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2009 World Figure Skating ChampionshipsOriginal Dance and Men's Long Program
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The 2009 World Figure Skating Championships continued with the Original Dance and the Men's Long Program.
For a few hours this afternoon, the Staples Center was transported back in time to the 1920s, 30s, and 40s as the Original Dance (OD) competition featured music and dances from that era. Skaters could select their own rhythms among those represented by music from that time period. As a result, the audience was treated to dances from all over the rhythmic spectrum including blues, the foxtrot, swing, and even the waltz.
When the sequins and feathers settled, Russia's Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin held onto their lead over Americans Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto who won the OD portion of the competition. The Russians cling to a narrow 0.64 points lead heading into the free dance, which amounts to a single level or Grade of Execution (GoE) difference from one team to the other.
"We are happy with what we did, but it can always be better," Domnina said. "We are excited about getting a level four on all of our elements. We are always striving for a level four. This is probably the last performance of this dance this season, and therefore we tried to give it the maximum."
The leaders skated a controversial program to Masquerade Waltz, which doesn't truly fit the vision of the theme selected for this year's dance. The music selected by the duo was actually written in 1952 by Aram Khatchaturian, and the waltz is a dance of the 16th and 17th centuries. The couple covered up these facts by calling the program a "jazz waltz", which is a musical term rather than a dance rhythm. However, the International Skating Union (ISU) approved the dance, so it was judged on its merits.
Domnina and Shabalin portrayed street urchins dancing together under the sky, and were rewarded with level fours on all of their elements. The Grand Prix Final silver medalists actually outscored the Americans on the component score by .02 points, but were outscored by their training mates by .50 points on the technical element score. Interestingly, the difference on GoE for Belbin and Agosto's dance spin was +.50 points.
USA's Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto placed first in the Original Dance at the 2009 World Figure Skating Championships. |
Domnina and Shabalin earned a new personal best 64.68 points for their OD, and held on to the lead overall with 105.45 points overall.
Belbin and Agosto skated a much-improved tap program to Kander and Ebb's Steppin' Out, which was easily one of the crowd's favorites of the night.
"It's been a long and tough road, and we really just wanted to be here," Agosto said. "We want to show what we have accomplished over the last year, and there was no way we were going to sit this one out. We wanted to be the best, and that is what we have been working toward. We're really happy."
Belbin continued, "It's nice to skate in front of our home country after missing nationals, and the response was just amazing. You just can't beat that."
Like the leaders, Belbin and Agosto also earned level four on all of their elements, but it was the GoE bonus points that gave the Americans the win in the OD.
"It's always great to beat a Russian team," Belbin said with a smile. "They are so rich in tradition and are always so competitive. We are beyond where we thought we could ever be as far as our skating goes."
The four-time U.S. Champions scored 65.16 points in the OD that eclipsed their previous season's best by some six points, and currently have 104.81 points overall.
Holding on to third place after a tight performance is the Canadian team of Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir. The reigning silver medalists managed to earn level four on all of their elements, but did not earn high GoEs on those elements.
"It was a little bit of a difficult performance," Moir said of their OD. "It obviously was not a personal best, but we were still able to perform the character of the program and that is fun no matter what."
Skating to Won't You Charleston With Me?, Virtue and Moir looked tentative throughout their program, and finished in a disappointing sixth place in the OD with 61.05 points. With help from their great showing in the Compulsory Dance (CD), Virtue and Moir have a total of 100.42 points overall.
Just behind Virtue and Moir are their training mates and close friends Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White. The U.S. Champions are only .09 points out of third place, and set up an interesting rivalry for the podium heading into the free skate.
"Seeing our biggest competitors daily is motivating," Davis said. "We hope it motivates them too. We look forward to our free dance, and are feeling confident."
Davis and White also earned level four on all of their elements in their "Happy Feet" program, but they were somewhat disappointed in their skate overall.
"Yeah, it wasn't the best program that we did all season," admitted Davis. "We made some technical errors, but it is things that would not be visible to anyone watching," White added. "It's great to have the technical credited. We value that, and our coaching has played a huge part in making that happen for us."
Davis and White finished third in this segment of competition with a new personal best of 62.60 points, and have a total of 100.33 points heading into the free dance.
