Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 36 Days!

Now that the ISU Grand Prix series is over, I can devote my attention to my favorite competition of the year, the US Nationals! Saturday January 22-Sunday January 30, 2011 baby! I have always wanted to see Nationals live and maybe some year I will (Washington, DC or Baltimore please) but for now, I will be live-blogging every minute! In preparation for the event, I will be doing a post each day where I discuss a major contender and how I expect them to factor into the competition.

Rachael Flatt (Broadmoor, SC)

• 2005 US Novice Champion
• 2008 World Junior Champion
• 2010 US Senior National Champion
• 2010 Olympian
• 2010 Grand Prix Finalist

The US Nationals has always been a very strong competition for Rachael. Since rising to the senior ranks in the 2006-2007 season, she hasn't placed now lower than 5th and has twice been on the senior world team. She has always been known for her consistency, but in the 2009-2010 season, she began to fall out of favor with international judges. She has always scored higher on her technical elements than program components, but at the 2010 Olympics, Rachael began to see some downgrades on her triple jumps, which hurt her usually strong technical numbers. After graduating from high school in 2010, Rachael deferred from Stanford for a year to focus on skating. A nagging injury this season has left her unable to train to her fullest potential and while she picked up two silver medals on the ISU's Grand Prix this season, she was devastated with her sub-par performance at the Grand Prix Final last week which resulted in a 6th place finish. A disappointment like that would be enough for a lesser athlete to give up, but in Rachael's case, I suspect it will light a fire under her to push herself beyond her limits and deliver a spectacular performance at Nationals. The US has not had a repeat National champion since the reign of Michelle Kwan from 1998 to 2005 and now Rachael has the chance to do that and solidify herself as the top US senior lady. Her biggest competition will be Alissa Czisny, Mirai Nagasu, and Ashley Wagner, all of whom struggle with inconsistency and often meltdown in high pressure situations. Youngsters Christina Gao and Agnes Zawadski, who is one of Rachael's training partners, will also be nipping at her heels as she tries to repeat as National Champion. However the chips fall, drama is certain to ensue! 

Favorite Figure Skating Memories #2: Michelle Kwan's Lyra Angelica at 1998 US Nationals

I have loved Michelle Kwan ever since I started following the sport of figures skating in 1994. This program to Lyra Angelica by William Alwyn, her free skate at the 1998 US Nationals in Philadelphia has long been regarded as the most exquisite performance of her illustrious career. What I have always admired about Michelle Kwan is her consistency and her performance quality. It is interesting to look back on a program that excelled in Figure Skating's now long gone 6.0 system. Here we see Michelle receive eight 6.0's for presentation out of a possible nine scores. Now, with the new code of points system, skaters are able to rack up points for every element in their program in hopes that the programs will be more unique, more technically daring, and more complete. But in my opinion, the downside to the new system is that falls and mistakes do not hurt a skater's scores nearly as much as they could in the 6.0 systems. So now it is a rarity to see a near perfect performance in this day and age that Michelle Kwan was known for delivering in her prime. With a record 9 US Titles, 5 World titles, and 2 Olympic medals, Michelle Kwan is arguably the most renown figure skater that has every taken the ice and the world is still waiting for the next dynamic female skater who can combine technique, artistry, and consistency to take her place. 

Favorite Figure Skating Memories #1: Sarah Hughes' 2002 Olympic Long Program

I remember this moment like it was yesterday. I was 13 years old and I was watching the ladies free skate at home with my mother. I have been a dancer for my entire life and until a few years ago, there were no dancing shows on television so I gravitated toward figure skating at a young age because the movements and the artistry seemed similar to dancing to me. Like the rest of the world, we were expecting Michelle Kwan to win her long awaited Olympic Gold Medal. But when the 16 year old Sarah Hughes took the ice and gave this phenomenal performance, we knew we were in store for a dramatic evening of fierce competition. I still remember gasping out loud when Scott Hamilton, that evening's commentator exclaimed that Sarah Hughes had won Olympic Gold. I was shocked, amazed, and inspired. I thought to myself, "she is only 3 years older than I am and she is an Olympic champion. If she could work hard that hard and be so successful in figure skating, then maybe I could be that successful as a dancer." While I'm much older now, I still remember her performance and what an inspiration she was and to this day, I still credit Sarah Hughes' Olympic gold medal winning performance with inspiring me to put all of my energy and passion into dance. If you've never seen this program or if its been a while, do yourself a favor and watch it. In all my years of watching dance and figure skating, I don't believe I've ever seen a performance filled with more passion and joy that this truly one-of-a-kind program.