Top Moments of 2011: January

U.S. Nationals

Caitlin Yankowskas/John Coughlin skated to their first national title with a flawless and emotionally charged performance of Ave Maria, dedicated to his mother who passed away the year before.

Alissa Czisny followed up her Grand Prix Final win with her second national title and showed that she was back as a top contender in the world.

Ryan Bradley returned to competition at the urging of his fans and claimed his first ever national title at the age of 28.  Two youngsters, Richard Dornbush and Ross Miner stole the show by taking silver and bronze and making the World team ahead of veterans like Jeremy Abbott.

Europeans

Sarah Meier won her first European title in her home country and retired on top.

US Skating Off Season News

Rachael Flatt has been fined and reprimanded by USFSA for not disclosing her stress fracture at Worlds.  She has also left Broadmoor and Tom Z to attend college at Stanford, but no coach has been announced yet.

Adam Rippon has left Brian Orser and will train in Detroit under Jason Dungjen.  He is working on a quad lutz.

Johnny Weir has announced he will not compete this season.

Yankowskas and Coughlin split and Denney and Coughlin paired up.  They will skate their short to East of Eden and their long to Nessun Dorma. 

Alexe Gilles left Tom Zakrajsek and moved to Detroit to train with Yuka Sato & Jason Dungjen.  Becky Bereswill is returning to her singles career and will train with them as well.

Ashley Wagner left Priscilla Hill and moved to California to train with John Nicks.  Her free skate is to Black Swan and is choreographed by Philip Mills.  Her short program is also by Mills and to Pollock.

Agnes Zawadzki left Tom Zakrajsek and will train in Colorado Springs with David Santee & Christy Krall.

Joshua Farris left Tom Zakrajsek and will train in Colorado Springs with Christy Krall & Damon Allen.

Felicia Zhang/Nate Bartholomay have paired up and are scheduled to compete at Liberty.

Madison Chock and Greg Zuerlein split and he is retired.


Madison and Keiffer Hubbell split.  He is rumored to be retired and she'll skate with Zachary Donohue.

Ryan Bradley has retired.


Jeremy Abbott's short program is being choreographed by SYTYCD champ Benji Schwimmer.


Grant Hochstein's short program is to Clair de Lune.

Gretchen Donlan/Andrew Speroff will skate to "O mio babbino caro" (SP) and Sleeping Beauty by Tchaikovsky (FS); choreographers are Sheryl Franks and Deidre Williams with footwork by Carrie Wall.

Stephen Carriere has chosen "La Vie En Rose" and "Mack the Knife" for his short program; Swan Lake (FS).

Wesley Campbell will skate to Rodrigo's "Concierto de Aranjuez" (SP) and The Mission (FS).

Alexander Johnson has chosen "O mio babbino caro" (SP) and the Khachaturian ballet Gayane (FS).

Brandon Mroz's new short program will be to "Mack the Knife," and Max Aaron will be skating to a medley of "Assassin's Tango" and "Oblivion" both choreographed by Jeffrey Buttle.

Anastasia Cannuscio and Colin McManus's short dance will be to "Mas Que Nada" by Sergio Mendes (feat. The Black Eyed Peas) and "Magalenha" by Sergio Mendes. Their free dance will be "The Way You Look Tonight" by Adam Levine, "Unforgettable" by Nat King Cole and Natalie King Cole and "Get Me To The Church" by Frank Sinatra. 

Nathan Chen is working on his triple axel and triple triple combinations in preparation for his move to the junior ranks this season.  He is still too young to compete internationally.

World Championships: Pairs Preview

Savchenko and Szolkowy have led the pack all season and won every event they entered.  They seem to be back in top form.  While I'm not crazy about their short program and think that it isn't very well put together, I think their free skate is to die for.  It seems to suit their personalities and technical abilities perfectly and the high throw triple right at the end of the program is definitely a highlight.  If they nail all their elements this should be an easy victory.  They have the best short program, free skate and total score of the season.

Kavaguti and Smirnov were injured at the beginning of the season and only competed in one Grand Prix event.  They lost their title at Russian nationals and then went on to lose their European title.  I have never been crazy about them as a team and I don't think they have a vibe that really feels like they belong together.  They also tend to go over the top on their programs which takes away from some of their biggest attributes like clean lines.  They have the 3rd best short program and 2nd best free skate and total scores of the season.

Pang and Tong are coming in as the defending World Champions.  They had a magical season last year which also included winning the free skate and the silver medal at the Olympics.  While their programs are nice and have the trademark Chinese elements such as the huge throws, they seem to be missing the spark on the ice that won them such acclaim last season.  They've been discussing retirement and it seems that the fire may not be there anymore.  If they can find a way to reclaim that passion they could climb above the 200 mark and into the top ranked teams here.  They have the 2nd best short program and 3rd best free skate and total scores of the season.

Bazarova and Larionov are one of my favorite teams.  They are so classically Russian and are absolutely gorgeous to watch on the ice.  Their lines are stunning and their programs are effortlessly put together.  While they are a very young team, they have had a lot of success this season and are quickly climbing the ranks.  Their biggest obstacle seems to be themselves as they haven't been able to put together two clean programs and when they make a mistake it seems to affect the whole rest of the program.  I think this team has a ton of potential and if they can put it all together here, they have a shot at the podium.  They have the 4th best short program, free skate and total scores of the season. 

Duhamel and Radford are a new team from Canada that have quickly risen the ranks into the top 10 teams.  They started with a respectable finish at Skate Canada, went on to win the silver medal at Canadian nationals and then put out solid programs to take home the silver medal at Four Continents.  They execute elements not seen on other teams such as side by side triple flips.  There has been some argument that their jumps are not always fully rotated and underrotation calls could really hurt them in this field.  I don't think they'll be in contention for the podium, but a good finish this year could really set them up for next season.  They have the 10th best short program, 5th best free skate and 5th best total score of the season.

