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2008 Cup of Russia - Figure Skating HighlightsCompulsory Dance and the Ladies', Pairs' and Men's Short ProgramsNov 21, 2008
The fifth event of the 2008-09 ISU Grand Prix Series continues with the Cup of Russia which is being held in Moscow, Russia at the Ice Palace Megasport. Approximately 58 skaters from 16 different countries are competing for points and global prize monies totaling $180,000 in U.S. dollars. The points will go toward qualification for the Grand Prix Final of Figure Skating in which the top six competitors from each discipline will be invited to compete for a total purse of $272,000 U.S. dollars. The Grand Prix Final (GPF) will be held Dec. 10-14, 2008, in Goyang City, South Korea. Cup of Russia kicked off on Nov 21 with the Compulsory Dance. Ice Dance (Compulsory Dance)The Compulsory Dance (CD) of the event was the Viennese Waltz, which was created by the Eric van der Weyden and Eva Keats. It was first performed in 1934 at the Streatham Ice Rink in London. Russia's Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin took the lead with 38.77 points, while teammates Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski picked up 36.19 points for second place. USA's Meryl Davis and Charlie White currently sit in third in with 35.77 points.
Domnina and Shabalin, who have done two Free Dances to waltz rhythms and are currently using it for their Original Dance, are generally considered to be one of the best 'waltz' teams in the field. They lived up to that reputation by delivering a flawless performance in which their dance floated across the ice as they efficiently used their upper bodies to emphasize the rhythm. "We are happy with the way we skated," said Shabalin. "We've worked on a few things since the Cup of China and it paid off when we look at our technical score. However, we still have problems with our costumes and need to skate in costumes that are a few years old. Emotionally we could have skated better." Teammates Khokhlova and Novitski were also very expressive, changing the dance holds and free leg positions here and there to better present the lilting character of the dance. "We felt we skated better and with more confidence than at the Cup of China," said Khokhlova. "Obviously the first competition is always difficult, and now we know where to go and what to strive for." Davis and White presented a lovely interpretation of the dance, however, they seemed to lack the power displayed by Domnina and Shabalin. The Americans also appeared to have some timing issues towards the end of the dance. "I think we skated fairly well and we're looking to attack a little bit more," commented Davis. "I think the feeling of the Viennese (Waltz) comes a little more naturally to us (as opposed to the Paso Doble that they performed at Skate Canada). We've always felt the Waltz, but we improved a lot on the Paso this year, so it's hard to say which one we prefer." Italy's Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte are currently a notch below the top three teams for a secure fourth place with 32.57 points. In terms of lines and expression, the young couple was among the best of the field, however, their pattern appeared to be smaller than that of the leaders. Anna Zadorozhniuk and Sergei Verbillo of the Ukraine are fifth with 30.16 points, followed by Lithuanians Katherine Copely and Deividas Stagniunas (29.57 points). Ladies (Short Program)
Fumie Suguri of Japan won the Ladies Short Program event by virtue of being one the few skaters to avoid major mistakes. The 2008 Skate Canada silver medalists opened her program to Fanfan by Nicolas Jorelle with a nice triple Lutz-double toe loop combination, a triple flip out of steps, and a double Axel out of a spread eagle. Except for her layback, which was graded a level 2, all other non-jumping elements received levels three and four which allowed her to score 58.30 Suguri, however, was disappointed by the result, saying that she had worked hard on improving her program components score. "After my previous event (Skate Canada), I worked a lot on transitions to maximize my score under Code of Points," said the 27-year-old. "Therefore it was a bit difficult for me to be satisfied with my marks today, but I'm happy with my performance. Last season I spent a year in Moscow, so I have a lot of people who support me here." The student of Nikolai Morozov claims not have any surprises planned for tomorrow. "I can only say that I'm using the same music which Maria Butyrskaya used when she won the World Championships. I have a lot of respect for her. She wasn't that young when she won that medal. I can appreciate it now, because I'm approaching her age. I think the Russian public remembers her skate very well, but I'm not planning to repeat her program. I have a different one and I hope they will like me as well." When asked about her coaching change, Suguri added, "I don't have any complaints about Sasha Zhulin or Moscow. Everything was fine. He was pushing me really