European Championships: Short Dance

1. Pechalat/Bourzat, FRA: 34.13 TES + 32.78 PCS = 66.91
2. Bobrova/Soloviev, RUS: 34.07 TES + 31.39 PCS = 65.46
3. Kerr/Kerr, GBR: 32.00 TES + 30.87 PCS = 62.87
4. Ilinykh/Katsalapov, RUS: 31.79 TES + 29.14 PCS = 60.93
5. Riazanova/Tkachenko, RUS: 32.50 TES + 28.41 PCS = 60.91
6. Hoffmann/Zavozin, HUN: 29.79 TES + 28.21 PCS = 58.00 
7. Zhiganshina/Gazsi, GER: 57.82 TES + 32.50 PCS = 57.82
8. Carron/Jones, FRA: 31.42 TES + 25.81 PCS =57.23
9. Faiella/Scali, ITA: 26.75 TES + 30.43 PCS = 57.18
10. Mysliveckova/Novak, CZE: 29.50 TES + 25.87 PCS -1.00 = 54.37
11. Heekin-Canedy/Shakalov, UKR: 26.93 TES + 22.22 PCS = 49.15
12. Tobias/Stagniunas, LTU: 27.22 TES + 21.78 PCS = 49.00
13. Frolenkova/Kasalo, UKR: 27.21 TES + 20.52 PCS = 47.73
14. Alessandrini/Vaturi, ITA: 23.94 TES + 23.75 PCS = 47.69
15. Testa/Mior, ITA: 26.29 TES + 21.23 PCS = 47.52
16. Reed/Japaridze, GEO: 26.58 TES + 21.28 PCS = 46.86
17. Hurtado/Diaz, ESP: 25.14 TES + 19.70 PCS = 44.84
18. Coomes/Buckland, GBR: 24.42 TES + 22.36 PCS = 44.78
19. Elsener/Roost, SUI: 25.79 TES + 16.56 PCS = 42.35
20. Frieling/Rumi, ISR: 23.72 TES + 17.97 PCS = 41.69
21. Shtork/Rand, EST: 21.58 TES + 18.18 PCS = 38.76

Top 20 teams qualify for the free dance.

Europeans: Ice Dance Preview

Pechalat and Bourzat are posed to make a big jump from 4th at Europeans last season to the top of the podium.  They won gold at both their Grand Prix assignments and took silver at the Grand Prix Final.  They have nearly an 8 point lead over the field in terms of scores for the season and their scores are the 2nd best out of all the competitors on the Grand Prix.  This is their competition to lose, but this is one of the toughest and deepest fields at Europeans.

Bobrova and Soloviev have the 4th highest total score for the season.  They won two Grand Prix medals, one gold, and finished 4th at the Grand Prix Final.  If they can bring their short dance score up, they could make this an even tighter event, but they struggled in that segment at the Grand Prix Final.  They finished 9th at Europeans next year and I predict they'll make a big jump in the standings.

The Kerrs have the 5th highest total score for the season but had to withdraw from their second Grand Prix and their nationals due to a shoulder injury.  The injury was also plaguing them at their first event.  If they're healthy, their scores should really come up here, especially in the free dance.  They finished 5th here last season but do have one European medal already.  They have announced that this will be their final season and they're going to be fighting for a spot on the podium at Europeans and Worlds.

Riazanova/Tkachenko have the 6th highest total score for the season and have a Grand Prix medal.  They are another team with high short dance scores but lower free dance scores.  With a good performance they could definitely contend for a medal but I see them finishing in the top 5. 

Hoffman and Zavozin are one of three teams in this field that qualified for the Grand Prix Final.  While I like their programs and their partnership, I think they capitalized on weaker fields at their events.  They were a surprise 3rd at the Final after their short dance, but they had a rough free dance that dropped them into 6th place overall.  While they have the 9th highest score of the season, their free dance does not make the top 10 list.  I don't think they'll medal here, but they will definitely improve upon their 10th place finish last season.

