Watch the short program of the women's European Championship. January Revolution: European Figure Skating Championships ended in Medvedeva's defeat. Costner's Rescue Components

The women's competition can easily be called the most anticipated event of the European Championship. Even before the start of the season, many called its main intrigue the rivalry between two-time world and European champion Evgenia Medvedeva and Alina Zagitova, who is only spending her first season at the senior level.

Both skaters started the season with victories in Challengers, and then won 2 Grand Prix stages, but there was no head-to-head competition. Evgenia Medvedeva received an injury from which it took a long time to recover. Meanwhile, the young talent with her super complex programs showed her talent in all its glory. Alina Zagitova won the Grand Prix final in her debut season and became the champion of Russia.

This season, both athletes were invincible, and the head-to-head meeting at the European Championships will be a turning point in their competition in absentia.

If we ignore the fight for gold, then two athletes Maria Sotskova and Carolina Kostner (Italy) are vying for the remaining vacancy on the prize podium. At the last European Championships, the head-to-head competition ended in victory for the Italian figure skater.

The short program at the European Championships confirmed that in the Old World there are no equals to this quartet of wonderful figure skating stars. The closest competitor was more than 7 points behind. The first of the four to take to the ice was Italian Carolina Costner.

The athlete, who started the season with the master of Russian figure skating Alexei Mishin, returned to her former coach Michael Huth and shortly before the European Championships she announced that she would go with him to the Olympic Games in Pyeongchang. It is difficult to say whether the change of coach affected the figure skater’s results, but the Italian showed excellent skating in Moscow.

Carolina Costner She cleanly performed the triple flip-triple toe loop cascade, as well as the triple lutz and double axel in the second half of the program. She showed best result in the season 78.30 points and set a very high benchmark for her rivals.

“I performed very well today. I stood firmly on my feet. I especially want to highlight the reaction of the audience, they empathized, as if they were breathing with me.

First among Russian figure skaters performed Maria Sotskova. The athlete received a score of 68.70 by performing a triple lutz at the beginning of the program on two legs, a triple flip cascade, a triple toe loop and a double axel.

I was nervous, worried. But in general, the rental, although I won’t say that I was completely satisfied with it, was good. I didn’t cope with the first cascade, but I improved in the second half, and in this regard I’m pleased with myself. The stands were supportive, the audience was very warm, it helped. On the path I laid out all my emotions, showed my image, conveyed it. I really really enjoyed skating today,” Sotskova told reporters.

Evgenia Medvedeva made a mistake on the double axel (landing on two legs). The skater performed the remaining jumps cleanly: triple flip - triple toe loop in a cascade and triple lutz. All jumps in the second half of the program. With a score of 78.57, she fell short of her best result of the season, but managed to get ahead of Carolina Costner.

“Today I didn’t feel the consequences of the injury, my health is fine, don’t worry. I want to say thank you to all those people who were with me, there were a lot of them, they did a lot for me to be here. These are my fans, supporters , parents, coaches, many doctors who at one point performed a miracle, because my leg recovered very quickly,” Medvedeva said at a press conference.

“I’m not happy with the performance of the short program, but there is time to tighten the bolts so that everything is in order,” the skater added.

“I follow the rule: “I follow my own way.” We have an individual sport, competition spurs us on, but everyone concentrates on their own skating,” Medvedeva said at a press conference, answering a question , how she feels about her rivalry with Zagitova.

Alina Zagitova performed immediately after her main rival and you can understand how difficult it was for her psychologically. In the autumn part of the season, it was the short program that was the main stumbling block for Alina; it was in it that she made mistakes and let the leaders go far ahead, so that she could then brilliantly win back these handicaps in the free program.

But this time everything happened completely differently. Alina performed absolutely cleanly for the first time this season short program. The skater performed a triple lutz cascade - triple loop, triple flip, double axel. All jumps are the same as Medvedeva’s in the second half of the program. She scored 80.27 points - the best result of the season and first place. In terms of technique, she was expected to be ahead of Medvedeva by 3.5 points, but in the components she lost by almost 2 points.

“First of all, I try to look only at myself, concentrate only on myself and try to show a clean performance. But at the same time, it’s very exciting for me to compete with such experienced, outstanding rivals,” 15-year-old Zagitova told reporters.

