Zagitova’s training, Tuktamysheva’s intrigue and Samarin’s promise: what is being discussed in the world of figure skating before the start of the European Championship

European Championship forecasts and Samarin's promise

There are only a few days left before the European Figure Skating Championships, and the preparation of its participants has reached the final stage. Fans are eagerly awaiting the return of their idols on ice, and experts share their first predictions about the distribution of medals.

After the dominance of the Russians Anna Shcherbakova, Alena Kostornaya and Alexandra Trusova at the beginning of the season, it is obvious that the students of Eteri Tuteridze will not leave a chance to their competitors again, so the main intrigue is in what order they will get on the podium. So, according to Honored Coach of Russia Inna Goncharenko, the favorite of the competition is the winner of the Grand Prix, but the rest of the skaters should also not be written off.

“I give preference to Kostornaya because of her skating and beauty. Although in an arbitrary at the championship of Russia Shcherbakova just won me over. Trusova, naturally, well done, but I'm talking about my preferences. Yes, the result of an arbitrary program depends, in fact, on Sasha. I think that Alena will take the lead in the short one, because she has a very beautiful number, has a triple axel, but if Trusova does everything she says, it will be impossible to overtake her, ”RIA Novosti quoted Goncharenko as saying.

The honorary president of the Russian Figure Skating Federation (FFKKR) Valentin Piseev holds a similar point of view. He stated that, first of all, at the tournament one should expect medals from the students of Tutberidze, as well as in competitions of sports couples.

“It is impossible to predict the final arrangement of seats in advance. In the short program, Kostornaya can be the strongest one, and no one will say what will happen in the free program. Alena has a triple axel, while other girls have quadruples. Let them ride and fight, do not bleed them. The best of them will win, but everyone can become one, ”Piseev is sure.

Following the results of the national championship, Dmitry Aliev, Arthur Danielyan and Alexander Samarin will represent Russia in the men's tournament. Despite the fact that the forecasts in this discipline are less rosy, last year's silver medalist at the continental championship promised to do everything possible to compete for medals as well.

"Working on it. We do our best. Of course, this is not a matter of one day. All gradually, we are developing, we are approaching, we are gaining a little, we are returning the position. What our girls show is simply an incredible level, it is worthy of respect. But we still compete in different forms, everyone has a different organism, different body, but we also work, ”said Samarin on the air of the“ Morning of Russia ”program.

In recent days, the salary of athletes has become a hot topic in the world of figure skating. The disclosure of fees for performances in ice shows caused a wave of controversy. Some complain that the champions of the Olympics and World Championships in competitions receive undeservedly little and therefore are forced to leave for the entertainment sector, while others are confident that their work does not always pay off there.

Meanwhile, it became known what the prizes for the participants of the continental championship will be. Gold medalists of women's and men's tournaments will receive $ 21 thousand, silver - $ 16 thousand and bronze - $ 11 thousand. Sports and dance couples will be able to count on $ 30 thousand, $ 20 thousand and $ 12 thousand, respectively.

Unsuccessful Challenge Zagitova and a new round of conflict between Averbukh and Rudkovskaya

World Champion 2015 Elizaveta Tuktamysheva did not qualify for the continental championship, but her fans should not despair. At the tournament, the skater will perform in a new role for herself - together with the famous coach Tatyana Tarasova, Olympic champion in 2002 Alexei Yagudin and two-time gold winner in Sochi-2014 Maxim Trankov, she will become a visiting expert of Channel One. The athlete did not disclose the details of the project, however, to the surprise of many, she emphasized that she would work in the men's tournament.

“I'm going to the European Championship. Together with the First Channel we will make content for you. Which one, you will see soon. Write, by the way, what interests you. I’ll say right away: I'm sorry, but the female single is definitely without me. I hope it’s understandable why, ”Tuktamysheva wrote on her Instagram page.

Another loss of major international tournaments will be the absence of Alina Zagitova, who in December last year announced a suspension of her career. At the same time, Olympic champion Pyeongchang assured that she did not intend to leave the sport, which was confirmed by the video that appeared on her social networks.

After participating in ice shows, the student Tutberidze returned to active training. On one of them she performed her crown cascade of triple lutz - triple rittberger.

However, Zagitova lives not only on ice classes, but also participates with pleasure in various flash mobs. So, she decided to remember some time ago the Bottle Cap Challenge, which took a ride around the world, whose participant should kick the bottle off with a kick. In the summer, the skater published a comic version of the challenge, in which her dog Masaru took part. The new option turned out to be no less comical: she tried to open the container with her hand, driving past her on one leg, but lost her balance and fell.

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Publication by Alina Zagitova's Fanpage 💕 (@teamzagitova) Jan 16, 2020 @ 2:09 am PST

The silver medalist of Pyeongchang Mikhail Kolyada did not have time to recover after an operation for sinusitis, because of which he had to completely skip this season, as he again ended up in the hospital.

“Honestly, I didn’t have time to miss the doctors,” Kolyada commented on the sad news.

The conflict between the famous choreographer Ilya Averbukh and producer Yana Rudkovskaya continues to gain momentum. A representative of show business accused the Olympic champion of 2002 of illegally using the song “Hold” in one of his performances, the rights to which belong to singer Dima Bilan.

Averbukh tried to explain that the composition was transferred to him on the basis of a copyright agreement, but Rudkovskaya did not satisfy this answer. Now she intends to defend her innocence in court.

“Ilya was offered to apologize, but he does not want to. He didn’t want to resolve the issue peacefully either. Did not buy a license, did not apologize. But according to our legislation, a fine for such actions is up to 5 million rubles. Let him then pay, ”the producer quotes KP.