New Assignments for Team USA

Team USA assignments for upcoming international events are in. Everything looks to be pretty much by the book. I guess I was a little surprised to see Rachael Flatt missing from the junior worlds team (she seems to have that certain quality the USFSA usually likes to promote) but Ashley Wagner more than earned her spot this year.

So what’s the likelihood of the top three dropping out of Four Continents to focus on training for worlds? I’ve got to admit I hope it’s high. I’d like to see Bebe and Danielle’s season extend just a little bit longer. I’d also love to see Danielle get some international experience on the senior level.

World Championships
Kimmie Meissner
Emily Hughes
Alissa Czisny

Alternates
Bebe Liang
Danielle Kahle
Juliana Cannarozzo

Four Continents Championships
Kimmie Meissner
Emily Hughes
Alissa Czisny

Alternates
Bebe Liang
Danielle Kahle
Juliana Cannarozzo

World Junior Championships
Mirai Nagasu
Caroline Zhang
Ashley Wagner

Alternates
Rachael Flatt
Danielle Kahle
Juliana Cannarozzo

European Championships – Final Results

1) Carolina Kostner ITA 174.79 2 1
2) Sarah Meier SUI 171.28 1 2
3) Kiira Korpi FIN 151.19 5 4
4) Susanna Poykio FIN 146.02 7 5
5) Valentina Marchei ITA 144.28 12 3
6) Alisa Drei FIN 141.90 9 6
7) Elena Sokolova RUS 139.71 8 7
8) Elene Gedevanishvili GEO 137.32 3 9
9) Julia Sebestyen HUN 136.05 4 10
10) Tugba Karademir TUR 131.00 13 8
11) Alexandra Ievleva RUS 126.99 6 14
12) Elena Glebova EST 126.80 10 12
13) Tamar Katz ISR 126.09 11 13
14) Lina Johansson SWE 120.64 15 15
15) Jenna McCorkell GBR 120.47 20 11
16) Idora Hegel CRO 119.96 14 16
17) Anne Sophie Calvez FRA 116.96 16 17
18) Viktoria Pavuk HUN 110.98 21 18
19) Kristin Wieczorek GER 110.20 23 19
20) Christiane Berger GER 109.17 17 22
21) Roxana Luca ROM 108.34 22 21
22) Anna Jurkiewicz POL 107.31 24 20
23) Radka Bartova SVK 105.12 19 23
24) Irina Movchan UKR 102.94 18 24

I’ll be honest. I didn’t see this one coming. I’ve always loved Carolina Kostner’s skating (I think she’s one of the most exciting jumpers around today) but she doesn’t always pull it together when she has to. Thankfully she did just that today, landing six triples, and walking away with her first European title. Sarah Meier continued her remarkable season by nabbing the silver while Kiira Korpi scored her first medal at a major international event, perhaps putting to rest any silly Anna Kournikova comparisons. Looks like Kiira’s got game.

It’s hard to believe that the Russians, who normally dominate this event, were hardly a blimp on the radar this year. This is the first time a Russian woman hasn’t medaled at Europeans since 1993. It’s a sign of the times. Unless Irina Slutskaya decides she’s ready to return sometime soon, it’s a pretty scary time right now for Russian skating.

U.S. Nationals – Final Results, Senior Ladies

1) Kimberly Meissner 181.68 1 3
2) Emily Hughes 180.86 3 2
3) Alissa Czisny 177.74 5 1
4) Beatrisa Liang 167.15 2 4
5) Rachael Flatt 159.75 6 5
6) Danielle Kahle 143.82 10 6
7) Juliana Cannarozzo 143.66 9 7
8) Katy Taylor 139.78 4 12
9) Michelle Boulos 139.75 11 8
10) Christine Zukowski 131.06 7 15
11) Megan Oster 130.98 12 9
12) Melissa Bulanhagui 130.42 8 14
13) Megan Williams-Stewart 128.14 17 10
14) Taylor Firth 125.09 19 11
15) Kylie Gleason 123.94 15 13
16) Erin Reed 120.98 14 18
17) Margaret Wang 120.65 16 17
18) Becky Hughes 119.41 13 20
19) Megan Hyatt 119.09 20 16
20) Angie Lien 115.44 18 21
21) Ambar Kaiser 112.29 21 19

It was an odd afternoon to say the least. It’s hard to remember the last time a woman won U.S. Nationals without winning the long program but that’s just what happened. Alissa Czisny actually won the free skate but it wasn’t enough to knock Kimmie Meissner, who recovered nicely after an early misstep in her program, out of first place. Emily Hughes was actually one triple flip away from the title but fell and with it went the gold. But perhaps the most disappointing (and, sadly, least surprising) turn of events was Bebe Liang’s continued inability to put together two clean programs when it matters most.

