4th Annual Loop Axel Awards

How I look forward every year to take a look back at the season and point out the highlights! Get out your best Tux and Gown...it's the 4th Annual Loop Axel Awards!

[Queue Oscar-like overture]

This 4th installment of this annual tradition comes complete with several new categories, many suggested by readers. Official stuff today...a little fun to come afterwards. Enough of my prattling...Today's categories are:

• Best Ladies Free Skate
  
• Best Pairs Free Skate
  
• Best Free Dance
  
• Best Men's Free Skate
  
• Short Program of the Year
  
• Best Forgotten Program
  
• Worst Performance of the Year
  
• Best Exhibition Piece (NEW)
  
• Best Music Selection (NEW)
  
• Best Choreography (NEW)
  
• Competition of the Year (NEW)
  
• Skater of the Year
  

The Nominations for Best Ladies Free Skate please...

• Miki Ando - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Mao Asada - 2011 Japanese National Figure Skating Championships
  
• Alissa Czisny - 2010 Grand Prix Final
  
• Alena Leonova - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Sarah Meier - 2011 European Championships

And the winner is...I'm giving this one to Alissa Czinsy for her 2010 Grand Prix Final performance. It was like the program we all were holding our breath for. It didn't have complex movement but it's beauty was in its simplicity. There really is something to the saying "less is more." It was like a quiet whisper...soft and sweet.

The Nominations for Best Pairs Free Skate please...

• Kirsten Moore-Towers and Dylan Moscovitch - 2010 Skate Canada
  
• Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Caitlin Yankowskas and John Coughlin - 2011 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships

And the winner is...Volosozahr and Trankov at this years World's. I fell in love with them at Russian Nationals and feel even deeper in love with them at World's. I find their skating to be exciting and I love that they bring me to the edge of my seat. Your eyes stay glued on Tatiana at every moment. Gush! I know they aren't as technically proficient as Savchenko and Szolkowy but I still love what they are cooking!

The Nominations for Best Free Dance please...

• Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier - 2010 Skate Canada International
  
• Meryl Davis and Charlie White - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Nathalie Péchalat and Fabian Bourzat - 2011 European Championships
  
• Maia Shibutani and Alex Shibutani - 2011 U.S. National Championships
  
• Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships

And the winner is...No contest really, but obviously Meryl and Charlie's Free Dance from Worlds. They took that Tango to a different place, both technically and emotionally. Solid work from the American World Champs (how nice to finally be able to say that!).

The Nominations for Best Men's Free Skate please...

• Patrick Chan - 2011 Canadian National Championships
  
• Richard Dornbush - 2011 U.S. National Championships
  
• Artur Gachinksi - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Takahiko Kozuka - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Adam Rippon - 2010 Japan Open

The winner is...Patrick Chan for going lights-out at the 2011 Canadian National Championships. Wow! I'm pretty sure I called that performance one of the greatest things put to ice. That was the first time we all kind of leaned back and said, "yep...he's got a good handle on those quads." Sometimes it all just clicks...and that skate...it clicked! Was very tempted to give this award to Takahiko for his World's free which I thought was endearing especially given the situation in Japan...but I couldn't ignore the two quads from Patrick.

The Nominations for Short Program of the Year please...

• Florent Amodio - 2011 European Championships
  
• Ryan Bradley - 2011 U.S. National Championships
  
• Patrick Chan - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Nobunari Oda - 2010 Grand Prix Final
  
• Qing Pang and Jian Tong - 2011 Four Continents Cup
  
• Daisuke Takahashi - 2011 Four Continents Cup

And the winner is...I almost want to give it to Pang and Tong for being the only skaters other than Men's singles to make the nominee list. I feel almost obligated to give it to Patrick Chan for that whopper of a score he got at Worlds...but I'll give it to Ryan Bradley because, more than anyone on the list, you can tell he genuinely had the most fun. Also, that Short Program, helped win him his first National Title. Hat's off to you Ryan!

The Nominations for Best Forgotten Program please...

• Miki Ando - 2010 Grand Prix Final [Free Skate]
  
• Brian Joubert - 2011 European Championships [Free Skate]
  
• Armin Mahbanoozadeh - 2010 Skate America [Free Skate]
  
• Brandon Mroz - 2010 Cup of China [Free Skate]
  
• Adam Rippon - 2010 Skate Canada International [Free Skate]

And the winner is...I'm going with Armin on this one. I thought he was pretty spectacular at Skate America in a field that kind of fizzled. It was one of the few times this year that the beautiful music of Avatar was really put to good use.

The Nominations for Worst Performance of the Year please...

• Mao Asada - 2010 Japan Open [Free Skate]
  
• Mao Asada - 2010 Trophy Eric Bompard [Short Program]
  
• Joshua Farris - 2011 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships [Free Skate]
  
• Rachael Flatt - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships [Free Skate]
  
• Denis Ten - 2010 Skate America [Free Skate]

And the winner is...Joshua Farris at Nationals. This kid is going to do great things in the very near future but his Free Skate that night was not to be. You can tell Joshua expects a lot from himself and after that disaster of a performance he literally just cried, perhaps from the pain from having a bum ankle or perhaps because he just expects more from himself. It was so sad. I think everyone in the arena just wanted to give him a big hug and let him know that there will be a better day.

The Nominations for Best Exhibition Piece please...

