Starting Order
Warmup Group #1
1 Wesley Campbell, Nashville FSC
2 Johnny Weir, SC of New York Inc
3 Douglas Razzano, Coyotes SC of Arizona
4 Parker Pennington, Winterhurst FSC
5 Jeremy Abbott, Detroit SC
Warmup Group #2
6 Michael Solonoski, SC of New York Inc
7 Ryan Bradley, Broadmoor SC
8 Jonathan Cassar, Detroit SC
9 Alexander Johnson, Braemar-City of Lakes FSC
10 Keegan Messing, Alaska Assoc of Figure Skaters
11 Grant Hochstein, St Clair Shores FSC
Warmup Group #3
12 Stephen Carriere, Skating Club of Boston
13 Shaun Rogers, SC of Wilmington Inc
14 Dennis Phan, All Year FSC
15 Daniel Raad, Park FSC
16 Richard Dornbush, All Year FSC
17 Evan Lysacek, DuPage FSC
Warmup Group #4
18 Brandon Mroz, Broadmoor SC
19 Armin Mahbanoozadeh, Washington FSC
20 Andrew Gonzales, All Year FSC
21 Adam Rippon, SC of New York Inc
22 Jason Wong, Skating Club of Boston
23 Tommy Steenberg, SC of Northern Virginia
9:02 CT Opening ceremonies fluff going on.
9:10 National Anthem being played.
9:12 Ice resurface going on, first warm-up group will probably start in about ten minutes
9:26 Crowd looks a bit more full than pairs SP, but it is far from sold out.
9:28 Lights are up in the arena and it looks like the competition is close to getting underway
Warm-up Group 1 on ice. Fairly big crowd responses for Abbott and Weir
Abbott-clean 3R
Commentators say that Razzano is planning a quad
Abbott and Weir in same costumes as GP events
Warm-up group 1 has concluded
Wesley Campbell
3A-leaning to right in air; fall
3Z(possible UR)+2R-landed
Circular step-slow
Spin combo- nicely centered but slow
Back sit spin to pancake to fwd sit-slow
3F-good; slight cheat
SLSS-decent
Deathdrop to sit spin to pancake-positions not low enough
Has smooth movement quality but overall movement quality is slow and a bit lifeless.
TES: 28.55
PCS: 28.43
Ded: -1.00
Total: 55.98
Johnny Weir
3Z+3T-very smooth
3A-slightly off in air but beautifully landed
3F-smallest of wobbles but well done
Sit spin combo-good speed and stretch
Circular step-good attack
Deathdrop to pancake to sit-good
SLSS-a tad slow in places but great energy
Final spin combo-excellent
Excellent skate. Weir really sold the performance and his stroking looked faster. Standing ovation.
TES: 45.32
PCS: 38.19
Total: 83.51
Rank: 1
Douglas Razzano
3A-solid
4T-fall; slight UR
3T+3T-fall out of 2nd jump
Nice low pancake and sit spin positions
Circular step sequence-slow
Deathdrop to pancake-good
SLSS-weak
Camel to sit spin to back pancake-excellent
Good spins, potentially good jumps but relatively bland program to "Claire de Lune."
TES: 36.56
PCS: 28.71
Ded: -1.00
Total: 64.27
Rank: 2
Parker Pennington
3A-fall; looked rotated
3Z(weight forward)+3T-wobble but landed
3F-great height and landing; possible lip
Good deathdrop to pancake spin combo
Circular step-good energy at beginning but loses it that toward the end
Excellent sit spin combo
SLSS-a bit simplistic, good speed
Fwd sit to bwd sit spin-very good
Good energy in parts of the program but his movement is often a bit awkward looking. Really muscled through that skate but the spins were nice.
TES: 33.33
PCS: 29.25
Ded: -1.00
Total: 61.58
Rank: 3
Jeremy Abbott
3F+3T-well done
3A-lovely
Sit spin combo-decent
3Z-slightly forward on landing but otherwise clean
Circular step-brilliant
Camel to fwd sit to bwd sit-good
SLSS-good but no the same abandonment be had in the circular step
Deathdrop to pancake-good
Very focused at the beginning but otherwise the presentation was brilliant. Great jumps, spins, and footwork. Standing ovation.
