Trusova wins Denis Ten Memorial in Almaty; Russians sweep junior podium
In short
Russian figure skater Alexandra Ignatova (Trusova) won the women's singles at the Denis Ten Memorial, a Challenger series tournament in Almaty, with 226.01 points, RIA Novosti and Kommersant reported. Kim Yu-jae of South Korea was second with 209.20 and Sofia Samodelkina, representing Kazakhstan, third with 204.36. Earlier, Russian skaters took all three places on the junior women's podium, with Alisa Zaikina winning, TASS and Interfax reported.
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Russian figure skater Alexandra Ignatova (Trusova) took first place in the women's singles at the Denis Ten Memorial, a Challenger series tournament in Almaty, RIA Novosti reported. She scored 226.01 points over two skates. Kim Yu-jae (Ким Ю Чжэ) of South Korea was second with 209.20, and Sofia Samodelkina (Софья Самоделкина), a Moscow native representing Kazakhstan, was third with 204.36. [ 3 , 6 ]
Kommersant reported that Ignatova scored 77.39 in the short program and 148.62 in the free skate, and that she landed a quad lutz, a triple loop and a triple salchow. Kim's scores were 75.99 and 133.21, and Samodelkina's 69.45 and 134.91, the paper said. Russians Maria Zakharova (Мария Захарова) finished fifth with 187.77 and Dina Khusnutdinova (Дина Хуснутдинова) seventh with 185.70. [ 3 , 6 ]
Ignatova said she would celebrate the win with chips, Kommersant reported. "I bought chips. Burger-flavoured, I think. I eat chips roughly before every weekend, so it's not exactly a celebration," she said. [ 6 ]
RBC's headline described the result as Trusova's first international tournament win in five years; no other outlet made that claim. RIA Novosti described her as a silver medalist at the 2022 Olympic Games and noted that the International Skating Union admitted Russian representatives to international tournaments in neutral status in June 2026. The Denis Ten Memorial runs in Almaty from 8 to 10 October, RIA Novosti said. [ 3 , 4 ]
Earlier the same day, TASS and Interfax reported that Russian skaters took all three places on the podium in the junior women's singles at the tournament, with Alisa Zaikina (Алиса Заикина) winning. [ 1 , 2 ]
Why it matters
RIA Novosti noted that the International Skating Union admitted Russian skaters to international tournaments in neutral status in June 2026, and RBC described this as Trusova's first international tournament win in five years. The result was covered by all major Russian wires, with a Russian winner in the senior event and a Russian sweep of the junior podium.
Key facts
- Alexandra Ignatova (Trusova) won the women's singles at the Denis Ten Memorial in Almaty with 226.01 points. [ 3 , 5 , 6 ]
- Kim Yu-jae of South Korea was second with 209.20 points and Sofia Samodelkina, representing Kazakhstan, was third with 204.36. [ 3 , 6 ]
- Russians Maria Zakharova (187.77) finished fifth and Dina Khusnutdinova (185.70) seventh. [ 3 , 6 ]
- Ignatova scored 77.39 in the short program and 148.62 in the free skate, landing a quad lutz, a triple loop and a triple salchow, Kommersant reported. [ 6 ]
- The Denis Ten Memorial, a Challenger series tournament, runs in Almaty from 8 to 10 October. [ 3 ]
- Russian skaters took the whole podium in the junior women's event, with Alisa Zaikina winning. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The ISU admitted Russian representatives to international tournaments in neutral status in June 2026, RIA Novosti said. [ 3 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Alexandra Ignatova (Trusova) won the women's singles at the Denis Ten Memorial in Almaty. [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Ignatova scored 226.01 points; Kim Yu-jae was second with 209.20 and Sofia Samodelkina third with 204.36. [ 3 , 6 ]
- Russian skaters took all three podium places in the junior women's event, won by Alisa Zaikina. [ 1 , 2 ]
Still unclear
- Whether this was Trusova's first international tournament win in five years. Only RBC's headline makes this claim; the other outlets do not address it.
- Who finished second and third in the junior women's event. TASS and Interfax say Russian skaters took the whole junior podium and Zaikina won, but do not name the other medalists.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- TASS reports Russian skaters took the whole podium at the junior Denis Ten Memorial, with Alisa Zaikina winning. [ 1 ]
- Interfax reports Zaikina won the junior women's singles in Kazakhstan. [ 2 ]
- RIA Novosti reports Alexandra Ignatova (Trusova) won the women's singles with 226.01 points. [ 3 ]
- Kommersant publishes the score breakdown and Ignatova's comment. [ 6 ]