Team Canton has a new Diva: Dean Copely

Lichtman & Copely's Austin Powers: The 2011-2012 version of Chock & Zuerlein's Cabaret

Madison Chock & Evan Bates Team Up

 Isn't it rich? Are they a pair? After all the recent splits in pairs skating and ice dance in the US and world-wide, a new team has emerged. Though USFSA hasn't made an official announcement, Jo Ann Barnes of the Detroit Free Press announced this morning in an article that Madison Chock (formerly with Greg Zuerlein who retired) has teamed with Evan Bates (formerly with Emily Samuelson with whom he split for unknown reasons). One thing this team has going for them is that both, with there former partners, trained with Zoueva & Shpilband in Canton, MI so no moves or coaching changes are in order. Igor Shpilband commented earlier this week that Madison had tryouts with several other ice dancers and I'd love to know who they were. I haven't had a lot of time to process this new pairing but here are my initial thoughts:

1) The height difference: Madison is 5'1" and Evan is 6'2" which would be great in pairs but may be awkward in the close holds of ice dancing. On the flip side, this could make for some impressive lifts, which Madison lacked with the much shorter Zuerlein.
2) Injuries: Is Evan truly healed from his achilles injury? I initially suspected the reason he split from Emily was that he was not yet ready to compete, though this new pairing would suggest that he is.
3) Style: Though Madison is a beautiful skater, she doesn't have the long clean lines of Emily Samuelson, which was one of the things that made her a great match for Evan. On the other side, Madison is incredibly expressive, even to the point of chewing scenery, while Evan is a bit more reserved as a performer.
4) Status: Oddly enough many expected Chock/Zuerlein & Samuelson/Bates to compete for the 3rd slot in the US behind Davis/White & Shibutani/Shibutani. Since the two teams split and re-teamed, if they can mesh well by January, they are almost guaranteed that 3rd spot on the US podium and a bid to Worlds. USA also has 2 host picks left for Skate America and this team will more than likely get one of them.

2011 Four Continents Championships: Mens Short Program

**Denotes USFSA Fantasy Skating Team Selections
Warm-Up Group 1:
1) Misha Ge (UZB)
2) Brenday Kerry (AUS)
3) Jordan Ju (TPE)
4) Wun-Chang Shih (TPE)
5) Joey Russell (CAN)

Warm-Up Group 2:
6) Mark Webster (AUS)
7) Min-Seok Kim (KOR)
8) Stephan Li-Chung Ko (KOR) **
9) Jinlin Guan (CHN)
10) Armin Mahbanoozadeh (USA)


Warm-Up Group 3:

11) Shawn Sawyer (CAN)

12) Jialiang Wu (CHN)

13) Jeremy Abbott (USA)

14) Adam Rippon (USA)

15) Kevin Reynolds (CAN) **

Wawrm-Up Group 4: 

16) Takahiko Kozuka (JPN) **

17) Daisuke Takahashi (JPN)

18) Yazuru Hanyu (JPN)

19) Nan Song (CHN)

20) Abzal Ramikgaliev (KAZ)

