When the best figure skaters in the world head to the TD Garden in Boston on March 28th, Russia will be one of only three teams (Japan and the United States being the others) that will get to send three ladies into the competition. Despite having more entries than almost everyone else, Russia will still have a tough job trying to narrow down their selections, as they have been blessed with an embarrassment of riches over the past couple of seasons.
The Russian National Championship took place at the end of last year, but unlike some countries, Russia does not select their skaters for the World Championship based on the results of their national championship. Instead, Russia will have to rely on the European Championships, as well as recent form, experience, and a variety of other factors in order to select their skaters. Below are a list of potential candidates, and the likelihood that they will be selected for the 2016 World Championships.
Evgenia Medvedeva (Lock)
Evgenia can start making plans for when she arrives in Boston, because she will be on the team. The 2015 Grand Prix Finals gold medalist won the Russian National Championship and the European Championship gold medal. She will not only be on the team, but is one of the favorites to win the gold medal.
Elena Radionova (Lock)
(Source: Getty Images)
Radionova has started to collect medals, but unfortunately for her, none of them have been gold in major events. She came in third in last year's World Championship, finished second and third in the last two Grand Prix Finals events, and second at the European Championships. That doesn't mean she doesn't know how to win - she won the Russian National Championship back in 2014 and took home the gold in last year's Cup of Russia, the only time she beat Medvedeva last season. Given the fact that she already has a World Championship bronze medal to her name, and she appears to be as good, if not better, than she was at this time last year, she doesn't have to worry about being left off the team. Radionova can concern herself with adding more difficulty to her routine and being able to finally win a gold medal in a major international event.
Anna Pogorilaya (Possibly)
(Source: Ice Network)
This is where things get tricky. Pogorilaya was on the Russian team for the European Championships this year, and went home with her second straight bronze medal. Still, her Grand Prix season left a lot to be desired. She finished 4th and 9th in her two Grand Prix starts, though she did win a gold medal in a lesser Challenge Series event. She was named to the Russian team the past two seasons, but has failed to medal in either one of them. Last year, still feeling the effects of an injury the month before, Pogorilaya finished in a disappointing 19th. Still, she was the third place finisher at the Russian National Championships. The Russian Skating Federation is going to have to decide between recent form and potential upside. If they want to go with someone a little more reliable, Pogorilaya will get the nod.
Adelina Sotnikova (Possibly)
(Source: Getty)
The 2014 Olympic gold medalist sat out the entire 2014-2015 season with an injury, and had a less than stellar season last year. She finished third in the Cup of Russia, her only Grand Prix start of the season. She finished in a disappointing sixth at the Russian National Championships, behind two juniors ineligible to compete in the World Championships. Stonikova has had to deal with a lot of pressures following her Olympic victory in front of home soil - not only did she suffer a back injury that sidelined her, but she also had to deal with being a darling in her home country while many skate fans consider her gold medal to be illegitimate, and that Yuna Kim should have been awarded the medal in 2014. Still, Sotnikova has experience winning gold medals at the highest stage, and if she is completely healthy, she may have the best chance to medal at the World Championships. Pogorilaya may be the more reliable skater, but if Russia wants to make a splash and potentially sweep the podium, they may look to send Sotnikova.
Yulia Lipnitskaya (Unlikely)
(Source: Getty)
Yulia Lipnitskaya burst on the scene for many international fans when she helped Russia win the gold medal at the team event in the 2014 Olympics in Sochi. That 2013-2014 season was a career maker for Lipnitskaya, who won the silver medal at the World Championship, two Grand Prix gold medals, a gold medal at the 2014 European Championships, and a silver at the Grand Prix Finals. Since her Olympic triumph, however, Lipnitskaya has struggled. She battled through injuries and stress in the 2014-2015 season. She won two silver medals in Grand Prix events, but she was not selected to represent Russia in either the World or European Championships. She had a poor season last year, though she was in second place at the Trophy Bompard when the event was canceled due to the terrorist attacks on Paris. She has finished 9th and 7th in her last two Russian Championships, making her a long shot to return to the World Championships. She has been selected to compete in the Russian Cup Final prior to the World Championship selection, so Lipnitskaya will have one more opportunity to impress judges. Given her experience and background, she would make for an interesting wild card selection, but she would need to show drastic improvement in the next month for that to happen.
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva (Out)
(Source: Sky Sports)
The reigning World Champion will not be returning to defend her title, Tuktamysheva's coaches have announced. Tuktamysheva got a late start to the season last year after switching choreographers and changing her short program. She won two Challenger Events and won the silver medal at Skate America, but was unable to make the Grand Prix finals and finished in a disappointing 8th place at the Russian Championships. Tuktamysheva will use this season to regroup and build a stronger program. At 19, Tuktamysheva still has plenty of time to compete at the highest stages, but with so many talented Russian skaters, she will likely need a strong Grand Prix season if she wants to return to the top events in 2017.