Pic of the Week

So Skate America was a blast and to commemerate this past weeks' events I present you with this pic of the week!

Jessica Dube and Bryce Davison surprised us all with their charm on the ice, strong lifts, and beautiful choreography. Even more surprising, they upstaged the very strong Chinese team of Pang and Tong. I fell in love with this team at Skate America and am very excited to see them at Skate Canada.

I hope they show their exhibition on televison because it was truly beautiful (gorgeous rendition of "The Blower's Daughter" by Damien Rice). Congratulations Jessica and Bryce and go get them at Skate Canada!

Skate America Report 3

It turned out to be another fantastic day! If you are ever in Pennsylvania, I suggest a trip to Gettysburg National Military Park. It was really moving walking where history has been made...history that really defines our nation. It was truly a site to behold.

The skating wrapped up today. I was able to chit chat some more with Amanda Evora's parents and Davis and White's family. They are really very nice people! I was a bit confused by the final standings of the ice dance competition. Davis and White finished 4th...I would have easily had them 3rd and maybe even second. I think the judges are not appreciating the super technical content White and Davis are executing; I certainly hope they are judged better in France. The bronze medal went to the Italians despite having a nasty fall mid program. They managed to recover but the program lost steam after that; the music of "Yentl" doesn't seem to match their personality. The French claimed the silver with a high energy new-age program that certainly felt french. This team has made big improvements since last season. Tanith and Ben of course won the gold and their Beethoven program is brilliant. This program may be the one that gets them to the top of the World Podium.

Let me be blunt...Caroline Zhang should be the 2007 Skate America Champ...she got short-changed by the judges, she was spectacular. She did win the bronze beating out Emily Hughes (who had big troubles with her jumps). Miki Ando captured the silver with a powerful performance. She had a couple minor jump issues but overall she looks well trained and ready to go this season. Kimmie Meissner won the gold...somehow. She too had some jump issues popping a planned triple lutz, again cheating the second half of her triple/triple and stepping out of a salchow. I can say her choice of music, Puccini's "Turnadot" is brilliant.

The night ended with the exhibition performances. Three times were treated to Timberlake's "I'm bringing Sexy Back." Once again Caroline Zhang brought the crowd to their feet with a brilliant performance, Daisuke Takahashi brought elegance and speed to the ice, Dube and Davison brought a tear to all our faces with their gorgeous skate, The Haydenette's stopped by for a performance and Tanith Belbin did indeed bring sexy back!

Skate America was a blast...thank you Reading, PA...it's been swell! Okay, time to hop on a plane and make my way to Quebec City, Canada!

Skate America Report 2

I must say I completely enjoyed myself today! To begin, I slept in (and that was needed), went shopping at the local outlet stores, went to see the Pagoda, and had a blast at the Sovereign Center!

I was really shocked at the pairs outcome. Dube and Davison managed to hold off the Chinese team of Pang and Tong. Bazarova and Larionov won the bronze. But that wasn't the most exciting part...as it would happen I was sitting next to Amanda Evora's (Amanda Evora and Mark Ladwig finished 4th) who was very knowledgeable and fun to chat with. Things got even more interesting when Mark and Amanda joined us in the stands. We had more fun talking skating, joking, and laughing then we ever should have...and they were there all night...good times. Please note, if you need to get a bear from your seat to the ice as a gift for a skater, Mark Ladwig can get it there 2 out of 3 times! Great skaters, great people.

No shock in the Ice Dance...Tanith and Ben still lead heading into the Free Skate. Their OD is this banjo, country thing that while technically difficult, it leaves me a little unimpressed. The whole folk music thing this year doesn't really do it for me. I wasn't a huge fan of most of the OD's except the French team of Pechalat and Bourzat; they skated to this Spanish piece that had lots of power, they're in second and the Italians are still third. Davis and White moved up to fourth. I was watching Meryl and Charlie warm up their twizzles in the warm-up and I said "very spiffy." A woman turns around in the seat in front of me, pats my leg, and says "I like you." Moments later enter two girls wearing white "Team Davis and White" t-shirts and I'm made aware that they are Charlie's sisters and she in fact is Meryl's mother...thankfully I like this team and was saying nice things!

