Figure skating champion Evgeni Plushenko is planning a return to the world stage after withdrawing earlier this year from the Sochi Olympic Games with a back injury.
"Everything that was broken, has been fixed, and there is nothing left to break. I will try to participate in my fifth [Olympic Games] and give a dignified performance," Plushenko said Wednesday at press conference, ITAR-Tass reported.
Plushenko's last-minute pullout at the Winter Games spurred a flurry of criticism after the skater quashed Russia's hopes of another gold medal and denied fellow skater Maxim Kovtun the chance to perform in his place in the men's short program.
Just days before withdrawing from the men's individual competition, Plushenko won team gold as part of the Russian skating delegation. That victory brought the number of Plushenko's Olympic medals up to four — the skater took home gold in 2006, and silver in 2002 and 2010.
If Plushenko does make it to South Korea's Pyeongchang Olympic Games in 2018, he will be 35 years old — an age considered above average for any professional figure skater.\
See also:
Russian Skater Plushenko Gets Anime Makeover For Japanese Comic
