2016 US Figure Skating Championships: Ladies Recap

Ashley vs. Gracie: Part 4

1. Does anyone else matter to the skating faithful?
1. I feel that as a skating community, we have taken to Hannah Miller at this competition. Bradie Tennell is another one to watch. 
2. Does Ashley come from behind in the short to win in the free as has become commonplace?
1. Well, she was behind and she did so well until that pop, but it wasn't a true Ashley Wagner comeback, clearly, as she took third.
3. Does my girl Ashley, an old broad by skating standards, have any gas left in the tank to take another US title and have a prayer of a World medal?
1. I hate to say it because I love her, but I don't think she has a shot at a world medal unless others falter. She had her shot several times when she couldn't nail a short program. 
4. Does Gracie live up to her word of “no more doubles”?
1. After popping in the short, Gracie just threw it down in the free. She certainly lived up to her promise. 
5. Does Gracie, clearly the more talented of the two, get out of her head and put up the points we know she can?
1. Finally, yes, Gracie got out of her own head and threw down a fantastic performance. That was a "Nationals" performance and she clearly owned that free!
6. More importantly, which of these two will give us the best Side Eye?
1. Oddly enough, Polina was giving us some great face when she realized that Gracie had beaten her.
7. Can Polina finally perform like a mature young woman?
1. I'm just going to say it, because the free skate hair didn't help. It was more Pollyanna than Polina. She had the jumps, but she needs to learn how to perform and needs to be packaged differently.
8. Does Karen Chen make the Gracie vs. Ashley debate moot by wiping the floor with all of them?
1. She did not wipe the floor with them, but her free skate did make an impression aside from the fall. She has the potential to be great, but let's not crown her yet. 
9. Can Courtney Hicks’ jump propel her back into the conversation?
1. Unfortunately for Courtney, her jumps are what failed her. In my opinion, she needs to back off the speed and master her jumps again before she can put together a full program again. 
10. Where does Carly Gold factor in, and more importantly, how does her presence affect Gracie?
1. If she didn't have a famous sister, we wouldn't be talking about her and NBC certainly wouldn't be showing her short before the pairs free.
11. What chance does Mirai Nagasu have after all these years, particularly where International assignments are concerned?
1. She still has the skills, clearly, after nailing 2 clean programs, but that does not guarantee the "committee's" faith in her. She finished behind Ashley Wagner who popped a jump, so that doesn't demonstrate how much faith the international committee has in her. 
12. Will any one performance make me cry or stand up and cheer?
1. I certainly didn't cry, but I did cheer for Gracie because she had a true "Nationals moment".
13. Can anyone from last year’s top ten trio of Bell, Pierce, or Miller surprise us and make the podium?
1. Miller gave us a true performance. Pierce had that phenomenal short, but she really needed to go clean if she wanted to make to get to the program. She did show some fire at the end of the free so I'm very excited about her going forward! Bell showed us that she has the potential but she needs some smoothing out and just more experience. Unfortunately, not counting her combinations killed her. Fortunately, Kori Ade is her coach and in my opinion, she is the best in the business. 
14. How will last year’s Junior winner by a mile, Bradie Tennell, handle the pressure of the Senior event?
1. Bradie Tennell put on a show! She proved that her junior win was not a fluke and that she could handle the pressure. She held onto first until Wagner skated.
15. Finally, will the dreaded “committee” have to step in when it comes to International assignments or will they let the competition play out?
1. This should be pretty straightforward--Gracie, Polina, and Ashley will go to Worlds.

2014 SKATE CANADA: Ladies Preview

Much like the mens event, there are no clear favorites here in the ladies event at Skate Canada. About five different ladies could win this event, so it will be fun to watch. I have a feeling someone is going to even bomb the short program and come back with a strong free to medal. Anything can happen when there isn't a true headliner.

