The Russian figure skating icon underwent back surgery in January 2013. And in December, he failed to win his national championship, beaten by a fast-rising 18-year-old.
But Plushenko, 31, was so determined to finish his career at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, on his beloved Russian soil and in front of an adoring Russian audience, that he staged a private performance for the selection committee, which voted to award him the country’s lone men’s figure skating entry.
The Sochi Winter Games would be, Plushenko later proclaimed, the “curtain-ender” of his career. And with a new figure skating discipline added to the mix, Sochi would represent a chance to add two more medals to his already glittering cache, which consisted of the 2006 Olympic gold medal and silvers from 2002 and 2010.
But champions’ careers rarely end so poetically. And Thursday at Sochi’s Iceberg Skating Palace, the curtain came down on Plushenko’s in a harsh, sad manner, with the four-time Olympian bent over and clutching his back on the ice, coming to grips with the fact his competitive life was over.
When the announcer called his name, instead of skating to center ice for his music cue, Plushenko skated to the side of the rink and conferred with his longtime coach, Alexei Mishin. He then skated to the judges’ table, shook hands with the referee and turned to raise both arms in acknowledgement of the audience that had fallen silent.
As he skated off, the announcer explained he had withdrawn for medical reasons.
“I am sorry for my fans and for everybody, but I tried ’til the end,” Plushenko said afterward, explaining he had reinjured his back in training the day before. “I almost cried. It’s hard, believe me. This is not how I wanted to end my career. I am very disappointed. But I tried to do my best.”
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