A Look Ahead: Men of the GP Series May 22, 2012

Yesterday was the day. Where you surprised by the Grand Prix assignments? If you’re an Evan Lysacek fan, you were likely disappointed. Conversely, if you’ve been anticipating a Johnny Weir comeback, you may have squealed to see his name on the list twice.

Over the next few days, we’ll take a look at each discipline separately and how the assignments line up for each event.

Since the men have been the talk of the town (my “town,” anyway!) we’ll give them the first shake.

Here’s the Skate America lineup:

Michal Brezina (CZE)
Tomas Verner (CZE)
Yuzuru Hanyu (JPN)
Takahiko Kozuka (JPN)
Tatsuki Machida (JPN)
Konstantin Menshov (RUS)
Alexandra Majorov (SWE)
Jeremy Abbott (USA)
Douglas Razzano (USA)
TBA (USA)

Not too shabby, eh?

As has become the norm, the biggest competition will come from the Japanese contingent, although it’ll be the Abbot — competing at Skate America for the first time in his career — who will have the support of the hometown crowd.

Last season proved we can’t count out quad-master Michael Brezina, and when he’s at his best, Tomas Verner is a force to be reckoned with as well.

Personally, I’m thrilled to see Douglas Razzano along side Abbott for Team USA. He’s a real “skater’s skater” with the elegance and musicality that can bring an entire arena to its feet. If he can match that artistry with technical difficulty, he’ll be well on his way!

Then there’s that haunting “TBA.”

What — or should I say who — is that spot for? Naturally, the rumor mill would lean naturally toward that spot being for reigning Olympic Champ Evan Lysacek who has made no secret about his wish to compete in Sochi. However, there have been more than a couple roadblocks along the way.

Last season, there was the “contractual issues” with the USFS that kept him from returning to competition. While the details of that conflict were not made public, it has been reported that it wasn’t simply “Evan wanting more money” like it came across the first time, but far more complicated than that.

With that assumed to be resolved, it was a bit surprising to NOT see Evan’s name on the assignment list. However, there are plenty of explanations (read: “assumptions!”) that don’t involve him not staging a comeback.

Perhaps he didn’t want the GP spot. He’s made mention of wanting to compete at Senior B events to ease back onto the international scene. He’s a proven champion, so maybe he simply feels it a better option to start small and work his way back up towards Nationals and Worlds, sans the fall series. Or maybe, he’s scheduled to compete on the Dancing With The Stars All-Star season this fall. Who knows, save Frank Carroll and Lysacek. But, perhaps that TBA spot is reserved should he choose to accept it after all.

How’s that for drama surrounding the first event of the season, eh?!

A quick look back: Trophee Eric Bompard November 21, 2011

Before you say it, I know. I missed NHK Trophy all together here at From the Boards. I hate that it happened that way, but last week was simply one of those weeks. Too many things on my white boards “to-do list,” and not enough hours in the day to get them all done. Something had to give. I’m sorry that it was here, but hopefully you caught my Fantasy preview at icenetwork.com or usfigureskating.org.

I promise to always at least have that updated before events! 

Since I can’t go back to NHK now, we’ll just take a glance back and this weekend’s even in Paris — Trophee Eric Bompard.

I always loved this event (especially when it was Lalique) because of the fancy Kiss and Cry designs. Nothing too extraordinary this year, though. However, the trophy given to the winners was pretty spectacular!

But I digress…

The Pairs and Dance events went off mostly as predicted.

Russian stars Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov proved themselves human with errors in both the short and the long, but the overall quality of their skating and the non-jump elements pulled them through. They’re going to need to regain the element of perfection, though, in the Final and as they head on to Worlds.

Their teammates Vera Bazarova and Yuri Larionov snagged the silver after the cleanest of the free skates. There seems to be something missing from them, though. The spark from the other top couples is greater, despite B/L’s strong, classic lines. Most times I just don’t feel, well, anything from them as they skate through well choreographed programs (albeit, to overused music!).

Duhamel/Radford skated another strong short program in Paris.

One of the highlights of the entire event was Meagan Duhamel’s reaction to their scores after a well presented but poorly performed free skate. See, Duhamel and Radford are on that Grand Prix Final bubble. They needed to finish no lower than third with a score of 113.58 to give themselves a chance. She had her fingers crossed, watching the scores go up.

“Is it enough? Is it enough? I’m not getting too excited yet…”

But she knew it was enough. Despite three falls.

“115 with three falls, Eric?” she added.

These two improve with every event. I’m looking forward to seeing how they stack up at Worlds.

Again, Amanda Evora and Mark Ladwig were haunted by the side-by-side jumps. Their programs are stunning, but she just can’t seem to stand up on those jumps. Another fourth place finish isn’t what they were looking for, but here’s hoping we see these programs skated cleanly at Nationals.

A look ahead: Cup of China’s ladies and gentlemen November 2, 2011

You know, we spend the entire summer counting the days until the Grand Prix season begins. Then, just like that, we’re headed into week three! It always goes so quickly once it starts.

But enough of that. On to China!

As I was working on my icenetwork.com column this week, I realized — this is the least “elite” event thus far, and yet, it could be the most competitive! So many skaters have the chance to improve on their past senior performances or, in some cases, stun the world with their senior debuts. Add in a handful of veterans who would like to regain their top spots, and I have quite the headache. Oh, and yes, we also have quite the competition on our hands!

Today we’ll talk ladies and gents. Tomorrow, the couples.

It’s any man’s game

When you pit the young Artur Gachinski against the talented Nobunari Oda and the determined Jeremy Abbott, it’s enough to make your head spin. Then throw in Yuzuru Hanyu, Kevin Reynolds and Ricky Dornbush and it essentially becomes a shoot out — the three  men who skate cleanest will likely find the podium.

Jeremy Abbott missed Worlds last year, and wasn’t too happy about it. He is a strong competitor, and can match his technical excellence with his artistic superiority. This is his first event since Four Continents, and he’ll want to make a statement. Much like Ashley Wagner last weekend, he may skate with a chip on his shoulder.

If Nobunari Oda could ever put together back-to-back programs, he would be in the discussions with the Chans and Takahashi’s of the world. But more often than not, silly mistakes cost him titles. Still, I don’t know anyone who has deeper knees and softer edges. He’s a joy to watch, and will compete for gold.

