Showing posts with label oleksiy melnyk. Show all posts
Showing posts with label oleksiy melnyk. Show all posts
Monday, January 21, 2013
Sunday, January 20, 2013
US Nationals Novice Men's Short Program Results
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Washington Figure Skating Club Nationals Send-Off
The Washington Figure Skating Club held their nationals send-off in conjunction with the Wheaton Ice Arena Winter Ice Show. The show opened up with Intermediate Dance competitors Gwen Sletten and Elliot Verburg. They skated their Paso Doble themed free dance with good speed and edges, nice twizzles and an excellent straight line and rotational lift. They both have great expression and she's a real firecracker on the ice.
McNamara and Carpenter have gorgeous transitions in their free dance and a nice combination lift with two one foot sectionals. What you really appreciate about them when you see them perform live is that his facial expressions continue even in the lifts. They performed their zombie themed short dance later in the show and had the audience laughing from the opening note. They had excellent twizzles, ice coverage and nice matching leg lines in the blues section.
Gamelin and Gamelin will be competing in senior dance at nationals. In their short dance they had nice positions in their lift and solid twizzles. The twizzles were slightly off in their free dance but the straight line lift into a curve lift was nice.
Miller and MacMillan had nice expression throughout their short dance and a clean straight line lift. They had good ice coverage on their blues section and a good feel for the hip hop rhythm. Their twizzles were a little wobby in their free dance but they had a great upside down one hand hold lift. She is very facially expressive and he has excellent carriage throughout his upper body.
Pogrebinsky and Gudis had a nice one foot straight line lift in their free dance and she had a good Biellman position in their dance spin. They had a very nice non touching step sequence with lots of arm details in their short dance along with nice lines in the blues section. Their music flows well between sections and there's a cool illusion spin step near the end fo rthe program.
Oleksiy Melnyk got one of the largest crowd reactions of the night for his solid free skate. He landed a triple loop, triple salchow and triple toe + triple toe combination. His only mistake was a popped lutz at the beginning of the program.
Eliana Gropman and Ian Somerville are the reigning Juvenile Champions and are competing as Intermediates this season. They had a clean lift and a dance spin with a good change of direction. They also had nice speed on their twizzles. Their music is very catchy and they really play to the crowd during the program.
Caroline and Gordon Green will be competing as Juveniles at nationals in Omaha. They showed nice speed and flexibility in their dance spin, good twizzles and good expression. The comraderie of the ice dancers was evident when Ian Somerville cheered them on from the audience throughout the entire program.
Brianna Laxson skated her free skate in a gorgeous red lace dress. She stepped out of a few of her triples early in the program. She had good speed going into the jumps but seemed a little hesitant. She still landed a triple lutz and a triple loop along with a three jump combination. She had nice speed in her spins and a beautiful Ina Bauer.
Maria Yang started off her program with a triple lutz + double loop + double loop with great height throughout the combination. She also landed a solo triple lutz, a spiral into a double axel and a spread eagle into a double axel + double toe. There are lots of details in her program from the transitions to arm movements which give the whole program a polished feel.
A few of the young skaters left an impression and will be ones to watch in the coming years. Morgan Sletten and Jordan Lin had good stroking and good ice coverage and he is the younger brother of Gwen Sleten. Kaitlyn Chuang has good speed in her spins and attacks her jumps. Maria Soldoatova and Fadey Solatov were some of the youngest performers at the show and had good matching lines. She in particular had beautiful balletic arms.
Gigi and Luca Becker and Madison Vinci were scheduled to perform but did not. The Parson siblings were also in attendance even though they had to withdraw from nationals due to his injury.
Overall, all the skaters looked prepared for nationals and ready to contend for the podium. Nothing was perfect, but the skaters are on the pace to peak at nationals. It was a great show and the skaters are ready to make a splash in Omaha.
McNamara and Carpenter have gorgeous transitions in their free dance and a nice combination lift with two one foot sectionals. What you really appreciate about them when you see them perform live is that his facial expressions continue even in the lifts. They performed their zombie themed short dance later in the show and had the audience laughing from the opening note. They had excellent twizzles, ice coverage and nice matching leg lines in the blues section.
Gamelin and Gamelin will be competing in senior dance at nationals. In their short dance they had nice positions in their lift and solid twizzles. The twizzles were slightly off in their free dance but the straight line lift into a curve lift was nice.
Miller and MacMillan had nice expression throughout their short dance and a clean straight line lift. They had good ice coverage on their blues section and a good feel for the hip hop rhythm. Their twizzles were a little wobby in their free dance but they had a great upside down one hand hold lift. She is very facially expressive and he has excellent carriage throughout his upper body.
