3rd Annual Loop Axel Awards

Alright, part two of the Loop Axel Awards...time to have a little fun.

The categories are:

*Best Throw/Jump
*Hottest Skater
*The Twitterholic (NEW)
*Best Coach
*Most Improved Skater
*Best New Face
*Most Controversial (NEW)
*Best Outfit
*Memorable Moment of the Season (NEW)
*Blog of the Year (NEW)
*Reader's Choice: Skater of the Year

*Best Throw/Jump...the nominees are:

+Daisuke Takahashi - Quad Flip - 2010 World Figure Skating Championships (Free)
+Mao Asada - Triple Axel - 2010 Olympic Winter Games (Short)
+Evgeny Plushenko - Quad Toe/Triple Toe - 2009 Rostelecom Cup (Short)
+Inoue and Baldwin - Throw Triple Axel - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships (Free)
+Jeremy Abbott - Quad Toe - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships (Free)

And the winner is...Mao Asada - Triple Axel - 2010 Olympic Winter Games. In the pressure cooker that was that ladies Olympic short, it was a huge accomplishment to not only make history by landing the jump at the Olympics, but to hold up to the intense pressure that was being put on her. It was really fantastic and we all gasped when she hit it!

*Hottest Skater...the nominees are:

+Daisuke Takahashi
+Joannie Rochette
+Aliona Savchenko
+Charlie White
+Tanith Belbin

And the winner is...Tanith Belbin. Tough competition in this category but I think this time around Tanith wins out. At one point this season she was on the cover of Men's Health scantily clad and everyone was like..."woah!"

*The Twitterholic...the nominees are:

+Jeffrey Buttle (@J_Butt)
+Jeremy Abbott (@jeremyabbottpcf)
+Ana Cecilia Cantu (@cantufeelicks)
+Michael Weiss (@MichaelWeiss2)
+Charlie White (@CharlieAWhite)

And the winner is...Ana Cecilia Cantu. The National Champ of Mexico has some of the best tweets ever! She says what she wants and is always great for a laugh (and a great sit spin if you ever get the pleasure to see her in competition). If you aren't following her on Twitter...you should!

*Best Coach...the nominees are:

+Frank Carroll
+Brian Orser
+Yao Bin
+Igor Shpilband
+Jim Peterson

And the winner is...Brian Orser. This choice of all the awards for me was the hardest to choose because each of those coaches basically were completely amazing but I gave the award to Brian Orser because he had to guide Kim Yu-Na through far more than practice sessions. He had to basically manage a nations super-star and not only help her compete well, but stand up and handle the enormous pressure S. Korea was putting on her shoulders. Oh...and he's done an amazing job with Adam Rippon and Christina Gao too!

*Most Improved Skater...the nominees are:

+Michal Brezina
+Adam Rippon
+Akiko Suzuki
+Zaretski and Zaretski
+Faiella and Scali

And the winner is...Akiko Suzuki. Not that she didn't have her rough patches this season but to go from a long shot to make the Japanese Olympic Team last season to a Grand Prix Gold Medalist, Grand Prix Final Bronze Medalist, Japanese National Silver Medalist, and Four Continents Silver Medalist is quite impressive. Also, in almost every competition she managed to skate her butt off in the free skate. Also, she took a tired piece of music (West Side Story) and breathed new life into it.

*Best New Face...the nominees are:

+Kevin Reynolds
+Florent Amodio
+Ksenya Makarova
+Michal Brezina
+Adam Rippon

And the winner is...Michal Brezina. All season long I've called the young Czech a breath of fresh air. Easy straight forward skating and natural jumps. He gradually over the course of this season established himself as the top Czech skater over veteran Tomas Verner and his season culminated with a near flawless free skate at World's that I felt should have earned him a place on the podium. He may have come up short in Torino but he's the clear winner here!