Standings After the Short Program

Pl.	Name	Nation	TSS =	TES +		PCS +	SS	TR	PE	CH	IN	Ded. -	StN.
1	Daisuke TAKAHASHI	JPN	83.49	42.35		41.14	8.14	7.93	8.39	8.18	8.50	0.00	#17
2	Jeremy ABBOTT	USA	76.73	37.87		38.86	7.64	7.50	7.79	7.89	8.04	0.00	#13
3	Yuzuru HANYU	JPN	76.43	40.76		35.67	7.21	6.82	7.18	7.25	7.21	0.00	#18
4	Adam RIPPON	USA	72.71	38.13		35.58	7.04	6.82	7.18	7.25	7.29	1.00	#14
5	Armin MAHBANOOZADEH	USA	66.40	34.98		31.42	6.29	5.96	6.46	6.32	6.39	0.00	#10
6	Takahiko KOZUKA	JPN	66.25	30.49		35.76	7.43	7.07	6.93	7.29	7.04	0.00	#16
7	Shawn SAWYER	CAN	65.71	31.58		34.13	6.75	6.57	6.96	6.89	6.96	0.00	#11
8	Kevin REYNOLDS	CAN	65.47	34.14		33.33	6.75	6.43	6.54	6.75	6.86	2.00	#15
9	Jinlin GUAN	CHN	64.68	34.75		29.93	6.07	5.75	6.07	6.00	6.04	0.00	#9
10	Jialiang WU	CHN	63.30	34.51		28.79	5.89	5.64	5.93	5.79	5.54	0.00	#12
11	Abzal RAKIMGALIEV	KAZ	60.95	31.41		29.54	5.86	5.54	5.96	6.07	6.11	0.00	#20
12	Nan SONG	CHN	60.47	29.61		30.86	6.39	5.96	6.11	6.36	6.04	0.00	#19
13	Misha GE	UZB	58.60	30.46		28.14	5.36	5.36	5.82	5.71	5.89	0.00	#1
14	Joey RUSSELL	CAN	57.67	29.00		29.67	5.89	5.46	6.00	6.07	6.25	1.00	#5
15	Min-Seok KIM	KOR	53.67	28.10		25.57	5.32	4.86	5.14	5.29	4.96	0.00	#7
16	Mark WEBSTER	AUS	48.26	24.61		23.65	4.86	4.61	4.71	4.86	4.61	0.00	#6
17	Brendan KERRY	AUS	45.45	23.70		21.75	4.57	4.29	4.36	4.32	4.21	0.00	#2
18	Jordan JU	TPE	44.37	24.02		20.35	4.32	3.96	4.07	4.14	3.86	0.00	#3
19	Wun-Chang SHIH	TPE	40.36	20.04		20.32	4.21	4.04	4.07	4.07	3.93	0.00	#4
20	Stephen Li-Chung KUO	TPE	37.82	15.21		23.61	4.71	4.61	4.68	4.82	4.79	1.00	#8

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 5 Days!

Britney Simpson & Nathan Miller (Broadmoor SC)

• 2009 US Junior Pewter Medalists
• 2009 Jr. Grand Prix Final 6th 
• 2010 US Junior Silver Medalists
• 2010 Skate Canada 6th
• 2010 Cup of Russia 7th

This team actually made quite a senior Grand Prix debut for a young pair team, finishing 6th and 7th respectively at Skate Canada and Cup of Russia. Though they are currently ranked only 26th in the world, that is not terribly shabby for a senior debut season. I like their youthful energy and exuberance, which really shows in their Pink Panther short program. I am not crazy about their selection of Moonlight Sonata for the free skate because I think they lack the maturity to play to its nuances and I will always believe that that piece belongs to Gordeeva and Grinkov. Their scores place them 5th among US pairs who have competed on the Senior Grand Prix Circuit this seasons, but we must not forget Marley and Brubaker who also outscored them with their Nesquik Cup performance. Their goal for this season was to receive International assignments and they achieved that by competing in two Grand Prix events. Their next goal should be a top 6 finish in Greensboro which should be easily achievable for them if they have put in some hard work in the past two months.

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 6 Days!

Rachel Tibbetts & Collin Brubaker (Chicago FSC)

• 2010 US Junior National Championships

This will be their senior debut at US Nationals and a good goal for them would be to make the top 6. That would be a really strong showing for them. From what I saw at Skate Canada, they have nice intensity and attack in their programs, but they lack the technical levels and difficulty of the top teams in the world. They show a lot of promise and passion for their sport so once they get a few more years under their belt, they may prove themselves as a competitive team. 

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 7 Days!

