Evgeni Plushenko is in good shape to win...
"Zhenya (shortened name of Evgeni) is in the right mood, he is in good physical shape and has his skills. He just needs a little luck," Alexei Mishin said at a Moscow airport before departing for Canada.
Mishin said the Russian figure skating team is "powerful" enough, but winning Olympic prizes will be difficult as a fierce fight will break out on the rink and around it.
"We are prepared to face pressure. I do not expect a warm welcome. The Russian team is very strong, therefore we face a struggle on the skating rink and beyond," Mishin said in an apparent reference to the 2002 Olympic judging controversy involving the Russian and Canadian pairs figure-skaters.
The scandal in Salt Lake City, when a French judge admitted bias in favor of Russia"s Yelena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze, led to a major scoring overhaul. Jamie Sale and David Pelletier were also awarded gold medals after a furious debate that engulfed the Games for nearly a week.