Diane Szmiett (CAN) - Brutal. Needs to go home and "figure it out."
Min-Jeong Kwak (KOR) - Big piece of music for the mini Yu-Na...too big. No connection to the music.
Kristine Musademba (USA) - Program was filled with jump errors and lacked spark. Could be great a future date but needs greater content.
Amanda Dobbs (USA) - Again no spark. Jump errors. And needs harder content.
Joshi Helgesson (SWE) - First skater to land multiple triples. Lost steam at the end but easily the best to this point but behind Dobbs due to a jump not counting.
Alena Leonova (RUS) - Hot mess. But the best hot mess of the day and into the lead. Witches of Eastwick...really?
Bingwa Geng (CHN) - Not much here but landed the most jumps. Transition non-existent.
Miki Ando (JPN) - Vintage Ando. She put on a jumping clinic and never looked back. Huge tech score, hard to beat.
Akiko Suzuki (JPN) - Lovely program. Some jump issues here and there but fought through to the end. Two triple lutzes this year! Behind Ando.
Mirai Nagasu (USA) - Geisha program fell flat. Lots of jump errors and under-rotations. Exact same thing as last year at this event. 1st to off the podium.
Peitong Chen (CHN) - Rough. Lacked content and pizaaz.
Jialiang Wu (CHN) - Terrible. Falls on jumps, footwork, spins. Problems the whole way through...
Peter Liebers (GER) - Awkward Sherlock Holmes program. No flow...not pop.
Samuel Contesti (ITA) - Version 2.0 of Andes Panpipes. Very slow but hit most the jumps. Liked Version 1.0 better.
Jinlin Guan (CHN) - Overused version of Turandot. Failed quad and uninspiring program.
Tatsuki Machida (JPN) - Crash and Burn on Quad. Rushed! Needs to make his movements mean something rather than rushing through them.
Ross Miner (USA) - Improved from NHK. Needs to find some more connection with this music. Judges pounce on him a bit though.
Sergei Voronov (RUS) - Bailed on quad and then stops program. Knee injury...withdraws.
Brandon Mroz (USA) - Nailed it! Great piece of music and solid jumps including the quad. Into the lead big time!
Tomas Verner (CZE) - Cheap Michael Jackson Medley. Like Amodio...too much dancing not enough skating. Behind Mroz.
Brian Joubert (FRA) - Biq quad to open. This is my favorite Joubert program ever. Poor spins which cost him in tech score and into 3rd overall. Ouch!
Takahiko Kozuka (JPN) - Hangs on to most of his jumps and has beautiful spins. Program is bland but it gets the job done. Easy win.
Hole and Johnson (CAN) - Green!
Dong and Wu (CHN) - Disaster. Jumps, throws, lifts were a mess.
Della Monica and Kocon (ITA) - Not bad. Music kind of went nowhere but they managed most of their elements.
Evora and Ladwig (USA) - Pretty. Great lifts. Needs more excitement. Decent score though.
Iliushechkina and Maisuradze (RUS) - Nice elements. They have all the hallmarks of a great Russian Team but I don't feel they sell it. More umpf please.
Yankowskas and Coughlin (USA) - Lovely. Fall on Salchow but still a gorgeous performance. Into medal position.
Sui and Han (CHN) - Messy SBS but gutzy attempts at throw quad salchow and quad twist. Big tech score and comfortable lead. They have a performance factor that only comes naturally.
Pang and Tong (CHN) - Botched SBS jumps but smooth flowing from that point. Experience kicked in and they rode that wave of "know how" right to the win.
4 comments:
isn't it sad that if only mirai didn't tack on that double toe to the double axel she did at the end of her program, the combination wouldn't have counted as an invalid element and she would have gotten the bronze...
That's part of the game...have to follow the rules.
it's the "Latins & Witches" season...ugh...so little inventiveness. everyone has the post-olympics lemming syndrome.
i was SO happy that YankCough (sounds like a common doctor's request for men ;-) made it on the podium. i am LOVING them. i wish to god he would stretch out a little...but they are looking fabulous.
sui reminds me of naomi nari nam...which is a VERY good thing.
i think voronov had an ankle tweak, not a knee, but perhaps i'm wrong.
MROZ has opened up to his inner ballerina. he's a completely different skater. how exciting!
what is it with the single glove? M.J. and johnny have inspired a whole new craze.
i watch someone skate to beethoven's 9th is SO exciting for me, as i'm a HUGE beethoven fan. BUT, why does it have to be brian? he's just not going to be able to give it the life it needs. i'll assume the best and hope he can! DIG DEEP BRIAN!!!
i am LOVING them. i wish to god he would stretch out a little...but they are looking fabulous.
Post a Comment