“I’m happy with today’s performance, everything worked out. There are small shortcomings, but, in principle, I skated a good program for myself this season. I tried to work more on the stability of the programs during the break between the Russian Championship and the European Championship,” the athlete noted

So, the first head-to-head duel of the season brought success to Zagitova, who demonstrated her advantage in the complexity of her programs. However, they talked about this even before the start of the season. The free program must show which of the contenders for gold has stronger nervous system and leadership qualities.

MOSCOW, January 21 - RIA Novosti, Andrey Simonenko. By figure skating in Moscow brought the Russian team nine medals - two gold, four silver and three bronze. The culmination of the tournament was the denouement of the women's competition, in which the winner of the Grand Prix Final and Russian champion won and inflicted the first defeat in two years and three months on the two-time world champion, leaving her with silver.

The European Championship ended on Saturday evening. In pair skating, the entire podium was Russian - Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov won gold, Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov won silver, Natalya Zabiyako and Alexander Enbert won bronze. In men's single skating, silver was won, and Mikhail Kolyada won bronze. In ice dancing, Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitry Solovyov won silver, Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin won bronze.

The iron ones survive

Medvedeva and Zagitova conducted an official training session on the reserve ice of the Megasport Arena on Friday evening. The usual official training - but with the exception of two nuances. Firstly, it was the second training session that day, and the rest of the top skaters at the European Championships decided to skip it. The first one, in the morning, was quite enough for them - the day between the short and free programs is not for nothing called a “day of rest”.

Secondly, and this is the most striking thing, the training of Medvedeva and Zagitova did not carry any hint of any relaxation. Half an hour, 40 minutes passed, and the skaters, under the guidance of a strict, attentive and at the same time coach who knew when to joke, Eteri Tutberidze, kept churning out their cascades of cosmic complexity. The others would have been carried away long ago - but Medvedev and Zagitova gave out their “3-3-3”.

This episode contains the entire explanation of the phenomenon of Tutberidze’s figure skaters. At the Khrustalny skating rink, where the group works, only the iron ones survive. But they achieve success.

Costner's Rescue Components

Before the release of the strongest group, the performances in the women's free program were similar to some kind of warm-up or, although it sounds just as offensive, cheerleading dances. It's a shame, but, alas, fair. There is a gulf between the top four at the European Championships and the rest.

The first of the medal contenders to take to the ice was Maria Sotskova, who was in fourth place after the short program. The Russian woman retained a theoretical chance of competing for a medal, despite the ten-point gap from the Italian. To do this, she had to perform her free skate with the maximum degree of purity and hope for “gifts” from her highly experienced opponent.

Sotskova completed her task until the fourth minute of the program. In fact, she was tired already on the third, but she endured. And yet she fell on a triple Lutz. 132.11 points for free program meant that Costner would have to really mess up in order to lose to Maria.

Italian

I started my skate with a fall on a triple Lutz. Then there were a bunch of errors on other jumps - butterflies, landings with blots... However, Costner, as usual, was helped out by the components, which the judges, despite the technically disastrous performance, poured in with all their hearts. The margin after the short program was enough for Carolina to overtake Sotskova. The Russian, like a year ago at the European Championships in Ostrava, remained fourth.

Denouement

Finally, the moment of the main intrigue of the entire European Championship has arrived - which of the two Russian contenders for Pyeongchang gold will be stronger at the rehearsal in Moscow? Alina Zagitova was the first to take to the ice, 1.7 points ahead of Evgenia Medvedeva.

During the entire European Championship, including training, she did not make a single mistake. The free skate was no exception - Zagitova performed it from the first to the last skate movement in full accordance with how it was intended. The judges rated the performance of the Russian champion with a record score of 157.97 points. And this meant that the two-time world champion had no room for error. Moreover, she had to get a score on the verge of her own world record of 160 points.

Medvedeva's first jump - a flip - turned out to be imperfect. And in order to win, she had to receive judges’ “pluses” on each element. The next jump, lutz, as the technical protocol later showed, was performed with a technical error (an unclear edge on the take-off). This, in fact, was the end of the struggle. Medvedeva completed the rest of the program without errors, but it was outwardly difficult. According to the skater, she is not worried about her injured leg, but the forced break in the plan functional training could not pass without a trace. The judges gave her 154.29 - 3.68 points less than Zagitova.

Thus, Zagitova became the European champion in the first adult season of her career. Her winning streak continues, but Medvedeva suffered her first defeat since November 2015, when she took second place at the Moscow Grand Prix. She, as then, has silver.

