by Alexandra Stevenson
JAPANESE WINS; AMERICAN "UNKNOWN" TAKES SILVER
1.Total Score 165.47; 1.Free Skate 106.47 (56.71+49.76); 2.Short Program 59.00 (34.60+24.40); Kanako Murakami, from Nagoya, became the sixth Japanese lady to win this title. Yuka Sato was the first in 1990, followed by Kumiko Koiwai in 1993. Then there was a run on the title with Yukina Ota, Miki Ando and Mao Asada shutting out the opposition 2003-2005. Murakami, who turns 16 on November 7, came from second place to win by a significant 8.68 points despite a showing which had two major errors. Skating last but one of the 24 allowed into the Free Skate, in a blue and silver dress, Murakami had a worrying opening in her Swan Lake routine. Her triple Lutz received a wrong takeoff edge call, saddling her with -1.60 off the base value of 6.0. And, after a +0.40 triple flip, she doubled the Salchow in a sequence with a double Axel which was given only the base value.
But from then on it was plain sailing. A double Axel earned +0.60 and, when the bonus marks clicked in, she was rewarded with 8.72 points for her triple flip to double Axel sequence. A triple toe was awarded +1.0 over its base and a triple Salchow combined with two double loops banked her 9.05 points. All three of her spins were called as the maximum Level 4 and earned +0.30 (the flying change foot sit spin); +0.40 (the flying sit spin); and +0.90 (the change foot combination spin) over their base values. Her straight line steps were Level 3 and +0.90.
"I am so happy I achieved my goal," she said. "I wanted to earn three places (the maximum) for Japan next year. I haven't decided whether to compete at juniors or seniors next season but I hope to perform better then. I don’t know what went wrong with the Salchow."
2. TS 156.79; 2.FS 105.81 (58.21+47.60); 8.SP 50.98 (31.74+20.24 -1.0); The US Junior champion Agnes Zawadzki, who moved from Chicago to Colorado Springs two-and-a-half years ago, and will turn 16 on July 31, could hardly believe her silver medal. She said, "I was a little disappointed, yesterday (when she placed eighth after falling on her triple flip), because I’ve been doing clean shorts in competitions all season. My coach just told me to trust my training and so I did. I felt pretty confident and relaxed. This means a lot because it’s my first international and getting second is great. I didn't have much experience coming into it, but I think I gained a lot and I learned a lot." Coach Tom Zakrajsek was over the moon. "I was a little worried yesterday because, since she has no international ranking, she had to skate early. It was a long day, but the judges did remember her quality even with the fall. So that proved to be an unnecessary worry. But I worried today, because all season, she’s made mistakes in the Free. This was the first clean free skate she’s done all season. She certainly chose the right event to do it in!"
Performing 14th, immediately after her teammate Gao, in a showy bright red and gold outfit, to lively pieces from the musical Chicago, she earned the top Element score bettering Murakami by 1.50 points. However, Murakami received 2.16 more points for her component score. Zawadzki opened with an impressive +0.80 triple loop, followed by a +0.60 triple Lutz to double toe. However, the triple flip was saddled with a wrong take-off edge call and earned only 3.70 points instead of the base value of 5.5. Her second triple Lutz earned +1.0 over the base value, as did her double Axel to double toe loop timed for when the 10% bonus marks click in. A triple Salchow earned "just" the base value and her final move, a triple toe to double toe to double loop gained +0.60 over its base value +10%. All three of her spins were Level 4. The flying sit earned +0.60, as did the Layback. The change foot combination received +0.50. Her straight line steps were +0.30 Level 3. Zawadzki kept her energy level high right to the end of the routine. How does she do that? She said, "Oh, that’s because Colorado Springs is so high. You have to be fit to train there. And that helps when you are competing other places."
3.TS 154.27; 4.FS 97.99 (55.03+42.96); 3.SP 56.28 (34.28+22.00); Polina Agafonova, the Russian Junior Champion, who is from St. Petersburg was very satisfied with her bronze medals. The youngster, who will turn 14 on April 2, said, "I did everything I could. I’m for the first time at this competition and I didn’t expect to be third right away. I had hoped to make the top ten." Agafonova skated to Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet Overture first of the last six, immediately following an ice resurface.
