Russian girls dominate Junior Grand Prix finals

Budding Russian figure-skaters occupied all three podium places in the ladies’ competition at the Junior Grand Prix Finals in Quebec, Canada.

Julia Lipnitskaya skated to a landslide victory of on the night, claiming the gold with 17 points to spare. The 13-year-old once again impressed the judges with her consistent jumps, lovely spins and sensitivity to the romantic Romeo and Juliet soundtrack by Nino Rota. Lipnitskaya received a standing ovation from the crowd at the end of her long routine, which included seven triple jumps.“I really enjoyed skating today,” Lipnitskaya told Goldenskate.com. “I was in a very good mood when I stepped onto the ice and I felt joy. I was oozing joy while skating and I never had experienced that before.”Meanwhile, Polina Shelepen and Polina Korobeynikova completed the all-Russian podium claiming silver and bronze medals respectively.“I am so happy for the two Polinas [Shelepen and Korobeinikova] and for myself,” Lipnitskaya added. “It is just great that we Russian girls swept the podium. You always have to go for the victory, but the competition is strong and I could have missed something.” It is only the second podium sweep in the history of the Junior Ladies Final. The US team bagged all the medals back in 2006.