My Podium Predictions:
Gold: Anna Pogorilaya (RUS)
Silver: Ashley "Diva" Wagner (USA)
Bronze: Satoko Miyahara (JPN)

Anna Pogorilaya (RUS) is another in a long line of up and coming young Russian Divas. Girlfriend surprised us all by finishing fourth at Worlds in 2014 post-Sochi. She has been overshadowed by Sotnikova, Tuktamysheva, and Radionova in recent years, but she seems poised to make a name for herself and break out here.

Ashley Wagner (USA) is entering a crucial season. She will have to fight all of the critics that say she is too old, as well as all the young skaters who very well may prove she is too old. I question her decision to do the Moulin Rouge free skate, because I don't think it helps to fix her image. However, this might be her way of saying screw the skating establishment, I'm doing what ever I want. She tends to peak early in the season, so I don't see her leaving Canada without a medal of some color. She needs to make a strong showing to prove to USFS that she is worth investing in with another trip to Worlds.

Satoko  Miyahara (JPN) has a huge role to fill with Mao Asada moving on. The classic Japanese ladies have all gone, and they are waiting for their next champion to emerge. Satoko was a junior circuit star, but she never won a junior World medal. She peaks early in the season so I see her putting up a strong fight here. She won the Gardenia Trophy and the Lombardia Trophy here, so she shouldn't be rusty at all.

The Rest of the Field:
Brooklee Han (AUS)-14th at 2014 Four Continents, 20th at 2014 Olympics, 19th at 2014 Worlds, 4th at 2014 Nebelhorn Trophy, 10th at 2014 Skate America
Alaine Chartrand (CAN)-5th at 2014 World Juniors, 7th at 2014 Four Continents, 4th at 2014 US International Classic
Veronik Mallet (CAN)-13th at 2014 Four Continents, 7th at 2014 Nebelhorn Trophy
Julianne Seguin (CAN)-3rd at 2014 Skate Canada Autumn Classic
Rika Hongo (JPN)-8th at 2014 Junior Worlds, 1st at 2014 Triglav Trophy, 1st at 2014 Asian Open, 3rd at 2014 Finlandia Trophy
Hae Jin Kim (KOR)-6th at 2014 Four Continents, 16th at 2014 Olympics, 23rd at 2014 Worlds, 5th at 2014 Asian Open, 9th at 2014 O. Nepela
Alena Leonova (RUS)-4th at 2014 Europeans, 2nd at 2014 Nebelhorn Trophy
Viktoria Helgesson (SWE)-14th at 2014 Europeans, 27th at 2014 Olympics, 2nd at 2014 Nordics, 8th at 2014 Lombardia, 4th at 2014 O. Nepela
Courtney Hicks (USA)-5th at 2014 Four Continents, 2nd at 2014 US International

2013 Skate Canada: Ladies Preview

Julia Liptnitskaia (RUS) is the one to beat here. She doesn't necessarily have the best skills or artistry of the field, but she is the best competitor and at these early events, that generally wins the day. She has her sights set on Sochi and as long as she can stay healthy, she is all but guaranteed to make the Olympic team. She has fared the best overall of the "Russian babies" as she transitioned from the junior to the senior ranks and I appreciate her skating more than that of Sotnikova, Tuktamisheva, or Radionova. She qualified for the Final last year and likely would have done quite well if not for that concussion. My only concern for her is that Schindler's List is beyond her current range as a performer. We shall see.

Akiko Suzuki (JPN) is a longtime favorite of nearly the entire skating world, but the biggest question mark with her is a competitive edge. I'm afraid that her window of opportunity has passed her by and and that she reached her peak in 2012 with that World bronze. She recently finished behind Lipnitskaia at the Finlandia Trophy. I question her choice of Phantom of the Opera for her free skate because I think she can do better than that warhorse. She is so classical and refined that I'd prefer she choose something more nuanced.

Kaetlyn Osmond (CAN) won this event last year and she has the potential to do it again. However, she won primarily because she was simply cleaner that the other women. I personally don't believe that she has the maturity or performance quality to beat a clean Suzuki, Lipnitskaia, or even Gao. I truly believe this event will be decided by who makes the fewest mental errors.

