Armenian figure skaters to fight for Olympic spots in Beijing

On September 17, Beijing will host the decisive qualifying tournament in figure skating — Nebelhorn Trophy 2025, where the last tickets to the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo will be awarded.

Team Armenia has entered three participants in different disciplines:

• Men’s singles – Semen Daniliants

• Pairs – Karina Akopova & Nikita Rakhmanin

• Ice dance – Kristina Dobrosedova & Alessandro Pellegrini

According to the official ISU qualification system, the following quotas will be allocated in Beijing:

• 6 Olympic spots in men’s singles,

• 6 in women’s singles,

• 4 in pairs,

• 5 in ice dance.

Thus, to secure an Olympic berth for Armenia, athletes must finish at least:

• 6th in men’s singles,

• 4th in pairs,

• 5th in ice dance.

For the Armenian team, this tournament is a historic opportunity — never before has the national team had such broad representation in Olympic qualification. For the first time, Armenia will compete in the pairs discipline. Ahead of the tournament, Karina Akopova and Nikita Rakhmanin switched their nationality from Russian to Armenian.

A successful performance in Beijing could earn Armenia several licenses for the Winter Games in Italy.

In addition, it is worth noting that Adelia Petrosyan will also compete in the qualification, representing Russia under a neutral flag.