• Jeremy Abbott - "Rhythm of Love" by Plain White T's
  
• Alissa Czisny - "You'll Never Walk Alone" by Barbara Streisand
  
• Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy - "Barbie Girl" by Aqua
  
• Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir - "I Want To Hold Your Hand" from Across the Universe Soundtrack
  
• Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov - "Super Mario Bros." from Nintendo Super Mario Bros.

And the winner is...This is tough call...but I'm going with Virtue and Moir because they bring the music to life so beautifully. I could have gone on and one endlessly with various exhibition pieces but these are my faves from the seaason.

The Nominations for Best Music Selection please...

• Jeremy Abbott - "Life is Beautiful" from the Life is Beautiful Soundtrack
  
• Alissa Czisny - "Selections from Winter into Spring" by George Winston
  
• Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov - "Also sprach Zarathustra" by Richard Strauss
  
• Kim Yu-na - "Giselle" by Adolphe Adam
  
• Daisuke Takahashi - "Historia de un Amor" and "Que Rico El Mambo" by Perez Prado
  
• Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir - "Hip Hip Chindchin" by Club Des Belugas, "Temptation" by Diana Krall, and "Mujer Latina" by Thalia

And the winner is...Probably the best program this year that never got its due, Jeremy's Life is Beautiful program. What a gorgeous piece of music that just begged to be great. If there was any one program I wouldn't mind a skater reusing for a second year it would be this one...it never got its due.

The nominations for Best Choreography of the Year Please...

• Patrick Chan - "Take Five" by Paul Desmond/Lori Nichol Choreographer
  
• Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier - "Eleanor Rigby" by Paul McCartney and John Lennon/Christopher Dean Choreographer
  
• Meryl Davis and Charlie White - "Il Postino" by Luis Bacalov and "Forever Tango" by Lisandro Adrover/Igor Shpilband and Marina Zoueva Choreographers
  
• Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov - "Clair de Lune" by Claude Debussy/Peter Tchernyshev Choreographer
  
• Qing Pang and Jian Tong - "Nocturne in C Sharp minor" by Frédéric Chopin/Lori Nichol Choreographer
  
• Shawn Sawyer - "Alice in Wonderland" from the Alice in Wonderland Soundtrack/Marie-France Dubreuil Choreographer

And the winner is...Oh so hard a choice! The choreography represented here is truly the cream of the crop. Six way tie? Not gonna let me off that easy? Ok ok...I'm going with Kavaguti and Smirnov. It was subtly beautiful while still exciting. Peter Tchernyshev really outdid himself here and Tamara Moskvina always knows where to add a little extra flourish. There are moments in this program where you can here a pin drop and the audience is breathless. They use every bit of the music to express the character of the piece. And the choreography seems simple while it's actually quite complex...not an easy feat to accomplish.

The nominations for Competition of the Year please...

• 2010 Grand Prix Final
  
• 2010 Japan Open
  
• 2010 Skate Canada
  
• 2010 Skate America
  
• 2011 World Figure Skating Championships

And the winner is...almost by default after an extraordinary season and massive change of event and venue, the 2011 World Figure Skating Championships. It was an event chock full of surprises, with an outpouring of love for those suffering in Japan, and a few amazing performances, and an historic event given the unusual timing. There were many great competitions this season but for reasons not needing explanation, this will be the most memorable.

The nominations for Skater(s) of the Year please...

• Miki Ando
  
• Patrick Chan
  
• Alissa Czinsy
  
• Meryl Davis and Charlie White
  
• Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy

And the winner is...not be confused with the Reader's Choice Award, this is my choice for whom I think is most deserving of the award. Decisions decisions. Do I give it to a skater that has made vast improvements? Do I give it to a team that has gone undefeated? Do I give the award to a record breaker? Do I give the award to a skater that brought hope to a nation that things might be better soon? This is my struggle for this award this year. In the end...I've decided to award the Skater of the Year award to Patrick Chan. Aside from setting records this season (I know, I know...Chanflation), he did something I really respect. I've long been a member of the camp that I'll take a well skated program sans quad to a badly skated one with a quad. Patrick Chan has long defended the well rounded skate even as other "quad veterans" hounded him about it (he did do a little "rebel rousing" himself from time to time). Well this season he just went ahead and shut everyone up by adding two quads (perfect ones at that) to his already well rounded skate. It made him a near unbeatable force combining the absolute best of both worlds. It shut up all the "non-quad" nay-sayers and for that alone I think he's most deserving of the award.

Thus concludes part one of the 4th Annual Loop Axel Awards. What surprises and twists and turns will happen in part two? Stay tuned...

4th Annual Loop Axel Award Nominations

Without further discussion...

The Nominations for Best Ladies Free Skate please...

• Miki Ando - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Mao Asada - 2011 Japanese National Figure Skating Championships
  
• Alissa Czisny - 2010 Grand Prix Final
  
• Alena Leonova - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Sarah Meier - 2011 European Championships

The Nominations for Best Pairs Free Skate please...

• Kirsten Moore-Towers and Dylan Moscovitch - 2010 Skate Canada
  
• Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Caitlin Yankowskas and John Coughlin - 2011 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships

The Nominations for Best Free Dance please...

• Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier - 2010 Skate Canada International
  
• Meryl Davis and Charlie White - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Nathalie Péchalat and Fabian Bourzat - 2011 European Championships
  
• Maia Shibutani and Alex Shibutani - 2011 U.S. National Championships
  
• Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships

The Nominations for Best Men's Free Skate please...

