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Showing posts with label Alissa Czisny. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alissa Czisny. Show all posts
Friday, November 18, 2011
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Skate America: Ladies Freeskate (Plus a few notes about the event in general)
Skate America as a whole was very underwhelming and, to be quite honest, extremely disappointing this year. It was probably a byproduct of the off season being so short this year and this being the first regular event for top skaters, but even so - I NEVER expected it would turn out to be such a mess. I was busy the day of the men's freeskate and the free dance; I still originally intended to do a writeup on the men, but after seeing the scores and hearing from a few friends what a complete and utter disaster it was, I decided to spare myself the pain of watching the men's freeskate at all (save for Denis Ten, who I'd heard had skated an all around decent program and I actually did enjoy it a good bit). I did watch some of the free dance and I was impressed with Asher/Hill, Pechalat/Bourzat, and Davis/White, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how much the latter two teams free dances develop as the season goes on.
As for pairs, I'm really impressed and pleased with Savchenko/Szolkowy for attempting a throw triple axel in their short program; while obviously, it didn't pay off in that segment, I love that they're continuing to push themselves to improve and it makes me respect them more than I already did. And also, I found their freeskate interesting and hope to see a clean version of it in the near future. One last thing before I get to the ladies - it was nice to see Zhang/Zhang back after a year away from competition! Even if their programs weren't my favorite so far this season, it was strange having such a veteran team away and I'm glad that they were able to come back so successfully. That said, let's get started!
Elene Gedevanishvili (Georgia): Pretty dress, (though I think it'd look even better if the skirt was a little longer, because of the ruffles.). Very nice, huge triple lutz-double toe to start, followed by a singled triple flip attempt. Double axel-double toe-double toe, good. Triple toe attempt popped into a double toe-double toe combo. An alright flying sit spin, then a triple lutz she had to hold onto. Nice triple salchow and Y spiral. Two footed triple toe, followed by a combination spin that had some nice positions. Footwork that had some good difficulty to it, but it was slow. I loved her camel positions in his last spin. There were some nice things in this program and it's really a shame about the pops - her jumps can be quite nice. TE 48.75 + PCS 49.46 = FS 97.61 + SP 42.91 = Total 140.12 (7th)
Valentina Marchei (Italy): Opened with an underrotated and two footed triple lutz attempt, followed by a nice triple flip. Triple salchow with a double three turn turn out between it and a double toe. Her spins weren't nearly as good as Elene's. Okay biellmann spiral, and a telegraphed triple lutz-double toe. Nice triple toe and a rough double axel. I really don't like the music or this program in general. Fall on an underrotated triple salchow that was somehow also telegraphed. Slow footwork and a poor spin to finish. TE 44.21 + PCS 48.77 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 91.98 + SP 43.19 = Total 135.17 (9th)
Joshi Helgesson (Sweden): Triple lutz-double toe, the latter of which was deemed underrotated. Underrotated triple loop that was also two footed (and the technical panel downgraded). Triple toe that was small but okay. Ugly catchfoot position in a spin, same for the spiral. Triple lutz, again small, and marked as underrotated. Triple toe-double toe, the triple was called underrotated. Alright triple salchow and another spin; it's positions and speed could be a lot better. Double axel-double axel sequence that was good. Footwork was kind of meh and the last spin was poor too. Her music got slow and heavy towards the end of the program. Not a good jumping day for her. TE 43.57 + PCS 45.38 = FS 88.95 + SP 45.03 = Total 133.98 (10th)
Ksenia Makarova (Russia): Her dress was a blinding shade of pink. Crash on her opening triple flip. She had nice speed over the ice. Triple toe-double toe was nice, followed by a underrotated triple loop. Very pretty layback position in her layback spin; biellmann could be better but it wasn't bad. Triple loop-double toe-double loop looked alright but they called the triple loop underrotated. Another underrotation on a triple salchow-double toe, followed by a fallout on a double axel and a handdown on a second double axel. Sudden music change to the Fox theme (the one from the beginning of Fox feature films) during a spin .. strange. Finished with a unimpressive footwork sequence and spin. I heard that Ksenia has a hip injury - I hope it heals well and soon! TE 45.20 + PCS 52.52 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 96.71 + SP 45.95 = Total 142.67 (5th)
Joelle Forte (USA): Opened with an okay triple lutz-double toe-double loop combo (double loop was underrotated), followed by a triple flip (underrotated) and a nice triple salchow. Her flying sit spin that slowed at the end and a double axel that was a little swingy on the landing. Her layback could be arched more (you might've noticed that I'm picky about laybacks and spirals, haha.). Extremely underrotated triple lutz that she fell hard on, followed by a nice triple toe-double axel sequence. Footwork wasn't particularly good and was on the slow side, and an underrotated triple salchow-double toe. Ended with an okay spin. A lot of underrotation marks, but I thought it was a pretty respectable effort for a skater on her first Grand Prix assignment ever. TE 45.43 + 46.41 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 90.84 + SP 48.86 = Total 139.70 (8th)
Viktoria Helgesson (Sweden): Those white fuzzy wrist cuffs on her costume..anyway, opened with a triple toe-double toe-double loop, she had to eek out that last landing. Fall on a triple lutz that looked bad from the takeoff and was underrotated. Held onto a triple loop and then a slow camel spin that did have some decent variations. Big pop on a flip followed by an average spiral sequence. Good double axel and then a combination spin that could use better positioning and speed. Okay triple loop (called underrotated) -double axel sequence. Handdown on her last triple salchow and her final spin was very slow. TE 44.41 + PCS 51.21 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 94.62 + SP 51.13 = Total 145.75 (3rd)
