JGP Austria Pairs Preview

Although Sui and Han finished below their personal best at their first Grand Prix event, they still took home the gold medal by a comfortable margin.  A medal of any color here will likely secure them a spot in the Junior Grand Prix Final but they'll be hoping for a return to the Grand Prix Final.  Their teammates Yu and Jin won silver behind them at JGP Latvia and are likely to do the same here.  They finished slightly below their personal best at their first event, which I expect to improve here.  Purdy and Marinaro already have a bronze medal this season and finished behind the two Chinese teams in Latvia.


Kadlecova and Bidar of the Czech Republic pulled double duty last season competing as seniors and juniors.  Their best result was a 7th place finish at Europeans.  They were fairly consistent last season and had solid results but have yet to climb onto the medal stand at a major international event.   


Two Russian teams are also looking for a medal finish: Petaikina/Kurduykov and Vasilieva/Shevchuk.  Neither have won a medal on the Junior Grand Prix and with so many talented Russian pairs teams they'll need a medal to prove they can cut it on the international circuit and have a shot at Junior Worlds. 


My podium predictions:
Gold: Sui/Han
Silver: Yu/Jin
Bronze: Kadlecova/Bidar


Bios of the competitors:


Kestila/Bullard, AUS: This is their international debut.


Martini/Kiefer, AUT: They finished 21^st at Worlds, 15^th at Europeans and 16^th at Junior Worlds.  They withdrew after the short program at JGP Latvia.  Their personal best is 100.87.  She is 18 years old and he is 20 years old.

Purdy/Marinaro, CAN: They won bronze at JGP Latvia.  Their personal best is 134.46.  She is 16 and he is 19.

Li/Jiang, CHN: They finished 10^th at their JGP debut in Latvia.  Their personal best is 100.89.  She is 13 and he is 19.

Sui/Han, CHN: They are the 2010 and 2011 World Junior Champions.  They won gold at JGP Latvia.  They won silver at Cup of China and bronze at Skate America last season to qualify for the GPF where they won bronze.  They won silver at JGP Austria and gold at JGP Germany last season to qualify for the JGPF but they withdrew to focus on the senior competition.  Their personal best is 179.04.  She is 16 years old and he is 19.

Yu/Jin, CHN: They took home the silver from JGP Latvia.  They won bronze at JGP Austria and gold at JGP Czech Republic last season to qualify for the JGPF where they won bronze.  Their personal best is 140.58.  She is 15 and he is 17.

Kadlecova/Bidar, CZE: They finished 15th at Worlds, 7th at Europeans and 8th at Junior Worlds.  They placed 6th at Trophee Eric Bompard last season.  They placed 7th at JGP Austria and JGP Great Britain last season.  Their personal best is 139.94.  She is 16 and he is 20.


Epstein/Epstein, NED: They finished 17th at Junior Worlds.  This is their JGP debut.  She is 18 and he is 18 (they are twins).  

Jaskolka/Snopek, POL: They finished 11^th at JGP Poland.  Their personal best is 90.22.  She is 14 and he is 20.

Malinkiewicz/Lofek, POL: They finished 10^th at their international debut at JGP Poland.  Their personal best is 93.10.  She is 13 and he is 17.

Fedorova/Miroshkin, RUS: This is their international debut.

Petaikina/Kurduykov, RUS: They finished 4^th at JGP Latvia.  Their personal best is 131.94.  She is 16 and he is 21.

Vasilieva/Shevchuk, RUS: They finished 11th at Junior Worlds.  They placed 9th at JGP Great Britain last season.  Their personal best is 130.14.  She is 15 and he is 21.


Rodriguez/Maestu, ESP: This is their international debut and they are the first Spanish pair team to compete internationally.  She is 14 and he is 21.

Lundberg/Lundberg, SWE: They placed 11^th at JGP Latvia last season.  Their personal best is 96.76.  She is 17 and he is 19.

Morand/Leeman, SUI: They finished 12th at Junior Worlds. This is their JGP debut.  She is 18 and he is 20.

Lavrentieva/Rudik, UKR: They finished 15th at Junior Worlds.  They placed 9th at JGP Poland.  Their personal best is 102.29.  She is 14 and he is 19.