Grant Hochstein (St Clair Shores FSC)

• 2009 US Nationals Jr. 4th place
• 2009  Jr. Grand Prix Final 5th place
• 2010 US Nationals 7th
• 2010 US Collegiate Championships Champion
• 2010 Skate Canada 10th

At only 20, Grant is relatively young for a male figure skater and still has plenty of time to mature before the next Olympic run in 2014 for Sochi. For the few programs that I've seen of his, he seems to struggle with technical consistency, but he does have a lovely lyrical quality to his skating and maturity as a performer. In terms of scoring, his Skate Canada numbers put him 2nd to last in the short program among US senior men who competed internationally. However, his free skate scores and total scores put him much higher in the rankings near the likes of Keegan Messing, Jason Brown, and Ross Miner. He made an impressive senior national debut last season at 7th and he'll look to improve upon that in Greensboro by placing in the top 6.

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 10 Days!

Isabella Cannuscio & Ian Lorello (University of Delaware FSC)

• 2009 Junior Grand Prix Final 6th
• 2010 National Junior Pewter Medalists

This team has a nice look on the ice and they will be a team to watch in the upcoming seasons. They have two really nice programs this year, a short dance to Billy Joel's Piano Man and a free dance to West Side Story. I can tell they are still working to master all of their elements and improve on their technical levels but they made a wonderful showing on the senior Grand Prix circuit this season and also showed improvement from their performances in China to their programs in France. West Side Story is so overused in ice dance, but I really like their choreography and it plays on the dynamics and intricacies of the music. They also bring a nice youthful quality to the performance and really commit to their characters of Tony and Maria. I look forward to seeing even more improvement on these programs at Nationals and I think they will make a strong showing and land in the second flight of teams just below the podium finishers. Their goals this season were to get an international assignment and to finish in the top 5 at Nationals. Well they competed in two Grand Prix events so they can check off number one and if they keep improving, they very well may be able to check off their second goal as well.

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 11 Days!

Ross Miner (SC of Boston)

• 2009 US Jr. Champion
• 2009 World Jr. Championships 10th
• 2009 Grand Prix Final Bronze Medalist
• 2010 NHK Trophy 9th
• 2010 Cup of China 7th

At only 19, Ross is still young for a male figure skater. He missed Nationals last year due to injury so he is actually in a good position going into Nationals this season. He has no National standing to lose so he can really go all out and try to make a splash. He has a lot of charisma for someone so young and his performances give off a very "old hollywood vibe." I would love to see him skate to Cole Porter or Gershwin. He looks like he could be the little brother of Jeremy Abbott, but in terms of skating quality he actually reminds me of a young Todd Eldredge. I don't know if he has the technical content or the experience to compete with the likes of Abbott, Rippon, and Mroz, but who knows, this young skater just may surprise the field and end up on the podium in Greensboro!

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 12 Days!

Christina Gao (Northern Kentucky SC)

• 2009 US Jr. Bronze Medalist
• 2009 Jr. Grand Prix Final Bronze Medalist
• 2010 US Nationals 5th
• 2010 World Jr. Championships 8th
• 2010 Jr. Grand Prix Final 6th

Christina made a great senior debut last year at Nationals, placing 5th behind Rachael Flatt, Mirai Nagasu, Ashley Wagner, and Sasha Cohen. After a disappointing 8th place finish at the Junior Worlds last year, she chose to remain a junior for this year's Grand Prix and won silver at both of her events, qualifying for the Grand Prix Final. She came back with a strong free skate after an underwhelming short program, but still finished 6th overall. Christina is well trained, studying under Brian Orser and alongside Adam Rippon in Toronto, and she is improving fast. She is only 16 and will certainly be one to watch in Sochi in 3 years. Look for her to be in the final warm-up group for the ladies free skate in Greensboro if all goes as planned, along with Rachael Flatt, Mirai Nagasu, Ashley Wagner, Alissa Czisny, and Agnes Zawadzki. 

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 13 Days!