• Patrick Chan - 2011 Canadian National Championships
  
• Richard Dornbush - 2011 U.S. National Championships
  
• Artur Gachinksi - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Takahiko Kozuka - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Adam Rippon - 2010 Japan Open

The Nominations for Short Program of the Year please...

• Florent Amodio - 2011 European Championships
  
• Ryan Bradley - 2011 U.S. National Championships
  
• Patrick Chan - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships
  
• Nobunari Oda - 2010 Grand Prix Final
  
• Qing Pang and Jian Tong - 2011 Four Continents Cup
  
• Daisuke Takahashi - 2011 Four Continents Cup

The Nominations for Best Forgotten Program please...

• Miki Ando - 2010 Grand Prix Final [Free Skate]
  
• Brian Joubert - 2011 European Championships [Free Skate]
  
• Armin Mahbanoozadeh - 2010 Skate America [Free Skate]
  
• Brandon Mroz - 2010 Cup of China [Free Skate]
  
• Adam Rippon - 2010 Skate Canada International [Free Skate]

The Nominations for Worst Performance of the Year please...
*The intention of this award is not to be mean or spiteful. All skaters have a bad day for one reason or another and this is a reminder that there are better days ahead. Remembering the worst makes us appreciate the best.

• Mao Asada - 2010 Japan Open [Free Skate]
  
• Mao Asada - 2010 Trophy Eric Bompard [Short Program]
  
• Joshua Farris - 2011 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships [Free Skate]
  
• Rachael Flatt - 2011 World Figure Skating Championships [Free Skate]
  
• Denis Ten - 2010 Skate America [Free Skate]

The Nominations for Best Exhibition Piece please...

• Jeremy Abbott - "Rhythm of Love" by Plain White T's
  
• Alissa Czisny - "You'll Never Walk Alone" by Barbara Streisand
  
• Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy - "Barbie Girl" by Aqua
  
• Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir - "I Want To Hold Your Hand" from Across the Universe Soundtrack
  
• Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov - "Super Mario Bros." from Nintendo Super Mario Bros.

The Nominations for Best Music Selection please...

• Jeremy Abbott - "Life is Beautiful" from the Life is Beautiful Soundtrack
  
• Alissa Czisny - "Selections from Winter into Spring" by George Winston
  
• Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov - "Also sprach Zarathustra" by Richard Strauss
  
• Kim Yu-na - "Giselle" by Adolphe Adam
  
• Daisuke Takahashi - "Historia de un Amor" and "Que Rico El Mambo" by Perez Prado
  
• Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir - "Hip Hip Chindchin" by Club Des Belugas, "Temptation" by Diana Krall, and "Mujer Latina" by Thalia

The nominations for Best Choreography of the Year Please...

• Patrick Chan - "Take Five" by Paul Desmond/Lori Nichol Choreographer
  
• Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier - "Eleanor Rigby" by Paul McCartney and John Lennon/Christopher Dean Choreographer
  
• Meryl Davis and Charlie White - "Il Postino" by Luis Bacalov and "Forever Tango" by Lisandro Adrover/Igor Shpilband and Marina Zoueva Choreographers
  
• Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov - "Clair de Lune" by Claude Debussy/Peter Tchernyshev Choreographer
  
• Qing Pang and Jian Tong - "Nocturne in C Sharp minor" by Frédéric Chopin/Lori Nichol Choreographer
  
• Shawn Sawyer - "Alice in Wonderland" from the Alice in Wonderland Soundtrack/Marie-France Dubreuil Choreographer

The nominations for Competition of the Year please...

• 2010 Grand Prix Final
  
• 2010 Japan Open
  
• 2010 Skate Canada
  
• 2010 Skate America
  
• 2011 World Figure Skating Championships

The nominations for Skater(s) of the Year please...

• Miki Ando
  
• Patrick Chan
  
• Alissa Czinsy
  
• Meryl Davis and Charlie White
  
• Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy

And that's only half! The show is running long this year! The other half will come after I announce these winners.

Loop Axel Awards: Reader's Choice

It's time again for the annual Loop Axel Awards! Last year, there was such a huge response to the Reader's Choice Award I've brought it back again this season.

Between now and next Sunday at 10:00 PM CST, send me your vote for who you think the Skater of the Year is. You can e-mail me, tweet me, leave your vote in the comments below this post, tell me on Facebook, however you want to do it! I'll keep tabs and the top 5 will go into a poll on my site where you can vote for who you think is most deserving of the Reader's Choice Award.

It's been a very unusual skating year...who will win?

p.s. I'm also looking for fun suggestions for Award categories...feel free to toss out an idea if you have one!

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!.

3rd Annual Loop Axel Awards

Ah yes, it's that time of year when we get to bask in the after glow of the season and hand out some much deserved awards. This season is especially interesting as it was an Olympic year.

Sit back...relax...and let the awards begin!

Much like last year, this will be a two day affair. We'll get the official stuff out of the way today and have a little more fun tomorrow!

