Kathmandu— Russian junior figure skaters secured gold medals in all four disciplines at the ISU Junior Grand Prix competition held in Xi’an, China, marking their return to international competition after a four-year ban stemming from the Ukraine conflict. The event concluded on Saturday with Russian athletes participating as Individual Neutral Athletes (AINs), demonstrating dominance across pairs, men's singles, women's singles, and ice dance.

Russian Pairs Triumph

Polina Shesheleva and Egor Karnaukhov claimed the pairs title, achieving first place in both the short program and free skate with a combined score of 191.84 points. They finished ahead of China’s Chen Yuxuan and Dong Yinbo, who secured silver with 157.52 points.

Dominance Across Disciplines

Lev Lazarev topped the men's competition with a total score of 250.21 points after also finishing first in both segments of the event. New Zealand’s Li Yanhao earned silver with 230.89, while Japan’s Daiya Ebihara took bronze with 219.76. Sofia Dzepka secured gold in the women's competition with a score of 213.28 points, and Maria Fefelova and Artyom Valov completed the Russian sweep by winning the ice dance event with 162.16 points.

Return to Competition After Suspension

Russian figure skaters were excluded from most international events in 2022 following the International Skating Union’s (ISU) suspension of athletes from Russia and Belarus in March of that year, a response to the Ukraine conflict. The ISU approved their return as neutral athletes for the 2026–27 season on June 30, after their participation at the Milano Cortina Winter Games.

Broader Reinstatement of Russian Athletes

The recent success in figure skating follows a trend of international federations restoring Russian participation in other sports. In April, Russia’s women's water polo team became the first national squad in four years to compete at a major team event under their flag and anthem after World Aquatics lifted its restrictions. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) also provisionally reinstated the Russian Olympic Committee in July, a move welcomed by Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, who stated that “common sense has prevailed.” Russian officials have consistently criticized what they describe as the “politicization” of sports.

The results signal a full return to international competition for Russian figure skaters and are part of a broader trend of reinstatement across various sports following initial suspensions.

(With inputs from RT)

Originally published on abcnews.com.np.