2021-22 Russian Women's Figure Skating

[JazzUp]

Muravyova is on a pedestal, but Plushenko is not worth celebrating. The results of his other two students look very poor given their potential.

that's not surprising at all, since all his juniors were performing in his shows during the NY holidays instead of training for JRN

 

[Amei]

that's not surprising at all, since all his juniors were performing in his shows during the NY holidays instead of training for JRN

Makes you wonder what his priorities are

 

[Mauvedreamer]

Makes you wonder what his priorities are

Money

 

[Dawn825]

Maybe theyre trying to make up for the fact that Muravieva clearly should have been 2nd at senior nationals.

 

[flanker]

Maybe theyre trying to make up for the fact that Muravieva clearly should have been 2nd at senior nationals.

 

[McBibus]

Anyway, scoring apart, Akataieva is enchanting.
I keep wondering if she actually leave tracks on the ice or just moves 1 mm above it.

 

[RatedPG]

But their further results justify thet decision. I mean Maiia had good senior debut season even if the nationals weren't perfect, she medaled at both GP stages, qualified to GPF (she is among those who are truly affected by the cancellation of GPF) and was defeated only by other Russians. In direct competition she also defeated Ksenia on the senior level so her potential surely played role in the decision.

That is true. I think this was the year before Maia’s fifth at Nationals. Maia was more talented and ended up performing better at Seniors the following year. But, on the first year in the junior circuit, Kseniia was looking like the second best skater heading into Junior Nationals and I was kind of hoping they would give her the Junior spot over Maia. Maia was chosen and ended up doing well with a 4th place finish at Worlds. I was okay with that, as Kseniia placed 4th the year before, after one of 3A withdrew.

If the spot is up for grabs, I will be so sad if Sofia M. is left off the team. But, I don’t think it is worth the controversy as I can’t imagine Plushenko staying quiet.

Also, in regards to Sofia M. PCS scores, the international judges gave her much higher scores than Adeliya at the event they competed against one another in.

 

[RatedPG]

definitely! esp, taking into account that this season she performed 2 4T's at GP, and 6 4Lo's (CoR, RN, JRN), both 4T & 4Lo for the first time in her carrier - she's on the right track!

She is on the right track. I think that is why I favour a layout of Sofia S. doing two different quads at the start of the program. It prevents REP. So, in the future, they might want to have Adeliya land 4Lo and 4T or just one 4Lo and then continue the program like Anna usually does. It is risky when you is the first element.

 

[flanker]

That is true. I think this was the year before Maia’s fifth at Nationals. Maia was more talented and ended up performing better at Seniors the following year. But, on the first year in the junior circuit, Kseniia was looking like the second best skater heading into Junior Nationals and I was kind of hoping they would give her the Junior spot over Maia. Maia was chosen and ended up doing well with a 4th place finish at Worlds. I was okay with that, as Kseniia placed 4th the year before, after one of 3A withdrew.

If the spot is up for grabs, I will be so sad if Sofia M. is left off the team. But, I don’t think it is worth the controversy as I can’t imagine Plushenko staying quiet.

Also, in regards to Sofia M. PCS scores, the international judges gave her much higher scores than Adeliya at the event they competed against one another in.

So far it seems that it is her PCS that brings controversy in Russia. I understand that there is no decision that will make everyone happy but if people (incl Plushenko himself) were calling for a shoot-out between Anya and Liza, maybe they can do something like that between Adeliia and Sofia M.

 

[Novalis]

I remember two years ago at Russian jr nats when Kamivali won and little Supersonic was second. Now those two are dominating the sport

 

[Decoder]

Anyway, scoring apart, Akataieva is enchanting.
I keep wondering if she actually leave tracks on the ice or just moves 1 mm above it.

Yes, her skating only reminds me of these words: light, floating, flying.

 

[Fluture]

Wow, Junior Nationals was a stressful competition. And not a great one either, it seems… Anyway, some thoughts:

1. Akatieva: She‘s incredible. It‘s no secret that I love skaters with good skating skills and she has them. Loved the SP StSq - smooth, fast, with great edge control. She also has very nice posture and light jumps and is overall pleasant to watch. Certainly a star in the making! Personally, I cannot fully connect to her skating yet because she‘s not naturally expressive but I hope it will come with time. Congrats on the second title!

2. Samodelkina: I‘m warming up to her. I used to severely dislike her skating due to her posture issues but I feel like they‘ve improved over time. She, contrary to Akatieva, is naturally expressive but her movements are less controlled and she can get a bit messy - especially on the jump landings. She’s also very prone to URs and doesn’t get a lot of height, which makes her quads visually unimpressive. I‘m hoping for better programs next year because that Carmen FS is absolutely atrocious. Still, she did a great job and I‘m happy she finally got that Junior Nationals medal.

