The Pass List

Inevitably, after any Olympics, there is a swath of competitors who opt-out of the World Championships to follow. Here is the "Pass List" as it currently exists:

Evan Lysacek - The Olympic Champ is focusing on "Dancing with the Stars." Perhaps he can add a Mirror Ball Trophy to his illustrious collection. Replaced by Ryan Bradley.

Johnny Weir - I think just too much post-Olympic press and not enough preparation. Vowing to comeback next season...but he vowed to compete at World's too so...anyway. Replaced by Adam Rippon.

Shen and Zhao - Back into retirement for these two having won everything including that elusive Olympic Gold Medal. Sometimes it is a fairy-tale ending. Replaced by Dong and Wu.

Stéphane Lambiel - Like Shen and Zhao, he's opted to retire from eligible skating and will be on ABC's "Thin Ice" later this month. Replaced by Jamal Othman.

Belbin and Agosto - While they've made no formal announcement concerning the end of their competitive careers, prior to this season they said after these Olympics would be "it." They were vague about their future in post-Olympic Press but their withdrawal would seem to indicate they are moving ahead as planned. Replaced by Navarro and Bommentre.

UPDATE:
Domnina and Shabalin - We can add them to the pass list. They say they are resting and taking care of their health but it "isn't goodbye." Replaced by Rubleva and Shefer.

Who isn't on the pass list? The entire women's podium from Vancouver including Kim Yu-Na! (Scratch that...Joannie Rochette is taking a pass). Evgeny Plushenko will attempt to win another World Title, a feat he hasn't accomplished since 2004. Virtue and Moir are also slated to compete in an attempt to win their first World Title and complete a medal set (Silver in '08, Bronze in '09).

Lambiel Retires...Again

The ISU has been officially informed that Stéphane Lambiel has decided to retire from eligible competition.

"The ISU has been informed by the Swiss Ice Skating (federation) that Stéphane Lambiel's management has confirmed his retirement as an amateur from figure skating," ISU spokeswoman Devra Pitt Getaz said.

Lambiel is opting for a hefty show schedule as he enters the pro ranks and is slated to perform on ABC's "Thin Ice" competition.

Lambiel joins Lysacek as another top Vancouver competitor that will not be competing at the World Figure Skating Championships in Torino, Italy.

Carrying the Flag

The Opening Ceremony last Friday was an amazing experience. There were several figure skaters who had the pleasure of carrying the flag!

Kevin van der Perren was the first of the figure skaters to enter the arena carrying the flag of Belgium. A name you might not know, Ri Song-Chol, carried the flag for DPR Korea (North and South Korea are not competing under the unified flag at these Olympics), and he will be competing in figure skating. Julia Sebestyen held the flag for Hungary. Alexandra Zaretski carried Israel's flag. The final figure skater to enter the arena was Stéphane Lambiel. Of all the flag bearers, from any country, he looked the happiest! He had a grin from ear to ear and swung the flag from side-to-side with great enthusiasm.

Lots more Olympics to come and the Pairs Short Program is tonight!

XXI Olympic Winter Games Figure Skating Mens Preview

An extremely deep field of men will vie for the title of Olympic Champion in Vancouver. Who do I see as the top 12 contenders? There is:

Jeremy Abbott (USA) - Jeremy enters this event as the reigning U.S. National Champion, a title he successfully defended in Spokane. Every time he has competed this season he has looked stronger and stronger. The move from Colorado Springs to Detroit to train with Yuka Sato and Jason Dungjen is paying dividends. He has shown when he skates clean he is a force to be reckoned with. Not only does he have solid technical ability (including a quad which has looked rock solid in his free skate) but his component scores are always some of the best in the field. If he repeats what he did in Spokane, he might be the guy to beat.

Patrick Chan (CAN) - When he hits the ice the roar will be deafening! He enters these Olympics as one of Canada's top Gold Medal hopefuls and will have the support of the Canadian people. Like Abbott, he has a knack at grabbing top component scores but his technical ability has come into question recently as he has been working his way back from an injury early in the season. He also had a recent coaching shake-up with he and Don Laws parting on iffy terms. Patrick has reported that the quad will not be in his programs in Vancouver, nonetheless, he remains a threat for the top spot on the podium because of his artistic skill. Again, the home-crowd advantage can help or hurt; it will be interesting to see how Patrick handles the pressure.

