Elizaveta Tuktamysheva arrived in Vancouver late Tuesday night to compete in her first Grand Prix Final since she went all but undefeated en route to her 2015 World Championship crown. The self-styled “Empress” aims to add two more strong skates to what has been a comeback campaign, with two wins on the ISU Challenger Series and another in Skate Canada – her first on the Grand Prix level in almost four years.
“I hope that I’ll do two clean triple Axels at the Grand Prix Final, and improve my skating even more than Japan,” she said after a bronze medal at the NHK Trophy, finishing behind senior debutante Rika Kihira and Satoko Miyahara. “I’m really excited about what I did, landing the triple Lutz-triple toe and the triple Axel in both programs. I was so nervous but I’m still skating well.”
The ladies free skate in Hiroshima was bar-none the best of the season; though Tuktamysheva won the short program with a clean triple Axel, Kihira landed two of her own to rally for gold in the free skate.
“I said before the Grand Prix started that this event would be the hardest to win. I know these girls and how they can skate so well. I’m just happy that I scored the highest total of my figure skating career. I’m not so much sad about finishing in third place, because I know Satoko was really good in the free program, and there’s no words for what Rika did!
“It’s a different feeling to a jump a triple Axel than a Lutz or a toe-loop. For a while, I felt scared about this jump, the way a woman might feel when they’re pregnant! I was scared to fall on it. You have to jump differently, and I keep working to understand every moment before its take-off. I have so much training with this jump in particular, and I want to do it so much. I need to understand exactly what I need to do, and do it the same way every time.”
Undaunted by the competition, Tuktamysheva plans to match Kihira’s base value by adding the triple flip back into her repertoire – posting a triple flip-triple toe combination to her Instagram over Thanksgiving weekend – and analyzed Olympic champion Alina Zagitova as a commentator during Rostelecom Cup.
“I’ve really wanted to have this opportunity for the last two years, because it’s really interesting for me,” she began diplomatically, then added with a laugh, “Well, first of all, my boyfriend Andrei Lazukin is skating, and I hope he does well. If he makes mistakes, I might end up saying some bad words on TV!”
The MatchTV gig is the latest addition to her growing media empire, one on which the sun never sets with the help of her Twitter, Instagram, and, most recently, a YouTube Channel that features a pun-filled interview with reigning world champion Nathan Chen.
“I really feel the love because I’m starting to do much more on social media. I’m speaking more with the fans, and I think that’s important for the people who love figure skating. All skaters should be like this.”
Tuktamysheva has always been a trend-setter. Beyond the triple Axel, her influence can be seen in the proliferation of arm variations and back-loaded triple-triple combinations, both of which she did to win her world title. From jokes about footballers and politicians to her audacious exhibition to Britney Spears’ “Toxic” – spurring others to take on the online #TuktikChallenge, copying her strip-tease cantilever – the 21-year-old has reclaimed the zeitgeist of the sport. Close as she is transcending it entirely, the “Empress” hasn’t lost her sense of humor.
“I think I started approaching my career differently after Sochi, realizing that I just needed to enjoy myself to have good performances on the ice.
“This year isn’t the first time I’ve felt that way, and I do hope that this will work for a second season in a row, and not like last time where it took another three years.”
As a reminder, you can watch the ISU Grand Prix Series live and on-demand with the ‘Figure Skating Pass’ on NBC Sports Gold. Go to NBCsports.com/gold/figure-skating to sign up for access to every ISU Grand Prix and championship event, as well as domestic U.S. Figure Skating events throughout the season. NBC Sports Gold gives subscribers an unprecedented level of access on more platforms and devices than ever before.
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