Faiella and Scali won silver at Europeans last season but have had a rough time this year.  At their first assignment they had problems with her skirt in both of their programs and only have the 10th best score of their season.  In their second event, they were able to improve their short dance score but they still finished behind Bobrova and Soloviev and had to withdraw before the free dance.  I think this team will definitely have an improvement in their scores, but it will be difficult for them to improve to a podium spot.  I think they're looking at a top 5 placement.

Ilinykh/Katsalapov are the reigning world junior champions and won their first Grand Prix medal this season.  Their free dance has the 9th best score of the season, but they need to improve their short dance to be competitive in this field.  They should easily finish in the top 10, which is a respectable result for their first year as seniors.

Carron and Jones are another team that should land in the top 10.  They finished just off the podium in their two Grand Prix assignments and finished 12th at Europeans last season.

Alessandrini/Vaturi are one of the teams to watch for after finishing 5th at Junior Worlds last season.  The other teams in the top 5 have experienced good success this season at the junior and senior levels, so it will be interesting to see how this team holds up, especially as they did not receive Grand Prix assignments.

My podium predictions:
Gold: Pechalat/Bourzat
Silver: Kerr/Kerr
Bronze: Bobrova/Soloviev

My USFSA Fantasy Team:
A) Pechalat/Bourzat
B) Riazanova/Tkachenko
C) Testa/Mior

The teams:

Geil/Eisenbauer, AUT: They are the reigning national champions.

Valadzenkava/Vakunov, BLR: They finished 26th at Europeans and 29th at Junior Worlds. 

Tremasova/Lichev, BUL: They finished 32nd at the World Junior Championships.  They placed 13th and 16th at their two JGP assignments this season.

Mysliveckova/Novak, CZE: They finished 16th at Worlds.  They finished 6th at NHK Trophy and 5th at Cup of Russia.

Good/Sorensen, DEN: They placed 24th at Worlds, 21st at Europeans and 17th at Junior Worlds. 

Shtork/Rand, EST: They finished 23rd at the Olympics and 28th at Junior Worlds.  They finished 8th and 6th at their two JGP assignments this season.

Lindholm/Kanervo, FIN: They are the reigning national champions.

Carron/Jones, FRA (D): They finished 12 at both Worlds and Europeans.  They finished 5th at Skate Canada and 4th at Trophee Eric Bompard.

Pechalat/Bourzat, FRA (D): They placed 7th at the Olympics and 4th at both Worlds and Europeans.  They won gold at Cup of China and Trophee Eric Bompard to qualify for the Grand Prix Final where they won silver. 

Reed/Japaridze, GEO: They finished 22nd at the Olympics, 21st at Worlds and 19th at Europeans.

Zhiganshina/Gazsi, GER: They are the reigning national champions.

Coomes/Buckland, GBR: Coomes and Buckland finished 20th at the Olympics and 16th at Europeans.  They finished 8th at NHK Trophy and Skate America.

Kerr/Kerr, GBR (D): They finished 8th at the Olympics and 5th at Worlds and Europeans.  They are the 2009 European Bronze medalists.  They won silver at Skate Canada but withdrew from Cup of Russia due to injury.

Hoffman/Zavozin, HUN (D): Hoffman and Zavozin placed 13th at the Olympics and 10th at the World and European Championships.  Zavozin used to compete for USA and won the World Junior title in 2005.  They finished 4th in their Grand Prix debut at Cup of China, won silver at Cup of Russia, and placed 6th at the Grand Prix Final. 

Nagy/Fejes, HUN: They are the reigning national silver medalists.

Frieling/Rumi, ISR (D):

Alessandrini/Vaturi, ITA (D): They finished 5th at the World Junior Championships.

Faiella/Scali, ITA (D): Faiella and Scali placed 5th at the Olympics and won bronze at the World Championships and silver at Europeans.  They won bronze at Cup of China and withdrew from Cup of Russia.