She began with the event’s most difficult move, a triple Lutz to triple toe loop and earned +0.20 over its base value of 10.00. Then came a base value triple Salchow to double toe. However, her triple flip was saddled with a wrong edge call, and penalized with -1.40 off the base value. A double Axel earned the base value. Then, at the bonus point, she brought off a +0.40 triple Salchow to double toe. However, the following triple Lutz lost -0.40 from the base value. Her final jump, a double Axel, earned just the base value. All three spins were Level 4 with great GoEs reflecting her flexibility, speed and number of rotations. The flying camel got +0.70; the change foot combination +0.40; and the layback +1.0. Her straight line steps were only base value Level 2.
4.TS 151.65; 3.FS 100.23 (56.95+43.28); 7.SP 51.42 (28.90+22.52); Polina Shelepen from Moscow, who will turn 15 on July 28, had made mistakes in her very difficult Short Program. Skating last in the penultimate group, to Borodin’s Polovetsian Dances in a long-sleeved outfit with purple trousers, purple boot covers and a head band, she began with a double Axel to triple toe loop which earned +0.60 over the base value of 7.50. Although she stepped out of her triple Salchow to triple toe loop, and had two full points deducted from the base value, she still banked 6.50. Her triple Lutz to double toe to double loop earned an extra 0.40 over the base value of 8.80. However, her triple flip was saddled with a wrong take-off edge call and 2.60 marks were deducted from its base value of 5.50. Her Level 4 flying change foot combination spin earned its base value. The triple Lutz, set where the bonus marks click in, had 0.60 removed from the base value plus 10%. A double Axel earned +0.20 over base +10%. Then came a +0.50 Level 4 combination upright spin and her final jump a +0.20 triple loop. She concluded with a Level 4 +0.30 change foot combination spin, looking very happy.
5.TS 147.52; 8.FS 87.72 (45.00+44.72); 1.SP 59.80 (36.20+23.60); Anna Ovcharova from Moscow, who will turn 14 on March 16, skated 20th in red and black to Don Quixote. She had a nightmare performance. On her first move, she was forced to make a tight circle to hold the landing of her triple toe loop, and lost -1.20. Then on her planned 3-jump combo, triple Lutz to two double loops, she singled the final jump. Then she fell on her triple flip and couldn’t execute the double Axel she had planned to do as a sequence. The following triple loop was down-graded. Her first good element was her fifth move, a change foot combination Level 4 spin which earned 0.70 over the base value. Then she fell again, on a triple Lutz. She was still thinking, however, and after her triple flip she added a double Axel to get in the sequence she had been unable to do after her first fall, although it was saddled with a -1.40. After that she did a sequence of two double Axels earning +0.20. Her Level 4 flying camel gained half a point over the base value, as did her Level 3 circular steps. She concluded with a Level 4 layback which was rewarded with +0.70 over the base value. She was given the fourth highest component score.
6.TS 147.46; 7.FS 93.66 (49.66+44.00); 4.SP 53.80 (33.08+20.72); Kate Charbonneau, the 2009 Canadian Junior champion, who finished seventh at senior level in January, behind was only 0.06 out of fifth place! She was born in Winnipeg but has lived in Bloomington, MN, where her mother, Lorie, coaches. She also travels to Barrie, Ontario, to train with Robert Tebby. Skating 22nd to Rimsky Korsakov’s Sheherezade dressed in purple, she opened with a lovely +1.0 triple toe loop but put her hand on the ice on the following triple Lutz, losing -1.60 off the base value. Her 3-jump combo of triple toe to double toe to double loop earned its base value. Her flying sit spin gained Level 3 and +0.40. A +0.20 double Axel followed. However, her triple Salchow was tentative and she was penalized with a -0.40 GoE, plus the loss of points because she did not execute the second jump, a double toe loop, planned in this combination. Her straight line steps were Level 3 and +0.40. Her layback spin was Level 4 and +0.20. Her final jumping passes, double Axel to double toe and triple Salchow, to which she also added a double toe to make up for not adding the second jump earlier, both gained +0.20 over the base value plus 10%. She finished with a Level 4 +0.70 change foot combination spin. That improvised Plan B
7.TS 146.98; 5.FS 94.70 (48.14+46.56); 5.SP 52.28 (30.24+22.04); Kira Baga, the 2009 US Novice champion, who was fourth at Junior level this year, was very unfortunate. She was fifth in both sections but finished up seventh overall. She trains alongside Charbonneau in Bloomington, MN. Baga, who will turn 15 on April 15, skated 21st to Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A Minor and Hana’s Eyes, dressed in black and silver. She opened with a +1.0 triple toe loop, a triple flip and a triple Salchow, both of which earned +0.60, and a +0.50 Level 4 flying sit spin. However, the landing on the second triple Salchow was a little tentative and she left out the second jump, a double toe. As the bonus marks clicked in, she executed a double Axel which earned the base value, and a Level 4 +1.0 layback spin. Her 3-jump combo of triple toe loop to double toe to double loop earned +0.40 over base plus 10%. The straight line steps were Level 3 with +0.80. However, on her final jumping pass, she singled her Axel combined with a double toe which earned only the base value. Her final move was Level 4 change foot combination spin which gained +0.50 over base.
