Figure skating duo Hase/Volodin in the Grand Prix final
The figure skating pair Minerva Fabienne Hase/Nikita Volodin remain on course for success. With a brilliant performance, the duo from Berlin won the NHK Trophy in Osaka, Japan, on Saturday, thus qualifying for the lucrative Grand Prix Final in Beijing in December. Hase and Volodin were already at the top of the podium a week ago at the Grand Prix in Finland.
After a flawless short program, both delivered an almost perfect free skate and achieved a personal best with 202.51 points. The only shortcoming was a double Salchow from Hase. Minutes before the free skate, a lace hook had fallen off Volodin's skate and coach Dmitri Savin had to drill a new hole in the boot in a flash to fix the lace. "Nikita is a hero. He skated a clean free skate with a broken skate," said Hase.
There was no sign of the excitement behind the scenes on the ice. "It was much better than in Finland, and that was our goal. We scored over 200 points for the first time," said Hase. The 24-year-old Berliner and her Russian-born partner have only been a couple on the ice for a year and a month, but they harmonize perfectly. "There's a lot of hard work behind it," emphasized Volodin.
In the final in Beijing, Hase/Volodin will also meet their German rivals Annika Hocke/Robert Kunkel, who qualified with a first and fourth place in their Grand Prix competitions. This is the first time that two German pairs have reached the final. The last time a German duo reached the final of the top six in the Grand Prix series was in 2017 with the eventual Olympic champions Aljona Savchenko/Bruno Massot.
In the men's competition, Olympic silver medallist Yuma Kagiyama from Japan narrowly defeated his teammate and two-time world champion Shoma Uno. The women's event was surprisingly won by Ava Marie Ziegler from the USA. There was also a surprise in ice dancing when the European silver medallists Lilah Fear/Lewis Gibson from Great Britain overtook the European champions Charlène Guignard/Marco Fabbri from Italy in the free dance.
Hase and Volodin's victorious performance at the NHK Trophy ensures their participation in the upcoming Grand Prix Final in Beijing. Despite a minor hiccup with Volodin's skate during the free skate, they managed to deliver an outstanding performance, securing a spot at the Grand Prix Final once again.
Source: www.dpa.com