Haruka Imai (Japan): Nice triple loop-double toe to begin, followed by a triple lutz that looked nice but was called underrotated. I really like the way that she uses her arms; it's very graceful. The music changed from soft to very peppy... I preferred the soft, personally. Fall on a triple toe that looked under to me. Stepout on a triple loop, followed by a combo spin that traveled and slowed. Underrotated triple salchow-double toe and an okay biellmann spiral. Fallout on a second underrotated triple salchow and just held onto a double axel. Okay footwork and then a layback that had nice arch, but her free foot should be turned out and a nice doughnut position in the followed spin (though it could be a bit faster). It's too bad -she's pleasant to watch, even if I'm not a huge fan of the peppy music. TE 39.08 + 50.19 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 88.27 + 54.67 = Total 142.94 (4th)
Caroline Zhang (USA): Disappointing freeskate after a good short program. She had problems on almost every jump, save for her triple loops. Her lovely layback/pearl/biellmann spin is back, which is great to see. She said in the kiss and cry that she doesn't know what happened. TE 38.81 + 49.84 PCS Deductions -3.00 = FS 85.65 + SP 55.05 = Total 140.07 (6th)
Carolina Kostner (Italy): Pretty dress. Good triple loop and triple flip at the start. She has great speed over the ice (but not overly fast like she's seemed in the past to me.). An alright spiral sequence followed by a good double axel and a spin that was on the slow side. Double axel-double toe combination was nice. Triple toe-double toe, also nice; I wonder if it was an intended triple-triple though. Very nice triple salchow followed by her sole jumping mistakes, doing a double three turn out of a triple salchow on her triple salchow-double toe-double toe and singling the latter. Her footwork was fine and she finished with a couple of spins that were slow, though the second was a bit better. Good skate! I'm not a fan of her skating in general but this was nice; the music suits her. TE 55.45 + PCS 61.67 = FS 117.12 + SP 60.23 = Total 177.35 (2nd)
Alissa Czisny (USA): Opened with her planned triple lutz-triple toe combination, but the toe was clearly very underrotated and consequently downgraded. Fall on a downgraded triple flip attempt, also given an edge deduction. Held onto the following triple loop and her spiral after that was nice, as usual. Nice flying spin, though the camel position wasn't my favorite. Second triple lutz okayish, marked as underrotated, then a double salchow and a turnout on a triple salchow-double toe combination. Nice double axel-double toe-double loop, ending with a nice footwork sequence and two impressive spins, including a gorgeous layback/biellmann. TE 51.37 + PCS 62.91 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 113.28 + SP 64.20 = Total 177.48 (1st)
I personally am not a fan of either Alissa or Carolina's skating, but in my opinion, Carolina deserved the win much more than Alissa today. She DID have less technical content, but almost every single jump was extremely well done, while Alissa dealt with several downgrades, underrotations, and flawed landings. I know the numbers ended up being very, very close and it's not like Carolina hasn't won medals when I hadn't felt she'd earned them either, but regardless - this didn't sit well with me.
Freeskate Results
As for pairs, I'm really impressed and pleased with Savchenko/Szolkowy for attempting a throw triple axel in their short program; while obviously, it didn't pay off in that segment, I love that they're continuing to push themselves to improve and it makes me respect them more than I already did. And also, I found their freeskate interesting and hope to see a clean version of it in the near future. One last thing before I get to the ladies - it was nice to see Zhang/Zhang back after a year away from competition! Even if their programs weren't my favorite so far this season, it was strange having such a veteran team away and I'm glad that they were able to come back so successfully. That said, let's get started!
Elene Gedevanishvili (Georgia): Pretty dress, (though I think it'd look even better if the skirt was a little longer, because of the ruffles.). Very nice, huge triple lutz-double toe to start, followed by a singled triple flip attempt. Double axel-double toe-double toe, good. Triple toe attempt popped into a double toe-double toe combo. An alright flying sit spin, then a triple lutz she had to hold onto. Nice triple salchow and Y spiral. Two footed triple toe, followed by a combination spin that had some nice positions. Footwork that had some good difficulty to it, but it was slow. I loved her camel positions in his last spin. There were some nice things in this program and it's really a shame about the pops - her jumps can be quite nice. TE 48.75 + PCS 49.46 = FS 97.61 + SP 42.91 = Total 140.12 (7th)
Valentina Marchei (Italy): Opened with an underrotated and two footed triple lutz attempt, followed by a nice triple flip. Triple salchow with a double three turn turn out between it and a double toe. Her spins weren't nearly as good as Elene's. Okay biellmann spiral, and a telegraphed triple lutz-double toe. Nice triple toe and a rough double axel. I really don't like the music or this program in general. Fall on an underrotated triple salchow that was somehow also telegraphed. Slow footwork and a poor spin to finish. TE 44.21 + PCS 48.77 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 91.98 + SP 43.19 = Total 135.17 (9th)
Joshi Helgesson (Sweden): Triple lutz-double toe, the latter of which was deemed underrotated. Underrotated triple loop that was also two footed (and the technical panel downgraded). Triple toe that was small but okay. Ugly catchfoot position in a spin, same for the spiral. Triple lutz, again small, and marked as underrotated. Triple toe-double toe, the triple was called underrotated. Alright triple salchow and another spin; it's positions and speed could be a lot better. Double axel-double axel sequence that was good. Footwork was kind of meh and the last spin was poor too. Her music got slow and heavy towards the end of the program. Not a good jumping day for her. TE 43.57 + PCS 45.38 = FS 88.95 + SP 45.03 = Total 133.98 (10th)