Mary Beth Marley & Rockne Brubaker (DuPage FSC)

• 2011 Nesquik Cup Champions

This pairing is interesting to say the least. Mary Beth Marley won silver in the novice ladies category last year at Nationals and her coaches suggested that she try pairs so she said she would only do that if she could partner with Rockne Brubaker. Around that time Brubaker was ending his partnership with Keauna McLaughlin so he happened to be available. The two had a tryout and hit it off. There is a nine-year age gap between these two which could make it difficult for them to connect on the ice, but only time will tell how that will all work out. The two just competed in their first senior international competition, the 2011 Nesquik Cup, where they won gold. Their scores are competitive with the top US pairs so if all goes as planned, they should finish around 5th at Nationals. But as we know, the pairs competition is a craps shoot and this new team could easily upset the field. Here you can see exactly how their scores match up against what other US pairs did on the Grand Prix circuit, courtesy of my good friend at http://icemusings.blogspot.com/2011/01/mary-beth-marleyrockne-brubaker-at.html

http://icemusings.blogspot.com/2011/01/mary-beth-marleyrockne-brubaker-at.html

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 14 Days!

Lynn Kriengkrairut & Logan Giulietti-Schmitt (Ann Arbor FSC)

• 2007 US Junior Bronze Medalists
• 2007 World Junior Championships 11th
• 2009 US Nationals 8th
• 2010 US Nationals 8th
• 2010 Skate America 6th

I must admit that I haven't paid much attention to this team the past few seasons at Nationals but they really caught my eye at Skate America this season. Their short dance to "The Trouble With Love Is" is very sensual and they really have a knack for emoting and connecting with each other out on the ice. They have nice speed across the ice but the best thing about this team is the visual aesthetic they create. They are close in height and Lynn has long legs so some of the positions she hits are quite breathtaking, particularly in rotational lifts. They said their goals for this season were to receive a Grand Prix assignment and to medal at Nationals. Well they can put a check beside the first one and the second one may be within reach since the US Nationals allows four on the podium. I think that Davis/White, Chock/Zuerlein, and the Shibutanis have the top three slots locked up, bet there is definitely room for Lynn & Logan to land in fourth if they can deliver two inspired programs in Greensboro.

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 15 Days!

Armin Mahbanoozadeh (Washington FSC)

• 2007 US Novice Champion
• 2007 Junior Grand Prix Final Bronze Medalist
• 2008 Junior Grand Prix Final Silver Medalist
• 2010 US Nationals 8th
• 2010 Skate America Bronze Medalist

Get ready to work on you pronunciation because Mahbanoozadeh is about to become a household name. Armin had International success as a junior on the Grand Prix circuit but struggled at Nationals and failed to ever qualify for Junior Worlds. In his senior debut, he placed a respectable 8th last season. With Lysacek and Weir out for the season, Armin has an opportunity to move up in the National ranks but nobody expected him to move up so early in the season. His bronze at Skate America was one of the biggest surprises of the Grand Prix season and left many wishing he would have received a second Grand Prix assignment. Perhaps the most important aspect of his bronze medal was that he upset top US contender Adam Rippon, establishing him as a strong medal threat in Greensboro at the end of the month. According to his coach Priscilla Hill, Skate America was about skating clean, which he did, and he will attempt to add more difficulty into his programs at National, including the quad. Ironically, after the quad controversy at the 2010 Olympics, it seems that the quad may define the Mens event in Greensboro. Abbott, Mroz, and Bradley all have it, but its a craps shoot of they will be landed cleanly. On the flip side, Rippon and Mahbanoozadeh are arguably the more artistic skaters of the bunch so only time will tell if technique or presentation will take the cake in Greensboro.

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 16 Days!