Ricky Dornbush is the only one man skating in his second event. He struggled a bit at Skate America, and will likely make some adjustments for China. However, Yuzuru Hanyu is the wild card with the potential to upstage them all. He’s young and a bit volatile, so he’s not a sure thing. However, I’m willing to bet on him this year.

Men’s Short Program Recap April 27, 2011

One short program event down, three to go. While waking up at 4 a.m. wasn’t the ideal situation, the men’s short program competition was worth it, I must say. Even from the first group, there were highlights. Of course, the real fireworks came later on when the favorites hit the ice and they did not disappoint!

Not much was expected of the inexperienced American team in Moscow. Richard Dornbush and Ross Miner are at their first Worlds, and Ryan Bradley, who has been there twice before – unsuccessfully – has said this is the first time he feels like he belongs.

Dornbush and Miner both skated in the first group and were more than clean — they were quite lovely to watch! I felt Miner’s PCS scores were a bit low, but they both hit the 70+ mark and had a lot to be proud of.

Bradley skated first in the third group, and from the get go, I could tell he was nervous. He hit two quad toe-triple toe combinations in the warm up, but in the program, it was a quad-double. Still, he hit a HUGE triple axel and a nice triple flip. The crowd wasn’t eating him up like normal, so it felt a little flatter than it should have. But it was a good, strong, clean skate. He was underscored, in my ever so humble opinion.

Denis Ten was quite a pleasant surprise. He led the field from the first group up until the second-to-last group with a solid 71+ score. He’s made some dramatic improvements with Frank Carroll. I wonder, though, if he can hold it together for a long program.

The Frenchmen Florent Amodio and Brian Joubert skated back to back.

Amodio was cool, calm, controlled…and explosive. He laid down a great skate. No quad, but he easily took the lead.

Joubert was good…not great. And while he had a quad (that he turned out of), he had no combination. This should have been a serious deduction. His technical elements score was lower than Bradley, but his components score was higher by about 5 points. As much as I love Brian, that was not right. I would have Brian/Ryan’s programs about equal. Brian with perhaps a slight edge in PCS — but slight. That is, if Brian has all the elements. Without a combo, he shouldn’t have led. I feel the international judges don’t take Bradley seriously, probably partly due to his comedic routines. But that doesn’t make his skills any less significant.

But I digress.

Takahiko Kozuka skated after winning the Qualifying Round and proved that he’s quite a contender. I still cringe at this short program, but he skated it well with only a minor error on his triple axel.

Daisuke Takahashi and Patrick Chan stole the night, though. These two have been the co-favorites all along, and they proved why.

Chan skated first, and he laid down the gauntlet with a textbook quad toe-triple toe, triple axel, and a triple lutz. Add that to his impeccable basic skating, creative transitions and best-in-the-world footwork, and we have a winner! He set the new world record short program score, taking down that of previous record-holder Plushenko (who was in the building to see it go down!).  It was truly something special. And one of the few programs I felt deserved the scores it received!

Takahashi was wonderful as well. He didn’t have a quad, but what he had was heart. People were moved by his performance, and not just because he skated it well. To come through the trials his country is coming through and to skate with that much focus and skill…just brilliant. His scores didn’t reflect the quality of his skate, and he finds himself some 13 points behind Chan (who is rightfully in first, but Dai was incredible as well).

Michal Brezina’s scores baffled me a bit, as did Artur Gachinski’s…and even Tomas Verner’s. It almost appeared like the old 6.0 system that because these three skated later in the event, the judges scored them higher. Now, in the old system, they had to save scores for the later groups. Not so anymore. Or so it is supposed to be.

These three compared to the three Americans (and Denis Ten) weren’t all that impressive. Certainly not 7 points more impressive. Brezina struggled on his combo and lacked some polish and quality throughout. Gachinski’s quad-triple combo was impressive, but the rest was just average. Verner’s short program is to die for, but even “Singing in the Rain” couldn’t mask the fall on his quad attempt or the struggle with his combination. And yet, there they are, all at least 6 points higher than those with comparable skates early on. *sigh* Maybe the judges will never learn.

Nobunari Oda was the last to skate, and he had some demons to fight. Last year at worlds he had a disastrous  short program and ended up 28th overall in the event. He certainly made up for that here. But yet again, the scores baffled me. His program shouldn’t have compared to Takahashi’s, and yet he found himself between Patrick and Daisuke and in second place headed to the free skate.

I must say, this was a very entertaining event thanks to the athletes. It was quite frustrating and even confounding thanks to the judges. I’m obviously  not a judge. But I think I know good skating when I see it, and the placements after the shorts don’t reflect the best skates of the night (err, early morning here!).

Regardless, the stage is set. Chan looks to have a comfortable enough lead that he should skate with less pressure. Takahashi, Oda and Kozuka will be battling it out for medals, but they won’t be alone. Less than 5 points separate 2nd-6th. Plus, there are just over 5.5 points difference from 8th-13th.

Oh, the games are just beginning!

Here are your complete results after the Short Programs.

1. Patrick Chan (CAN)    93.02
2. Nobunari Oda (JPN)    81.81
3. Daisuke Takahashi (JPN)    80.25
4. Artur Gachinski (RUS)    78.34
5. Florent Amodio (FRA)    77.64
6. Takahiko Kozuka (JPN)    77.62
7. Michal Brezina (CZE)    77.50
8. Tomas Verner (CZE)    75.94
9. Brian Joubert (FRA)    71.29
10. Denis Ten (KAZ)    71.00
11. Richard Dornbush (USA)    70.54
12. Ryan Bradley (USA)    70.45
13. Ross Miner (USA)    70.40
14. Javier Fernandez (ESP)    69.16
15. Kevin Van Der Perren (BEL)    68.34
16. Peter Liebers (GER)    67.73
17. Anton Kovalevski (UKR)    65.16
18. Samuel Contesti (ITA)    64.59
19. Kevin Reynolds (CAN)    64.36
20. Nan Song (CHN)    64.78
21. Joey Russell (CAN)    61.69
22. Jorik Hendrickx (BEL)    60.74
23. Paolo Bacchini (ITA)    58.96
24. Kim Lucine (MON)    58.81
25. Adrian Schultheiss (SWE)    58.41*
26. Viktor Pfeifer (AUT)    56.68*
27. Min-Seok Kim (KOR)    56.19*
28. Alexander Majorov (SWE)    54.24*
29. Maxim Shipov (ISR)    50.10*
30. Misha Ge (UZB)    49.61*

*Only the top 24 move on to the long programs.