The ladies short program was great! Very decent skating from the top six ladies. Looking at the standings the spread between 4th and 9th place is slim. Emily Hughes is in 4th after missing her opening combination, she then changed the program and added the combo later...that's a no no...and she suffered points. Caroline Zhang made her senior debut and it was stunning. She truly is a gem and several of us thought maybe she should be in the lead. Miki Ando is 2nd...she was cruising through her program until she went splat on the ice during her footwork sequence. Had it not been for that fall she would be the leader. Kimmie Meissner tops the leader board with her performance to "The Feeling Begins." Interestingly she lost no points for doing a triple lutz/triple toe in which the triple toe was cheated...it wasn't even downgraded yet Caroline Zhang's performance was nit picked to all hell by the judges...I'm just saying...

The men closed the night and Daisuke took the title with an up and down performance (his 14 point lead after the short helped!). He nailed is opening quad, fell on the triple axel. He went on to land several more jumps including a second axel but then fell on a triple lutz late in his program. It was good enough for a win. Evan brought the house down with his performance to "Tosca." His only problem came when he stepped out of his quad. Amazing footwork sequence in this program too. He won the free skate and placed 2nd overall and the program is fantastic, great job Evan. Patrick Chan of Canada made a splash with the bronze and seems very much like a skater on the move, he too had a great program. I have to mention the other two American Men who skated great as well! Ryan Bradley debuted his "Charlie Chaplin" number and it is Ryan at his best...but I still say work on those skating skills and he can place higher than 6th. Big night for Stephen Carriere, most of the people I was sitting near had no clue who this guy was (I informed them that he in fact is the reigning Jr. World Champ) and he skated great as well too finishing 4th...I'm thinking Nationals dark horse for the podium?

The weather broke today so I hope for lovely weather tomorrow here in Reading!

Skate America Report 1

So I would have blogged last night but by the time I got to my hotel room I was pooped!

I would love to tell you about the Compulsory Dance but...I can't! Rather than landing in Newark at 2:15 we had to circle the airport for nearly 2 hours so I got in late and what is a 2 hour drive became a 3 hour drive due to traffic...yeah I didn't see any of the dance competition night 1.

The pairs seemed like a relatively weak field but I was impressed with Canadians Dube and Davison, they lead Pang and Tong of China. It was a powerful performance they gave and strong skating skills that got them there. The Chinese looked a bit rusty but I think they will pull away in the free. The only clean team were Russians Basanova and Larionov, but they had lesser technical difficulty than the the other teams and are in third place.

The men also had trouble getting clean performances as well. Ryan Bradley had trouble with his quad combo doing only a triple triple and then did a double axel instead of a triple. His Godfather program is entertaining but he simply must work on his skating skills, he's in 8th place. Stephen Carriere pulled it together and while he had no quad he did accomplish what he planned and sits in 6th place. Evan Lysacek when down on his quad (awesome that he attempted it though) but came back strong. His Zorro program has a great circular footwork section and he gave it a lot of power, he's in 2nd place. The guy to beat was Takahashi. He was last to skate and didn't even have to try a quad because no one landed it successfully (Lutai of Russia almost did but it was a little bit under rotated). His program is brilliant, he incorporates his silky smooth style with hip hop dancing, great spins, awesome jumps, and very difficult footwork. He has a big lead going into the free skate. Patrick Chan of Canada rounds out the top three.

I can also tell you NBC's commentating team is Tom Hammond, Sandra Bezic, and Scott Hamilton.

Skate America 2007

Okay, so I'm off to Reading! Check for reports and pictures up on the blog! I just got a new camera I'm hoping will take some great shots!

I'm hoping to steal away to Gettysburg and the Statue of Liberty while I'm in the area...should be a blast!

Next week I'm off to Quebec City, Quebec for Skate Canada...I love the Grand Prix!