8.TS 143.86; 6.FS 94.52 (51.88+42.64); 9.SP 49.34 (28.50+20.84); Christina Gao, who will be 16 on March 7th, is from Cincinnati but is trained in Toronto by Brian Orser. She drew to skate 13th, first up in the penultimate group. She has a lovely style, reminiscent of Yu-Na Kim’s, which is hardly surprising since they train together. Dressed in royal blue, she interpreted the ballet music, La Fille Mal Gardée. However, she landed the triple toe loop, her first jump, a little scratchily, and, although she accomplished the second jump in that combination, a double toe loop, she earned only +0.20 over the base value. Her second element was a very high triple flip to double toe loop but she left out the double loop which was supposed also to be a part of this move. Her triple loop had a bad landing and the GoE was -1.60. A flying sit spin earned Level 4 and +0.40 and her Level 3 layback was +0.30. However, her triple Lutz, set when the 10% bonus marks click in, was saddled with a wrong edge call and -2.0 taken off the base value. She added a double toe loop jump to her triple Salchow which was planned as a solo jump, and the combination earned +0.60 over the base, as did her second triple flip. When asked about that change, she said, "It wasn’t an improvisation. It was Plan B. I train it as an alternate so I’m prepared." When she finished her Level 3, +0.50 straight line steps, she was smiling. However, her final jump, a double Axel was low and not combined with the intended double toe. She concluded with a Level 4, change foot combination spin which earned +0.10 over base. Gao said, "I’m happy. Yesterday, I made a big mistake (singling the second jump of a planned combination of two triple toe loops) so I was nervous."
9.TS 138.13; 9.FS 86.03 (43.23+42.80); 6. SP 52.10 (30.30+21.80); Josh Helgesson, Sweden, drew to skate last (24th). The experienced 16-year-old earned a Personal Best in the Free Skate but missed that mark in the SP and overall score which was set in this event last year when she finished fourth. She performed to three pieces, Beethoven’s Symphonie No. 5; Somewhere in Time; and The Godfather. A double toe combined with her first triple Lutz was downgraded as was her second triple Lutz. Her second triple toe had a -0.40 GoE. All three spins earned Level 4 with a small positive GoE. Her straight line steps were Level 3 with +0.40.
10.TS 133.05; 10.FS 85.21 (48.33+36.88); 11.SP; Julia Pfrengle, 14, the 2009 season German Junior champion, who is now their third ranked senior, is the daughter of German champion pair skater Stefan Pfrengle and 1989 European champion and World silver medalist, Claudia Leistner. Skating 16th, to music from the movie Kung Fu Panda, all her elements, except for the triple loop and second triple Salchow, earned base value or better including a triple toe to double toe to double loop, triple Salchow to double toe, triple toe, and a double Axel to double toe, plus three Level 4 spins. Her straight line steps were base value Level 2.
55 ENTRIES FROM 47 COUNTRIES MAKE FOR LONG DAY
RUSSIANS SHOW THEY HAVE TALENT IN THE PIPLELINE
TODD SAND TECHNICAL SPECIALIST; JOE INMAN JUDGES
1.SP 59.80 (36.20+23.60); Anna Ovcharova from Moscow, who will turn 14 on March 16, performed a lively routine to a jazz medley from the Russian movie, The Hipster, 49th, which was the last skater in the penultimate group. The Russian Junior silver medalist, who speaks good English, admitted, "There is more pressure in the short but I like this routine better than the long because it is more fun. I felt very nervous today and I didn’t believe my eyes, when my score was so high." The score was a Personal Best. Her previous record was 54.92 which she earned when she placed fifth in the Junior Grand Prix Final in Tokyo. She had qualified for that event with a fifth in Hungary and silver in Poland in the Junior Grand Prix series. Both her triple flip and the triple Lutz to double loop received +0.20 Grade of Execution. Her double Axel was a secure +0.60. All three spins received Level 4, with the layback earning +0.50 over its base value, the flying sit +0.20 and the change foot combination +0.50. Her spirals also got Level 4 with GoE of 1.20. Her Level 3 footwork earned +0.40 GoE. Although she had the top element score, her components were 0.80 less that Murakami.