Gracie Gold (USA) is the "no pun intended" Golden Girl in US Figure Skating. USFS wants her to be the answer that we've all been looking for, the next Michelle Kwan who can dominate national and international events. She is almost guaranteed a spot on the Sochi team, but she needs to prove that she has the mental game to compete and that's where she's been lacking recently. Luckily for her, she is a late bloomer across the course of a season. She bombed at this event last year, but went on to win silver at Cup of Russia, silver at US Nationals, and placed a respectable 6th at Worlds. If the wheels fall off here, we don't need to lose our minds yet, but it will be cause for concern for Team Gold if Gao or Hicks beat her here.

Christina Gao (USA) is a personal favorite of mine and I am really pulling for her to make the Sochi team. She has a much more international look than many of the US ladies and much more classical elegance than either Wagner or Gold. We know that she is an extremely hard work and my biggest fear for her, opposite of Gold, is that she will peak too early. She has finished 5th at US Nationals for the past four years, so she's going to have to show USFS that she is the real deal on the Grand Prix before their judges will PCS her high enough at Nationals to make the podium.




My Podium Predictions:
Gold: Julia Liptnitskaia (RUS)
Silver: Akiko Suzuki (JPN)
Bronze: Kaetlyn Osmond (CAN)

The Rest of the Field:
Amelie Lacoste (CAN)
Veronik Mallet (CAN)
Natalia Popova (UKR)
Christina Gao (USA)
Gracie Gold (USA)
Courtney Hicks (USA)

2011 Junior Grand Prix of Italy: Ladies Short Program Results & Videos

Pl.	Name	Nation	TSS =	TES +		PCS +	SS	TR	PE	CH	IN	Ded. -	StN.
1	Julia LIPNITSKAIA	RUS	63.71	35.94		27.77	6.93	6.71	7.11	7.00	6.96	0.00	#28
2	Hannah MILLER	USA	52.78	27.74		25.04	6.32	6.07	6.32	6.25	6.32	0.00	#27
3	Anna SHERSHAK	RUS	51.48	28.14		23.34	6.04	5.43	5.93	5.93	5.86	0.00	#12
4	So-Youn PARK	KOR	49.06	25.88		23.18	6.07	5.54	5.82	5.71	5.82	0.00	#21
5	Ziquan ZHAO	CHN	45.80	26.97		19.83	5.29	4.79	4.93	5.04	4.75	1.00	#5
6	Kate CHARBONNEAU	CAN	45.78	25.66		20.12	5.29	4.82	5.00	5.07	4.96	0.00	#4
7	Satoko MIYAHARA	JPN	44.91	21.69		23.22	6.00	5.68	5.93	5.68	5.75	0.00	#23
8	Courtney HICKS	USA	43.95	23.35		22.60	6.00	5.50	5.36	5.89	5.50	2.00	#14
9	Isabelle OLSSON	SWE	43.85	24.46		20.39	5.25	4.79	5.14	5.14	5.18	1.00	#20
10	Saya UENO	JPN	43.09	23.26		19.83	5.25	4.68	5.04	4.96	4.86	0.00	#30
11	Eveliina VILJANEN	FIN	40.71	21.79		18.92	4.75	4.50	4.86	4.71	4.82	0.00	#2
12	Sandy HOFFMANN	GER	38.33	19.61		19.72	5.07	4.57	4.96	5.04	5.00	1.00	#22
13	Mimi Tanasorn CHINDASOOK	THA	38.09	20.35		17.74	4.61	4.18	4.54	4.43	4.43	0.00	#25
14	Caterina ANDERMARCHER	ITA	37.83	19.58		18.25	4.75	4.43	4.75	4.43	4.46	0.00	#16
15	Brooklee HAN	AUS	37.68	21.94		16.74	4.39	3.82	4.18	4.25	4.29	1.00	#3
16	Romy BUEHLER	SUI	37.59	18.82		18.77	4.82	4.46	4.68	4.79	4.71	0.00	#15
17	Anita MADSEN	DEN	37.06	19.00		18.06	4.75	4.29	4.54	4.57	4.43	0.00	#26
18	Sabrina SCHULZ	AUT	36.40	18.61		17.79	4.64	4.18	4.50	4.46	4.46	0.00	#9
19	Laurine LECAVELIER	FRA	34.71	18.20		18.51	4.93	4.43	4.43	4.79	4.57	2.00	#11
20	Victoria MANNI	ITA	33.43	15.55		17.88	4.50	4.18	4.68	4.50	4.50	0.00	#19
21	Micol CRISTINI	ITA	32.24	14.50		17.74	4.64	4.32	4.46	4.46	4.29	0.00	#31
22	Isabella SCHUSTER	GRE	31.72	18.83		12.89	3.36	3.04	3.21	3.29	3.21	0.00	#18
23	Alexandra KUNOVA	SVK	31.14	16.05		15.09	3.96	3.50	3.86	3.82	3.71	0.00	#8
24	Elena MANGAS	ESP	31.03	15.66		16.37	4.36	3.75	4.14	4.21	4.00	1.00	#24
25	Denisa SANDU	ROU	30.89	17.83		13.06	3.36	3.14	3.32	3.36	3.14	0.00	#1
26	Isadora WILLIAMS	BRA	28.61	14.07		16.54	4.43	3.82	4.07	4.18	4.18	2.00	#29
27	Tsz Ying Crystal CHIK	HKG	27.37	14.68		13.69	3.54	3.21	3.32	3.57	3.46	1.00	#17
28	Ashley BRICKMAN	PHI	24.73	11.94		13.79	3.64	3.14	3.50	3.50	3.46	1.00	#10
29	Anais CLAES	BEL	24.37	12.21		14.16	3.64	3.25	3.39	3.68	3.75	2.00	#13
30	Aislin ROSADO	MEX	24.18	11.63		13.55	3.50	3.36	3.36	3.54	3.18	1.00	#6
31	Deirdre FAEGRE	IRL	18.82	10.33		9.49	2.61	2.32	2.29	2.43	2.21	1.00	#7

