What's your opinion of the Russian Nationals controversy?

[Elektra]

I also feel really bad for Kovtun. It's not his fault and he shouldn't be getting any of the blame.

Although I am a huge fan of Max, I still think Menshov should have gone instead. Menshov clearly placed higher than Maxim at RN, and also has a lot more experience at Senior internationals than Kovtun. Off the top of my head, the only Senior international I remember Kovtun doing is WTT last year, where he did not place well. And just because a skater does well in Juniors, doesn't mean they'll repeat that success in Seniors (eg. Adelina Sotnikova, Caroline Zhang).

That being said, I guess I can see the Federation's reasoning. Kovtun has had a great season so far in Juniors, he did win the JGPF, and I read in one article that they thought RN was rather soon after the GPF, which could have been the reason why Kovtun didn't skate too well (not enough time to recover...but somehow I get the feeling it was just his nerves that got to him. Having watched his practice videos, he seems to be skating fine in practice, successfully completing two different quads).

Also, regarding Gachinski, I read somewhere in another article (I would link it, but can't remember where I read it) that they didn't send him because they don't think he's reliable after his performances at his GPs. And fair enough, really - I used to love Artur, but it seems like this season has just been a downward spiral for him. There is also the issue of his health problems (I think I read something somewhere about numb legs??), which may also be a contributing factor in case his condition deteriorates.

But overall, yeah, I do think the decision is really unfair on Menshov. I guess we'll just see what happens - I hope Maxim skates to his full potential anyway.

Oh, and also, you speak of Kovtun's marks being 'inflated' - why do you think this? Having looked at the protocols, I think the scoring was fair.