Testa/Mior, ITA: They finished 22nd at Europeans.

Tobias/Stagniunas, LTU: This is their first season together.

Bobrova/Soloviev, RUS (D):  They placed 15th at the Olympics, 8th at Worlds and 9th at Europeans.  They are the 2007 World Junior Champions.  They won silver at Cup of China and gold at Cup of Russia to qualify for the Grand Prix Final where they finished 4th. 

Ilinykh/Katsalapov, RUS (D): They are the reigning World Junior champions.  They placed 4th at NHK Trophy and won bronze at Cup of Russia.

Riazanova/Tkachenko, RUS (D): They finished 5th at Skate America and won silver at Trophee Eric Bompard.

Visnova/Csolley, SVK: They finished 20th at Europeans and 19th at World Juniors.  They placed 10th and 7th at their two JGP assignments this season.

Hurtado/Diaz, ESP: They finished 16th at Junior Worlds.  They placed 10th and 5th at their two JGP assignments this season.

Elsener/Roost, SUI: They finished 25th at Europeans and 27th at the World Junior Championships.  They finished 7th and 13th at their two JGP assignments.

Frolenkova/Kasalo, UKR (D): They are the reigning national silver medalists.

Heekin-Canedy/Shakalov, UKR (D): They are the reigning national champions.

Grand Prix Final--Free Dance

Group 1

Ekaterina Bobrova/Dmitri Soloviev, RUS

• I really love her dress and the beading and water colors n the underskirt are gorgeous
• He drops his foot on the 2nd set of twizzles and steps out of the 3rd step
• Nice entrance into their straightline lift but it looked a little labored on the exit
• Nice edges and changes in hold on their circular step sequence here but I'd like to see her really extend her free leg
• Nice positions in their lift but they look a little labored in the position changes
• She has nice positions in the dance spin and they show off her flexibility
• Another nice step sequence well timed to the music
• Interesting rotational lift, but she really needs to squeeze her legs together in the 2nd position as they're at an awkward angle when only slightly apart
• The music is long over and they're still moving.  It looks deliberate though and hopefully that won't put them over time.

40.84 TES + 41.58 PCS = 82.42 and into 1st place

Vanessa Crone/Paul Poirier, CAN

• The dance spin is nice and they have some unique positions and interesting changes in hold and position
• Nice lift with her upside down and him on one leg but a slight bobble on the exit
• Nice changes of hold on their step sequence and lots of interesting variety in their steps
• Fast twizzles through all three sets, great unison and very close together
• They have some really interesting moves that I've never seen before
• She does a lift facing him and kicks over his head to come back to the ice but it looks like there may have been a slight bobble on the landing
• Flip into a rotational lift but she needs to watch her leg positions through the changes
• Very intriguing program but I'm not wowed and I don't feel they really connect with the audience or tell a story.

42.78 TES + 42.14 PCS = 84.92 and into 1st place

Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje, CAN

• They have a ton of speed and power across the ice through this first step sequence
• I'd like to see Kaitlyn stretch through her legs more and really straighten her knees
• A little loss of unison at the end of their second twizzle set but otherwise nicely done
• Nice dance spin but they could do a better job with the transition before the change of foot
• Nice one armed rotational lift where he picks her up from a kneeling position
• I'd love to see them have more of a connection with each other through the Come What May section of their program
• Tons of strength shown off as she holds her body parallel to the ice and he skates on one leg
• I'd like to see them attack this tango section a little more
• So much speed through their rotation lift with her in a haircutter position
• Solid program and they just need a little fine tuning which will bring up their GOEs and PCS

