2011 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating: 2011 NHK Trophy Pairs Free Skate LIVE BLOG

1) Natasha Purich & Raymond Schultz (CAN)
     Music: Spellbound Concerto

• They look soooo young
• Good energy off the top
• He steps out of the SBS 3T
• Pop the twist to a single
• She is hardly getting any height on that throw, or distance
• Major unison errors on the 2A series
• This is a very junior-looking program
• She stops in the middle of the spin completely and holds out her wrist, I don't know if his blade hit her or what?
• Very freaky and I hope she's okay!

FS Score: 41.60 (TES) + 41.01 (PCS) = 82.61
Total Score: 45.56 (SP) + 82.61 (FS) = 128.17

2) Marissa Castelli & Simon Shnapir (USA)
     Music: Piano Concerto No.2  by Rachmaninov

• This is a very serious, grown up program for them
• Simon falls on the jump sequence and totally misses the second jump
• Their lifts always look so great because of his height
• Fall on the throw triple axel, but it may have been rotated
• Very off unison in the spins
• This certainly not the best I've seen from them
• Slight unison issue on the double axel
• Great comeback with the 2nd throw on a great musical crescendo
• That carry lift looks great

FS Score: 53.05 (TES) + 48.04 (PCS) -2.00 (DED) = 99.09
Total Score: 449.93 (SP) + (FS) = 149.02

3) Lubov Iliushechkina & Nodari Maisuradze (RUS)
     Music: A Chorus Line

• I'm obsessed with this program
• I love the jazziness of the choreography, Michael Bennett would be proud!
• Good solid jumps and a good twist
• Two-foot on the throw or so it looked from my angle
• I'd love to see some more expression in the "What I Did For Love" section
• The 2nd throw looked a little two-footed as well
• Very interesting spin positions
• The crowd is clapping along to the "One" section, I'd love to know if this Japanese audience knows anything about A Chorus Line
• I like this piece because it looks like a complete program to me, and not just a string of elements
• They should be very happy with that skate

FS Score: 52.27 (TES) + 52.62 (PCS) = 105.89
Total Score: 53.12 (SP) + 105.89 (FS) = 159.01

4) Yuko Kavaguti & Alexander Smirnov (RUS)
     Music: Clair de Lune

• This is one of my favorite pairs free skates in recent memory, so light and airy
• Low catch on the split twist, it looked like his hands may have slipped on the fabric of her dress
• Great throw, she was rotating at warp speed
• Slow exit out of the death spiral
• The fabric of her dress looks positively gorgeous floating through the spins
• Yuko never straightens her legs fully which really bothers me
• She struggles on both jumps of the sequence, very funky landings
• That moment where he holds her as she runs in the air is my favorite of the program
• She eeks out the landing on the 2nd throw, maybe a little two-footed
• Their lifts are never anything spectacular, where they really excel is in the in-between moments
• Not their best outing with this program, some awkward entrances and exits to lifts and the whole thing looked a little slow

FS Score: 61.13 (TES) + 61.36 (PCS) = 122.49
Total Score: 55.02 (SP) + 122.49 (FS) = 177.51

5) Caydee Denney & John Coughlin (USA)
     Music: Nessun Dorma

• I zoned out and missed the opening jumps but I heard clapping so that's a good sign
• Slight loss of speed exiting the split triple twist, but great height
• John looked a little wild on both jumps of the double axel series, but landed nonetheless
• Very slow entrance into the throw and she fell, likely short of rotation
• Nice job on the second throw
• Caydee needs to really point that foot
• They have very nice unison in the spins for a team that is so new
• Her spin positions don't hold a candle to Caitlyn's
• That carry lift is ugly, John looks like he his dead lifting
• Ended slightly after the music

FS Score: 55.61 (TES) + 53.66 (PCS) -1.00 (DED) = 108.27
Total Score: 55.48 (SP) + 108.27 (FS) = 163.75