The good news? Turns out Rachael Flatt’s misjudged/downgraded triple-triple didn’t effect her final placement. Of course that still doesn’t make it right and here’s hoping mistakes like this don’t wind up costing someone a title someday. Finally congrats to Danielle Kahle for pulling up into the top six! She was a favorite of mine at Pacific Coast Sectionals this year and it was my wish to see her crack the top 8. Way to go Danielle!

European Championships - Short Program Results

1) Sarah Meier SUI 60.49
2) Carolina Kostner ITA 60.46
3) Elene Gedevanishvili GEO 54.62
4) Julia Sebestyen HUN 53.87
5) Kiira Korpi FIN 53.84
6) Alexandra Ievleva RUS 50.28
7) Susanna Poykio FIN 49.47
8) Elena Sokolova RUS 48.85
9) Alisa Drei FIN 48.78
10) Elena Glebova EST 47.35
11) Tamar Katz ISR 47.15
12) Valentina Marchei ITA 46.43
13) Tugba Karademir TUR 46.19
14) Idora Hegel CRO 44.99
15) Lina Johansson SWE 44.03
16) Anne Sophie Calvez FRA 43.78
17) Christiane Berger GER 43.05
18) Irina Movchan UKR 41.42
19) Radka Bartova SVK 40.90
20) Jenna McCorkell GBR 40.27
21) Viktoria Pavuk HUN 39.45
22) Roxana Luca ROM 39.31
23) Kristin Wieczorek GER 39.13
24) Anna Jurkiewicz POL 37.44
25) Kathrin Freudelsperger AUT 36.84
26) Karen Venhuizen NED 35.72
27) Sonia Radeva BUL 34.61
28) Ksenia Doronina RUS 34.31
29) Julia Sheremet BLR 33.98
30) Merovee Ephrem MON 31.34
31) Maria-Elena Papasotiriou GRE 31.26
32) Isabelle Pieman BEL 30.19
33) Ivana Hudziecova CZE 28.46
34) Melissandre Fuentes AND 28.44

It’s a virtual tie for the top spot after the short program at Europeans and I couldn’t be more pleased. How great is it to see the vastly underrated Sarah Meier finally get some love this season? How nice is it to see Carolina Kostner, who has battled some serious injuries all season, near the top of the standings at her first event back? Carolina even completed a triple flip-triple toe combination. It would’ve been enough to put her in first had she not doubled her lutz later in the program. Elene Gedevanishvili, who made a splash at last year’s Europeans and carried that momentum into the Turin Olympics, continued her success at this event by placing third.

U.S. Nationals – Short Program Results, Senior Ladies

1) Kimberly Meissner 65.69
2) Beatrisa Liang 62.66
3) Emily Hughes 62.32
4) Katy Taylor 58.72
5) Alissa Czisny 58.15
6) Rachael Flatt 56.51
7) Christine Zukowski 54.30
8) Melissa Bulanhagui 52.64
9) Juliana Cannarozzo 49.93
10) Danielle Kahle 48.21
11) Michelle Boulos 48.08
12) Megan Oster 46.73
13) Becky Hughes 46.72
14) Erin Reed 46.53
15) Kylie Gleason 46.04
16) Margaret Wang 45.00
17) Megan Williams-Stewart 44.95
18) Angie Lien 44.72
19) Taylor Firth 43.25
20) Megan Hyatt 43.11
21) Ambar Kaiser 37.95

With Michelle Kwan and Sasha Cohen sitting this one out, very few expected much of an event. Boy, were we all wrong. It turned out to be an evening of outstanding all-around skating. As expected Kimmie Meissner placed first but those that followed might’ve been a little more surprising. Bebe Liang, who’s just such a joy to watch skate, scored a minor upset by placing second ahead of Emily Hughes. Katy Taylor made a triumphant return after a disastrous Grand Prix season. She also wisely ditched the saccharine-laced “Happy Feet” program for something a little more mature. Rachael Flatt wowed them at her first senior nationals and, no matter what the judges say, landed a clean triple-triple combination in the process. The only thing more upsetting than Rachael being robbed of full credit for her jumps was seeing Alissa Czisny held up by the judges and placed ahead of Rachael despite her errors.