Bobrova and Solovyov came out with sporting rage

Earlier on Saturday, the French duo Gabriella Papadakis/Guillaume Cizeron won a convincing victory in ice dancing, updating two world records - in the free program (121.87) and in total (203.16).

The Russian Figure Skating Federation (FFKKR) is due to announce the lineup of participants on Sunday Olympic Games in Pyeongchang.

The 110th European Figure Skating Championships are taking place in Moscow, at the Megasport Palace. Today, January 18, women will take to the ice with a short program (starts at 14:30) and pairs with a free program (starts at 20:55).

Attention! The broadcast time, as well as the time in the schedule, is Ural (Moscow minus two hours).

Evgenia Medvedeva: “I have my own path. Time has taught me that yes, you need to look around, but we have an individual sport and there are moments when rivalry pushes you, but you need to concentrate on your elements.” Read the interview with the figure skater.

20:42 A few minutes before the start of the press conference. There are so many people here that... the skaters had to sit on the floor, there were no chairs. The girls took doping tests, so they were delayed.

So, based on the results of the short program, the standings look like this:

1. Alina Zagitova (Russia) 80.27 points - personal best.

By the way, only one athlete in the history of figure skating received more points for a short program - Russian Evgenia Medvedeva team championship world in 2017 (80.85).

2. Evgenia Medvedeva (Russia) 78.57 points

3. Carolina Costner (Italy) 78.30.

4. Maria Sotskova (Russia) 68.70

Alina Zagitova:

Today was my best performance, I think. What's the secret? I have matured and began to train more consciously. Well, my native walls helped today. As for competition with Zhenya, I can say that we communicate very well with her both after training and in general. But in sports there is no competition. She and I even take turns jumping - sometimes I’m better, sometimes she’s better. This is fine.

Evgenia Medvedeva:

I don’t look at anyone, I am me, it’s not in my competence to pay attention to any other things other than skating. Do you know what I really want now? I want to show the real Anna Karenina in my free program.

I was in a cast for about three weeks; it was removable. Today my health has been restored, there is no need to worry anymore. I have the opportunity to ride, this is my main treasure. And I am very grateful to everyone who gave me this opportunity.

20:02 Of course, winning the short program is not yet winning the championship. But Alina won the first fight. The free program will be very interesting...

20:00 This is incredible! 80.27. This is Alina’s personal record and first place in the short program.

19:55 Evgenia's only blemish is on the triple lutz. The judges evaluate everything else with increasing coefficients. By the way, Zhenya performs all the jumps in the second part of the program. 78.57 - Zhenya’s result. Of course she's the first. The audience absolutely agrees with this result. On the ice - Alina Zagitova...

19:50 68, 70 - Masha’s result. She's second for now. Evgeny Medvedev on the ice!

19:47 Nicole Rayichov Maria definitely gets around. Will it bypass Carolina? Sotskova performed a triple Lutz with blemishes, but the judges slightly detracted from it. Next was a triple flip cascade - triple toe loop and double axel - Masha performed both elements with increasing coefficients.

19:45 Nicole, with her season's best score of 61.01, takes second place. But her ratings are drowned in a storm of applause. On ice - Masha Sotskova."Masha, come on!" - the audience shouts.

19:42 The German fans next to us brought drums, clappers and other very loud instruments. They root for everyone. Very loud. They probably confused figure skating with football :)

19:40 On the ice, the representative of Slovakia, four-time champion of this country Nicole Rajicova. She previously competed for the United States. By the way, he trains her Nikolay Morozov. The athlete is 22 years old. For herself, she performed very well, but, of course, she cannot overtake Costner.

19:35 Divine. To tears! I have no words. Costner is very musical, touching... This is a real performance on ice. which you watch without stopping. Of course, now it will be the first place. And finally we see solid scores - 78.30 is her personal best! The previous best result of the season was already 4 points less. The hall is not silent.

By the way, Caroline is 30 years old.

19:30 Do I need to introduce Caroline Costner, which opens the group of the strongest? This Italian figure skater is very popular in Russia. By the way, she is trained by the famous Alexey Mishin. Let us remind you of Carolina's titles: bronze medalist of the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, world champion 2012 and five-time champion Europe (2007, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013), nine-time Italian champion. Costner became the first Italian figure skater to win the Grand Prix Final (2011/2012 season), becoming European champion and world figure skating champion.