Pairs up next today!

Taking on the World: Men’s Preview April 14, 2011

All season long, I’ve been talking up the men’s event. With good reason, mind you! There have not been quite as many twists and turns as the ladies, but there has been  every bit as much competition, if not more.

Making the World Team this year was, perhaps, the biggest challenge for several countries, due to the competition from within. The US Nationals were brutal. The Japanese team could have gone any which way. But all of that sets up one of the best on-paper World events in a while. And that’s saying a lot because the last few have all been stellar.

This year, team Japan has quite the podium potential, featuring the reigning World and 4 Continents Champ Daisuke Takahashi, Grand Prix Final silver medalists Nobunari Oda, and two-time Grand Prix champion (Paris, China) Takahiko Kozuka. These three hold the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th highest international scores this season, and the combination of the three could be very strong in holding off the competition.

Now that they’re competing with the weight of the tragedy in Japan on their shoulders, they will, along with their teammates, be the story of the event.

I believe that this could go one of two ways — either they will put so much pressure on themselves to live up to the expectations of a nation in dire need of hope that they will falter. Or, they will skate, bearing the support and hope of their countrymen, and truly be a story of tragedy becoming triumph — the human spirit prevailing in the face of defeat — to take at least two of the three podium spots, including the top step.

With the strength these guys bring to the table, I think the second option is most likely.

Chan said of his Nationals performance that it wasn't just lucky -- he was trained to skate that well, and prepared to do it again at Worlds.

They’ll have to find some way, however, to take over the guy in the #1 spot at the moment – Canada’s darling, Patrick Chan. He posted a leading total score of 259.75 in his Grand Prix Final win earlier in the season, and he topped that skate at Nationals with his best skate of the season by far. Now, I know there is quite the debate about how he rakes in such astronomical scores even when he falls all over the ice, and in some ways, I feel those concerns are justified. But the fact remains: Patrick knows how to work the system, and he takes full advantage of that. I wish the system rewarded perfection in a higher way, but it doesn’t. That’s the reality. So, when Patrick does what he’s capable of — including the quads, the triple axels, the unmatched footwork sequences —  I’m not sure there’s a man this season with a program that can beat him. The question then becomes, can he deliver under pressure? If not, there are plenty of others who will, and his chance at the title could disappear quickly.

Interestingly, the 5th highest score in my “top 12″ list (those that I’m considering contenders of some kind) had to be drawn from Nationals: Ryan Bradley‘s 231.90 from Greensboro squeaks into the top five. Now, before you jump me with the “Nationals scores are inflated! You can’t use that!” comments, let me just say, I know. But, because there’s no international score to judge from this season, I had to take what I could get. Do I really think Ryan will get such high scores on the world stage? Probably not. He needs to work on the lack of transitions in his programs. But if he skates his short program like he did in North Carolina, he will likely put himself in a position to place very well, even if a medal is out of reach.

Tomas Verner is not to be overlooked here, either. Despite having some rough patches in his season, he did win in Russia earlier in the season, and after placing third in China, surprised even himself by qualifying for the Final. However, he struggled there, and only placed 3rd at Europeans behind a developing Amodio and a rebuilding Joubert. I adore his short program this season, but his long is, in my opinion, one of the worst in the entire event. I feel for him, because I think he’s far better than this program allows him to be. Not good when you’re competing against the likes of Chan’s “Phantom” or Takahashi’s tango.

Speaking of Florent Amodio, he comes in with the 7th highest score – a 229.38 from his silver medal skate in Paris. He is coming off of a win at Europeans, but he’s been a bit inconsistent at times late in the season. I’m concerned that he may have peaked too early and that he simply won’t have enough to give come Worlds.

Brian Joubert is a curious case. Way back in 2003, I was a big fan. Then I lost a little interest as he tried to make himself into Yagudin 2.0. Then I felt a twinge of compassion for him as he got caught in a strange, complex battle trying to find himself and a system that worked for his skating. I watched him rise back tot he top, looking like the guy to beat heading into the Olympics, only to be crushed by a melt down when it mattered most. Finally, I find myself quite interested in his skating again. Many people have given his new “artistry” a big thumbs down this year for seeming a little awkward, but I’m quite certain anyone trying to transform themselves from The Matrix into Swan Lake is going to needs some time to break in the new moves! He’s making progress, and, more importantly, seems to be in a good place mentally. I hope he gets back to the top some day. I don’t, however, expect it to be here.

Also a surprising addition to the top group here is the surprise US silver medalist, Ricky Dornbush. Despite not competing on the senior level, he’s still posted a strong 219.56 total score in his Junior Grand Prix Final win. He was brilliant at Nationals, and if it wasn’t for Bradley’s equally-brilliant short program, he would likely be headed to Japan as the US Champ. Now, the senior international stage is completely different, but he’s something special, and certainly one to watch in the years to come. This is a great opportunity for Ricky to make a statement as he launches his senior career.

Rounding out the most likely top 12 are Samuel Contesti, Michal Brezina, and Ross Miner. None have a realistic shot at the podium, but all have a very strong opportunity to make their presence known. They’ve all had brilliant skates at one point or another, but this is a chance to lay in all on the line when nothing really significant is at stake.

As for the podium, I say gold likely comes down to Chan and Takahashi, although Kozuka could make a push for it, too. Let’s just say I wouldn’t be surprised to see two Japanese flags and one Canadian flag raised at the medal ceremony. But, you know what they say — the ice is slippery! Anything can happen.

Until then…

Finally! December 15, 2010

Only a million years later, I’m back with final thoughts about the Grand Prix Final. I know, that was forever ago! But until I figure out a way to make figure skating analysis a full-time job, I sometimes have to put it aside to get other things done.

