Olympic Figure Skating Results 2018: Ladies' Short Program Scorers, Highlights

Evgenia Medvedeva delivered 10 points to the Olympic Athletes from Russia in the team figure skating event by placing first in the ladies short program at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

Medvedeva scored an 81.06 in the short program, putting her comfortably ahead of Carolina Kostner, who earned a 75.10.  

Bradie Tennell scored a 68.94 overall for the United States, which was fifth-best in the competition. As a result, the U.S. added six points to its team total.

With four more events to go, Canada is in first place overall with 35 points.

2018 Winter Olympics Team Figure Skating Standings

1. Canada (35 points)

2. Olympic Athletes from Russia (31 points)

3. United States (29)

4. Japan (26 points)

5. Italy (26 points)

6. China (18 points)

7. Germany (16 points)

8. Israel (13 points)

9. Republic of Korea (13 points)

10. France (13 points)

The top five teams qualified for the free skating portion of the event. Although Italy was sitting comfortably entering the ladies short program, Kostner eliminated any doubt with her second-place finish, thus leaving LI Xiangning with no way to get China into the next round.

Medvedeva was the final skater to hit the ice and provided a nearly flawless performance. Her technical elements comprised of 42.83 toward her overall score, with a triple flip and triple toe loop accounting for nearly a third (12.26) of that total.

NBC Olympics shared a replay of her routine:

Many were mesmerized watching Medvedeva:

The gold medalist in the 2016 and 2017 World Championships, Medvedeva laid down a major marker for the rest of the Olympics. The 18-year-old headed to Pyeongchang as the skater to beat, and she showed why Sunday.

While Medvedeva and her fellow Russians aren't technically representing their country at the Winter Olympics, they've have a great chance to give the OAR team a gold medal four years after Russia won the inaugural team event on home soil in Sochi.

The United States is also firmly in position to medal after earning bronze in 2014. Only 0.01 point separated Tennell from Japan's Satoko Miyahara, which was the difference in the U.S. getting six points instead of seven.

Tennell earned an 11.10 right out of the gate with a triple lutz and triple toe loop on her first element, but she was unable to produce anything close to that over the rest of her routine. Still, fifth place was more than enough to get the United States through in the team event.