2005 U.S. Nationals

Missing in Action: Ryan Bradley, 6^th last year, was injured and could not compete in sectionals, and medical byes are no longer permitted. Christopher Toland, the’04 Junior champion, who won a bronze in the ’04 Nebelhorn Trophy in Germany this past summer and was 2^nd in the Senior Pacific Coasts, withdrew at the beginning of January, due to ankle injury. Justin Dillon, 11^th last year, was 7^th in Pacific Coast and so didn’t qualify. Nor did Michael Villarreal, 20^th last year, who was 9^th in that same Sectional. Matthew Lind, 13^th last year, did the paperwork for New Englands but did not compete there.

Dennis Phan, 14^th in his senior national debut in ’04, withdrew after Tuesday morning’s practice in Portland due to an ankle injury. Rohene Ward, 16^th last year, did not get out of Midwest Sectionals. Because his maternal grandparents are from Puerto Rico, he competed and won that recently instigated championship. Puerto Rico has a separate status to that of the US as a member of the International Olympic Committee, and has just been granted the first step to membership in the International Skating Union. Therefore, Ward may soon be representing Puerto Rico in the Worlds and Olympics. Daniel Lee, 18^th last year, was 5^th and therefore did not make it out of Midwests. Ben Miller, 19^th last year, withdrew from Midwesterns. After consecutive seasons with stress fractures and shin problems, Miller decided to try ice dancing and has been training with Igor Shpilband in Canton, Michigan, and looking for a partner.

Timothy Goebel was delighted with his first place showing in the short program. "To come back from my injuries is a relief. I got a little sloppy at the end but it was a great improvement over NHK," said the 24 year old who skated to Concerto Elegiaque for Piano in D Minor by Rachmaninoff choreographed by Lori Nichol. He began with a graceful serpentine step sequence before soaring into his quad toe double toe. Though this was planned as a quad-triple, the lessening of the difficulty was a sensible decision because no one to this point had brought off a quad and there were only five skaters to come.

The audience really got on his side and there was a huge surge of applause when he completed his triple Axel. The rest was just flowed including a great triple flip from footwork. It was a smooth showing that showed increased maturity.

The strain of his past season was obvious when he tear-ed up with emotional relief at the completion of the two minute and fifty second routine, which is ten seconds more than was allowed prior to this season. "Skating here was very difficult with what happened yesterday. It was really a very rough day. I was really stressed out today. With the stress, it was a very emotion moment. I was well prepared and healthy. I said to myself, ‘It’s really important to control the controllable.’ I worked too hard to show up and fall apart." Goebel lives in Los Angeles and was very friendly with Angela Nikodinov whose mother was killed in a traffic accident yesterday.

The former champion has been troubled by equipment and back, hip and leg alignment problems which caused him to pull out of last year’s championship after a disastrous 10^th place in the short. He also withdrew from the Trophy Eric Bompard Grand Prix because of neck restrictions and from the Marshalls Cup invitational in December. He recently changed coaches to Audrey Weisinger after a clash of viewpoints with his coach of two years Frank Carroll. He was the ’94 US Novice & ’96 Junior champion and was 6^th in his senior debut in ’97. In ’98 he withdrew. In ’99 he won the bronze, in ’00,’02 & ’03 he gained the silver and in ’01 the title. He won the ’02 Olympic bronze medal and has competed in the world championship five times finishing 12^th in ’99, 11^th in ’00, 4^th in ’01, and 2^nd in ’02 & ’03.

Johnny Weir, 20, gave a virtuoso performance that had the audience erupting into a standing ovation at its conclusion. It was beautifully choreographed to Camille Saint-Saens’ Rondo Capriccioso by Tatiana Tarasova and Evgeny Platov. But the tension of defending his title showed. "Today was a fighting program. I’m pleased I really fought." Asked how it felt coming in as defending champion, Weir said, "It was different. I’ve never before got to nationals and had a press conference scheduled. I’ve never had that sort of exposure before. It’s hard to stay in my little world. Last year is in the past and I have to show what I can do now."

Weir rocketed up into the triple Axel but the landing was not his usual smooth as satin. In fact it was quite strained. The following triple Lutz to triple toe was much smoother. The tension surfaced again on the landing of the triple flip which was on his toe. The first set of marks included a ridiculously low 5.3. The rest of the panel gave three 5.6s, two 5.7s and three 5.8s. For the second set they included one 6.0, five 5.9s and two 5.8s.