2.SP 59.00 (34.60+24.40); Kanako Murakami, a 15-year-old from Nagoya, who turns 16 on November 7, skated 44th, which was first in the penultimate group. She is taught by Machiko Yamada, who was Midori Ito’s coach and was instrumental in developing Mao Asada. She performed in white with a red rose in her hair, to Nectar Flamenco and Frente a Frente with great speed. She has won every junior event she has entered this season including the Polish and Croatian Junior Grand Prix and the Final. Last season she won the British Junior Grand Prix, earned bronze in Madrid and was fourth in the Final. In the Japanese Senior nationals she was fifth in both the Short and Long Programs. "This competition was my target for the season, and it’s still like a dream to be here. My goal is to earn three places for Japan for next year." The second jump in her combination of two triple toe loops was downgraded. The base value of this move is 8.0 but, because of the downgrade, she earned only 5.30. If she had not made that error, she would be in the lead. Her triple flip and double Axel both earned +0.80 over the base value. Her spirals (+0.60) and the three spins, Flying sit (+0.20), Layback (+0.50) and Change Foot Combination (+0.80) were all the maximum Level 4. Her straight line steps were +0.70. She said, "I am disappointed with my jump combination, because it was downgraded. However, the other elements were better than in practice."
3.SP 56.28 (34.28+22.00); Polina Agafonova, the Russian Junior Champion, who is from St. Petersburg and will be 14 on April 2, skated 47th. She said, "I changed my Short Program (from the one she performed when she placed sixth in Poland and won the bronze in Germany in the Junior Grand Prix series) because both my programs turned out to be rather serious and I wanted to show a different style. This one is fun." The new routine was a very lively Russian dance, which the youngster performed with great energy. She said, "I didn’t expect at all such a high placement, after all I’m for the first time at this competition. Basically, I skated a good program and I did everything I can do." She earned a Personal Best, 5.41 better than her previous record set in the German JGP. She began with her Level 3 circular steps earning +0.30 over the base value. Then came her triple Lutz to triple toe loop and, although it received a negative GoE (-0.80), she still banked 9.20 points. She was saddled with an edge call on the triple flip and had two full points removed from the base value, taking her score down to 3.50. All three spins were Level 4 with the flying sit earning its base value of 3.0, the layback getting +1.30 over its base value of 2.70 and the change foot combination spin receiving +0.90 over the base value of 0.90. Her spirals got only Level 3 with +0.30 and her double Axel had -0.32 removed from its base value.
4.SP 53.80 (33.08+20.72); Kate Charbonneau, the 2009 Canadian Junior champion, who finished seventh at senior level in January, was born in Winnipeg but has lived in Bloomington, MN, where her mother, Lorie, coaches, since she was four. She also travels to Barrie, Ontario, to train with Robert Tebby. She said, "I guess I’ve been sent to get into the top ten so Canada can have two spots next year. I would kind of like to do better than that. I would love to medal." She performed to Malaguena 36th, fourth in the seventh warm-up group, in a bright yellow dress with one sleeve. Charbonneau, who will be 17 on April 2, gave a mature, audience-friendly showing. She began with a +0.80 triple toe to double toe but her triple flip was a little unsteady and she was penalized with a -0.60 GoE. Her double Axel also had a slight negative, -0.32. However, her spins and the spirals were Level 4 with positives: +0.20 flying sit; +0.50 change foot combination; +0.70 layback; and +1.20 spirals. She ended with Level 3 +0.40 straight line steps. Charbonneau had mixed showing in the Junior Grand Prix series, placing eighth in Poland and then winning silver in Croatia. She said, "My nerves were less than they were in Poland because I feel more ready. As the season went on I got more experience and knew more what to expect."