Julia Lipnitskaia (RUS) 63.71





Hannah Miller (USA) 52.78





Anna Shershak (RUS) 51.48

2011 Junior Grand Prix of Australia: Ladies Short Program

Pl.	Name	Nation	TSS =	TES +		PCS +	SS	TR	PE	CH	IN	Ded. -	StN.
1	Hae-Jin KIM	KOR	52.26	29.57		22.69	5.68	5.32	5.82	5.71	5.82	0.00	#21
2	Courtney HICKS	USA	50.19	26.83		23.36	5.93	5.64	5.89	5.93	5.82	0.00	#14
3	Vanessa LAM	USA	49.28	27.16		22.12	5.36	5.43	5.54	5.71	5.61	0.00	#3
4	Risa SHOJI	JPN	47.28	24.88		22.40	5.68	5.36	5.61	5.71	5.64	0.00	#11
5	Haruna SUZUKI	JPN	45.85	23.94		21.91	5.61	5.21	5.50	5.64	5.43	0.00	#20
6	Polina KOROBEYNIKOVA	RUS	43.34	23.08		21.26	5.54	5.11	5.25	5.43	5.25	1.00	#15
7	Alexandra DEEVA	RUS	41.43	22.02		20.41	5.11	4.93	5.07	5.29	5.11	1.00	#9
8	Beata PAPP	FIN	41.29	23.55		18.74	4.79	4.39	4.68	4.86	4.71	1.00	#18
9	Alexandra NAJARRO	CAN	40.71	21.99		19.72	5.11	4.75	4.96	5.00	4.82	1.00	#22
10	Anita MADSEN	DEN	40.64	24.06		17.58	4.61	4.18	4.32	4.50	4.36	1.00	#10
11	Brooklee HAN	AUS	37.53	20.17		17.36	4.39	4.14	4.32	4.43	4.43	0.00	#4
12	Chantelle KERRY	AUS	36.50	20.52		15.98	4.07	3.75	4.04	4.04	4.07	0.00	#2
13	Victoria HUEBLER	AUT	34.39	18.39		17.00	4.46	4.00	4.18	4.36	4.25	1.00	#7
14	Bahia TALEB	FRA	33.18	16.53		16.65	4.14	3.93	4.21	4.36	4.18	0.00	#19
15	Sindra KRIISA	EST	32.71	16.17		16.54	4.32	3.96	4.04	4.21	4.14	0.00	#1
16	Chaochih LIU	TPE	31.52	17.75		14.77	3.75	3.43	3.71	3.79	3.79	1.00	#12
17	Sandra KOPHON	THA	31.31	17.14		15.17	3.93	3.68	3.79	3.86	3.71	1.00	#16
18	Reyna HAMUI	MEX	28.18	14.10		15.08	3.96	3.64	3.61	3.89	3.75	1.00	#6
19	Jaimee NOBBS	AUS	27.78	13.82		14.96	3.86	3.64	3.64	3.89	3.68	1.00	#8
20	Madelaine PARKER	NZL	26.64	14.08		13.56	3.43	3.18	3.39	3.50	3.46	1.00	#5
21	Sumika YAMADA	HKG	26.44	11.81		15.63	4.11	3.71	3.79	4.04	3.89	1.00	#17
22	Yi Ching NG	SIN	25.49	12.35		13.14	3.43	3.07	3.21	3.46	3.25	0.00	#13