Sitting in fifth place is the Russian team of Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski, who skated a fun blues and swing number in some of the brightest costumes known to man. The European Champions did not earn all level fours on their elements, earning just a level three on their diagonal steps, but used high program component scores to keep them in the medal hunt.
"We were in a very positive mood when we went out to skate," Khokhlova shared. "We were not nervous, but we made some little errors that cost us some points probably on the grade of execution."
Khokhlova and Novitski scored 61.68 points in the OD and 99.02 points overall, and are less than a point ahead of French Champions, Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat.
Skating a lindy hop to It Don't Mean a Thing by the Puppini Sisters, Pechalat and Bourzat kept pace with the top teams by earning level four on all of their elements as well.
"We beat our personal best by three or four points, and we had level four in each element," Pechalat said of their skate. "That's great for us!"
After finishing in fourth place at the European Championships, Pechalat and Bourzat skate as if they are hungry for the medals stand, and with their strongest competition phase coming up, it is a strong possibility. Their OD earned the fourth highest marks, 61.83 points, and their competition total of 98.37 points is a little more than two points out of third place.
"The free dance is our favorite program, and we love to skate it," Bourzat admitted. "We know it is the last time to skate it here at the World Championships, so we will do our best and enjoy the audience."
Moving up to seventh place is the British team of Sinead Kerr and John Kerr, who are always an audience favorite.
"There are quite a few people who come from Scotland for us, and also it seems like an awful lot of people from the U.K.," Sinead observed. "I think that we have a lot of American support too, which is great. Our choreographer Robert (Royson) is always telling us that the crowd is here to watch and be entertained. He tells us to think about the audience first and foremost."
In addition to their crowd appeal, the European bronze medalists put together an impressive OD that was part Lindy Hop and part West Coast Swing. Other than the circular steps, the British Champions earned level four on each of their elements, and they earned a new personal best of 60.13 points for this phase of the competition. Overall, Kerr and Kerr have a competition total of 95.43 points thus far.
Slipping to eighth place after a shocking fall by both team members, are Italian Champions Federica Faiella and Massimo Scali. The tap and foxtrot program started off well, and the European silver medalists even earned level four on all but one element. However, Scali made a mistake on a non-element causing him to fall to the ice and bring his partner with him.
"I was doing a cross over, and I think my one boot hit the other and I lost my balance," said an obviously disappointed Scali. "I tried to catch it, and I thought I did, but then I completely lost it. It's a shame."
Faiella and Scali's score of 55.92 points was good enough for tenth place in the OD, and their competition total of 92.22 points placed them just ahead of Pernelle Carron and Mathieu Jost of France.
Carron and Jost, like many others, skated a personal best in the OD, and are in ninth place heading into the free dance. Faiella and Scali's teammates Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte are currently 10th.
USA's Evan Lysacek won his first title at the 2009 World Figure Skating Championships after placing first in the Long Program. |
You couldn't write a better script to what happened to Evan Lysacek in the last year of his skating career. The two-time U.S. Champion was forced to withdraw from the World Championships with an injury last season, and he was looking like his time had passed with somewhat average performances on the Grand Prix circuit last fall.
At this season's national championships, Lysacek had perhaps his poorest freeskate in recent memory, and barely qualified for the World Championships to be held in his adopted hometown.
Lysacek showed up this week with a renewed spirit and has been a great ambassador for Los Angeles, taking time from his busy schedule to promote this competition as much as he could. His goal was to represent his country, his city, and the sport as well as he could.
After finishing in second place in the short program, Lysacek was beginning to see the light at the end of this season's tunnel. However, what he didn't know was at the end of that tunnel was a pot of gold. After a 13-year drought, the United States finally has a new men's figure skating World Champion.
"It really hasn't sunk in yet," Lysacek said with his blinding smile. "I don't know when it will finally sink in."
It seemed as if the 23-year-old was channeling energy from some of the great American performances this week; Todd Eldredge's run to the 1996 World title after a disappointing showing at the national championship, Rudy Galindo's fairy tale win in the same season in his hometown to win his only national title; and Michelle Kwan, also skating in her hometown in 2002, and winning her sixth of nine national titles. Lysacek will be remembered for pulling it together in one of those serendipitous moments when the stage is set exquisitely for something special to happen.