TES: 47.55
PCS: 40.30
Total: 87.85
Rank: 1
Warm-Up Group 2 on ice that includes Ryan Bradley.
Crowd response seems to indicate that Bradley did his 4T in warm-up; he was preparing for the jump but the camera turned to someone else.
4T+3T from Bradley with a wonky landing on his 4T
Warm-Up Group 2 has concluded.
Michael Solonoski
2A-landed; loose in the air; intended 3A
3Z+2T-solid
Deathdrop to sit-well centered but slow
Circular step sequence-a bit slow and bland
3R-lovely
Fwd sit to bwd sit-once again slow but centered
SLSS-smooth and fluid but very vanilla movement
Fwd sit to bwd sit to fwd catch-foot- decent
Somewhat fluid but extremely bland skating
TES: 29.45
PCS: 25.81
Total: 55.26
Rank: 6
Ryan Bradley
4T(slight UR but will likely get credited)+3T-well done
2A-stalled out too long in the air; landed fine
Circular step-very fun
2Z-bye bye Olympic dream
Spin combo with several different positions that ended with a very slow back camel
SLSS-not as much attack as he is capable of
Fwd camel(little wobble) to back sit-OK
Very disappointed
TES: 37.05
PCS: 33.58
Total: 70.63
Rank: 3
Jonathan Cassar
3Z+3T(possible UR)-fall
1F
Deathdrop to sit to pancake spin combo- a tad slow, positions not low enough
SLSS-not much use of levels but good musicality
Stunning inside spread eagle
2A-good
Decent spin combo
Circular step-good
Fwd camel to bkwd pancake-great
TES: 26.84
PCS: 29.69
Ded: -1.00
Total: 55.53
Rank: 7
Alexander Johnson
1A
3F-weight forward, possible UR, fall
3Z(hand down)+2T-landed
Step sequence-lots of turns; decent speed; keeps in character with the program
Deathdrop to sit spin-nice low position
Circular step sequence-a bit simplistic
Fwd camel to fwd sit to bkwd sit to Y-scale spin-slowed down toward end
bkwd sit to fwd sit-a tad slow but centered well
TES: 26.43
PCS: 28.86
Ded: -1.00
Total: 54.29
Rank: 9
Keegan Messing
3A-forward on landing; possible UR
3Z(off-balance)+1T-two footed
Deathdrop to sit to pancake spin combo-excellent
3F-good
SLSS-nice expression, good quick movement
Fwd camel to sit with variations to bkwd camel to bkwd sit-great
Circular step-movement is a tad awkward but he has good energy
Great final spin combination
Awkward ending
A bit unpolished but great energy, speed, and spins. Good potential and he really engaged the crowd into his skate.
TES: 34.95
PCS: 28.83
Total: 63.78
Rank: 5
Grant Hochstein
3Z+3T-good
2A-clean with leap out of the landing position
Back camel to donut to fwd camel to catch-foot- centered well but slow
3F-low; fall out; possible UR
Circular step-good
Flying sit spin-very good
SLSS-decent speed
Fwd camel to bkwd sit-decent
Elegant but bland program to the music of the ballet The Sleeping Beauty. Nice polish and good speed.
TES: 35.94
PCS: 29.61
Total: 65.55
Rank: 4
Ice resurfacing going on right now.
Warm-Up Group 3 on ice that includes Lysacek.
Lysacek in different costume with no feathers that is still basically all black.
Lysacek-good 3R, almost collided with someone while attempting 3F
The Icenetwork feed is currently down. I will post further updates when it is back up.
The feed has been stopping and starting but it is back up and seems to be OK now.
Warm-Up Group 3 concluded.
Stephen Carriere
1A
3Z(weight forward)+2T-landed
3R-beautiful
Fwd sit to pancake-little bit slow in sit spin
SLSS-good speed
Deathdrop to sit spin-good speed at beginning but loses a lot of that speed during his last spin variation in the combination
Circular step sequence-decent
Back camel (traveled slightly) to bkwd sit to fwd sit (lost balance)
Good speed and some good movement but a rather one-dimensional program. He has a lot of potential that is unfortunately unfulfilled at this point.