Moore-Towers and Moscovitch are another team out of Canada.  They had a great start to their season winning medals at both their assignments and qualifying for the Grand Prix Final.  They finished a disappointing 6th despite no major errors and went on to finish 5th at Four Continents.  Their scores have also been on a downward trend all season.  I'm not sure exactly what it is that the judges are no longer liking with this team, but they'll be looking for some redemption here.  They have the 5th best short program and 8th best free skates and total scores of the season.

Yankowskas and Coughlin have come into their own the season and will enter their first Worlds as the reigning U.S. Champs.  After a personally difficult year, they were able to come up with a gorgeous free skate to Ave Maria in honor of John's mother.  All of the technical elements are there and when they hit everything and can just perform it is truly a magical program.  Their tango short is also a good fit for them and allows them to show off another side of their skating.  They just missed the podium at Four Continents but had a number of errors in their program.  With the extra practice and their nerves under control, they should be able to go out and nail both programs and should be rewarded for their efforts.

Evora and Ladwig have not seen great results this season despite winning their first Grand Prix medal.  They changed their short program which was their weakness earlier in the season and their scores were greatly improved at the Grand Prix Final.  They have the best lifts in the World and can really rack up the points here.  Amanda Evora is engaged to Jeremy Barrett who recently announced his retirement from skating.  I wouldn't be surprised if she retired after Worlds as well, and I expect them to leave everything out on the ice here.

Volosozhar and Trankov are a new team formed from two top ranked teams last season.  This is the first ISU competition they are eligible to compete in.  They won the Russian title earlier this season and their scores at a spring competition put them right at the top of the pack.  The extra month of training time should be an advantage for them but they already looked fairly polished earlier this season.  I think they'll have the goods to deliver, but having never competed before as a team, the judges may be looking at them more critically.

Absent from this event are Iliushechkina/Maisuradze (7th best total score) of Russia, Lawrence/Swiegers (9th best total score and Four Continents bronze medalists) of Canada and Gerboldt/Enbert (10th best total score) of Russia.  Both countries have incredibly deep fields and were outscored at their nationals events.  Sui/Han (6th best total score and Grand Prix Final bronze medalists) are not age eligible for this event.

My podium predictions: 
Gold: Savchenko/Szolkowy
Silver: Volosozhar/Trankov
Bronze: Kavaguti/Smirnov

My USFSA Fantasy Team:
A) Savchenko/Szolkowy
B) Yankowskas/Coughlin
C) Kadlecova/Bidar

The competitors:
Martini/Kiefer, AUT: They placed 15th at Europeans with personal best free skate and total scores and 16th at the World Junior Championships with a personal best short program. 

Bakirova/Kamianchuk, BLR: They finished 10th at Europeans with personal best scores across the board.  They were 19th at Worlds last season.

Malakhova/Kenchadze, BUL: This is their first season together.

Duhamel/Radford, CAN: They are the reigning Four Continents Silver Medalists with personal best scores across the board.  They finished 5th at Skate Canada.

Moore-Towers/Moscovitch, CAN: They placed 5th at Four Continents.  They finished 6th at the Grand Prix Final after winning silver at Skate Canada with personal best scores across the board and silver at Skate America with personal best short program and total scores. 

Dong/Wu, CHN: They placed 10th at Four Continents.   They won bronze at the 2008 World Junior Championships.  They placed 7th at Skate Canada and Cup of China.  Dong and Wu placed 17th at the World Championships last season.

Pang/Tong, CHN: Pang and Tong won silver at the Olympics and are the reigning World Champions and Four Continents Champions.  They also won the World Championships in 2006.  They are three time Four Continents gold medalists and two time silver medalists.  They won gold at the NHK Trophy and Cup of China to qualify for the Grand Prix Final where they took the silver.

Zhang/Wang, CHN: They finished 9th at Four Continents.  They finished 8th at NHK Trophy.

Kadlecova/Bidar, CZE: They placed 7th at Europeans with personal best scores across the board.  They finished 8th 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: They finished 13th at Europeans.

Canac/Bonheur, FRA:  They placed 9th at Europeans.

Hausch/Wende, GER: They finished 17th at the Olympics.  They placed 6th at Europeans.  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.  They were 14th at Worlds last season.

Savchenko/Szolkowy, GER: They won bronze at the Olympics.  They are the reigning World Silver Medalists and European Champions.  They have 2 additional Gold and 1 Bronze medal at the World Championships and 3 Gold and 2 silvers at Europeans.  They won gold at Skate America and Trophee Eric Bompard to qualify for the Grand Prix Final where they won gold.

Kemp/King, GBR: They placed 16th at Olympics. They placed 8th at Europeans.  They finished 8th at Skate Canada and Skate America.  They were 16th at Worlds last season. 

Montalblano/Krasnopolski, ISR: They finished 25th at Worlds last season.

Berton/Hotarek, ITA: They placed 5th at Europeans with personal best scores across the board.  They placed 6th at Cup of Russia with personal best free skate and total scores.  They finished 11th at Worlds last season.

Takahashi/Tran, JPN: They are the reigning Junior World bronze medalists.  They placed 7th at Four Continents.  They won silver at J. Curry Memorial and Pokal der Blauen to qualify for the JGP where they won gold.  They won bronze at NHK Trophy and silver at Rostelecom Cup in their debut season on the Grand Prix.

Bazarova/Larionov, RUS: They finished 11th at the Olympics.  They are the reigning European bronze medalists with personal best free skate and total scores.  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.  They were 8th at Worlds last season.

Kavaguti/Smirnov, RUS: They finished 4th at the Olympics.  They are the reigning Worlds Bronze Medalists and European Silver Medalists.  They also won bronze at the World Championships in 2009 and a silver and bronze at Europeans.  They are the 2010 European Champions.  They won gold at Cup of Russia.

Volosozhar/Trankov, RUS: They are the reigning national champions.  This is their first season together.

Evora/Ladwig, USA: They placed 10th at the Olympics.  They finished 5th at Four Continents.  They finished 5th at Cup of China and won bronze at Cup of Russia.  They were 9th at Worlds last season.

