More texts about European Championships 2010
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http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory?id=9613461By Sonia Oxley January 20, 2010You Ain't Seen Nothing yet, Says PlushenkoTALLINN (Reuters) - The record score, perfect jumps and the unmistakable long blonde hair meant one thing on Wednesday -- Yevgeny Plushenko was back in business and this was just the start.
"I can skate better, believe me, I can skate better," he told reporters after scoring a record 91.30 points in his short program at the European figure skating championships on his return to major competition after a nearly four-year break.
The Russian has come back to the sport to defend his Olympic title, aiming to become the first male skater in more than half a century to achieve the feat at February's Vancouver Games.
American Richard Button was the last man to do so, triumphing at the 1948 and 1952 Games.
When Plushenko's nearest rival Brian Joubert dared to say he thought the Russian was beatable ahead of Thursday's free skate, the three-times world champion had two words for him: "Try it!"
The Frenchman, defending his title in Tallinn, said he had been impressed by Plushenko but had not crumbled the way he did after watching him at the last Olympics.
"I watched his program in my hotel room on TV. It was actually the same situation as in 2006 -- he skated early and I watched in my room but I got very nervous then and now I coped with my nerves," Joubert told a news conference.
"When I saw the score I thought it's going to be difficult to beat him but it was possible."
Plushenko had also been watching his rivals, giving Joubert and third-placed Yannick Ponsero a nod and a "Good job, good job" at the news conference.
The Russian has spent much of his time since the Turin Games in exhibition shows and even made a cameo skating appearance at the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest but does not seem to have lost any of his competitiveness.
He was one of the few skaters to manage the high-scoring quadruple toeloop-triple toeloop combination on Wednesday, and also nailed his triple axel and triple lutz. He said he wobbled on a combination spin but judges made no deductions.
"I'm so happy with my performance today but of course I'm not going to fly to the moon because tomorrow is going to be a big fight," said Plushenko, who ended his routine by blowing a kiss.
"The important competition is going to be in February."
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http://www.examiner.com/x-20118-Figure- ... cord-shortJanuary 20, Figure Skating Examiner, Jackie WongPlushenko starts Europeans off with world record shortChasing his sixth career European Championship title, Olympic champion Evgeni Plushenko was near perfect in his short program to lead the field of 37 men in Tallinn, Estonia. With such a large field, the short program also served as a qualifying round, with the top 20 men in the standings qualifying to skate in the free skate tomorrow.
In his much anticipated return to competition this season, Plushenko has not competed off Russian soil until today. He showed no rust, skating his best short program of the season so far and breaking his own world record score in the process. With his trademark quad toe-triple toe combination, he racked up a score of 91.30, almost a point higher than the world record that he set at the 2006 Olympics....
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http://www.examiner.com/x-20118-Figure- ... 006-podiumJanuary 21, Figure Skating Examiner, Jackie WongPlushenko wins Euros in repeat of 2006 podiumEvgeni Plushenko captures his sixth title at the European Championships. Photo: AP/Ivan SekretarevThere was a little déjà vu in the men’s event at the 2010 European Figure Skating Championships today when the three men atop the final standings, led by reigning Olympic champion Evgeni Plushenko, were the same three men who stood on the podium four years ago at the same competition.
After a world record short program, Plushenko followed it up today with an equally impressive free skate that featured a quad toe and six clean triples. His only visible mistake was a doubled triple lutz. With a free skate score of 164.09, he won the competition by over 16 points, which bodes well for his chances at a repeat gold in Vancouver. Incidentally, the last time Plushenko competed at Europeans was in 2006, right before his triumph in Torino.
Reigning Olympic silver medalist Stephane Lambiel made his intentions for another Olympic medal known with a solid free skate that pulled him up from fifth to second with a total score of 238.54. Skating a brand new free skate, he brought his quads and his trademark spins to dazzle the audience. He is still missing his triple axel, which will mean that the three quads in his two programs will be crucial for his medal chances next month.
Second after the short, 2007 World champion Brian Joubert had a few errors in his free skate and dropped to the bronze medal position. Nevertheless, his performances this week in Tallinn bode well for his recovery from surgery last month after a freak practice accident. He finished just over two points behind Lambiel....
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http://www.examiner.com/x-20118-Figure- ... mpionshipsFebruary 7, Figure Skating Examiner, Jackie WongOpining on the European ChampionshipsA few thoughts on the European Championships last month as we move toward the Olympics this coming week.
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The European men's podium could very well be the Olympic podium. The three medalists at Europeans, Evgeni Plushenko, Stephane Lambiel, and Brian Joubert, could very well be at the top again in Vancouver. But interestingly enough, the men's field will be so deep at the Olympics that it is even possible that none of them end up on the podium. It will likely take two clean performances to just win a medal for the men.