Figure skating: Savchenko is still going on

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Aljona Savchenko at the 2018 World Cup

Photo: Joosep Martinson / International Skating Union via Getty Images

Olympic pair skating champion Aljona Savchenko wants to continue her sporting career in the USA after the declared end of her career.

She told the German Ice Skating Union about this, it said in a DEU statement.

The new partner of the 37-year-olds, who won gold with Bruno Massot at the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang with their “free-of-the-century”, is US pair skater TJ Nyman, who finished fifth in the 2018 World Championships in the Juniors.

The new duo are already training in Monument, a small performance center near Colorado Springs.

“I am very excited about this next phase of my career,” said Savchenko, according to the announcement: “With conviction, passion and commitment I believe that it is possible to set and achieve goals in every phase of our life and career. «

Olympic start remains excluded

The six-time world champion had long been hoping for a comeback with Massot, but the French-born decided to pursue a future career as a trainer for family and health reasons.

In the past two years, Savchenko had looked in vain for a strong German partner.

Therefore, she has now left her long-term training location in Oberstdorf and will continue her sporting path in the USA, it said.

A joint start at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing with 21-year-old Nyman is not possible due to the different nationalities.

However, the couple could qualify for the world title bouts via the US championships in late March 2022 in Montpellier, France.

sak / sid / dpa