Denney/Frazier, USA: They placed 8^th at their JGP debut in Latvia.  Their personal best is 116.04.  She is 15 and he is 18. 

Duarte/Grafton, USA: They placed 9^th at JGP Latvia.  Their personal best is 123.45.  She is 18 and he is 20. 

Oltmanns/Santillan, USA: They placed 7^th at JGP Latvia.  Their personal best is 118.45.  She is 14 and he is 19.

Europeans: Pairs Preview

Savchenko and Szolkowy should walk away with this title.  Their total score for this season is over 27 points higher than the rest of the field.  They have room to make mistakes and still easily win gold.  I'm not crazy about their short program this season including the costume Savchenko wore at the GPF but I love the playfulness they've injected into their free skate and the ease with which they execute their movements.  They lost their title to the Russians last year and I don't see that happening again. 

Bazarova and Larionov have the 3rd best total scores of the season.  I adore both of their programs and they have such an ease and grace when on the ice.  It's hart to believe that she is just 17 as there is so much maturity in their programs.  They have had a bit of struggle with consistency, having a few problems in their free skates including a disastrous outing at the Grand Prix Final where they were only able to finish 5th.  They finished 4th at their nationals and with only two spots on their Worlds team, they'll need a medal finish here to be considered for one of those spots.  They finished 5th at Europeans last season, but they should be able to move up and get a medal this year.

Kavaguti and Smirnov had to miss their first Grand Prix due to injury.  Their scores put them 4th for the season, but I expect these to improve.  They finished 2nd at their nationals ahead of Bazarova and Larionov so I would expect them to finish in front of them here.  They are the reigning European Champions, but I think it will be difficult for them to hold on to their title. 

Gerboldt/Enbert are a new team this season and they finished 4th at their first Grand Prix event and finished 3rd at Russian nationals.  They've put up some impressive scores and I expect that trend to continue.  They could be a medal threat here and I expect them to at least finish in the top 5.

Hausch/Wende won a bronze at Trophee Eric Bompard and finished 9th at Europeans last season.  While I don't see them on the podium here, I believe they can have a top 5 finish here.

Kadlecova and Bidar are one of the young teams at the event and will be looking for a good finish at their first Europeans.

Missing from this competition are the reigning Russian Champions, Volosozhar and Trankov.  She competed for Ukraine last season and is ineligible to compete until Worlds.  Also missing will be Iliushechkina and Maisuradze who finished 4th at the Grand Prix Final and have the 6th best score for the season.  Their 5th place finish at Russian Nationals has ended their season.  They will compete at Winter Universaide later this month.

My podium predictions:
Gold: Savchenko/Szolkowy
Silver: Kavaguti/Smirnov
Bronze: Bazarova/Larionov

My USFSA Fantasy Team:
A) Savchenko/Szolkowy
B) Gerboldt/Enbert
C) Gierok/Just
The teams:

Martini/Kiefer, AUT: They placed 20th at Junior Worlds. 

Bakirova/Kamianchuk, BLR: They finished 19th at Worlds and 17th at Europeans. 

Kadlecova/Bidar, CZE: They finished 14th at the World Junior Championships.  They finished 7th at both their Junior Grand Prix assignments and placed 6th at Trophee Eric Bompard with a personal best short program.

Nabijako/Kulbach, EST: This is their first season together.

Canac/Bonheur, FRA:  This is their first season together.  They are the reigning national champions.

Gierok/Just, GER: This is their first season together.

Hausch/Wende, GER: They finished 17th at the Olympics, 14th at Worlds and 9th at Europeans with a personal best short program.  They finished 7th at NHK Trophy with a personal best free skate and total score and won bronze at Trophee Eric Bompard with personal best scores across the board..

Savchenko/Szolkowy, GER: They won bronze at the Olympics with a personal best short program score and silver at Worlds and Europeans (with a personal best free skate and total score).  They have 2 additional Gold and 1 Bronze medal at the World Championships and 3 Gold and a silver at Europeans.  They won gold at Skate America and Trophee Eric Bompard to qualify for the Grand Prix Final where they won gold.

Hoolin/Safranek, GBR: They are the reigning national silver medalists.

Kemp/King, GBR: They placed 16th at Olympics (with a personal best total score) and Worlds and 11th at Europeans with a personal best free skate.  They finished 8th at Skate Canada and Skate America.