"I wasn't thinking about winning, and I wasn't thinking about medaling," Lysacek said. "I just wanted to skate well for my hometown crowd. I felt really good, and this is just a continuation of all of the hard work that I have been doing at home. I told myself not to get too excited as the program went on. I still had more to do, and I didn't want to celebrate too early."
Lysacek skated perhaps the program of his life; complete with eight triple jumps, level four on all but one element, and positive GoEs on every single element.
"That's what I have been working for all season long," said the World Champion. "You can earn so many points with high grades of execution, and I knew that I had to do that to become more competitive. It's satisfying that I received such great scores for everything that I did out there tonight."
The crowd was on Lysacek's side as soon as he took to the ice for his skate, and never let up until the next skater's name was called. At the end of his program, the audience spontaneously erupted to their feet, showering him with flowers, toys, and the loudest ovation of the week.
"I just wanted to throw my hands in the air, and that's why at the end I was celebrating a little bit," Lysacek explained. "This crowd has been amazing, and I was so proud to have given them such a solid performance."
Lysacek earned a personal best 159.53 points for his "Rhapsody in Blue" program, and his total of 242.43 points is a new personal best as well.
Finishing in second place is Canadian Champion Patrick Chan, who took a huge step forward after placing ninth last season.
"I didn't think that (winning a medal) was going to happen," Chan admitted. "I was going to be just as happy coming home with a bronze. The Olympic Games are coming up, so this is a good progression. I am the type of person who gets better every time, so I think it will be better next season."
Chan opened his Rachmaninov program in convincing fashion, landing four beautiful triple jumps and earning high marks for his combination spin and circular steps. However, the 18-year-old could only manage a single toe loop on the back half of a planned triple Axel-double toe loop combination, and then he later double a triple Salchow attempt.
"When I landed the Axel, I was really surprised," said the silver medalist. "And then I rushed the toe loop. But I was happy to stay on my feel throughout the whole program."
The Four Continents Champion did accomplish something that few skaters have since the code of points was implemented in figure skating; he earned level four on all of his non-jump elements. His segment score was 155.03 points to give him a total of 237.58 points overall.
France's Brian Joubert had perhaps the most disappointing skate of the night, plummeting from first place after the short program into third after an error-filled performance.
"I felt strong at the beginning of the program," Joubert said. "After the first two jumps I thought I'd skate clean."
Joubert opened with a quadruple toe loop, but then started changing his program on the fly. Though his next element, a triple Axel-triple toe loop was as perfect as it could be, Joubert began to look as though he was skating without a plan.
"I wanted to do the second quad, but to do it for the first time this season at the World Championships was a bit overwhelming," said the bronze medalist. "I did not do my program the way it was planned, and so I started to make mistakes. I should have stuck to the plan."
The bronze medalist stepped out of a triple Axel, struggled with the landing of a triple flip, and then fell on his closing jump, an easy double Axel to seal his fate.
"The error on the second triple cost me concentration and threw me off," the 24-year-old admitted. "I know I could have done better. I was ready to get the gold medal. I can't complain about my placement. I'm third. That's okay. Obviously I'm very disappointed."
Joubert's disappointment also carried over to the non-jump elements in his routine to music from The Matrix soundtrack. The 2007 World champ received a level one for his closing flying sit spin, and failed to earn level four on any element. His freeskate total of 151.57 is far below his personal best, however, his total of 235.97 points kept him from slipping off the podium.
Making a comeback of sorts is the Czech Republic's Tomas Verner, who finished in 15th place last year, but skated consistently well this year to finish in fourth place. Verner opened with a strong quadruple toe loop-triple toe loop combination, and ticked off his checklist of three triple jumps before he started to have some trouble.
Like Chan, Verner singled the back half of a triple Axel-double toe loop combination, but then regrouped and landed a nice triple loop. Verner then doubled his Lutz and flip, which essentially kept him off the podium.
"I'm too angry to talk right now," said the 22 year-old. "I had it in my hands till the end, and I missed the easiest jumps ever. I don't know how to punish myself. They were stupid mistakes."
