Medvedeva picked ahead of Tuktamysheva for Russian team at World Championships
Russian selectors have opted to hand Evgenia Medvedeva a place in the team at the World Figure Skating Championships in Japan, with Elizaveta Tuktamysheva being put on the reserve list.
The decision was made at a coaching council of the Russian Figure Skating Federation in Moscow on Wednesday, following days of speculation over who would get the final spot on the team.
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The federation members voted in favor of Medvedeva over former world champion Elizaveta Tuktamysheva and European Championships participant Stanislava Konstantinova.
Two-time Olympic silver medalist Medvedeva joins newly-crowned European title holder Sofia Samodurova and Olympic gold medalist Alina Zagitova, who earlier earned spots on the squad.
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“Following the discussion involving 27 coaching council members, 19 people spoke in favor of including Medvedeva to the roster, 7 members voted for Tuktamysheva while one person abstained from voting.
“In accordance with the coaching council’s recommendation the Figure Skating Federation Executive Board approved the following athletes to perform at the World Championships: Sofia Samodurova, Alina Zagitova and Evgenia Medvedeva.”
Two-time world champion Medvedeva has not been consistent this season, with a third place finish at the season-opening Grand Prix , Skate Canada, being her highest achievement at international events.
The skater failed to qualify for the national team at the Russian nationals, finishing a disappointing seventh place, a result which denied her an opportunity to compete at the European tournament.
However, Medvedeva’s hopes of joining the team were revived after Russia’s third team member, Stanislava Konstantinova, delivered an underwhelming performance at the European Championships, leaving the door open for other contenders, including Medvedeva and Tuktamysheva.
To prove their readiness to compete at the worlds they faced each other at the Cup of Russia, where Medvedeva took the upper hand, emerging as the number one candidate to be selected for the World Championships instead of Konstantinova.
Medvedeva’s efforts to make the team have paid off, while Tuktamysheva will remain on the reserve list.