hard, but I don't have much time left (referring to the Olympic season next year). My agent suggested that I switch to Nikolai Morozov because he is more experienced in working with single skaters and has already worked with Olympic Champions." Italy's Carolina Kostner continued the streak of unfortunate performances with a faulty performance in her routine to a tango. The 2008 Worlds silver medalist was able to rotate her trademark triple flip-triple toe loop combination, but was forced to put a hand down to prevent herself from falling, and later fell on an underrotated triple Lutz attempt. Despite the mistakes, Kostner produced a clean double Axel and mostly level four spins. While her interpretation of the tango included only a few traditional tango highlights, the combination of her excellent basic skating skills, great flow across the ice, and general confidence allowed her to sell the program both to the crowd and the judges. As a result, she was rewarded with a new seasonal best of 57.02 points for second place. "After my short program at Skate Canada I was a bit sad," admitted Kostner. "I was not satisfied with my performance at all. There was that strange fall due to the lack of concentration. I've learned a lot about this kind of mistake from that fall. I think the most important thing for the skater is to have fun on the ice - to be herself. This is what I did today, even though the jumps were not quite good. Sometimes it's better to forget about choreography and just feel the music and skate to it. This is what I did and it gave me confidence." Quick thinking allowed USA's Rachael Flatt to finish third in the short program with 55.92 points. After landing a couple of clean triple flip-triple loop combinations during the warm-up, the student of Tom Zakrajsek had a shaky landing to her flip during the actual program and was unable to tack on the second jump. She covered her mistake well, however, adding a double toe loop to an intended solo triple Lutz out of steps, picking up additional one and half points. The 2008 World Junior Champion also landed a clean double Axel and earned levels three and four for her non-jumping elements. "I was a little disappointed that the flip didn't work," Flatt said, "but I guess the change worked pretty well. I didn't skate my best. So I'm happy to be third." Competing at her first Grand Prix of the season, Julia Sebestyen of Hungary delivered a powerful program to a mix of Songs from a Secret Garden and Astor Piazzolla's Libertango, but struggled with her jumps. After opening her performance with a high and confident triple flip, she later doubled a planned triple Lutz in combination with a double toe loop. The 27-year-old recovered to land a strong double Axel, and her spins were as good as usual, but she was not able to overcome the low basic value of her program and scored only 53.64 points. USA's Alissa Czisny finished a close fifth after falling on an underrotated triple Lutz attempt in the beginning of her routine to Camille Saint-Saëns'The Swan. The rest of her elements, especially her spins and spiral sequence, were superb and the graceful skater was able to impress the crowd with her flexibility and balletic style to earn 53.50 points. Estonia's Elena Glebova was forced to overcome a shaky start to her Songs My Mother Taught Me routine after she unexpectedly slipped on her first move out of the starting pose. The student of Anna Levandi (nee Kondrashova), however, managed to pull herself together and went on to land a triple toe loop-triple toe loop combination - the only clean triple-triple combination of the night, as well as a triple Salchow out of steps and a double Axel. She scored 51.02 points for sixth place. Alena Leonova of Russia is currently seventh, followed by USA's Kimmie Meissner. Pairs (Short Program)
Dan Zhang and Hao Zhang of China won the Pairs Short program with an impressive eight point margin. Though Dan Hao was not able to hold onto the landing of her triple Salchow, the 2008 Cup of China Champions demonstrated improved unison and understanding of the music in their routine to Mendelssohn's Riding on the Wings of Song. "We've worked with Igor Shpilband and Maria Zueva before the season started," said Hao Zhang. "We turned over to ice dancing specialists for help because we wanted to improve our style and expression. That is something that we needed." The team also executed quite complex transitions without any hesitation or glitches. Their high triple twist received a level three and positive Grades of Execution (GOE) as did their throw triple loop and their non-jumping elements. The team scored 67.06 points to place first, but had mixed feelings about their performance. "We are satisfied with our performance," said Hao Zhang, "but I'm not satisfied with the quality of the ice," said Hao Zhang. I think it's too hard and I know many sportsmen agree with me." Russia's Yuko Kawaguchi and Alexander Smirnov finished a distant second with 58.76 points after Kawaguchi fell on the opening of the side-by-side triple