3. Muravieva: I was wondering what was up with her and then I read that she was sick before Nationals and only trained for three days. Wow, huge respect to pull off skates like these under such circumstances although I have to question Plushenko‘s decisions here. Why would you include the 3A+3T in the SP if she‘s never landed it before, hasn‘t been training much and it‘s not worth it overall for juniors?! Just nonsensical. I also hope she‘s been tested and is negative, I don‘t want an outbreak among the skaters heading to Junior Worlds.

Now that my anger at Plushenko‘s fully expressed lol, some words on her skating itself. The 3As are improving and I feel like it‘s worth noting that she didn‘t fall on any of them here, although the step outs aren‘t ideal of course. She also has very smooth skating, with precise edges. She tends to be somewhat frantic in her arm movements when nervous (something that made me dislike her skating before) but it‘s gotten better this season. I do think she should have been second in PCS to Akatieva due to the fall but the difference wasn‘t as egregious as some make it seem. Especially in the SP where she had a step-out, not a fall. Her skating skills, speed, transitions and performance qualities have to count for something after all.

4. Dvoeglazova: To be honest, I never heard of her and don‘t remember much either. She seems to be very young and for her age, those were some very impressive technical skills. But in terms of performance, there wasn‘t much there.

5. Adelia: Hm, it made me a bit sad to see her so low here but the gamble with the 4Los didn‘t pay off today. The fall on the second one (which was << AND a rep) really killed her score. I do think she should have gotten a bit higher in PCS, although her program this season is much weaker compared to last year's and doesn‘t show off her best qualities at all.

Apart from the top 5, I also liked Kulikova and Gorbacheva a lot, hope they get JGPs next season!

Now, Zhilina and Zinina. God, what happened there? Zhilina‘s falls looked scary. Hasn‘t she just been injured, too? Her placement here could really hurt her in terms of JGP assignments next season. She also reminds me of Trusova a lot (even done to the brown boots!) - insane technical content cleanly executed in practice but rarely if ever in competition. Zinina just makes me sad, I wonder what‘s going on, she looked so promising early this season. Seeing her cry is so heartbreaking…

Two questions left to be answered:

1. Junior Worlds assignments: Personally, I‘m hoping the three Sofias will get to go to Sofia because that‘s just something you can‘t make up. Hope there won‘t be a skate-off between Adelia and Sofia M - the latter has won in three of their four outings after all (JGP, Russian Cup stage, Junior Nationals)…

2. Senior GPs for next year:

Samodelkina, Muravieva and Petrosyan will all be senior eligible and I think they should get GPs. Out of the current seniors, I can definitely see Sinitsyna and Samodurova being dropped and I think Usacheva and Khromykh aren‘t in a great position either, especially Usacheva. The three juniors beat Maiia at Nationals but she still has the higher SB. Daria has none of that. I wonder what they‘ll do here, although it‘s guaranteed to be a heartbreak one way or another…

 

[flanker]

One look back at Europeans:

 

[Fanof]

I am not sure about Sofya Samodelkina doing interviews. I remember recently she said something controversial (about hoping the Olympics being postponed, etc.). Now she is doing another interview, talking about how they make fun of the conflicts between Eteri ream and Plushenko team. Here (again) is a cut-n-paste from here.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Figure skater Sofya Samodelkina commented on her performance in a free program at the Russian Championship among juniors in Saransk.

“I don't know what happened today. In addition, Lutz was normal, she performed it relatively evenly. Twisted, good landing. It happens that you fly - and in your head you already understand whether it will work out or not. And with the salchow, I didn’t succeed in pushing, under-rotating by half a turn, there were no options.

She refused the Rittberger even before the rental, after the morning workout. I didn’t knead it, we decided to go only to Lutz and Salchow. We looked at the state, Sergey Dmitrievich (Davydov) calculated everything by points.

Each jump, if you know how to do it, jump comfortably. Do it technically and every jump will be easy. For me, it’s easier and more varied, there is no risk of going for a repeat.

At the junior world, I will definitely try to make a quadruple loop to make it the first one and it will be counted. I really want to become the first in the world, I will try.

But we will all watch immediately before the rental, and today I wanted to jump three quads. But I got up on the wrong foot, woke up the wrong way, and the program was simplified.

I look from the sidelines at the confrontation between Plushenko and Tutberidze, but I am for the Davydov team. For CSKA! We do not conflict with anyone, it happens, we listen to these scandals from the outside and make fun of them.

I’m not offended that I’m past these showdowns, while others are arguing, we’re paving our way, ”said Samodelkina.

