Rostelecom Cup 2015 Preview
Russia has always brought great, sometimes outstanding, figure skating on the ice. It's no wonder then that every time the sport returns to Moscow, it feels as if it's returning to its roots. Lately, Russian figure skating has been all about young people doing extraordinary things. We're going to get a chance to see some of them this weekend.
Let's start with the ladies. The biggest event of the competition is the comeback of Adelina Sotnikova. She's got a lot to prove in the eyes of many, as this is her first competition after the Olympic controversy. Personally, I just can't wait to see her back on the ice and I hope she can face the pressure with the same strength of character she's always had. She'll be competing against Elena Radionova, the happy, chirpy teenager who's also famous for knowing how to keep her cool in tough situations. The Olympic champion's second rival is Evgenia Medvedeva, who won Skate America, thus raising the number of unbelievably talented Russian girls competing at a senior level right now to a six. It's also worth keeping an eye on the talented Rika Hongo and Roberta Rodeghiero, who pulled off a surprising third place (SP) in Bordeaux a week ago.
The front-runner for the boys' competition is Javier Fernandez, but the host's favourite will be Sergei Voronov. These two have often met each other on the way to a gold medal. Although the difference between them at the Cup of China was quite significant, I'm not going to be the one to underestimate the Russian on home ice. Nam Nguyen and Adam Rippon are also bound to make a good impression. The question is: will they manage to grab a medal? We have a newcomer as well, Mikhail Kolyada from Russia.
Newbies will also be joining the ice-dancers. Viktoria Kavaliova/Yurii Bieliaiev are the first couple to emerge out of Bulgaria in quite some time, but everyone's attention will be focused on the bigger names. We have two main rivalries here. The first one is for the gold medal: Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje versus Anna Cappellini/Luca Lanotte. Both couples have been unbeatable so far this season, so their confrontation is not to be missed. Secondly, we have Elena Ilinykh/Ruslan Zhiganshin versus Victoria Sinitsina/Nikita Katsalapov for the bronze medal (more likely). I'm placing my bets on Elena and Ruslan based on their performaces last season, but I can not acknowledge the improvement of the other Russian couple.
Lastly, it seems that the pairs' event will also be a Russian duel. Ksenia Stolbova/Fedor Klimov haven't had as great a season debut as they expected. Yuko Kavaguti/Alexander Smirnov, on the other hand, smashed the competition in Beijing. As far as bets go, I'd place them on the latter. The bronze will likely go to Peng/Zhang from China, unless Moore-Towers/Marinaro pull off two fantastic performances.
With so much Russian flavour thrown into the competition this weekend, it'd be a shame to miss the Rostelecom Cup.
Let's start with the ladies. The biggest event of the competition is the comeback of Adelina Sotnikova. She's got a lot to prove in the eyes of many, as this is her first competition after the Olympic controversy. Personally, I just can't wait to see her back on the ice and I hope she can face the pressure with the same strength of character she's always had. She'll be competing against Elena Radionova, the happy, chirpy teenager who's also famous for knowing how to keep her cool in tough situations. The Olympic champion's second rival is Evgenia Medvedeva, who won Skate America, thus raising the number of unbelievably talented Russian girls competing at a senior level right now to a six. It's also worth keeping an eye on the talented Rika Hongo and Roberta Rodeghiero, who pulled off a surprising third place (SP) in Bordeaux a week ago.
 |
| European and World Champion Javier Fernandez starts the competition as favourite for the gold medal Photograph: Kogi Nagahama / Getty Images Asia |
Newbies will also be joining the ice-dancers. Viktoria Kavaliova/Yurii Bieliaiev are the first couple to emerge out of Bulgaria in quite some time, but everyone's attention will be focused on the bigger names. We have two main rivalries here. The first one is for the gold medal: Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje versus Anna Cappellini/Luca Lanotte. Both couples have been unbeatable so far this season, so their confrontation is not to be missed. Secondly, we have Elena Ilinykh/Ruslan Zhiganshin versus Victoria Sinitsina/Nikita Katsalapov for the bronze medal (more likely). I'm placing my bets on Elena and Ruslan based on their performaces last season, but I can not acknowledge the improvement of the other Russian couple.
Lastly, it seems that the pairs' event will also be a Russian duel. Ksenia Stolbova/Fedor Klimov haven't had as great a season debut as they expected. Yuko Kavaguti/Alexander Smirnov, on the other hand, smashed the competition in Beijing. As far as bets go, I'd place them on the latter. The bronze will likely go to Peng/Zhang from China, unless Moore-Towers/Marinaro pull off two fantastic performances.
With so much Russian flavour thrown into the competition this weekend, it'd be a shame to miss the Rostelecom Cup.
Comments
Post a Comment