Yankowskas/Coughlin, USA: They placed 4th at the Four Continents Championships with a personal best free skate and total score.  They finished 4th at NHK Trophy and won bronze at Cup of China with personal best scores across the board.

Four Continents Championships: Pairs Free Skate

Group 1
1. Marley/Brubaker, USA: 51.35 TES + 47.51 PCS = 98.86 Total: 144.46

•  They are in 10th place after the short program
• This team has only been together for 6 months
• They open with a nice high twist but a little bit of a crash on the landing
• Nice triple toes + double toes sbs
• Nice position in her overhead lasso lift and good stretch through the change of a position and a nice toss exit
• Throw double salchow 
• She his very expressive through the spiral sequence
• Nice death spiral but slightly awkward exit
• She doubled their side by side salchows
• Very nicely landed throw 
• She could use more stretch through her top leg in this lift but they have a nice carry feature with his on one leg
• Decent unison on their side by side spins but some of their position variations are just slightly different from each other
• Nice final lift with a one handed exit
• Good positions in their pairs spin

2. Takahashi/Tran, JPN: 52.56 TES + 51.82 PCS -2.00 = 102.38 Total: 152.63 and into 1st place

• They are in 8th place after the Short Program
• Their costumes suit them nicely and the purple color is gorgeous on her
• She takes an awkward fall on their opening side by side triple salchows
• An effortless double twist with a good catch
• Very nice throw triple salchow with a nice landing by her
• They're off on these side by side spins
• A nice entry into the death spiral but she doesn't have a great position and her working leg gets really close underneath her instead of being extended
• She takes a fall on the double axel and she completes the sequence but he deletes the second jump
• Nice dance lift straight into their lift with good positions
• Throw triple nicely done
• Good position variations in their pairs spin but a loss of centering toward the end
• Nice air position in this second lift but a little awkward on the exit
• She has great extension through the spiral sequence
• She gets one leg higher than the other in her air position in the third spin and they should be even

3. Dong/Wu, CHN: 47.38 TES + 41.31 PCS = 88.69 Total: 135.10 and into 3rd place

• They are in 9th place after the short program
• He can't complete the second jump in their triple + double combination
• Clean on their second set of side by side triples
• Double twist with some nice height but not the execution you're used to seeing from Bin Yao's team
• You can hear him calling the side by side spins but they have good unison
• Nice entry to the overhead lift with a good carry feature and nice positions for her; I'd like to see a better position for her free leg on the exit
• Nice height on the throw triple loop with a good landing but not a lot of ice coverage
• They go right into their throw triple salchow with not as nice of a landing
• Her air position could be better in this lift with more flexibility through her back
• He checks his balance on the spiral sequence
• She takes a squat into the death spiral and she's almost flat on the ice
• I think they're really trying to mask her weak air positions with some of these variations in the lift
• Not a lot of speed on their pair spin

Group 2
Zhang/Wang, CHN: 45.63 TES + 42.69 PCS = 88.32 Total: 138.93 and into 3rd place

• They are in 7th place after the short program
• I really like their costumes; very pretty blue color and an interesting design
• Nice double twist but she might have been a little on his shoulder on the landing
• Nice triple toe + double toes
• She hung on to the landing of the triple salchow
• Some better air positions for her in the lift but I'd like to see a little more stretch
• Not a lot of choreography or transitions in this program
• They're hitting very different position variations in their side by side spin and are really off unison timing wise
• Looks like they might have had a bobble here on some footwork, seem a little lost
• They go into their lift but abort it and skate down the center of the ice
• Nice spiral positions
• Very nice throw triple loop with good height
• Good throw triple salchow
• A nice entry into the death spiral but she doesn't have a great position and her free leg is very high
•  Good stretch through the split position in this lift but she could use some more flexibility
• Good positions in the pair spin and nice flexibility from her but not a lot of speed at the end
• No performance at all in this program--I think if they had some better choreography and worked with their music more it would really help their scores

Moore-Towers/Moscovitch, CAN: 58.93 TES + 53.88 PCS -1.00 = 11.81 Total: 166.22 and into 1st place

• They are in 5th place after the short program
• Not really any height on their triple twist and she's on his shoulder on the landing
• Good unison and execution on their double axel + double axel sequence
• Nice throw triple loop
• I'm glad to see she's pinned her bangs back today as she's had to shake them out of her face to see before during the program and it was distracting
• Nice position in the first lift with a good flip exit
• He looked off in the air on those sbs triples but landed the jump fine
• Nice position on the spiral sequence
• Sort of an awkward entry into the death spiral and she is completely flat--not crazy about this position
• Good position in the pair spins and I really like the way she uses her free arm and their effortless exit from the element
• A nice carry feature in this second lift and she has a great split; she almost goes into a handstand as he skates forward on one leg--great control 
• Fall on their second triple throw
• Not a lot of flexibility for her through some of the sbs spin positions and I'd like to see her really stretch through her free leg
• Nice entry into their final lift with him on his knee and coming to a stand

Evora/Ladwig, USA: 53.57 TES + 53.50 PCS -2.00 = 105.07 Total: 157.30 and into 2nd place

• They are in 6th place after the short program
• He said his boot has been fixed.  Praying it holds up through the free skate!
• Their twist looked pretty effortless but she didn't get a lot of height
• She falls on their opening side by side jumps and he turns out of his landing but keeps his free leg up
• Not a lot of height on their first throw triple and she's really forward on the landing
• They lost the unison in their side by side spins in the middle but were able to pick it back up
• Nice spiral sequence, but I'd like her arms to be more organic here and less placed
• She falls on the first double axel in the double axel sequence
• Good positions in the pairs spin and a nice exit
• Evora seems to be going through the motions a little bit in some of this choreography
• Great lift with him holding her on just the hip with one hand
• Good throw triple loop and less forward on the landing
• Nice backward entry into their final lift with a good carry feature but her position got a little awkward at the end and she could stretch through her legs a little more
• Not a great death spiral position and not a lot of speed through their rotations
• Nice final lift
• Just seemed to be an off day for them and didn't seem like they were really performing this program