Nevertheless, I DO have final thoughts about the event, so I’m here to share. So, take a few minutes and relive these thoughts with me!

I’ll start out with the men. Now, if you paid attention to my Fantasy Picks this week, you know that I picked Patrick Chan to win here. I was feeling a little questionable about that choice after Nobu killed it in his Short program. But, knowing what kind of scores Chan is capable of pulling in, I knew he had the edge. I have to say, I was incredibly proud of him for putting out two basically clean programs. Yes, there was a little step out/turn out on the second triple axel in the long, but compared to his early season struggles, he did wonderfully! He’s still relatively young, and I believe he’ll only get stronger technically.

I actually thought he was a bit off as far as the expression, but perhaps he was so focused on hitting his jumps that his usual freedom throughout suffered a bit. Still, though, the best of the competition.

Oda was wonderful, too. His short program blew me away, so the struggles in the long were disappointing…mostly for him! He’s capable of such stunning jumps and artistry. If he can put it all together in back to back programs, he’ll be a force to be reckoned with for a long time to come.

I did feel bad for Daisuke. He just seemed out of it throughout the competition. Perhaps the collision in practice did more damage than he wanted to admit, but he was clearly not himself. Kozuka took advantage of Takahashi’s weak performances, and was good enough for bronze.

I would have been very interested to see how the likes of Jeremy Abbott, Adam Rippon and Brandon Mroz would have fared here. I love me some Florent Amodio and Tomas Verner, but I feel there was a dramatic drop off in the level of competitiveness when we got to those two. I think Jeremy would have had a great shot for a medal for sure. World will be most interesting!

Meryl Davis and Charlie White were no surprise winners here. But what was surprising was how much I really enjoyed their Free Dance! I’ve always liked what these two put on the ice, but this year’s FD just didn’t quite seem to jive with their personalities or skating style…at least not in it’s original form. But now, they’ve polished up the choppiness and made every attempt to dive into the personality of the dance. And in Beijing, it was FABULOUS! I still see room for improvement, but that’s good. This isn’t the part of the season where they want to peak, so they still have room for that to happen by Nationals/Worlds.

Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat are wonderful, too. They have such a charm about them and they’re just so easy to watch. Their personalities are naturally very likable, which plays into their Charlie Chaplin routine beautifully. They’ve set themselves up for success heading into Worlds as well, so I’ll be interested to see how they make minor adjustments to this program to make it more competitive. Well done, though!

I have to say, I was very proud of Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier. They’re skating a very tough program to “Eleanor Rigby.” The difficulty and intricacy of the choreography can easily make this program look heavy and labored, but in Beijing, I finally saw a sense of freedom and lightness to this free dance that was refreshing! They’re looking more and more comfortable competing at this level, and as they improve the program artistically, it improves technically as well. That’s a beautiful balance to have! (Side note: I’ve got to say, the dance event at Canadian Nationals may be the best event of the season! Although that same event in the US should be interesting as well…)

The Pairs competition wasn’t much of a surprise either. We all knew it would come down to Pang/Tong vs. Savchenko/Szolkowy. What we may not have known was that it would be a 21 point margin in favor of the Germans! Add S/S’s brilliant choreo and challenging – but well executed – technical elements to P/T’s mini meltdown (singled toe, singled axel, discredited spin), and you have an easy win for the former World Champs over the reigning champs.

Perhaps the bigger story, though, is the youngest Chinese team skating here, Wenjing Sui and Cong Han. They skated both on the junior and senior circuits this season, and it’s a wonder why they weren’t skating with the big kids before! They have a lot of maturing to do, but what is interesting to me about this team is how COP-friendly their programs are. I think we’re at the start of a new generation of skaters that, having been raised by the points system, will know how to use it fully, without having to over-think everything, who can then bring in their personality and creativity that some say has been missing as of late. Regardless, congrats to the kids for showing some of the veterans how it’s done!

For me, though, the entire event belonged to Alissa Czisny.

I have to say, I was worried about her after last season. I’ve always loved her, but she had always seemed to struggle when it mattered most. At some point, you begin to wonder what it is that’s holding an athlete back like that. Naturally, we start to think it’s in her head. Then it’s her technique. Then it’s her coach. Then it’s the coffee she drinks that my cousin’s best friend’s uncle’s boss’s husband says is bad for your stamina.

The reality is, we have no idea what goes through her head when she takes the ice, knowing it’s all on the line. We have no idea how much she fights for a performance, or how much she fears not doing well. So to see her struggle so at the end of last season was heartbreaking, because it seemed no one really, honestly knew.

Fast forward a few months, and  it’s been the ride of a lifetime to watch her rise from that, come into this season with that radiant smile, and a weight lifted off her shoulders – she seems to be skating for herself now, perhaps with a little bit of a chip on her shoulder for all those who said she’d never be back. Regardless of her motivation, she seems to be in a zone that has her locked in on every moment. She’s soaking it in, making it count…and sticking it to every person who ever wrote her off. And I love it!

Her programs this season are some of the most beautiful I’ve seen in a long time. Her long program is my favorite ladies long of the year. She takes us on a journey with her, and the way she pulls off triple after triple…she soars, and so do we. She may not have had that perfect competition, but she has every single thing she needs to compete with anyone you put in her path. Her spins and most of her footwork can beat anyone in the world. If she keeps fine tuning her jump technique (which is a bit reworked), I can see even greater things to come. She just set herself up as the favorite at Nationals. (I know there are several contenders for the National title/podium, but I’m beyond excited to see a showdown between Alissa and Mirai. I love them both, so I don’t know who I’d choose…but I think they both have similar qualities to their skating as well as wonderful potential. It’s gonna be a fun one!)

What’s that, you say? Oh, other ladies skated in Beijing? My bad…back to the competition.

Italy’s Carolina Kostner took home the silver. She skated well for herself. I just don’t always understand where she pulls points out of, especially in her PCS scores. That’s a whole other debate, but her scores always boggle my mind, no matter where she places. I just don’t get it, most of the time. Still, though, she managed to finish 1 one hundredth of  a point ahead of Japan’s young star, Kanako Murakami.

Kanako is adorable. She has a fire in her, boy….she’s one to watch. She wants it, and she looks pretty determined to move up the ranks quickly so she can get it. The rest of the Japanese team better watch out, because she’s gunning for top honors at Japanese Nationals!

