MOSCOW (AP) The coach of Adelina Sotnikova says the Olympic figure skating champion will not defend her title at next year’s Winter Games in Pyeongchang because of injury.
Evgeni Plushenko, himself a two-time Olympic gold medalist, says Sotnikova “will not compete this season because of injury.” Plushenko made the comments to Russian agency R-Sport, adding Sotnikova “can’t manage full training sessions and it’s not right to go to competitions in this state.”
Plushenko didn’t specify what injury was troubling Sotnikova, though the Russian has been struggling with ankle problems.
Sotnikova was a surprise gold medalist in 2014, beating South Korea’s Yuna Kim amid intense debate over the judging.