Verner's total of 151.35 points in the freeskate was a season's best, and his total of 231.71 points was just shy of his personal best.
"I was close to being happy," Verner said disappointedly, "but I am not anymore. I wanted a medal."
Skating an entertaining western-themed program, Italy's Samuel Contesti followed up his silver medal at the European Championships with another stellar performance. Contesti won over the crowd with his tongue-in-cheek portrayal of a typical cowboy from a John Wayne movie, but it was the seven triple jumps that earned him Italy's best finish at the World Championships in many years.
"I am very happy with my performance of course," the 25-year-old said with a smile. "I was very stressed when I stepped on the ice, but I did my job and it was a good program. I'm thrilled tonight because Italy now has two spots for the Olympic Games in the men's category."
Contesti eclipsed all of his personal bests in this competition, earning 148.47 points for his freeskate, and a total of 226.97 points overall.
Finishing in sixth place is Japan's Takahiko Kozuka, who had somewhat of a disappointing performance, making small errors on three jumping passes and failing to earn the highest levels on his other elements.
"I'm happy to perform well to secure three places for Japan, but it's not just my own effort," said the 20 year-old. "I was a little bit nervous about some of the jumps, but they came out as well as I could do them today."
Kozuka scored 142.83 points with his "Romeo and Juliet" program, and 222.18 points overall to edge out his teammate Nobunari Oda, who finished in 7th place.
Oda opened with a whopper of a quadruple toe loop-triple toe loop, but then stepped out of a triple Axel attempt. The Japanese Champion then made some critical errors in the layout of his program that caused one jumping pass to be given zero credit.
After Oda stepped out of his Axel, he did not attempt to tack on a planned triple toe loop to make the jump a combination. He then added the toe loop to the back half of his next element, a triple Salchow. His next element was a solo triple Axel, but because he already did a solo triple Axel, the element was scored as a failed sequence giving him three combination jumps in his program. As a result, his triple flip-double toe loop-double loop combination was not validated and cost him some nine points.
"I was very focused on doing the quad, and when I landed it I was very happy," said the skater who turned 22 this week. "It was my first time in competition. I was concentrating so much on the quad that I forgot about the combination. I know I lost points because of this."
Oda scored 141.67 points for his freeskate and 218.16 points overall.
Moving up from 17th place after the short program to 8th overall is Kazakhstan's Denis Ten, who had one of the best performances of the evening. The tiny 15-year-old placed sixth in the freeskate with a performance that won over the audience - a moment that was not lost on the tiny skater.
"When the audience stood up, it was like a positive shock," said the stunned skater. "Yesterday, when Evan (Lysacek) skated clean and got a standing ovation, I also was watching and I stood up and thought how nice it was to skate well and get a standing ovation. So today I'm just very happy that the crowd stood up for me. I was able to experience something at my young age that many skaters never experience in their career."
Ten made a huge impact in his first trip to the World Championships, landing eight triple jumps and earning the third highest technical scores of the day. At the end of the program, Ten kissed the ice as he wiped tears from his face.
"I wanted to show everything I am capable of," stated Ten. "It was the best performance of my life so far. At the end, during my footwork it was already hard for me and I couldn't hold back my tears of joy. I just wanted to thank the ice."
Like Contesti, Ten eclipsed all of his personal bests in this competition, earning 142.89 points for his freeskate that gave him a final tally of 211.43 points.
USA's Brandon Mroz gave an uneven performance and landed six triple jumps to finish in ninth place in his first Worlds, combining with Lysacek to earn the United States three spots for next year's Olympic Games in Vancouver, Canada.
"I've learned what's in me and what I can do," Mroz said. "The nerves were blocking me a bit, but I just pushed through and tried to do the best that I could"
Finishing in 10th place is Andrei Lutai of Russia - his best finish at the World Championships. U.S. Campion Jeremy Abbott gave another trademark spotty performance and finished in 11th place equaling his finish from last season.
Canadian silver medalist Vaughn Chipeur finished in 12th place, and heartbreakingly missed qualifying his country three spots for next year's Olympics by omitting a double toe on the end of any of his jumps.
The event continues with the Ladies' Short Program and the Free Dance.