The categories are:

*Best Ladies Free Program
*Best Men's Free Program
*Best Free Dance
*Best Pairs Free Program
*Best Comeback
*Best Olympic Performance (NEW)
*Short Program/Original Dance of the Year
*Best Forgotten Performance of the Season
*Worst Performance of the Season
*Skater of the Year

*Best Ladies Free Program...the nominees are:

+Mao Asada - 2010 World Figure Skating Championships
+Joannie Rochette - 2010 Canadian Nationals
+Akiko Suzuki - 2009 Samsung Anycall Cup of China
+Kim Yu-Na - 2010 Olympic Winter Games

And the winner is...Kim Yu-Na - Gershwin's Concerto in F - 2010 Olympic Winter Games. I don't think there was a lot of competition here. That was not only the greatest ladies free this season but perhaps this decade (ever?). It was sophisticated, elegant, reserved, thoughtful, and really just brilliant.

*Best Men's Free Program...the nominees are:

+Nobunari Oda - 2009 Trophy Eric Bompard
+Jeremy Abbott - 2010 U.S. Figure Skating Championships
+Daisuke Takahashi - 2010 World Figure Skating Championships
+Evgeny Plushenko - 2009 Rostelecom Cup
+Evan Lysacek - 2010 Olympic Winter Games

The winner is...Jeremy Abbott - Saint-Saens' Symphony No. 3 - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships. That was hard because almost equally as impressive was Daisuke Takahashi's World's Free. I went with Abbott because it was delivered with effortless perfection while Takahashi had to work it a little (little two foot on the quad flip, muscled triple flip/triple toe combo). Both were masterpieces though.

*Best Free Dance...the nominees are:

+Davis and White - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships
+Weaver and Poje - 2009 HomeSense Skate Canada
+Virtue and Moir - 2010 Olympic Winter Games
+Faiella and Scali - 2010 European Championships
+Belbin and Agosto - 2009 Cancer.Net Skate America

The winner is...Meryl Davis and Charlie White - Webber's Phantom of the Opera - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships. It was such an impressive skate because Belbin and Agosto had thrown down the gauntlet with an amazing performance of their own but Meryl and Charlie just killed it in return...it was incredible.

*Best Pairs Free Program...the nominees are:

+Shen and Zhao - 2009 ISU Grand Prix Final
+Denney and Barrett - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships
+Savchenko and Szolkowy - 2009 HomeSense Skate Canada
+Pang and Tong - 2010 Olympic Winter Games
+Sui and Han - 2009 Junior Grand Prix: Belarus

The winner is...Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy - Out of Africa Soundtrack - 2009 HomeSense Skate Canada. This was another tough call. The other performance I considered for top honors was Shen and Zhao's Grand Prix Final performance but in my gut I just thought Savchenko and Szolkowy had a little tiny spark that made their performance extra special.

*Best Comeback...the nominees are:

+Evgeny Plushenko
+Sasha Cohen
+Stéphane Lambiel
+Shen and Zhao

The winner is...Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao. In this award which seems very fitting in Olympic years, the candidates were the four who made competitive comebacks this season, and out of all of them, Shen and Zhao certainly took the cake for coming out ahead, nailing an Olympic Gold in the process.

*Best Olympic Performance...the nominees are:

+Joannie Rochette
+Davis and White
+Virtue and Moir
+Johnny Weir
+Kim Yu-Na

The winner is...Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir - Mahler's Symphony No. 5. There were several sensational Olympic performances I considered for this new award, again applicable only in Olympic years, but their performance seemed most fitting, largely due to the fact that they did it at home against several teams all skating their very best. Joannie Rochette's inspiring demonstration of courage was given great consideration. I was there...there were very few dry eyes after both of her performances.

*Short Program/Original Dance of the Year...the nominees are:

+Kim Yu-Na - 2010 Olympic Winter Games
+Mao Asada - 2010 Olympic Winter Games
+Sasha Cohen - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships
+Denis Ten - 2009 HomeSense Skate Canada
+Davis and White - 2010 World Figure Skating Championships

The winner is...Meryl Davis and Charlie White - Indian Folk Dance - 2010 World Figure Skating Championships. This seemed an easy choice as it was one of the most original things put to ice. Any performance of this OD this entire season is worthy of the award.

*Best Forgotten Performance of the Season...the nominees are:

+Shawn Sawyer - 2009 Cancer.Net Skate America (Free)
+Tomas Verner - 2009 Eric Bompard Trophy (Short)
+Sergei Voronov - 2010 Russian National Figure Skating Championships (Short)
+McLaughlin and Brubaker - 2009 Rostelecom Cup (Short)
+Navarro and Bommentre - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships (Free)

The winner is...Shawn Sawyer - Amadeus Soundtrack - 2009 Cancer.Net Skate America. It was the most unlikely silver medal of the entire Grand Prix series but it was well earned when a good deal of the men's field at that event commenced in a splat fest.

*Worst Performance of the Season...the nominees are:

+Nobunari Oda - 2010 World Figure Skating Championships (Short)
+Brian Joubert - 2010 Olympic Winter Games
+Jeremy Abbott - 2010 Olympic Winter Games (Short)
+Sasha Cohen - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships (Free)
+Jeremy Abbott - 2009 NHK Trophy (Free)

And the winner is...Nobunari Oda - Mrvica's Totentanz - 2010 World Figure Skating Championships. Poor thing...not only did he pop every single jump in that short program, but for the first time failed to even qualify for the free skate. Ouch!

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

+Davis and White
+Kim Yu-Na
+Shen and Zhao
+Virtue and Moir
+Evan Lysacek

And the winner is...Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao. What they accomplished was nothing short of extraordinary. And I love that they didn't just comeback to just do the Olympics...they did the whole season and went undefeated in the process. Four Olympics, three Olympic Medals...impressive!