Montalblano/Krasnopolski, ISR: They finished 25th at Worlds and 18th at Europeans.

Berton/Hotarek, ITA: They finished 11th at the World Championship with personal best scores across the board.  They placed 6th at Cup of Russia with personal best free skate and total scores.

Gillespie/Dematte, ITA: They finished 8th and 11th at their two JGP assignments this season.

Bazarova/Larionov, RUS: They finished 11th at the Olympics, 8th at Worlds and 5th at Europeans.  They won silver at NHK Trophy with personal best scores across the board and at Trophee Eric Bompard with personal best scores across the board to qualify for the Grand Prix Final where they finished 5th.

Gerboldt/Enbert, RUS: They finished 4th at Cup of Russia.

Kavaguti/Smirnov, RUS: They finished 4th at the Olympics with a personal best short program, won bronze at Worlds and are the reigning European champions with a personal best free program and total score.  They also won bronze at the World Championships in 2009 and a silver and bronze at Europeans.  They won gold at Cup of Russia.

Three Nationals Championships

This is the Nationals for the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland

Men: 2 spots at Euros for CZE, 2 spots at Worlds for CZE

Short Program Results (Top 2):
1. Tomas Verner, CZE: 74.83 (36.69 TES + 39.14 PCS -1.00)
2. Michal Brezina, CZE: 71.26 (34.88 TES + 36.38 PCS)

Complete Results: http://www.kraso.sk/wp-content/uploads/2010/ms_za_2010/html/SEG001.HTM

Free Skate Results (Top 2):
1. Tomas Verner, CZE: 146.37 (69.37 TES + 79.00 PCS -2.00)
2. Michal Brezina, CZE: 131.50 (60.12 TES + 72.38 PCS -1.00)

Final Results (Top 2)
1. Tomas Verner, CZE: 221.20
2. Michal Brezina, CZE: 202.76

Complete Results: http://www.kraso.sk/wp-content/uploads/2010/ms_za_2010/html/CAT001RS.HTM

Ladies

Complete Results: http://www.kraso.sk/wp-content/uploads/2010/ms_za_2010/html/CAT002RS.HTM

Pairs

Short Program Results (Top 1):
1. Klara Kadlecova/Petr Bidar, CZE: 44.75 (23.50 TES + 21.25 PCS)

Complete Results: http://www.kraso.sk/wp-content/uploads/2010/ms_za_2010/html/SEG005.HTM

Free Skate Results (Top 1):
1. Klara Kadlecova/Petr Bidar, CZE: 89.10 (46.20 TES + 43.90 PCS -1.00)

Final Resulta (Top 1):
1. Klara Kadlecova/Petr Bidar, CZE: 133.85

Complete Results: http://www.kraso.sk/wp-content/uploads/2010/ms_za_2010/html/CAT003RS.HTM

Ice Dance

Short Dance Results (Top 1)
1. Lucie Mysliveckova/Matej Novak, CZE: 52.86 (29.25 TES + 23.61 PCS)

Complete Results: http://www.kraso.sk/wp-content/uploads/2010/ms_za_2010/html/SEG007.HTM

Free Dance Results (Top 1)
1. Lucie Mysliveckova/Matej Novak, CZE: 83.08 (45.47 TES + 37.61 PCS)

Final Results (Top 1)
1. Lucie Mysliveckova/Matej Novak, CZE: 135.94

Complete Results: http://www.kraso.sk/wp-content/uploads/2010/ms_za_2010/html/CAT004RS.HTM

Trophee Eric Bompard--Pairs Short Program

I'm having some technical difficulty getting the feed up so it may be a few minutes before I get underway.