Pogrebinsky and Gudis had a nice one foot straight line lift in their free dance and she had a good Biellman position in their dance spin. They had a very nice non touching step sequence with lots of arm details in their short dance along with nice lines in the blues section. Their music flows well between sections and there's a cool illusion spin step near the end fo rthe program.
Oleksiy Melnyk got one of the largest crowd reactions of the night for his solid free skate. He landed a triple loop, triple salchow and triple toe + triple toe combination. His only mistake was a popped lutz at the beginning of the program.
Eliana Gropman and Ian Somerville are the reigning Juvenile Champions and are competing as Intermediates this season. They had a clean lift and a dance spin with a good change of direction. They also had nice speed on their twizzles. Their music is very catchy and they really play to the crowd during the program.
Caroline and Gordon Green will be competing as Juveniles at nationals in Omaha. They showed nice speed and flexibility in their dance spin, good twizzles and good expression. The comraderie of the ice dancers was evident when Ian Somerville cheered them on from the audience throughout the entire program.
Brianna Laxson skated her free skate in a gorgeous red lace dress. She stepped out of a few of her triples early in the program. She had good speed going into the jumps but seemed a little hesitant. She still landed a triple lutz and a triple loop along with a three jump combination. She had nice speed in her spins and a beautiful Ina Bauer.
Maria Yang started off her program with a triple lutz + double loop + double loop with great height throughout the combination. She also landed a solo triple lutz, a spiral into a double axel and a spread eagle into a double axel + double toe. There are lots of details in her program from the transitions to arm movements which give the whole program a polished feel.
A few of the young skaters left an impression and will be ones to watch in the coming years. Morgan Sletten and Jordan Lin had good stroking and good ice coverage and he is the younger brother of Gwen Sleten. Kaitlyn Chuang has good speed in her spins and attacks her jumps. Maria Soldoatova and Fadey Solatov were some of the youngest performers at the show and had good matching lines. She in particular had beautiful balletic arms.
Gigi and Luca Becker and Madison Vinci were scheduled to perform but did not. The Parson siblings were also in attendance even though they had to withdraw from nationals due to his injury.
Overall, all the skaters looked prepared for nationals and ready to contend for the podium. Nothing was perfect, but the skaters are on the pace to peak at nationals. It was a great show and the skaters are ready to make a splash in Omaha.
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
U.S. Nationals Novice Men's Preview
This is a young but talented group of men. It includes the reigning Intermediate Champion, bronze medalist and pewter medalist. Three of the men competed at the Novice level last season and all of the competitors have competed at nationals previously.
Tomoki Hiwatshi is only 12 years old but looks to follow in Nathan Chen and Vincent Zhou's footsteps and claim the novice men's title. He set the two highest scores in qualifying and is the only novice man who broke 100 in the free skate this season. He has a triple lutz, triple salchow and triple toe. He has his double axel in the bonus in his short program and a triple toe + single loop + double flip in his free skate worth 7.04 points. He also received level 4s on all his spins at sectionals. He'll be going for his third consecutive national title in Omaha.
Oleksiy Melnyk hit a clean, positive GOE short program at sectionals to claim the gold medal. He has all the triple except for a triple axel which give him a technical edge over the competition. He has a triple toe + triple toe combination planned in his free skate that's worth 8.20 points along with a 2A + double loop + double loop. He improved his total score between regionals and sectionals despite scoring lower in his free skate.
Daniel Samohin scored 16 points lower at sectionals than regionals, largely due to deleting two combinations from his free skate. He has a triple lutz, triple toe, triple loop and triple salchow and will be going for a triple lutz + double toe in his short program. Despite the errors, he still took home the gold from Pacific Coast Sectionals and if he can hit all the elements in his free skate he has a great shot at the podium.
Nicholas Vrdoljak improved an impressive 16 points from regionals to sectionals. He has a triple toe + triple toe combination along with a triple flip, triple salchow and triple toe. He hit level 4s on his spins at sectionals as well.
Also in the hunt are Daniel Kulenkamp, Paolo Borromeo and Tony Lu.
My podium predictions:
Gold: Tomoki Hiwatshi
Silver: Daniel Samohin
Bronze: Oleksiy Melnyk
Pewter: Nicholas Vrdoljak
Bios of the competitors:
Paolo Borromeo: He is 13 years old and competes for the Los Angeles Figure Skating Club. He is the reigning Intermediate Men's Bronze Medalist and finished 7th in Juvenile Boys in 2011 and 16th in Juvenile Boys in 2010. He won silver at Southwest Pacific Regionals and silver at Pacific Coast Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 7th best short program, 5th best free skate and 6th best total score.
