“Kostornaya showed fighting qualities”: what they said after short programs at the Grand Prix stage in France

“Alina is completely different this season”

The main stars of the first competition day in the third stage of the Grand Prix in figure skating, which is taking place these days in Grenoble, were two students of Eteri Tutberidze at once - Alyona Kostornaya and Alina Zagitova. The Russians took first and second places, respectively, despite the controversial judgments and the presence of small errors.

After the rental, Kostornaya admitted that she was unsatisfied with her ratings. Nevertheless, she expressed confidence that she will be able to show the best result in an arbitrary program.

“A little annoying. There were errors that are not visible to the viewer’s eye. It didn’t work, so we need to move on. Ahead is an arbitrary program, I like my image in it more, I can express myself more clearly in it, ”the TASS athlete quotes.

Zagitova also complained about her mistakes.

“Of course, it was possible to perform even better, I regard this rental as a worker, there is something to work on, and most importantly, I just went out and performed with pleasure,” the Olympic champion of RIA Novosti quotes.

Russian experts were pleased with the performances of both skaters. Well-known trainer Tatyana Tarasova praised Kostornaya’s attempt to perform a triple axel, noting the self-control of yesterday’s junior.

“Alena jumped the axel in three and a half turns, she felt uncomfortable, but did not show it. She has a good skate, as well as high jumps. They all work in the same group, and they are not against each other, but on the contrary, everyone is trying to show their capabilities, this is the overall growth, ”Tarasova told Sport24 in an interview.

In her opinion, Zagitova also coped with her program.

“Alina is very sensually fulfilling her program, she has changed, but she is jumping as well as before. It seemed to me that she didn’t twist on the Rittberger, and she also got a short trip, because she led back a little on this jump, ”the expert concluded.

Russian choreographer Ilya Averbukh also congratulated the Russians on their successful rentals and expressed confidence that they would be able to correct their mistakes. In his opinion, the reason for the flaws could be the excitement from the first performance in the Grand Prix in the season 2019/20.

“I would like to congratulate Alena on the fact that she managed to jump the triple axel - she first turned it on at the stages of the Grand Prix in the short program, but here she took such a risk that she paid off and brought her victory. Alina made a small mistake in the cascade and is still inferior, but ahead of the free program, the girls are in very good shape, ”said Averbukh.

Kostornaya first demonstrated a triple axel at the Finlandia Trophy preseason tournament, and therefore its inclusion in the short program at the Grand Prix in France is a great achievement for her. Yelena Radionova, the bronze medalist of the 2015 World Cup, praised the athlete for her courage, noting the importance of pure performance of the element.

“Kostornaya is a great fellow today, I want to praise her for taking such a risk. In the event of an error, it could fly far away. But she showed her fighting qualities. As I understood, she had a slight lack of money, so the rating decreased. However, for the first stage of the Grand Prix, 76 points is very worthy. I am extremely happy for Alena, ”admitted the ex-skater.

In addition, she noted the positive changes that have occurred with Zagitova compared to previous seasons.

“Alina this season is completely different - updated, interesting and adult. She has such a confident ride. Both our girls are good in components, you can’t argue. Zagitova already has a name, she is more experienced, it affected the fact that she won against Alena in terms of 3.5 points. So far the difference is, but then everything will depend on them, ”Rodionova said.

At the same time, according to the winner of the 2015 Universiade, Alyona Leonova, Kostornaya’s performance felt an excitement that prevented the flawless performance of the basic elements.

“76 points is a good point because there were some flaws. She only got the perfect cascade, and her axel and lutz showed that she was a little nervous. I saw trainings at which Alena fought with this axel, and at the warm-up at the lutz she did something with her hand. There was some kind of uncertainty, but I am glad that she did not crumble and received the ratings that she had dashed off, ”Leonova said.

In addition, the former skater admired Zagitova, who does not lose motivation, despite the number of trophies won. She also emphasized that every year the Olympic champion feels more and more confidence.

“Alina has an incredibly beautiful program. She has already won everything, but she continues to struggle and does it for good reason. She shows everyone that it was not in vain that she became an Olympic champion and a world champion. Everything was perfectly done, with the exception of the cascade. This is championship skating, it is clear that Zagitova is confident in herself. She knows that she can do even better, ”Leonova added.

“Boys are cautious optimism this year”

Alexander Samarin also pleased the Russian fans, who in the short program lost only to the American Nathan Chen. Despite his record 98.48 points and real chances for a medal at the Grand Prix stage, he was not fully satisfied with his performance.

“I understood that Chen had already gained a name for himself, and now it works for him. I’m still working on myself, and an error on the axel made it clear - I can’t show a maximum yet. Yes, two quadruples add confidence and shake, but after them you have to hold on to the end of the program, ”Samarin said.

At the same time, experts positively perceived his rental and expressed confidence that he would be able to impose a struggle on Chen in a free program. So, Tarasova noted the progress of a Russian who is not afraid to include complex elements in his numbers.

“Sasha is great, he took on one of the most difficult programs, he suits him, he is progressing, trying, it’s a pity that Axel spoiled the impression. But this is the beginning of the season, it is in its rightful place, ”said the specialist.

Elena Radionova expressed a similar position.

“Sasha is a great fellow today! He pulled out all the jumps on his teeth, fought. He tries to drag away every element, no matter how he jumped. It can be seen that they did a good job with the coach, it paid off. Tomorrow Samarin can cling to the highest places if he also fulfills his complex content, ”said the ex-skater.

Ilya Averbukh suggested that self-confidence will be a key factor in the struggle for gold at the Grand Prix stage.

“The boys this year inspire cautious optimism - both Dima Aliyev and Samarin show good rental. But we will wait for an arbitrary program. I think that Sasha needs to deal with himself first of all, Chen is currently stronger, if he himself will not make a lot of mistakes, it will be practically impossible to get around him in this tournament. He has a large number of quadruple jumps, but he also does not ride very stably, ”said the choreographer.

In turn, Alyona Leonova urged prematurely not to give Samarin the laurels of the country's best loner. At the same time, she expressed the hope that the skater will continue to stand out with her stability on ice.

“Even if he had made this triple axel without error, he would still hardly have bypassed Chen. He would definitely win the equipment, but he would be belittled by the components. But Sasha’s work is still visible. It is completely different from last year. The program is great, a new style that suits him. I look forward to his free program. With a clean rental, everything will turn out very cool, ”concluded Leonova.