Three Sets of Three

This time on The Nice Capades… it’s still too hot for me to function. Anyway, this time we’re doing:

• Three Figure Skating Things

• Three Quick Figure Skating Things

• Three Non-Figure Skating Things

And then I’m returning to my spot in the corner, sitting directly in front of an AC vent, reading the The Shampoo Effect and drinking a Spindrift.

Three Figure Skating Things!

First, let’s get this over with…the Russians have officially returned to international competition.

Technically, they’re returning as “AIN2” to designate them as neutral, but it’s a total farce to call them that at this point, so I will just refer to them as Russian, because that’s what they are and that’s how they’re funded and that’s how they’re being treated.

China held the first event of the 2026 Junior Grand Prix this weekend, and the Russians swept the gold medals. And, if you look only at actual performance on the ice, they deserved to do so. They had harder elements, executed better than everyone else. And they were scored basically fair, though Jackie Wong made a point of calling out some oddly high GOE for the male singles skater. One can feel the Russian bonus scoring creeping back. Not that it matters; he would have won anyway.

But…I’m still filled with dread by this decisive return. Looking at their massively superior performance, you could just accept that Russian skaters are simply better. Or you can sink into the despair of knowing they’re probably better because of systemic, nearly untraceable doping that allows them to practice longer and harder. And they’re likely ruining their very young bodies as they overwork them in the pursuit of glory. Yes, they’re dominating. But at what cost?

On a lighter note, Riku/Ryuichi are engaged!

Ryuichi Kihara(木原龍一)@ryuichi_kihara

婚約しました。 嬉しい時も、辛い時も、たくさんの時間を共に過ごし、支え合いながら歩んできました。 いつしか、お互いにとってかけがえのない、なくてはならない存在となりました。 こうしてようやく皆様にご報告できることを、心から嬉しく思います。

10:00 PM · Aug 22, 2026 · 56.2M Views

7.88K Replies · 88.7K Reposts · 886K Likes

A group of particularly devoted fans feel justified that their suspicions about these two proved true, but I think most skating fans are like, “huh, sure?”

I mean….the Olympic Champs DID live together in Canada, but that seemed like a matter of convenience as they both lived so far away from home and didn’t really know anyone else in Oakville. And he did haul her around like a doll sometimes, sweeping her off the podium and carrying her away. But that seemed like partners being goofy together. And, last spring, when the Japanese press asked them if they were siblings, friends, or a married couple, they said they were, “beyond that,” But that seemed like they were pulling a move out of the Tessa/Scott playbook of, “Oh, you can’t possibly understand our relationship; we are some new and different thing that cannot be defined by boring normal standards!”

So, I guess this is ultimately not shocking but still surprising. This reminds me of the time that one couple from The 100 announced they were married, when it didn’t seem like anyone knew they were even dating offscreen.

And on a gossipy, speculative note: Amber Glenn might be headed to Dancing with the Stars.

The DWTS Reddit thinks they’ve spotted her leaving practice, thanks to a bag match. And she’s supposedly recently followed some of the DWTS judges and pros on Instagram, though I can’t verify that for you as I didn’t have the energy to scroll through her followers list to find them. I’m sure there is some talented youngster who knows how to sort her follow list by recency, and they can confirm this is true for us. They’re also speculating that she’ll be paired with a female pro dancer, and I can absolutely see Amber agreeing to do this as a way to advocate for the LGBTQUIA community. This could be how they convinced her to do it.

The evidence does seem to pile up, the more you look for it. Eagle eye fans noted that her program announcements this year say, “2027,” not, “2026-2027.” So, it would make sense that she plans to pull out of her Grand Prix assignments this fall to be on the show.

And this would explain why she’s repeating her “Exogenesis” program from a few years ago; no time to learn a second new program if you’re spending your fall learning new dance routines every week.

I don’t hate this for her. Amber’s been on the international circuit for years now, so it’s not like she has to keep proving herself to stay near the top. And we all thought she would retire after the Olympics anyway. If she wants to keep competing, I can see the value in taking off at least half a season to try something else and refresh the batteries. Plus, she’s charismatic and fun, and you can’t blame her for trying to cash in on her Olympic 15 minutes. Girl gotta pay the bills.

Honestly, I thought Chock/Bates would get the DWTS spots, a la Meryl/Charlie after their Olympic win. And maybe we’ll still see them, as Madison seems factory built to be a huge success on DWTS. But Amber is a refreshing choice, and you know she’ll get Alysa in the audience at least once. I might actually tune in, at least for a couple of episodes, if this one turns out to be true.

Three Quick Figure Skating Links:

• Latvian skater Deniss Vasiljevs sure does sound like he’s soft retiring. But… his wording at the end of this announcement also sounds like he’s fed up with Latvia. Maybe we see him back in a year, representing a new country? He’s trained in Switzerland a long time; how hard would it be for him to get citizenship?

• Deanna Stellato spent a lot of words on Instagram thanking Skate Canada and her partner Max and her coach. But she didn’t say she’s retiring. I think this effusive virtual giving of flowers might precipitate a return to Team USA and an American partner. She would have to wait a year to compete internationally again, so we’ll see what kind of announcement she might make next spring.

• Bless Olivia Smart and partner for being willing to be super fucking weird. If we have to deal with the return of the Russians, at least we can have skaters willing to throw literally every card they have on the table to stay in the game.

Three Non-Figure Skating Things: Three Recommendations

• Truly sorry to tell you the ubiquitous Ruti On the Loose pants are great. Yes, sometimes it feels like all the influencers got the same promo package and tried to sell you the same thing at the same time. But they’re all correct about these: comfortable and light while still managing to look polished rather than frumpy. I caught a sale, and I suggest you do the same because that price is eye watering for most of us. But I suspect I will wear these enough that the cost-per-wear works out in my favor.

• I truly look forward to Anne Helen Petersen’s annual Rush Tok coverage and her cultural analysis of What It All Means, and she’s now predicting it’s the end of Bama Rush Tok. I completely agree with her assessment; the most “desirable” houses are only desirable when they have mystique, and they’d like to keep it that way. The first rule of Sorority Club is that you don’t talk about Sorority Club. And now the girls on Bama Rusk Tok have figured that out.

• This one is a local recommendation for those of you in the Atlanta area. If you go to the Michelin recommended Bomb Biscuit Company in Grant Park, you obviously have to get a biscuit because that’s the whole point. But the actual best thing I tasted there? The hash brown casserole, hands down. So good, I would happily go there to order a serving of the casserole with a Bellini and that’s it.

  What’s Next: Back next weekend to opine on whatever happens this week!