Both Goebel and Weir gained four votes of first place with Doug Williams from Los Angeles awarding his first place to Lysacek. That meant the decision for who was first depended on who had the greater number of first and second place votes. All the judges put Goebel either first or second. However two judges, Susan Jackson from Atlanta and Williams put Weir third which made the difference.

Weir won the title in ’04 at his 4^th try. He was 6^th in ’01, 5^th in ’02, and forced to withdraw with injury during long in ’03 after placing 2^nd in short. Weir, who started skating very late, at 12, was the world junior champion in ’01. At the Marshall’s event early this season he hurt his foot tripping off a roadside curb. While giving an exhibition after winning the silver medal at the ’04 Cup of Russia, he sprained his foot and had to withdraw from the Grand Prix Final.

Evan Lysacek gave a super performance which delighted the enthusiastic audience who gave him a partial standing ovation. He lies third. "It’s the first 6.0 I’ve had," said the 19 year old. "Usually skating early is a handicap. The judges save the high scores for later on. It’s the icing on the cake. It’s a great day for me. I’m thrilled with my performance. I upped the technique." The 6.0 was given by Doug Williams for the second mark.

Dressed in a flamboyant gold on black matador costume, which matched his Espana Cani choreographed by Oleg Epstein, he skated each element with a fiery intensity and was rewarded with marks ranging from 5.4 to 5.8 for the first set and from 5.6 up to a 6.0 from judge number eight.

We all know the 6.0 system is going out this year, so officials have been readier to award this accolade. But this 6.0 was still astonishing because Lysacek skated so early – third – of the 19 competitors. Lysacek first came into the limelight when he won back to back national novice and junior titles in ’99 & ’00. He was 12^th in seniors in ’01 &’02, 7^th in ’03, and 5^th last year.

4. Matthew Savoie, 24, had an excellent showing. He began his "Adagio for Strings" by Samuel Barber routine with a flying camel followed by an excellent triple Axel and a nice triple flip to triple toe loop combination. His footwork to triple Lutz was also good. The first set of marks ranged from 5.1 up to 5.6 while the second set went from 5.4 up to a 5.9.

Savoie won the bronze last year. He was the ’97 US Junior champion. In his senior debut in ’98 he finished 11^th but climbed to 4^th the following year. He held that place in’00, then was 3^rd in ’01, 4^th in ’02, 5^th in ’03 before finally stepping back onto the rostrum in Atlanta. He has been to Worlds twice. In ’02 he finished 12^th and in ’04 he was 16^th.

5. Michael Weiss, 28, skating 5^th gave the audience two firsts - its first quad and its first fall. Unfortunately, the fall was on the quad which was his first element. Not only did he incur a deduction, he burst the audience’s balloon, and their adrenalin which had soared with the previous skaters, seemed to drain out of them in sympathy for this very accomplished and veteran competitor. He completed all the other elements to his Henry V music in a routine choreographed by his wife, Lisa Thornton Weiss. Included were some very interesting and difficult variations but although the competition is only one third through, he is most likely toast.

This is the former (’94) world junior champion’s 12^th time at this event. He won the title 3 times (’99, ’00 & ’03), was 2^nd 3 times (’97, ’98 & ’04) and took the bronze in ’02. In his debut, in ’94, he finished 8^th. He also placed 6^th in ’95, 5^th in ’96 and 4^th in ’01. He made his debut in World Seniors in ’97 finishing 7^th, was 6^th 3 times (’98, ’02 & ’04), won the bronze twice (’99 & ’00) and was 5^th in ’03. He was 7^th in both his Olympic (’98 & ’02) appearances. The very personable skater has two children: Christopher, who likes hockey, 5, & Annie-Mae, a potential figure skater, 6.

6. Shaun Rogers, 19, performing to Synphony No.5 by Dmitri Shostakovich very interesting choreographed by Pam Gregory, thrilled the audience with his quad toe which he landed in a shoot the duck position. He was forced to put a hand on the ice but then got airborne for a double toe. It was an energetic showing and the low marks which included a 4.4 in the first set were booed. Rogers was 16^th in ’03. He missed the whole of the ’04 season due to injury.

7. Skating first, attired in blue, Scott Smith, 23, got the competition off to fine start. He soared through a triple Axel and though he had to put his hand down on the quad toe, he got airborne for the double toe. He completed his other moves including the triple loop on which he had to bend his knee on the landing slightly more than normal. His routine to "Freedom" was choreographed by Lori Nichol.