toe loops and Smirnov later failed to catch her properly on a level two triple twist. Kawaguchi also stepped out of the landing on a throw triple loop, however, their non-jumping elements received level fours and positive GOEs. The European bronze medalists' balletic program to The Swan brings out the softer side of their skating, however, they seem to be able to blend it perfectly with the power they need to execute the most difficult elements. Though the performance was definitely less than perfect on the technical side, the team seems to improve their expression from one competition to the next. "We are used to skating on very good ice," said Smirnov, "but I don't think that our mistakes have anything to do with the ice. I suppose that we tried too hard and began to overturn some elements. We've got better skates, but we didn't succeed in everything today. We made mistakes on the difficult elements, but the other ones were good." Tatiana Volosozhar and Stanislav Morozov of the Ukraine failed to capitalize on the momentum they had coming into this competition after a surprising second place finish at Cup of China. Despite improved flow and confidence, the team missed their opening element (Morozov fell on his jump on the side-by-side triple toe loops) and later made another costly mistake when Volosozhar fell on the throw triple loop. Nevertheless, the Ukrainian Champions were able to execute an excellent level three triple twist, as well as levels three and four non-jumping elements. Their routine to Mr. Holland's Opus by Michael Kamen looks quite promising, and the students of Ingo Steuer collected 58.34 (33.54/26.80) points for a close third place. "Of course we are disappointed with our skating today," Morozov later answered at the press conference. "It's difficult to be satisfied when you've failed twice." "I think that we have performed not bad," added Volosozhar. "Although we had an ugly fall. Sometimes there are better falls, but today I stretched down the ice." Senior Grand Prix Series debutants Ksenia Ozerova and Alexander Enbert of Russia found themselves in the fourth place with 52.26 points. Skating second in the first warm-up group, the Junior Grand Prix medalists produced a level two double twist, side-by-side triple toe loops, and level four spins and lift in their energetic performance to Leon Minkus' Don Quixote. The couple seemed to find it hard to believe that they skated as well as they did, especially after they performed a clean throw triple loop. Their obvious amazement added a very nice touch to an otherwise Junior-ish program. In contrast, teammates and fellow Junior Grand Prix finalists Lubov Iliushechkina and Nodari Maisuradze were not able to start their international Senior career well. The team opened their program with almost perfect side-by-side triple toe loops, however, Maisuradze's blade somehow got caught in the ice and he fell and a second later, and Iliushechkina collapsed on the top of him. Fortunately no one was hurt in the accident, but the couple was obviously shaken by the experience and it affected the rest of their performance. Iliushechkina also double-footed and stepped out of the landing of her throw triple loop, and the World Junior silver medalists found themselves rushing through the second half of their program to catch with the music. All more the pity for the fact that their choreography, in-betweens, and interpretation of Lorenna McKennitt'sPrologue were among the best in the field. They are currently in fifth with 49.96 points. Monica Pisotta and Michael Stewart of Canada finished sixth with 47.86 points with an almost clean performance which featured a double twist, side-by-side double Axels, and a throw triple Salchow. Teammates Amanda Velenosi and Mark Fernandez are in seventh, followed by Israel's Ekaterina Sokolova and Fedor Sokolov. Men (Short Program)
Coming off a disappointing fourth place finish last week at his home Grand Prix event, Brian Joubert of France dominated the field at this event. The World silver medalist currently leads the field by nearly 13 points. Skating last after most of his rivals faltered, the student of Jean Christophe Simond held nothing back and delivered his program to Safri Duo's Rise with maximum impact. The 24-year-old opened with a solid quad toe loop-triple toe loop combination, a strong triple Axel, and a triple Lutz out of steps. While the levels of Joubert's non-jumping elements could have been higher, it was his advantage in the technical mark that accounts for the lion share of his 13-points lead. The crowd really got into the upbeat mood of his routine, and supported the skater throughout the program. He picked up a new personal best of 86.10 points. "I'm very happy about my short program," said the French Champion. "I skated a lot better than in Paris a week ago, but I know I could do even better because I did not get all the levels. I only got a level 2 on one of the step sequences. The reason why I did not skate well in Paris was because I lacked confidence. I had a lot of problems