Sofia Golichenko and Artem Darenksy made the favorites of the World Championship quite nervous
The Ukrainian duo Sofia Golichenko and Artem Darenksy successfully passed the qualifying barrier at the World Figure Skating Championships. Despite the high competition, the pair will compete in the decisive stage of the tournament.
RBC-Ukraine reports this, citing the results of the competition.
Read also: Figure skater Marsak amazed the world at the 2026 Olympics: new record and immediate entry into the free program
Ukrainians’ success in the short program
The competitions of the sports pairs in the short program have concluded at the 2026 World Championship ice arena.
The Ukrainian tandem of Sofia Golichenko and Artem Darenksy demonstrated a confident performance, allowing them to enter the ranks of the top 20 duos in the world.
For their performance, the skaters received a score of 58.85 points from the judges. It is important to note that the technical component of their program was rated at 33.30 points.
This result allowed the Ukrainians to secure 17th place overall among the 21 participating pairs, guaranteeing them the right to represent the country in the free program.
The gap from the leaders of the competition, the German duo of Minerva Gaze and Nikita Volodin, is currently less than three points.
Stability at the world level
For Golichenko and Darenksy, this is already their third consecutive successful entry into the final stage of the World Championship.
At the previous two World Championships, the pair also passed the qualifying round and ultimately finished the competitions in 17th place.
Their current entry into the free program confirms the consistently high level of preparation of the Ukrainian athletes.
When and where to watch the final
The performance of the sports pairs in the free program will take place on Thursday, March 26. The start is scheduled for 19:15 Kyiv time.
The live broadcast of the competitions will be available on the “Suspilne Sport” platforms and on local “Suspilne” TV channels.
Schedule of further performances at the 2026 World Championship:
- March 26, 12:30 – Men (short program);
- March 26, 19:15 – Sports pairs (free program);
- March 27, 12:30 – Ice dance (rhythmic dance);
- March 27, 19:00 – Women (free program);
- March 28, 13:30 – Men (free program);
- March 28, 19:30 – Ice dance (free dance);
- March 29, 15:30 – Exhibition performances (Gala show).
Earlier, we reported on the transition of European gymnastics champion Radomir Stelmakh to the German national team.
