Pair skaters Karina Akopova & Nikita Rakhmanin of Armenia did the almost impossible: After not competing for two and a half years, they secured an Olympic spot and became the first Armenian pair skaters to qualify for the Olympic Winter Games since 2002. Their journey was long and though but they had each other and they never gave up.

Akopova and Rakhmanin teamed up in February 2020, after their previous partnerships had dissolved. The skaters were already dating at the time. “At that moment we had the idea to skate together,” Akopova recalled. “Our coaches supported the idea and so we became a pair on the ice.”

Karina Akopova & Nikita Rakhmanin (ARM) had to overcome many obstacles Photo: ©ISU 

Akopova & Rakhmanin were a promising team right away. In fall 2021, they won their first international competitions in Hungary and Kazakhstan and then the Challenge Cup 2022 in The Netherlands. 

"The pain became worse every day"

However, Akopova was dealing with an injury. “At the beginning of the season 2021/22, I had a fracture of the lesser vertebra, which bothered me sometimes, but over time the pain went away,” she said. “At the end of the season, my back started to bother me, so I was given a few weeks to rest, and then the new season began. But the pain became worse with every day.”

Different doctors were unable establish a diagnosis. Eventually, Akopova was suffering from panic attacks because of the unbearable pain and they had to withdraw from competitions. Finally, after nine months, a doctor was able to help. “I had an inflammation of the piriformis muscle, which was pressing on the sciatic nerve and causing pain,” Akopoa explained. “The function of the nerve was also affected, and my right leg simply refused to work. On top of everything else, I was having the panic attacks.”

Even after Akopova had healed physically, her ordeal was not over yet. 

“The path was indeed long and difficult,” she shared. “Even trying a single jump, I got (panic) attacks. Step by step, I tried to do more, double and triple elements. I think I was only fully recovered in Beijing (at the Olympic qualifier). The psychological recovery was the hardest part.”

The miracle happened

The Russian-born skaters had decided to represent Armenia during the 2022-23 season when they were unable to compete at their previous level because of the injury. Akopova's family is from Armenia and with the help of her mother and their manager, the skaters were able to reach out to the Armenian Federation that welcomed them. “Eventually, we spent two years in quarantine (because of the change of Federation),” Akopova said. “It was hard, especially in the last six months. Our teammates (from the practice group) competed, while we seemed to have stopped developing and were waiting for a miracle. Fortunately, it happened.”

Akopova & Rakhmanin’s first international competition after three and a half years was the John Nicks Pairs Challenge in the USA where they placed fifth. They were happy to have some competition experience under their belts following their long break. Then they came to the ISU Skate to Milan Qualifying competition in Beijing. There were 11 pairs but only three spots available. Akopova & Rakhmanin performed two strong programs to earn the silver medal and the quota place. 

Karina Akopova & Nikita Rakhmanin (ARM) feel it was a miracle that they qualified an Olympic quota place Photo: ©ISU  

“To be honest, we still don’t realize it (being able to get to the Olympic Games). Not enough time has passed,” Akopova noted.

“We couldn’t believe that we’ve done it,” Rakhaminov said. “For three seasons, we hadn't shown any results, and at times we felt discouraged, but we didn't give up. And then, a miracle happened.”

“I think I’ll only realize it when I get into the Olympic village,” Akopova added.

A first step for Armenian figure skating

For their Short Program, they picked Armenian music with “Artsakh”. “This is our first season under our new flag and it is an Olympic one, so this music came to mind,” Akopova shared. They kept their previous Indian inspired Free Skating to “Slumdog Millionaire” as they felt they had not yet shown the full potential of this program yet. 

Karina Akopova & Nikita Rakhmanin (ARM) perform to "Slumdog Millionaire" in the Free Skating Photo: ©ISU 

The couple competed at the Armenian Championships in December and won their first National title. Now they are getting ready for the ISU European Figure Skating Championships in Sheffield, their last competition before the Olympic Winter Games.

“We are preparing full speed,” Rakhmanin commented. “Karina changed her skates in December and now we are preparing for the European Championships. For now, we are not yet thinking about the Olympic Games, first we have to skate at Europeans.

“We are the only ones from our national team that were able to get an Olympic quota place,” he continued. “We did a first step for Armenia. Now we want to promote our sport and we think that we’ll have a full team at the next Olympics.”