TES: 28.85
PCS: 29.83
Total: 58.68
Rank: 8
Shaun Rogers
4T-fell, possible UR, too slow going in
Icenetwork feed stopped
SLSS-interesting in places but labored
Final spin combo-decent but not especially difficult
Replay shows that 3A was excellent
Icenetwork feed stopped again.
Dennis Phan
3A-wobbly
3Z+2T-good
3F-great
Fwd sit to bkwd sit to pancake-a tad slow
SLSS-very fluid but slow
Pancake spin combo-very good
Circular step sequence-good
Back camel to forward sit spin (among other spin variations) in final spin combo-wobbled noticeably going into forward sit spin
Very fluid and calm skater.
TES: 31.55
PCS: 30.96
Total: 62.51
Rank: 7
Daniel Raad
2A-landed
3F(possible UR, forward, slow coming out)+2T(toe-axeled)-landed
3Z-forward, hand down
Spin combo-decent
Circular step sequence-slow
Fwd sit to bkwd sit (not low enough) to pancake (slow)
SLSS-occasionally good movement but presented with no spark at all
Back camel (position substandard) to fwd sit spin (a tad slow)
Wobble on ending pose
Program was like watching paint dry
TES: 27.07
PCS: 22.25
Total: 49.32
Rank: 15
Richard Dornbush
3Z+3T(slightly toe-axeled)-well landed
3A-fall; possible UR
Flying sit spin-good low position
3F-very good
Bkwd camel to catch-foot to fwd camel-nice positions
Circular step sequence-A little slow in places but good movement
Fwd camel to sit to back sit to fwd catch-foot- nice speed until the end
SLSS-Nice power
Good strength and attack but needs a little bit more refinement to his movement.
TES: 37.54
PCS: 29.25
Ded: -1.00
Total: 65.79
Rank: 4
Evan Lysacek
3A-fall out but rotated
3Z+3T-little forward on landing but held landing edge nicely
3F-spiral preceding it, good amplitude and landing
Circular step sequence-very dramatic and fast
Bkwd sit to pancake and fwd sit-excellent
Deathdrop to bkwd sit to pancake-good
SLSS-good
Fwd camel to sit to bkwd sit to catch-foot-good
Good recovery from mistake on 3A. Presentation is very dramatic and perhaps overly so.
TES: 44.23
PCS: 39.46
Total: 83.69
Rank: 2
Warm-Up Group 4, which includes Rippon and Mroz, is currently on the ice.
Rippon-stunning Rippin 3Z in warm-up.
Mroz just fell out of a jump (probably the quad)
Warm-up concluded.
Brandon Mroz
4T-fell out; hand down; possible UR
1A-spread eagle preceding it
Bkwd sit to fwd sit spin-good
3Z+3T-great
Deathdrop to sit spin
SLSS-Not completely invested in the music but some occasional good moments
Circular step-bland
Final spin combo that ended with a back sit spin-decent
Not a terrible program but he looks very tense while doing some of the choreography. A rough skate for him jumping wise and the replay seems to indicate that his 4T will be downgraded.
TES: 33.99
PCS: 30.46
Total: 64.45
Rank: 7
Armin Mahbanoozadeh
3A-slight wobble but good
3F+3T-very good
3Z-slightly forward but solid
Good spin combo
Nice soft knees in footwork; could look up at audience more
Spin combination-good
SLSS-Decent, needs to make movement bigger
Final spin combo-traveled slightly on camel but otherwise OK
Very polished and fluid performance.
TES: 41.16
PCS: 31.40
Total: 72.56
Rank: 4
Andrew Gonzales
3F(slightly UR)+3T-landed
2A-landed
3Z-possible UR; landed
Back sit spin to fwd sit spin-good speed
Circular step sequence-good movement but doesn't use the entire rink
Good camel to sit spin to bkwd sit spin
SLSS-Nice energy
Gonzales has quite a few decent qualities to his skating but nothing completely stands out. His speed is very creditable no matter what he is doing, however.