Samuel Contesti (ITA) - While he hasn't had the season he had last year with a surprise European Silver Medal and a top 5 finish at Worlds, he continues to skate consistently and could be a dark-horse medal threat. He has crowd pleasing programs that will no doubt go down well in Vancouver and a new found consistency on triple jumps, but he lacks in the component score department. Still, if he skates clean, gets the crowd on his side, and others make mistakes he may find himself in the running for a medal. He has nothing to loose and everything to gain and that may be his biggest asset.

Brian Joubert (FRA) - He looked positively angry on the podium at the recent European Championships where he managed only the bronze medal. Since winning the world title in 2007 it seems like he can't catch a break. He lost Worlds in 2008 despite a clean skate with a quad. Dropped down to 3rd last year after some odd mistakes. He's had to pull out of two consecutive Grand Prix Finals. If all that wasn't enough, he had to deal with a foot injury in December. Oy! Still, he comes to Vancouver with one of the most consistent quads and loads of Olympic Experience. Hopefully, he learned some hard lessons from his failures in Torino that will serve him well in Vancouver. If he is as mad as looks about losing European's, he may come out in Vancouver swinging!

Takahiko Kozuka (JPN) - Part of arguably the strongest men's team (some might contend that Team USA is the strongest), Takahiko is one of several skaters that is easily capable of playing the role of spoiler at these Olympics. This season, however, hasn't been his best. He failed to qualify for the Grand Prix Final (an event that he took Silver in the prior year) and was just third at Japanese Nationals. Despite the recent downturn, his greatest strength is a lack of a weakness. He's solid technically as well as artistically. This season he's fiddled with putting the quad in his free skate, I think sensing he needs a little extra 'umph' to really be a medal threat. If he can complete that jump and skate well...watch out!

Stéphane Lambiel (SUI) - A member of club comeback, Stéphane enters the Olympics coming off a successful European Championships. While he only won the silver medal there, he debuted a well received free skate to music from the opera La Traviata. Lambiel's technical ability is suspect without a triple axel, but he is a brilliant artisan who can rake in the points in the component scores. He is also the most gifted spinner in the competition. He's proven himself to be a clutch competitor, often times pulling off great performances when the lights are on and the chips are down. Like many of the top competitors he has dealt with injury in the run-up to these Olympics. If he can get through the gauntlet of triple jumps, complete his quads, and charm the audience, I don't see how he isn't on the podium.

Evan Lysacek (USA) - The reigning World Champ has looked Olympic ready all season. The only time he looked vulnerable was at the recent National Championships in Spokane where a late decision to rearrange his free skate and add a quad led to some inconsistencies and just a Silver Medal. Nonetheless, he has stated over and over that his goal this season is Vancouver and it is there he wants to peak. Up until nationals he was simply cruising along with big wins at Cancer.Net Skate America as well as the Grand Prix Final. Many are touting Evan as the best chance the U.S. has at a Gold Medal and he is certainly garnering the most American media attention. If he can continue to be as steady as he has been most of the season, he'll give everyone a run for their money in Vancouver.

Evgeny Plushenko (RUS) - The 2006 Olympic Champ is looking for second helpings here in Vancouver and he is, for many if not most, the favorite to win Gold. He made his comeback at Rostelecom Cup with the confidence that only Plushenko can display. Many were unsure of how solid he would look after being away from competition for nearly four years and he waltzed back on the scene...with quad and arrogant #1 finger waves. He has been plagued with some slight difficulty with his knee but it didn't stop him from winning Russian Nationals and Europeans. Despite, in my opinion, having a one dimensional approach to choreography, the judges love him and if he manages a clean skate I can't imagine him not winning.

Nobunari Oda (JPN) - When Nobunari debuted his new free skate at Trophee Eric Bompard, I was impressed! Nobunari has found his stride this season with a beautiful Charlie Chaplin program that suits him brilliantly. He's one of only two skaters that have been successful at getting past World Champ Evan Lysacek; he did so at Samsung Anycall Cup of China. Even though he enters this competition as the #2 ranked man from Japan, I think he is a legitimate Gold Medal threat, especially if he attempts and lands the quad in his free skate. He missed making the Olympics in 2006 because of a scoring snafu at Japan's National Championships that ended up reversing the placement at the top and leaving him at home. This time, he gets to show the world what he's got.