Ksenia Makarova (Russia): Her dress was a blinding shade of pink. Crash on her opening triple flip. She had nice speed over the ice. Triple toe-double toe was nice, followed by a underrotated triple loop. Very pretty layback position in her layback spin; biellmann could be better but it wasn't bad. Triple loop-double toe-double loop looked alright but they called the triple loop underrotated. Another underrotation on a triple salchow-double toe, followed by a fallout on a double axel and a handdown on a second double axel. Sudden music change to the Fox theme (the one from the beginning of Fox feature films) during a spin .. strange. Finished with a unimpressive footwork sequence and spin. I heard that Ksenia has a hip injury - I hope it heals well and soon! TE 45.20 + PCS 52.52 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 96.71 + SP 45.95 = Total 142.67 (5th)
Joelle Forte (USA): Opened with an okay triple lutz-double toe-double loop combo (double loop was underrotated), followed by a triple flip (underrotated) and a nice triple salchow. Her flying sit spin that slowed at the end and a double axel that was a little swingy on the landing. Her layback could be arched more (you might've noticed that I'm picky about laybacks and spirals, haha.). Extremely underrotated triple lutz that she fell hard on, followed by a nice triple toe-double axel sequence. Footwork wasn't particularly good and was on the slow side, and an underrotated triple salchow-double toe. Ended with an okay spin. A lot of underrotation marks, but I thought it was a pretty respectable effort for a skater on her first Grand Prix assignment ever. TE 45.43 + 46.41 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 90.84 + SP 48.86 = Total 139.70 (8th)
Viktoria Helgesson (Sweden): Those white fuzzy wrist cuffs on her costume..anyway, opened with a triple toe-double toe-double loop, she had to eek out that last landing. Fall on a triple lutz that looked bad from the takeoff and was underrotated. Held onto a triple loop and then a slow camel spin that did have some decent variations. Big pop on a flip followed by an average spiral sequence. Good double axel and then a combination spin that could use better positioning and speed. Okay triple loop (called underrotated) -double axel sequence. Handdown on her last triple salchow and her final spin was very slow. TE 44.41 + PCS 51.21 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 94.62 + SP 51.13 = Total 145.75 (3rd)
Haruka Imai (Japan): Nice triple loop-double toe to begin, followed by a triple lutz that looked nice but was called underrotated. I really like the way that she uses her arms; it's very graceful. The music changed from soft to very peppy... I preferred the soft, personally. Fall on a triple toe that looked under to me. Stepout on a triple loop, followed by a combo spin that traveled and slowed. Underrotated triple salchow-double toe and an okay biellmann spiral. Fallout on a second underrotated triple salchow and just held onto a double axel. Okay footwork and then a layback that had nice arch, but her free foot should be turned out and a nice doughnut position in the followed spin (though it could be a bit faster). It's too bad -she's pleasant to watch, even if I'm not a huge fan of the peppy music. TE 39.08 + 50.19 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 88.27 + 54.67 = Total 142.94 (4th)
Caroline Zhang (USA): Disappointing freeskate after a good short program. She had problems on almost every jump, save for her triple loops. Her lovely layback/pearl/biellmann spin is back, which is great to see. She said in the kiss and cry that she doesn't know what happened. TE 38.81 + 49.84 PCS Deductions -3.00 = FS 85.65 + SP 55.05 = Total 140.07 (6th)
Carolina Kostner (Italy): Pretty dress. Good triple loop and triple flip at the start. She has great speed over the ice (but not overly fast like she's seemed in the past to me.). An alright spiral sequence followed by a good double axel and a spin that was on the slow side. Double axel-double toe combination was nice. Triple toe-double toe, also nice; I wonder if it was an intended triple-triple though. Very nice triple salchow followed by her sole jumping mistakes, doing a double three turn out of a triple salchow on her triple salchow-double toe-double toe and singling the latter. Her footwork was fine and she finished with a couple of spins that were slow, though the second was a bit better. Good skate! I'm not a fan of her skating in general but this was nice; the music suits her. TE 55.45 + PCS 61.67 = FS 117.12 + SP 60.23 = Total 177.35 (2nd)
Alissa Czisny (USA): Opened with her planned triple lutz-triple toe combination, but the toe was clearly very underrotated and consequently downgraded. Fall on a downgraded triple flip attempt, also given an edge deduction. Held onto the following triple loop and her spiral after that was nice, as usual. Nice flying spin, though the camel position wasn't my favorite. Second triple lutz okayish, marked as underrotated, then a double salchow and a turnout on a triple salchow-double toe combination. Nice double axel-double toe-double loop, ending with a nice footwork sequence and two impressive spins, including a gorgeous layback/biellmann. TE 51.37 + PCS 62.91 Deduction - 1.00 = FS 113.28 + SP 64.20 = Total 177.48 (1st)
I personally am not a fan of either Alissa or Carolina's skating, but in my opinion, Carolina deserved the win much more than Alissa today. She DID have less technical content, but almost every single jump was extremely well done, while Alissa dealt with several downgrades, underrotations, and flawed landings. I know the numbers ended up being very, very close and it's not like Carolina hasn't won medals when I hadn't felt she'd earned them either, but regardless - this didn't sit well with me.
Freeskate Results
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Skate America: A Preview
Here are my brief thoughts on who I suspect will be a factor at Skate America this weekend.