39.84 TES + 40.99 PCS = 80.83 and into 3rd place

Group 2

Nora Hoffman/Maxim Zavozin, HUN

• Interesting positions in their dance spin, but I'd like the speed to maintain consistent and for there to be a better transition between the foot change
• Twizzles were good unison and they completed 3 sets
• Their position changes in the footwork sequence are a little more basic than some of the other teams and I'd like to see them flow more through the steps
• I don't really like any of the positions in their rotational lift, especially when she's in the fetal position on his shoulders
• Nice split position for her in the straight line lift with him skating on one foot
• I'd like to see them add more variety to this program because their go to seems to be having Nora hold her foot behind her head.  That would also really help their choreography score.
• He has two bobbles in the last footwork sequence but manages to get back into the choreography

37.13 TES + 38.96 PCS = 76.09 and into 4th place

Nathalie Pechalat/Fabian Bourzat, FRA

• I love when dance teams get into their programs before the music even starts
• They have great speed and ice coverage
• Their first lift is nice and I like the added touches of her arms flapping in the lift
• Loving the character in this step sequence into the twizzles
• The twizzles are well timed for the most part, they complete 3 sets, and they remain very close together
• This lift is great as he flips her in the air and she twists and they he rolls her up and then drops her down to the ice.  Very intricate and executed with ease.
• In some places I think she could straighten her knee just a little bit more
• She does a flip in and then back in this lift but it takes a while to hit an actual position
• They need a better transition in their dance lift and the changes cost them a lot of speed and bring the element nearly to a stop
• This program is absolutely charming and they really have it polished and performance ready.

46.50 TES + PCS 49.94  = 96.44 new seasons best and into 1st place

Meryl Davis/Charlie White, USA

• I love that Meryl performs from the first note of the music and never stops until it ends
• Great entrance into their lift and she's balancing on just his leg as he skates on one foot
• Their step sequence is well executed but I'd like to see more tango inspired moves
• Music change and here comes the tango steps
• They are just demolishing these tangos with such speed and attack.  They jump into the first set for the feature.
• They are really attacking the tango elements of their program especially with their arms and heads and they have the quick feet that is the signature of a tango
• Interesting position in the dance spin but I'd like to see Meryl straighten her knee a bit more
• Roatational lift where he holds her by only her knees with a slight bobble on the exit
• Final rotational lift with her on a split position on his shoulder and a slight bobble on the exit
• Not my favorite program for Meryl and Charlie but they perform every second and except for a few problems on the exits of the lifts it is superbly executed.

50.15 TES + 52.79 PCS = 102.94 new seasons best and into 1st place

Top 3:
1) Davis/White
2) Pechalat/Bourzat
3) Crone/Poirier

Top TES: Davis/White
Top PCS: Davis/White

Gold: Davis/White
Silver: Pechalat/Bourzat
Bronze: Crone/Poirier

Grand Prix Final--Dance Preview

This is Davis and White's competition to lose.  They had some problems at Skate America with their programs and even had an uncharacteristic fall.  They have also received low levels for their Golden Waltz.  Even with these problems, they still easily have the top scores this season.  If they've corrected these problems, they should have an easy lead and take home the gold.  Pechalat and Bourzat are having a great season, winning gold at both their events and have set themselves up as Davis and White's top competition.  I don't think they can overtake the Americans here but they should easily be able to take the gold medal. 

Crone and Poirier have emerged as the top Canadian team with Virtue and Moir out for at least the first half of the season, but they are still a ways from the top two teams.  I think they need to work on adding more fluidity to their programs and to up their performance value if they want to challenge for the top spots on the podium.  Bobrova and Soloviev are another team that have come into their own this season, winning their first career Grand Prix medals.  Their scores are very close to Crone/Poirier's and they will challenge for the 3rd podium spot.  Bobrova and Soloviev have slightly higher technical and program component scores in their free dance, and if they can repeat this in their short dance, they'll medal here.

Weaver and Poje are one of my favorite teams and are a delight to watch and their technical scores are on par with the other teams, but they fall behind in their program components.  This is not unusual in a younger team, and this score should come up as they continue to improve.  They had a fall in their program at Skate America yet still managed to improve their score over NHK Trophy.  Their scores should be higher here, but it will be difficult for them to get onto the podium.  Hoffman and Zavozin are having a break out season winning the silver medal at Rostelecom Cup with a score 12 points higher than Cup of China.  The Final will be a chance for them to solidify their place among the top teams if they can maintain their scores but they are still a long way from the podium. 