Group 3
Pang/Tong, CHN: 61.23 TES + 66.81 PCS = 128.04 Total: 199.45 and into 1st place

• They are in 1st place after the short program
• I think he singled the second double axel in their sequence and she didn't have a great landing
• Nice side by side triples
• Nice entry into the overhead lift with a good position change
• A slight loss of unison in the middle of their side by side spins but they pick it up nicely
• Very nice use of her arms and upper body to accept the positions in their pair spin and a nice exit from the element
• Really nice height on their triple twist and a nice catch
• Great height on their throw triple salchow
• Really nice spiral position
• They have such great speed and ease of movement through this program
• Nice second lift with a good position for her
• Great throw triple loop--I wish more teams worked on the height and ice coverage of the throws because they're truly spectacular
• A decent death spiral position
• Nice carry with a one arm hold and him in a spread eagle position
• They seem to be performing their program much more here than they did at the Grand Prix Final and she looks like she might be wiping away a tear when they finish

Lawrence/Swiegers, CAN: 58.20 TES + 53.55 PCS = 111.75 Total: 171.73 and into 2nd place

• They are in 2nd place after the short program
• An interesting choreographical moment at the building with him supporting her in a run
• Nice triple twist but lacking the height of the Chinese team
• My feed froze up so I may have missed a few elements
• Throw triple loop was good but she was a little sideways on the landing and might have put a hand down
• She could work on her overhead lift position and they could have a smoother exit
• Straight into another lift and I would like it if they had a little more variation if they're going to put the lifts back to back
• Nice throw triple salchow
• Good extension through their spiral sequence
• Nice positions in their pair spin but they seemed to lose their centering before the change of foot

Duhamel/Radford, CAN: 66.55 TES + 55.32 PCS = 121.87 Total: 181.79 and into 2nd place

• They are in 3rd place after the short program
• Good height on their triple twist and a nice clean catch
• Triple + double + double combination with a one arm variation on their final jump
• An interesting entry into their first throw triple from a spiral position
• A really nice stretched out air position for her in the first lift and a nice spread eagle for him
• Nice unison on their side by side spins but a little slow
• Another skater with the high death spiral position and the high free leg
• Solid side by side triples
• Good flexibility through the spirals but it looks like she may have been wobbling on her edge a bit
• I'd like to see more flexibility through her back in the air in this second lift
• A little forward on the landing of the throw triple salchow but she hangs on to it
• Good speed through the final lift
• Nice speed in the pair spin and good position changes

Yankowskas/Coughlin, USA: 57.16 TES + 54.56 PCS = 111.72 Total: 166.97 and into 4th place

• They are in 4th place after the short program
• Opening sbs double axels were well done
• Nice height on the triple twist but there may have been a bobble on the catch with her free leg
• Nice throw triple loop
• Good Triple toe + double toe + double toe combination.  Nice to see the pairs doing the three jump combos
• Nice air position in the first lift and a nice one arm exit
• As far as the higher death spirals go, she has one of the nicer positions
• Good unison on their side by side spins but they could both use more stretch through their free leg in the sit spin position
• Nice spiral positions and great expression from both of them
• She singles their throw triple salchow and two foots the landing--something must have gone wrong on the takeoff
• Nice position in the second lift
• Nice entry into the final lift with him holding her by her hip and a nice stretched out position
• Good positions in their pair spin and I like the use of her arms here
• Too bad about the throw error, because this was a lovely program otherwise

Gold: Pang/Tong
Silver: Duhamel/Radford
Bronze: Lawrence/Swiegers

Four Continents Championships: Pairs Short Program

1. Pang/Tong, CHN: 29.29 TES + 33.12 PCS -1.00 = 71.41
2. Lawrence/Swiegers, CAN: 34.21 TES + 25.77 PCS = 59.98
3. Duhamel/Radford, CAN: 35.38 TES + 25.54 PCS -1.00 = 59.92
4. Yankowskas/Coughlin, USA: 29.02 TES + 26.23 PCS = 55.25
5. Moore-Towers/Moscovitch, CAN: 28.12 TES + 26.29 PCS = 54.41
6. Evora/Ladwig, USA: 28.14 TES + 25.09 PCS -1.00 = 52.23
7. Zhang/Wang, CHN: 28.93 TES + 21.68 PCS = 50.61
8. Takahashi/Tran, JPN: 26.77 TES + 25.48 PCS -2.00 = 50.25
9. Dong/Wu, CHN: 25.41 TES + 21.00 PCS = 46.41
10. Marley/Brubaker, USA: 23.60 TES + 22.00 PCS = 45.60

Four Continents Championships: Pairs Preview

This should be a pretty easy event for Pang and Tong to win.  I don't think they have any real competition as their season's best is almost 15 points above the rest of the field.  They seem to be lacking some of that spark that made them the darlings of the Olympics and led them to a World title.  Their main objective here will be to squeeze out all the points they can as other teams have been outperforming them, and as it stands now they'll be in a fight for the podium at Worlds.  If they want to walk in the favorites, they'll need to show the world what they can do.  They have the 3rd best short program, 4th best free skate and 3rd best total scores for the season.

Moore-Towers and Moscovitch have burst onto the scene this year, but seemed to struggle through the Grand Prix Final.  There were no major errors with their programs, but their scores didn't match up with what they had done earlier in the season.  They won Canadian nationals in a decisive fashion, suggesting they are back on their game.  They shouldn't have a problem making the podium at this event.  They have the 5th best short program, 7th best free skate and 7th best total score for the season.

Yankowskas and Coughlin pulled out a sassy, solid short program and an emotionally powerful free skate to claim their first national title.  Their scores improved throughout the season and they performed their programs at nationals better than I've seen them, and the judges rewarded them with high scores.  If they can carry this momentum into this event, they should land on the podium.  They have the 10th best short program and 9th best total score for the season.

Evora and Ladwig's weak spot this season was their short program and the debuted a new one at nationals that was well received and seemed to suit them better.  This will be a good chance to get international opinion on the program before worlds.  They have the 9th best free skate score this season. 

