I was over on wikipedia earlier today to try to find out what happened to pair teams that finished 4th at US Nationals, and whether or not they managed to move up the following years (see here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Figure_Skating_Championships)?
Of course Donlan & Speroff are what drew me to this research, but in the process I had a wonderful time walking down memory lane.....ahhhh.....the memories. After this I'm going to search the GoldenSkate Archives to see what I wrote during those times.
I didn't go back farther than the mid-90's to now, as that's when my fav pair The Stieglers competed! There's still nobody like Tiffany & Johnny to this day, the charisma they had on the ice, especially her, and the artistry, pizzazz, long lines, gorgeous looks, she so versatile from a ballerina one moment to Aretha Franklin the next, lol. Anyhow, I was surprised to see that they never got higher than 4th at Nationals. Such a shame, if only Tiffany didn't grow so tall, even taking up ice dance didn't work out.
By the way, I do remember Jenni Meno & Todd Sand (& my eldest sister does as well; she's the one that pointed them both out at this year's Nationals). I think Jenni & Todd, along with the Stieglers, had the best "look" on the ice, wherein they truly exemplified the ideal, that is "two shall skate as one; two halves of a perfect whole". But they were always winners once they left their old partners & paired up, it was magic (reminiscent of Denney & Coughlin; knock on wood). (;^)
I'm more concerned with those that finished 4th at Nationals, such as The Stieglers, and whether or not they managed to move on up. The Stieglers never managed that feat, nor did Amanda Magarian & Jered Guzman (btw I don't recall these two at all except his name that's all), Jennifer Don & Jonathan Hunt (vaguely recall her being kinda heavy), Tiffany Scott & Rusty Fein (I do recall her b/c she left her severely injured partner for another), and Tiffany Vise & Derek Trent (she's still competing but with a different partner and was the first to land a throw 4S in competiton!). That's 5 pairs that never managed to attain greater heights then 4th place at Nationals. BUT, on a positive note, the following *did* manage to climb from 4th on up:
Shelby Lyons & Brian Wells (odd pair, he was way older than her & short, not aesthetically pleasing on the ice, think she outgrew him) ~ highest placement 2nd in 1998.
Stephanie Stiegler & John Zimmerman (wonderful look on the ice, both gorgeous, then he left her for Kyoko Ina!) ~ highest placement 3rd in 1997.
Stephanie Kalesavich & Aaron Parchem (another gorgeous pair, like Barbie & Ken out there) ~ highest placement 3rd in 2002.
Rena Inoue & John Baldwin (first pair team in history to land a throw 3A!) ~ 1st place in 2004 & 2006.
Amanda Evora & Mark Ladwig (longest partnership thus far, 10 years!) ~ 2nd place in 2010 & 2011.
So that's 5 pair teams that managed to better than 4th place finish at Nationals! Therefore it evens out, Donlan & Speroff can go either way, here's hoping they go UP! ^D
By the way, during my research I recall Aaron Parchem's first partner, the stunning blonde Stephanie Kalesavich, and that absolutely breathtaking "Swan Lift" she used to do. OMG, it was simply breathtaking, I wish someone else would do this but I've never seen it since they performed it 15+ years ago (will have to watch them again on youtube; so glad he managed to go to the 2006 Olympics with his second partner, the equally lovely Marcy Hinzmann). If only Stephanie could've managed those sbs jumps, especially her 3S, she tried so hard, but always came up short in rotation.
Then I think about those extremely rare ones that come out swinging, right from the starting block they're stars, which includes Caydee Denney; only together less than 2 yrs. with Jeremy Barrett and tada she hits a home run and goes to the Olympics on her 1st try! And now it looks like she'll even have better success with John Coughlin, who can really show her off due to his fantastic height.
To a lesser extent there was Keauna McLaughlin, who also was a star her first time in seniors, winning both 2008 & 2009 Nationals, but bombing in 2010, never made it to the Olympics.
Finally, whatever happend to US Pairs of the Past? What are they doing nowadays? I know that Craig Joeright (so handsome btw) went on to win Adult Nationals in 2008; btw when he & his old partner, Larisa Spielberg, competed back in 2000-2003 I really thought they would attain greater heights, so disappointed that they didn't. They too had that ideal "look" on the ice imho.