Out of the mouths of babes comes the truth! (and she may not know that the truth is sometimes better left unsaid...)
I did not find the first interview controversial. It was rather funny and honest, and I am pretty sure the other two juniors had had similar unmentionable thoughts.
In fact, I rather found it very sad, with a wonderful 14yo skater spending hours and hours practising every day but fully aware that in 2026 she will be nothing but an elderly (I mean 18yo) former skater with a body damaged by jumps (if I remember correctly the interview). It is just depressing, not so much as a figure skating fan (after one skater comes another skater), but because that's not exactly what I would expect from a 14yo girl.
OG will most certainly not be postponed. But hopefully she will be the shining star in 2026!
As for today's interview, once again a funny one... provided that she does not intend to join another team!

 

[McBibus]

Wow, Junior Nationals was a stressful competition. And not a great one either, it seems… Anyway, some thoughts:

1. Akatieva: She‘s incredible. It‘s no secret that I love skaters with good skating skills and she has them. Loved the SP StSq - smooth, fast, with great edge control. She also has very nice posture and light jumps and is overall pleasant to watch. Certainly a star in the making! Personally, I cannot fully connect to her skating yet because she‘s not naturally expressive but I hope it will come with time. Congrats on the second title!

2. Samodelkina: I‘m warming up to her. I used to severely dislike her skating due to her posture issues but I feel like they‘ve improved over time. She, contrary to Akatieva, is naturally expressive but her movements are less controlled and she can get a bit messy - especially on the jump landings. She’s also very prone to URs and doesn’t get a lot of height, which makes her quads visually unimpressive. I‘m hoping for better programs next year because that Carmen FS is absolutely atrocious. Still, she did a great job and I‘m happy she finally got that Junior Nationals medal.

3. Muravieva: I was wondering what was up with her and then I read that she was sick before Nationals and only trained for three days. Wow, huge respect to pull off skates like these under such circumstances although I have to question Plushenko‘s decisions here. Why would you include the 3A+3T in the SP if she‘s never landed it before, hasn‘t been training much and it‘s not worth it overall for juniors?! Just nonsensical. I also hope she‘s been tested and is negative, I don‘t want an outbreak among the skaters heading to Junior Worlds.

Now that my anger at Plushenko‘s fully expressed lol, some words on her skating itself. The 3As are improving and I feel like it‘s worth noting that she didn‘t fall on any of them here, although the step outs aren‘t ideal of course. She also has very smooth skating, with precise edges. She tends to be somewhat frantic in her arm movements when nervous (something that made me dislike her skating before) but it‘s gotten better this season. I do think she should have been second in PCS to Akatieva due to the fall but the difference wasn‘t as egregious as some make it seem. Especially in the SP where she had a step-out, not a fall. Her skating skills, speed, transitions and performance qualities have to count for something after all.

4. Dvoeglazova: To be honest, I never heard of her and don‘t remember much either. She seems to be very young and for her age, those were some very impressive technical skills. But in terms of performance, there wasn‘t much there.

5. Adelia: Hm, it made me a bit sad to see her so low here but the gamble with the 4Los didn‘t pay off today. The fall on the second one (which was << AND a rep) really killed her score. I do think she should have gotten a bit higher in PCS, although her program this season is much weaker compared to last year's and doesn‘t show off her best qualities at all.

Apart from the top 5, I also liked Kulikova and Gorbacheva a lot, hope they get JGPs next season!

Now, Zhilina and Zinina. God, what happened there? Zhilina‘s falls looked scary. Hasn‘t she just been injured, too? Her placement here could really hurt her in terms of JGP assignments next season. She also reminds me of Trusova a lot (even done to the brown boots!) - insane technical content cleanly executed in practice but rarely if ever in competition. Zinina just makes me sad, I wonder what‘s going on, she looked so promising early this season. Seeing her cry is so heartbreaking…

Two questions left to be answered:

1. Junior Worlds assignments: Personally, I‘m hoping the three Sofias will get to go to Sofia because that‘s just something you can‘t make up. Hope there won‘t be a skate-off between Adelia and Sofia M - the latter has won in three of their four outings after all (JGP, Russian Cup stage, Junior Nationals)…

2. Senior GPs for next year:

Samodelkina, Muravieva and Petrosyan will all be senior eligible and I think they should get GPs. Out of the current seniors, I can definitely see Sinitsyna and Samodurova being dropped and I think Usacheva and Khromykh aren‘t in a great position either, especially Usacheva. The three juniors beat Maiia at Nationals but she still has the higher SB. Daria has none of that. I wonder what they‘ll do here, although it‘s guaranteed to be a heartbreak one way or another…

I think Maya has her own GP spots because she qualified for the final.
I totally agree on the paragon between SA e SS.
Samo immediately engage the audience, while Akatayeva looks more detached from what she does but her presence on the ice is phenomenal.