Denney and Barrett had a training accident and will be unable to attend.  They are being replaced by Mary Beth Marley and Rockne Brubaker who finished 4th at US Nationals after only being together for 5 months.  They won the Nesquik Cup earlier this year and this will be their first major international competition and a good test of their abilities and mental toughness.

The young Japanese team of Takahashi and Tran had a solid debut season with two medals on the Grand Prix Circuit.  They also won two medals on the JGP and won the JGP Final.  They'll be competing at Junior Worlds in just a few short weeks, so they're likely training a Junior program and a Senior program right now.  It will be interesting to see if they have enough energy and training to wind up on the podium here.  They have the 10th best free skate score of the season.

My podium predictions:
Gold: Pang/Tong
Silver: Moore-Towers/Moscovitch
Bronze: Yankowskas/Coughlin

My USFSA Fantasy Team:
A) Pang/Tong
B) Yankowskas/Coughlin
C) Zhang/Wang

Duhamel/Radford, CAN: They finished 5th at Skate Canada.

Lawrence/Swiegers, CAN: They finished 4th at World Juniors in 2009.  They won bronze at Skate Canada with personal best scores across the board and finished 5th at Cup of Russia.

Moore-Towers/Moscovitch, CAN: They placed 9th at Four Continents last season.  They finished 6th at the Grand Prix Final after winning silver at Skate Canada with personal best scores across the board and silver at Skate America with personal best short program and total scores. 

Dong/Wu, CHN: Dong and Wu placed 17th at the World Championships.  They won bronze at the 2008 World Junior Championships.  They placed 7th at Skate Canada and Cup of China. 

Pang/Tong, CHN: Pang and Tong won silver at the Olympics (with personal bests in the free skate and total score) and are the reigning World Champions (with a personal best short program).  They also won the World Championships in 2006.  They are three time Four Continents gold medalists and two time silver medalists.  They won gold at the NHK Trophy and Cup of China to qualify for the Grand Prix Final where they took the silver.

Zhang/Wang, CHN: They finished 6th at Four Continents and World Juniors last season.  They finished 8th at NHK Trophy.

Takahashi/Tran, JPN: They are the reigning Junior World silver medalists and placed 5th at Four Continents last season.  They won silver at J. Curry Memorial and Pokal der Blauen.  They won bronze at NHK Trophy and silver at Rostelecom Cup in their debut season on the Grand Prix.

Evora/Ladwig, USA: They placed 10th at the Olympics with personal best scores in the short and free programs and 9th at the World Championships.  They finished 5th at Cup of China and won bronze at Cup of Russia.

Marley/Brubaker, USA: They are currently ranked 4th nationally.  This is their first major international competition.

Yankowskas/Coughlin, USA: They placed 4th at the Four Continents Championships last season with personal best scores in the short and free skate. They finished 4th at NHK Trophy and won bronze at Cup of China with personal best scores across the board.

US Nationals: Senior Recap

Mens:

What an event!  Ryan Bradley put together a clean short program complete with a quad and his signature personality weaved throughout to take the lead in the men's event.  His free skate wasn't pretty, including a miss on both of his quads but he hung on and even executed a Triple Axel + Triple toe combination to finish 4th in the free skate.  His scores were good enough to give him his first national title at 27 years of age.  He thought about retiring after last season and sat out the Grand Prix but was convinced to come back by fans.  At the press conference after the event he declared that he was open to making a run at the 2014 Olympic team.  These programs were not as well trained as they could have been, and if he can skate clean, he could place well at worlds.  With three quads he has the technical skills and he's one of the best performers in the world. 

Richard Dornbush is the reigning Junior Grand Prix Final champion and after a 7th place short program, he had an impressive outing of his Sherlock Holmes Free Skate and placed first in the segment and won the silver medal.  While many were predicting him to win a medal at Junior Worlds, he'll instead be heading to Senior Worlds.  At both the JGP Final and Nationals his free skate was able to carry him to the top after a less than stellar short program.  His JGP Final scores put him amongst the top 10 in the world.  If he can clean up his short program, he could have a stellar debut at Worlds.

After skating on the Grand Prix for the first time, Ross Miner decided to go home and train harder.  He wanted to bring himself up to the level of the top skaters he was competing against.  These results paid off as he skated a gorgeous free program to edge out Jeremy Abbott for the bronze medal.    He has been named to the Worlds Team and will be competing in Tokyo in May.

Jeremy Abbott skated a beautiful short program full of passion and fire and put himself in a good position to defend his national title.  Unfortunately, he wasn't able to keep it together in his free skate and was plagued with falls, downgrades, under-rotations and doubling of his jumps.  He finished only .19 behind Miner, but USFSA elected to send Miner to Worlds and Abbott to Four Continents in Taipei.  When he is on, he is truly one of the best male skaters out there today but he can't always seem to get past his mental block.  He'll be going up against the top Japanese men at 4Cs so he'll have a chance to redeem himself there.

Adam Rippon had a disaster of a short program, including a fall on his signature Rippon Lutz.  He rebounded in his free skate to place 3rd in the segment and finish 5th overall.  I was especially impressed in how he refocused himself after a mistake on his opening jump combination and was able to go clean for the rest of the program.  He's now had one bad short program (nationals) and one bad free skate (Skate America) so hopefully he can put this behind him and skate like he did at Skate America.  He'll be skating at 4 Continents along with Armin Mahbahnoozadeh.

The trooper of the year award goes to Joshua Farris.  He finished 13th in the short program in his first senior nationals.  He tore a muscle in his leg practicing quads and then suffered an allergic reaction that kept him in the hospital almost all night the day before the free skate.  Then, during his free skate, he broke his ankle in the middle of the program.  He kept skating and went for all of his elements, including the triple jumps.  He has the rest of the season to heal and we'll see him back on the Junior Grand Prix circuit next fall.

I had no correct exact predictions, but I picked two of the medal winners (Abbott and Bradley).