19:22 We get goosebumps. All our girls are on the ice. Titles Evgenia Medvedeva inaudible - the commentator senselessly strains his voice. The applause drowns out everything. Cheers loudly Alina Zagitova, the current champion of Russia, and Maria Sotskova, which was fourth at the last European Championship.

Masha Sotskova started her warm-up with very powerful spins. Alina, wearing a silver tutu, is practicing her jumps. Zhenya also perfects his exits and jumps.

19:20 Well, right now begins what we have gathered here for today: the performance of the strongest group. Let us remind you that all Russian women will perform right now. The first of ours will perform Maria Sotskova- immediately after the famous Italian Caroline Costner. Following Sotskova, we will see the performance of the world champion Evgenia Medvedeva, who, we recall, missed several starts due to injury, and this will be her first time on the ice after a break. And immediately after Medvedeva he will enter the fight Alina Zagitova. The French woman will complete today's short program Lauren Lecavalier, who is a multiple champion of France.

19:10 The next group has ended, and for now we are left with a slight disappointment - the level of the athletes who have already shown themselves today is clearly inferior to what we are used to seeing in this type of figure skating at the Russian championships. There is very serious competition in our country, but this is also a show - in each group of participants there is someone to watch, and the skaters of the final two warm-ups are potential contenders for medals, the fight goes on until the very end. At the European Championships, the level of women, alas, is weaker. If you enter athletes from the penultimate group at the Russian Championship, they are unlikely to be able to get into the top five, or even the top ten... Our girls are missing - Elena Radionova, Anna Pogorilaya, Elizaveta Tuktamysheva and other athletes whose programs are always a highlight of this kind of competition. Well, in the meantime, we are waiting for the last warm-up - this is where the intrigue will be!

19:05 Two German figure skaters complete the sixth group of participants. Lea Joanna Dustish chose the soundtrack to the film “La La Land” for the short program. She is greeted very warmly.

18:55 On the ice, the favorite of the public, one of the most colorful athletes is a Frenchwoman Mahe Berenice Meite. How great she is received! She performed the starting sequence quite well - triple Lutz-triple toe loop. But, alas, the skater falls from a triple Lutz. We really like her short program to Beyoncé. The skater herself, of course, is dissatisfied with the rental. They don’t let her off the ice for a long time... Her result is 54.14. This is the fourth result on this moment.

18:51 Right now, for example, I was grieving here Matilda Algotson from Sweden, which failed everything it could (and couldn’t) and fell back to 22nd place.

18:50 We think you have already appreciated how beautifully the “Kiss and cry” area in Moscow is decorated. It is in this zone that skaters wait for evaluations, it is here that the athlete experiences the moment when he finds out that he has set a record or become a champion. The background here at Megasport is made interactive, and views of Moscow are broadcast there. And the area itself is decorated with lanterns - it looks very cozy.

18:43 Meanwhile, more and more foreign journalists are in the press box. As we expected, there were many media representatives from China, Korea, and Japan.

18:42 Yvette Tóth, three-time Hungarian champion, got everyone excited. She has a very energetic program to the song AC DC. The audience clap and sing along.

18:38 Meanwhile we have new leader- 16-year-old figure skater from Sweden Anita Östlund. She scores 56.04 points in the short program. Indeed, it was quite clean and good rental. The skater herself was very pleased.

18:32 And before the girls’ performance, the public was first shown what was happening in the rooms below the stands. And there is our illustrious Zhenya Medvedeva getting ready for rental - emotionally singing in headphones, apparently one of his favorite compositions. Then the camera caught everyone’s favorite Tatyana Anatolyevna Tarasova, who, of course, is present at the competition - she blew a kiss to the audience, and they responded to her with thunderous applause.

18:25 Well, the penultimate - sixth - group of skaters is on the ice! There are almost no empty seats in the hall. This warm-up will feature one of the most exotic athletes in this sport - the dark-skinned Frenchwoman Mahe Berenice Meite. She is definitely a crowd favorite. We are sure that she will be received very warmly in Moscow, especially since she is a champion and multiple winner of the French championships.

18:20 Flags of participating countries.

18:15 More and more work appears for children who collect flowers and toys from the ice. From our commentary position we can clearly see how they are wrapped in a blanket. There is very little time left until the group of leaders - the children will not be allowed to freeze there. Many spectators sit with toys and gifts, clearly reserved for their favorite athletes.

