Skate Canada

Plushenko wins Gold!

November 1, 2003

Evgeni Plushenko began the 2003-2004 skating season the same way he ended last season – with a win.

Evgeni won his ninth straight competition by capturing his first Grand Prix event of the season at Skate at Mississauga, Ontario.

The defending World Champion and Grand Prix Champion totaled 233.65 points to Canada’s Jeff Buttle’s 209.63 points to win by 24 points. Evgeni won the short and free skate.

While Evgeni may have appeared to dominate the event, it wasn’t as easy as he made it look. Evgeni has a torn meniscus in his knee that is hampering him and he has been nursing a cold he got before coming to the competition.

"My skating was not bad, it was not good, it was just OK," Evgeni said.

Evgeni, who turns 21 years old on November 3, did not perform his signature quad-triple-double jump although he did land his quad in the beginning of his free skate. He later left out his second quad. "I discussed it with my coach," Evgeni said. "We decided one quad was going to be enough."

Plushenko leads after short program

October 30, 2003

World Champion and defending Grand Prix Final Champion Evegni Plushenko is in first place with a four-point lead after the short program at Skate Canada in Mississauga, Ontario.

It is Plushenko’s first Grand Prix competition of the season. He leads Takeshi Honda 81.25-77.54 in the new judging system the ISU is using for Grand Prix events.

Plushenko has won his last eight competitions he has entered. However he is struggling with a cold with flu-like symptoms that has kept him off the ice four days entering the competition.

Earlier this summer Plushenko was nursing a torn meniscus in his knee and had to take some time off for it to heal. "I don’t know what’s going on this summer," Plushenko said after winning the short program.

Plushenko skated an almost flawless program to Flamenco music. He doubled a planned triple axel but the rest of the program went smoothly to earn him the highest marks.

The men’s free skate is scheduled for Saturday when Plushenko will be trying to win his ninth straight competition.