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2009 World Figure Skating ChampionshipsCompulsory Dance and Pairs' Short Program
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The 2009 World Figure Skating Championships are being held March 24-28 in Los Angeles, California at the Staples Center. It is the first time Los Angeles is hosting the event in which a record number of approximately 216 skaters/teams from 52 different countries are competing.
Brazil and Ireland are participating for the first time in an ISU World Championship.
The competition kicked off on March 24 with the Compulsory Dance.
The event got off to a fiery start as sixty skaters burned up the ice with the Paso Doble selected as the compulsory du'jour. The dance was invented by Reginald B. Wilkie and Daphne B. Wallis, and was first performed in 1938. In international competition, the dance has not been competed on the senior circuit since the 1998-99 season, so it was a level playing field, so to speak, for all couples in this competition.
Coming out on top was the Russian duo of Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin, who are making a return to competition after a full year away from ISU Championship events. After a strong fall season capped off with a silver medal at the Grand Prix Final, Shabalin aggravated a knee injury that forced the team to withdraw from the European Championships.
"I'm still continuing my recovery," Shabalin said of his knee injury. "We started almost immediately to train after the European Championships, but there were a few moments when we were forced to leave out one practice a week because of the problems with my leg. Thank God we went through the process of preparation. We are in the best shape of the season so far."
In Los Angeles, however, Domnina (24) and Shabalin (27) appeared to be back in top form, earning positive GOEs (Grades of Execution) on each of the scored elements in their compulsory. The team scored a whopping 40.77 points for their Paso Doble, a new personal best, and are more than a full point ahead of their closest competition.
Russia's Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin placed first in the Compulsory Dance with a new personal best at the 2009 World Figure Skating Championships. |
"We maintained the pattern throughout all three sequences which is very important," said Shabalin. "If you are off even a little bit, you can lose points on the technical mark."
"The Paso Doble is a little harder emotionally for me (than the other compulsories this season), "added Domnina, "but it was interesting to get into a different image."
Finishing just behind their training mates, Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto of the United States made a triumphant return to the ice, earning 39.65 points with their interpretation of the Paso Doble.
"We had to make sure that we put out a strong performance," Agosto said with a hint of relief in his voice. "We've really been working hard these last few months to come back and get this dance ready. We felt really confident coming in and we're really happy with how we skated. It's a good way to start out the competition, and now it's an all out dogfight."
Agosto injured his back at the Grand Prix Final which forced the team to miss the opportunity to perhaps win a fifth straight national title in January. US Figure Skating still named Belbin (24) and Agosto (27) to the team, requiring the duo to pass a series of on-ice tests in order to prove their fitness for this competition. The decision proved to be wise, as Belbin and Agosto skated with a newfound flair that has been absent from their skating in recent years, and the couple earned their highest placement in the compulsory dance at Worlds since 2005.
"I think that this is a great dance to start the competition off with because our mind set is that we are fighting," said the effervescent Belbin. "We had to fight for months to get through Ben's injury, and we had to get through last season with the disappointing finish at Worlds. It's just been a fight for so long that we felt the Paso was the perfect dance to open the door for this event. It's only the beginning, and we feel like we want even more."
In third place is the Canadian team of Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, the reigning silver medalists. Like the teams ahead of them, Virtue (19) and Moir (21) have dealt with an injury of their own this season that caused the Canadian champions to miss the Grand Prix this season. Virtue is still in the midst of recovering from surgery to both of her legs stemming from a condition called chronic exertional compartment syndrome, but the effects did not show in their skating today.
"We were definitely pleased with our performance," said Moir. "We had a ton of fun. Our goal was to dance and really sell it. What else can you ask for?"
Virtue added: "After Four Continents, we had a good chunk of time to train, and we were able to work on this dance quite a bit. We love the Paso Doble."
With a total of 39.37 points, Virtue and Moir are in great position to make a charge towards the top of the podium as they prepare to compete in what are traditionally the stronger portions of the competition for them.
