2026 Olympics: Women's Free Skate

[yfan1]

I agree that the overall competition have better quality than the ones in the past. However, medalists in those years you mentioned, from 2010 onward, have better and more memorable overall performances than the medalists here. And I'm not talking only about women discipline - yes, the overall quality of performances is better, but top 3 performances this year are not better than top performances in two last Olympics, I would say, in every category we watched. So, while I can't argue about the quality of the competition as a whole, I definitely prefer medal performances from past years comparing to this one, valuing both technical elements and component scores.
EDIT- And i'm not talking about the lack of quads - just compare Zagitova, Medvedeva and Kaetlyn Osmond performances to these ones, or even Kaori performance four years before when she won bronze to this one when she won silver. Also, men's, pairs, and ice dance top 3 performances were better in 2018 than what we saw here

Not just top 3, I'd say the top 5-6 in each discipline gave at least one memorable performance, or at least more memorable than what we saw at these Olympics from the top 3 minus Alysa's SP and maybe Beaudry/Cizeron's FD... And if we expand it to top 5 - top 6, then Sui/Han's SP which was my personal highlight here.

Not to put a downer, because IMO women's was the high note for the Olympics, so at least we have that.

 

[lariko]

I don't know if this has been brought up, but I just realised that if Kaori had done a 2T after her second 3F she would have won...
Obviously she couldn't do a 2T later in the 3 jump combo but at least she wouldn't have had the +REP on the 3F.

She lost by a 2T

And Amber lost a medal by doubling 3Lo... sucks, but what can one do.

 

[lariko]

The level is lower indeed, same in Russia and it's a little due to the ban because then I think we would see skaters like Muravieva (who I think has similar talent artistically to Medvedeva and better jumps) would actually be motivated and deliver.
Anna Frolova in Russia is also very solid and well rounded skater that I think could shake things up internationally.

But the biggest reason for tech level dropping is the age restriction, Shimada,Dvoeglazova, Dzepka who are in my opinion the best skaters in the world right now are all in juniors, imagine what a battle it would be if they were in Olympics instead, which they would be under the old rules.

With senior russians now I dont see the same talent, some girls have quad or 3a for a season but have artistry shortcomings, and once they iron out the shortcomings their bodies develop or they are too injured to keep performing at the same level (gorbachova, sadkova).


There is still talent, but it is kept in juniors and we are now in "transition period" coaches will figure out and adapt training programs so that girls peak at 17 or 18 instead of 15. It's normal that the level is lower now.

This change has been made and I don't like to complain about it all that much tbh, it is what it is it's not like we can change it.

The lower tech grade lets skaters like Lara Naki Guttman or Haein Lee who are not strong technicians but are very artistically gifted to shine a bit and I appreciate it very much.

Another quad era will come, don't worry.
We just have to wait patiently.

Yes, but I also see indications that the skaters like Tuktamysheva, Gubanova, Glenn and Lui perform really well around 20 if they take time off and build up again. I don't think we are destined for dead-end in senior women once this way of working with the new age braket is better explored.

 

[Mirunna]

I agree that the overall competition have better quality than the ones in the past. However, medalists in those years you mentioned, from 2010 onward, have better and more memorable overall performances than the medalists here. And I'm not talking only about women discipline - yes, the overall quality of performances is better, but top 3 performances this year are not better than top performances in two last Olympics, I would say, in every category we watched. So, while I can't argue about the quality of the competition as a whole, I definitely prefer medal performances from past years comparing to this one, valuing both technical elements and component scores.
EDIT- And i'm not talking about the lack of quads - just compare Zagitova, Medvedeva and Kaetlyn Osmond performances to these ones, or even Kaori performance four years before when she won bronze to this one when she won silver. Also, men's, pairs, and ice dance top 3 performances were better in 2018 than what we saw here

I agree about ice dance and pairs being weaker. About men - I think this just happened to be a bad competition, the field being otherwise relatively strong. 2014 was a particular terrible competition for men in the Olympics and yet both the great Hanyu and Chan skated there - just not at their best.
In terms of memorable programs, that is very very subjective. I don’t think Sherbakova’s or Zagitova’s gold winning performances have anything special other than great TES. At least Sotnikova’s was more emotional being in front of her home crowd. Sakamoto’s bronze Lp in Beijing is one of my favourite Olympic programs. Same goes for Carolina’s bolero in 2014. Or Yuna’s Bond SP in 2010.
For me 2018 was not memorable in terms of top 3 in the sense that I don’t feel the need to rewatch (I speak only for the ladies event, pairs, ice dance and men had amazing performances, lots of them).
Alysa’s though I would watch again, due to how fun and relaxed it was, despite lacking in certain areas.
And 2022- with the exception of Kaori - I like to pretend that competition never took place. Nothing from that was enjoyable as a fan.

 

[Mathman]

Julia Sauter is one my favorite moments I will remember for a long time. Two clean skates and a new PB on both segments and overall. That was so lovely, including her reaction.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

I find it shocking to see comments that the quality of this event was bad and so poor compared to Beijing and even prior ones. I mean, have people watched the last 4-5 Olympics Women final?

2006: Shizuka wins with 5 triple jumps, no 3-3. Sasha comes in second after missing first two jumping passes. Irina was a hot mess for the bronze. Fumie in fourth was cleaner. Overall an event riddled with mistakes. No ultra C, Miki Ando fell on her Ur quad attempt.

2010: Yuna wins with 6 clean triples including a 3-3. No 3loop. Mao threw two clean 3A’s but messed up some jumps at the end. Joanie was emotional but not clean. Mirai in fourth was clean with all triples landed. Rest of the field was mediocre at best. Mao only one with landed 3A’s. No quads landed.

2014: Adelina wins with 7 triples generously scored (some were borderline Ur), including a 3-3 combo ending with a 3loop. Controversial winner, but the content was there. Yuna clean in second with 6 triples. Caro in third with 7 triples but only one 2A (not as hard content as Adelina). Mao had the skate of the night and one of the performance to remember. Gracie was strong but with 1 mistake. Mao the only one with a 3A landed, no quad attempted or landed.

2018: Zagitova and Medvedeva won with 7 triples each, Zagitova all in the second half. Osmond was also very good in third. Rest of the ladies were pretty good with ups and downs, but mostly a well skated event. No Ultra C attempted.

2022: Top 2 as we all know with landed quads. Sakamoto clean in third with 7 triples. Vasilieva a hot mess in fourth. Walaba in 5th - I think she tried a 3A. I don’t remember any other ladies trying it. Technical panel was lenient with edges and rotation. Sasha’s program as impresive as it was technically was sub-par in terms of PCS - it was empty and clumsy. Outside of the drama with the Russian girls, the level was not impressive.

2026: two clean 3A. Clean performances with strong content since the second group. Majority of skaters posted SB or PB. The quality of the programs: composition, attention to details and expression improved in my book and I did very little watching in the last 4 years. Sofia’s SP is stuck in my head and planned on repeat. Loena’s LP was so fun and memorable despite the errors. Niina’s LP had a lot of “on the beat” moments with the music. Mone’s SP is a gem. Kaori’s speed and carriage are absolutely breathtaking. Nina’s LP was serene and beautifully choreographed. So many programs I am forthetting about now but I found myself being in awe skater after skater. If this is the direction skating is going, I am all in.

My point is take 2022 stands out as very different in terms of content, the level being somehow constant since last 20 years. And we all know the associated scandal.

Thank you so much for this post. A very awesome summary.

While so many people focus on what performances/jump elements were in the medalists, we need to look at what the FIELD did!

It's worth noting that 14 skaters (rounding up for Loena), achieved 200 points. At 2025 Worlds, only 6 skaters cleared 200.
Only 3 skaters cleared 140 in their Worlds 2025 FS - at the 2026 Olympics, 9 skaters had 140+. In fact, this is arguably THE strongest women's field the Olympics has ever had.

And it's not like the field were given many freebies at these Olympics either - the SP caller was quite strict - many more would have scored in the 70s if not for the q and ! calls.

And for everyone extolling how much better Beijing was because of how much higher the scores were. Yes, quads were done so the tech standard was much higher, but the judging was hella generous... and the PCS flowed (especially for the Russians - or, sorry, ROC) — I mean, come on, Trusova with a FALL in her SP in Beijing got 35.48 PCS, higher than a clean SP Liu, Chiba and Nakai here. And of course Valieva's hot mess of a FS got 70.62 PCS (higher PCS than Chiba, Glenn, and Nakai, who were much cleaner and performed way better).