Aaron Gunderson-Smith: He competes for the Skating Club of Wilmington. He finished 13th in Juvenile Boys in 2008 . He won silver at North Atlantic Regionals and pewter at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for nationals.
Tomoki Hiwatshi: He is 12 years old and competes for the DuPage Figure Skating Club. He is the reigning Intermediate Men's Champion and the 2011 Juvenile Boys Champion and finished 6th in Juvenile Boys in 2010. He won gold at Upper Great Lakes Regionals and gold at Midwestern Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the best short program, best free skate and best total score.
Daniel Kulenkamp: He is 17 years old and competes for the St. Paul Figure Skating Club. He finished 12th in Intermediate Men in 2011. He won silver at Upper Great Lakes Regionals and bronze at Midwestern Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 6th best free skate and 7th best total score.
Tony Lu: He is 13 years old and competes on behalf of the Skating Club of Wilmington. He is the 2010 Juvenile Boys Silver Medalist and finished 10th in Novice Men in 2012 and 18th in Juvenile Boys in 2009. He won silver at South Atlantic Regionals and silver at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for Nationals. He has the 6th best short program, 7th best free skate and 5th best total score.
Oleksiy Melnyk: He is 15 years old and competes on behalf of the Washington Figure Skating Club. He is the 2011 Intermediate Men's Silver Medalist and finished 11th in Novice Men in 2012 and 7th in Juvenile Boys in 2009. He won gold at South Atlantic Regionals and gold at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for Nationals. He has the 2nd best short program, 2nd best free skate and 3rd best total score.
Daniel Petrenko: He is 13 years old and competes for the Charles Oak Figure Skating Club. He finished 6th in Intermediate Men in 2011 and 19th in Juvenile Boys in 2008. He won gold at New England Regionals and bronze at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 10th best total score.
Daniel Samohin: He is 13 years old and competes for the Los Angeles Figure Skating Club. He is the 2011 Intermediate Men's Pewter Medalist and 2010 Juvenile Boys Champion. He finished 8th in Juvenile Boys in 2009 and 9th in Juvenile Boys in 2008. He won gold at Southwest Pacific Regionals and gold at Pacific Coast Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 3rd best short program, 3rd best free skate and 2nd best total score.
Nicholas Vrdolkak: He is 16 years old and competes for the DuPage Figure Skating Club. He is the 2009 Juvenile Boys Champion and placed 7th in Novice Men in 2012, 5th in Intermediate Men in 2010 and 14th in Juvenile Boys in 2008. He won bronze at Upper Great Lakes Regionals and silver at Midwest Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 4th best short program, 4th best free skate and 4th best total score.
Luke West: He is 15 years old and competes for the Broadmoor Skating Club. He finished 20th in Juvenile Boys in 2009. He won silver at Southwestern Regionals and pewter at Midwestern Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 8th best short program, 10th best free skate and 9th best total score.
Harrison Wong: He competes for the La Jolla Figure Skating Club. He is the reigning Intermediate Men's Pewter Medalist and finished 17th in Juvenile Boys in 2011. He won pewter at Southwest Pacific Regionals and bronze at Midwestern Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 10th best short program.
Albert Zeng: He is 15 years old and competes for the Skating Club of San Francisco. He finished 9th in Juvenile Boys in 2010 and 16th in Juvenile Boys in 2009. He received a bye through regionals and won pewter at Pacific Coast Sectionals to qualify for nationals.
Tomoki Hiwatshi is only 12 years old but looks to follow in Nathan Chen and Vincent Zhou's footsteps and claim the novice men's title. He set the two highest scores in qualifying and is the only novice man who broke 100 in the free skate this season. He has a triple lutz, triple salchow and triple toe. He has his double axel in the bonus in his short program and a triple toe + single loop + double flip in his free skate worth 7.04 points. He also received level 4s on all his spins at sectionals. He'll be going for his third consecutive national title in Omaha.
Oleksiy Melnyk hit a clean, positive GOE short program at sectionals to claim the gold medal. He has all the triple except for a triple axel which give him a technical edge over the competition. He has a triple toe + triple toe combination planned in his free skate that's worth 8.20 points along with a 2A + double loop + double loop. He improved his total score between regionals and sectionals despite scoring lower in his free skate.
