Olympics 2022 -- Other Than Kamila Valieva, Who Are The Women To ...

• Elaine TengFeb 14, 2022, 08:32 PMClose
  Elaine Teng is a writer and editor at ESPN.
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Kamila Valieva has dominated the headlines at these Olympics so far, first for her historic performance in the team event, then for testing positive for a banned substance. On Monday, the 15-year-old was cleared to compete in the women's singles competition -- a day before the women's short program, which begins Tuesday at 5 a.m. ET.

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Valieva is heavily favored to win gold, but there is a field of hungry competitors hoping for the Russian Olympic Committee skater to slip up after a dramatic, difficult week. It remains to be seen how she will deal with the added scrutiny and pressure. The International Olympic Committee announced it would not be awarding medals to Valieva -- or her competitors -- if she finishes in the top three until her case can be entirely resolved.

Here are the women to watch in the battle for (delayed) hardware.

Anna Shcherbakova

Anna Shcherbakova, 17, was the skater to beat before Valieva, her younger training partner, moved up to seniors. A three-time Russian champion and the reigning world champion, she does the fewest quad jumps of the three Russians, but her artistry and skating are second to none. (And a reminder, the Russians are the only women doing quads.)

Alexandra Trusova

If you love figure skating for the big jumps, Trusova is your girl. The 17-year-old began Russia's quad revolution when she started doing them at the junior level. She and Shcherbakova have been sharing podiums for years. Trusova beat her teammate to take silver at the Russian Championships in December, while Shcherbakova bested her at European Championships a month later. It will be fascinating to watch these two battle it out.

Alysa Liu

Of the three American women, Alysa Liu has the best chance to medal. The two-time U.S. champion no longer does the quad jumps she competed earlier in her career, but she still has the triple axel in her arsenal, which would give her the points to contend with the top skaters. The 16-year-old tested positive for COVID-19 during the U.S. Championships and withdrew after the short program. But she still made the Olympic team based on her overall performance. She did not compete in the team event, where Team USA won silver.

Kaori Sakamoto

Kaori Sakamoto was flawless in the team event women's free skate to come in second behind Valieva and help Japan win the bronze medal. The 21-year-old Japanese national champion does not do quads or the triple axel, but if she skates cleanly, she could be in the mix. She has the added advantage -- or pressure! -- of skating last in the short program.

Loena Hendrickx

Belgium's lone figure skater at these Olympics has enjoyed a historic season. In November, she won bronze at the Grand Prix of Italy, becoming the first Belgian woman to medal on figure skating's elite competition circuit. (She finished the short program in first, two places ahead of Shcherbakova, on her 22nd birthday.) At European Championships in January, she placed fourth behind the three Russian women. She hopes that form can carry her onto the Olympic podium.

You Young

You Young is South Korea's greatest skating hope since Kim Yuna, who mesmerized a 5-year-old You back in 2010 when she won Olympic gold. You broke Kim's record to become the youngest skater to win the Korean national championships in 2016, when she was just 11. (Kim had been 12 when she won.) But she wasn't old enough to compete in Pyeongchang. Now 17, she has struggled with her triple axel this season but looks to follow in her idol's footsteps.