*Most Controversial...and the nominees are:

+Evgeny Plushenko
+Sasha Cohen
+Johnny Weir
+Kim Yu-Na
+Domnina and Shabalin

And the winner is...Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin. They had the entire Australian Olympic Committee after them over that Aboriginal Original Dance. The social ramification and ripples that one dance sent through the figure skating community in the run-up to the Olympics was more controversial than anything coming out of Plushenko's mouth, fur on Johnny's shoulder, Sasha's inability to show up at a competition, or an earring on Kim Yu-Na's ear.

*Best Outfit...and the nominees are:

+Davis and White - Original Dance
+Samuel Contesti - Free Skate
+Savchenko and Szolkowy - Free Skate
+Johnny Weir - Short Program
+Evan Lysacek - Short Program

And the winner is...Evan Lysacek - Short Program. I just loved that all black with the feathers around his neck and hands. I thought it was striking and powerful and perfect for his stature and the music. Also, his long limbs just accentuated the outfit and the performance.

*Memorable Moment of the Season...and the nominees are:

+Amanda Evora's flood of tears after earning an Olympic Berth.
+Joannie Rochette hugging her father after her Olympic Short Program.
+Evgeny Plushenko's #1 finger upon completing his free skate at Rostelecom Cup.
+John Baldwin's expression and interaction with the judges upon Rena Inoue's successful completion of the throw triple axel.
+Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir's final pose in their Olympic Free Dance.
+Sasha Cohen's entire U.S. Nationals short program.

And the winner is...John Baldwin's expression and interaction with the judges upon Rena Inoue's successful completion of the throw triple axel. I mean it was priceless! He popped his finger straight up and gave the judges this look like "What! C'mon!" He showed her off beautifully and it was awesome! All of that on top of the fact she had just landed a throw triple axel.

*Blog of the Year...and the nominees are:

+Aunt Joyce's Ice Cream Stand
+Required Elements
+jumping clapping man
+XanBoni!
+Blips of Todd...
+Ice Charades

And the winner is...It's so hard to judge your peers so I give everyone the award! Wait...you're note letting me cop out like that? Okay, okay...The winner is...Blips of Todd...It's so funny to see the other side of the skaters you watch compete. What you might think is their personality based upon what they do on the ice is nothing like who they really are and Todd Gilles' Vlog gives us little 'blips of Todd' that let us into his very character in a very fun and charming way. I can say however, without reserve, that all the blogs listed here and even many that aren't are amazing.

*Reader's Choice: Skater of the Year...and the nominees are:

+Shen and Zhao
+Daisuke Takahashi
+Virtue and Moir
+Kim Yu-Na
+Davis and White

And the winner is...Kim Yu-Na. The people have spoken and Kim Yu-Na is Queen indeed! I don't think there is any arguing with this choice or any of the five skaters/teams chosen to vie for this award. Kim Yu-Na has been tremendous this season, her Olympic Free in particular was stunning. She's a national hero and treasure for South Korea and how fortunate they are to have her!.

U.S. Nationals Preview (Pairs)

The first senior competition that will get underway in Spokane is the Pairs event. The U.S. has the opportunity to send two teams to the Olympics in Vancouver. Who are the teams to keep an eye on? Here are my thoughts on six teams to watch:

Caitlin Yankowskas and John Coughlin - I'm always completely impressed with this team every time I see them. They have dynamic lifts and a wonderful connection with the audience. Caitlin is one of those skaters whom you can't take your eyes off of when she's on the ice. Some inconsistency has plagued them off and on. If they hit their elements they'll have a shot at the podium and possibly a trip to Vancouver. Their most recent competition, 2009 HomeSense Skate Canada, they finished 7th.

Brooke Castile and Ben Okolski - The last time this team competed in Spokane they surprised everyone by winning the 2007 National crown. This team has beautiful classic pair lines and great attention to choreography but often struggles in the technical department. This is the first season since their 2007 Nationals win that they enter the event healthy. The last two years they entered Nationals coming off of injury. They reached the top before...can they do it again? They recently finished 6th at 2009 Cancer.Net Skate America.

