JUNIOR LADIES
SP FS Skater
Notes on the long program:
Lyons was the stand-out in this event. She fell only once, on triple Lutz, and landed triple flip - double toe, double toe, triple loop, double toe, two sequential double axels, and triple Salchow. Her spins were good, some of them very fast. She had nice connecting moves, with good flow and expression. She is ready to move up to seniors (she also has to, having won)! Sutton completed double axel, double Lutz - double loop, triple toe - double toe, a wobbly triple Salchow, and another double axel. She fell on triple loop, two footed triple toe - double toe, and put her foot down on a triple Sachow. Her spins and speed were of fair quality. Miro landed a nice triple Lutz, double axel, split flip - double toe, a nice triple Salchow, double toe, double flip, and double axel - double toe. She fell once on an individual triple toe. She had nice spins, nice speed and presentation, and a well constructed program. Both Sutton and Miro plan to move up to seniors next year.
Sound bites from Shelby Lyons:
On winning the gold: "I'm just really happy with the way I skated."
On becoming a pair skater: "I didn't really want to do pairs at first. I wanted to be a dancer (she has tested through pre-gold) ... that was my favorite thing. After a few weeks I got used to it. Throws were my favorite part of pairs .. I'm scared of lifts though."
On advice from her pairs partner Brian Wells: "He just said, 'go skate good'."
Notes on the short program:
Miro skated a lovely, clean program with single axel, double axel, and triple Lutz - double toe. Sutton's program had interesting, choreography which was well done with single axel, double flip (slightly ragged), and triple toe - double toe. Phillips gave a capable performance of a traditional program, but her presentation lacked warmth. She landed double axel, double flip, and triple Lutz - double loop (with the Lutz, perhaps, slightly cheated). Lyons had a lively, cute program with double axel, double flip, and a fall on the flip of triple flip - double toe.
JUNIOR MEN
SP FS Skater
Notes on the long program:
Goebel skated a mature looking, virtually clean program, his only "error" a reach for the ice on triple Lutz - double toe. He landed all the triples through triple Lutz, had good connecting elements and nice spins. Merica also landed triple Lutz - double toe, and all the triples through triple Lutz. overall it was a strong performance, but he put his hand down on an individual triple flip (he landed another triple flip in combination). That, and a reach for the ice on a triple Lutz, slower spins, and a slightly weaker presentation landed him in second place. Jahnke attempted a difficult program, but had a number of problems. His jumps were somewhat sloppy and unfinished. He landed triple toe and triple Salchow cleanly but fell on triple flip, two footed triple Lutz and popped triple loop. Baldwin self destrucetd in the long, falling on double toe - triple toe and triple loop, two footing triple flip, popping another triple flip, and putting a hand down on double axel. He is capable of landing all these jumps, but unfortunately they were not there today.
Timothy Goebel on winning the title: "I was surprised at first. I just had to sit there and let it sink in for a while before it really hit me. I skated very clean tonight and had to be pleased with my performance. I am really not sure what to expect at the next level. Adjusting to the championship level is going to be a big leap. If I could place in the top ten next year I would be very satisfied.
Notes on the short program:
Goebel skated fast and strong, but his upper body positions still need work. He landed double axel, triple flip, and triple Lutz - triple Toe. Baldwin's program (The Natural) was clean and secure with some personality, and nice footwork and spins. He landed double axel, triple toe, and triple flip - double toe. Dillon also skated a clean program (Casablanca) which was well done. He landed double axel, triple Lutz - double toe, and triple flip (? its hard to take notes and pictures at the same time!). Strong performances were also turned in by Jahnke, Merica, and Clausen, but each had a problem with the combination jump that cost them dearly.
JUNIOR PAIRS
SP FS Skater
Notes on the long program:
Vlandis and Guzman skated a clean program to music from James Bond movies. Technically they were the best team out there with triple twist, throw double loop and throw double Salchow, star lift, platter, and lasso lifts, back inside and forward inside death spirals, and side by side double loops and double toes. In terms of presentation they were one of the best teams as well, skating fast and strong with good unison and expression. In terms of presentation they were only eclipsed by Stiegler and Stiegler, who placed fourth, skating to "Swan Lake". Grabow and Oberman had two problems in their program, with Oberman falling on double axel, and their triple twist under-rotated by 1/4 turn. They completed star, star to one arm star, and lasso to one arm lasso lifts, back inside and forward inside death spirals, throw double loop, and side by side double loops and double toes. Their presentation was neat and capable, but lacked emotion. Davison and Binebose moved up one spot to capture the bronze medal. They had several problems with their jumps and throws but their other pair elements were well done. These included lasso, step through press and reverse star lifts, and foward inside death spiral. Their unison was good, but expression weak, and by the end Binenbose seemed to be straining. Stiegler and Stiegler skated a program of lesser difficulty than the other top teams, with a weak triple twist with a stumble on the exit, and both ffalling on side by side double Lutzs at the end of the program. Their presentation was without comparison among the juniors, and exceeded that of many of the senior teams here as well.
Notes on the short program:
There was a wide variety of opinion among the judges in the pairs short program. Basically, the judges agreed on who belonged in the top five and who didn't. There was no majority of firsts, two majorities of seconds, and three majorities of thirds (all five thirds for third through fifth place).
The way we saw it, there was no doubt in our mind that the first place team of Vlandis and Guzman deserved the top spot. There only error was a step-out of the double loop by Guzman. Vlandis' double loop was well done, their twist was very good, and their death spiral was also well done. They started off sluggish at first but their expression improved throughout the program and was good by the end. Due to the injury to her hand, Vlandis was somewhat apprehensive at the start of the program since their first element was the lasso lift, which puts the greatest strain on her hand in the short program. It was well done, however, and as she gained confidence in the program their presentation improved. Grabow and Oberman had a nearly clean program, the only error a very minor stumble in a step sequence by Oberman. Technically their program was well done, but their presentation was uninteresting, and was marked below several other teams. Barnhnart and Barnhart skated an attractive program, and had one of the two best double twists in the event. There program inclued a single error, with both skaters stepping out of the double loops. Davidson and Binnebose skated a clean program with decent technique and nice expression, although it dragged in places.
JUNIOR DANCE
C1 C2 OD FD Skater
1. 2 1 1 1 Jessica Joseph / Charles Butler
2. 1 2 2 2 Naomi Lang / John Lee
3. 6 3 4 3 Tami Tyler / Jonathan Nichols
4. 4 4 3 4 Azumi Sagara / Jonathan Magalnick
5. 3 9 5 5 Kerrie O'Donnell / Brandon Forsyth
6. 7 6 6 6 Christine Moxley / Tom Gaasbeck
7. 5 5 7 7 Jenny Dahlen / Sergei Lihachov
8. 8 7 8 8 Melissa Gregory / James Shuford
9. 9 10 10 9 Kari Downey / Raphael Kelling
10. 10 8 9 10 Susanna Stapleford / Vincent van Vliet
11. 12 11 11 12 Natalie Wolenter / Kevin Spada
12. 11 12 13 11 Elizabeth Hill / Eleazar Lieb
13. 13 13 12 13 Kristien Fraser / Peter Kongkasem
Notes on the free dance:
Joseph and Butler clearly had the best free dance; fast, energetic, and entertaining, to latin rhythms. Lang and Lee also did a fine job with a traditional ballroom dance program with nice flow and edges. Tyler and Nichols moved up, also skating a traditional ballroom dance program - not quite as intricate as Lang and Lee's. Sagara and Magalnick were smooth and fluid, but fell about half way through with a moderate interruption to the program. They skated mostly side by side, and not particularly close together.