18:10 So far, no one has been able to overtake Luna Hendrix. And we are fascinated by jumping Anna Khnychenkova. She performed a double axel, a cascade of two triple toe loops, and a triple lutz. Anna takes intermediate fourth place.

17:45 The fifth group of skaters on the ice. We'll see Anna Khnychenkova, Ukrainian, champion of her country. Also in this warm-up are two Finnish athletes, including the two-time champion of their country Emmi Peltonen. And in the family of her compatriot Vivessy Lindfors four children, and everyone is engaged figure skating. We will also see two Italians, and this group will be opened by a figure skater from Slovenia Dasa Grm.

17:40 Here's how ice is poured: first, large cracks and chips of ice are filled manually (with the help of water). The ice harvester then grinds the ice and makes it perfectly smooth. By the way, the ice harvester is called a resurfacer. Maybe this word will come in handy for you :)

Filling with ice. Photo: Natalia Shadrina

17:30 We're pouring ice again. Spectators use the break to have a snack. And we’ll use the break to tell you some more interesting things about figure skating. There are six jumps in this sport, which are divided into three types - rib and tooth. We think you guessed it - skaters can push off the ice with the edge of their skate, or they can push with the tooth. By the way, it is the jagged jumps that “injure” the ice the most. the simplest of the toothed ones is the sheepskin coat. It is absolutely not related to winter clothing - the name comes from the English toe loop (translated as “Loop on the toe”).

17:25 There is about an hour and a half left before the performance of the main contenders for medals. The Belgian figure skater received a standing ovation from the audience Luna Hendrix, who skated to a Madonna song. And it is Luna who now becomes the leader standings- she has 55.13 points, this is the athlete’s best result of the season.

17:20 Megasport is gradually filling up. There are many children among the spectators; the public tries to support all the skaters. The competitions are really organized on top level- there are many volunteers at the competitions; for the convenience of foreigners, signs in different languages ​​are posted everywhere. There are already many stars in the hall, although the performances of famous athletes are still far away. In the rooms below the stands we met Alexander Zhulin, although his athletes are Dmitry Solovyov And Ekaterina Bobrova They will begin their performance at the European Championships only tomorrow.

17:10 The equator of the women's short program is behind us! British figure skater Natasha McKay took to the ice 20th. The 23-year-old figure skater performed a very passionate, but not very technically pure tango. The second jump in the cascade turned out to be only a single jump - let us remind you that jumps in one revolution are not counted at all.

Based on the results of 20 performances, Paganini still remains first.

16:35 The first figure skater to purely perform a cascade of two triple jumps - triple Lutz - triple toe loop - a figure skater from Switzerland Alexia Paganini. The girl lives up to her very musical name, she skates very easily, gracefully, to the music. She skates to the Romeo and Juliet soundtrack. The skater is greeted very warmly by the audience. The result is 54.95 - this is her best result of the season! And, of course, this is the first place at the moment. Well, things are getting more and more interesting!

16:30 Interesting fact: Did you know that Russia is the only country that has the maximum number of skaters at this European Championship in each type of program - three athletes?

16:12 After the performance of 11 athletes, the first place is taken Eliška Brzezinova- Czech athlete. Viewers are probably better acquainted with her brother - Mikhail Brzezina(European bronze medalist in 2013, three-time champion of the Czech Republic) After the short program he is in 10th place.

Eliška scored 52.06 points in the short program.

Now on ice Kim Chermesky from Azerbaijan. She won't even come close to Eliška's result.

16:10 A figure skater before going on the ice... The longest and most exciting moments.

16:00 The short program is presented by figure skater from Romania Julia Sauter. So far the programs are not impressive with the variety of elements - she starts with a triple Lutz-triple toe loop cascade, and stumbles on a triple Salchow.

By the way, we were asked at what age can you take part in the European Championship. We answer: skaters from European member countries participate in the championship International Union speed skaters who have reached the age of 15 on July 1, 2017.

Our Alina Zagitova, by the way, is one of the youngest at this European Championship - she is just 15 years old.

15:35 The first warm-up in the women's short program has just ended, where 10 young athletes, not yet so well known to the general public, performed, but they set a good mood. The last to compete in this group was a 19-year-old figure skater from Denmark. Pernille Sorensen, which showed a pretty good rental. Now the first ice pouring is underway at the Megasport arena. We are waiting for the performance of the second group of girls.