Daisuke Takahashi (JPN) - He has had a roller coaster season to this point. A poor skate at home at NHK Trophy followed by a great skate at HomeSense Skate Canada. He then had another meltdown at the Grand Prix Final but rebounded with a great skate at Japanese Nationals. It's hard to predict where Takahashi will come out in Vancouver. The early season issues were attributed to his being off last season with a meniscus injury but stamina issues have continued to plague him. However, when he is in top form, he is hard to compete with. His program is also well suited to him and full of character and his footwork is some of the best in the world.

Tomas Verner (CZE) - I almost considered not including Tomas in this post and instead focus on his teammate Michal Brezina. Tomas started the season promising but it has been down hill ever since. After winning the Silver Medal at Trophee Eric Bompard, he was just 4th at Cancer.Net Skate America. Then he finished last at the Grand Prix Final, lost the Czech Championship to Brezina and finished a disappointing 10th at Europeans...a far cry from the win he was able to produce in 2008. It would be easy for anyone to write him off at this point but Tomas has an amazing resilience to adversity and an ability to put himself back together after disappointing performances. He's humpty-dumpty if you will. If he stays on his feet and rotates his jumps he has a shot at a medal, if he falters...he's toast.

Johnny Weir (USA) - He has already made the headlines and he hasn't even stepped on the ice. Johnny will take the ice with the distraction of having to deal with Friends of Animals, an animal protection group that slammed Weir for his use of real fox fur on his Free Skate outfit. He's decided to replace the fur with faux fur. In a statement he said:

I made this decision after several threats were sent to me about disrupting my performance in the Olympic Games and my costume designer, Stephanie Handler, was repeatedly sent messages of hate and disgust. I do not want something as silly as my costume disrupting my second Olympic experience and my chance at a medal, a dream I have had since I was a kid.

So far this season Johnny has been okay...not stellar. He barely made the Olympic Team with a 3rd place finish at U.S. Nationals. If he is going to be a medal threat in Vancouver he will have to up his game. He does have a flair for the dramatic so he may shock us all yet.

European Championships Preview (Men)

The oldest skating event on the books, the European Championships will be happening concurrently with U.S. Nationals. Like the men's field in Spokane, the men's field in Tallinn is equally impressive. An Olympic Champ, two Olympic medalists, three World Champions, three European Champions, two Junior World Champs, and too many national champions to mention will all battle to become Europe's best. As I see it, ten men (seriously...ten!) have a shot at taking this title (or at least medaling). Who are the ten I'm watching?

Kevin van der Perren - Poor KVDP has had a really rough go this season. At HomeSense Skate Canada he looked absolutely disgusted with figure skating. Hopefully a bit of break from competitive skating and the Olympics just around the corner can put him back on track. European's offer Kevin a chance to reintroduce himself as a serious contender prior to the Olympics. Kevin finished 5th at Rostelecom Cup and a devastating 11th at HomeSense Skate Canada.

Michal Brezina and Tomas Verner - Both of these Czech skaters have had quite different seasons thus far. Tomas, who was the 2008 Champ of this event, has struggled here and there this season. He made the Grand Prix Final (after Joubert withdrew with injury) only to finish last. Brezina, on the other hand, has made steady improvements and nearly made the Grand Prix Final himself. He went on to defeat Verner for the Czech National Title. Verner needs to turn his season around and Brezina needs to continue his upswing.

Brian Joubert, Yannick Ponsero, and Alban Preaubert - Team France is easily the strongest in the field. Europeans offers Joubert the chance to do two things: test his skating after coming off of mid season foot surgery and also test himself for the first time since Torino against both Lambiel and Plushenko. Joubert is without question one of the leading men heading towards Vancouver, a status he'll hope to keep coming out of this event. For Ponsero and Preaubert, this is likely the end of their season as neither is slated to compete in Vancouver or Torino (one may go to Torino but it's too early know). Both were bested by young upstart Florent Amodio at French Nationals and failed to gain an Olympic berth (Amodio isn't competing in Tallinn). Both, however, are solid competitors and may surprise here.

Samuel Contesti - Last season's surprise European silver medalist is hoping to continue his emergence into the top ranks of men's figure skating. He kept it together at last World's in L.A. to place in the top five and while not perfect has skated fairly consistently on the Grand Prix. He'll need to bump it up a notch to compete with the heavy hitters here in Tallinn. His programs are unique crowd pleasers but he'll need to hit all his jumps and improve his levels to make a run at the title.