Group 1

Anna Khnychenkova/Mark Magyar, HUN

• I missed most of their program but tuned in in time to see a nice double throw
• She could use more arch in her back and a more stretched out position in the lifts
• The spins were slow but had good unison
• Nice stretched out death spiral position
• Their footwork sequence is really slow but has good unison--the steps aren't that difficult and they're not getting much ice coverage

22.48 TES + 16.98 PCS = 39.46 new seasons best into 1st place

Felicia Zhang/Taylor Toth, USA

• She could use some more stretch through her free legs on transition moves
• Nice triple twist but she crashes into him on the landing
• On their side by side triples it looks like she misses her take off and doesn't do the jump and puts a hand down so they'll get no credit--on the replay you can see that she hits the side of her blade on the ice while taking off for the jump
• Nice air position in the lift
• She hangs on to the landing of her throw triple
• Nice unison on the side by side spins but they get a little off in the middle
• Nice step sequence but I'd like to see a little more difficult and movement but it has a lovely flow acros the ice
• I like her entrance into the death spiral but her legs could be slightly more stretched out

20.65 TES + 20.28 PCS = 40.93 into 1st place

Klara Kadlecova/Petr Bidar, CZE

• This is a young team at 15 and 19
• Nice double twist with a clean catch
• I believe they did a throw double here but it was landed cleanly--on the replay it was a triple and it was nicely landed
• She puts a hand down on their side by side triples
• Some nice speed in their side by side spins but they're way off on their unison and she gets faster in the upright spin while he slows considerably
• He couldn't get her all the way up on the lift and has to set her back down on the ice
• She looks a little sideways in her death spiral
• Nice use of the music in this step sequence and they're really making use of their whole bodies here
• This team has some nice qualities and if they can up their difficulty they'll be more on par with other teams here

18.82 TES + 20.50 PCS = 39.32 into 3rd place

Group 2

Vera Bazarova/Yuri Larionov, RUS

• Not sure what's going on but the warm up group is off the ice and they've been skating around for about 2 minutes now and they're putting their jackets and scarves back on.  Still no announcement for them to take the ice.
• Nice side by side triples to start their program
• She has a great arabesque position
• Great height on their triple twist and a very clean landing
• Nice landing on the throw triple jump
• He lifts her like she weights nothing
• Nice position in the death spiral--he changes hands and she regrabs behind his back
• Nice positions in the spins, good speed throughout and good unison
• Nice entrance into the lift with her on one leg, great change of position where she is on her side and he's holding with one hand and effortless exit with a flip out of the lift
• Nice intricate stepwork sequence with nice flow and movement

36.47 TES + 27.71 PCS = 64.18 new seasons best and into 1st place

Maylin Hausch/Daniel Wende, GER

• They are skating to Tango de Roxanne and aren't really attacking this music
• Nice side by side triples
• Double twist with a clean catch with her arms over her head
• Nice throw triple
• Into the step sequence and I'd like to see her work on her arm and hand positions as everything is very stiff and it disrupts the line
• Very slow death spiral but I like her free arm position
• She could use a little more arch in her lift position
• Nice transition from the camel to the sit spin in their spin sequence but a little off on the unison at the end
• Ending pose is very smooth which does not go with the build of the music and the dramatic ending

31.37 TES + 22.65 PCS = 54.02 new seasons best and into 2nd place

Mylene Brodeur/John Mattatall, CAN

• Nice triple twist but she crashes into him on the landing
• She falls on the side by side triples
• She falls on the throw triple and I'm not sure she'll get credit for the full rotation as her blade never really came back down on the ice--on the replay it looks like she only got around twice
• Nice unison on the spins but they were slow and I wasn't crazy about the positions
• Interesting entrance to the death spiral and a nice stretched out position for her
• Nice movement in relation to each other on the step sequence
• Final lift could use more arch from her and a nice flip exit

24.80 TES + 22.67 PCS -2.00 = 45.47 and into 3rd place

Aliona Savchenko/Robin Szolkowy, GER

• I still don't understand what's supposed to be happening at the beginning of this program
• Huge throw triple and she really nails the landing
• Nice triple twist but she crashes into him on the landing
• She steps out of her side by side triple--on the replay her air position was way off, Kudos to her for hanging on to the landing
• Nice air positions in the lift and she shows off her flexibility
• I like her arm positions in the death spiral and they change hands for extra points
• Nice difficulty in their step sequence but it seems slow and he has a bobble in the middle
• Nice fast side by side spins with good unison but I'd like to see more stretch from him in the bottom leg of his side by side spin

34.62 TES + 32.03 PCS = 66.65 new seasons best and into 1st place

Top 3
1. Savchenko/Szolkowy
2. Bazarova/Larionov
3. Hausch/Wende

Top TES: Bazarova/Larionov
Top PCS: Savchenko/Szolkowy