That said, I haven't been this excited about a pair (i.e. Donlan & Speroff) since G&G, and that's saying a lot. So many have come & gone throughout the decades that you realize how fragile their time is when they are competing, that's why they have to make the best of it while they're still young. :thumbsup:
Of course Donlan & Speroff are what drew me to this research, but in the process I had a wonderful time walking down memory lane.....ahhhh.....the memories. After this I'm going to search the GoldenSkate Archives to see what I wrote during those times.
I didn't go back farther than the mid-90's to now, as that's when my fav pair The Stieglers competed! There's still nobody like Tiffany & Johnny to this day, the charisma they had on the ice, especially her, and the artistry, pizzazz, long lines, gorgeous looks, she so versatile from a ballerina one moment to Aretha Franklin the next, lol. Anyhow, I was surprised to see that they never got higher than 4th at Nationals. Such a shame, if only Tiffany didn't grow so tall, even taking up ice dance didn't work out.
By the way, I do remember Jenni Meno & Todd Sand (& my eldest sister does as well; she's the one that pointed them both out at this year's Nationals). I think Jenni & Todd, along with the Stieglers, had the best "look" on the ice, wherein they truly exemplified the ideal, that is "two shall skate as one; two halves of a perfect whole". But they were always winners once they left their old partners & paired up, it was magic (reminiscent of Denney & Coughlin; knock on wood). (;^)
I'm more concerned with those that finished 4th at Nationals, such as The Stieglers, and whether or not they managed to move on up. The Stieglers never managed that feat, nor did Amanda Magarian & Jered Guzman (btw I don't recall these two at all except his name that's all), Jennifer Don & Jonathan Hunt (vaguely recall her being kinda heavy), Tiffany Scott & Rusty Fein (I do recall her b/c she left her severely injured partner for another), and Tiffany Vise & Derek Trent (she's still competing but with a different partner and was the first to land a throw 4S in competiton!). That's 5 pairs that never managed to attain greater heights then 4th place at Nationals. BUT, on a positive note, the following *did* manage to climb from 4th on up:
Shelby Lyons & Brian Wells (odd pair, he was way older than her & short, not aesthetically pleasing on the ice, think she outgrew him) ~ highest placement 2nd in 1998.
Stephanie Stiegler & John Zimmerman (wonderful look on the ice, both gorgeous, then he left her for Kyoko Ina!) ~ highest placement 3rd in 1997.
Stephanie Kalesavich & Aaron Parchem (another gorgeous pair, like Barbie & Ken out there) ~ highest placement 3rd in 2002.
Rena Inoue & John Baldwin (first pair team in history to land a throw 3A!) ~ 1st place in 2004 & 2006.
Amanda Evora & Mark Ladwig (longest partnership thus far, 10 years!) ~ 2nd place in 2010 & 2011.
So that's 5 pair teams that managed to better than 4th place finish at Nationals! Therefore it evens out, Donlan & Speroff can go either way, here's hoping they go UP! ^D
By the way, during my research I recall Aaron Parchem's first partner, the stunning blonde Stephanie Kalesavich, and that absolutely breathtaking "Swan Lift" she used to do. OMG, it was simply breathtaking, I wish someone else would do this but I've never seen it since they performed it 15+ years ago (will have to watch them again on youtube; so glad he managed to go to the 2006 Olympics with his second partner, the equally lovely Marcy Hinzmann). If only Stephanie could've managed those sbs jumps, especially her 3S, she tried so hard, but always came up short in rotation.
Then I think about those extremely rare ones that come out swinging, right from the starting block they're stars, which includes Caydee Denney; only together less than 2 yrs. with Jeremy Barrett and tada she hits a home run and goes to the Olympics on her 1st try! And now it looks like she'll even have better success with John Coughlin, who can really show her off due to his fantastic height.
To a lesser extent there was Keauna McLaughlin, who also was a star her first time in seniors, winning both 2008 & 2009 Nationals, but bombing in 2010, never made it to the Olympics.
Finally, whatever happend to US Pairs of the Past? What are they doing nowadays? I know that Craig Joeright (so handsome btw) went on to win Adult Nationals in 2008; btw when he & his old partner, Larisa Spielberg, competed back in 2000-2003 I really thought they would attain greater heights, so disappointed that they didn't. They too had that ideal "look" on the ice imho.
That said, I haven't been this excited about a pair (i.e. Donlan & Speroff) since G&G, and that's saying a lot. So many have come & gone throughout the decades that you realize how fragile their time is when they are competing, that's why they have to make the best of it while they're still young. :thumbsup: