China’s returning determine skating veterans Han Cong and Sui Wenjing completed their ultimate rehearsal forward of Milano-Cortina 2026 the arduous manner, with their harm-plagued efficiency on the 4 Continents elevating considerations over their Olympic prospects.
What was hoped can be the best tune-up for the champion duo’s third Olympic marketing campaign turned out to be a bitter take a look at, after Han and Sui needed to accept a runner-up end on the ISU 4 Continents Championships in Beijing, largely as a consequence of a sudden hip harm suffered by Sui throughout a pre-occasion observe.
Apparently affected by the harm, Sui fell twice — first off her personal double axel bounce and then a triple throw — through the pair’s free-skate routine on Saturday evening, scoring a mere 124.97 factors within the free-skate section to finally end second behind Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov of the USA. Mixed with their rating from the brief program, the house favorites completed with a ultimate whole of 200.99.
Efimova and Mitrofanov, who completed third in Thursday’s brief program, got here from behind to win their first 4 Continents gold medal as a pair by scoring a discipline-excessive 133.49 factors within the free skate section.
Japan’s Yuna Nagaoka and Sumitada Moriguchi, who completed second behind Sui and Han within the brief program, rounded out the rostrum in third place, with a complete rating of 197.46.
Having already overcome an enormous bodily problem to get again in form for the Olympics, Sui and Han, who solely returned to intensive coaching seven months in the past from their indefinite retirement after profitable gold at Beijing 2022, are actually racing towards time to be match sufficient to mount a title protection with solely three weeks left earlier than the Olympic determine skating pairs competitors begins on the Milano Ice Skating Area on Feb 15.
Sui, who has come again robust from quite a few critical accidents throughout her profession, refuses to permit this newest health blow to mar their inspiring return.
“It was a troublesome take a look at for me,” the 30-12 months-previous, who’s received the 4 Continents title a document six instances with Han since their debut on the annual meet in 2012, stated afterward.
“I used to be just a little bit involved and hesitant earlier than the occasion about whether or not I ought to compete. But, by pulling it off, even carrying the harm, supported by our followers and our diligent medical employees, I really feel we’re OK,” Sui stated through the postfinal information convention.
“If it (the harm) has to occur, I’m glad it occurred right here, not through the Olympics. We nonetheless have time (to deal with my harm and recuperate from it), and we’re nonetheless assured for the Olympics.”
Her hip drawback, a labrum tear, stems from the decline of muscle energy in her proper knee and ankle, as a consequence of her aggressive weight management since returning to the ice, based on Sui, which, with correct remedy, might be contained sufficient for her to carry out with the required depth for the Video games.
Having received a silver medal of their Olympic debut at Pyeongchang 2018, adopted by a dream gold on house ice in Beijing, Sui and Han are returning to competitors with a renewed ardour for determine skating and have proven fairly promising kind of their try to win a 3rd Olympic medal in Italy.
They completed on the rostrum in any respect the 4 official occasions — two ISU Grand Prix collection legs, the Chinese language nationwide championships and the 4 Continents meet — since their return, proving that — if wholesome — they continue to be the go-to alternative for China on the highest worldwide degree.
“We are going to face the problem head on with a optimistic mindset, identical to we have at all times completed all through our profession,” stated 33-12 months-previous Han, who, after profitable gold in 2022, turned a PE instructor on the famend Tsinghua College.
“We might full two applications tonight with no different flaws aside from the errors brought on by harm, which truly helped construct our confidence additional, realizing that we might do higher with correct restoration (of Sui’s harm).
“Our power in inventive expression is there, our chemistry stays the very best, so we’re nonetheless fairly optimistic (for the Olympics).”
Later, in Sunday’s males’s free skate, China’s sole Olympic consultant Jin Boyang, who’s additionally embarking on a 3rd Olympic marketing campaign in Milan, delivered his personal season-greatest efficiency to earn 169.40 factors for the section and end sixth total with a complete of 258.86 factors.
Even with the insane trick problem on the high degree, underlined by Japanese skaters’ again-to-again quad jumps, too large an ask for him, Jin nonetheless takes pleasure in executing his routines to his personal excessive requirements.
“Hopefully, I can carry this good kind to the Olympics in order that I can skate with confidence,” Jin, the 2018 4 Continents males’s champion, stated after finishing his free-skate routine and not using a single error.
“To tug off the final competitors earlier than the Olympics like this actually gave me plenty of power and perception in myself.
“I hope I can depart a mark at my third Olympics, exhibit the resilience of Chinese language athletes and encourage youthful skaters to attain their very own goals,” stated the 28-12 months-previous, who completed fourth at Pyeongchang 2018 to attain the very best Olympic outcome for Chinese language males within the occasion.
China’s teen skater Zhang Ruiyang completed tenth in girls’s singles after veteran duo Wang Shiyue and Liu Xinyu settled for eighth place in ice dance on Friday.
The 11-day Milano-Cortina 2026 determine skating program kicks off on Feb 6 with the workforce self-discipline, earlier than the ladies’s singles free skate caps off this system on the Milano Ice Skating Area on Feb 19.