15:25 Doping control point for figure skaters.

15:00 The first warm-ups are still taking place on the Megasport ice. And we will tell you a little about the atmosphere around the championship.

As we approached Megasport, we were persistently stopped several times: “Girls, don’t you need a ticket for today? What about tomorrow?” When they heard that we were the press, they immediately lost interest in us. Fortunately, there were enough people around the main entrance who wanted to buy a ticket by hand...

Myself Ice Palace now they surround the mobile television centers of various television channels. In the press center we can watch the press work from different countries peace. Mostly, of course, English is spoken - this is the main language European tournament. But, of course, there are a lot of Russian journalists. True, there are not many people here yet: the ice will become really hot by seven o’clock Ural time, when the strongest athletes come out.

Ice Palace "Megasport". Photo: Yana Belotserkovskaya

14:10 In women's singles skating, everyone, of course, is most looking forward to the duel between Russians Evgenia Medvedeva and Alina Zagitova. Both are students of Eteri Tutberidze, also known to us as the coach of Yulia Lipnitskaya. Both had not yet known defeat. And this season this is their first time going against each other.

It’s very cool to see with your own eyes the opening of the European Championship - an interesting program: Plushenko and his little son were a pleasant surprise on the ice. For the first time I saw our girls from Paradise synchronized skating - an incredibly spectacular spectacle!

Before this, the men's short program had been going on all day. I remember Maurice Kvitelashvili- they were worried about him overboard Eteri Tutberidze, Daniil Gleikhengauz And Sergey Dudakov- the command that will output Zhenya Medvedeva And Alina Zagitova already tomorrow. Mikhail Brzezina I started out powerfully and brightly, but unfortunately I made a mistake and was very upset myself. Denis Vasiliev under the direction of Stefan Lambiel I skated for a small bronze medal and was very happy about it!

As for our Russian boys, the wait of more than 4 hours was worth it! Great job Dmitry Aliev, his “Masquerade” program left a good impression on both the audience and the judges - the score for technique was almost 50! He ranks intermediate second after Javier Fernandez- multiple European and world champion. Russian champion Mikhail Kolyada made me worry about myself, as if on command, the audience sighed long after the mistake, Misha was left without a cascade and 20 points, but did 2 quadruples and an axel! I would like to believe that on Friday Misha will show how he really skates, how persistent and able he is to pull himself together at the right moment! As for our other guy - Alexandra Samarina, then it didn’t work out the way he, the coaches and we, the fans, wanted. Perhaps the fight for a ticket to the Olympics played an important role here.

I hope that in the free program Sasha, Misha and Dima will perform at their level!

In the evening after official opening Sports couples took to the ice. The Italians filled the Megasport hall with energy and made them clap their entire show - Valentina Marker And Ondrej Otarek. All three of our couples and the French performed in the last warm-up. Ksenia and Fedor and Evgenia and Vladimir are our wonderful and dear guys, unfortunately they performed not without mistakes. Both couples can do more, better, and we definitely expect them to fight tomorrow! The third pair of the country, Natalya and Alexander, on the contrary, surprised us very pleasantly, skated beautifully and are second in the intermediate standings. Overall, the first day of competition was eventful, bright and so homely!

ON-LINE TRANSLATION

23:35. This concludes our broadcast from the European Figure Skating Championships. Let us remember that in a dramatic struggle we won gold medal, ahead of the sum of the two programs Evgeny Medvedev. Two Russian women on the top steps of the podium - isn’t that wonderful? The top three were completed by the Italian Carolina Costner, which, by a controversial decision of the judges, was ahead of another representative of Russia Maria Sotskova. We wish you a good weekend and thank you for being with us all this time! See you again!

23:30. “Without any respect. Now Zagitova is Russia’s main hope?” - operational report from Andrey Shitikhin.

Without any respect. Now Zagitova is Russia's main hope?

What else can you call a figure skater who beat a two-time world champion at the age of 15? So what should Medvedeva do now?

23:15 . Trainer Evgenia Medvedeva and Alina Zagitova Eteri Tuteberidze accepts numerous congratulations and stands with a whole bag of soft toys.

23:00 . Cute French girl Lauren Lecavalier took only 12th place and complained that she had to change the program that she really liked. But a temporary setback is not a reason to be discouraged, is it?