Pairs: World Champions Savchenko and Szolkowy should have no problem winning here. The bigger question is who else will be on the medal stand. Zhang and Zhang were out last season after an odd injury so it's hard to say how well they'll skate, but they've been among the best in the world for years and certainly shouldn't be counted out. Moore-Towers and Moscovitch, Russians Bazarova and Larionov, and possibly
Hausch and Wendes will all be looking to medal here as well.
Ice dance: Davis and White are the clear favorites to win, with Pechalat and Bourzat being pretty much a lock for silver. Who will get the bronze medal is more of the mystery - I'm leaning towards it being one of the two Canadian teams competing here (Paul and Islam and Ralph and Hill).
Ladies: There's a lot of ladies here who could potentially medal, but I think that either Carolina Kostner or Alissa Czisny have the most potential to win this event. Joshi and Viktoria Helgesson, Haruka Imai, Elene Gedenishvili, and Ksenia Makarova could all also be in the hunt as well.
Men: World medalist Takahiko Kozuka has to be considered the frontrunner here, with Florent Amodio being the most likely skater to challenge him. Michal Brezina is anything but consistent but he's managed to squish into 4th at Worlds twice, so it's hard to count him out. Last year's surprise medalist Armin Mahbanoozadeh will be looking to repeat here, with teammate and U.S. silver medalist Richard Dornbush will be competing at his first senior Grand Prix ever. Daisuke Murakami and Denis Ten are each a bit of a question mark, but if either go clean and others struggle, I could see one of them medaling.
Pairs: World Champions Savchenko and Szolkowy should have no problem winning here. The bigger question is who else will be on the medal stand. Zhang and Zhang were out last season after an odd injury so it's hard to say how well they'll skate, but they've been among the best in the world for years and certainly shouldn't be counted out. Moore-Towers and Moscovitch, Russians Bazarova and Larionov, and possibly
Hausch and Wendes will all be looking to medal here as well.
Ice dance: Davis and White are the clear favorites to win, with Pechalat and Bourzat being pretty much a lock for silver. Who will get the bronze medal is more of the mystery - I'm leaning towards it being one of the two Canadian teams competing here (Paul and Islam and Ralph and Hill).
Ladies: There's a lot of ladies here who could potentially medal, but I think that either Carolina Kostner or Alissa Czisny have the most potential to win this event. Joshi and Viktoria Helgesson, Haruka Imai, Elene Gedenishvili, and Ksenia Makarova could all also be in the hunt as well.
Men: World medalist Takahiko Kozuka has to be considered the frontrunner here, with Florent Amodio being the most likely skater to challenge him. Michal Brezina is anything but consistent but he's managed to squish into 4th at Worlds twice, so it's hard to count him out. Last year's surprise medalist Armin Mahbanoozadeh will be looking to repeat here, with teammate and U.S. silver medalist Richard Dornbush will be competing at his first senior Grand Prix ever. Daisuke Murakami and Denis Ten are each a bit of a question mark, but if either go clean and others struggle, I could see one of them medaling.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Worlds Ladies Freeskate and Final Results
Post freeskate interviews
Miki Ando (1st)
Yu-Na Kim (2nd)
Carolina Kostner (3rd)
Alissa Czisny (5th)
Rachael Flatt (12th)
Friday, April 29, 2011
Worlds Ladies Short Results
Post short program interviews
Yu-Na Kim (1st)
Miki Ando (2nd)
Ksenia Makarova (3rd)
Alissa Czisny (4th)
Rachael Flatt (8th)
Kanako Murakami (10th)
Scott Hamilton's take on the ladies short
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Skating Updates
Evgeni Plushenko is seeking ISU reinstatement
Some notes from Moscow
Czisny is relaxed and ready to go
Chan leads after the men's short
Be sure to keep checking Universal Sports and IceNetwork for videos and pictures from Worlds, and here for more updates!
Some notes from Moscow
Czisny is relaxed and ready to go
Chan leads after the men's short
Be sure to keep checking Universal Sports and IceNetwork for videos and pictures from Worlds, and here for more updates!
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Skating Updates
So sorry for the lack of posting! I've been enjoying the calm before the storm that is Worlds. Updates will definitely be a LOT more frequent when it is about to start. That said, here's some recent skating news!
There will be a free Russian live stream of Worlds!
Japanese skating fans should be pleased to hear that Fuji TV will be covering Worlds.
A new Alissa Czisny article by Phil Hersh.
Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir talk about Tessa's injury at 4 Continents, and how the delay of Worlds has enabled them to polish their free dance.They have changed a lift to avoid straining her quad again.
Meryl Davis and Charlie White also believe that the wait has been beneficial, but haven't made any changes to their programs.They're trying not to think about the prospect of being the first U.S. Dance team to win Worlds too much.
An interview with Rachael Flatt.
The Final Round of Fantasy Skating is open!
Patrick Chan talks about his hopes for Worlds.
Ryan Bradley talks about Worlds (of course) and competing against Daisuke Takahashi at World Juniors in 2002.
Maia and Alex Shibutani spoke to Icenetwork about their five favorite things.
An update from the ISU. Of interest is the fact they have approved the idea of 3 new pro am competitions, as well as allowing (requiring?) seeded skaters to compete in 3 Grand Prixs each season.
There will be a free Russian live stream of Worlds!
Japanese skating fans should be pleased to hear that Fuji TV will be covering Worlds.
A new Alissa Czisny article by Phil Hersh.
Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir talk about Tessa's injury at 4 Continents, and how the delay of Worlds has enabled them to polish their free dance.They have changed a lift to avoid straining her quad again.
Meryl Davis and Charlie White also believe that the wait has been beneficial, but haven't made any changes to their programs.They're trying not to think about the prospect of being the first U.S. Dance team to win Worlds too much.
An interview with Rachael Flatt.
The Final Round of Fantasy Skating is open!
Patrick Chan talks about his hopes for Worlds.
Ryan Bradley talks about Worlds (of course) and competing against Daisuke Takahashi at World Juniors in 2002.
Maia and Alex Shibutani spoke to Icenetwork about their five favorite things.
An update from the ISU. Of interest is the fact they have approved the idea of 3 new pro am competitions, as well as allowing (requiring?) seeded skaters to compete in 3 Grand Prixs each season.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Skating Updates
Shawn Sawyer & Myriane Samson will not be competing at Worlds; Myraine is injured & Shawn is choosing to skate in Canadian Stars on Ice instead. They will be replaced by Kevin Reynolds and Amelie Lacoste
Russia will expedite the visa process for Worlds.
Hungarian ice dancer Nora Hoffman is undergoing treatment for an illness.
Melissa Gregory & Denis Petukhov are holding a skating show.
Alexe Gilles has left Tom Z for Yuka Sato & Jason Dungjen
A recent article on Rachael Flatt.
A recent article on Alissa Czisny.
Sinead Kerr & John Kerr have withdrawn from Worlds - she is having shoulder surgery today.
Sarah & Drew's latest blog - it contains a little more info on the Kerrs' withdrawal and more about the Skaters Care show.
Alissa Czisny's coach Jason Dungjen will be going to Worlds.
UPDATED: Sinead Kerr & John Kerr have announced their retirement from competition. I wish them all the best in future endeavors and a swift recovery for Sinead.
Russia will expedite the visa process for Worlds.
Hungarian ice dancer Nora Hoffman is undergoing treatment for an illness.
Melissa Gregory & Denis Petukhov are holding a skating show.
Alexe Gilles has left Tom Z for Yuka Sato & Jason Dungjen
A recent article on Rachael Flatt.
A recent article on Alissa Czisny.
Sinead Kerr & John Kerr have withdrawn from Worlds - she is having shoulder surgery today.
Sarah & Drew's latest blog - it contains a little more info on the Kerrs' withdrawal and more about the Skaters Care show.
Alissa Czisny's coach Jason Dungjen will be going to Worlds.
UPDATED: Sinead Kerr & John Kerr have announced their retirement from competition. I wish them all the best in future endeavors and a swift recovery for Sinead.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Skating Updates
I'll likely edit more news into this if much more is announced today, so be sure to check back. =)
Yu-Na Kim is going back to Korea
Alissa Czisny shares her opinion with Phil Hersh
Moving Worlds being considered, waiting until Monday
Patrick Chan article with an, er, interesting quote.
California skating club to host a charity event for Japanese earthquake relief
An updated Phil Hersh article
Yu-Na Kim is going back to Korea
Alissa Czisny shares her opinion with Phil Hersh
Moving Worlds being considered, waiting until Monday
Patrick Chan article with an, er, interesting quote.
California skating club to host a charity event for Japanese earthquake relief
An updated Phil Hersh article
Friday, February 25, 2011
4 Continents Exhibition Part 1
Alissa Czisny (I Like the Way You Move)
Rachael Flatt (I Wanna Hold Your Hand)
Mirai Nagasu (Fireflies - Owl City)
Mao Asada (Ballad #1 - Chopin)
Miki Ando (Why Do People Fall In Love - L. Edder)
Rachael Flatt (I Wanna Hold Your Hand)
Mirai Nagasu (Fireflies - Owl City)
Mao Asada (Ballad #1 - Chopin)
Miki Ando (Why Do People Fall In Love - L. Edder)
Sunday, February 20, 2011
4 Continents Ladies Short Videos
Akiko Suzuki
Alissa Czisny
Mirai Nagasu
Rachael Flatt
Mao Asada
Miki Ando
Alissa Czisny
Mirai Nagasu
Rachael Flatt
Mao Asada
Miki Ando
4 Continents Ladies Freeskate & Final Results
1. Miki Ando TE 73.03 PCS 61.73 ;FS 134.76 = 201.34 Total (JPN)
2. Mao Asada TE 70.18 PCS 62.71 ;FS 132.89 = 196.30 Total (JPN)
3. Mirai Nagasu TE 69.61 PCS 60.07 ;FS 129.68 = 189.46 Total (USA)