Ladies:

Alissa Csizny put together two clean programs to reclaim the national title she last won in 2009.  Her levels on her step sequences were greatly improved from her outings on the Grand Prix and her only mistake in the free skate was an under-rotated jump.  Reports from the arena were the crowd went silent because they were so captivated by her performance.  In the press conference, Alissa said this victory was sweeter and gave credit to her new coaches for believing in her when no one else did.  She'll be competing at Four Continents where she'll face off against the Japanese ladies again before taking on the world in Tokyo.  If Alissa skates like she has been for most of this season, she should land on the World podium in March.

Rachael Flatt debuted her new short program in Greensboro and Lori Nichol hit a home run on the choreography.  I've never seen Rachael so committed to her performance or so free in her movement as during her step sequence at the end of her East of Eden program.  I think this program really suits her and I'm interested to see how it's received by the international judges.  Her spins have long been a weakness for her, and a Level 1 on her layback spin made the difference between being 1st or 3rd in the short program.  She's working on some more difficult jump combinations for the next two competitions.  With a great new program and a renewed love of skating, Rachael looks ready to take on the world and attempt to win back three spots for US ladies at next years worlds.

Mirai Nagasu skated a clean short program to land in first place.  Unfortunately, she couldn't keep it together and let her nerves take over.  She looked terrified before she started her free skate and it showed in her program.  She botched her flying sit spin so badly that she ended up receiving no credit for the element.  Frank Carroll revealed after the event that she didn't start training seriously until a few weeks before Nationals.  In the press conference, Mirai was upset about not going to Worlds because she wanted to go to Japan to see her family.  I'm not sure how much her heart is into skating and while she can be a lovely skater, she doesn't seem to be mature enough to handle the pressure of training and competition.  Hopefully she'll do some soul searching before next season and decide what direction to take her career.

Agnes Zawadzki and Christina Gao both had solid outings to claim spots on the Junior Worlds team.  Agnes has struggled with her long program all season, and it was great to see her execute a good program here.  Christina has really grown up and matured since last season.  I think she's still getting used to her new height, but she definitely is beginning to skate like Yuna Kim.  Both these young ladies have a bright future ahead of them and are armed with a full technical arsenal including triple-triple combinations.  They'll take on the young Russian prodigies for spots on the Junior World Podium.

Ashley Wagner was battling the flu and wasn't able to put out the two clean programs necessary to medal in this extremely competitive field.  She seemed to have a good attitude after the event, and hopefully we'll see her next year, healthy and fighting for a spot on the World team.

Vanessa Lam who won her only JGP assignment this season and Yasmin Siraj, the youngest senior competitor, finished 7th and 8th at their first senior nationals.

I had one exact prediction (Alissa won gold) and picked 3 out of the 4 medalists (Alissa, Mirai and Rachael).

Pairs:

Caitlin Yankowskas and John Coughlin had the arena and the television in audience in tears after their moving free skate to Ave Maria, a tribute to John's mother Stacy who passed away last February.  Besides their amazing emotional performance, they solidly executed all of their elements to finish 1st in both segments and earn their first trip to Worlds.  I have been impressed with this team for several years and it was nice to see everything come together for them in such a trying year.  They also won their first Grand Prix medal this season and I think their programs can carry them to the podium at 4 Continents as well.

Evora and Ladwig debuted their new short program here and it seems to suit their personalities much better and the judges agreed.  They showed off their signature lifts in the free skate and won their second consecutive silver medal.  If both of these teams skate their best at Worlds, there is a small chance that the United States could earn a 3rd pairs slot for next years Worlds. 

Denney and Barrett were able to rebound from the mistakes in their short program and only erred on the side by side double axels in their free skate to claim the silver medal.  They have now won a medal at nationals in each of their three seasons together.  They'll be heading to Four Continents but not Worlds.

Mary Beth Marley and Rockne Brubaker have only been skating together for a few months but already showed some of the maturity and polish of the top teams.  I can't wait to see what they look like next season with more training under their belt and some international assignments.  They finished 4th in their first competition.

Castelli and Shnapir had some troubles in both their skates but still finished 5th overall.

I had 1 exact prediction (Yankowskas and Coughlin won gold) and picked 3/4 of the medalists (Yankowskas/Coughlin, Evora/Ladwig, Denney/Barrett)

Dance:

While the final results were what many predicted, the dance event was still full of surprises.  Davis and White won their third consecutive national title.  They received Level 3s and 4s on all the elements in their free dance with all positive GOEs.  Their free dance was full of difficulty and passion and their program showed all the potential of being a world championship winning program.

The Shibutanis were absolutely charming in both of their programs and performed with maturity beyond their years.  They finished only 6 points behind Davis and White in the short program and beat them on the technical score in the free skate.  They also received all Level 3s and 4s and positive GOES on their program.  They looked like completely different skaters than on the Grand Prix, where they already shined as the only team to win two medals in their senior debut.  If they continue their growth and perform like they did at nationals they should have a great debut at senior worlds and it won't be long before they're on the medal podium at Worlds and possibly even passing up their training mates.

While Chock and Zuerlein had two solid programs, they fell far behind the rest of Team Canton, nearly 20 points out of second place.  They had similar scores as the Shibutanis on the Grand Prix and their programs were cleaner here than on the Grand Prix.  I don't particularly love their short dance, but their free dance is phenomenal and they completely embrace their roles and put on a great performance. 

The Hubbells were able to grab the pewter medal after an unusual fall by Kriengkrairut/Giuletti-Schmitt in the free dance.  Cannuscio and Lorello had a good senior debut to finish 6th.

I had three exact predictions (gold-bronze medals) and picked 3/4 medalists.

Overall: I had 5 exact predictions and picked 11/16 of the medalists.  My USFSA Fantasy Team finished 6th.

US Figure Skating International Teams

U.S. Figure Skating has named the following athletes to the Four Continents, World Juniors and World Teams.

