Russians return
Home is where the heart is
Posted: Sunday November 22, 1998 05:44 PM
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Butyrskaya rallied to beat American Nicole Bobek, who failed to hold her lead after the short program AP |
PARIS (AP) -- After winning in the United States, Canada, Germany and now France, the Russians are heading home -- in more ways than one.
The Russians added two more victories in the Grand Prix figure skating series over the weekend at the Lalique trophy competition, upping their count to 10 victories in 16 events for the season.
Now it is on to the home country at the Cup of Russia in Moscow. Russians, of course, will be favored, even though the winners in Paris won't be there. They will be making a rare visit home.
World champion Alexei Yagudin, who has taken three Grand Prix's and two more Open competitions in the last five weeks, is anxious to go back to his native St. Petersburg for a while.
"I haven't seen my family in four months," Yagudin said. "I had to leave Russia because it was impossible to skate there."
He moved to New Jersey to be with his new coach, Tatiana Tarasova and has developed a new artistic ability to go with his great technical talent.
For the second meet in a row he landed a clean quadruple jump to overtake American Michael Weiss in the men's event. Weiss tried a quad but missed his slightly although he led after the short program.
Women's winner Maria Butyrskaya has been also been on the road for six weeks between Grand Prix and other competitions. She is anxious to get back to Moscow.
"It's very difficult. I have to travel constantly because most of the pro-am competitions are in the United States," Butyrskaya said. "So I am looking forward to going home and rest and then practice."
Butyrskaya rallied to beat American Nicole Bobek, who failed to hold her lead after the short program. Still Bobek came close to her first victory in a major competition in nearly four years.
France had victories in the ice dance and pairs. Marina Anissina, a former Russian, and Gwendal Peizerat, had a dramatic routine to music from "The Man in the Iron Mask" in their ice dance win. It featured an unusual move where she lifts him off the ice for a long distance down the ice.
Sarah Abitbol and Stephane Benardis won the pairs program.
Although the Cup of Russia won't have any of the Paris winners competing, it won't be lacking for Russian favorites.
It is scheduled to have Yevgeny Pluschenko and Alexander Abt in the men's event with Yelena Sokolova and Irina Slutskaya in the women's competition.
Pluschenko has already won in Skate Canada this year, Sokolova in the Nations Cup and Slutskaya is a two-time European champion.
World champion pairs Yelena Berezynaya and Anton Sikarulidze are also competing along with ice dance winners Angelika Krylova and Oleg Ovsiannikov.
After the Cup of Russia, the final Grand Prix is the NHK Trophy in Japan.
The series culminates with the March final in Russia, two weeks before the world championships in Finland.
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