ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating: Cup of China Free Dance

2:00 am-Here we go! 6-minute warm up for group 1. I like to try to guess what the program will be about from the costumes. This game is more fun in Ice Dance than in any other discipline.


1) Isabella Cannuscio & Ian Lorello (USA)
    Music: West Side Story

• They actually look like a Tony and Maria
• This makes me nostalgic for when Belbin & Agosto did West Side
• I love how this starts immediately in character with the two as rivals falling in love
• Those spin positions are interesting
• The movements during the "Dance At The Gym" portion of the music are actually reminiscent of Robbins' choreography
• I like that the lifts are coming out of the choreography and aren't just lifts of lifts' sake
• They have some nice lift positions, but the entrances and exits could use cleaning
• I like the transitions between musical selections
• Love the "mambo" section
• I think that was a good clean skate for them
• I would have liked to have seen more of the romance of West Side Story as in "Tonight" or "Somewhere" but this program definitely spoke to the youthful aspect of Tony & Maria's relationship
• FD: 34.43 (technical) + 29.06 (presentation) = 63.49
• 38.34 (SD) + 63.49 (FD) = 101.83

2) Xueting Guan & Meng Wang (China)

   Music: The Sands of Time from Prince of Persia

• I love a story program and this seems to be one of them
• The twizzles look a bit slow
• I think this a mark of youth an inexperience, but they hit some lovely positions with clunky entrances and exits
• I prefer lifts that stem from the choreography rather than those that look like "poses"
• I love how this program builds, both choreographically and dramatically with the music
• That was a very abrupt ending for me, I was expecting something grand to happen and then the piece ended
• FD: 35.96 (technical) + 29.79 (presentation) = 65.72
• 40.19 (SD) + 65.72 (FD) = 105.91

3) Madison Hubbell & Keiffer Hubbell (USA)

     Music: Ocean Club, Jungle Bill

• I don't love her costume, I think that green is a bit too abrasive
• That low, between the leg lift was nice
• Twizzles look a bit off
• I like the choreography in the percussive mid-section
• If they keep skating the way they are skating, I expect them to move up in the ranks
• He almost sits on the ice in a counter-balance lift which is really cool but lacks speed
• A nice hydroblading move, which I am obsessed with, but I'd like to see them ride that curve even longer
• I like their use of levels, they are both tall so their lifts get good height, and I like the juxtaposition of that against these low hydroblading and counterbalance maneuvers
• This is like very "Cotton Club" meets "Rio"
• FD: 38.64 (technical) + 37.84 (presentation) = 76.48
• 44.47 (SD) + 76.48  (FD) = 120.95

4) Xiaoyang Yu & ChenWang (China)

    Music: Beethoven's Last Night

• The first twizzles started out of synch and had no chance of getting back into sync
• I don't like these costumes for this piece
• Her positions are lovely on the spins
• Where do I know this music from? Does somebody else skate to it this year?
• For some reason this program just isn't holding my attention, I think it is because there is not a lot of variety of  movements aesthetics or levels
• FD: 37.78 (technical) + 31.35 (presentation) = 69.13
• 45.33 (SD) + 69.13 (FD) = 114.46

5) Kharis Ralph & Asher Hill (Canada) **

   Music: Summertime

• This team was the surprise of the short dance for me so lets see if they live up to my expectations here in the free
• This team has a Rogers & Hammerstein short and a Gershwin free, they are after my own musical theatre heart
• I love that move where he drags her low to the ground
• This routine is so fluid
• He looks like he could dance for Alving Ailey, he just has that quiet strength about him
• Twizzles look clean
• I love you deep they go into their edges and their knees
• Normally in Ice Dance, as in Ballroom Dance, the woman should be the focal point, but I just can't take my eyes off of Asher!
• I think I am in love
• This competition is my first time seeing them and I am so happy I picked them as my fantasy C team on a whim
• WOW is all I have to say about that
• This was not flashy, it was gorgeous
• I must say that Canada has a very deep field in Ice Dance and I cannot wait to see who makes it out of their nationals onto the world team
• FD: 36.44 technical) + 34.97 (presentation) = 71.41
• 48.10 (SD) + 71.41 (FD) = 119.51

6) Xintong Huang & Xun Zheng (China)

    Music: Singing in the Rain

• This must be the theme song of this competition
• Ok I do not like her costume, all that fabric and you are just asking to have a costume malfunction
• So far their lifts are very "posey"
• I like the lifts where he tosses her around his body because they fit the feel of the program much better, with the Swingy feel
• Is it just me or do they spend a lot of time center ice?
• To me, he is much more of a performer than she is
• They attempted a hydroblading move, but to me, it was totally out of context in terms of the choreography as this piece is very upright and pulled up
• FD: 38.14 (technical) + 36.76 (presentation) = 74.90
• 49.70 (SD) + 74.90 (FD) = 124.90

7) Nora Huffman & Maxim Zavozin (Hungary)

    Music: Gypsy Witch Soundtrack

• I cannot imagine training to this music everyday, it would make me go batty
• These camera angles are interesting, some mask synchronization problems and other highlight them
• Wait why is she kneeling on the ice touching herself?
• This program looked very frenzied to me, as if they were rushing to hit every element
• This was just okay for me, nothing unique and nothing very special
• I predict they drop lower than fourth after this skate
• FD: 37.28 (technical) + 40.85 (presentation) = 78.13
• 52.69 (SD) + 78.13 (FD) = 130.82

8) Ekaterina Bobrova & Dmitri Soloviev (Russia) **

   Music: Melody of the White Nights by Schwartz

• They have the look of those old soviet teams for me, so we'll see how far they go
• Major synchronization issues on the first twizzles
• What a gorgeous arched position she hits on the opening lift
• I loved that cartwheel entrance to the overhead lift
• It must be so  hard to come up with interesting positions for the spins that aren't already being done in pairs
• I don't like her dress when she is standing still, but I like it when she is moving, if that makes sense
• This was very much a quiet, elegant program
• FD: 44.71 (technical) + 44.83 (presentation) = 89.54
• 55.85 (SD) + 89.54 (FD) = 145.39

9) Federica Faiella & Massimo Scali (Italy) **

    Music: Flamenco 

• Hello Spanish routine, well at least this one looks like it will tell a story
• These two are actors, their presentation marks will be huge
• I liked that front attitude position on the opening twizzles
• Wow, he drops her in a low lift, could not tell if that was an issue with the dress or not
• Something about this program seems odd to me, I don't know what it is, but it feels anticlimactic, as if something is missing
• They do not look happy with that
• FD: 37.86 (technical) + 46.45 (presentation) - 2.00 (deduction) = 82.30
• 57.12 (SD) + 82.30 (FD) = 139.52

10) Nathalie Pechalat & Fabian Bourzat (France) **

     Music: Charlie Chaplin Medley

• Just like the short dance, they take the ice in character, which I love
• That leg lock hold was both whimsical and breath-taking at the same time
• The twizzles look spot-on to me
• I'm not typing much during this piece, I'm just enjoying
• A good clean skate, should have no trouble capturing gold here
• FD: 4692 (technical) + 4855(presentation) =9547
• 64.12 (SD) + (FD) =

Final Standings:
1) Pechalat/Bourzat        159.59
2) Bobrova/Soloviev         145.39
3) Faiella/Scali               139.52
4) Huffman/Zavozin         130.82
5) Huang/Zheng              124.90
6) Hubbell/Hubbell          120.95
7) Ralph/Hill                   119.51
8) Yu/Want                    114.46
9) Guan/Wang                105.91
10) Cannuscio/Lorello      101.83