My predictions in order of finish:
Gold: Davis/White
Silver: Pechalat/Bourzat
Bronze: Crone/Poirier
4th: Bobrova/Soloviev
5th: Weaver/Poje
6th: Hoffman/Zavozin

My USFSA Fantasy Team is:
A) Davis/White
B) Bobrova/Soloviev

The teams in order of qualification:

Meryl Davis/Charlie White, USA: They won silver at Olympics and Worlds.  They are the 2009 Four Continents champions and 2008 silver medalists.  They are the 2006 World Junior bronze medalists.  They won gold at NHK Trophy and Skate America.  They are the defending GPF champions.  This is their 3rd trip to the Final. 

Nathalie Pechalat/Fabian Bourzat, FRA: They placed 7th at the Olympics and 4th at both Worlds and Europeans.  They won gold at Cup of China and Trophee Eric Bompard.  They took home bronze from the GPF last season.  This is their 3rd trip to the Final.

Vanessa Crone/Paul Poirier, CAN: They finished 14th at the Olympics and 7th at the World Championships.  They won gold at Skate Canada and silver at Skate America.  They placed 6th at the GPF last season.  This is their 2nd trip to the Final.

Ekaterina Bobrova/Dmitri Soloviev, RUS: They placed 15th at the Olympics, 8th at Worlds and 9th at Europeans.  They are the 2007 World Junior Champions.  They won silver at Cup of China and gold at Rostelecom Cup.

Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje, CAN: Weaver and Poje are the reigning Four Continents champions.  They are the 2007 World Junior Bronze Medalists.  They won silver at NHK Trophy and finished 4th at Skate America.

Nora Hoffman/Maxim Zavozin, HUN: Hoffman and Zavozin placed 13th at the Olympics and 10th at the World and European Championships.  Zavozin used to compete for USA and won the World Junior title in 2005.  They finished 4th at Cup of China and won silver at Rostelecom Cup.

Rostelecom Cup Short Dance

Group 1

Alexandra Paul/Mitchell Islam

• Nice use of traditional tango moves in this program
• Great arm variations in the twizzles, he does an extra rotation on the 2nd set, they do 3 sets for the extra points
• I like this program where the tango and waltz feel like one program
• Good positions and flow in Golden Waltz
• back walkover into split lift
• She falls on midline step sequence and can't get back into it
• Unfortunate error at the end but otherwise, nice program
• Not sure what all the deductions are for

25.71 TES + 23.04 PCS -3.00  = 45.75

Elena Ilinykh/Nikita Katsalapov

• Fast, unison twizzles
• Nice position on Golden Waltz but it seems choppy
• aborted lift and they take a second to get back into the program
• He falls on a transiitonal move and they take a few seconds to get back into the program
• Nice step sequence
• They may have finished after the music

26.98 TES + 23.16 PCS -1.00  = 49.14 into 1st place

Lucie Mysliveckova/Matej Novak

• Nice Golden Waltz at the beginning of their program and she uses her arms really well
• They start their midline step sequence really far apart and it seems really slow and simple
• They get really close together on their twizzles and lose unison
• A nice rotational lift at the end of their program but it's relatively simple
• This is a nice team but they need to work on adding difficulty to their programs

24.86 TES + 23.59 PCS = 48.45 new seasons best into 2nd place

Kristina Gorshkova/Vitali Butikov

• Twizzles were very difficult with only an edge change between each of the three sets and the unison was good
• they look very tall and I wish they'd use this to their advantage and really extend their movements
• Good rotational lift with her in a hair cutter position
• Great flow through the Golden Waltz and they hit nice positions
• There were a few tiny synchronization problems in their midline step sequence