Evgeny Plushenko and Sergei Voronov - Plushenko is no stranger to this event. Ten years removed from his first European Title (2000) he's going after win number six. He made his comeback at Rostelecom Cup earlier this season with great ease but has since struggled with some knee problems. Even still, he enters this event as the Russian National Champ and skating fairly well. One thing many people will be looking at is the score Plushenko receives for his programs. At Russian Nationals his (and teammate Voronov) scores were very (very!) inflated...it'll be interesting to see what his actual international scores look like and if that knee continues to hold up. Voronov is still looking to crack into the top echelon of European men, he's been knocking at the door for several seasons now.

Stéphane Lambiel - It's a complete mystery to me that he has never won the European Title. Like Plushenko, he has made a rather impressive comeback this season, albeit he was only gone for one season to Plushenko's three. Lambiel, as a result of Jamal Othman's dismal performance in L.A. hasn't been afforded the chance to really pit himself against any of the world's best skaters this season. This competition will be the first time to see how Lambiel fits into this complex mix of skaters. Lambiel has a knack at being seemingly unprepared but looking rather prepared when you least expect it. He's also a very organic skater that likes new challenges and competes well given those challenges. He's planning a new free skate, we may (or may not) see it in Tallinn (We will! La Traviata). I look at Lambiel as the wildcard here.

Interesting, the top three big names are all entering this event nursing some sort of injury. Joubert has his foot, Plushenko his knee, and Lambiel his hip. This may throw a wrench into things...then again it may not affect things at all.

2009 Nebelhorn Trophy

Thursday marks the beginning of the 2009 Nebelhorn Trophy in Oberstdorf, Germany. This is an important competition not only because top talent will be competing but many competitors are on a quest to attempt to qualify berths at the 2010 Olympic Games.

Two men have a realistic chance of qualifying berths for the Olympics (the qualifying process begins with Nebelhorn but it does not end here). Switzerland's Stéphane Lambiel begins his comeback bid here and realistically has to be seen as the clear favorite. It will be the first time we will have seen him in competition mode since the 2008 World Championships and give us a picture of how successful his comeback may be. Also with a solid chance of qualifying a berth for Azerbaijan is former Canadian competitor Fedor Andreev who recently won the Skate Detroit competition. His stock is on the rise and I expect he'll skate well. Plenty of other talent to keep an eye on including Czech skater Michael Brezina who won this event in 2007. France's innovative Yannick Ponsero is in the mix as is the 2004 World Bronze medalist Stefan Lindemann who'll be skating at home. Ryan Bradley from the U.S. will make his season debut in Germany.

This event has a fairly solid pairs and dance field. In Pairs, World Champions Savchenko and Szolkowy look to begin their season with an easy win. Also competing are Ukranians Volosozhar and Morozov, Canadians Langlois and Hay, and Americans Castille and Okolski. The Ice Dance competition gives Americans Davis and White a chance to get early feedback on their dances this season.

Amongst the women, three ladies I feel have a near equal chance at taking the title. Alissa Czisny, who won the title last season, Kiira Korpi, and Sarah Meier all have a shot, just depends who shows up with their jumping legs. Hungary's Julia Sebestyen, 2004 European Champion, is competing but unfortunately she hasn't been much of a factor in recent years.

UPDATE: Terrible news. Fedor Andreev will not be competing at Nebelhorn Trophy and thus will be unable to qualify for the 2010 Olympic Games. The reason...the Azerbaijan Skating Federation forget the paperwork! He and teammate Joelle Forte (who used to compete for the U.S.) were forced to withdraw because of the mishap. You can check out the full scoop at Jenny Kirk's blog. How unfortunate.

UPDATE #2: Sarah Meier has also withdrawn from Nebelhorn.

UPDATE #3: A quick update with the winners of this event. No surprises really. Switzerland's Stéphane Lambiel won the men's event. American Alissa Czisny took the ladies title (despite a sixth place free skate). Pairs title easily went to reigning World Champs Savchenko and Szolkowy of Germany. The dance title went to Americans Davis and White.