Training mates, Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White, are in fourth place with a new personal best of 37.73 points. Sporting a sleek new look, White demonstrated his technical prowess in this dance, while Davis provided the theatrics for the duo. Davis (22) and White (21) are in prime position to make a run for the podium, and like Virtue and Moir, look to move up with strong technical performances that they have planned for the rest of the competition.
"We wanted to come in and skate better than we ever skated before," Davis admitted. "I think that we did that. The Paso is an intense dance, and once you get into the character, it is fun."
"We're shooting for top three," added a confident White. "We generally stay away from thinking about placement, but we know if we do the best, the competition will just happen for us."
Russia's Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski are in a disappointing fifth after winning three straight titles leading up to this competition. In comparison to the top four teams, the European Champions started slowly in the first pattern of the dance, but were able to pull it together in the final two patterns. Khokhlova (23) and Novitski (27) are just a few tenths of a point behind Davis and White with 37.34 points, which keeps the reigning bronze medalists in sight of the podium as well.
"We have mixed feelings," said a disappointed Khokhlova. "We like the huge ice rink here. The audience received us quite well. We know that the North American audience is obviously supporting their own skaters, but there are more Russian fans in the arena and this helps. We were very focused. Maybe too much. We have been watching the practices of others, and we knew that it won't be easy here."
Skating last in the competition and in sixth place is the French duo of Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat, who replicated their placement from last season's championships. The Paso Doble does not lend itself to Pechalat and Bourzat's strengths, which is more fluid than the tense dance requires. Still, their total of 36.54 points is a great start for the French champions who get stronger as the competition goes on.
"We skated really well," Bourzat declared. "Of course you can think that it will be a bit difficult with the ice when you skate last, but we got right into the dance. We have worked a ton on this dance since the Grand Prix, and I think that you can see that."
Italy's Federica Faiella and Massimo Scali finished in a disappointing seventh in a season where the team was poised to make a push for the medals stand. After an impressive Grand Prix season and a silver medal at the European Championships, it looked as if Faiella and Scali would challenge for a medal here in Los Angeles.
"We felt good coming into this competition," Scali said. "We had a great month after Europeans to practice and change a few things so that we could improve. I think today we did a really good job. It was powerful and concise."
Great Britain's Sinead Kerr and John Kerr are in eighth place, exactly where they were a season ago.
"We got a season's best, and that is what we were kind of aiming for," explained Sinead. "The dance itself went pretty well, and we are happy with it," added John.
Pernelle Carron and Matthieu Jost of France are in ninth place in their first trip to the World Championships, while Canadian silver medalists Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier are in 10th in their debut. Americans Emily Samuelson and Evan Bates are in 13th place, but are less than two points behind Carron and Jost heading into the Original Dance.
Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy of Germany placed first in the Short Program with their routine to music from the Lost in Space soundtrack. |
It was a great night of pairs skating as twenty-five teams from all corners of the world competed in the short program at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The top teams competed so well that even a minor bobble relegated some of the medals favorites to the penultimate group for tomorrow's free skate.
Atop the leader board as expected are the reigning champions, Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy of Germany, who skated an all-out performance to music from the Lost in Space soundtrack. The duo landed each element cleanly in their program, and separated themselves from the pack with the highest technical scores of the evening. With a new personal best of 72.30 points, the European Champions have an almost four-point cushion heading into the free skate.
"We wanted to build up to this competition and show everyone that we deserve our placements," Savchenko explained. "This performance was a great one for us, and we are happy and relieved to be in first place."
Skating in non-traditional pink and purple costumes, Savchenko (25) and Szolkowy (29) entertained the audience from start to finish with an interesting concept that the audience appreciated. The leaders earned level four on all of their elements, save the triple twist lift (level 2), but admitted their lead was not easy to come by.