27.29 TES + 24.68 PCS = 51.97 new seasons best into 1st place

Group 2

Ekaterina Bobrova/Dmitri Soloviev

• I hate this music but it's different than what other teams are using
• She does an extra twizzle but otherwise they have good unison
• The step sequence had good unison and goes well with the music but it seems super slow
• I love the way she uses her head in the Golden Waltz and her subtle arm movmemtns
• Great death drop but it almost looks like she's falling
• Great position on the rotational lift but I don't like the big prep they take before getting into it

31.22 TES + 29.58 PCS = 60.80 new seasons best and into 1st place

Nora Hoffman/Maxim Zavozin

• I LOVE her dress and it moves so well
• nice midline step sequence
• A little choppy on the Golden Waltz but they have nice posiitons
• Unison is off on the twizzles and he doesn't grab his blade on the 2nd set
• Great lift at the end of their program but the exit is rough

29.21 TES + 28.03 PCS = 57.24 new seasons best into 2nd place

Madison Hubbell/Keiffer Hubbell

• Hair cutter rotational lift was good
• Nice flow in the Golden Waltz but she falls backward at one point--may not get a deduction because I'm not sure she hit the ice--and they jump right back into the program
• Most of their step sequence was on one foot which increases the difficulty
• Jump into their twizzles and he does one extra on the second set

26.21 TES + 24.38 PCS = 50.59 new seasons best and into 4th place

Federica Faiella/Massimo Scali

• Her skirt material looks thinner than last time
• Nice twizzles with a slight synchronization problem on their 2nd set
• great flow and speed to their Golden Waltz
• she does an arch while standing on his foot for their lift with a slightly awkward entry into it
• Nice step sequence with a few spots with slightly different arms

26.93 TES + 30.72 PCS = 57.65 new seasons best and into 2nd place

Top 3:
1) Bobrova/Soloviev
2) Faiella/Scali
3) Hoffman/Zavozin
Top TES: Bobrova/Soloviev
Top PCS: Faiella/Scali

Cup of China Short Dance

1. Isabella Cannuscio/Ian Lorello, USA

•  This is a great piece of music (Piano Man) and they really grab your attention from the beginning
• I think Isabella throws her head a little too much in some of the transitions
• Simple but elegant rotational lift at the top of the routine
• Nice jump into the twizzles for extra points and a difficult twizzle sequence without a step in between the twizzles
• Sometimes it looks like his arm positions are too high for her to grab
• Nice step sequence on the music change but their edges could be a little deeper
• Golden Waltz looked a little clunky and they didn't cleanly hit all the positions
• Her leg could be more parallel to the ice in the shoot the duck position
• The over the head lift into the rotational lift looked labored here but should be nice with a bit more practice
• The back walkover into the ending pose needed straight knees from her and made getting into the ending pose difficult
• Overall a good program from a young team.  They have some nice elements but have room to improve.

Xueting Guan/Meng Wang, CHN

• She drops her foot in the first set of twizzles so they may lose a level there
• She could use crisper positions and more extension through her legs in the Golden Waltz
• Pretty but simple rotational lift with a change of position
• I like where the footwork is placed musically but she leans forward too much during it and needs to work on her arm positions
• Nice lift where he swings her at different heights--something I haven't seen before
• Ending pose hit right on music

Xiayang Yu/Chen Wang, CHN:

•  She doesn't quite get her foot in between his on some of the turns in the Golden Waltz which is required
• Her arms look very placed and there isn't a lot of flow between movements
• She needs to keep her knee high through the whole attitude section
• Good speed through the Golden Waltz--there are places where they seem to float through it and it would be great if all the sections had that same quality
• Twizzles were solid and they did the third set for extra points on levels and grade of execution
• She needs more arch in her back on the rotational lift and I'd like to see her grab her foot
• The transition into the tango is still awkward and doesn't seem to go with the music
• Step sequence is together but feels a little slow and I really want them to attack it
• Last lift doesn't do much for me and she kind of flops back down on the ice
• I think they performed here much better than at NHK Trophy