TES: 33.38
PCS: 29.00
Total: 62.38
Rank: 12 (loud boos from audience)
Adam Rippon
3F+3T-good
3A-slight cheat but will likely get credited; landed well
Superb donut spin
Circular step-Nice fluidity
Rippon 2Z-touches his hands to the boards
SLSS-fall at beginning
Bkwd camel to layback catch-foot - good
Fwd sit to bkwd sit to pancake-good
TES: 38.06
PCS: 35.85
Ded: -1.00
Total: 72.91
Rank: 4
Jason Wong
3Z+2T+Combo-Step out of 3Z, will not get credit for 2T
3A-excellent
Back pancake to fwd sit-good
Circular step sequence-a bit bland
3S-low but landed
Deathdrop to sit spin-traveled slightly at beginning and completely fumbled exit
SLSS-good expression but footwork is simplistic
Final spin combo-solid
Very pleased with performance.
TES: 33.49
PCS: 31.07
Total: 64.56
Rank: 9
Tommy Steenberg
3A-two footed, possible UR
3Z+3R-turn in-between, UR and double footed 3R
2F-fall
Bkwd sit to fwd sit to pancake-good
Circular step-good
Fwd camel to upright to bkwd pancake spin-decent speed
Good flexibility and has a fairly natural moving quality but jumps were very poor tonight.
TES: 30.86
PCS: 29.31
Ded: -1.00
Total: 59.17
Rank: 16
Results here
Friday, January 15, 2010
Friday, January 1, 2010
2010 U.S. Figure Skating Championships Ladies Preview Part II
Emily Hughes
Expectations Going In: The 20-year-old Great Neck, New York native is best known for being a last-minute replacement for Michelle Kwan at the 2006 Olympics, where Hughes would finish the competition in 7th place. The following year, Hughes followed up that career breakthrough with silver medals attained at both the U.S. Championships and the Four Continents Championships. However, Hughes's skating began to fizzle out thereafter, and she wound up withdrawing from the 2008 and 2009 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. Hughes later announced that she would take the year off from attending Harvard to focus on her efforts of making a second Olympic team. While a loss at the North Atlantic Regionals was not part of her plan, Hughes was invited to compete at Skate America when Sasha Cohen withdrew. Hughes's short program was a relative disaster, but she improved her standing in the free skate by four placements to finish 7th overall.
Pros: Hughes is one of only four women scheduled to compete in Spokane who has the experience of competing at a U.S. Championships in an Olympic year, and she is one of only two women entering this event with Olympic experience. The 2006 Olympian is consistently capable of taking off from her lutz and flip jumps from the correct edge, something very few of the other U.S. ladies can say. Hughes demonstrates commendable flexibility in her spins and spirals, and she is currently showing a more mature style in her long program to the soundtrack from the motion picture Gone with the Wind. Hughes also skates with a creditable amount of speed, and 1998 Olympic gold medalist Tara Lipinski commented that Hughes's work with a ballet coach has helped the 2007 U.S. silver medalist create more defined movement in her choreography.
Cons: Hughes's jump rotation speed is slow when compared to her adversaries, and such a weakness causes her jumps to be under rotated frequently. Even while at the athletic peak of her career (2006-2007), Hughes was prone to under rotating jumps, and her more mature body certainly doesn't help her in this endeavor. Trouble with rotating triples continued at Skate America, where her triple flip in the short and her triple salchow in the long were only credited as doubles. Hughes's reputation has certainly waned in the last couple of years, as evidenced by her relatively low PCS marks at Skate America: a 23.76 in her short and a 46.64 in her long. While her programs have potential, they appear disjointed at the moment, and Hughes is going to have to find ways to connect dots of her program far better than what she is doing now to raise her PCS. An example of this can be found in her long program, where Hughes does a spiral in the middle of the program. The spiral would be a very nice transition if done shortly before a jump, but Hughes takes so much time to pick up speed and prepare the jump that the overall effect of the movement is lost. Hughes is also known to not have the most steady landing positions: commentators frequently state comments like "She fought for the jump" or "She hangs on," but seldom do they ever say that she outright nails a jump.