"It was a very hard night for us," admitted Szolkowy. "After a long season, I think that it may have finally caught up with us. Even though my head was in the skating, my legs felt very heavy, and it was difficult to breathe. So, we are very happy with our skate, and equally happy with the result."
Trailing the Germans is the Russian team of Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov, who skated an equally impressive program to Camille Saint-Saëns' The Swan. The European silver medalists equaled the leaders in terms of levels and elements completed, but could not keep pace with the German's GOEs.
Kavaguti (27) and Smirnov (24) earned 68.94 points for their program, and surprised many with their difficulty and execution. Their lift, in fact, had so many variations that it could have been scored at a level six had the rules allowed. However, it was the smoothness and sense of calm throughout the program that propelled this duo to second place.
"This program was very good," said Kavaguti. "We are happy with everything that we did, and we hope that we can carry this over to the free skate tomorrow."
In third are China's Dan Zhang and Hao Zhang, who also had a first-rate performance that probably would have won the short program in many other seasons. Zhang and Zhang were well rewarded for their technical accomplishments, including their trademark triple twist lift, but missed a level on their spiral sequence and had to settle for a level three.
"We are very pleased," Hao Zhang (24) said of his team's short program performance. "Those were the best triples (Salchows) that we did all season, and everything else was fine."
Competing with a knee injury for most of the season, Dan Zhang (23) looked strong and skated up to the level of her partner. However, the reigning silver medalists were not able to keep up with the leaders in terms of program components. This was probably due mostly as a result of some revisions made to the transitions and choreography in order to allow the team to compete the elements with relative ease. Still, Zhang and Zhang earned 67.42 points that keeps them in contention for the title heading into the free skate.
"The injury is still healing," Dan Zhang later responded when asked. "I continue to receive therapy on the knee, but it didn't affect how we performed tonight. It was a good start to the competition for us, and we are very prepared to skate a great free program."
Less than a point behind Zhang and Zhang is the Russian tandem of Maria Mukhortova and Maxim Trankov of Russia. This team has perhaps the most elegant and complete short program this season to Nobody Home by Pink Floyd. The European bronze medalists earned levels equal to the Chinese on almost every element, but their base value on their elements was one point less. Earning a neutral GOE (nothing added or subtracted from their score) for their triple twist lift made the difference in placements, demonstrating just how tight this competition was at the top.
"All season we have skated a good short program, and this was clean and very good for this moment," Trankov said. "In order to compete with the top pair skaters like the Germans and the Chinese couples, it was a big step ahead."
With a score of 66.88 points, Mukhortova (23) and Trankov (25) are definitely within spitting distance of the podium, but will have to remain composed heading into the free skate which has been difficult for them all season.
"In training, we always skate good, but this season something is happening in our free skate," said Trankov. "We always make errors. We want to skate clean, and we hope to do that in our last competition of the season."
In fifth place with an equally stellar short program are former World Champions, Qing Pang and Jian Tong of China with 65.18 points. The Four Continents Champions opened with a small error on the triple toe jumps, and only achieved a level three on both their spiral sequence and flying combination spin.
"Today I felt a little tired," admitted Tong. "I caught a cold before coming here, so I didn't feel great in practices. I felt a little weak for the jumps. But we've got lots of experience, and we can deal with that."
Even so, Pang (29) and Tong (29) performed their "Midnight Blues" program with a maturity that shows why this duo is always near the top of the leader board. And with moves like their high-flying split twist and throw triple loop, this team will pose a threat for a charge to the podium in the free skate.
"We are pleased with this performance," Pang said. "We skated up to our level like we do in practice. We still feel confident (for the free skate), and that we will do much better than today."
Standing in sixth place are Tatiana Volosozhar and Stanislav Morozov of the Ukraine. After opening their routine with a turn out by Volosozhar on the triple toes, the Grand Prix Finalists completed the highest scoring element of the competition - a triple twist lift that earned the team a whopping 7.26 points. Later in the program, Volosozhar two-footed the landing on the throw triple loop, costing precious points that kept the perennial also-rans out of the top group once again.
"Today there were a few smaller errors," Volosozhar admitted disappointedly. "I wasn't feeling so great. Maybe because of the time change. Hopefully we will skate better tomorrow."
Nevertheless, the Ukrainians are within striking distance of the podium with a new personal best of 64.10 points. A medal here would be a triumph for the team that has earned a fourth place finish at the Grand Prix Final and the European Championships this season.
"We changed coaches this summer so that we could get better," Morozov explained. "Our coach works with us on every element and the whole package. We changed our whole practice and this has really helped us."
In a disappointing seventh place are last year's bronze medalists, Jessica Dubé and Bryce Davison of Canada. Skating to music by Coldplay, the Canadian Champions took themselves out of contention on the first two elements. On the opening triple Salchows, Dubé stepped out of the landing, and then the team immediately had a sloppy catch on their triple twist lift.
"We had a great practice this morning, and the warm up was good," said a dazed Dubé. "We didn't have that much stress. We felt really comfortable heading into the short program."
With 61.80 points, Dubé and Davison trail the leaders by a seemingly insurmountable margin, and will have to put this performance behind them in order to fight to keep three spots for Canadian pairs for next year's Olympic season.
"It wasn't by any means perfect," Davison said rather confidently, "but it was probably just above our average for competitions in the short this year. There are still a lot of positive things about our skate, like the very nice throw. Now it's time to learn from this, and look forward to the next day (of competition)."
Dubé and Davison's teammates Meagan Duhamel and Craig Buntin are in eighth place after a clean performance of their "4 Lamentations" program. The only mistake came on the pairs combination spin for which the team only received a level three from the technical specialist.
"I knew that I was a little short in changing the edge (of the spin)," Buntin later confessed. "I couldn't see behind me and the boards were there."
"We're not such a new team anymore, and we are really starting to feel confident," Buntin said of the team's beautiful performance.
Duhamel added, "Every time we compete, I think that we are doing our short better and better. It was good to have (training mates Mylène Brodeur and John Mattatall) competing right before us and skate so well. It was comforting to hear their music, and then step on the ice. It felt like home."
Duhamel and Buntin are less than a point behind teammates Dubé and Davison with 61.28 points.
U.S. champions Keauna McLaughlin and Rockne Brubaker had a lackluster debut in their first World Championships, finishing in a disappointing ninth with a rocky performance.
"Obviously we had some mistakes, and we missed some levels which hurt us," Brubaker shared. "It's an experience, and it's our first Worlds. Overall, I think that we felt really comfortable out there. It had nothing to do with nerves. It's kind of just the way it goes, and you take it as it comes."
McLaughlin and Brubaker started off well, nailing their first two elements, but disaster struck as McLaughlin fell on her triple Salchow. The duo then struggled with an uncharacteristically low and tight triple twist lift that earned a negative GOE, and then McLaughlin sealed the team's fate by touching her hand down on the throw triple loop.
"It's frustrating because I wanted to land that jump," said a visibly shaken McLaughlin. "It's one of those 'argh' moments because this is the first one that I have missed all season."
McLaughlin and Brubaker have a total of 53.62 points after the short program, far below their personal best, and have little hope of moving up in the free skate. Their teammates, Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett had a much better performance than the American champions, but sit in 10th due to their low program component scores.
"We haven't really had much time to work on the components," Barrett explained. "We have been together less than a year, so for us it was all about getting the elements so that we could compete. After the competition, we know what we have to work on, and we will spend a lot of time working on those component scores."
Denney added, "It will be exciting when we finish this competition because we will no longer be that "new team". We will have time to properly prepare for next season, and it will be great to see what we can do once we have time to perfect everything."
The event continues with the Men's Short and Pairs' Long Programs.
