Minerva Hase and Nikita Volodin are on their way to their first World Cup gold in Prague. However, the lead over the pursuers is extremely thin. For Annika Hocke and Robert Kunkel, a fall prevented them from finishing in the single digits.
- Berlin pair skaters Hase/Volodin lead after short program at World Championships in Prague
- The European champions Metelkina/Berulawa from Georgia occupied second place, 0.33 points behind
- The second German pair, Hocke/Kunkel, is in tenth place
The Berlin figure skaters Minerva-Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin reach for the gold medal at the World Championships in Prague.
Five weeks after winning Pair skating bronze at the Winter Olympics In Milan, the two ran a world-class short program and with 79.78 points are just ahead of the Olympic silver medalists Anastasiia Metelkina/Luka Berulawa from Georgia (79.45 points). The decision will be made in the free skate on Thursday (6:15 p.m.).
Strong nerves when tango
Lia Pereira/Trennt Michaud from Canada secured third place in the atmospheric O2 Arena (75.52). The Japanese Olympic champions and world champions Miura Riku/Kihara Ryichi had canceled their start in advance.
This is also why Hase/Volodin, as runners-up at the World Championships last year, were the last couple to take to the ice in Boston. In the last competition of the season, the stars of the German Ice Skating Union (DEU) kept their nerve in their tango.
They had already been in the lead at halftime in Milan, but then made a mistake in the free skate.
The World Cup may be Hase/Volodin’s last competition together. They have so far left their future plans together open.
Crouch falls at Triple Salchow
The second Berlin duo, Annika Hocke/Robert Kunkel, came in tenth (65.35). A fall from Hocke during the triple Salchow prevented a better result for the former European Championship third place.
“A very annoying mistake. We are now missing four points and you can see what would have been possible for us,” said Hocke. “As soon as I jumped off, I felt that it couldn’t go well.”
Broadcast: rbb|24, March 25, 2026, 10:42 p.m
Audio: rbb|24, March 25, 2026, Shea Westhoff