Agnes Zawadzki (Broadmoor SC)

• 2010 US Junior Champion
• 2010 Junior World Silver Medalist
• 2010 Skate Canada 6th
• 2010 Cup of Russia 4th

Agnes burst onto the scene last season, snatching the US Junior title and winning silver at Junior Worlds. She trains with Rachael Flatt under Tom Zakrajsek and in several home competitions, her scores were right in line with Rachael's. At the tender age of 16, Agnes shows amazing promise for the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, but don't wait that long for her to strike. It won't surprise me at all if she medals at Nationals this year and even makes the World team. She has all the technical elements of the top ladies but she just needs to work on upping her program components scores. I had high hopes for her to medal in one or both of her Grand Prix events this season, but while she had strong short programs at both events, she struggled in the free skate in both outings. I am confident that this was just a sign of nerves and the pressure of her senior international debut, but she certainly shows immense promise for the future, and even for this season.

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 17 Days!

Marissa Castelli & Simon Shnapir (SC of Boston)

• 2008 US Novice Bronze Medalists
• 2009 US Junior Bronze Medalists
• 2009 World Junior Bronze Medalists
• 2010 US Nationals 10th
• 2010 Four Continents 10th
• 2010 Skate Canada 4th
• 2010 Skate America 6th

I took notice of this team for the first time at Skate Canada this year and I actually felt a glimmer of hope for the future of US pairs skating, something I haven't felt in a long time. Their biggest struggle this year on the Grand Prix circuit was putting together two clean programs. At Skate Canada we saw a fantastic short with a flawed free skate and at Skate America we saw a weak short followed by a fantastic free skate. They have been working on a throw triple axel this season and have actually had some pretty clean landings, which shows they are working to up their technical ante. I also love their Avatar free skate and find it really innovative. Simon has over a foot height advantage on Marissa which makes their lifts look particularly breathtaking. At 20 and 23, they can have a long pairs career ahead of them, maybe even two Olympic cycles and while I'm not expecting them to win or even medal this year at senior Nationals, I truly think they are our hope for the future in US pairs skating.

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 18 Days!

Madison & Keiffer Hubbell (Detroit SC)

• 2006 Junior Grand Prix Final Champions
• 2008 US Junior Champions
• 2009 US Nationals 4th
• 2010 US Nationals 6th
• 2010 Cup of China 6th

Madison and Keiffer have had an interesting season this year in that they started with a rough short dance at Cup of China, but came back with a stronger free skate, but still finished 6th overall. They withdrew from Cup of Russia after a strong short dance in what was sort of a freak event with 3 teams withdrawing. Though I thought their Addams Family short dance was a bit generic, I found their free dance to be really innovative, especially in their use of levels. With the retirement of Belbin & Agosto and Navarro & Bommentre, the Hubbells have a chance to challenge the 3 Zoueva/Shpilband teams for a place on the podium. Though they haven't had the scores of the Shibutanis or Chock & Zuerlein this season, they are still in contention for a medal if either or these teams falter. It is unfortunate to say because I hate to see one set of coaches dominate, but it is my opinion that if top US ice dance teams are not training with Zoueva & Shpilband, they are at a disadvantage. 

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 19 Days!

Ryan Bradley (Broadmoor SC)

• 2006-08 US Collegiate Champion
• 2007 US Silver Medalist
• 2008 US Nationals 5th 
• 2009 US Nationals 4th
• 2010 US Nationals 4th
• 2010 Four Continents Championships 5th

Ryan is one of those skaters who seems like he has been around for years just waiting to strike but unfortunately he has never been able to peak at the right time. His best national finish was 2nd in 2007, and he has finished just off the podium many times but unfortunately never qualified for the Olympics. He was so close last season too, finishing 4th and just a hair behind Johnny Weir. He has not had a lot of international success with disappointing 15th and 18th place finishes at his trips to senior worlds. He did not compete on the Grand Prix circuit this season so I'm assuming that his return to Nationals this season is an attempt to qualify for the World team and redeem himself from those low finishes at past Worlds. I've always enjoyed Ryan's skating, but I am afraid that it may be time for him to move on as the next generation is moving up the ranks and Ryan will have his work cut out for him if he wants to make the World team. I do wish him well though in Greensboro and maybe he will prove me wrong. 

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 20 Days!

