Under the circumstances, figure skating worlds – and future – hard to assess

Even in normal times, it always has been hard to draw a lot of conclusions from the World Figure Skating Championships that immediately follow the Olympics.

The rigors of an Olympic season lead many medalists to take a pass on worlds. Those who do compete often are obviously fatigued.

It is exponentially harder to assess the competition that ended Saturday in Montpellier, France.

No world meet has taken place in more abnormal circumstances.

These championships came as the world entered the third year of a deadly viral pandemic that compelled Beijing 2022 Olympic organizers to bar foreign spectators and allow few Chinese. That meant a sport as much entertainment as competition played to nearly empty houses on its biggest stage, the Winter Games.

They came in a season when the pandemic forced either cancellation (Grand Prix Finals) or relocation/rescheduling of events (Cup of China, Four Continents Championships, World Junior Championships). Two seasons after Covid led to the cancellation of the 2020 worlds. A season after Covid made all skating competition domestic.

They came less than a month after Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. That made pariahs of Russian athletes, who have been barred from nearly all international competitions. That sanction included the figure skating World Championships, where Russia likely would have collected several medals.

FIGURE SKATING WORLDS RECAP: Women  | Men |  Pairs  |  Ice Dance

In the pairs’ competition, the significant absentees were not only the Russians but also the Chinese. China could have sent three pairs, including reigning Olympic champions Sui Wenjing and Han Cong, who were injured, according to Chinese media reports. Why no Chinese pairs came remains unclear.

Meanwhi