Ice All Stars 2009

Well by all accounts the show was a success. Great job Kim Yu-Na! South Korea's skating hungry audience was delighted to the hilt, Michelle Kwan made a graceful return, and the internet is simply a buzz with skating glee! My friend Reese was able to attend (she actually had a ticket for me...but work got in the way!) and said it was a good time. Everyone on Twitter who was there was simply buzzing about the show too!

First, if your interested in seeing the show. Just head over to YouTube and search for Ice All Stars 2009. You can see many (if not all of the performances from the show there. I've put one of my favorite clips below (I still today am completely impressed by Ilia Kulik).

Second, the cast. What an exciting, if unusual collection of skaters. While I wasn't surprised to see the likes of Rippon, Lambiel, or even Kwan in the show; the presence of Denkova and Staviski shocked me a bit. That's right, Maxim Staviski. Is this his first gig since his, shall we say, trouble? Guess he didn't have to serve those 2 1/2 years after all...

Finally, when can we begin to see this kind of excitement for figure skating back in North America. I'm actually quite jealous of South Korea right now!

Be sure to follow me on Twitter @skating102 for skating news, tidbits, and other fun information!

The Globe Trot

So much going on around the world these days!

The biggest off all the news coming from Korea where Ice All Stars has wrapped successfully. Of course Michelle Kwan made her return (although not competitive) to the ice. There was quite a cast and I hope to bring you all some more info on that soon in a separate post. Also, Kim revealed her music choices for next season. James Bond for the SP and Piano Concerto in F for the free.

To Germany where the Nebelhorn Trophy entries have been announced. This event is uniquely important this season as it serves as an Olympic Qualifier for those nations that performed (or didn't perform at all) poorly at last season's World Championships in Los Angeles. To that end, Stéphane Lambiel will be competing there as Switzerland needs to qualify a spot in Vancouver. Fedor Andreev will be competing on behalf of Azerbaijan to attempt the same. Other notable competitors in the event include: Yannick Ponsero, Brandon Mroz, Kiira Korpi, Fumie Suguri, Alissa Czisny, Sarah Meier, Savchenko and Szolkowy, Castile and Okolski, Kerr and Kerr, and Davis and White. This event takes place Sept. 24 - 27 in Obsterdorf, Germany.

Here in the U.S., the IOC, USOC, and NBC are all still squabbling about the proposed Comcast/USOC Olympic Network. Another coaching change to report, this time it's 2008 U.S. Bronze Medalist Stephen Carriere who will now train under Priscilla Hill. Overheard Rumor...McLaughlin and Brubaker's free skate will be to Slumdog Millionaire. If so, I'm way excited...that would be an awesome piece for them. Also, Scott Hamilton is getting back on the ice!

In Japan, Mao Asada continues to prepare for the toughest season of her career. In a recent article she told press reporters, "want to land a triple axel. I’ll push myself even more in practice and hopefully I can get started with a good season in my first event." She'll get the chance to strut her stuff at the Japan Open which is October 15-18. Also, seems Daisuke Takahashi was interested in Kim Yu-Na's ice show as he was spotted at the event.

And from Canada, news of the Teflon of sort. What am I talking about? Skate Canada and T-Fal have teamed together to offer commemorative Skate Canada frying pans. A portion of the proceeds go to the Skate Canada Athletes Fund which provides financial assistance to it's athletes. "It's hard to express the wonderful work T-fal has done to support our athletes and sport. These new pans are absolutely gorgeous and are a perfect addition to any kitchen," said Debbi Wilkes, Skate Canada Director Marketing and Communications. Perhaps at Canadian National's, the likes of Rochette and Chan will get a frying pan along with their medals?

Be sure to follow me on Twitter @skating102 for skating news, tidbits, and other fun information!

The Op-Ed: The Comeback

This Olympic turn has had one of the biggest comeback swings since like 1994. And even then, it was only because the ISU felt generous enough to allow pros to comeback because they stuck in an extra Winter Olympics to begin alternating them between Summer and Winter.

First it was Sasha, then Plushenko followed quickly by Shen and Zhao. Now it's Lambiel.

We're still holding on the line for Kwan...

I for one also think Buttle should consider...but I digress.

And more so than the fact that lots of skaters have decided to 'give it another go,' they're all previous Olympic medalist...like 'the cream of the crop!'

Many have expressed their feelings that they believe these skaters have had their turn...their 'shot,' and now it's time for them to step aside and let the skaters who've been working at this for the last four years have their 'time to shine.'