Honorable mention here to Miki Ando. She had a rough short program, but came back strong enough to actually win the long program in Beijing. However, the 4 girls in front of her skated well enough to hold their positions and Miki finished in 5th. She was my only Fantasy pick not to win here! (However, I did have Alissa Czisny, but she was in the B category…)

And there you have it, friends. Finally, Patrick Chan has a clean(ish) competition. Finally, Davis and White connected with their music, as did Crone and Poirier. Finally, Savchenko/Szolkowy took back their place at the top of the pairs world. Finally, Alissa Czisny can call herself the Grand Prix Final champion, knowing she earned every bit of that gold medal! And yes, finally, my review is done!

Looking forward to how the various nationals turn out. Some tight races for a few teams, for sure! Will try to keep you updated as those events take place.

Then, of course, there will be all sorts of action from US Nationals. I wish more than anything I could be there, but since I can’t, I’ll play the living room reporter role once again, and I hope you’ll all join me!

Until then…

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! December 8, 2010

We had the most wonderful snow storm this past weekend. And yes, I think snow is wonderful. In December, at least. My back yard was like a wonderland…and I was like a kid in a candy store when it started snowing. Moving from a real live “winter wonderland” into a land of cold-but-dry midwest winters is rough, especially when winter means skating season in its peak!

We’re in for another big storm this weekend, but the biggest storm is headed for Beijing, as the top 6 skaters/teams in each discipline take to the ice to prove their “regular season” successes were more than just luck. The competition will be tougher than it has been all season, so these athletes know they better be prepared.

Here’s how things break down.

Men: World Champ Daisuke Takahashi seems the likely choice for “favorite.” However, he hasn’t had the most spectacular of Grand Prix seasons. He has just the 4th highest season best of the Final competitors –  234.79 (Kozuka – 248.07, Chan – 239.52, Oda – 236.52), and he’s looked a bit off more than once so far. With his countrymen hot on his heels and Chan anxious to skate two programs worthy of his monumental scores, Dai better up his game. Don’t forget the impending “Battle of the MJs” between Amodio and Verner. Florent got his in first this season, and the impression was created with raving reactions from the audience (albeit not-quite-so-raving reviews from skating fans who saw too much standing and not enough skating). However, Verner’s attempt paled in comparison. Tomas still had a very solid GP season, and his short program is simply divine. But that long…well, I just hope he doesn’t have to skate right after Amodio this weekend.

Ladies: Miki Ando has the best score this season – 174.47 – over fellow Japanese skater Akiko Suzuki (172.74) and Alissa Czisny (172.37). Carolina Kostner and Kanako Murakami have the same season best score of 164.93. Yet again, the only constant for this event is that no one has had a spectacular season. In fact, despite some wonderful moments (Alissa’s gold at Skate Canada, Ando’s jump clinic at Cup of China, Murakami’s delightful short program), the ladies season has been a bit of a mess. Very few clean programs, and many cases of “she who falls the least wins.” There are some unlikely names on this Final list for that very reason! There’s just truly no way of guessing what will happen here.

Pairs: Savchenko and Szolkowy have the edge in season best score over Pang and Tong, 197.88 to 189.37. The other four couples are competing in the Final for the first time. Don’t forget the kids from China, though. Sui and Han made a big splash on the senior circuit, proving they can hang with the big kids. They are passing on the Junior Grand Prix final to compete at the senior level, so no doubt they’ll be eying a spot on that podium…Moore-Towers/Moscovitch and Bazarova/Larionov better watch their backs!

Ice dance: Davis and White looked to be the runaway favorites all season long, and they are certainly still highly favored here. But their season best is only 3.39 higher than that of the French team of Pechalat and Bourzat (165.21, 161.82 respectively.) The French team has gained ground, and they may have the best free dance of the season. I’m looking forward to seeing Meryl and Charlie skate their free dance to it’s full potential, and they will likely have an edge in the short dance. But they won’t be able to take this one without a fight, that’s for sure. Beyond that, however, it would appear to be a battle for bronze between several teams that have looked good at times this year, but don’t quite have the fire power to play with Davis and White just yet. Still, it should be a very competitive event, as usual!

 

My Fantasy picks have been made, and as always, a vlog with those picks is coming soon.

 

What are your thoughts heading into this weekend? These should be the best 6 competitors in their disciplines…do you agree? Who are you most surprised to see in Beijing? Who do you think will make the biggest splash? Let me know!

 

Next week I hope to look a little closer at the not-so-new-but-reemerging Code of Points debate. Hopefully this weekend will paint a clear picture of how the system is really working…and we’ll go from there.

 

My Twitter presence this weekend may be limited due to a heavy work schedule (hate it when “real work” gets in the way of my skating work!) but we shall see. I will certainly be letting you know how much live play-by-play I’ll be available for, so check twitter.com/FromTheBoards for all the info!

 

Until then…

Eric Bompard – High hopes and Heartbreaks November 29, 2010

Well we made it. Paris brought thrilling victories, and  bitter disappointments, but we have, at last, reached the end of the “regular season” in the international skating world.

The men’s competition was again the most exciting.

Prior to the final group, it was announced that the French veteran, Brian Joubert, had withdrawn (due to illness). The gasp in the crowd was obvious, even via the icenetwork live stream!  I have to say, I was a bit disappointed as well. However, the show must go on, and fellow Frenchman Florent Amodio was up for the challenge.

Takahiko Kozuka led after the short program, but Amodio was hot on his heals with a free skate that lit up the crowd and the scoreboard alike! But never fear – calm as a cucumber, Kozuka threw down possibly his best free skate ever, quad and all. He just checked the jumps off, one-by-one, and the softness of his knees made his footwork soar. By far the champion here, and Taka has a chance at giving his countryman – reigning World Champ Daisuke Takahashi – a run for his money at Japanese Nationals.

But first, the Grand Prix Final.

