Skate Canada Report 3

Ainsi nous venons à lui... le rapport final du Canada de patin!

The final day of Skate Canada was eventful for sure. It started with the Free Dance. During the warm-up, Americans Gregory and Petukhov were working on a rotational lift when he lost his grip on her and they went spiraling to the ice (think Dubrueil and Lauzon at the Torino Olympics). Melissa when down chest first and Denis went head first into the boards. The scene was terrible as everyone looked on and hoped she was okay. As the medical team removed her from the ice the crowd applauded. It was later announced she had suffered no injuries and we were all relieved. The competition continued with French team Carron and Jost capturing the bronze (realistically due to the fact Gregory and Petukhov withdrew), Italians Cappellini and Lanotte winning silver and Canadians Virtue and Moir shattering the competition and winning the gold (they also had a final score that was 4 points higher than Belbin and Agosto's Skate America total).

The Men's Free Skate was the final competitive event. All three American men were less than impressive. Jeremy Abbott finished 8th and highest amongst the Americans...Scott Smith was 9th and Varner was 12th. Important to note that despite the 8th place finish Abbott's free skate was judged 4th best on the night. Canadian Christopher Mabee brought the crowd to their feet with his fun Big Band inspired free skate, he finished 4th. Canada's Jeffery Buttle squeaked out the bronze medal despite a rather less than stellar program...it's a good thing he can spin and has good footwork because the jumps weren't on his side. Kevin Van Der Perren reeled off a gorgeous quad toe at the top of his program and never looked back. He was a little slow on his footwork but was determined to land every single jump and he did. With his Lawrence of Arabia program, he won the free skate, won the silver, and set a new level of excellence for his skating! Brian Joubert of course won despite a program that lacked energy and was peppered with jump mistakes, his lead from the short was simply to much for the other competitors to overcome.

Skate Canada ended of course with the Gala Exhibition where all the skaters got to strut their stuff one last time. Memorable performances were given from Mao Asada, Dube and Davison (again that Blower's Daughter piece is amazing!), Savchenko and Szolkowy, and Brian Joubert (who had far more energy in his exhibition than his free skate). The best part came when 3 teenage ladies who had been screaming at Brian everytime he skated past them during his exhibition were standing at the boards and during his encore he skated over and hugged them. These 3 girls went nuts and one of them captured a picture of him on her cell phone and was screaming, it was great!

I had never been to Quebec and I must tell you I fell in love with this place. The people are charming and inviting. The history of this historic place can be felt all around and I enjoyed myself thoroughly. Au revoir Ville Du Québec. J'espère venir visite vous à l'avenir!

Skate Canada Report 2

Sorry for the delay but the Internet at the Hotel conked out and I haven't been able to really sit down and blog until today...but I promise to get you caught up!

The Pairs Free Skate was first up and I have to first mention the Americans Vise and Trent. They had a great free skate and pulled up from last place after the short to finish 5th. The bronze medal went to Kawaguchi and Smirnov of Russia. If Alexander Smirnov wore clothing any tighter, his muscles would rip through! He has to be one of the buffest skaters ever! Dube and Davison had to settle for the silver medal this week; they did, however, skate very well and clinched a spot in Torino for the Grand Prix Final. The cream of the crop was clearly Savchenko and Szolkowy. Clean and smooth all the way through, they will be tough for anyone to beat this year, they look very well trained for this early in the season.

The ladies were up next. Ashley Wagner put down a clean program and it was clear she wouldn't be staying down in 8th place! Leader after the short, virtual unknown Laura Lepisto, completely bombed in the free skate. She failed to land a single clean triple and finished 7th. Joannie Rochette brought the house down with her comeback performance. She fought for everything and the crowd responded with a standing ovation, she earned the bronze. Yukari Nakano also looked to improve upon her 4th place finish after the short. After Joannie's outstanding performance and Asada and Hughes still to come she knew she would need to dig deep. She reeled off a huge Triple Axel at the top of her program and never looked back. She earned the silver. I really thought Mao Asada would go for a triple axel given the outstanding performances given before her but she did what she does best, triple/triple combos and a back loaded program full of jumps. She was smooth and graceful and it was clear that nobody was gonna even get close to beating her! Emily skated next and while improved from Skate America, she still struggled with her lutz turning it into a double. She was also really hanging onto some of her jumps; go home and work on those triples before Nationals, she finished 4th.