 

[McBibus]

Yes, her skating only reminds me of these words: light, floating, flying.

Light and soft like a cloud of cotton candy
that was my first impression of her and it will stay

 

[Scott512]

Well, maybe she is overscored, but sorry, sambo stans have no room to complain about overscoring, not when their skaters have been benefiting from it for years...I guess it's only a problem when skaters from other camps are the ones being overscored.

I think everyone here thinks Sonia M is a good skater to a very good skater but everyone's bewildered by the unbelievable pcs scores she gets even with a messy program and people want to know why.

Adelia wont complain. But when TT girls have made junior worlds for many years they've earned it and there's no confusion about it and there's no maybe they shouldn't have made it.

 

[flanker]

I think everyone here thinks Sonia M is a good skater to a very good skater but everyone's bewildered by the unbelievable pcs scores she gets even with a messy program and people want to know why.

Adelia wont complain. But when TT girls have made junior worlds for many years they've earned it and there's no confusion about it and there's no maybe they shouldn't have made it.

Adelia blamed just herself in the post-competition interview, she is a good girl. But I am an evil man, I can complain instead

 

[Fluture]

I think everyone here thinks Sonia M is a good skater to a very good skater but everyone's bewildered by the unbelievable pcs scores she gets even with a messy program and people want to know why.

Adelia wont complain. But when TT girls have made junior worlds for many years they've earned it and there's no confusion about it and there's no maybe they shouldn't have made it.

So why has Muravieva not earned it? She beat Petrosyan by 9 points here. She landed a clean 3A+2T and two 3A with a step out over both programs. Petrosyan, by comparison, didn‘t land a single ultra-c element. Muravieva also has correct edges on both the 3Lz and 3F, unlike Petrosyan, although I understand that this tends not to matter whatsoever these days.

For context: internationally, when they competed at the same JGP, judges rated Muravieva 5 points higher than Petrosyan in the FS for a clean skate from both. At Junior Nationals, it was 8 points. So, even if you reduce those 3 points from Muravieva‘s score, she‘s still above Petrosyan. I do agree that Adelia deserved a bit more in PCS. But what really killed her score wasn‘t the PCS - it was the fact that she got a whole 0.98 points for her second 4Lo attempt after the <<, +REP and mandatory -5 GOE reduction.

Muravieva's PCS, as I've noted, should have been behind Akatieva's at this particular competition but overall, she‘s a quality skater. In short: she has skating skills - speed, precise edges and clean turns - transitions and musicality/performance. Her only issues right now are her posture (shoulders) and a tendency to rush when nervous.

I could take a rule book and break down her (and Petrosyan's) PCS in detail but it will make the post too long, so I'll only say this: I guess I just don‘t understand how anyone can claim she didn‘t earn her spot when she‘s beat Petrosyan in three of the four outings they competed against this season.

 

[Jontor]

So why has Muravieva not earned it? She beat Petrosyan by 9 points here. She landed a clean 3A+2T and two 3A with a step out over both programs. Petrosyan, by comparison, didn‘t land a single ultra-c element. Muravieva also has correct edges on both the 3Lz and 3F, unlike Petrosyan, although I understand that this tends not to matter whatsoever these days.

For context: internationally, when they competed at the same JGP, judges rated Muravieva 5 points higher than Petrosyan in the FS for a clean skate from both. At Junior Nationals, it was 8 points. So, even if you reduce those 3 points from Muravieva‘s score, she‘s still above Petrosyan. I do agree that Adelia deserved a bit more in PCS. But what really killed her score wasn‘t the PCS - it was the fact that she got a whole 0.98 points for her second 4Lo attempt after the <<, +REP and mandatory -5 GOE reduction.

Muravieva's PCS, as I've noted, should have been behind Akatieva's at this particular competition but overall, she‘s a quality skater. In short: she has skating skills - speed, precise edges and clean turns - transitions and musicality/performance. Her only issues right now are her posture (shoulders) and a tendency to rush when nervous.

I could take a rule book and break down her (and Petrosyan's) PCS in detail but it will make the post too long, so I'll only say this: I guess I just don‘t understand how anyone can claim she didn‘t earn her spot when she‘s beat Petrosyan in three of the four outings they competed against this season.

Yes, PCS aside, I really think that Adeliia lost it with the 4Lo's. She got 7.63 after deduction for those two elements, while Sofia M got 18.56 for her two 3A's. There's the 10 points difference Adeliia needed. Going for the same ultra-c element twice is always super risky. If you fail, it makes the second jump more or less worthless with the +REP.