For the men, it will be:

1. Takahiko Kozuka (JPN)
2. Daisuke Takahashi (JPN)
3. Patrick Chan (CAN)
4. Tomas Verner (CZE)
5. Nobunari Oda (JPN)
6. Florent Amodio (FRA)

Unfortunately, all three US men (who did well in their own right this GP season!) just missed out. Jeremy Abbott is the 1st alternate, followed by Brandon Mroz and Adam Rippon, should one or more of the top six not be able to compete in Beijing.

This competition could be very interesting…but what else would we expect from this year’s men?

The ladies were predictably unpredictable. Actually, though, things shaped up a little more like they were “supposed to” in Paris.

Mao Asada is still quite a mess by her own standards, but compared to her first outing, things went better. She stayed on her feet in the long, however she popped a few jumps, including both planned triple axels. I know that’s her “trademark” move, but I wish she’d drop it to a regular old double axel, at least until she gets her new technique worked out. That way she would have less to fret about and could give more focus to the other jumps.

Regardless, she finished 5th, which was an improvement over her 8th place finish at NHK Trophy.

The battle between the top three was interesting. Alissa Czisny pulled up to third overall after a less-than-perfect free skate. However, her component marks and the technical markks she gets for her footwork and spins gave her an advantage that held her in position for a medal – and for a spot in the Final.

Mirai Nagasu – not skating from 1st after the short – skated a beautiful long that was marred by a rare error on a layback spin – normally one of Mirai’s highest scoring elements! A few underrotations and low levels on her footwork cost her the title, but it was just barely, as she was just two points shy of the champion.

Kiira Korpi skated away with gold after her own les-than-stellar free skate. But her three point lead in the short and a slight edges on the program component scores gave her the win. She is the first alternate for the Final.

The other qualifiers are:

1. Miki Ando (JPN)
2. Alissa Czisny (USA)
3. Carolina Kostner (ITA)
4. Kanako Murakami (JPN)
5. Akiko Suzuki (JPN)
6. Rachael Flatt (USA)

The other alternates are the Americans, Mirai Nagasu and Ashley Wagner.

The pairs competition from France also played out as expected.

The world champs, Savchenko and Szolkowy skated brilliantly once again (although I felt it wasn’t as good as at Skate America).  They far out-classed the field, and earned their second gold of the season.

Skating to silver was the Russian team of Bazarova and Larionov. They have a classically Russian style and elegance that serves them well. They don’t have the spark of some of the other teams, but they skate well, and were well above the rest of the field (although there was a significant gap between them and the Germans).

The pairs that will be going to Beijing are:

1. Savchenko/Szolkowy (GER)
2. Pang/Tong (JPN)
3. Bazarova/Larionov (RUS)
4. Moore-Towers/Moscovitch (CAN)
5. Iliushechkina/Maisuradze (RUS)
6. Sui/Han (CHN)

And the alternates:

Takahashi/Tran (JPN)
Yankowskas/Coughlin (USA)
Lawrence/Swiegers (CAN)

Perhaps the skate of the competition belonged to the French ice dance team of Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat. Skating at home in front of a crowd that shrieked at the smallest hand motion, they skated a classic, timeless, elegant, sophisticated performance to a Chaplin Medley that stole the hearts of all who saw it. Their lines were stunning, their technique unmatched, and the character and expression they maintained throughout was the cherry on top of their Grand Prix sundae! It was fabulous. They will be competitive with the top teams at the Final, for sure.

Speaking of the Final, the dance line up:

1. Davis/White (USA)
2. Pechalat/Bourzat (FRA)
3. Crone/Poirier (CAN)
4. Bobrova/Soloviev (RUS)
5. Weaver/Poje (CAN)
6. Noffmann/Zavozin (HUN)

The alternates (again, some unlucky Americans who just missed it after skating wonderfully this season!)

Shibutani/Shibutani (USA)
Chock/Zuerlein (USA)
Riazanova/Tkachenko (RUS)

Without some of the top North American dance teams on the scene (Virtue/Moir, Belbin/Agosto) the competition is a bit more diverse compared to recent years of so much North American dominance! That said, it will likely be a very competitive event, with Davis and White the early favorites.

And there you have it, friends! Another Grand Prix series nearly complete.

Anyone brave enough to make predictions for the Final?

 

In other news, the second episode of Skating with the Stars airs tonight…as I said, I reserve my judgement until after this show. I did see on Twitter that Tanith will have some kind of additional role tonight, as she said she’d be coming down from the “nest.” Can I just say that makes me MUCH happier? How much that helps, we shall see.

Then, on to Beijing!

Until then…

Grand Finale – Skate America wrap-up November 15, 2010

The first half of the long programs finished late last night, as champions were crowned in the men’s and pair’s events.

The men were up first, so we’ll start there.

What should have been, in many ways, the premiere event from Skate America 2010 ended up being a contest to find who could make the least mistakes. The final group set up to be a spectacular showdown, but was instead a bit of a letdown. Still, scores were given and medals received, and team Japan faired quite well.

Daisuke Takahashi took gold, as expected by many (myself included). However, he didn’t do so in usual “Dai-namic” fashion. He missed jumps, lacked a quad, eked out several landings, and even his always-impressive footwork lacked some polish. Still, with PCS scores in the 85 range (…a bit ridiculous, if you’re asking me!), he managed to fend off countryman Nobunari Oda who had all the chance in the world to win…if only he stuck to the game plan.

I always find it interesting when skaters try to make up for mistakes during the program. This time, the mental mistake cost more than the physical mistake, as Nobu either tried to make up for a missed combination or simply forgot that he’s only allowed 3! He put out two solid triple axels, but the rules state one has to be in combination (or you can’t repeat the jump). Since one wasn’t in combination, he was essentially marked for missing that element. The flip side of that, though, is that you’re only allowed three combinations (two 2-jump and one 3-jump)…which he completed on top of the miss axel combo. Confused? Yeah. Basically, I believe, he received no credit for the final combo which cost him dearly, especially with a fall on his quad-toe attempt. Tough break for Oda, but still, a strong silver medal.

Adam Rippon was in medal position after the short, but a rare off night cost him overall, as he slipped to 4th.

Sneaking into bronze position then, was fellow American Armin Mahbanoozadeh who had, by far, the performance of the night. Skating to music from “Avatar,” he delivered jump after jump, spin after spin, with great speed, and great execution and performance. He garnered the first (and only?) standing ovation of the night, and it was well deserved. Congrats, Armin, on your Skate American bronze!