2007 Europeans - Final Predictions

1) Sarah Meier
2) Carolina Kostner
3) Susanna Poykio

Final Predictions for 2007 US Nationals

1) Kimmie Meissner
2) Emily Hughes
3) Rachael Flatt
4) Alissa Czisny

There aren’t too many givens in figure skating but Kimmie Meissner and Emily Hughes sewing up the top two spots at nationals is one of them. There may be some question as to which order they’ll finish 1-2 but really this is Kimmie’s event to lose. The only real question seems to be who will join them on the podium? My gut tells me Rachael Flatt has what it takes to make quite a splash at her first senior nationals.

Getting back to Emily…a thought struck me the other day while looking at some old competition results. I realized that Emily and Christine Zukowski have actually had very similar careers. Both skaters finished 6th at their first senior nationals and both went on to win bronze at junior worlds. This all occurred within one year of each other. Yet Emily’s the one who received three pro-am invites following her breakout season while Christine has never received any. How exactly is that fair?

U.S. Nationals – Final Results, Junior Ladies

1) Mirai Nagasu 155.46 1 1
2) Caroline Zhang 151.88 2 2
3) Ashley Wagner 145.86 4 3
4) Blake Rosenthal 130.99 3 8
5) Alexe Gilles 129.37 6 5
6) Chrissy Hughes 129.21 8 4
7) Sherry Barnes 124.37 9 7
8) Victoria Rackohn 122.79 7 9
9) Kirsten Olson 120.96 14 6
10) Michaelee Scarincio 118.53 5 11
11) Chaochih Liu 114.00 13 10
12) Brittney Rizo 111.54 11 12
13) Brittney Westdorp 103.67 10 13
14) Kelcie Lee 97.50 12 14

If you say you saw this one coming I’m not certain I believe you! Mirai Nagasu won the junior ladies title tonight defeating the heavily favored Caroline Zhang. They’re both lovely skaters in their own right but Caroline was definitely picked as the one to beat. A fall on her triple flip no doubt cost Caroline her first national title but if you’ve ever seen Mirai skate you know she’s no slouch herself! Both skaters are blessed with lyrical grace far beyond their age (they’re 13 by the way) and both will hopefully be a presence on the international scene for years to come. How amazing would it be to see Mirai, Caroline, Mao Asada, and Yu Na Kim battle it out at the 2010 Olympics?

U.S. Nationals – Final Results, Novice Ladies

1) Angela Maxwell 131.65 2 2
2) Kristine Musademba 129.25 5 1
3) Carolyn-Ann Alba 124.75 1 4
4) Deedee Leng 124.51 9 3
5) Ellie Kawamura 115.65 3 5
6) Caroline Ferris 115.39 4 6
7) Ksenia Makarova 112.59 7 7
8) Victoria Hecht 109.07 8 8
9) Danielle Seitz 104.54 6 9
10) Emily Young 95.59 10 10
11) Molly Aaron 94.70 11 11
12) Masha Leonov 86.95 12 12

U.S. Nationals – Short Program Results, Junior Ladies

1) Mirai Nagasu 54.26
2) Caroline Zhang 53.87
3) Blake Rosenthal 51.67
4) Ashley Wagner 51.20
5) Michaelee Scarincio 46.73
6) Alexe Gilles 46.43
7) Victoria Rackohn 46.07
8) Chrissy Hughes 44.40
9) Sherry Barnes 43.70
10) Brittney Westdorp 43.69
11) Brittney Rizo 42.35
12) Kelcie Lee 41.40
13) Chaochih Liu 41.20
14) Kirsten Olson 38.71

Looks like there’s a bit of an upset to report in the world of junior ladies: Mirai Nagasu beat Caroline Zhang in the short program at U.S. Nationals! Caroline won the Grand Prix Final last month and was expected to easily win her first national title in Spokane but Mirai seems to be putting up quite a fight. I guess it didn’t help matters that Caroline fell on her double axel. Can’t wait to see what happens in the free. If we’re lucky this is the start of some memorable competitions between these two talented young ladies!

U.S. Nationals – Short Program Results, Novice Ladies

1) Carolyn-Ann Alba 45.04
2) Angela Maxwell 43.33
3) Ellie Kawamura 42.06
4) Caroline Ferris 41.82
5) Kristine Musademba 40.81
6) Danielle Seitz 39.84
7) Ksenia Makarova 39.42
8) Victoria Hecht 38.94
9) Deedee Leng 38.66
10) Emily Young 32.68
11) Molly Aaron 32.34
12) Masha Leonov 31.98

