Safonova competes in short program at 2026 Milan Winter Games

Belarusian figure skater Viktoriia Safonova finished 26th in the short program, concluding her campaign at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan.



The figure skater received 54.57 points from the judges for her routine. Japan’s Ami Nakai leads after the short program with a score of 78.71.

Russian skater Adeliia Petrosian is in fifth place (72.89 points). The top 24 skaters will compete in the free program on 19 February.

Immediately after her performance, even before the final results were announced, head coach Oleg Vasiliev commented on Viktoriia Safonova’s skate:

“Not everything went according to plan. Viktoriia did a 3-2 combination instead of the planned 3-3. The reason was nerves, a lack of proper experience at international competitions. But all these explanations, of course, don’t mean anything. Vika was ready; she was skating well in practice. But apparently, she couldn’t handle the internal pressure and made a small mistake that cost us about five points. Today, despite her experience and excellent preparation, both technical and physical, Vika was not in her element, because this is, essentially, the real deal, the true Olympics.”



Viktoriia also answered questions from journalists after her performance:

“The lack of many competitions before the Games doesn’t affect me much. I know what I’m preparing for and what my goal is. I competed at the Belarusian Figure Skating Championships at the end of January and tested my programs in a home environment, overall, that was enough for me.”

The figure skater spoke about her programs:

“At the beginning of the season, we changed both the short program and the free program. One jump was being valued lower, so we made some changes.”

Safonova responded to a question about whether it bothered her to be the first to take the ice in Milan:

“I often skate first at the Russian Grand Prix stages, so it didn’t bother me here in Milan.”



Safonova performed her short program to the composition Besame Mucho:

“I really liked the song, so I went to my coach, and we decided to perform to this music.”

Safonova also noted that the preparation conditions before the Olympics in Milan were good.

Press service of the NOC of Belarus
Photos by the NOC of Belarus