Smith has had a checkered career. The ’98 national junior champion was 14^th in his senior debut in ’99 and didn’t make it back the following year. In ’01 he was 18^th. In ’02 he was 9^th. He made a spectacular advance in ’03 finishing 4^th. But last year he was back to 9^th.

8. Nicholas LaRoche, 21, skating immediately after the flamboyant reception for Lysacek, appeared more reflective and somber in his grey and steel outfit which was in line with his routine, "Time To Say Goodbye", choreographed by Grant Rorvick. He executed an excellent triple Axel and triple Lutz to triple toe. His triple flip was high although landed on the toe.

LaRoche was 12^th in ’04 which might have been disappointing after being 8^th in his debut in ’03 but, in Atlanta, he competed with a sprained left hip with blood in his flexor and against the advice of his doctor. He is the current Pacific Coast Sr. champion and was the ’02 national junior champion.

9. Derrick Delmore, 26, interpreting Henry VIII music choreographed by Jill Shipstad Thomas, dressed in black with a silver belt, began with a triple Lutz followed by a triple flip to triple toe combination in which he two footed the landing of the second jump. His jubilation after landing the triple Axel was apparently and carried into his next move, his very dramatic straight line step sequence.

Delmore was 8^th in ’04. In ’03 he was forced to withdraw from nationals after placing 12^th in the short program because of a right hip flexor muscle problem. He has had a very long career at nationals beginning with a 4^th place in Novice in 1992. He is the current Eastern champion.

10. Ryan Jahnke, 26, performed his routine to J.S. Bach’s Bourée magnificently choreographed by Tom Dickson. Unfortunately it was an off day for Jahnke. He just held on to the landing of the triple Axel. The second landing of his triple flip to triple toe combination was cheated and he two footed the landing of his triple Lutz from footwork.

Jahnke made his senior debut in ’98 finishing 8^th. He was 9^th in ’99, 5^th in ’01, 8^th in ’01 &’02, 3^rd in ’03 and 4^th last year. He made the world championship team once – finishing 13^th in ’03. Coaches: Diana Ronayne & Hoon Kim, Music:

11. Jordan Brauninger, 17, who was 10^th in his debut last year, gave an interesting showing to a mix of techno music appropriately attired in an unusual mustard colored shirt with two different sized burgundy circles. His first move, a triple Axel, was huge. He completed his triple flip from footwork but then doubled his planned triple Lutz in the combination and although he completed the second jump, a triple toe, the omission was severely penalized.

The ’04 world junior bronze medalist, coaches Stephanie Miller & Ted Masdea, music a techno mix choreographed by Valorie Cecil & Julie Marcotte. This summer he incurred a 2" hairline break in his right fibula while running which ate into his training time.

12. Jordan Wilson, 23, presented a powerful routine to Granada beginning with an impressive outside spread into a triple Axel. But his triple Lutz out of footwork had a forced landing. Jordan first made it to nationals in ’98 as a novice, placing 8^th. In his first time in nationals at senior level in ’03 he was 14^th. Last year he finished 15^th.

13. Wesley Campbell, 19, provided the audience with a very artistic, musical showing to Rachmaninoff’s lovely cello piece, Vocalise, which was choreographed by Bill Fauver. He is the ’04 junior bronze medalist making his first trip to senior nationals. Campbell stepped out of his triple Axel but the triple flip to triple toe and the triple Lutz out of footwork was good.

14. Daniel Steffel, 20, making his first trip to senior nationals, performed to "Brainbug – Nightmare" in black. He put a hand down on the triple Lutz but was able to get airborne for a double toe. He also executed a triple flip and double Axel. In his previous trips to nationals, Steffel finished 14^th in novice in ’99 & ’00.

15. Brandon Overett, 23, began his routine with a straight line step sequence which was totally in keeping with his music, "Fidler on the Roof". He really seemed to enjoy the choreography and the audience was right behind him. Unfortunately, he fell on his next element the triple Axel, put a hand down on the double toe loop after the triple Lutz and then had a bad fall on his triple loop. It was a terrible shame because the routine would have been great if only you could have blotted out the jumps. Overett, who is the Midwestern champion, was 15^th in his debut in ’01. He just failed to get out of Midwests in ’02, was 10^th in ’03 and 7^th last year.