4. Rachael Flatt TE 60.94 PCS 57.14 ;FS 118.08 = 180.31 Total (USA)
5. Alissa Czisny TE 52.82 PCS 58.05 -1.00 ;FS 109.87 = 168.81 Total (USA)
6.Cynthia Phaneuf TE 52.35 PCS 55.14 ;FS 163.14 = 107.49 Total (CAN)
7. Akiko Suzuki TE 49.18 PCS 55.77 ;FS 104.95 = 162.59 Total (JPN)
8. Min-Jeong Kwak TE 51.09 PCS 45.59 ;FS 96.68 = 147.15 Total (KOR)
9. Amelie Lacoste TE 40.18 PCS 48.24 -1.00 ;FS 87.42 = 137.48 Total (CAN)
10. Cheltzie Lee TE 34.90 PCS 44.28 ;FS 79.18 = 127.90 Total (AUS)
11. Myriane Samson TE 28.81 PCS 46.06 ;FS 74.87 = 121.20 Total (CAN)
12. Yea-Ji Yun TE 34.76 PCS 38.73 -1.00 ;FS 72.49 = 111.86 Total (KOR)
13. Bingwa Geng TE 29.86 PCS 38.52 -3.00 ;FS 65.38 = 104.58 Total (CHN)
14. Qiuying Zhu TE 33.30 PCS 36.00 -2.00 ;FS 67.30 = 102.38 Total (CHN)
15. Lejeanne Marais TE 37.07 PCS 32.84 ;FS 69.91 = 101.90 Total (RSA)
16. Chae-Hwa Kim TE 32.33 PCS 36.70 -1.00 ;FS 68.03 = 101.79 Total (KOR)
17. Victoria Muniz TE 30.79 PCS 33.16 ;FS 63.95 = 99.40 Total (PUR)
18. Melinda Wang TE 27.04 PCS 32.60 ;FS 59.64 = 96.15 Total (TPE)
19. Mimi Tanasorn Chindasook TE 28.93 PCS 30.88 -2.00 ;FS 57.81 = 91.54 Total (THA)
20. Jaimee Nobbs TE 28.58 PCS 30.41 -1.00 ;FS 57.99 = 89.93 Total (AUS)
21. Crystal Kiang TE 23.75 PCS 30.96 ;FS 54.71 = 86.60 Total (TPE)
22. Mericien Venzon TE 23.41 PCS 30.12 ;FS 53.53 = 84.17 Total (PHI)
23. Melanie Swang TE 26.11 PCS 26.47 ;FS 52.58 = 82.08 Total (THA)
24. Chaochih Liu TE 22.26 PCS 29.50 -2.00 ;FS 49.76 = 78.28 Total (TPE)
Detailed Freeskate Results
Protocols
*Note: Some interesting calls made by the technical panel. I believe I saw several underrotations by the final group of skaters that they didn't mark. Also, while some of the final girls skated really well, these scores are INSANELY inflated.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
4 Continents Ladies Short Program Results
2.Mao Asada TE 33.20 PCS 30.21 = 63.41 Total (JPN)
3.Rachael Flatt TE 33.43 PCS 28.80 = 62.23 Total (USA)
4.Mirai Nagasu TE 30.55 PCS 29.23 = 59.78 Total (USA)
5.Alissa Czisny TE 31.00 PCS 28.94 -1.00 = 58.94 Total (USA)
6.Akiko Suzuki TE 29.61 PCS 28.03= 57.64 Total (JPN)
7.Cynthia Phaneuf TE 28.90 PCS 27.75 -1.00 = 55.65 Total (CAN)
8.Min-Jeong Kwak TE 26.81 PCS 23.66 = Total 50.47 (KOR)
9.Amelie Lacoste TE 25.03 PCS 25.03 = 0.06Total (CAN)
10.Cheltzie Lee TE 25.40 PCS 23.32 = 48.72 Total (AUS)
11.Myriane Samson TE 22.22 PCS 25.11 -1.00 = 46.33 Total (CAN)
12.Yea-Ji Yun TE 22.08 PCS 17.29 = 39.37 Total (KOR)
13.Bingwa Geng TE 19.80 PCS 20.40 -1.00 = 39.20 Total (CHN)
14.Melinda Wang TE 18.61 PCS 17.90 = 36.51 Total (TPE)
15.Victoria Muniz TE 18.11 PCS 18.34 -1.00 = 35.45 Total (PUR)
16.Qiuying Zhu TE 19.02 PCS 17.06 -1.00 = 35.08 Total (CHN)
17.Chae-Hwa Kim TE 15.56 PCS 18.20 = 33.76 Total (KOR)
18.Mimi Tanasorn Chindasook TE 17.76 PCS 15.97 = 33.73 Total (THA)
19.Lejeanne Marais TE 17.39 PCS 15.60 -1.00 = 31.99 Total (RSA)
20.Jaimee Nobbs TE 17.11 PCS 15.83 -1.00 = 31.94 Total (AUS)
21.Crystal Kiang TE 15.95 PCS 15.9 = 31.89 Total (TPE)
22.Mericien Venzon TE 16.19 PCS 15.45 -1.00 = 30.64 Total (PHI)
23.Melanie Swang TE 16.33 PCS 13.17 = 29.50 Total (THA)
24.Chaochih Liu TE 14.81 PCS 13.71 = 28.52 Total (TPE)
25.Tiffany Packard Yu TE 12.96 PCS 14.55 = 27.51 Total (HKG)
26.Brittany Lau TE 13.14 PCS 13.47 = 26.61 Total (SIN)
27.Taryn Jurgensen TE 14.10 PCS 14.18 -2.00 = 26.28 Total (THA)
28.Reyna Hamui TE 11.32 PCS 13.41 -1.00 = 23.73 Total (MEX)
29.Mary Ro Reyes TE 9.71 PCS 12.51 = 22.22 Total (MEX)
Detailed Results
Protocols
Saturday, February 5, 2011
U.S. Nationals: Ladies Freeskate
Unfortunately, this year's ladies event was basically what I'd expected - a messy event full of splats and pops, and had little in the way of inspiration. There were some shining moments where lesser known skaters delivered, and I'm glad to see that the champion skated a good program, but I am really hoping that in the near future the ladies will step up and give us an all around more enjoyable ladies championship.
That said, let's get started.
The first couple of groups opened up the competition with few successful triple attempts until Kristiene Gong landed five in her routine,(albeit, a couple received a slight negative GOE) and was easily the best so far, pulling up from 17th to 9th overall with a total of 143.30.
