Eteri Tutberidze: “This is mentally challenging, but Petrosian must restore ultra-C elements to be able to contend at the Olympics, where the competition will be significantly tougher.”
Eteri Tutberidze Discusses Adeliia Petrosian’s Qualification and Path to the Olympics
original source: OKKO / Championat
Eteri Tutberidze shared her insights on the challenges and plans for the Olympic season. Here’s a translation of her comments.
Adeliia Petrosian, an 18-year-old Russian figure skater, secured victory at the Skate to Milano qualification tournament in Beijing, earning 209.63 points across two programs. She outperformed two European champions – Loena Hendrickx of Belgium and Anastasiia Gubanova of Georgia – to reserve her spot for the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics in February 2026.
Reflecting on Petrosian’s performance, Tutberidze stated:
“I told myself it would be foolish to be nervous here, in Beijing, because if she qualifies for the Olympics, that will be the time to experience nerves. If you’re nervous at this stage, then there’s no point being on the main stage of the Games.”
Tutberidze outlined her vision for Petrosian’s preparation this season, highlighting the challenges that come with competing at the Olympic level:
“The primary goal is to stay healthy, as health is crucial. When nerves are stretched thin, injuries can happen in the most unexpected ways. Even minor injuries can escalate; they must be avoided at all costs. I hope she reaches the Olympics healthy.
Additionally, she needs to restore her jumps and increase the difficulty of her elements. Competing with ultra-C elements brings higher risk – it’s more challenging and comes with the potential to lose points. However, it offers a slight margin for small mistakes, unlike simpler program content, where every execution must be perfect.
It would be great to perform without errors, but I believe she needs to reintegrate difficult elements to compete effectively. This is mentally challenging, but she must restore ultra-C elements to be able to contend at the Olympics, where the competition will be significantly tougher. Gubanova and Hendrickx are very strong competitors, but to emerge from the first warm-up group at the Games, Petrosian will need something extraordinary.”
Related topics: Adeliia Petrosian, Eteri Tutberidze
This girl is so talented but man, the pressure she is under. Reminds me of Yuna Kim but for different reasons. Adeliia is expected to single-handedly restore the pride of her pariah nation. I hope she is tough enough to cope with the pressure.
Russia should appoint either Zagitova or Shcherbakova to be her entourage and roommate. In case ISU and IOC ban the coaches again.