16. Parker Pennington, 20, appeared in light blue with some colorful shiny wiggly lines which set up his routine which was to a Jazz mix. He began well with a triple Axel but had a bad fall on the triple Lutz so could not complete the planned second jump of the combination, triple toe. He completed the triple flip out of footwork but fell again before the flying camel and received marks in the 3’s for the first set.The ’01 national Junior champion was 13^th in his senior nationals debut in ’02, 6^th in ’03, but had an injury problem and withdrew after lying 17^th in the short in ’04.

17. Mauro Bruni, 20, performed in a red shirt and black pants to "Rhumba de la Noche". He completed his triple Lutz to triple toe combination but doubled his triple flip from footwork. Bruni was 17^th in his debut in ’04.

18. Jason Wong, 18, skated to "Besame Mucho". In his first move, he faulted the landing of his triple Axel, landing with both feet crossed. Though he didn’t fall, he was not able to get airborne for the second jump of the combination, a double toe loop. Wong is the ’04 national junior runner-up making his first trip to senior nationals.

19. Pierre Balian, who was 5^th in Pacific Coast, stepped in at the last minute as a replacement for the injured Christopher Toland. Skating in black, to Vivaldi’s the Four Seasons, he fell on his triple Axel which was to have been combined with a double toe. Although he managed a triple Salchow from footwork, he singled his double Axel.

The 8,972 brave souls, who had ventured out on a dangerously icy day in which television coverage showed cars in accidents caused by the weather and people were advised to stay home, got their money’s work. Weir was gorgeous pushing the judges into giving six 6.0s. Goebel showed great artistic improvement and Lysacek brought a pleasant entertaining lightness to the mix.

Immediately following the event USFigureSkating announced that the top three would go to worlds but held off on the selection of the team for Four Continents. When asked, if selected would they go to Korea, only Lysacek seemed positive. "My coaches think it would be good experience for me to try and get the quad in." Lysacek is recovering from a hip stress fracture but has been given clearance to train at 100%. "I lost the summer because of the injury and I wasn’t able to work on the quad till a short time ago."

Weir, obviously, was over the moon. "I was relieved," he said. "I very nervous Its true – it is harder to defend my title. I had to harness my nerves. It was so difficult to wait backstage. The 6.0s are cool. I was elated because it was so much pressure." Even with those accolades, Weir wasn’t satisfied with his performance. "As far as the artistic side, I know I can perform better. This is the last competition with 6.0s so it was a great experience – the cherry on top of the sundae." He is very hard on himself. Later he explained he had not expected to win the short program, in which he was second. "There were people out there who skated better than me," said the truthful and obviously not self-aggrandizing Weir.

The warm up of the top six was fraught with tension with Goebel clipping Weiss with his skate sending both of them to the ice. Goebel said, "You have so much to fit into a six minute warm up, the last thing we are thinking about is the other competitors. He got up and skated well. I got up and skated well."

Weir interpreted Otonal by Raul DiBlasio, choreographed by Tatiana Tarasova & Evgeny Platov, in a blue flowing creation, and he was mesmerizing – totally enchanting. The audience rocketed out of their seat to stand and cheer his near flawless performance.

He began with a smooth and easy triple Axel to triple toe. The second triple toe was just a comma in his masterpiece. He delighted with a high triple Lutz whose landing edge stroked the ice like a kiss. After a flying camel, a triple Axel erupted into air charged with the audience’s expectations which had materialized into palpable electricity.

Then came circular footwork with his unique traveling toe pirouettes, a camel spin, a triple loop out of double three turns and a triple Salchow. The only jagging note came on the triple flip whose landing was slightly scraped. A death drop, straight line step sequence and a combination spin brought the proceedings to a close. His ordinals, naturally, were straight firsts.

2. Goebel, skating to ‘Queen Symphony’ by Tolfa Kashif, in black with red and black chiffon-y sleeves, gave one of his best performances for a long time. It certainly wasn’t flawless but it had a depth of emotion that was missing in the past. He was given a token partial standing ovation but dropped out of the lead he established on Thursday.