Check back tomorrow for the second half of the 3rd Annual Loop Axel Awards

And The Nominees Are...

Next week, the highly anticipated (humor me!) 3rd Annual Loop Axel Awards are announced. Like any big awards, the nominees are announced in advance, so I thought I'd follow suit. You also get a sneak peek at the new Awards created this year.

It'll be interesting to see who the pre-award buzz is for vs who I actually gave the award to. Care to conjecture on who some of the winners are? It's already decided...can you guess?

So without further ado...

*Best Ladies Free Program
+Mao Asada - 2010 World Figure Skating Championships
+Joannie Rochette - 2010 Canadian Nationals
+Akiko Suzuki - 2009 Samsung Anycall Cup of China
+Kim Yu-Na - 2010 Olympic Winter Games

*Best Men's Free Program
+Nobunari Oda - 2009 Trophy Eric Bompard
+Jeremy Abbott - 2010 U.S. Figure Skating Championships
+Daisuke Takahashi - 2010 World Figure Skating Championships
+Evgeny Plushenko - 2009 Rostelecom Cup
+Evan Lysacek - 2010 Olympic Winter Games

*Best Free Dance
+Davis and White - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships
+Weaver and Poje - 2009 HomeSense Skate Canada
+Virtue and Moir - 2010 Olympic Winter Games
+Faiella and Scali - 2010 European Championships
+Belbin and Agosto - 2009 Cancer.Net Skate America

*Best Pairs Free Program
+Shen and Zhao - 2009 ISU Grand Prix Final
+Denney and Barrett - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships
+Savchenko and Szolkowy - 2009 HomeSense Skate Canada
+Pang and Tong - 2010 Olympic Winter Games
+Sui and Han - 2009 Junior Grand Prix: Belarus

*Best Comeback
+Evgeny Plushenko
+Sasha Cohen
+Stéphane Lambiel
+Shen and Zhao

*Best Olympic Performance (NEW)
+Joannie Rochette
+Davis and White
+Virtue and Moir
+Johnny Weir
+Kim Yu-Na

*Short Program/Original Dance of the Year
+Kim Yu-Na - 2010 Olympic Winter Games
+Mao Asada - 2010 Olympic Winter Games
+Sasha Cohen - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships
+Denis Ten - 2009 HomeSense Skate Canada
+Davis and White - 2010 World Figure Skating Championships

*Best Forgotten Performance of the Season
+Shawn Sawyer - 2009 Cancer.Net Skate America (Free)
+Tomas Verner - 2009 Eric Bompard Trophy (Short)
+Sergei Voronov - 2010 Russian National Figure Skating Championships (Short)
+McLaughlin and Brubaker - 2009 Rostelecom Cup (Short)
+Navarro and Bommentre - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships (Free)

*Worst Performance of the Season
+Nobunari Oda - 2010 World Figure Skating Championships (Short)
+Brian Joubert - 2010 Olympic Winter Games
+Jeremy Abbott - 2010 Olympic Winter Games (Short)
+Sasha Cohen - 2010 U.S. National Figure Skating Championships (Free)
+Jeremy Abbott - 2009 NHK Trophy (Free)

*Skater of the Year
+Davis and White
+Kim Yu-Na
+Shen and Zhao
+Virtue and Moir
+Evan Lysacek

*Best Throw/Jump
+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)

*Hottest Skater
+Daisuke Takahashi
+Joannie Rochette
+Aliona Savchenko
+Charlie White
+Tanith Belbin

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

*Best Coach
+Frank Carroll
+Brian Orser
+Yao Bin
+Igor Shpilband
+Jim Peterson

*Most Improved Skater
+Michal Brezina
+Adam Rippon
+Akiko Suzuki
+Zaretski and Zaretski
+Faiella and Scali

*Best New Face
+Kevin Reynolds
+Florent Amodio
+Ksenya Makarova
+Michal Brezina
+Adam Rippon

*Most Controversial (NEW)
+Evgeny Plushenko
+Sasha Cohen
+Johnny Weir
+Kim Yu-Na
+Domnina and Shabalin

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

*Memorable Moment of the Season (NEW)
+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.

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

*Reader's Choice: Skater of the Year
+Shen and Zhao
+Daisuke Takahashi
+Virtue and Moir
+Kim Yu-Na
+Davis and White

The Reader's Choice Final Five

All last week readers posted, tweeted, and facebooked their choice for skater of the year. It was very close but five emerged as the top vote getters. The five skaters you've decided to nominate for Reader's Choice Award for Skater of the Year are (in no particular order):

Meryl Davis and Charlie White

Kim Yu-Na

Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao

Daisuke Takahashi

Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir

The poll is up over on the sidebar.

Bummed your choice didn't make the list? It was a really close vote. All of these skaters had votes...just not enough: Mao Asada, Evgeny Plushenko, Michal Brezina, Adam Rippon, Evan Lysacek, Ryan Bradley, Mirai Nagasu, Johnny Weir, Pang and Tong, and Joannie Rochette.

Happy voting!

Reader's Choice Award!

At the end of the season, I like to take a fun look back at the season and hand out the Loop Axel Awards...this year is no different.

The readership of this blog has grown exponentially over the past year; with the Olympics taking place, my blog getting some crazy exposure on behalf of Panasonic, and so many of me e-friends just getting the word out, I've got lots of people stopping by and I wanted to include all of you in this years' award choices.

