"Only I Have No Geum" Figure Skater Trusova Cries After Silver Medal, Controversy Over Finger Gesture Insult

Women's Figure Skating Silver Medalist Trusova
"I Will Never Challenge the Olympics Again"

Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) figure skating team member Trusova is shedding tears after securing the silver medal. /Photo by Online Community Capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] Alexandra Trusova (18, Russian Olympic Committee), who won the silver medal in the women's singles figure skating at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, broke down in tears after securing her medal. She also caused controversy by showing a 'middle finger gesture' during the medal ceremony.

Trusova scored a total of 251.73 points in the women's singles free skating held on the 17th at the Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing, China, finishing second behind Anna Shcherbakova (255.95 points), who took first place.

After confirming her final ranking, Trusova pushed away coach Eteri Tutberidze and cried, saying, "I will never challenge the Olympics again."

She then shouted while crying, "Everyone except me has a gold medal. I hate skating. I really hate it. I hate this sport. I will never skate again. Absolutely not. It's impossible now. So I can't do it." Her actions were broadcast live worldwide.

Trusova is holding Bing Dwen Dwen during the flower ceremony of the women's singles figure skating event at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics held on the 17th. The shape of the fingers holding Bing Dwen Dwen is causing misunderstandings. / Photo by AFPBBNews capture

Later, at a makeshift award ceremony, Trusova caused further controversy by holding a Bing Dwen Dwen doll and showing her middle finger. Netizens speculated that she made an obscene gesture, but it has not been confirmed yet.

At the subsequent official press conference, Trusova said, "I have not won a major competition in three years. I always worked hard toward my goals. I always added more quads (quadruple jumps)." She added, "I thought I would win then. But that never happened. So I got angry."

Trusova is famous as the only female skater in the world to have officially landed all four types of quadruple jumps (Lutz, Flip, Salchow, Toeloop). However, she has not won a gold medal on the world stage since the Junior World Championships. She won bronze at the World Championships held in Stockholm last year and also earned bronze medals at the European Championships in 2020 and 2022.

When asked why she cried, she replied, "I just wanted to. So I cried." She added, "I spent three weeks without my mom or my dog. So I cried."

Meanwhile, Kamila Valieva, another ROC athlete involved in a 'doping controversy,' placed fourth with a total score of 224.09 points. She fell three times during the competition that day.

After the event, former Russian figure skater and the subject of a 'judging controversy' at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, Adelina Sotnikova, encouraged Valieva, calling her "a hero of our time" and saying, "Go out and fight until the end. The whole country is with you."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.