Amanda Evora and Mark Ladwig - One of the teams that seems stuck in that 4th-5th-6th range at U.S. Nationals. Beautiful artistry but again, some troubles often on the technical elements. When this team is on they can be spectacular. Their lifts are some of the most inventive and spectacular to watch. They just missed the podium last year and will need a big effort to make it this season and an even bigger effort to make the Olympic Team. They recently finished 7th at Samsung Anycall Cup of China and 5th at Cancer.Net Skate America.

Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett - This team made a splash last season coming seemingly from nowhere to take the silver medal at Nationals (and desperately close to winning). They followed it up with stunning performances at both the Four Continents Cup and the World Championships solidifying themselves as the hot new team to watch. At both their Grand Prix events this season they continued to demonstrate solid technical skills and also showed improved artistic sensibility. Their ability to skate clean under pressure makes them one of (if not the) the teams to beat. This team was 4th at NHK Trophy and 5th at HomseSense Skate Canada.

Rena Inoue and John Baldwin - The veterans of the field and the only team competing in Spokane with previous Olympic experience (7th in Torino). This team has a secret weapon in their back pocket...the throw triple axel. They successfully completed the element this season at Trophee Eric Bompard. What has held this team back is consistency on the side-by-side triple jumps, especially on John's part. The lack of consistency on that element has caused them to put side-by-side double axels in their short program which puts them at a point disadvantage. If they can find consistency on their side-by-side triple jumps they'll be in good shape. They finished 4th at Trophee Eric Bompard and won the bronze medal at NHK Trophy.

Keauna McLaughlin and Rockne Brubaker - This team barely squeaked out a defense of their National Title last season and have had trouble getting back to gold standard form sense. At last season's World Championships they actually finished behind Denney and Barrett. Over the summer they made a coaching change and made the move from Colorado Springs to L.A. to train with John Nicks (also coaching Sasha Cohen). John has a knack with pairs skaters, turning out several champions in the past. They have a unique free skate (Slumdog Millionaire) that has left me a bit cold this season. If they can find a way to be more engaging with the audience and choreography with their music and improve upon the technical issues that have plagued them this season, they should have no problem making it to Vancouver. If the mistakes come...it could get dicey. This team won the bronze in their season opener at Rostelecom Cup but was just 4th at Skate America.

I make a point of not predicting Nationals but I'm curious to get your opinion on how you see things playing out. Comment below!

Around the World

In Finland...there seems to be some disagreement between some remarks Laura Lepistö, 2009 Ladies European Champ, and her male teammates; especially Ari-Pekka Nurmenkari. In the April Edition of the Finnish Cosmopolitan, Lepistö gave an interview where she described her Finnish male colleagues as very feminine, and "a bit that way". (I don't know if I know what that means?) She goes on to say things are different...like in France (read: Joubert's excessive manliness!). Anywho, Lepistö says that she is being misinterpreted and her comments are not directed at her teammates. Not the best time for Lepistö to get bogged down in this controversy (effeminate skating, etc.) which has heated up considerably over the past several weeks.

Here in the U.S. there is this massive coaching reshuffle taking place. A plethora of past and present U.S. Champions have all done the coaching summer shuffle. Inoue and Baldwin are now with Meno and Sand, Nagasu is now working with Frank Carroll, McLaughlin and Brubaker are taking from John Nicks, and just yesterday (thanks for the update) Jeremy Abbott announced he will leave Colorado (and Tom Zakrajsek) and take from Yuka Sato in Detroit. Don't know if it really counts as a coaching 'change' but when Sasha Cohen announced her return to competition she announced she would be working with Rafael Artunian, not John Nicks, her coach as she temporarily stepped away from competition. Lots of shuffling and it will be the topic of my next op-ed. Also, we found out the Michelle Kwan on Twitter is a fake...boo!