with my boots. Finally they were fixed and I was able to jump much better, but I'm not physically ready for this competition." Joubert was excited when he learned that he would be competing at Cup of Russia. "The Russian public supports me very much. They give a lot of energy and power and I'm able to give good performances. Three years ago I did three quads - I'm sorry I won't do it tomorrow. I'm simply not ready for it. My goal for tomorrow is to land one quad, two triple Axels and triple-triple combinations. The start of the season is always hard for me and I just want to do one clean competition." Tomas Verner of the Czech Republic finished second (73.20 points) in the short program after crashing down on his opening quad toe loop landing. The 2008 European Champion recovered to land a clean triple Axel and triple Lutz out of steps, but none on his jumps were quite as good as Joubert's, though his non-jumping elements were. The 22-year-old was also able to capitalize on the fact that he kept last year's short program to Melodie en Crepuscule and Gypsy Swing, which allowed him to feel comfortable on the ice and to deliver his program with a lot of style and character. "I'm very happy about my performance," said Verner. "It is an improvement over Cup of China. I did one element more this time, even though the landing was not that good, but it's good to know that my program is still worth something even with mistakes. The Grand Prix Series are very important for me, but in a way it's still a practice area, because the European and World Championships are more important." USA's Adam Rippon edged out Alban Preaubert of France for a third place finish in the short program with a new personal best of 71.62 points. The student of Nikolai Morozov was almost flawless in his interpretation of Toccata and Fugue performed by Vanessa Mae, but the landing of his triple Axel was flawed (he brushed the ice with his free foot). The 2008 World Junior Champion did, however, land a clean triple flip-triple toe loop combination, and all his spins received level four which allowed him to post the second highest technical score of the night. "I am very happy even though I can do things better in practice," said the U.S. Junior Champion. "I need to take everything slowly, but even though it was not perfect, I am still very happy. I am so thrilled to be third. When they came to take me to the press conference, I thought it must have been a mistake." After Rippon finished eighth at Skate America last month, he went home and started over. "I changed to last year's short program. I trained hard. I did both short and long program run-throughs every day. I felt very comfortable coming into this competition. I hope I'll do as well tomorrow." The 19-year-old has also been working on the quad. "I trained it, but it's not very consistent yet, so I have to hold if off. Perhaps I'll put it into the programs later this season, but more likely next year." Preaubert, who is virtually tied with Rippon for the third place, also avoided making major mistakes, but the landing of his triple loop out of steps was tight and the quality of his individual elements prevented him from picking up strong GOEs. Nonetheless the French bronze medalist's bluesy number to Exit Music by Brad Melhdau appealed both to the judges and to the public and he scored 71.60 points. Belgium's Kevin van der Perren, who withdrew from earlier events due to illness, came to Moscow well prepared to fight his way back into the men's single skating elite. The 2007-08 Grand Prix finalist delivered his Night at the Bald Mountain routine, complete with a silver skeleton on his otherwise black costume, with his typical attack and abandon. He landed a strong triple flip-triple toe loop combination and a triple loop out of steps, but the landing of his triple Axel was a bit tight and he only received a level two for both his step sequences. He is currently fifth with 69.68 points. USA's Jeremy Abbott opened his program with a good triple flip-triple toe loop combination and triple Axel, but later popped as planned triple Lutz into a single and then fell on a flying sit spin. The 2008 Cup of China Champion otherwise was among the most intricate in the entire field, and was able to express the music perfectly in his routine to Albinoni's Adagio. He is currently in sixth place with 68.80 Kristoffer Berntsson of Sweden sits in seventh, followed by China's Chengjiang Li. The event continues with the Original Dance and the Ladies', Pairs', and Men's Long Programs. |
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Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin of Russia lead the Ice Dance field after the Compulsory Dance (Viennese Waltz).
Japan's Fumie Suguri, 27, placed first after her routine to Fanfan by Nicolas Jorelle.
Dan Zhang and Hao Zhang of China are in a comfortable lead after their Short Program to Mendelssohn's Riding on the Wings of Song. 
France's Brian Joubert, 24, has over a 12 point lead after his Short Program to Safri Duo's Rise.