Outlook: The Hughes family was blessed with the miracles of Sarah winning Olympic gold and Emily getting to go to the Olympics after Michelle Kwan withdrew, but it will take an even greater miracle than those two for Emily Hughes to make a second Olympic team. Even when adding back all of the marks Hughes lost for negative GOEs, downgrades, and popped/doubled jumps at Skate America, Hughes would have only scored around a 56.06 for her short and a 101.39 for her long. Her short program score would not put her at too much of a disadvantage, but her long program, even with a clean skate, would be easy to surpass for many. One thing that is in Hughes's favor, however, is experience. While Hughes is one to be sluggish during Grand Prixs, she typically is one to deliver at least decent performances at major events later in the season. Hughes has time to improve since Skate America, and she will probably be in better shape for nationals. With little reputation to bank on, however, Hughes will need to make the Olympic team, or any team, the hard way.
Beatrisa Liang
Expectations Going In: Liang appeared to have all the promise one could ask for when she competed at her first U.S. Figure Skating Championships on the senior level in 2001, all the while being just 12 years old. Unfortunately, the 21-year-old Tarzana, Los Angeles native has never fulfilled that early promise, aside from a few career highlights (pewter medalist at the 2007 U.S. Championships, 10th place at 2008 World Championships). Liang's career appears to be spiraling downward more than ever, as she placed 14th at this event last year and was 10th out of 11 skaters at this year's Cup of China. Thus, not much is expected of what could be Liang's final competition.
Pros: The 2006 Four Continents bronze medalist moves extremely quickly while doing anything: jumps, spins, stroking, et al. She achieves decent height on her triples, and she has some of the better spins among the current crop of American ladies skaters. Liang is also one of the most experienced U.S. ladies skaters who are currently competing: she has competed in 11 national championships and nine of them on the senior level. Liang has improved her extension over the years and is one of the few to repeat the lutz and flip jumps - the two hardest jumps besides the axel - twice in her long program. Liang has finished in the top five four times at the U.S. Championships.
Cons: A 62.93 is considered a very good score for a short program. Although, with the 76+ totals that Yu-Na Kim often receives, the score would be unlikely to top a leader board going into the free skate of a World Championship or Olympic Games. However, Bebe Liang received a 62.93 for her free skate at the Japan Open back in October for a humiliating free skate that contained zero clean triples. Poor, desolate performances from Liang last year dropped her to 14th place, and her 10th place finish from Cup of China was even scarier, as she had the potential to skate much worse than she did. Liang received edge calls on each of the three triple lutzes she attempted at Cup of China, and she also had three triple jumps downgraded in her long program there. Artistically, Liang's transitions are not optimal and her choreography in her current programs is fairly elementary when stacked up against the top U.S. women.
Outlook: It is more likely that pigs will start flying than it is for Liang to make the 2010 Olympic team. Liang had a decent chance of making the 2006 Olympic team, but she blew it when she succumbed to the pressure in the long program by falling twice. She made the most out of her time at what will likely be her only World Championship in 2008, where she cracked the top ten with two decent skates. Since then, however, Liang's skating has gone south and it is unlikely that she will continue beyond this season. Liang is no longer age-eligible to compete at the World Junior Championships, and the Four Continents Championships are scheduled for the week immediately following the ladies competition at Nationals, thus making it questionable as to whether there will be any American representatives in the ladies event there. With all of that said, Liang's last competition may very well be this one, and with the way she has been skating lately, she won't go out with a bang.
Mirai Nagasu
Expectations Going In: The 16-year-old Montebello, California native came out of nowhere to beat heavy favorite Caroline Zhang for the junior title at the 2007 U.S. Championships. Nagasu appeared to be the next great U.S. skater when she surprisingly won the 2008 U.S. Championships as a senior, becoming the second youngest U.S. senior ladies champion in history (Tara Lipinski being the youngest). Unfortunately, a massive growth spurt and an ankle injury severely hindered Nagasu's efforts in the 2008/2009 season, and she has since switched coaches from Charlene Wong to Frank Carroll. Thus far this season, Nagasu has neither helped nor hurt her Olympic bid, but she is still considered a very viable contender for a ticket to the Games.