Canadian Nationals – Final Results, Junior Ladies

1) Dana Zhalko-Tytarenko 109.40 3 1
2) McKenzie Pedersen 106.79 5 2
3) Cecylia Witkowski 105.94 2 6
4) Brittany Novakowski 104.06 11 3
5) Kerry Meagher 103.82 6 5
6) McKenzie Crawford 100.64 15 4
7) Vanessa Juteau 100.53 8 7
8) Natalie Kwong 99.07 12 8
9) Karine Chevrier 98.35 4 10
10) Annie Claire Bergeron-Oliver 97.88 9 9
11) Kathryn Kang 96.16 1 15
12) Katherine De Repentigny 90.87 7 14
13) Alexandra Simon 89.57 10 16
14) Alexandrine Chong 88.45 14 13
15) Kristy Bell 87.92 18 11
16) Erica Risseeuw 86.12 16 17
17) Vanessa Sauriol 86.11 19 12
18) Kassandra Caron Grenier 83.44 17 19
19) Acacia Hill 81.30 13 20
20) Brooke Ellis 79.28 20 18

Canadian Nationals – Final Results, Senior Ladies

1) Joannie Rochette 170.65 1 1
2) Mira Leung 159.59 3 2
3) Lesley Hawker 156.16 2 3
4) Cynthia Phaneuf 148.36 5 4
5) Myriane Samson 145.73 4 6
6) Meagan Duhamel 144.23 6 5
7) Amanda Billings 133.49 11 7
8) Mylène Brodeur 124.87 9 8
9) Kristen Walker 121.92 8 10
10) Erin Scherrer 120.67 13 9
11) Charlotte Bélair 119.63 10 11
12) Devon Neuls 113.55 14 12
13) Diane Szmiett 107.43 15 14
14) Monica Boucher 104.28 18 13
15) Erika Tisluck 103.92 16 15
16) Hjordis Lee 103.42 12 16
17) Michele Moore 95.79 17 17

So it wasn’t her best performance but tonight it was enough to bring Joannie Rochette her third national title in a row despite landing only four triple jumps and downgrading three. With two spots on the world team up for grabs it looks like Joannie and silver medalist Mira Leung, who landed six triples, will be representing Canada once again. It’ll be interesting to see how the two fair in Tokyo. Some might argue that Mira outskated Joannie tonight but I think even international judges would agree that Mira's questionable technique still puts her neck-and-neck with Joannie on an off-night. Meanwhile Lesley Hawker repeated her bronze medal performance from last year while Cynthia Phaneuf fell short by finishing fourth. Thankfully Cynthia at least seemed pleased with the fact that she made the national team.

Canadian Nationals – Short Program Results, Senior Ladies

1) Joannie Rochette 56.89
2) Lesley Hawker 53.57
3) Mira Leung 52.50
4) Myriane Samson 51.94
5) Cynthia Phaneuf 49.67
6) Meagan Duhamel 47.44
7) Jessica Dubé 46.59
8) Kristen Walker 46.57
9) Mylène Brodeur 45.49
10) Charlotte Bélair 44.54
11) Amanda Billings 43.66
12) Hjordis Lee 42.39
13) Erin Scherrer 41.84
14) Devon Neuls 41.61
15) Diane Szmiett 39.40
16) Erika Tisluck 39.21
17) Michele Moore 37.66
18) Monica Boucher 34.71
19) Marie-Eve Lavigne 34.36
20) Marianne Laporte 34.34
21) Angie Phillips 34.08
22) Kim Caissy 33.39
23) Marie-Christine Grenier 31.97
24) Ashton Tessier 27.60

So there's more news from Halifax! Joannie Rochette took the lead after the short program despite some technical mishaps, including doubling her solo triple lutz. Lesley Hawker finished second with a shaky but clean triple lutz-double toe combination and a strong triple flip, while Mira Leung skated to third with a clean program. Sad to see Cynthia Phaneuf's “comeback” stifled after she popped her triple lutz. On Friday night Joannie will try to win her third straight national title! We'll see what happens!

Canadian Nationals – Short Program Results, Junior Ladies

1) Kathryn Kang 41.16
2) Cecylia Witkowski 40.60
3) Dana Zhalko-Tytarenko 38.14
4) Karine Chevrier 36.84
5) McKenzie Pedersen 36.32
6) Kerry Meagher 35.78
7) Katherine De Repentigny 35.77
8) Vanessa Juteau 35.61
9) Annie Claire Bergeron-Oliver 35.05
10) Alexandra Simon 34.82
11) Brittany Novakowski 34.59
12) Natalie Kwong 34.55
13) Acacia Hill 34.07
14) Alexandrine Chong 32.46
15) McKenzie Crawford 32.08
16) Erica Risseeuw 31.56
17) Kassandra Caron Grenier 30.40
18) Kristy Bell 30.17
19) Vanessa Sauriol 30.10
20) Brooke Ellis 25.76