Figure Skating-Crowd lift helps Israel's Seniuk qualify for free skate

Advertisement Sport Figure Skating-Crowd lift helps Israel's Seniuk qualify for free skate Feb 17, 2026; Milan, Italy; Mariia Seniuk (7) of Israel competes in the womens figure skating short program during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at Milano Ice Skating Arena. Mandatory Credit: James Lang-Imagn Images Feb 17, 2026; Milan, Italy; Mariia Seniuk (7) of Israel competes in the womens figure skating short program during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at Milano Ice Skating Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images Feb 17, 2026; Milan, Italy; Mariia Seniuk (7) of Israel competes in the womens figure skating short program during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at Milano Ice Skating Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics - Figure Skating - Women Single Skating - Short Program - Milano Ice Skating Arena, Milan, Italy - February 17, 2026. Mariia Seniuk of Israel performs during the Short Program REUTERS/Amanda Perobelli Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics - Figure Skating - Women Single Skating - Short Program - Milano Ice Skating Arena, Milan, Italy - February 17, 2026. Mariia Seniuk of Israel performs during the Short Program REUTERS/Amanda Perobelli 18 Feb 2026 05:22AM Bookmark Bookmark Share WhatsApp Telegram Facebook Twitter Email LinkedIn Set CNA as your preferred source on Google Add CNA as a trusted source to help Google better understand and surface our content in search results. Read a summary of this article on FAST. Get bite-sized news via a newcards interface. Give it a try. Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST FAST MILAN, Feb 17 : Contrary to warnings that representing Israel in the women's singles may spark protests, 20-year-old Russian-born Mariia Seniuk nailed her short programme at the Milano-Cortina Games to advance to the free skate.Seniuk, who was born in Moscow and began her career in Russia before starting to compete for Israel in 2019, told Reuters that she had "received some notifications" and was prepared to the fact that she may not draw uniform cheer."I'm skating for Israel and some of the people don't support [it] but I really enjoyed the atmosphere today ... it's very, very special ... you can just feel it," she said."I felt the support ... I'm very, very grateful to everyone, and especially to the people who were holding the flag," she added. Subscribe to CNA's Recommended Read A single handpicked story that we think you shouldn't miss. Just one a day. This service is not intended for persons residing in the E.U. By clicking subscribe, I agree to receive news updates and promotional material from Mediacorp and Mediacorp’s partners. Loading A few Israeli flags, including a very large one, dotted the crowd at Milan's Forum di Assago indoor arena, which traditionally hosts basketball games and big concerts.Among them was U.S. couple Phyllis and Steven Sheinman, who said they had travelled from Cortina, where they used the flag to support Jared Firestone, an American‑born skeleton racer known as the 'Jewish Jet'.The Sheinmans said their small group of friends, which included Firestone's girlfriend, had been at the centre of the exchange with a pro‑Palestinian shop assistant in Cortina which has been circulating on social media. The Games organisers on Sunday said they had taken measures to preserve "a neutral, respectful and welcoming environment" at the Olympics by removing a staff who had addressed a group of visitors with calls of 'Free Palestine'."They removed the person and gave us a bodyguard. Everyone else was just so nice to us, so nice," Phyllis Sheinman said.Her feelings were echoed by 22-year-old Mia Drazin, who carried a giant Israeli flag in the stands, along with her father and brother.Drazin, who moved to Israel from Canada during the war in Gaza to work as a first medical responder, said she was worried about the reception she would get by walking into the arena with the flag."I was like, is someone going to beat me up? If people give me a bad look, I'm fine with that. Listen, I'm Isreali now, I'm tough," she said."But so far four people have asked me to take a picture, which is insane. I'm getting a lot of "Am Yisrael Chai," which means the people of Israel will live on. No bad looks, people have been really nice so far." Source: Reuters Newsletter Recommended Read Subscribe to CNA's Recommended Read A single handpicked story that we think you shouldn't miss. Just one a day. Sign up for our newsletters Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox Subscribe here Get the CNA app Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories Download here Get WhatsApp alerts Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app Join here Advertisement Also worth reading Content is loading... Advertisement Expand to read the full story Get bite-sized news via a newcards interface. Give it a try. Click here