Pros: Nagasu has superb extension and shows that off to its fullest in her exemplary spins and spirals. Nagasu's growth spurt has enabled her to become much faster across the ice, and her long, lean frame presents viewers with a very attractive body line to watch. Nagasu won the short program at this season's Cup of China with a score of 62.20, a short program total which has only been surpassed by four women in ISU competition this season. Also, the two-time Junior Worlds medalist is prone to peaking at Nationals, as she won the junior title in 2007 and senior title in 2008. Also, even though Nagasu did not medal in 2009, her overall showing there was far superior to her performances at her two Grand Prix events earlier that season. Nagasu showed to be a formidable competitor last year, when she arrived to her free skate in tears and admirably finished her skate without major error. Nagasu has always been marked favorably by the U.S. judges: in 2008, she broke 70 points for her short program and placed above Caroline Zhang's clean long program with a free skate that contained a fall and an under rotated jump.
Cons: Nagasu has always had a huge tendency to flutz, but at Skate Canada, she was given an edge call for her flip in the short and both of her lutzes in the long. Nagasu had four triples and one double jump downgraded during her free skate at Cup of China, and she also received downgrades on two double jumps at Skate Canada. Nagasu's PCS marks went down from Cup of China to Skate Canada for both programs, and while she rotated all of her triples during her long at the latter event, her expression and overall artistry suffered immensely. Nagasu has taken the salchow jump out of her repertoire, and she only attempted five triples in her long at Skate Canada. Two of those triples were lutzes, which are often taken off from the wrong edge or under rotated, and another was a flip jump, an element which was downgraded twice at last year's Nationals. Several of Nagasu's comments that she made at the U.S. Olympic Media Summit about her not being very pretty or very smart, while honest, indicate that Nagasu's confidence level is precarious at best.
Outlook: Nagasu's fall international season has lagged behind those of Czisny, Flatt, and Wagner; however, her scoring potential and ability to peak at nationals make her chances to make the Olympic team very realistic. What should decide Nagasu's fate will be her ability to rotate jumps. Even though the execution judges are no longer required to give a downgraded jump a -GOE, under rotated jumps are still very costly under the new scoring system and will tarnish any advantage Nagasu would have on the second mark. Luckily for Nagasu, Czisny and Wagner have frequently had jumps downgraded as well, and Nagasu receiving full credit for her planned five triples at Skate Canada is certainly a step in the right direction. Nagasu has scored well domestically, and she will be difficult to unseat for an Olympic berth if she goes close to clean in Spokane. However, a meager difference in the rotation of a jump can put a lifelong dream on hold.
Ashley Wagner
Expectations Going In: Wagner burst out onto the scene as a senior level skater in the 2007/2008 season when she took home a bronze medal at the U.S. Championships. Battling injury, pressure, and the unenviable task of following Miki Ando (who withdrew during the beginning of her skate due to an injury), Wagner only finished 16th at her only World Championship thus far. The 2008 U.S. bronze medalist decided to change coaches from Shirley Hughes to Priscilla Hill in 2008, and while Wagner didn't make the world team last year, her coaching switch appears to be paying off with two medals on the Grand Prix this season and a 4th place finish at the Grand Prix Final. Wagner appears to be the favorite to take the second Olympic ticket (behind Rachael Flatt), but with Czisny and Nagasu nipping at her heels, Wagner cannot attain an Olympic berth without two creditable performances.
Pros: The change in Wagner's artistry since moving to Priscilla Hill is night and day, and the two-time World Junior bronze medalist has two strong, dramatic programs this season to showcase that improvement: a short to the soundtrack of Once Upon a Time in America, and a long to the music of "Polovtsian Dances." Wagner is one of the most complete U.S. ladies skaters, boasting strong jumps, spins, speed, and musicality. Wagner was the only U.S. lady to qualify to the Grand Prix Final, and a 4th place finish there should help her out politically heading into Nationals. Wagner won the long program at last year's U.S. Championships with only five clean triples, and she placed ahead of Rachael Flatt and Caroline Zhang, who both landed six triples. Wagner was the only U.S. lady to medal in both of her Grand Prix events this season, and she set personal bests at the Rostelecom Cup for both her long program and her overall segment total. Wagner stated on her Facebook account that she is "plugging away at those triple-triples," and Priscilla Hill insisted in a New York Times article that Wagner was far from her optimum form during the Grand Prix season.