In Russia, Plushenko has officially stated that he is absolutely committed to competing next season. Axels and quads back under his belt, he is currently in training with Alexei Mishin in St. Petersburg. Will it actually happen this season...who can say? I will say this is the most 'serious' he's seemed about it and with the Olympics this upcoming season I think we can expect a legitimate attempt at a return. Plushenko seems to think that Stéphane Lambiel will return to competition as well. Not sure what would prompt him to say that? Nothing official yet from camp Lambiel.

Finally, in Canada...these days no news is good news. While many are still irked by the push to make skating a bit less 'frilly' on the ice, Skate Canada appears to have backed off from asking their athletes to promote the tough side of skating. This combined with the fact that Stojko's 'self-appointed press tour' appears over is causing the story to lose press steam, a fact I'm sure Skate Canada is happy with. They certainly don't want this hanging over their head come February 2010...you know...when the whole world will be in their backyard!

Summer Shuffle

Let the skating coach summer shuffle begin.

Rena Inoue and John Baldwin have announced they are switching coaches. They have decided to go with 3-Time U.S. National Pair Champions Jenni (Meno) and Todd Sand. The pair was previously coached by Phillip Mills.

John told Ice Network, "We have always looked up to Jeni and Todd as a pair, and we see many similarities between their career and ours both on and off the ice." Rena added, "Johnny and I are so lucky to have the opportunity to work with one of the most accomplished teams in the history on the sport."

Hopefully Jeni and Todd can bring the inner grace out of this team, assuming it's in there, and put them back on the skating map. Last season was a bit of a wash after a poor showing at U.S. Nationals that left them off the World team. Unfortunate as the World Championships were right in John's backyard, Los Angeles.

The biggest things I hope Jeni and Todd do for them is help them with the choreography which, for the past two seasons, has been less than stellar and work out the side-by-side triple toes. Ironically, John's biggest hurdle, the side-by-side jumps was also Todd Sand's Achilles Heel.

Maybe if they all put their head's together they can figure out a plan that works for this team.

p.s. When is the wedding?

Pic of the Week

Skate America is getting so close. I'm so excited...I could just spit!

Rena Inoue and John Baldwin will be amongst the competitors at the event and have set their sights on the top of the podium. It won't be easy for the two time U.S. National Champs to get there.

Three teams will provide an affective barrier to Inoue and Baldwin's ascent including the reigning National Champions McLaughlin and Brubaker. Also competing in Everett are the reigning World Champions Savchenko and Szolkowy. Russian upstarts Mukhortova and Trankov will also vie for the top spot.

Rena and John will also compete at the NHK Trophy in Tokyo, Japan. Rena is originally from Japan and had to give up her Japanese citizenship to become an American citizen and compete for the U.S. at the 2006 Olympic Games where she became the first to land a Throw Triple Axel (see video below) in International competition.

This summer, NHK T.V. followed Rena and John around and chronicled her transition from Japan to America which will air during the NHK Trophy. Also, as many of you know, John proposed to Rena in front of a packed audience at XCel Energy Center in St. Paul during the 2008 U.S. National's...and she accepted!

I'm looking forward to getting this season underway and wish Rena and John all the luck in the world!

Pic of the Week

It was one of the most exciting things I have ever witnessed and was even more inspiring because I was sitting in the audience! Another look at a great U.S. win.

Rena Inoue and John Baldwin were in 3rd place and in jeopardy of not making the Olympic Team at the 2006 U.S. National Championships. They needed a strong performance to earn a spot on the Olympic Team...even stronger one to win.

The program started well, they hit their side-by-side jumps, split twist, and throw triple loop. They were skating with great speed and the lifts looked great. Deep in their program they took a deep breath, relaxed their timing, and BAM! A beautiful throw triple axel!

The crowd screamed with excitement and for a brief moment everyone was on their feet! The crowd was simply buzzing after that stunning achievement. Not only did they make the Olympic Team, they regained their title and went on to become the first team to land a successful throw triple axel at the Olympics in Torino!