5.SP 52.28 (30.24+22.04); Kira Baga, the 2009 US Novice champion, who was fourth at Junior level this year, trains alongside Charbonneau in Bloomington, MN. She won both of her Junior Grand Prix assignments in Dresden and in Istanbul and was fifth in the Final. "I was very excited to come to this event," said Baga, who will turn 15 on April 15. "Nationals lit a fire under me. I feel like this is putting me on the right path." Her choreographer, Kelly Benzinger-Grelle, deserves praise for putting together such an enjoyable SP, set to Saint-Saens’ Dance Macabre. Baga, who drew to skate last (55th), stepped out of her first element, the triple flip, incurring a -2.0 off the 5.50 base value. Her triple Salchow to double toe was +0.20 but she put two hands down on her double Axel, losing -1.96. Her three spins and the spirals were the maximum Level 4. Both the spirals, which included a split position, and the many-variations in the very fast layback earned a full point over their base values. The change foot combination earned an extra +0.50 and the flying sit +0.40. The straight line steps were Level 3 and +0.40.
6. SP 52.10 (30.30+21.80); Josh Helgessson, Sweden, skating 50th, first in the last warm-up group, to Chris Spheeris’ Magaya, will be 17 on June 7. This is her third appearance in World Jrs. She was 7th in 2008 and 4th last year. Her older sister, Viktoria, competed in the recent European championships and finished 11th. Her triple Lutz to double toe had a slight deduction -0.20, and she got a wrong edge call on the triple flip losing -2.20 on that jump. Her double Axel gained +0.60 over the base value. She earned only one Level 4 which was for her change foot combination spin, which received +0.40 GoE. Her other Levels were all 3. She was awarded only the base value for her flying sit and layback spins; +0.20 for her spirals; and +0.30 for her straight line steps.
7.SP 51.42 (28.90+22.52); Long limbed, tiny bodied Polina Shelepen from Moscow who will turn 15 on July 28, made mistakes in her very difficult routine. Skating 52nd to Michael Jackson music in a red and black body suit, she began with a +0.40 double Axel but the second jump of her triple Lutz to triple toe combination was downgraded and she later singled the flip. She received Level 4 for three elements: her spirals which earned +1.0; her flying sit which gained +0.10; and her change foot combination spin which was given +0.50. The spectacular layback spin, in which she had two variations on the Biellmann, one way above her head and the other with the toe touching her head, earned Level 3 and +0.80. The straight line steps were also Level 3 and gained +0.30 GoE. She left the ice very disappointed. Shelepen won her two Junior Grand Prix events, which were in Budapest and Minsk, and led over Murakami after the SP in the JGP Final. But, in the Russian championships, she had a disastrous short and was lying only tenth. She rebounded with a Free Skate which took her up to third place and gained her a slot in this event.
8.SP 50.98 (31.74+20.24 -1.0); Agnes Zawadzki, who will be 16 on July 31, is from Chicago but has trained in Colorado Springs for the past two and a half years with Tom Zakrajsek. She skated to a Piazzolla tango,Verano Porteno. Although she is the US Junior champion, this is her first international, so she had no ISU ranking. That meant she was relegated to draw in the "earlier" half. She ended up skating 14th, which was fourth in her group of five at 11:02am. The Ladies Short Program began at 9am and finished at 6p.m! She opened with a good +0.40 triple Lutz to double toe. But then she got an edge call for her triple flip and, although she got credit for the rotations, she fell. She received three Level 4s: for her layback spin (+0.50); spirals (+0.80); and for her final move, the change foot combination spin (+0.40). Her double Axel earned +0.60 over the base and her Level 3 straight line steps got +0.30. However, her flying sit spin had a minimal -0.06 removed from the base value. Zakrajsek said, "I was delighted that, after skating so early and having the problem with the flip, that her score stood up all those hours."
9.SP 49.34 (28.50+20.84); Christine Gao US, who will be 16 on March 7th, is from Cincinnati but is trained in Toronto by Brian Orser. Skating 46th to Morning Passages by Phillipp Glass, choreographed by David Wilson and David Liu, Goa has had a rapid ascent. She went from 2009 US Junior bronze medalist to fifth at national senior level in January. This fall she won bronzes in both her Junior Grand Prix assignments, in Poland and in Turkey, and in the JGP final in Tokyo. However, here in The Hague, she executed only a single toe loop after her triple toe loop for her combination, which lost her an enormous amount of points. The base value for a combination of two triple toes is 8.0 but she banked only 1.40 points. She had no other errors. The triple flip earned an extra +0.60. The double Axel and her Level 4 flying sit spin gained just the base value. However, her Level 4 change foot combination spin was given an extra +0.10 and the Level 4 spirals earned +0.80 over their base value. Her Level 3 layback spin got +0.50 and the straight line steps +0.50.