A part of me feels that way. I think it's the part of me that doesn't want to see, for example, a devastated Caroline Zhang finishing third at Nationals and missing the Olympic Team to a skater that's been twice before, such as Cohen. The thought of someone missing out on their dream kind of breaks my heart.

However, a much larger part of me, thinks that figure skating is sport, and to be the best you have to compete against the best. I tend to think that having these guys comeback will make those who are currently competing up their ante. And if the comeback class of 2010 is fit and ready to compete, why shouldn't they go to the Olympics? Isn't the Olympics supposed to be the very best...the pinnacle of sport?

So I say, if they want to comeback...comeback! If you can be physically ready to compete with the best...bring it (sorry...I couldn't resist)! I for one can't wait to see the clash between today's champs and yesterday's biggest stars.

May the best one win!

BREAKING NEWS: Plushenko knew...

I finally made it home last night! Flying into O'Hare in Chicago was a harrowing experience...I've never flown directly through a thunderstorm...in progress! Kudos to the Pilot of American Airlines Flight 843 from Miami to Chicago...well done!

But enough about scary flights, what about the big news that just came out today from Zürich! When Evgeny Plushenko announced his comeback, he stated he thought Lambiel would do the same. Seemed a bit random at the time.

Well, it's official. Stéphane Lambiel intends to compete in Vancouver. In an official press release, Lambiel states, "I would like to qualify for the 2010 Olympic Games and achieve a top score in Vancouver." The release also states his abductor injury hasn't gone away, but physical therapy has made the pain manageable.

He'll train twice a week with Peter Grütter (in the news recently as Kostner's former coach) in Geneva and the rest of the time on his own at home in Lausanne under the care of his physical therapist.

But, there's a catch here. Jamal Othman, Switzerland's top mens skater in Lambiel's absence this season didn't perform so hot in competition. Compounding the problem, Othman failed to reach the free skate at the World Championships in Los Angeles. What does that mean? Switzerland didn't qualify an Olympic berth in Vancouver for the men's event. *GASP*

But, not all is lost...it simply means Stéphane has to do a few things. First he'll have to place in the top six at Nebelhorn Trophy. He'll have to get at least 195 points in two competitions (one will hopefully be Nebelhorn) to prove he's competitive. Likely, he'll need to compete at the European Championships in Estonia to seal the deal. At that point, the IOC can give Switzerland one of the provisional allotments.

Busy season for Lambiel ahead. I wish him luck and most of all I hope he can remain healthy enough through all of this.

The Globe Trot

Some interesting things happening in the world of figure skating.

First to Korea where it appears Kim Yu-Na invited Michelle Kwan to skate in the All-Stars 2009 Tour...and Michelle said yes! "Michelle has turned down other invitations, but she and Yu-na have a mutual admiration society going. Michelle is feeling healthy and has her abilities up to the standards she sets for herself, which are very high standards" said Shep Goldberg, Michelle's agent. Might Michelle drop a return-to-skating bomb in skating crazy Korea...stay tuned.

Lots happening here in the U.S. First, Carolina Kostner will be staying in L.A. and training with Frank Carroll and Christa Fassi. The moves comes after a disastrous showing at Worlds (ironically) in L.A. and the dismissal of her former coach Michael Huth. The big news is of course the tragic arrest of Nicole Bobek on charges to distribute Meth. She's plead not guilty and has been released on $200,000 bond. Jenny Kirk is getting positive press for releasing details of her eating disorder while she was competing. An important issue, to be sure, that needs more attention. The USOC and Comcast have teamed up to bring forth a new network devoted to Olympic coverage. Sorry if you don't have Comcast. Finally, reigning World Champ Evan Lysacek will be part of the marketing campaign for Ralph Lauren's 2010 Olympic Gear. "Having worn Ralph Lauren clothing for years, I am really excited to partner with Polo Ralph Lauren for their Olympic campaign," said Evan.

The German magazine Pirouette recently did an interview with Stéphane Lambiel and he just will not close the door on a possible competitive return, however, he states that it's not on his top list of priorities. "It is not 100% out of question but it is not my plan yet. I don’t want to disappoint the fans. For me it’s important that I’ve ended my career and I am happy with that, what I have achieved. If something will change on with physical conditions, then I will think about it.”

