Ice Dance Newbies

As we approach the upcoming season, there are four Ice Dance teams that will be competing on the Senior Grand Prix for the first time that I have an eye on.

Maia and Alex Shibutani (USA) - 'The Shibs' as I call them make the move into the Senior Grand Prix this season. They breezed through their Junior Grand Prix events last season and took the Bronze at the Junior Grand Prix Final. After winning U.S. Nationals they placed 4th at Junior Worlds. This team has all the making of winners and I think as time goes by and they continue to develop they'll only get better. I would think it hard to skate with a sibling but this team manages that quite well. They have the added advantage that their training mates are the top two teams in the world (Virtue/Moir and Davis/White). Look for this team to make a stamp this season.



Alexandra Paul and Mitchell Islam (Canada) - This team teamed up in February of 2009 (both had previously skated with different partners) and have come together very fast. They just had iffy results during the Junior Grand Prix last season but got it together to win the Canadian National Title earning them a place on the Junior World Team where they really surpassed expectations and took the silver. They have amazing attack and you don't get that they are holding back. Their technical content is also very good. Some polishing needs to happen around the edges but certainly contenders in the coming years to be sure.



Kharis Ralph and Asher Hill (Canada) - Another Canadian duo that will make their Senior Grand Prix debut this season. This team actally has competed at the senior level at Canadian Nationals since 2009 and actually competed at the Four Continents Cup last season but has yet to skate on the Senior Grand Prix until this fall. This team was 4th at the Junior Grand Prix Final and Canadian Nationals last season. This team didn't compete at Junior World's last season. This team really gets 'Dance.' They move inventively and seem really in tune with their music choices and rhythm. They remind me of Marie-France Dubreuil & Patrice Lauzon at times...not a bad comparison I think.



Elena Ilinykh and Nikita Katsalapov (Russia) - The cream of the Junior crop making the jump to Senior is easily Ilinykh and Katsalapov. They've actually had a bit of an internal rivalry with their teammates Monko and Khaliavin who beat them at the Junior Grand Prix Final. Ilinykh and Katsalapov responded with a win at the Junior World Championships over their teammates (who finished 3rd). Like the Shibutani's it seems like they have it all and as time goes on it will only get better. Favorites in Sochi? The Russian Federation would love to have a team in contention there and they may be the ones. Also, how can you not root for a guy named Nikita?



*Americans Tibbetts and Brubaker are also debuting on the Senior Grand Prix this season.

Junior Grand Prix: Poland

This past weekend the Junior Grand Prix concluded in Toruń, Poland. It was a VERY good weekend for Japan!

In Pairs, Takahashi and Tran of Japan bettered their bronze from last week in Lake Placid to take the title in Poland in a close final. Less than one point behind in second were Russians Novik and Kuznetsov with Canadians Jones and Gaskell pulling up to place third. Americans Zhang and Toth improved on their seventh place short program with a top four free skate and finished sixth overall.

In Ice Dance, Russians Ilinykh and Katsalapov won big. They won all three portions of the competition on their way to an easy victory. Their teammates, Antipova and Kudashev were second overall, despite finishing third in the free skate behind Americans Cannuscio and Lorello who took the bronze. Important to note Japan had no entries in Ice Dance.

Amongst the women, Japan also did well with Kanako Murakami taking the title easily. In second was Russian Anna Ovcharova and winning the bronze was American Christina Gao in her Junior Grand Prix debut. American Karen Zhou finished fifth.

Once again, Japan enjoyed success with Yuzuru Hanyu winning the gold medal by more than twenty points. In second was American Kanallakan who held on to second after a rough free skate that was ranked only fifth best. The bronze medal went to Russian Gordei Gorshkov who held off the challenge by teammate Alexander Nikolaev who actually placed second in the free skate. American Keegan Messing pulled all the way up to sixth from eleventh after a top three free skate.

Every Japanese entry in this event won! Full results can be seen here.

No Junior Grand Prix this weekend but the competition picks back up next week in Minsk, Belarus.

UPDATE: Big thanks to @patinaggio on Twitter for posting a link to the video of Yuzuru Hanyu's very elegant performance. My favorite highlight is the Ina Bauer he does.

Yuzuru Hanyu ISU JGP Toruń 2009 free programme
by shah85

Junior Grand Prix: Hungary

The season got underway this past weekend in Budapest and Team USA did pretty well.

We were strongest in the Men's where American Richard Dornbush took the title (video below) with teammate Grant Hochstein right behind winning the silver. Richard told Ice Network, "You don't want to put out your best now and not do as well later; I'm happy with how I did, but I have room to improve." It was a bit of clammer to get to the bronze but it eventually fell into the hands of Russian Zhan Bush.

In Ice Dance, Team USA was unable to get on the podium with Gilles and Donohue surprisingly finishing fourth. They had some problems with their twizzles in the free skate and didn't get the levels they expected for their step sequences. "It's still a much higher-level program that it was given credit for," Donohue told Ice Network. Russians Ilinykh and Katsalapov skated to a convincing victory with Canadians Routhier and Saucke-Lacelle earning the silver, Italians Alessandrini and Vaturi the bronze.

In the ladies field, Russian Polina Shelepen won convincingly with a free skate that included seven triple jumps! American Angela Maxwell, who had a rough short program and found herself in fifth place, regrouped in the free skate and surged up to take the silver. Despite earning another Junior Grand Prix medal, she told Ice Network she wasn't happy with her performance. "My nerves got the better of me. I was trying to pull myself together the whole program." Japan's Haruka Imai took the bronze medal. American Ellie Kawamura who was second after the short program finished fourth after a tough free skate.

Here are the complete results.

Next weekend, the Junior Grand Prix comes home and will take place in Lake Placid (same site as the Senior Grand Prix Event, Skate America). A large contingency of Americans will be competing including: Bonacorsi and Mager, Duarte and Grafton, Joshua Farris, Taylor Firth, Andrew Gonzales, DeeDee Leng, Ross Miner, Kristine Musademba, Pipkin and Dunne-Neustadt, Maia and Alex Shibutani, Simpson and Miller, and Tibbetts and Brubaker. Lake Placid is one of only a few JGP events to have a pairs field so it should be an exciting competition.

Also of note, Ice Network will be airing Junior Grand Prix Lake Placid live and free so be sure to tune in.



Don't forget I'm compiling a list of the Greatest 1000 Moments on Ice. Be sure to let me know what should go on that list!