Daniel Samohin scored 16 points lower at sectionals than regionals, largely due to deleting two combinations from his free skate. He has a triple lutz, triple toe, triple loop and triple salchow and will be going for a triple lutz + double toe in his short program. Despite the errors, he still took home the gold from Pacific Coast Sectionals and if he can hit all the elements in his free skate he has a great shot at the podium.
Nicholas Vrdoljak improved an impressive 16 points from regionals to sectionals. He has a triple toe + triple toe combination along with a triple flip, triple salchow and triple toe. He hit level 4s on his spins at sectionals as well.
Also in the hunt are Daniel Kulenkamp, Paolo Borromeo and Tony Lu.
My podium predictions:
Gold: Tomoki Hiwatshi
Silver: Daniel Samohin
Bronze: Oleksiy Melnyk
Pewter: Nicholas Vrdoljak
Bios of the competitors:
Paolo Borromeo: He is 13 years old and competes for the Los Angeles Figure Skating Club. He is the reigning Intermediate Men's Bronze Medalist and finished 7th in Juvenile Boys in 2011 and 16th in Juvenile Boys in 2010. He won silver at Southwest Pacific Regionals and silver at Pacific Coast Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 7th best short program, 5th best free skate and 6th best total score.
Aaron Gunderson-Smith: He competes for the Skating Club of Wilmington. He finished 13th in Juvenile Boys in 2008 . He won silver at North Atlantic Regionals and pewter at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for nationals.
Tomoki Hiwatshi: He is 12 years old and competes for the DuPage Figure Skating Club. He is the reigning Intermediate Men's Champion and the 2011 Juvenile Boys Champion and finished 6th in Juvenile Boys in 2010. He won gold at Upper Great Lakes Regionals and gold at Midwestern Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the best short program, best free skate and best total score.
Daniel Kulenkamp: He is 17 years old and competes for the St. Paul Figure Skating Club. He finished 12th in Intermediate Men in 2011. He won silver at Upper Great Lakes Regionals and bronze at Midwestern Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 6th best free skate and 7th best total score.
Tony Lu: He is 13 years old and competes on behalf of the Skating Club of Wilmington. He is the 2010 Juvenile Boys Silver Medalist and finished 10th in Novice Men in 2012 and 18th in Juvenile Boys in 2009. He won silver at South Atlantic Regionals and silver at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for Nationals. He has the 6th best short program, 7th best free skate and 5th best total score.
Oleksiy Melnyk: He is 15 years old and competes on behalf of the Washington Figure Skating Club. He is the 2011 Intermediate Men's Silver Medalist and finished 11th in Novice Men in 2012 and 7th in Juvenile Boys in 2009. He won gold at South Atlantic Regionals and gold at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for Nationals. He has the 2nd best short program, 2nd best free skate and 3rd best total score.
Daniel Petrenko: He is 13 years old and competes for the Charles Oak Figure Skating Club. He finished 6th in Intermediate Men in 2011 and 19th in Juvenile Boys in 2008. He won gold at New England Regionals and bronze at Eastern Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 10th best total score.
Daniel Samohin: He is 13 years old and competes for the Los Angeles Figure Skating Club. He is the 2011 Intermediate Men's Pewter Medalist and 2010 Juvenile Boys Champion. He finished 8th in Juvenile Boys in 2009 and 9th in Juvenile Boys in 2008. He won gold at Southwest Pacific Regionals and gold at Pacific Coast Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 3rd best short program, 3rd best free skate and 2nd best total score.
Nicholas Vrdolkak: He is 16 years old and competes for the DuPage Figure Skating Club. He is the 2009 Juvenile Boys Champion and placed 7th in Novice Men in 2012, 5th in Intermediate Men in 2010 and 14th in Juvenile Boys in 2008. He won bronze at Upper Great Lakes Regionals and silver at Midwest Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 4th best short program, 4th best free skate and 4th best total score.
Luke West: He is 15 years old and competes for the Broadmoor Skating Club. He finished 20th in Juvenile Boys in 2009. He won silver at Southwestern Regionals and pewter at Midwestern Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 8th best short program, 10th best free skate and 9th best total score.
Harrison Wong: He competes for the La Jolla Figure Skating Club. He is the reigning Intermediate Men's Pewter Medalist and finished 17th in Juvenile Boys in 2011. He won pewter at Southwest Pacific Regionals and bronze at Midwestern Sectionals to qualify for nationals. He has the 10th best short program.
Albert Zeng: He is 15 years old and competes for the Skating Club of San Francisco. He finished 9th in Juvenile Boys in 2010 and 16th in Juvenile Boys in 2009. He received a bye through regionals and won pewter at Pacific Coast Sectionals to qualify for nationals.
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Eastern Sectionals Novice Men's Results
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