After Kristiene, Ellie Kawamura struggled, landing just one triple. Kelsey Traunero was somewhat more successful, landing two triple flips (one in combination with a double toe) and a pair of triple salchows. Unfortunately, her triple toe attempt was downgraded, as was the latter half of her double axel-double toe. Like many of the girls, her spins, footwork, and spiral were passable, but for the most part not particularly noteworthy.
Melissa Bulanhagui appeared to two foot her opening triple salchow, but proceeded to land a nice triple lutz, triple flip, an okay triple lutz-double toe-double loop (the latter deemed underrotated), and landed the following triple toe, triple salchow-double toe, and a big double axel pretty well. Spins weren't amazing, but still, a pretty impressive display. My only slight disappointment was that she didn't go for her triple axel. Total 144.53 (10th)
Danielle Kahle and Kristine Musademba both struggled with their jumps, but the latter had some nice spins. They finished 18th and 15th, respectively.
Alexe Gilles opened the second to last group, marking the beginning of the ladies freeskate coverage on NBC. Unfortunately, she only landed one clean triple (a lutz) and proceeded to pop or two foot everything else.
Caroline Zhang appeared to be in better shape than she was during the Grand Prix season. She landed a triple flip-double toe that was actually kind of nice, before she went for a high kick triple lutz and crashed. I wonder if it wouldn't be better for her to just leave that jump out of her programs until her coaches can the kick under control. After that was a triple salchow, which was downgraded and fallen on. Her triple loop-double axel sequence was fine, and then she popped her second flip attempt into a single. She finished her jumping passes with a triple loop-double loop- double loop with a tano variation on the end and a double axel that was just okay. She had some nice spin positions, especially on the layback, and her spiral sequence was nice. She skated a bit better than I had expected overall. 140.95 total, 12th overall.
Joelle Forte skated better than many of the top ladies, which was pretty surprising to me since I don't believe I've ever heard of her before this event. She landed a triple flip, triple lutz-double toe-double loop (slight negative GOE), triple salchow, double axel, triple lutz, triple toe-triple toe sequence, and a triple salchow double toe, and for the most part, they were actually pretty well done. She had poor spins, but the jumps were there, which was pretty unusual that night. 149.28 total, good enough for 9th place.
Yasmin Siraj had trouble on her early jumping passes, singling her triple flip, having to eek out the latter half of her triple lutz-double toe, and falling on her double axel-triple toe (she was forward on the landing of the axel, but went for the triple toe anyway - she is definitely gutsy). Yasmin did pull it together for her jumping passes after that though, landing a triple salchow, triple lutz, triple toe, and double axel-double toe-double loop pretty well. Her spins were okay, but she had a nice spiral (though I wish she'd not have to hold it) and a footwork sequence that had some interest to it. There's a nice quality to her skating that makes you want to watch her; I'm looking forward to seeing how well she develops. 152.47 overall, 8th place.
Morgan Bell had a rough go of it, only having one entirely succesful jump, a double axel. While her second triple toe was alright, neither it nor the prior attempt were in combination, so it was marked triple toe+SEQ, lowering the base value of the jump. The other jumps were all either popped, fallen on, or marked as underrotated or downgraded. She finished in 17th place.
Ashley Wagner started off well with a triple flip-double toe, which was fine, followed by a double axel-triple toe, the latter of which was two footed and underrotated. After that was a triple flutz (which was nice other than the edge :-/), triple loop-double toe-double toe that was alright, a triple salchow that was good, and then another two foot, this time on a triple loop and she singled her second flip. Her spins and spiral sequence were all good and she's fairly interesting to watch. There were a lot of nice things in that program; it's a shame that she had so many little errors, they really add up. 165.36 total, 6th place.
Vanessa Lam started her program with a triple lutz-double toe-double loop combo that was alright, as well as a triple flip-double toe. Her jumps don't get much height, but she rotates them quickly. Layback spin was nice, but she turned out and possibly two footed a triple toe. She may have two footed the triple loop after that too, it looked a little rough. Her spiral sequence was nice, as well as the spin after that. Double axel-double axel sequence with no speed going into it, followed by a two footed triple lutz. The footwork had no energy or life at all to it, and then she fell on a downgraded triple flip, finishing with a slow spin. Vanessa didn't really perform; seemed to be all about the elements for her. 162.91, 7th.
Agnes Zawadzki opened with a double axel-triple toe that seemed a little tough on the latter half to me, followed by a good triple flip. Combo spin was okay, then a triple lutz attempt that was doubled - it looked like she slipped on the entry. Layback position could be more more impressive. Triple lutz-double toe was nice, followed by a biellmann spiral sequence that wobbled a bit. Fall on an underrotated triple loop, but good comeback with a nice triple salchow. She fell out of a triple toe, but tacked on a double toe and double loop. Footwork was okay, and she ended with an alright combo spin. Agnes could use more refinement in her skating, but when she hits them, her jumps are HUGE! 173.84, 4th.
Christina Gao started off with a nice triple flip-triple toe and triple salchow. Lots of speed going into the jumps too. Ran out of room at the end of her triple lutz-double toe-double loop and had to stepout. She did a nice spin and then a decent biellmann spiral, followed by an okay triple loop and double axel. Fall on the second triple flip, which was downgraded. Combo spin was alright, and she had a little slip in the footwork but it was okay other than that. Triple toe was a little tough, maybe two footed? Her final spin was nice, until the bit of traveling at the end of it. I like her a good bit; she surprised last year at Nationals, so I'm glad to see her skate decently here. Definitely hoping she places well at Junior Worlds. 167.20 total, 5th.