Pic of the Week

When he arrived in Nagano for his first (and only) Olympic Games in 1998, he seemed completely unaffected by the magnitude of it. Scott Hamilton repeatedly said, "it's just like any other competition for him. He's ho humming through it."

Ilia was the leader after the short program, which was no small feat considering Stojko, Eldredge, Candeloro, Yagudin, and Cousins had all turned in great short programs (I think that was one of the best men's short programs ever!).

The talk was the Quad...would Ilia attempt it...everyone knew Stojko was going to go for it...maybe even two! Ilia drew first to skate in the free skate (not a great place in the old judging system), took a deep breath, and began his program. Less than 20 seconds in he reels of a gorgeous quad toe and goes on to hit every jump in his program. At the completion of his program he smiles for the first time since arriving in Japan and you can see a youthful joy come over his face...a moment to remember!

The costume may have been unusual (do you remember the vinyl giraffe?) but the Olympic Gold Medal was splendid!

A good cause...no...a great cause!

If you find yourself with nothing to do on November 3 and find yourself in the Cleveland area...or...fancy a flight to Cleveland I suggest going to see An Evening with Scott and Friends.

The official website for the event states the main goal of the event is "to raise funds for The Scott Hamilton CARES Initiative at Cleveland Clinic Taussig Institute and to address Scott’s biggest concerns: cancer education, research, and survivorship."

The event is jam packed with some of skating's biggest stars including Kimmie Meissner, Meno and Sand, Todd Eldredge, Michael Weiss, Yuka Sato, Mirai Nagasu, and many others. Skaters will also be joined be Idol finalists Melinda Doolittle and Phil Stacey performing with the Cleveland Pops Orchestra conducted by Carl Topilow.

Sounds like a memorable night indeed! Check out more information on the Scott Hamilton CARES Initiative here!

Can I vent some more?

And why is it that this season, all but one of the Junior Grand Prix events were in Europe...ummmmm...what's the deal?

Can I vent?

I'm less than impressed with USFSA's changes as of late. I'm not a fan of the move from ABC to NBC with the coverage (I know, I know...you gotta go where they'll take ya!). It will simply be odd to see competitive skating on NBC. I'm not a fan of the bottom group of ladies at this years National Championships in St. Paul Minnesota having to skate in the early morning with the top group skating in primetime live.

But what really gets me upset is how icenetwork.com is basically taking over the USFSA website, and they aren't just allowing it, they're condoning it! You can't click on a link on the site anymore without being switched to an icenetwork.com site. Competition results, previews, videos, and now even discussion boards are on icenetwork.com.

USFSA...take back control of your content! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!

Pic of the Week

I guess I'm on a pairs skating frenzy here but for good reason...it's bloody good skating (thank you for allowing my Len Goodman moment!)!

I have very mixed feelings about the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic Games. I feel kind of short changed in all the disciplines...I didn't get the results I really wanted but we did see some amazing performances! One such performance was that of Kyoko Ina and John Zimmerman.

I couldn't remember the last time John Zimmerman actually landed his side-by-side triple toe in competition. In the short program at the most important competition of his life (the music was Shine On, You Crazy Diamond by Pink Floyd) he gritted his teeth and landed it! Clean performance, it was amazing...but that wasn't even the end of it! Kyoko and John went on to have the free skate of their lives. The only mistake was a tiny little hand down from Kyoko on a side-by-side double axle. John hit the triple toe again, they hit both throw jumps, good energy, and the final lift (seen above) brought the crowd to their feet.

They finished 5th...but it was a bloody good 5th place, and one of the best American pair performances in recent memory!

Pic of the Week

It still brings a smile to my face...this is one of my favorite pair performances of all time.

They were not happy after the short program! Todd Sand was so unhappy he put his fist through the wall backstage. A fifth place finish was not what the U.S. National Champions (and reigning World Bronze Medalists) were looking for. You could see sadness in Jenni Meno's eyes, anger in Todd's!

