In the 2000–01 season, Butyrskaya began attempting the triple flip jump in her short programs and won both the 2000 Sparkassen Cup on Ice and 2000 Trophée Lalique. After a narrow loss to Slutskaya at the 2000 NHK Trophy, she would initially not stand on the podium and finished fourth at the Grand Prix Final, completing only five out of 14 planned triples over the three segments. Butyrskaya took bronze at the Russian Nationals and silver at the 2001 European Championships, finishing behind Slutskaya at both events. At the 2001 World Championships, her performance in the qualifying round kept her out of the final flight in the short program. Although she placed third in the free skate with six triples and three 5.9s for presentation, she finished fourth overall, narrowly edged for the bronze by Sarah Hughes.