Thus, the Reader's Choice Award. I want all of you to choose the Reader's Choice Award for Skater of the Year. Between now and next Saturday at 10:00 PM CST, send me your vote for who you think the Skater of the Year is. You can e-mail me, tweet me, post a video on YouTube and send it to me, leave your vote in the comments below this post, tell me on Facebook, tell me via formspring, however you want to do it! I'll keep tabs and the top 5 will go into a poll on my site where you can vote for who you think is most deserving of the Reader's Choice Award.

Who will it be? A man? A woman? A pairs team...a dance team? I'm accepting votes...NOW!

2nd Annual Loop Axel Awards

Part Two...time for some of the more interesting awards. Lots of these are new awards that weren't amongst the ranks of awards last season. It's just so much fun to hand out awards (which is interesting since I'm 'really' not handing any awards out!). Categories include:

*Best Jump (NEW)
*Best New Face
*Hottest Skater
*Best Fall
*Best Coach
*Most Improved Skater (NEW)
*Best Outfit (NEW)
*The OMG Moment of the Season (NEW)
*Best Comeback (NEW)
*Blog of the Year (NEW)

*Best Jump award goes to Canadian Vaughn Chipeur for his Triple Axel in the short program at Cup of China that just took us all by surprise. If you've never seen his Axel...it's huge! Other great jumps that were taken into consideration include Evan Lysacek's Quad at the Four Continents Cup, Mao Asada's Triple Axel at the Grand Prix Final, and every jump Miki Ando attempted in the Free Skate at Worlds. ;-)

*Best New Face goes to Denney and Barrett. They really have been remarkable this season. Being a team for such a short period of time and in their two first international competitions, to put down clean free skates...impressive. It was the year of Ten as well, as I considered both Jeremy (the Canadian version) and Denis (the version from Kazakhstan) as well as Russian newbie Alena Leonova.

*Hottest Skater is always tricky for me. Like last year, I had to confer with others. I actually put together a panel of six individuals (close friends) and put 4 skaters in front of them. It was a tie so I broke the tie with my vote and named Aliona Savchenko the winner. She is a stunner, so much so, that at the Public Pairs Medal Ceremony in L.A. Peter Carruthers looked at her, stepped back, looked at her again and proclaims, "She's looking good, huh? Very L.A." Before my tie breaker, Keauna McLaughlin was right up there with her, but as she is only 16 it felt a little wierd. Also in the mix was Alexander Smirnov (last year's winner!) and Rockne Brubaker (although he had tamed the curls at Worlds...and that made me sad).

*Best Fall award absolutely goes to Candice Didier for that frightening fall she had on an easy triple toe in the free skate at Worlds. I thought no way can she comeback from that, not only did she, but earned a standing ovation for the heroics she displayed. Two other Worlds falls made the nominee list, Yuko Kavaguti's spill on her throw quad salchow and Jenna McCorkell's fall in the free skate. Also on the list, Emily Hughes for her crash and burn Triple Flip at Eric Bompard Trophy.

*Best Coach I decided to give to Nikolai Morozov. At almost any competition, he is the coach for like a third of the competitors...no joke. I always wonder how he has the time to teach so many but he must be doing something right as he has so many high level athletes. Almost gave it to the dup of Natalia Linichuk and Gennadi Karpanossov for getting both Domnina and Shabalin and Belbin and Agosto in such amazing shape for worlds with little prep time. Brian Orser made the list for his amazing work with Yu-Na Kim and recently Adam Rippon, and Tatiana Tarasova for her work with both Lysacek (she worked with him to perfect and work out his program a bit) and Asada.

*The Most Improved Award goes to Samuel Contesti who really put himself on the map this season with an unexpected Silver at Europeans and a really solid 5th place finish at Worlds. Previously (and as Frenchman) , not even close to being in the mix at major international competitions, suddenly he's a big time competitor! I considered Caroline Zhang for the remarkable progress she has made this season, Adam Rippon for the same, and Kavaguti and Smirnov for really beginning to gel as a team.

*The Best Outfit Award is highly subjective and I'm sure plenty will completely disagree with me but I went with Kerr and Kerr's Free Dance Outfit. There is a story behind the program, brother and sister that survive a natural disaster, and I think the costumes tell that story beautifully without being over the top. I was a big fan of Samuelson and Bates Original Dance Outfit, especially Evan in his Popeye bits. Although some thought it a bit 'nude' I liked Ashley Wagner's 'Spartacus' digs. I'm also a sucker for gloves, and loved Nobunari Oda's 'Warsaw Concerto' get-up.

*The OMG (Oh My God!) Moment of the Season for me was definitely when I was looking at the scoreboard inside Quicken Loans arena and said "Did Alissa Czisny just win National's?" I had several OMG moments this season, thus the award, including "Did Craig Buntin just slice his hand in half on Megan Duhamel's blade?" Also, "Did Patrick Chan just bitch-slap Brian Joubert in the L.A. Times over a Quad jump?" Don't forget, "Jeffrey Buttle just retired! Did he get the memo that the Olympics were in Canada next year?"

*Best Comeback award goes to Miki Ando for after a rocky season, getting it together to have a...well at the least...technically proficient skate at Worlds to claim the Bronze medal. Belbin and Agosto nearly got it for getting it together to fast and narrowly missing the World Title. Tomas Verner for finishing 4th this season at Worlds after the disaster and meltdown that was Goteborg, Sweden. And Alissa Czisny for almost keeping it together the entire season.