Who am I following on Twitter? There's an extensive list over on my right side bar but new to my followings are Madison Hubbell, Daisuke Murakami, and Fedor Andreev.

You may have noticed I changed the name of the spot from Around the World to The Globe Trot...thanks to my readers for the feedback and suggestion.

Philip Hersh nails it again...

From the L.A. Times by Phil Hersch...

An artless system devours figure skating's Stephane Lambiel

In the last month, two of the last remaining artists in competitive men's figure skating have suddenly quit.

First came Canada's Jeffrey Buttle, 26, the reigning world champion, who apparently felt he could no longer match that achievement in a sport with a scoring system that makes it possible for a skater like him to win only if the more purely athletic skaters screw up.

Thursday, Switzerland's Stephane Lambiel, 23, winner of two world titles and the reigning Olympic silver medalist, said he no longer could overcome a nagging leg injury to skate at his highest level.

Unlike Buttle, Lambiel was able to do the quadruple jumps that are big point-getters in the scoring system implemented after the pairs skating imbroglio after the 2002 Olympics. But he had become painfully inconsistent on the other litmus test jump, the triple axel.

And he said in his retirement news conference that the demands of the new scoring system had led to injuries, which have become common as skaters are forced into doing all sorts of ligament-defying contortions to score more points.

Adding all the rococo ornaments to skating does not give it style, the sort of grace and purity of line Buttle and Lambiel embodied at their best. It does what the poet Alexander Pope pilloried 300 years ago in these lines from "An Essay on Criticism:"

Such labour'd nothings, in so strange a style,
Amaze th'unlearned, and make the learned smile

It takes a skilled eye, with some background in music and dance and theater, to judge artistry in skating, to see the athlete who can play a character or create a tableau or leave abstract expressions based on the music.

Accounting skills are all that is needed to judge a sport that has become paint-by-numbers.

Or watching paint dry.

read more | digg story

And so it is...

Ah, the rumors are in fact shown to be true...Stéphane Lambiel will retire from competitive figure skating.

Dubreuil and Lauzon, Buttle, Nam, now Lambiel...what's happening?

Graham Dunbar of the The Associated Press reports that continued struggles with an abductor injury and future concerns for his health lead to the decision.

"It's seven months that I've been going to see the best doctors," Lambiel said. "I still have the pain and it's really not possible to train like that. I didn't have the ability to reach my objectives. My goal was to be world champion and Olympic champion."

Apparently as fast as Johnny got a new training partner he's lost one.

Lambiel still plans to perform in shows and entertain audiences. "I still want to give my best possible performance," he said.

It's a sad day for figure skating. Here's a little something to remember...

Rumbles...

The Internet is simply buzzing about Stéphane Lambiel...

He's now withdrawn from the Grand Prix entirely (he was scheduled to compete in Canada and Japan) and will have a press conference tomorrow. He's been dealing with an injury and there are some rumors he may retire from competitive figure skating.

Stay Tuned...

Under the weather...

Stéphane Lambiel is continuing to deal with an abductor injury that he sustained at the 2008 World Figure Skating Championships last March in Goteborg.

He's been in Germany seeing a sports medicine specialist who is suggesting that Stéphane take a few weeks off.

His new programs aren't finished and his training is behind schedule so his participation in the Grand Prix series is in question. Stephane is scheduled to compete at Skate Canada in Ottawa and the Trophée Eric Bompard Cachemire in Paris. Skate Canada is only the second event in the series which may not give him enough time to prepare.

Good luck on your recovery Stéphane.

More shuffling

The figure skating coaching shuffle continues. Today, Stéphane Lambiel announced that he is leaving long-time coach (13 years) Peter Grütter to train in Wayne, New Jersey with Viktor Petrenko and Galina Zmievskaya. It marks the first time Stéphane will train in the U.S.

Which of course means that Johnny Weir was a new training mate, as Johnny also is coached by the duo. Johnny's principal coach is Galina, while Stéphane's will be Viktor, however, both will help with both skaters. It's kind of like Frank Carroll and Ken Congemi or Mark Mitchell and Peter Johansson...everyone helps!

On his official website, Stéphane spoke of Peter: "It has been a difficult decision. I owe a lot to Peter Grütter. We part on good terms and remain friends." Apparently given that the Olympics are less than two years away and over the past two seasons he's gone from Defending World Champion, to World Bronze Medalist, to fifth place at World's (not the direction you want to go heading towards an Olympics), some changes needed to be made.