Cons: Wagner has yet to kick her flutz habit to the curb, and out of six attempts at that jump during this season's Grand Prix she received one "!" and five "e" edge-calls (and the "e" edge-calls are the more severe of the two). She is also a skater to often under rotate jumps, and no jump is immune from being downgraded for Wagner. The current U.S. pewter medalist has had not one, but two, double axels downgraded this season, and she also has received two downgrades on her second triple flip in the long program. Wagner puts a triple lutz late in the long program, which she often receives a -2 GOE for, even if otherwise done cleanly, instead of doing an easier triple toe that would give her around the same point value. The same logic could also be applied to her short program, where the substitution of a loop or salchow for her lutz would likely augment her score. Also, Wagner's plans to do a triple-triple backfired last year, and she has not competed one cleanly since 2008 Nationals. Wagner's PCS went down in the long program from NHK Trophy to the Grand Prix Final, with her GPF free skate being far superior to her one executed at NHK.
Outlook: For better or for worse, Wagner certainly has confidence, going as far as to imply that she could surprise and win the Olympic Games in a New York Times article. Wagner has easily been the second best skater in the long program this year, but Czisny should have an advantage with her short program if Wagner's flutz remains intact. It is worth mentioning that the U.S. technical specialists tend to be more lax with edge calls and have been so to Wagner's lutzes in the past: in 2008, Wagner received no edge call for any of her three lutzes, and she only received an "!" for one of them in 2009. However, the U.S. technical specialists were not shy at Nationals last year when it came to downgrading jumps, which is something that could make an attempt at a triple-triple unwise. Scott Hamilton did mention during his commentary at the Grand Prix Final that Wagner should increase her difficulty, but cleanliness might be the best route with top rivals such as Czisny and Nagasu bound to make errors somewhere. Wagner has been neither brilliant nor dreadful this season, but she has been reasonably solid across three competitions. Adding that with a 4th place finish at the Grand Prix Final should ensure Wagner of the ability to control her own destiny at the U.S. Championships, as she has been marked well at this event in the past with less credentials entering in.
Caroline Zhang
Expectations Going In: Like Nagasu, Caroline Zhang was considered a budding talent whilst on the junior ranks, as evidenced by her taking home the gold medal at the 2007 World Junior Championships. Her first experience on the senior Grand Prix went well, and she took 4th place at the 2007 Grand Prix Final with an overall score that has not since been matched by a U.S. lady in ISU competition. Zhang was too young to qualify to the senior world team in 2008, but she became eligible in 2009 and just missed a spot on the team. Many felt that she should have been on the world team with her impressive performances at both the 2009 Four Continents Championships and the 2009 World Team Trophy. Since then, however, Zhang has not indicated that she will skate well enough in Spokane to be at all deserving of an Olympic berth.
Pros: Arguably the most flexible skater in the world, Zhang is renowned for her six o'clock spirals and her stunning "pearl" and Bielmann spin positions, as she frequently receives high levels and GOE through the roof for her spins and spiral sequences. Zhang delivered near clean long programs at both the 2008 and the 2009 U.S. Championships and is one to perform near her optimum in the later part of the season. Zhang's new short program to "Zigeunerweisen" showcases a fire and intensity that has been missing from several of her previous programs. Zhang's personal best in her long program, a 116.80, has only been surpassed by one of the ladies set to compete in Spokane, Sasha Cohen. Zhang also has a full arsenal of triples besides the axel and will likely be one of the only women attempting triple-triple combinations in Spokane.