Honorable mention to Shawn Sawyer who, despite finishing in 8th, has the best long program of the season thus far. His “Alice and Wonderland” theme is just stunning and he pulls it off better than anyone else ever could. I said it after his long, but he  really makes a believable mad hatter!

Final results:
1. Daisuke Takahashi JPN (227.07)
2. Nobunari Oda JPN (226.09)
3. Armin Mahbenoozadeh USA (211.17)
4. Adam Rippon USA (2o3.12)
5. Daisuke Murakami JPN (203.00)
6. Kevin Van Der Perren BEL (194.63)
7. Adrian Schultheiss SWE (188.20)
8. Shawn Sawyer CAN (186.62)
9. Stephen Carriere USA (184.20)
10. Nan Song CHN (180.10)
11. Denis Ten KAZ (176.11)
12. Viktor Pfeifer AUS (162.47)

The pairs free skate was an example of all the different things skating can be.

Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy were the class of the field, and may have had the performance of the event. They were clean, solid, expressive, strong…all while skating to “Pink Panther” (Yes, Aliona made that horrid bubblegum pink jumpsuit work just fine!). They showed the “cute” factor with personality expressed elegantly. The are the veterans, and that was evident in their control and consistency as well as in the overall quality of their execution and performance. Well earned win for them here!

The young Canadian stars are just something else. Talk about personality…they’ve got it all! Kristen is just a doll and the two play off each other so well, especially for the short amount of time they’ve skated together. Their long wasn’t as sharp and dramatic as at Skate Canada, but they still have something very special. Plus, they are young enough in this sport that they’re learning from the beginning to skate to the strengths of the COP system, and it does them well…as does their solid technique.

Sui/Han from China stepped in after a successful debut last week at Cup of China (contrary to the info the commentators for Icenetwork had, as they repeatedly called Skate America Sui/Han’s senior debut!) and had close to a repeat performance. They still look juniorish to me, despite the immense difficulty of most of their elements, including that terrifying throw quad salchow! But again, they are COP babies, so to speak, so every move is choreographed with the intent of gaining points, contrary to 6.0 skaters who sometimes have choreography for the sake of choreography. Kudos to these two, though, for keeping up with the big kids two weeks in a row.

The American champs, Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett brought the maturity and smoothness to their long program. This is a bit of a new, more polished look for them this season and it works wonders for their lines, their control. I felt like this program just had a great pace for them that allowed them to complete their elements successfully, as well as reach out emotionally to the audience a bit more than last year. These two, also, have a great pairs presence for the short time they’ve competed together. If they can play to the system a little more (I see some areas that transitions could be helpful and step sequences that could be more challenging), they’ll be right up there internationally. Too bad about the missed throw or they would have been on the podium here.

Final Results:
1. Savchenko/Szolkowy GER (197.70)
2. Moore-Towers/Moscovitch CAN (175.48)
3. Sui/Han CHN (170.07)
4. Denney/Barrett USA (166.42)
5. Stolbova/Klimov RUS (159.49)
6. Castelli/Shnapir USA (153.33)
7. Zhang/Toth USA (126.70)
8. Kemp/King GRB (115.92)

The final group of the ice dance event was something special, to say the least.

Meryl Davis and Charlie White were more than favorites here…it would have been an enormous upset if they even finished close to the top Canadian teams. Good thing, though, because they were not perfect in either portion, with Charlie’s miss on the twizzles in the Short (according to him he was simply trying to break light speed when physics got in his way!) and an awkward fall by the both of them as they got a little tangled in a footwork sequence in the free dance. Still, the amount of difficulty in their elements and the quality in their performance has they head and shoulders above the rest, thus the win here.

Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier had loads of expectations on their shoulders here after debuting a fabulous free dance to “Eleanor Rigby” as interpreted by Chris Dean…and winning with it, brilliantly, in Canada. It just didn’t go quite their way here, even though they skated to silver. Someone on twitter observed, as did I, that they just looked off. I felt they skated cautiously, which translated into making the difficult choreography look heavy and a tad clumsy, instead of inspiring and smooth. That said, this is a wonderful free dance and when they skate it with more freedom, it’ll be spectacular.

Maia Shibutani and Alex Shibutani stamped their name in the “best in the world” list with a free dance that was as technically difficult as it was artistically brilliant. I sound like a broken record here, but there’s just something very special about this team that starts from their edge work, through their posture, culminating in the exquisite completion of every element – not just in getting it done, but fully stretching out every move for the greatest impact. It’s unusual in such a young team, but these two have it down pat. And training with the best in the world at the Shpilband camp? They’re set for stardom, for sure.

Final Results:
!. Davis/White USA (156.68)
2. Crone/Poirier CAN (149.08)
3. Shibutani/Shibutani USA (144.81)
4. Weaver/Poje CAN (142.34)
5. Riazanova/Tkachenko RUS (137.14)
6. Kriengkrairut/Giulietti-Schmitt USA (130.72)
7. Reed/Reed JPN (113.39)
8. Coomes/Buckland GRB (111.29)
9. Frohberg/Giesen GER (104.18)

Then there were ladies.

First of all, I want to thank NBC for enlisting the services of Terry Gannon. I was always impressed with his professionalism, but perhaps more impressed with his introduction to and eventual involvement in the skating world. The guy’s a basketball player…he’s a “sports guy” and that doesn’t usually translate to a heartfelt interest in the skating world. But he took his job seriously, learned all he could, and really found a love for the sport and its athletes. He’s an inspiration to me in my own career, and a wonderful piece of figure skating broadcast history. Welcome back, Terry!

Now, the skating.

If anyone wonders about the future of ladies skating, look no further than Kanako Murakami. This girl has more spunk than many senior ladies can dream of, she skates with the purest essence of joy, and she’s got a fab triple-triple to boot! She wasn’t flawless, but she’s growing. She has a wonderful future ahead of her, and she may have jump-started it here by taking advantage of the mistakes of those ahead of her. If she works on the maturity in her presentation, she’ll fit right in with the top level of skaters in the world.