Two of the sports most artistic talents training together...should be interesting! I think these two can really push each other.

Turn of events!

What a conclusion to the Grand Prix Final. The phrase "the only constant is change" holds true this past weekend. Let's take a look.

In Ice Dance the field spaced out a little, but not much. Leaders after the short program, Americans Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto couldn't hang on to that lead and lost by just over a point to the Russians who were third after the Original Dance. The difference was in the Technical Element Score where the Russians outdistanced the Americans by nearly two points (earlier at Cup of Russia they had managed to achieve the highest free dance total recorded to date). In fact, there was only about a two point spread on the Technical Element Score between the top 5 teams. The French team of Delobel and Schoenfelder dropped to third, but it was still fairly close. The Canadians Virtue and Moir were fourth despite a strong free dance and high technical marks. The Russian team of Khoklova and Novitski were fifth and the French team of Pechalat and Bourzat were sixth. The big picture here is that all these teams are skating great and really holding nothing back. I think we are in for a 'Battle Royale' in Sweden!

In pairs, unfortunately, Americans McLaughlin and Brubaker withdrew to injury. I haven't tracked down the scoop on that yet. Other than that there was little drama in the Pairs field, everyone maintained there position from the short (except Kawaguchi and Smirnov who moved up to fifth due to the withdrawal of the Americans). The Germans took the gold by just a little over 8 points, with Zhang and Zhang taking silver and Pang and Tong winning the bronze. Canadians Dube and Davison were fourth.

The men were fantastic! I toot the liberty of watching them on YouTube and I was really impressed. They all skated well with the top three skating very well! What a showdown between Lambiel and Takahashi. Lambiel was trailing Takahashi just a bit after the short and new he needed a strong skate. His "Flamenco" program, which in my opinion, is one of the greatest choreographed programs ever, was fast and precise. All the choreography was in place, amazing footwork, fantastic spins. His jumps were good as well. He stepped out of his triple axel a bit (he just recently put it back in the program) and had a little bit of wobble on his quad but overall it was very good. Takahashi started his program with a triple toe that was planned to be a quad. He came around the ice and threw the quad again and nailed it! He went on to land six more triples, four past the half way point. However, we wasn't able to hold his lead and barely came in second. The difference was in the choreography were Lambiel was over two points ahead. The bronze went to American Evan Lysacek who had a great program as well. Right off the top of the program he hit a beautiful quad toe/triple toe. The only major flaw came when he fell on a triple salchow. Johnny Weir had a strong free skate but lacked a quad and finished fourth. Patrick Chan improved from the short program and finished fifth while Van Der Perren struggled and finished sixth.

The ladies event was very exciting. The first thing to report is the real problems Kimmie Meissner is having, apart from finishing last with one of the lowest scores I've ever seen from her, she failed to land a lutz or a flip in her free skate. It is crystal clear, Meissner is struggling. A close race for the bronze broke out between Zhang, Kostner, and Nakano. Nakano gave it her best shot with a beautiful triple axel off the top. However a late fall on a triple toe and poor credit for some of her jumps due to a wrap left her in fifth place. Caroline Zhang who had been in second after the short pushed through her "Ave Maria" program with better speed. She finished fourth in part because of the incorrect edge deduction the ISU is now taking as well as a fall on her second lutz. Carolina Kostner held on to take the bronze. Her only major mistake came when she singled a planned triple flip. The big showdown came between Mao Asada (who pulled way up from sixth) and Yu-Na Kim (leader after the short). Mao opened her free skate with a big triple axel (slight two foot) and never looked back. She did receive the deduction on her lutx for flutzing it (they really are picky about that this year) but received almost all positive grades elsewhere. Kim came out with her cool elegant style and reeled off a triple flip/triple toe to open her program. She went down on an early triple loop but went on to hit everything else earning mostly positive grades. She didn't win the free skate, but her lead overall carried her to win her second consecutive Grand Prix Final Title.

Nice preview of things to come! Came Tanith and Ben get to the top step of the Ice Dance Podium? Can Kimmie shake off her demons in time for Nationals or is a new star about to shine bright? Can the Germans continue to hold off the Chinese in Pairs? Which one of these men who are all skating well emerge as the "leading man?" Stay tuned!