Russia's star skater Plushenko skips Romania show this spring after major back surgery

Russian ice skater Evgheni Plushenko will no longer appear in front of Romanian audiences at the Kings On Ice Olympic Gala planned for April 5 in Bucharest, after having back surgery earlier this week. The show however is still on, with Russia's Gold ice skating teams Tatiana Volosozhar - Maxim Trankov, Ksenia Stolbova - Fedor Klimov and Elena Ilinykh - Nikita Katsalapov performing for the first time in Romania. Plushenko will have to take a longer than initially estimated recovery period after his spine surgery, so he had to cancel his whole spring tour. The Kings On Ice Olympic Gala will also be attended by well known Olympic and World Champions, including Irina Slutskaya, Stéphane Lambiel, Brian Joubert, Tomáš Verner and the duo Fiona Zaldua - Dmitri Sukano. Tickets for the Bucharest show, that will take place at Sala Palatului – the Palace Hall – are available online on myticket.ro, priced between RON 120 and RON 400. Evgheni Plushenko, 32, is a retired Russian figure skater. He holds numerous gold medals in Olympics and World Championships, and has been touring with his ice skating performance Kings on Ice, for several years. In early 2014, he struggled with a back injury in practice, and eventually had surgery in the beginning of March. editor@romania-insider.com