I was a bit confused by the original dance. Americans Gregory and Petukhov had an amazing OD to Lord of the Dance yet they were pummeled by the judges dropping from 3rd to 4th??? The French team of Carron and Jost got the biggest ovation to their OD and edged the Americans for 3rd. Cappellini and Lanotte were in second and the Candaian team of Virtue and Moir continued to dominate. I must tell you their twizzles were some of the best looking twizzles I have ever seen in my life! I'm very concerned for Dubreuil and Lauzon at this point...Virtue and Moir are making huge strides and I believe will challenge for the World Title (bold prediction I know!)...Dubreuil and Lauzon might find the water a little choppier than expected if they decide to make a run at Olympic Gold in Vancouver.

Ainsi jour davantage fini deux... à venir!

Skate Canada Report 1

La bienvenue à mon patin Canada rapporte de la ville du Québec! It is great to be way up here in chilly but beautiful Quebec City. I'm finding myself falling in love with this place and definitely will return the next chance I get! But you've not logged on to listen to me rant and rave about the city...so I'll get to the skating, which, by the way, has been fantastic...as they say up here, "patinage fantastique!"

The compulsory dance was...well...compulsory. After Jamie Sale and David Pelletier got things moving in the Opening Ceremonies it was good fun to watch 10 couples sling around the ice to the Yankee Polka. Canadian upstarts Virtue and Moir hold a small lead over Italians Capellini and Lanotte and Americans Gregory and Petukhov. What I can say about the Compulsory dance is that I have never seen so many people show up for one! Canadians will take their skating any way they can get it!

The pairs short program was a great one. Americans Vise and Trent are in last place, not because they skated bad, but because everyone skated well. Canadians Duhamel and Buntin made their international debut and skated well. Russians Kawaguchi and Smirnov are in third after a smooth performance. You could see their coach Tamara Moskvina carefully watching their every move. In second place are new favorites of mine Dube and Davison; the Canadian team stepped it up a notch and had a solid short program here in Quebec but they will have trouble with leaders after the short program, German's Savchenko and Szolkowy. The German's were near perfect.

I was very confused by the ladies judging. I'm still trying to figure out why Ashley Wagner was marked so lowly; I'm puzzled. Canadian superstar Joannie Rochette sits 5th after having some shakiness in the jumps. Japan's Yakari Nakano is 4th despite a nasty fall on triple flip. Shockingly Mao Asada is in 3rd after some jump troubles of her own. Her triple/triple didn't go as planned as she nearly fell on the second jump. Emily Hughes is in second with a great performance, far better than what she put down in Reading...nice comeback. The biggest shock of all is the leader after the short, Laura Lepisto of Finland. If you're asking who, those are my thoughts exactly. I had to look this girl up! Apparently she was 7th at last years Jr. Worlds. I felt her content wasn't as good as Emily's...but I guess that's why there are several judges.

The men all made it to easy for Joubert to whip them! But what is terribly interesting about the men's competition is the point spread between 2nd and 6th place. All three Canadian men are in the top six. Buttle sits third after a shaky short that included a fall on triple lutz. Christopher Mabee and Vaughn Chipeur sit 4th and 6th respectively, each having pretty good skates. Kevin Van Der Perren sits between them in 5th after botching his quad combo. However, it's a French affair at the top with Yannick Ponsero in 2nd and the World Champ Joubert leading. Both were good, Joubert was in fact great landing a gorgeous quad in combination. It was smooth sailing for him with no rain clouds in site, he cleared the other competitors by nearly 10 points. In contrast to the French success is the American failure. All three American men blew it in the short and are in 8th, 11th, and 12th (Smith, Abbott, Varner).

Tomorrow brings more skating. Maintenez cette adresse d'enchaînement maniable!