Cons: Zhang didn't perform terribly at her opening event of the season, Trophee Eric Bompard, but her PCS marks went down considerably from when she had last competed at the World Team Trophy. Zhang would go on to miss the podium at that event and finish 4th, but the worst was yet to come. At Skate Canada, Zhang had the worst long program of her career as a senior level skater, scoring only 77.88 for a performance of which contained two falls and an invalid jumping pass. Zhang's poor speed, transitions, and overall artistry were reflected brashly in the judges' marks, with one judge going as far as to give Zhang a 2.5 for transitions. Zhang has not had much political favor domestically, and her fall international showing will certainly not aid her in that regard. Zhang landed six triples in her 2008 and 2009 Nationals free skates, but both times she only finished 4th in the long program phase of the event. Zhang has said to be incapable of breaking out of her comfort zone, and it certainly appears to be that way with so many of her weaknesses including her flutz, mule kick, poor stroking, lack of transitions, and molasses speed showing little or no improvement from when she was on the junior level.
Outlook: Zhang's season appears to have been doomed from the start, with two coaching changes and a partial tear of her ACL occurring over the summer. Zhang had a pitiful outing at Skate Canada, but she has shown a fighting spirit several times in the past and should improve for nationals; however, even a dramatic improvement will mean nothing for Zhang's nearly non-existent Olympic chances. The U.S. judges have never scored Zhang beneficially and certainly won't start doing so with her poor Grand Prix season. Zhang will still be much in the running to earn a 4th ticket to what is perhaps a painfully familiar event for her: the World Junior Championships. Zhang's poor technique on just about every jump (except the salchow, which interestingly she never did throughout much of 2007-2008) and her poor speed going into those jumps will hold Zhang back forever unless if major changes are to be in order. Zhang did grow taller last year, yet she interestingly dealt with all of her technical issues well (for the most part). Unfortunately, it appears as though an injury and a further growth spurt have expired Zhang's success with her many technique foibles. Zhang is incredibly talented and can make a splash come 2014, if she does something she has never done before: break out of her comfort zone.
Predictions
Gold: Rachael Flatt- Flatt should start winning respect from the U.S. judges after her excellent showing at Skate America. If Cohen is not to come back and Czisny remains a headcase - both of which appear likely - Flatt will be the United States' only hope for a ladies medal in Vancouver.
Silver: Ashley Wagner- If the U.S. judges are lax with edge calls, Wagner will be in very good stead to make her first Olympic team. Still, the two-time Junior World bronze medalist would be wise to arrange her jump layouts in such a way that she wouldn't have a try the jump in either program. Triple-triple combinations are great if they're landed (or even just rotated), but they could be unnecessary, or detrimental, to Wagner's Olympic bid.
Bronze: Alissa Czisny- Quite an irony this would be if Czisny were to finish 3rd after basically losing the third spot for the United States in Los Angeles. The judges would look terrible if they blatantly prop up Czisny as they did last year, but she still should be marked favorably with a decent fall international season behind her. However, Czisny cannot go clean in both programs to save her life, and an Olympic ticket on the line won't help her out at all in that endeavor.
5th: Caroline Zhang- Has no where to go but up after her performance at Skate Canada, and she has delivered good skates at the past two U.S. Championships. All of that won't mean anything, however, because the judges won't be on her side.
6th: Christina Gao- She has good jumps, very good jumps, and not much else. Still, Brian Orser and his assistants are absolutely heading Gao in the right direction, and she is in the position to have a very admirable showing at these Championships.
7th: Emily Hughes- She had an adequate outing at Skate America on short notice and should display relative improvement for this competition. Under rotated jumps will be a major factor in her placement, but Hughes is experienced enough to get decent PCS and avoid cleaning the ice here.
8th: Alexe Gilles- She is a fairly elegant skater but her jumps are quite often not there for her. She had a fair showing last year and will hopefully take that experience to perform well again.
9th: Bebe Liang- She generally manages somewhat decent showings at nationals, but top ten will probably be the highest realistic goal for her after her poor finish last year and her rough outings in the fall.
WD: Sasha Cohen- Her injury situation was dire enough to pull her out of an event with a weak field and little at stake at Skate America. Recent videos from the show "Improv Ice" show Cohen struggling with one of the easiest jumps, the salchow. Perhaps we may be lucky enough and see Cohen show up in Spokane to do a short program and then mysteriously bow out prior to the long.
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