Ashley Wagner (SC of Wilmington)

• 2007 US Junior Bronze Medalist
• 2008 US Bronze Medalist
• 2009 US Nationals 4th
• 2009 Grand Prix Final 4th
• 2010 US Bronze Medalist
• 2010 Cup of Russia Bronze Medalist

Ashley is one of those skaters who is always on the cusp of greatness, but just never quite makes it to the top. After being the only US lady to qualify for the Grand Prix Final last season, she looked poised to make the Olympic team but came up just short at Nationals placing 3rd. Of the top four ladies in the United States, the others being Mirai Nagasu, Rachael Flatt, and Alissa Czisny, Ashley is the only one who has yet to win a National title and this just may be the year. She is coming off of a strong performance and a bronze medal at Cup of Russia and she also got a nice two month break after the Grand Prix to prepare for Nationals. She calls herself a "free skater" as that is usually her stronger of the two programs so if she can keep from getting too far behind in the short, her free skating abilities may put her atop the podium this year in Greensboro. She will need to be clean in both programs though because Rachael Flatt is the Queen of consistency, and both Mirai Nagasu and Alissa Czisny are able to achieve high scores even with mistakes based on the quality of most of their elements and their program components. 

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 21 Days!

Caitlin Yankowskas & John Coughlin (Colonial FSC)

• 2008 US Nationals 6th
• 2009 US Nationals 7th
• 2010 US Nationals 6th
• 2010 Four Continents Championships 4th
• 2010 NHK Trophy 4th
• 2010 Cup of China Bronze Medalists

I have been a big critic of the US Pairs program for a long time and though I don't think this team is the future of US Pairs skating, I think they are our best hope for the present. Caitlin is only 20 but John is 25 so I don't know how many good years they have left in them. I hadn't seen them skate before this year's Grand Prix and I was quite impressed. I find them to be quite clean and fairly consistent compared to the other top pairs teams in the US who often crack under pressure. Their free program this season to Ave Maria  is a tribute to John's mother who passed away recently and it is quite beautiful. Pairs is so hard to predict at Nationals but I have a feeling this team is going to stand atop the podium this year. Denney and  Barrett will probably lead after the short program, but I predict that Yankowskas and Coughlin's free skate will propel them ahead in the end. 

Countdown to US Figure Skating Championships: 23 Days!

Brandon Mroz (Broadmoor SC)

• 2006-07 Junior Grand Prix Final Silver Medalist
• 2007-08 US Junior Silver Medalist
• 2009 US Silver Medalist
• 2010 US Nationals 6th
• 2010 Cup of China Silver Medalist
• 2010 Trophee Eric Bompard Silver Medalist

Though Brandon stood on the podium at the 2009 Senior Nationals between Jeremy Abbott and Evan Lysacek, I still consider him among the "next generation" of US male figure skaters along with Adam Rippon, etc. At only 20 years old, he is still a baby in terms of internationally successful male figure skaters. With Lysacek and Weir sitting this season out, the 2011 Nationals will be a great opportunity for the younger skaters, like Brandon, to move up and make the world team. Based on his Grand Prix scores, Brandon should have no trouble finishing in the top 6 or 7 at worlds, though he must make the world team before he can compete there. I still think the mens podium will be Abbott, Rippon, and Mroz, not necessarily in that order, but Armin Mahbanoozadeh or returning veteran Ryan Bradley could easily throw a wrench into that plan. Brandon's highest total score this season was a 216.80 at Cup of China which puts him about 2 points below Jeremy Abbott and about 17 below Adam Rippon. However, Mroz has arguably been the most consistent of the three as Rippon had somewhat of a meltdown at Skate America and Abbott struggled to put together two clean programs at either of his events. Mroz has also shown that he can do the quad which Rippon has yet to show us in competition and Abbott has not done consistently. He has come into his own this season in terms of presentation with his debonair Bernstein free skate, but look for that quad to be a major factor that just may catapult Brandon Mroz to the top this year at Nationals.

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!