Goebel opened softly with a triple Salchow but then soared through a quad toe to triple toe. Unfortunately the quad was two footed. His first triple Axel had a strange pause in mid rotation and the landing was a mess. He followed that with a double Axel. After a death drop and a change foot sit spin, he tried a second triple Axel. It was powerful but he had to do a double three turn to control the rotation on landing and then added a double toe loop. The triple flip from spread eagle was nicely performed. There were several stops in the straight line step sequence. Then came a triple loop and a final spin combination. Goebel received all 5.7s and 5.8s for the first mark except from Judge No. 4, Joyce Komperda from Menomonee Falls, WI, who saw nothing to deserve more than a 5.3. The second mark went from three 5.7s up to a solitary 5.9. His ordinals were six second places, two thirds and a fourth from Ms. Komperda.

Goebel said, "It was obviously disappointing. But I’ve had a really rough year and just making it to the world team is an achievement."

3. Skating immediately after Weir’s amazing performance, Lysacek, presented a completely different interpretation which also won a standing ovation from the audience. If Weir had the classicism of the Bolshoi ballet, then Lysacek had the sparkle of Hollywood. Both were wonderful but each very different.

Skating to "Singin’ in the Rain", Lysacek began with an icon from the past, a back loop change loop. The whole four and a half minutes was far from perfect and did not include a quad but it was fresh and enjoyable and you could relax watching his interpretation of music every is familiar with. "I must have seen the movie a hundred and thirty nine times," said Lysacek.

He began with a triple Axel but landed on a very deep edge and was only able to combine it with a single toe. Then came a spiral to triple flip combined with a triple toe loop. Next was an unflawed triple Axel followed by a reverse walley to triple Lutz to double toe. The toe tapping section came along with a change foot sit spin, a serpentine step sequence, steps into a triple Salchow and a flying camel. He tried an interesting Ina Bauer approach to a loop but could only do a double instead of the planned triple. He treated the audience to a variation on a death drop, a straight line step sequence, a triple Lutz and concluded with a combination spin. He was awarded three second places, five third places and a fifth from Kathleen McBride of San Francisco.

Lysacek took third place in both sections and overall.

4. Savoie, skating to "Exotic" from Cirque du Soleil and "Once Upon A Time in Mexico", choreographed by Tom Dickson, in burgundy velvet, was fourth in both sections and overall. He chose to do a triple Lutz instead of attempting a quad toe for his first jump. He followed that with a triple Axel to double toe. Then came a disappointing double Salchow instead of a triple. Later he did a splendid triple Axel from an interesting low entry but a planned triple flip to triple toe became a triple to double. After a triple loop, there was a double instead of triple Lutz.

5. Weiss once again had a disappointing placing. The former champion was fifth in both sections and overall. Skating to ‘Stairway to Heaven’ & ‘Bonzo’s Montreux’ by Led Zeppelin and ‘Unforgiven’ by Metallica, began with a good quad toe but he had to do a loop on the ice to hold the landing of the triple toe it was combined with. With that out of the way, Weiss, who wore his famous "tattoo" shirt, played careful. His second jump, planned as a second quad, was a triple and the triple Axel to triple toe turned into triple-double. He put a hand down on his triple loop but the walley into triple Axel was good. There were many interesting variations on spins and transitions which might be rewarded in the new system but failed to impress some of the judges who gave him three fourths, five fifths, and a sixth.

About the collision in the warm up, Weiss said, "We just clipped feet and I went down and hurt the inside of my foot and then my left knee. It didn’t affect my program but I think it affected my mind a little bit because my foot hurt going into program." As the end of the routine, a football was thrown on the ice and Weiss played around with it, at one point spinning it to the delight of the audience.

6. Rogers was 7^th in the long but held onto the 6^th place he had gained in the short. Skating to "The Matrix Reloaded" choreographed by Nathan Birch, Rogers fell on his opening move, the quad toe, then stepped out of his triple Axel which he sequenced into a double, not triple toe. However, the following triple Lutz was excellent. A very, very nice, smooth triple Axel came after a good death drop. A very competent triple loop succeeded his circular footwork. He did walleys into a triple Salchow but right at the end a planned triple turned into a double.

7. Delmore, skating immediately after the first ice resurface with sophisticated polish to Espana Cani, Concierto de Aranjuez and Malaguena choreographed by Jill Shipstad Thomas, he gave a clean showing beginning with a triple Lutz to triple toe combination followed by a triple Axel. However, Delmore, who has been taught for all his career by Shirley Hughes, tripled his planned quad Salchow to double toe and executed only one triple Axel. He was sixth in the long which pulled him up from ninth after the short to finish seventh overall.