Rachael Flatt skated with a bit of an injury - tendinitis in her ankle – but other than the absence of her planned triple-triple, you never would have known. She skated her long program to the fullest, and you could tell how pleased she was with her clean skate. This program still needs some work, some polish, and she’s got to fully rotate those triples, but this was a nice come-from-behind silver for her after missing a jump in the short. She has a lot of determination, so she will only get better as the season progresses. But I feel this was a success for her.

Carolina Kostner is also skating with a knee injury that could require surgery some time soon. Because of that, she’s limited in her jump content (she can’t do the flip or lutz) which just increases the importance of every jump she can complete…and that didn’t happen here. Admittedly, I didn’t get to see her skate. But from the sounds of things, it wasn’t pretty. And when Carolina’s off, she’s really off. Still, she always gains points for things that may or may not deserve them, so she managed to hang on for a medal…other than that, I’ll reserve judgement until I actually see the program!

A quick congratulations to the Helgesson girls for skating well in the long (and Joshi for skating well overall…as a last minute replacement, nonetheless!). It’s great to see young talent skate without the pressure of expectation, and they delivered! Their mom (and coach) should be quite proud.

Final Results:
1. Kanako Murakami JPN (164.93)
2. Rachael Flatt USA (162.86)
3. Carolina Kostner ITA (1154.87)
4. Joshi Helgesson SWE (146.90)
5. Amelie Lacoste CAN (146.68)
6. Viktoria Helgesson SWE (142.26)
7. Elene Gedevanishvili GEO (1139.36)
8. Mae Bernice Meite FRA (137.05)
9. Carolin Zhang USA (132.49)
10. Jenna McCorkell GBR (1127.76)
11. Min-Jeong Kwak KOR (125.21)
12 Alexe Gilles USA (122.46)

Time for a quick breather before moving on to Moscow. There may be a something special coming up later this week, but until I have the details worked out, I’ll hold off promoting it…

But regardless, I’ll be back soon enough with thoughts on Cup of Russia and of course, my picks for my Fantasy Team! (Speaking of fantasy team…this week my pairs picks set me off on a great start! But, unfortunately it was down hill from there. I will never make any  money on accurate predictions, that’s become very evident!)

Until then…

SA shorts – Pairs, Men November 13, 2010

The first round of short programs are complete from Portland, and I’m certainly not without my share of thoughts! Both the Pairs and Men’s short programs brought plenty to discuss, but I’ll keep it to a minimum (must work early in the morning, so I can’t be up all night blogging!)

For the pairs, it came down to experience, as expected. Savchenko/Szolkowy ended up in first, despite a rock technical performance (she doubled the side-by-side jump, the side-by-side spins were ugly, and not much was really well done), thanks to the PCS marks. I know I’ve defended the PCS marks in the past, but I’m not sure I see what the judges saw here. I wouldn’t have had them in 1st.

The Canadian dynamic duo of Moore-Towers/Moscovitch didn’t disappoint after their stellar silver medal-winning performance just weeks ago in Canada. They had their own glitches (no one was flawless), but they skated with speed and attack and great performance value. The out-skated the 3rd place team by less than a point in PCS, but had the edge technically.

Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett were almost clean – a little bit of a rough landing on the split 3-twist was the only smudge. This short, complete with throw triple lutz, is a much more mature look for them. I think their transitions need some work, but overall, a very nice skate. They had the best side-by-side spins of the night. (A pet peeve of mine, if you haven’t noticed!)

Standings overall:

1. Savchenko/Szolkowy GER (63.99)
2. Moore-Towers/Moscovitch CAN (61.64)
3. Denney/Barrett USA (58.49)
4. Sui/Han CHN (57.53)
5. Stolbova/Klimov RUS (53.73)
6. Zhang/Toth USA (48.13)  *solid debut for them!
7. Castelli/Shnapir USA (47.24) *Tough break with some falls, but they have some gorgeous elements!
8. Kemp/King GRB (42.00)

The Free Programs will be telling…who can hold it together and skate clean?

The men’s short program started out pretty clean, including a clean, solid skate from Armin Mahbanoozadeh (2nd highest TES score of the night!) that held up until the 2nd group. But the roughness hit later, as skaters like Stephen Carriere and Shawn Sawyer struggled.

The 2nd group, though, promised to be one of the strongest thus far this season…and it wasn’t quite what it could have been, until the top three!

Oda’s short, well, he’s just so smooth. Where his countryman Daisuke is fast and fabulous, Oda is smooth and subtle. His musicality is spectacular, and when his jumps are on, he’s got some of the best in the business. I feel like all anyone ever talks about is his knees, but the softness of those knees is what makes him so great. He hit what he needed to tonight, and was rewarded for it.

Daisuke is such a showman. His jumps weren’t quite on tonight, but even lacking perfection, he was still great. His footwork is so “In your face” but it’s not just show, it’s an impressive set of steps, and he makes it look easy. Combine that with the typically high PCS scores he rakes in, and he was set.

Then there’s the American, Adam Rippon. And his place in this list is tops when it comes to interpretation. The Japanese men are great, don’t get me wrong, but Adam makes me feel something when he skates. He opens up this whole other world…he lives Romeo and Juliet. I can imagine that every person in that arena took every step of that program with him, because he grabs you from the first note, and holds on until the last. A little mistake on the triple axel cost him, and his footwork may not have gained the level Dai’s and Oda’s did, but he is fantastic, there’s no doubt (and that triple lutz with both hands over his head is to die for).

These three men will dictate a lot internationally this season, and I’m loving watching them duke it out in Portland! Their Free Skates could be the highlight of the entire weekend.

Overall standings:

1. Nobunari Oda JPN ( 79.28)
2. Daisuke Takahashi JPN (78.12)
3. Adam Rippon USA (73.94)
4. Armin Mahbanoozadeh USA (67.61)
5. Daisuke Murakami JPN (67.01)
6. Denis Ten KAZ (64.50)
7. Adrian Schultheiss SWE (63.71)
8. Kevin Van Der Perren BEL (62.22)
9. Nan Song CHN (62.21)
10. Stephen Carriere USA (59. 14)
11. Shawn Sawyer CAN ( 56.94)
12. Viktor Pfeifer AUT (55.01)

 

More shorts tomorrow!

 

Until then…