamov could not hold Mishina and, trying to protect her from the blow, fell with her. The partner was badly hurt and, leaving the ice, held his hand.

After the performance, the skater, trying to find an explanation for such a collapse, pointed to an extremely early time for the competition. But absolutely all duets were wrong on Monday, which allowed the Russians to earn a maximum of 10 points.

Failed to avoid problems and Russian dancers Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov. The figure skaters, who lost in the rhythm dance to the American duo Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donoghue, were again behind the Americans in the free program. This time they lost to another pair – Madison Chalk and Evan Bates. The Russians were deducted one point for the overtime support, and this point was not enough for them to win. Sinitsina and Katsalapov brought the national team 9 points, which meant an early victory for the Russian team.

Kamila Valieva out on the ice already in the status of an Olympic champion. Theoretically, she could not perform at all or simply wind circles on the ice, since her performance would not have affected the outcome of the tournament in any way. Valieva could at least lighten the jumping content and not include numerous quadruple jumps and a triple axel in the program.

But the 15-year-old athlete, who this season is used to breaking world records from start to start, decided to do all the declared elements. Only the quad sheepskin coat did not work out for the skater, for which she, it seems, simply did not have enough strength.

Kamila Valieva nevertheless won anyway. For technique alone, she earned 105 points – as much as only a few among the strongest single skaters are able to receive today.

As a result of the tournament, the Russian team scored a total of 74 points, ahead of the Americans (65). Bronze medals were won by Japanese figure skaters (63), who had never previously reached the podium of the Olympic team tournaments.

Ekaterina Remizova

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