Four Continents Championships: February 15-20, Chinese Taipei
Men: Jeremy Abbott, Armin Mahbanoozadeh, Adam Rippon
Ladies: Alissa Czisny, Rachael Flatt, Mirai Nagasu
Pairs: Denney/Barrett, Evora/Ladwig, Yankowskas/Coughlin
Dance: Chock/Zuerlein, Davis/White, Shibutani/Shibutani

World Junior Championships: February 28-March 6, Republic of Korea
Men: Max Aaron, Jason Brown, Keegan Messing
Ladies: Christina Gao, Courtney Hicks, Agnes Zawadzki
Pairs: Cain/Reagan, Andrews/LeDuc
Dance: Bonacorsi/Mager, Cannuscio/McManus, Lichtman/Copely

World Championships: March 21-27, Japan
Men: Ryan Bradley, Richard Dornbush, Ross Miner
Ladies: Alissa Czisny, Rachael Flatt
Pairs: Evora/Ladwig, Yankowskas/Coughlin
Dance: Chock/Zuerlein, Davis/White, Shibutani/Shibutani

U.S. Nationals: Senior Pairs Preview

This is going to be an extremely close event as the top teams are within only a few points of each other and one mistake could cost a team a spot on the podium and one of the two 2 spots on the Worlds team.  With Russia only sending two pairs to Worlds and leaving two of their top teams home, there is a chance that our pairs could do well enough to earn a 3rd slot next year so which two teams go will be very important.

Yankowskas and Coughlin have had a great season so far, winning one Grand Prix medal and setting some of the top scores in the international field.  They have the 8th best short program, 10th best free skate and 8th best overall score this season.  They have the top international scores in this field and they beat out both Denney/Barrett and Evora/Ladwig in direct competiton this season.  I believe this gives them an edge and will land them on top of the podium for the first time.

Denney and Barrett are the defending champions.  I wasn't fond of this team in the past, but they have really grown a lot this season and Caydee has tons of energy and personality on the ice.  They used to be known for their consistency but that seems to have been a problem for them this season, especially in the free skate.  They have the 8th best short program score and 9th best total score for the season.  If they can correct their jump problems they could regain their title but they'll also have to match artistically with the other teams in the field and they lack some of the maturity the other top teams have, mostly because their partnership is only in its third season.

Evora and Ladwig have a great connection on the ice and have some of the best lifts in the world.  They had good placements at the Olympics and Worlds and won their first Grand Prix medal this season.  Their scores improved between their two events but only in their Free Skate, which is ranked 8th best for the season.  Their short program has been receiving low scores and has kept them from truly competing for the top spots at their events.  If they can find a way to up their short program scores they will be solidly in contention for the title here.

Castelli and Shnapir are a younger team that has had a solid Grand Prix season.  They need to work on their consistency as mistakes at both their events cost them placements.  They do have some great elements and have been training a throw triple axel which very few teams can execute and has a high base value.  They are definitely in the mix for the race for the podium and can capitalize if one of the top teams makes mistakes.

Marley and Brubaker are a new team this season and have put up some impressive scores internationally.  Their short program seems to be their strength at this point as they are executing a few easier elements in their free skate such as a double throw that may keep them off the podium.  If they do two throw triples here, they could easily find themselves with a medal.  This is definitely a team to watch.

A few other teams to watch are Vise/Baldwin, Katz/Lynch and Aaron/Cohen.

You can see an analysis of all the best and worst scores of the season here: http://backstagebarbie.blogspot.com/2011/01/us-nationals-preview-senior-pairs-best.html

My podium predictions:
Gold: Yankowskas/Coughlin
Silver: Denney/Barrett
Bronze: Evora/Ladwig
Pewter: Castelli/Shnapir

My USFSA Fantasy Picks:
A) Yankowskas/Coughlin
B) Marley/Brubaker
C) Aaron/Cohen

Denney/Barrett: They finished 13th at the Olympics and 7th at Worlds with personal best scores across the board.  They finished 5th place at NHK Trophy and 4th at Skate America.  They are the 2009 National silver medalists and the reigning National Champions.

Evora/Ladwig: They placed 10th at the Olympics with personal best scores in the short and free programs and 9th at the World Championships.  They finished 5th at Cup of China and and bronze at Cup of Russia.  They are the 2007 and 2008 National pewter medalists.  They are the reigning National silver medalists.

Yankowskas/Coughlin: They placed 4th at the Four Continents Championships with personal best scores in the short and free skate.  They finished 4th at NHK Trophy and won bronze at Cup of China.  They finished 6th at nationals last season.

Vise/Baldwin: They finished 8th at nationals last season.

Castelli/Shnapir: Castelli and Shnapir placed 10th at Four Continents.  They are the 2009 World Junior Bronze medalists.  They finished 4th at Skate Canada with personal best scores across the board and 6th at Skate America with a personal best free skate.  They are the 2009 National Junior bronze medalists.  They finished 10th at nationals last season.

Davis/Leftheris: This is their first season together.

Marley/Brubaker: This is their first season together.  Marley is also competing in junior ladies.

Smith/Bartholomay: They qualified with a 1st place finish at Eastern sectionals.  They are the reigning National Junior bronze medalists.

Katz/Lynch: They qualified with a 2nd place finish at Eastern sectionals.  They finished 6th at nationals in 2009.

Aaron/Cohen: They qualified with a 1st place finish at Midwestern sectionals.  They finished 9th at nationals last season.

Bereswill/Young: They qualified with a 2nd place finish at Midwestern sectionals.  This is their first season together.

Moore/Gaumond: They qualified with a 3rd place finish at Midwestern sectionals.  They finished 15th at nationals last season.

Scimeca/Dimitrov: They qualified with a 3rd place finish at Eastern sectionals.

Donlan/Speroff: They qualified with a 4th place finish at Eastern sectionals.  They finished 8th at nationals at the junior level last year.

Simpson/Miller and Zhang/Toth had qualified but had to withdraw due to injury.