*The last award is a fun one. Our online skating community is growing and I'd like to take a little time to give some credit where I think some credit is due. I give the best figure skating blog award to myself...just kidding! Actually, after some long thought I really decided to give it to Lifeskate! Susan over there is a genius and I look at Lifeskate as more than a blog, but rather a resource for all things skating. She not only keeps tabs on competitive figure skating, but also professional skating, adult skating, synchronized skating, leisure skating, Ice Theatre, special events, basically everything. Her Journalism skills are crazy...she got interviews with Lu Chen and Denis Petrov...in Shenzhen, China! Exclusives with Nikolai Morozov, Johnny Weir, etc. etc. etc...Lifeskate...we are not worthy! If you have not bookmarked this site...who am I kidding...of course you already have it bookmarked!

That does it for the 2009 edition of the Loop Axel Awards.

If you missed part one...they're right here.

You can revisit the class of 2008 here.

2nd Annual Loop Axel Awards

So we have come to the end of the season. Yes, there is another team competition in Japan later this month (remember the good ole' days when those where in the U.S.) but all the major competitions have come to an end. An exciting, if unusual, season it has been.

So this season I have added some awards. I have so many to give out that I'm going to do this in two parts. Today I'll honor some of the best programs, tomorrow some of the more fun awards. I'll prepare you in advance, this will be a long post! The following categories for today:

*Best Ladies Free Program
*Best Mens Free Program
*Best Free Dance
*Best Pairs Free Program
*Short Program of the Year
*Best Forgotten Performance of the Season (NEW)
*Worst Performance of the Season (NEW)
*Skater of the Year

*Best Ladies Free Program was a difficult one for me. In the end I came to a conclusion and decided I would give this award to Joannie Rochette for her performance at Canadian Nationals. She skated from the heart with gorgeous artistry, picture perfect jumps, elegance, everything. It wasn't the most ambitious program of the season, but it was a program with class and in my opinion, the most impressive of the season. Of course, I considered basically every Yu-Na Kim performance of the season for this award, also Mao Asada's GP Final Free Skate where she hit two Triple Axels and Miki Ando's jumping clinic at World's.

*Best Mens Free Program for me was a no brainer! If you had the pure pleasure of being inside the Staples Center for the Mens Final at the World Championships you got an incredible glimpse of the future. Beginning the night in 17th place, Denis Ten of Kazakhstan put on a performance that brought the house down, shattering expectations that anyone in that arena had for him. He ended the competition in 8th place after nailing down a top six free skate...stunning! Before exiting the ice, he leaned down and gave it a kiss, grateful for its cooperation. To be sure, I heavily considered giving this honor to Evan for his performance of equal caliber later that evening. Jeremy Abbott's Grand Prix Final performance got some consideration as did Patrick Chan's Eric Bompard Trophy Free.

*Best Free Dance choice was only difficult because I couldn't decide which competition to award the team I definitely felt deserved the honor. In the end, I give this award to Davis and White for their winning Free Dance at the Four Continents Cup. They narrowly managed to squeak past Virtue and Moir for the win, an action that was reversed at the World Championships when Virtue and Moir squeaked past them for the Bronze. Davis and White's Worlds Free Dance was equally deserving of the honor. We missed Delobel and Schoenfelder at Worlds but I gave their "Great Gig" program at the Grand Prix Final some thought, I also considered Khoklova and Novitski's European Championship Free Dance as well young'ins Chock and Zuerlein for their Jr. Worlds Free Dance.

Best Pairs Free Skate honors goes to Denney and Barrett for their Four Continents Free Skate. But they had quite the performance at the U.S. Nationals as well as Worlds, simply underscoring the fact they deserve this award! Their performance at Four Continents proved their performance at Nationals wasn't a fluke. It was a season that showed us some great Pairs skating (I mean really great!). I almost gave the award to Savchenko and Szolkowy for their Worlds Free but then changed my mind at the last second. I also considered Pang and Tong's Four Continents performance and Dube and Davison's Canadian Nationals Free Skate. But aside from these, there was an enormous amount of fantastic performances this season!

*Best Short Program honors goes to Yu-Na Kim for her Worlds Short. Talk about spellbinding! I think that 'Danse Macabre' program may go down as one of those iconic shorts like Michelle Kwan's Rachmaninoff piece from 1998, amazing! Actually, I almost awarded it to Yu-Na for her Four Continents Cup short, but she got more points at Worlds! The other two programs I considered was Mukhortova and Trankov's Skate America short that was simply beautiful and Samuel Contesti's Europeans Short that put him back on the figure skating map.

*Best Forgotten Performance of the Year is one of my new awards. Seems like every season their is a great performance that we aren't talking about later in the season. This award remembers those programs and gives them a little bit of the due they deserve. I decided to give this award to Stepehn Carriere for his free skate at Cup of China. Can you even remember it? Well if you can, you'll remember he put down an amazing performance to finish behind Abbott who shocked all and won. Others I considered for this award include Johnny Weir for his Skate America Free, Akiko Suzuki for her NHK Free, and Faiella and Scali for their European Championships Free Dance.

*Worst Performace of the Year is the award...well basically it's an offer of sympathy. "Just because you were terrible doesn't mean don't still love you." Top honors goes to poor poor Carolina Kostner who just fubared it completely in the free skate at Worlds, not a single clean triple...ouch. I also took time to remember Emily Hughes attempt at a comeback at the Eric Bompard Trophy, didn't work...McLaughlin and Brubaker's less than par showing at Worlds, and Kimmie Meissner's Skate America flop.