Alissa Czisny: Triple lutz-double toe was nice, followed by a good triple flip and triple toe-double toe-double loop. Spin was nice, but she had to fight for the underrotated triple loop. Spiral sequence was good, and her triple lutz-double toe, double axel, and triple toe were all okay. She finished with two really nice spins and an alright footwork sequence. As I've noted in prior posts, I don't really care for Alissa's skating much, but kudos to her on skating a nearly clean freeskate and not giving up on that loop. I wasn't sure what to expect from her, but she did hold it together. 191.24, 1st place.
Mirai Nagasu: Love her dress. Triple lutz-double toe just okay, she had to work for it. Double axel-double toe, okay. Edge deduction on the triple flip, alright otherwise. Lovely layback and biellmann positions. Triple lutz, underrotated. Triple toe-double toe-double loop, okay. Great spiral sequence, followed by another just okay jump, a triple loop. Ina bauer to a double axel, which she fell out off and then she screwed up a flying sit spin, receiving no credit for it. Last spin was fine, but the damage was done. She looked nervous before she even started the program and then was tentative throughout. It's a shame, she's my favorite of all of these girls. 177.36, 3rd place.
Rachael Flatt: Double axel-triple toe, wobbly and the latter was underrotated. Doubled the intended triple lutz after that, followed by a camel spin with a variation I can't stand. Not really a fan of the choreography either. Triple flip was alright, as well as a combo spin. Spiral sequence, meh. Triple lutz-double toe okay, triple flip-double toe-double loop with a bit of a high kick on the flip. Triple loop was okay, as well as the footwork. Fallout on the triple salchow. Ending combo spin was okay. 183.38, 2nd. I'd probably have sent Mirai to Worlds, but c'est la vie.
Full Results
Check back for the men's freeskate post sometime today or tomorrow.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
30 Days of Skating - Day 23: Skater Everybody Loves But You Don’t
While Alissa's skating has some really wonderful qualities, she doesn't really do as much for me as she seems to for many other skating fans. I'm glad that she has worked on her jump technique and everything, but I still don't find them aesthetically pleasing or particularly well done. Kudos to her on her Grand Prix Final win, and while it's good to see someone who is reportedly such a nice person win, I wasn't really impressed by either of her programs there; she stood up on the jumps, which is better than usual for her, but simply avoiding falling (and fallouts, save for that double axel) doesn't make a great skate to me. Also, for as much as her artistry is complimented, it doesn't stand out or really get me invested in the performance. Maybe it's just not my taste, or maybe I just hold the ladies to a high standard artistically because of growing up watching Michelle Kwan, but either way, it doesn't really impress me much.
In all fairness though, Alissa is a fantastic spinner, has nice spirals, and is obviously a beautiful girl - but her skating is just not for me.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Trophee Eric Bompard - A Preview
In Pairs Savchenko and Szolkowy are easily favorite for gold - unless they explode entirely, I doubt anyone will be able to touch them. For the rest of the field it will simply be a fight for silver and bronze.
As for Ice Dancing, the heavy favorite is definitely the French team of Pechalat and Bourzat; it is doubtful that anyone will truly challenge them here, but Chock and Zuerlein will definitely be looking to follow up their bronze at Skate Canada with another medal here. Several of the other teams only finished 5th at their earlier Grand Prix showings this season, so it could be interesting to see how they stack up in Paris.
The Ladies, contrary to the pairs and ice dance events, have no clear favorite for the title here. Alissa Czisny, Mirai Nagasu, Kiira Korpi, and Cynthia Phaneuf seem to be the most likely candidates for a win here, but none of them are exactly models of consistency. Also, although I wouldn't place any bets on her (or more likely, Fantasy Skating picks), it wouldn't do well to count out reigning World Champion Mao Asada, even with her jump troubles as of late. I really hope Mao really get her feet back under her here; seeing her struggle the way she has is disheartening, especially because she is a much better skater than that.
And finally, the Men. The men's event in Paris features Brian Joubert, Takahiko Kozuka, Florent Amodio, Kevin Reynolds, and Brandon Mroz. Mroz will be looking to build upon his silver medal win at Cup of China, and possibly qualify for the Grand Prix Final. Joubert, while not one to be counted out, usually doesn't skate well in his home country ( He's even admitted to disliking competing there!), so we'll see what he puts out this time. Also, if he wishes to really challenge for the title here, he better have worked on getting his spins up to a higher level of difficulty - all but one spin were deemed level 1 in the long program at Cup of China, which really cost him. Amodio is another one looking to build on success from his prior Grand Prix this season - his third place finish at NHK is a fairly impressive result, given that he was against Takahashi and Abbott there, and he even beat Abbott in the freeskate! If he can put the jumps together again here, that combined with his performance quality should be enough to get him on the podium. Reynolds, while having multiple quads with a good deal of consistency, isn't exactly consistent in everything else. He tends to land great quads, only to have mistakes on triple axels or simpler elements later on, so I'm not very convinced that he'll manage a medal here.Lastly, Kozuka is a definite threat here, after a solid win at Cup of China. His jumps, spins, and basics are all there - he could just use some more expression in competition (some does seem to come out in exhibition). However, when Kozuka is on, his skating is absolutely mesmerizing.
All in all, I'm really looking forward to seeing how this event plays out and who the final Grand Prix Final slots go to. Here's to hoping that the skating is better than at Cup of Russia!
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