The pair skaters Minerva Hase and Nikita Volodin can dream of a medal after the short program at the European Figure Skating Championships in Kaunus, Lithuania. Only a duo from Georgia was better.
The dream of European Championship gold is alive! The German pair skating newcomers Minerva Hase and Nikita Volodin are in second place after the short program with 69.63 points, just two points behind Anastasiia Metelkina and Luka Berulava, who are starting for Georgia. The decision will be made in the free skate on Thursday (from 6:05 p.m. in the live stream at sportschau.de).
Hase/Volodin have only been running together for almost a year and have been going from victory to victory ever since. After taking first place in the Grand Prix final, expectations were high. The Berlin native and the Russian native were considered the top favorites for gold.
Good starting position for Hase/Volodin
The pressure was great, which made it even more astonishing how cool the two 24-year-olds floated across the ice. Twist, Salchow, Rittberger worked without any major problems, Volodin carried his partner safely across the ice during all lifts. The judges acted “strictly” so the German couple didn’t get over the 70-point mark.
Georgian duo in the lead
The biggest competitors for gold are Anastasiia Metelkina (18) and Luka Berulava (21), who are competing for Georgia. The Russian natives put on an almost flawless short program on the ice and were happy about a personal best and the lead at halftime with 71.30 points. In third place are the Italians Lucrezia Beccari/Matteo Guarise (67.05 points).
Anastasiia Metelkina and Luka Berulava performed strongly in the short program.
Botched Salchow annoyed Hocke/Kunkel
The second German couple, Annika Hocke and Robert Kunkel, are in sixth place after the short program. The duo received 62.52 points for their rocking program. A better placement was prevented by the Salchow, which Hocke only jumped twice. Preparing for the European Championships was difficult for both of them because Kunkel was tormented by persistent back problems.
Russians excluded from the European Championships
Normally, the top Russian pairs dominate the pair skating discipline at the European Championships. This year they are missing. The International Ice Skating Union (ISU) did not allow Russian figure skaters because of the war of aggression against Ukraine.