 

[Mathman]

...I feel terrible for Petrosian after reading this. Is the poor girl in some sort of hostage situation? I really hope there’s something lost in translation here...

Adeliia Petrosian: “Not doing a quad wasn’t an option. I didn’t really have a choice.” and “It’ll be difficult emotionally to return to Russia. I feel ashamed about how things turned out – for myself, the federation, my coaches, and the fans.”

Russian figure skater Adelia Petrosian placed 6th in women’s figure skating at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

fs-gossips.com

I think that the problem is not with translation but with the click-bait headline. If you read the headline it sounds like she is about to commit suicide because of her "shame," and that if she dares ever to go back to Russia her life isn't worth a plug nickel. But the interview itself has more the spirit of, well, I'm disappointed that I did not meet my goals, but on we go!

 

[Mirunna]

I watched women with my mum and she hated Samodelkina's SP She said she's about to give beers to everyone around. I've noticed that she doesn't like folk-themed programs lol.

Hahaha! Your mum is awesome! I do like beer a lot so maybe that is why I enjoyed it so much )

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

I dislike her coach to high heaven but I feel terrible for Petrosian after reading this. Is the poor girl in some sort of hostage situation? I really hope there’s something lost in translation here and she wasn’t literally forced to do quads that she couldn’t do.

Adeliia Petrosian: “Not doing a quad wasn’t an option. I didn’t really have a choice.” and “It’ll be difficult emotionally to return to Russia. I feel ashamed about how things turned out – for myself, the federation, my coaches, and the fans.”

Russian figure skater Adelia Petrosian placed 6th in women’s figure skating at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

fs-gossips.com

For the most part, this interview shows she's processing it with maturity and in a fairly healthy way. Yes, negative thoughts about it are for sure expected and understandable, given the responsibility/hopes/pressure on her as one of two AINs from Russia (and the legacy/streak of Eteri athletes winning/medaling at the Olympics), but at least she's thinking about how to eventually see the positives and learn from the experience.

The quad "not being an option" is a fair statement because she needed it to make the podium (she knew that, her team knew that). Whether they "made" her do it or it was some sort of hostage situation, tbh, I don't think it was THAT bad - if I'm a skater who is capable of a quad and I know it's my shot to medal/win, I'm taking it (perhaps even going for it if my coaching team is advising otherwise). But then we can see that she didn't just throw away the program and wind up with a worse placement by attempting a second planned quad. And in the SP, she was not exactly going for broke either by not just throwing up a 3A (like Trusova did in 2022) in the SP, knowing she doesn't have a stable one right now.

I did like the humorous statement of "I hope my next international competition isn’t just another Olympics" - me too, sis... me too. Write a letter to Putin about it!

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

Not just top 3, I'd say the top 5-6 in each discipline gave at least one memorable performance, or at least more memorable than what we saw at these Olympics from the top 3 minus Alysa's SP and maybe Beaudry/Cizeron's FD... And if we expand it to top 5 - top 6, then Sui/Han's SP which was my personal highlight here.

Not to put a downer, because IMO women's was the high note for the Olympics, so at least we have that.

Shaidorov's FS was pretty memorable from a technical standpoint with 5 quads and a 3A+Eu+4S — the hardest combination ever performed at an Olympics. M/K's pairs FS was also one of the best ever and one I'll remember for a long time (especially with the pressure they faced). Two comeback wins from 5th!

The RD had some fab skates from the top 5, and the FD had bobbles but still a beautiful FD from G/P, the Italians, and C/B. Of course the stuff with Papadakis and the French making errors in their FD but still winning leaves a sour note, but I was entertained, and the teams were serving excellent ice dancing.

Kaori's performances were also memorable - even with the costly error. Ami's SP and Amber's FS were also memorable for me. And agree to disagree, but Liu's FS was memorable and (not to take away from the Russian streak) felt fresh and a very positive, and non-controversial, way to cap off the Olympics.

 

[yfan1]

Kaori's performances were also memorable - even with the costly error. Ami's SP and Amber's FS were also memorable for me. And agree to disagree, but Liu's FS was memorable and (not to take away from the Russian streak) felt fresh and a very positive, and non-controversial, way to cap off the Olympics.

I do think Women's event was better here than in 2022. That one was memorable for all the wrong reasons...

 

[gsk8]

Hi all!

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