Ukraine's team faces its first season of the World Cup in ski acrobatics without Abramenko. Here's a preview of what to expect.
The World Cup in freestyle skiing starts later than all other winter sports, specifically after its freestyle counterparts – ski cross, mogul, slopestyle, and halfpipe. This year's World Cup will take place within a single calendar year, 2025 – beginning in January and concluding in March.
One More Event
The 2024/25 season will be more eventful than the previous 2023/24 season. In the last World Cup, athletes competed in 6 events across five cities. Two of those events were held simultaneously on February 10-11 in Lac-Beauport (Quebec, Canada). This time, there will be 7 events in 6 cities. The same Lac-Beauport will host a double event on January 25-26.
In the other five cities, there will be a standard program – each will host one event. The first event in Lake Placid will feature three sets of medals. On Saturday, January 18, individual competitions for men and women will take place, followed by team competitions on Sunday, the 19th. A week later, in Lac-Beauport, there will be two sets of medals contested for both men and women. Additionally, medals in team competitions will be awarded at the 4th event held in China. At the third, fifth, and sixth events, athletes will compete in individual competitions on just one day.
For the First Time – Without the Strongest
For many years, domestic sports enthusiasts associated freestyle skiing with one name – the decorated Oleksandr Abramenko. The Olympic champion from PyeongChang 2018, silver medalist from Beijing 2022, and world champion from 2019 has long been the embodiment of freestyle skiing in our country. After all, not everyone was privy to the intricacies of this sport and its variations.
But... everything comes to an end eventually. The decorated athlete will turn 37 in May. Was it worthwhile to aim for a sixth consecutive Olympics at such a venerable age, by sports standards (he first competed in the Games back in Turin 2006)? This question was likely rhetorical for Oleksandr and his team. The last few years for the decorated athlete have been particularly challenging, with various ailments increasingly affecting him. In March 2023, he underwent knee surgery. Then, in October 2024, when preparations for the current season were already in full swing, Abramenko announced his retirement from competitive sports and transition to coaching.
So, a new year with a new team...
With a Worthy Replacement
Meanwhile, to say that the Ukrainian team has "lost" with Abramenko's departure would be an overstatement. A new "star" has already emerged in our team. Although still young at 23, he is quite experienced and, most importantly, decorated.
Dmytro Kotovskyi has already secured five World Cup medals, including two golds, as well as two golds, a silver, and a bronze from four consecutive seasons of the European Cup. In each of the seasons from 2019/2020 to 2022/2023, he won a medal at one of the events.
The most successful season for the athlete remains the post-Olympic season of 2022/23. Following Abramenko's success at the Beijing Games, Ukrainian fans caught a glimpse of the future of domestic freestyle skiing in the following season. Kotovskyi won bronze, silver, and two golds at four consecutive World Cup events. Moreover, he finished 2nd in the overall World Cup standings. At the 2023 World Championship, he earned a bronze medal in a team event with Anastasia Novosad and Oleksandr Okipnyuk.
By the way, Anastasia Novosad, who also has a personal bronze from the 2023 World Championship, gold from the 2021/22 World Cup event in Ruka (Finland), and two bronzes from the 2022/23 World Cup stage in La Relais (Canada), has also decided to retire this offseason.
Returning to Kotovskyi, it is worth noting that unfortunately, his results dropped a bit in the past 2023/24 season. He only reached the podium once at World Cup events, securing 3rd place at the very first event in Ruka (Finland). Additionally, the athlete from Rivne won the prestigious FIS Open, where he outperformed, among others, the reigning world champion, Swiss athlete Noe Ret. However... Regardless, the past season was a "step back" in Dmytro's career. Now, the new season is awaited with great anticipation.
"Our girls are young and just gaining momentum"
The head coach of the Ukrainian team, Enver Ablayev, emphasizes before the start of the new season that the team has become younger:
The coach also noted the injury of Angelika Brykina before the start of the season:
Betting on New Jumps
As for Brykina, she has transitioned to a double somersault with three twists.
Where to Watch?
The broadcast rights for the World Cup in freestyle skiing in Ukraine belong to Suspilne Sport. You can watch the freestyle skiing competitions live on the channel and on the Suspilne Sport website. The channel is available through cable television operators and also via T2.
The Ukrainian Team Roster
For the first event of the new season's World Cup, the Ukrainian team includes six male representatives and three female:
Men: Oleksandr Okipnyuk, Dmytro Kotovskyi, Volodymyr Kushnir, Maksym Kuznetsov, Yan Havryuk, and Zakhar Maksymchuk.
Women: Angelika Brykina, Diana Yablonska, Oksana Yatsyuk.