They had made the decision to use their free skate from last season prior to the event and what a great choice. With a beautiful orchestration of Puccini's Nessun Dorma behind them, they skate a clean performance and claimed a spot on the world podium for the second year in a row.

Jenni and Todd were also the only team on the podium to get a standing ovation from the Edmonton, Alberta, Canada crowd; the Germans Woetzel and Steuer were plagued by a large fall mid their Rolling Stones program while Russian's Eltsova and Bushkov (does anyone even remember them?) were bland in their Gold winning performance. I think this final pose in the picture sums it up nicely!

Look at that!

Looks like U.S. Figure Skating had another successful weekend! This time, we stomped on the Japanese team!

Figure Skating is big time in Japan right now (think U.S. post Nancy knee whack!) so they have lots of fun competitions like this past weekend's International Counter Match. The competition pitted U.S. skaters against Japanese skaters and Team USA came through.

Our field of talented men included Jeremy Abbott, Ryan Bradley, Stephen Carriere, and Johnny Weir. Reportedly Johnny looked very well trained and very much "with it" for this early in the season. I've been critical of Johnny in the past, maybe this will be the season where I hop on the Weir bandwagon (well see...)?

Japanese men's competitors included: Tatsuki Machida, Yasuhari Nanri, Kensuke Nakaniwa, and World Silver Medalist Daisuke Takahashi. Apparently none of the men save Johnny looked spectacular with the Americans winning 2 of the 4 match ups (Abbott and Bradley lost), with the U.S. winning convincingly because of Johnny's performance.

On the Women's side it was far closer. Competing for the U.S. was Mirai Nagasu, Rachel Flatt, Caroline Zhang, and Beatrisa (Bebe) Liang. Mirai lost her match-up against Rumi Suizu, and then Caroline Zhang stunningly defeated Miki Ando, the World Champion! Rachel Flatt was next and lost to World Silver Medalist Mao Asada. Very close going into the final match-up. Bebe wasn't perfect, but it was enough to slip past veteran Fumie Suguri and clinch the title for the American's.

Seems like an exciting competition! Check out the full details at this address: http://www.icenetwork.com/events/detail.jsp?id=34994

Pic of the Week

For this one we have to rewind the clock more than 23 years! It's February 14th 1984. Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean give what is still referred to today as the greatest Ice Dance performance of all time!

"Tonight we reached the pinnacle. I don't remember the performance at all. It just happened. But I think it was the most emotional performance we have ever given. What just happened out there - getting the medals - that is what we've worked for so hard for so long" Dean said.

Torvill added: "I just don't believe it. I don't think we'll get to bed tonight at all."

The music was Ravel's Bolero and to this day anyone who picks that music to skate too is held to the Torvill and Dean standard.

Some positivity for Team USA

Some people don't consider Nebelhorn Trophy a major event but at the very least it's an early international that lets skaters try out their new programs.

It is also noteworthy from an American standpoint because we managed to medal in all four disciplines! Megan Williams-Stewart won the Silver Medal in ladies (I'm assuming this is her best finish at a senior international and Shaun Rogers got a Silver in men's and almost won the Gold (less than a point!)...interestingly Tomas Verner finished 3rd...less than stellar for the guy that wowed us at World's last season.

In pairs, Evora and Ladwig captured the Bronze Medal and up and coming Ice Dance Team of Wester and Barantsev captured Gold in Ice Dance!

Other noteworthy results include Carolina Kostner demolishing the ladies scoreboard with a win of nearly 30 points better than her closest competitor (Williams-Stewart). Julia Sebestyen failed to medal in a relatively weak field (consider retiring!). It was odd that Verner only got the Bronze, odder yet that he was upstaged by fellow Czech Michal Brezina..16th at last season's Junior World Championships...hard worker over the summer? And World Bronze medalist Savchenko Szolkowy mopped up the pairs field with another near 30 point victory.

Fun times in Germany! Check out all the scores here...http://www.icenetwork.com/events/detail.jsp?id=34484