Cup of China Pairs Short Program

Kaleigh Hole/Adam Johnson, CAN

• They seem very slow even in the way they skate across the ice 
• She needs to stretch through her free leg throughout the entire program
• Triple twist--very clunky catch; she crashed into him and he had to grab her with two hands
• Triple salchow--she has a sideways air position and takes a hard fall
• Lift--good, basic entrance, bobbled the exit a little bit
• Thriple salchow throw--she doesn't quite two foot it but she lands almost in a lunge
• Level 4 combination spin--she needs a lot more stretch through her legs, unison is good, the last spin needs more speed
• Level 2 step sequence--they get very far apart halfway through and it could use a lot more speed and attack
• Level 1 death spiral--really ugly entrance into the spiral but she had a nice position

Amanda Evora/Mark Ladwig, USA

• A much flashier costume and a lot more makeup for Amanda this year
• Great speed at the top of the program
• Level 1 Triple twist--twist looked good but the catch wasn't clean
• Triple toe loop--he turns out of it but doesn't put his free leg down
• I like the transitions between all of their elements
• Spread eagle into Throw triple loop--she gets a ton of air but is a little forward on her landing
• Level 3 combination spin--their spins are slow, off-unison, and she needs a lot more stretch through her leg on the 3rd set
• Level 2 step sequence--she had a bobble and it seemed slow and simple.  They could add more here to bring up the level and get more points
• Level 1 death spiral--I didn't like her entrance into the death spiral and she seemed a little crooked during the element
• Level 4 Lift--He lifts her from the knee and the flip exit will get them some extra points
• They need to work on their speed and attack during this program and bring the levels up to be on par with the top teams but it has potential

Lubov Iliushechkina/Nodari Maisuradze, RUS

•  I can't believe she's 19--she looks 12
• Lots of speed into the Triple toe--it looked clean to me but the judges downgraded it because it was underroated
• She almost two foots the Throw triple loop but is able to keep her free leg up
• Some of their movements look flaily because they're quick but not quite controlled
• Level 2 triple twist--clean catch
• In a transition move it looks like he misses her hand and smacks her in the face
• Level 4 death spiral--solid
• Level 3 spin--nice spins, nice speed, good unison, great flexibility
• Level 3 step sequence--nice use of the ice, she makes a bobble halfway through
• Level 2 lift--entrance from a spiral, switched position halfway through, exit a little messy and they finished after the music which earned them a 1 point deduction
• They truly seem to love being on the ice and their smiles are contagious!  A hard team not to like.

Caitlin Yankowskas/John Coughlin, USA

•  From the moment they skate on the ice they look ready to attack this program
• I love everything about Caitlin from her lines to her facial expressions and the way she moves through the elements
• Level 1 Triple Twist--clean catch
• Throw Triple Salchow--A low landing but otherwise good
• Triple Toe Loops--nice, clean and great unison
• Level 4 Lift--nice lift with change of position but they could spice up their entrance and exit
• Level 3 Spin--They lost their unison in a few spots but found it again quickly.  They could use some more speed during the last few sets of spins
• Level 2 Step Sequence--very understated but nice
• Level 2 Death Spiral--I loved her entrance into the spiral and she had a nice position
• I think this is a solid program for them and they really put a lot of nuance into it.  They have a few places where they could up their levels and bring the score up

Huibo Dong/Yiming Wang, CHN

• Triple toe loops--clean
• Level 1 Double Twist--clean, but there's no excuse not to be doing a triple at the senior level
• Throw Triple Loop--clean
• Level 1 Death Spiral--Interesting position with her legs in a full split but it slows almost to a stop
• Level 2 Step Sequence--good unison, but they were slow and didn't have great ice coverage
• Lift--the lift looked fine to me but they received no credit for it.  They may have not held it long enough to count.
• Level 2 Spins--unison was good but the spins were slow and once they had different arm positions
• Overall everything was fine but nothing was memorable and there is NO performance quality with this team.

 Wenjing Sui/Cong Han, CHN

• Well isn't she a little spitfire!
• Double Axel--clean
• Level 3 Triple Twist--he throws her so high!  Her arms seemed a little awkward on the landing and the camera angle didn't let me see if the catch was clean
• Throw Triple Flip--He really throws her and her landing is gorgeous with a high arabesque and she just glides across the ice
• Level 3 Step Sequence--nice step sequence that really shows off the character of the program.  I like that here and there they do different elements that complement each other but give a little variety to the sequence
• Level 4 Spin--lost the unison for a second on the spins but otherwise good, maybe a bit more speed at the end
• Level 4 Lift--nice lift with a position change into a catch front leg and a flip exit
• He falls on a transition step and she trips over him and falls too--I'm surprised she wasn't hurt since it almost appears that she tripped over his blade
• Level 2 Death Spiral--nice low position and he lassos with his free arm to stay in character
• Adorable program and an adorable team.  I'm impressed they kept their composure so well being so young and skating in front of a home crowd that expects a lot out of it's pair teams
• Without the freak falls they would have been in first place ahead of Pang/Tong

Nicole della Monica/Yannick Kocon, ITA:

• Triple salchow--clean, she lands a little low
• Level 3 Lift--clean, simple entrance and exit
• Level 3 Spin--nice flexibility and speed but the unison could be better
• Level 1 Double Twist--this was super low, she got no air at all and its impressive she got around twice
• Level 1 Death Spiral--Nice death spiral
• Throw Triple Loop--She two foots it, turns out of it and puts a hand down
• Level 2 Step Sequence--their step sequence is fine but kind of blah and an unexciting way to end a program.  They end up way over by the boards for their ending pose which I don't like.

 Quing Pang/Jian Tong, CHN

• I love her dress, don't love his costume
• Double Toes--it looks like she opens up early and doesn't do the intended triple and he pitches forward and puts a hand down
• Level 2 Triple twist--gorgeous twist and he catches her well away from his body
• Level 2 Death Spiral--clean but the entrance was a little awkward
• Throw Triple Loop--She gets a ton of height but is just slightly forward on the landing
• Level 4 Lift--the second position in their lift looks very awkward and is not visually appealing
• Level 2 Step Sequence--very elegant step sequence
• Level 4 Spins--Nice unison but not a clear ending pose following the spins
• This program doesn't have some of the sparkle that they normally have and they need to do more to engage the audience