Nora Hoffman/Maxim Zavozin, HUN

• I love the color of her dress, how it looks and the way it moves when she skates
• Great speed and coverage of the ice in the midline step sequence
• I love the way she uses her arms but some of the holds in the Golden Waltz could be more effortless
• Nice shoot the duck and attitude positions from Nora
• Awkward transition into the glide with her in a split position but once that gets worked out this could be a lovely move
• Fast twizzles but he doesn't grab his blade in the second set
• Her legs are in a really awkward position in the rotational lift but the entrance into the lift was nice
• This program had a lot of nice elements and I can't wait to see it progress

Kharis Ralph/Asher Hill, CAN

• These costumes are heinous
• She needs to really extend her free leg throughout her footwork 
• They really glide across the ice in the Golden Waltz, have great speed and nice coverage.  The use of her arms is the finishing touch on a lovely section.
• Great shoot the duck and attitude positions for Kharis
• Nice rotational lift but she needs to arch her back more; beautiful change of position
• Hop into the twizzles with some interesting arm positions, but they lost speed in the second set
• Midline step sequence is lovely but seems to lose a little steam midway through
• Death spiral into a dance spin into the world's most awkward ending pose

 Ekaterina Bobrova/Dmitri Soloviev, RUS

•  They start off with a bang and really grab your attention
• He almost falls out of his second set of twizzles but saves it
• The step sequence seems to slow considerably but shows off some great edges
• Great Golden Waltz sequence.  The steps go well with the music but I don't really like their song choice.  It's almost distracting
• LOVED the death drop.  It was really breathtaking.
• The rotational lift is fine but it's distracting to have her dress up over her head like that
• Loved this program.  Very impressed by a team I didn't know much about going into this competition.
• They received one deduction.  Will have to wait for the protocol sheets to see what for--likely an extended lift

Xintong Huang/Xun Zheng, CHN: 

• I really didn't get the beginning.
• Performed three sets of twizzles but their unison was off.
• They are making some awkward arm movements in their step sequence that must go with the story of the program (which I still don't understand) but are distracting from the actual steps.
• She doesn't get her foot between his on the turns
• Lift is fine but very simple
• Backwalkover to overhead lift and then he drops her between his legs and puts her down which is exactly as awkward as it sounds.  Also doesn't really look like a dance lift to me.

Madison Hubbell/Keiffer Hubbell, USA

• I love that they enter the ice in character
• Maybe we shouldn't kiss her shoulder if we're brother and sister
• Nice rotational lift with her leg in scorpion position and free leg fully stretched
• Good edges and positions throughout the Golden Waltz--she could be clearer about attitude vs arabesque positions
• He goes down on the footwork and she trips over him.  It takes them 5-10 seconds to get back into the choreography.
• Jump into the twizzles but he is significantly slower on the second set
• The fall plus the deduction (likely for an extended lift) really took the wind out of this team.  Their routine is good but I'm not sure it's good enough to compete with the other top American teams

Frederica Faiella/Massimo Scali, ITA:

• What a horrid costume for her.  Generally all white costumes past the knee do not work well with the white ice.
• Jump into the twizzles with great positioning and look effortless but he finishes before her on both sets
• Gorgeous Golden Waltz sequence
• He steps on her dress and can't get his skate unstuck
• Interesting lift but the entrance looked labored
• She's turning on the performance in the second half
• Awkward back walkover at the end of their program

Nathalie Pechalat/Fabian Bourzat, FRA:

• They are in performance mode the second their names are called
• Love the look up through her eyelashes she does on the first beat of the music
• Twizzles seemed clean and they did three sets
• It looked like she had a bobble on the midline step sequence
• Their Golden Waltz looks a little choppy and it seems as if they don't quite finish all their steps
• Nice lunge straight into the lift
• I'm not sure I understand why they have such a big lead over the Italians