2011 Junior Grand Prix of Australia: Short Program Start Orders

StN.	Name	Nation
	Warm-Up Group 1
1	Sindra KRIISA	EST
2	Chantelle KERRY	AUS
3	Vanessa LAM	USA
4	Brooklee HAN	AUS
5	Madelaine PARKER	NZL
	Warm-Up Group 2
6	Reyna HAMUI	MEX
7	Victoria HUEBLER	AUT
8	Jaimee NOBBS	AUS
9	Alexandra DEEVA	RUS
10	Anita MADSEN	DEN
	Warm-Up Group 3
11	Risa SHOJI	JPN
12	Chaochih LIU	TPE
13	Yi Ching NG	SIN
14	Courtney HICKS	USA
15	Polina KOROBEYNIKOVA	RUS
16	Sandra KOPHON	THA
	Warm-Up Group 4
17	Sumika YAMADA	HKG
18	Beata PAPP	FIN
19	Bahia TALEB	FRA
20	Haruna SUZUKI	JPN
21	Hae-Jin KIM	KOR
22	Alexandra NAJARRO	CAN

StN.	Name	Nation
	Warm-Up Group 1
1	Wayne Wing Yin CHUNG	HKG
2	Bela PAPP	FIN
3	Dong-Won LEE	KOR
4	Chih-I TSAO	TPE
	Warm-Up Group 2
5	Keiji TANAKA	JPN
6	Jason BROWN	USA
7	Marco ZAKOURIL	CZE
8	Brendan KERRY	AUS
9	Ryan Zhi Jwen YEE	MAS
	Warm-Up Group 3
10	Christopher BERNECK	GER
11	David KRANJEC	AUS
12	Oliver PORTER	AUS
13	Suchet KONGCHIM	THA
14	Simon HOCQUAUX	FRA
	Warm-Up Group 4
15	Mikhail KOLYADA	RUS
16	Michael Christian MARTINEZ	PHI
17	Yoji TSUBOI	JPN
18	Liam FIRUS	CAN
19	Philip WARREN	USA

StN.	Name	Nation
	Warm-Up Group 1
1	Nicole ORFORD / Thomas WILLIAMS	CAN
2	Madeline HERITAGE / Nathaniel FAST	USA
3	Valeria ZENKOVA / Valerie SINITSIN	RUS
4	Natalia JANCOSEK / Petr SEKNICKA	SVK
	Warm-Up Group 2
5	Lauri BONACORSI / Travis MAGER	USA
6	Ayesha YIGIT / Shane SPEDEN	NZL
7	Sarah COWARD / Avidan BROWN	GBR
8	Sara AGHAI / Jussiville PARTANEN	FIN
9	Valeria LOSEVA / Denis LUNIN	RUS