6) Stefania Berton & Ondrej Hotarek (ITA)
     Music: Adagio in G Minor

• This has been a breakout year for them
• They're an interesting pair because they're both similar in height and size
• Nice 3-jump combination
• Split double twist, she is so tall that a triple would be very hard
• Some of the entrances and exits to the lifts are very awkward and labored
• She puts her hands down on second jumping pass
• Almost perfect unison on the spins
• All of their lifts look slow and labored because she is so tall
• She really opened up out of that throw and made it a double, very abrupt landing
• This is just not an exciting program for me
• Their lifts really scare me because he never looks stable
• One of those ugly death spirals that I hate
• Much improvement, but it lacked spark

FS Score: 52.49 (TES) + 107.60 (PCS) =
Total Score: 56.23 (SP) + 55.11 (FS) = 163.83

7) Narumi Takahashi & Mervin Tran (JPN)
     Music: Concerto de Quebec

• Very nice split twist
• Oh wow, Narumi actually landed that first jump!
• This is a gorgeous program that they have here
• I don't know what happened in that jump combination, she seemed to stumble out of the 1st while he stumbled on the 2nd and it was a jumbled mess
• Mervin is the focal point of this team, I hardly ever watch Narumi
• I love that they do the throws back to back right after the halfway point, that follows the Chinese pair programs format
• She two-foots the second throw, possibly short of rotation
• She has a fantastic spiral position
• Not a perfect skate, but it was a huge improvement for them
• Narumi is so excited! So proud of herself for landing the jumps

FS Score: 55.92 (TES) + 58.28 (PCS) = 114.20
Total Score: 57.89 (SP) + 114.20 (FS) = 172.09

8) Aliona Savchenko & Robin Szolkowy (GER)
     Music: Pina

• I love this music so much
• Slight unison issue on the jumps but they held it together
• Kudos to Robin for such great flexibility on that spiral sequence even if his hip is hiked up
• This is such an innovative program and the choreography is so specific
• Low catch on the split twist
• Did Aliona single her axel?
• I appreciate that they don't simply perform generic lifts, but they are actually specific to the character of the program
• Oh boy, a botched lift, he couldn't get her up over his head and she just slid down his back
• Two-foot on the last throw
• They just lost control of the program right at the end, they are not pleased with that

FS Score: 48.58 (TES) + 63.87 (PCS) = 112.45
Total Score: 59.23 (SP) + (FS) = 171.68

Pl. Name Nation Points SP FS 1 Yuko KAVAGUTI / Alexander SMIRNOV RUS 177.51 5 1 2 Narumi TAKAHASHI / Mervin TRAN JPN 172.09 2 2 3 Aliona SAVCHENKO / Robin SZOLKOWY GER 171.68 1 3 4 Stefania BERTON / Ondrej HOTAREK ITA 163.83 3 5 5 Caydee DENNEY / John COUGHLIN USA 163.75 4 4 6 Lubov ILIUSHECHKINA / Nodari MAISURADZE RUS 159.01 6 6 7 Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR USA 149.02 7 7 8 Natasha PURICH / Raymond SCHULTZ CAN 128.17 8 8 Pl.   Name Nation TSS = TES +   PCS + SS TR PE CH IN Ded. - StN. 1 Yuko KAVAGUTI / Alexander SMIRNOV RUS 122.49 61.13   61.36 7.79 7.54 7.64 7.82 7.57 0.00 #4 2 Narumi TAKAHASHI / Mervin TRAN JPN 114.20 55.92   58.28 7.32 7.29 7.32 7.46 7.04 0.00 #7 3 Aliona SAVCHENKO / Robin SZOLKOWY GER 112.45 48.58   63.87 8.14 7.82 7.86 8.14 7.96 0.00 #8 4 Caydee DENNEY / John COUGHLIN USA 108.27 55.61   53.66 6.96 6.50 6.75 6.71 6.61 1.00 #5 5 Stefania BERTON / Ondrej HOTAREK ITA 107.60 52.49   55.11 6.89 6.71 7.07 6.89 6.89 0.00 #6 6 Lubov ILIUSHECHKINA / Nodari MAISURADZE RUS 105.89 53.27   52.62 6.68 6.39 6.57 6.82 6.43 0.00 #3 7 Marissa CASTELLI / Simon SHNAPIR USA 99.09 53.05   48.04 6.32 5.64 6.00 6.25 5.82 2.00 #2 8 Natasha PURICH / Raymond SCHULTZ CAN 82.61 41.60   41.01 5.32 5.14 5.00 5.21 4.96 0.00 #1