22:45. Maria Sotskova admitted that she was dissatisfied with the final fourth place at the European Championships.

“Could I get ahead of Carolina? Nothing is impossible. But I didn’t set a goal to overtake anyone. The most important thing for me is to go out and skate cleanly, to prove to myself that I can. Is it a shame to be fourth? It is my fault. I have never been to the Olympics in my life and I sincerely hope that I will be the one to go there - I’m not sure about that yet. I don’t want to make any plans or make any plans yet, I just want to prepare and get back into shape that will allow me to feel confident.”

22:30. demonstrated a magnificent and very emotional performance, but this was not enough to win the European Championship. Evgenia has 232 points versus Alina’s 238. Zagitova becomes European champion! Carolina Costner closes the top three. Maria Sotskov a - fourth.

22:15. Alina Zagitova! Wow! This is a rental. Simply gorgeous. Alina has 238.24 points based on the sum of two programs! It will be very difficult now Evgenia Medvedeva. Let's see!

22:10. Carolina Costner made a huge number of mistakes, but somehow still remained ahead of our Maria Sotskova. We have questions for the judges! What if something similar happens to the Russians at the Olympics? Fans are outraged on social networks.

22:00. Nicole Rajicova from Slovakia will not be able to compete for a medal at the European Championships. The third intermediate place does not give any hope for a miracle. The main drama of the tournament is ahead! Costner, Zagitova and Medvedeva will take to the ice of the Megasport Arena. The spectators lay low in anticipation.

21:55. Maria Sotskova failed to avoid mistakes, but still occupies the first intermediate position. The young Russian woman has 200.81 points in total. To get on the podium, Maria will have to wait for serious mistakes from her rivals.

21:45 . Here it is - the final group of six skaters. Will start first Anita Estlund from Sweden, and will continue - Maria Sotskova, Nicole Rajichova, Carolina Kostner, Alina Zagitova and Evgenia Medvedeva, who will perform in a new dress. Something will happen.

21:35. Now the fun begins, are you ready? Our girls are getting ready for the decisive skate at the European Championships.

21:30. After the performance three groups the leader is Belgian Lena Hendricks. Swiss woman takes second place Alexia Paganini, and the Frenchwoman closes the top three Mahe-Bérénice Meite.

21:25. The squirrel, the competition's mascot, has a fluffy tail so large that you have to hold it while turning.

21:15 . A brief survey of fans showed that Evgenia Medvedeva significantly more fans than Alina Zagitova. Here is one point of view.

21:05. The current leaders can take a breather without going to the locker room, but watching the performances of their opponents in the mixed zone.

20:55 . The third group will perform Laurine Lecavelier, Lena Hendricks, Alexia Paganini, Eliska Brzezinova, Emmi Peltonen and Mahe-Bérenice Meite. These skaters took places from 7th to 12th in the short program.

20:45 . This is how they prepare for a performance And. A telephone and oranges are the key to success.

20:35 . Of the first two warm-ups, only the German was of interest to journalists Schott. The rest of the time the mixed zone is empty. But in just over an hour it will be crowded.

20:30 . After the performance of two groups, the German woman took the lead Nicole Schott. In second place Yvette Toth from Hungary, finishing the top three Viveca Lindfors from Finland. But we all understand that the main forces of women's figure skating are ahead of us.

20:20 . And this is how the athletes of the second starting group were presented at the European Championships in Moscow.

20:10. Twitter Olympic Committee Russia wishes good luck to the Russian women tonight. The climax is approaching!

20:00 . Ex-Russian Anna Yanovskaya, performing in tandem with Adam Lukacs for Hungary, discusses the results of his performance with his partner and coach. The Hungarian couple finished 14th.

19:45. In the second group they will perform in front of the Moscow public Nicole Schott, Anne-Line Gjersem, Lea Joanna Dastich, Yvette Toth, Viveca Lindfors and Anna Khnychenkova. These skaters took places from 13th to 18th in the short program.

19:35 . Based on the results of the performance of the first group, two Italians are in the lead - Micol Christini and Giada Russo.

19:30. We invite our readers to express their opinions on this matter.

19:20 . Cool photo gallery of the short program in women’s single skating at the European Championships in Moscow from the “Championship” photojournalist Alexandra Safonova. Enjoy!

19:10 . “The Queen is delighted. Zagitova is cooler than Medvedeva, and it’s real” - review of the short program from Andrey Shitikhin.

