Alina Zagitova: 5 things you should know about her, the new Olympics Champion

Just 15: this incredible new superstar in figure skating is the second youngest Olympics Champion.

After defeating Evgenia Medvedeva, the two times of world champions and her senior under the same coach, Alina Zagitova's popularity has grown rapidly. 

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She fifty thousand followers on Instagram before the Winter Olympics and now the number is over two hundred thousand.

Besides her excellent skating performance, here are five things you should know about her, the Russian new superstar in figure skating.

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Why is she called Alina:

Zagitova's parents decided to call her Alina when she was still 1-year-old after watching the performance of Alina Kabaeva, the Russian former gymnast Olympics Champions. Until now, Zagitova also regards the gymnast as an idol. "I know how strong her personality is, and I like her performance very much," she said.

Alina Kabaeva(online photo)

Born in a skating family:

Zagitova began to skate when she was 6 years old and her father Ilnaz Zagitov is an ice hockey coach, who once competed for Russia. Alina's sister Sabina is also a fancy skater.  The whole family has a deep fate with the winter sports.

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The loneliness of figure skating:

In pursuit of her "skating dream", Alina has moved to Mosco, 800 miles from her home and received training there since she was 13. 

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Being separated from her family for two years, Alina admits, "In the first month, it was really hard for me to accept that I can't meet my family and I felt that my soul is destroyed. But then we chat through Skype, and my mood began to recover. "She also said that she didn't have many friends around her at that time, and everyone she saw on the ice rink is rival.

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Under the same coaching with Medvedeva:

Alina Zagitova and Evgenia Medvedeva respectively win gold and silver medal in Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. They are both the students of the famous skating coach Eteri Turberidze, the winner of 2014 Winter Olympic gold medal.

photo from Alina Zagitova instagram

The first season for her to participate in high-level games:

15-year-old Alina has been playing in the junior group before "stepping into" the senior group last summer vacation. After winning the gold medal in the European Championships held in Jan, she became an Olympic representative. This new Olympics Champion is young and promising.

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photo from Alina Zagitova instagram

CHICAGO (AP) — Matt Shaw was watching TV with his wife when she got a notification on her phone: Alex Bregman had agreed to a contract with the Chicago Cubs.

Shaw was Chicago's regular third baseman during his rookie season, so he wondered what the move meant for him.

“You're kind of looking at it like ‘Oh man, where am I going to play?’ And you get a little anxious about those things,” Shaw said Friday at the team's annual fan convention. "The team knows me good enough at this point to know I just want to be prepared when the season comes around.

“So of course I immediately have questions like ‘Am I going to go here? Am I going to go there?’”

The answer to many of those questions was yes.

Shaw is preparing for a super-utility role after Chicago finalized a $175 million, five-year contract with Bregman on Wednesday. In addition to backing up Bregman at third and Nico Hoerner at second, Shaw also is expected to play in the outfield.

There is always the possibility of a trade with Hoerner, who is going into the last year of a $35 million, three-year contract, or Shaw, a first-round pick in the 2023 amateur draft who turned 24 in November. But the Cubs sound as if they are inclined to hold on to their infield depth as an insurance policy for injuries.

“I don’t think we have enough guys yet,” manager Craig Counsell said with a chuckle. “If you think there’s too many, I don’t know what you’re looking at.”

Counsell said the team was “fortunate” last year in terms of injuries.

“We’re now protecting a lot against what can happen, but I think that’s an important part of building a roster and building a team,” he said.

Hoerner, 28, was a key performer last season as Chicago won 92 games and reached the playoffs for the first time since 2020. He batted .297 with seven homers, 61 RBIs and 29 steals in a career-best 156 games. He also won his second Gold Glove.

Amid increased trade speculation in the wake of Bregman's deal, Hoerner said he loves the Cubs and attributed the rumors to his contract situation and playing in a big market.

“I think, above all, just remembering that it’s not a personal thing and that the team’s job is to always make the best possible roster that they have the ability to do for this year and for years to come,” he said. “And you look at the things that we’ve done this offseason, I think it’s pretty evident that’s their goal. And we’re in a really strong place.”

Dansby Swanson, Hoerner's double-play partner at shortstop, said the second baseman was irreplaceable.

“Nico means the world to me and to this team, just who he is as a person,” Swanson said. “He brings the same type of energy and competitive spirit that Alex does.”

Shaw was relatively inexperienced at third base going into last season, but he was named a Gold Glove finalist in October. Shaking off a slow start and a stint in the minors, he hit .226 with 13 homers, 44 RBIs and 17 steals in 126 games with the Cubs.

Shaw was a shortstop growing up in Massachusetts, but he spent some time as an outfielder early in his collegiate career at the University of Maryland.

“I played outfield growing up a lot, so I look forward to running around out there,” he said. “Outfield's definitely fun. And the at-bat stuff, I think there's at-bats there, and obviously it's up to me as it's up to all the guys to earn their spots and to play well.”

Shaw also is looking forward to playing with Bregman, a two-time World Series champion with Houston.

“We had a great year last year. We had a lot of great pieces,” Shaw said, “and then you add Bregman and it's like, you look at this team up and down and we're in an amazing spot.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb

FILE - Chicago Cubs' Nico Hoerner hits a sacrifice fly ball during a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Sept. 30, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Nam Huh, File)

FILE - Chicago Cubs third baseman Matt Shaw prepares to field the ball during the a baseball game, Oct. 6, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Kayla Wolf, File)