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Post by Admin on Nov 17, 2020 21:16:19 GMT
The third event on the modified Grand Prix roster, 2020 Rostelecom Cup, will play out at the Megasport Arena in Moscow Nov. 20-22. On Aug. 26, the government announced it had removed all restrictions for foreign athletes, coaches and specialists in the field of physical education to enter the country, which opened the door for skaters (and particularly those in neighbouring countries) to participate in this competition. The Russian government expressed the belief this would facilitate border crossings for those participating in international competitions, including professional sports. The order also lifts restrictions on the travel of foreign athletes who enter by road, rail and at other checkpoints. Rostelecom Cup will be a melting pot of Russia′s best in all four disciplines. In normal times, the top Russian skaters and teams would each be assigned to two of the six events and would not usually go head-to-head until the Grand Prix Final. This year, with that option not available, this competition will be fireworks on ice. It will also be the only truly international Grand Prix event this season, with skaters/teams from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Hungary, Lithuania and Ukraine slated to compete. Who will capture the ladies crown is something no one can predict in advance. This event will be the showdown of the season with four contenders aiming to claim the top step of the podium. Mikhail Kolyada has been on fire at every competition he has contested thus far, and is the odds-on favorite to win the Rostelecom Cup title (his first) in his fifth appearance. (Kolyada’s best placement to date was third in 2017). His main challengers are Dmitri Aliev and Andrei Mozalev.
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Post by Admin on Nov 18, 2020 5:04:23 GMT
Artur Danielian is out of the competition. The 16-year-old underwent ankle surgery in Germany in October and is currently wearing a brace. ″Since this week, little by little they have begun to restore his leg, but no one knows how long this recovery will take, so we are not planning anything in the near future,″ Buyanova explained. Alexander Samarin has also withdrawn due to injury.
Pairs will be another hotly-contested affair, with reigning European champions Aleksandra Boikova and Dmitrii Kozlovskii going up against their training mates Anastasia Mishina and Alexander Galliamov. Both Galliamov and Morozov were sidelined for a few weeks in the fall after contracting the coronavirus, but were in good form at Stage IV of the Russian Cup in mid-November. Reigning World junior champions Apollinariia Panfilova and Dmitry Rylov, who have not yet made an appearance this season, are on the roster for this competition.
Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov and Tiffani Zagorski and Jonathan Guerreiro will capture the top two spots. Sinitsina has been dealing with injuries, but it is anticipated she will be ready for this competition. Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin withdrew on Nov. 16. ″The guys will miss the Grand Prix in Moscow because they have not fully recovered from the coronavirus. Unfortunately, almost everyone in our group has been ill,″ said their coach Irina Zhuk.
COMPETITION SCHEDULE (MOSCOW TIME)
Fri. Nov. 20 1:30 p.m. – Men′s Short 3:30 p.m. – Rhythm Dance 5:00 p.m. – Opening Ceremony 6:00 p.m. – Pairs Short 7:25 p.m. – Ladies Short
Sat. Nov. 21 1:30 p.m. – Men′s Free 3:40 p.m. – Free Dance 5:30 p.m. – Pairs Free 7:10 p.m. – Ladies Free
Sun. Nov. 22 2:00 p.m. – Awards Ceremony 3:00 p.m. – Gala Exhibition
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Post by Admin on Nov 18, 2020 21:19:15 GMT
Everywhere you look at this weekend’s Rostelecom Cup, the third stop of the ISU’s Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series this season, you’ll see world medal contenders on the ice.
Russia, with one of the most powerful line-ups presently in the sport, will stage the Grand Prix in Moscow after events in the U.S. and China earlier in the season. Due to coronavirus restrictions, Canada and France cancelled their Grand Prix stops, and Rostelecom is limited to Russian athletes and a host of others from nearby nations to help limit travel.
But that doesn’t mean the field is lacking. In fact, the opposite, as Alena Kostornaia, Alexandra Trusova and Anna Shcherbakova – the trio that swept six gold medals at the Grand Prix last year – face off with a gold on the line, while a resurgent Mikhail Kolyada is back in the men’s event, and some of the best teams in the world in both pairs and ice dance set to compete.
Noticeably absent is reigning Olympic champion Alina Zagitova, as well as the silver medallist from PyeongChang 2018 Evgenia Medvedeva. Medvedeva, who switched back to coach Eteri Tutberidze earlier this season, has a nagging back injury, while Zagitova, who has not competed since December 2019, and has opted to pursue off-ice opportunities during the Grand Prix, currently hosting a skating TV series in Russia.
The skating starts on Friday (20th November) at 1:30pm local time in Moscow. Below, five things to watch out for this weekend on the ice.
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Post by Admin on Nov 19, 2020 5:17:56 GMT
Ladies: Kostornaia, Trusova, Shcherbakova to face off With Kostornaia, Trusova and Shcherbakova each winning two Grand Prixs last year, it’s easily the most hotly contested ladies’ event of the season. Kostornaia, who – along with Trusova – has since gone from Tutberidze to working with Olympic champion Evgeni Plushenko as coach, was champion at the Grand Prix Final as well as the European Championships last season, making her a favourite for the then-cancelled world championships. There is no certainty who will emerge atop this coming weekend, however, as Trusova beat Kostornaia earlier this month at a national Cup of Russia event, hitting a staggering three quadruple jumps in her free skate to score a 171.21 in the free and 248.63 overall, 22 points above Kostornaia. The difference could be quad jumps, which both Trusova and reigning Russian national champ Shcherbakova possess, while Kostornaia does not. Shcherbakova won a separate stage of the Cup of Russia in late October, scoring a 239.91. http://instagram.com/p/CHsZvlJHuSW Other names to watch include 2015 world champion Elizaveta Tuktamysheva, who posted a video doing a quad jump herself earlier this week (she also has a triple Axel) and 2019 European champion Sofia Samodurova.
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Post by Admin on Nov 19, 2020 20:34:28 GMT
Men: Kolyada brings renewed form to Moscow It’s been a return to form the last two months for a resurgent Kolyada, the two-time Russian champion who won bronze at worlds in 2018. Kolyada, 25, sat out last season due to sinusitis (and subsequent nasal surgery) and used the off-season to switch to famed coach Alexei Mishin.
Compatriot Dmitri Aliev is the reigning Russian and European champion, while Georgia’s Morisi Kvitelashvili could factor in. The reigning world junior champion, 17-year-old Andrei Mozalev, is making his international senior debut, as well. Mozalev won the silver medal at the Youth Olympic Games earlier this year in Lausanne. Another 17-year-old, Evgeni Semenenko, is one to watch, too.
Kolyada, who won the third stage of the Cup of Russia last month, said there after his win: “We are on our way... There is always something to work on. (Mishin) looks at me with a fresh eye.”
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