Russian teen titans are also friendly rivals

MOSCOW - Two-time world singles champion Evgenia Medvedeva's seemingly smooth path to Olympic glory has run into an unexpected roadblock in the shape of her 15-year-old training partner, Alina Zagitova.

The youngster upset the 18-year-old Medvedeva, who had not lost since November 2015, with a jump-packed free skate at the European championships in January to suddenly emerge as co-favorite for the gold medal at the Pyeongchang Games, where they are competing under the OAR (Olympic Athletes from Russia) banner.

As Medvedeva sat out the Grand Prix Final in December with a fractured foot, Zagitova has seized her opportunity to shine in her first senior season and even threatened her older compatriot's incredible world record scores.