*Skater of the Year is the final award for today. This was really a no brainer! Is there any real doubt that this title belongs to Yu-Na Kim...I mean...really? She shattered the record for highest point total for a women skater, she skated brilliantly all season, put down some of the best choreography the sport has ever seen, and done it all with grace and class. Really, well done! In full honesty, I never considered anyone but Yu-Na for this honor.

Check back tomorrow for the second half of the 2nd Annual Loop Axel Awards...I have some interesting awards to hand out!

1st Annual Loop Axel Awards!

Well this season has mostly come to a close and it's time to let loose and award those skaters that I feel have performed the best in each of the following categories:

* Best Mens Free Program
* Best Ladies Free Program
* Best Free Dance
* Best Pairs Free Program
* Best Short Program
* Best Coach
* Best New Face
* Hottest Skater
* Best Fall
* Skater of the Year

* Best Mens Free Program goes to Daisuke Takahashi's free program at the 2008 Four Continents Cup! He blew the lid off the competition and got the highest score ever achieved for a male competitor. He beat his competition by like 30 points and it was ridiculous. Other's I considered for this award was Buttle's World's Free Skate and Tomas Verner's European Championships Free Skate.

* Best Ladies Free Program is easily Mao Asada's free program, also from the Four Continents Cup. She hit it all including a picture perfect Triple Axel. It was smooth and elegant and just delicious. Other programs of consideration were Yukari Nakano's World's Free and Yu-Na Kim's Free from the Grand Prix Final.

* Best Free Dance was a tough one because this has been a fantastic season for Ice Dance but I must give this award to the Americans Belbin and Agosto for their Free Dance at U.S. Nationals. I have never seen them skate so well in my life and I had the privilege of being in the arena...you could hear a pin drop during that performance. Other programs I considered, Domnina and Shabalin's European's Free Dance and Delobel and Schoenfelder's NHK Free Dance.

* Best Pairs Free goes to Dube and Davison's Skate America free skate. It wasn't perfect but it had heart and they completely upset the Chinese Team of Pang and Tong. "The Blower's Daughter" was such a perfect choice of song for them. Other programs for consideration were Vise and Trent's Grand Prix Paris Free (throw Quad Salchow!) and McLaughlin and Brubaker's free skate from U.S. Nationals.

* As if there was any competition, best short program goes to Takahashi for "CyberSwan!" I don't think anyone had ever put something like that out there on the ice. I mean...it had a nickname for cryin' out loud! By far the coolest short program I had ever seen, and I think he gave his best performance of it at Japanese Nationals. Other programs for consideration were the Kerr's Scottish themed OD and Evan Lysacek's "Zorro."

* There were so many great coaches this year but I have to give this award to a duo that worked wonders this year, Galina Zmievskaya and Viktor Petrenko. Johnny Weir was like a completely different skater this season and when anyone did interviews with him he'd credit how tough they were on him. Structure, structure, structure and they took a skater who was a loose cannon and made him a Champion! Other coaches I thought about for this award were Igor Speilband, who coached half of the top six at Worlds in Ice Dance, Brian Orser for creating a magic all season with Yu-Na Kim, Nikolai Morozov for his awesome coaching of Daisuke Takahashi, and Ingo Steuer for persevering with Savchenko and Szolkowy without the support of the German Skating Federation and Government!

* Best New Face award goes to Canada's Patrick Chan. He stepped onto the senior level this season and looked like he belonged. He wowed us with his maturity and ability to interpret music with great choreography and we all just fell in love with him. His talent really showed win he won the Canadian National title. Other new faces to look out for include Rachael Flatt, Caroline Zhang, and Mirai Nagasu.

* Hottest Skater Award is tough because their are so many bombshells this season! But after conferring with my friend Elaine, we decided to go with Alexander Smirnov! We saw him (along with partner Yuko Kawaguchi) at Skate Canada and if he had any more muscles he would have ripped through his outfit! We also considered Kiira Korpi for her classic female good looks, Tanith Belbin for the same reason, and Brian Joubert (obligatory shirtless pic...thank you Terry Gannon)...need I say more!

* Best fall award was a no brainer! If you were at U.S. Nationals and saw the mens free program you saw a horrific fall from Michael Villareal on a Triple Axel...I mean he just went splat when he hit the ice. For a moment I thought he was knocked out cold. He got back up, somehow, and finished his program. Other noteworthy falls include Mao Asada's recent spill on Triple Axel at the World Championships and Kimmie Meissner's fall on her second Triple Lutz (not so much that it was a horrid fall, but rather she had fallen on both lutzes) at U.S. Nationals.

* Time for skater of the year! So many to choose from this season. Do you pick a skater who won a lot, jumped a lot, a skater who learned something about themself? I'm going to choose a skater that did all of those things...Johnny Weir. He was a completely different skater this season...completely different. He won competitions, he stayed consistent, when he didn't win he kept it in prospective. In the past he would throw little hissy fits about skating, criticising others when he had shortcomings of his own. In a previous post I exclaimed "I'm sick of Johnny Weir...guess what, you have shortcomings as well!" Well I can say that I am very happy to have Johnny skating for the U.S. He has been tremendous this season and really came through for us at the World Championships. Well done!