The Queen is delighted. Zagitova is cooler than Medvedeva, and it’s real

Medvedeva returned from injury, but lost the short program to Zagitova.

19:00. Let us remind you of the alignment in the leading group after the short program. These skaters will close out the evening.

1. (Russia) – 80.27 (personal record).
2. (Russia) – 78.57.
3. Carolina Costner (Italy) – 78.30 (personal best).
4. (Russia) – 68.70.

18:45. The finals in women's single skating have started! The Italian was first on the ice Micol Christini, took 19th place in the short program . According to the regulations, 24 best figure skaters will take part in the free program after the first part of the performances, which will be divided into four subgroups of six people. Together with the Italian in the first group they will perform Pernille Sørensen, Giada Russo, Sylvia Gugetz, Elzbieta Kropa and Dasha Grm. These are the skaters who took places from 19th to 24th in the short program.

18:30 . You can even buy a flag with a hammer and sickle in the souvenir shop. Rumor has it that it could be very relevant at the Olympics in Pyeongchang.

18:20 . A press conference of the European Ice Dancing Championship winners began at the Megasport Arena. Let us remind you that two Russian couples made it into the top three - Ekaterina Bobrova / Dmitry Solovyov and Alexandra Stepanova / Ivan Bukin.

18:10 . There is practically no one at the ticket office - all tickets were purchased in advance. At the “red” ticket office, located closer to the metro, the queue is not much longer.

18:00. Interview in the official championship program Medvedeva and Zagitova placed on one spread. Only 30 minutes until the start of the women's singles final! We wait!

17:45 . Russian couple, although she did not take a place on the podium at the European Championship, the audience really liked her with her bright images.

17:35 . The most popular place during breaks is, of course, the buffet. There are dozens of similar kiosks throughout the entire sports complex.

17:25. Bronze medalist of the European Championship Ivan Bukin, performing in tandem with Alexandra Stepanova, studies the judges' scores in anticipation of the awards ceremony.

17:15. Silver medalist of the European Championship Dmitry Solovyov, performing in tandem with Ekaterina Bobrova, shared his impressions of the performance with a “Championship” correspondent Mikhail Chesalin.

“Overall, we are satisfied with the rental. There was only a blot on the second support, which did not turn out very clean. Maybe we performed less emotionally than at the Russian Championship, but still at a good level. We already know what to work on next, and we have time to correct and add something. We will pay even more attention to rumba, because we don’t want to miss out on those precious points, the absence of which can lead to unpleasant consequences. After the short program we were angry with ourselves. But we were spurred on by the fact that there is competition in Russia. This doesn't allow us to relax. We know that the guys are stepping on our heels and are becoming stronger. This helps us move forward too.”

17:00 . The competition in the free program in ice dancing at the European Championships in Moscow has ended. The French duo predictably won Gabriela Papadakis / Guillaume Cizeron for a clear advantage. And the top three were completed by two Russian couples - Ekaterina Bobrova / Dmitry Solovyov and Alexandra Stepanova / Ivan Bukin. Another couple of us Tiffany Zagorski / Jonathan Gurreiro took sixth place.

17:00. There are already quite a lot of spectators in the stands. A full house is quite possible today. Although it should be noted that the multi-colored seats of the Megasport do a great job of masking the voids.

16:50 . The souvenir shop has a wide selection of everything that will help spectators remember the European Championship with pleasure: from magnets to large cups.

16:40 . While we are waiting for the main battle of the evening in women's single skating, the fate of medals in ice dancing is currently being decided. Russian couple Tiffany Zagorski / Jonathan Gurreiro She has already completed her free program and is now in third place. At worst they will be sixth, which is little progress since the pair were only eighth after the short program.

16:30. Information stands installed at almost every entrance to the stands tell spectators about the results and program of the competition.

16:15 . Official poster of the European Championship. The Moscow landmarks in the background change, but the profile of the figure skater remains. Many people entertain themselves by trying to guess who it belongs to and agree that there is something Italian about it.

16:00. Hello, dear figure skating fans. The 2018 European Figure Skating Championships is coming to an end, and for a dessert that is crazy in its magnificence, we get the women's free program. And this means a battle between Evgenia Medvedeva and Alina Zagitova. A stunning event in the world of figure skating, missing which means committing a minor crime. “Championship” begins an online broadcast from “Megasport”, stay with us and find out everything!