Skating Star Medvedeva Leads Russian Sweep Of Europeans

Evgenia Medvedeva of Russia performs during the gala exhibition of the ISU Grand Prix Figure skating in Barcelona on December 13.

Skating star Yevgenia Medvedeva has led a Russian sweep of the European women's figure skating championships.

It was Russia's second consecutive podium sweep in the yearly competition, hinting at a return to Russia's glory days when it swept the event for four consecutive years between 1999 and 2002.

The 16-year-old Medvedeva took the gold medal at her first appearance in the championships, while teammates Yelena Radionova, 17, and Anna Pogorilaya, 17, won the silver and bronze medals, respectively, at the finals in Bratislava.

Medvedeva led throughout the competition, scoring an overall 215.45 points, compared with Radionova's 209.99 points and Pogorilaya's 187.05 points.

The Moscow schoolgirl took the senior figure skating circuit by storm this season after winning the world junior title last year.

She won the prestigious ISU Grand Prix Final in December, where she achieved the third best overall score in history of 224.54 points.

She then went on to win the Russian national title ahead of Olympic champion Adelina Sotnikova and reigning world and European champion Elizaveta Tuktamysheva.

Based on reporting by AFP and AP