8. LaRoche held onto the eighth place he had gained in the short although he was ranked only ninth in the long. Skating to a classical medley by Brahms, Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff choreographed by Grant Rorvick, he performed in black with pounds of silver attached to his upper body in vertical stripes. He wowed the audience with a triple Axel to triple toe loop combination but then had a little bit of a struggle on the second move, a triple loop. The triple Lutz to triple toe was downgraded to triple-double and his triple Axel was popped to a single. His planed triple Lutz combined with a triple Salchow was change to a sequence.

9. Smith dropped from seventh to ninth with an eleventh ranked free. Skating to ‘The Prophet’ choreographed by Lori Nichol, in black velvet with gold belt and sash, gave a performance which was well under his capabilities. He began with a triple Salchow. He stepped out of the first triple Axel and couldn’t do the planned combination jump so, when he also stepped out of his second attempt, he had to improvise a double toe as a sequence to keep from having it disallowed as an illegal repetition.

10. Overett, who has a skating style very similar to 1992 Olympic silver medalist Paul Wylie, made a huge advance climbing from 15^th after the short to tenth with a free that was judges eighth best. He skated to Michael Smith’s "Freedom" in white loves and blue military attire. Though he fell badly on his opening jump a triple Axel, he completed this feat later. His landing knee was very bent but the flow out of the jump was excellent. All his other moves were completed except his triple Lutz which became a double.

11. Brauninger stayed 11^th although his free was the tenth best. Skating to "Pirates of the Caribbean" choreographed by Valorie Cecil & Julie Marcott, in an outfit and unruly hair which fitted his role, he had a couple of acting moments, miming meeting a grand lady and swordplay. Some of his jumps were very high. However, he was forced to put a hand on the ice in both his triple Axel attempts. The first was meant to be a combination in a double toe and he had to change that to a sequence.

12. Wilson was 12^th in both sections and overall. Skating first after the second warm up, he really got the audience going and they gave him a standing ovation. He interpreted Phantom of the Opera with great power, beginning with a triple Axel to triple toe and a triple flip to triple toe. Some of the jumps were landed a little scratchily, on an inside edge or with a little bit of a jackknife but this was a very manly showing. He may not be particularly graceful but he has great appeal. You knew the crowd’s reaction was lifting him when, on his spread eagle into his triple Axel he began smiling. He showed he can think on his feet. Because the second jump on this second combination was planned only as a double, he had to take out his second triple flip. Other he would have been penalized for repeating three different kinds of triple three times instead of the allowed two.

13. Jahnke dropped from tenth after the short to 13^th with a 13^th place in long. Skating to Edvard Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A Minor choreographed by Tom Dickson, Jahnke did not have a good day. He put a hand down on his opening move, the triple Axel, and failed to do the planned double toe. Instead of an attempt at a quad toe he executed a three jump combination of triple toe-double toe-double loop. The camel spin combination which followed was good. However, he fell on his second triple Axel and also on his speciality, the ’Tano Lutz. He landed it but a second afterwards his free foot hit the ice and he dove forwards into the ice. Unsettled by this he doubled his next jump a flip and fell on his next and final jump, the triple loop.

14. Campbell dropped a place from 13^th after the short after a long which was ranked 15^th. He skated to Bernstein’s ‘On The Waterfront’ choreographed by Bill Fauver, Campbell is a very artistic skater which he clearly demonstrated that in the short. But in this section that was not apparent. He did not do justice to himself. He fell on his first move, a triple loop. However, he accomplished his second move, a double Axel to triple toe. He brought off his triple Axel late in the program. Perhaps he positioned this highlight in preparation for next season’s new judging system where extra credit is given to jumps later done later in the four and a minute routine. However, not doing the triple Axel early, especially when others are doing that, means that you don’t immediately "grab" the audience. Campbell executed a triple Salchow to triple loop combination but the second landing was forced. In his second to last move, he stepped out of his double Axel.

15. Wong climbed three places from his 18^th place in the short with a long which was judged 14^th best. He skated very well to Prokofiev’s "Romeo & Juliet" choreographed by David Liu & Jamie Isley, landing a triple Axel and all the other triples except the flip which he popped. His only combination was a triple loop to double toe loop.

16. Pennington was 16^th in both sections and overall. Skating to Felix Mendelssohn-Barholdy’s Violin Concerto in E Minor, one of the most famous and beloved pieces of music ever written, Pennington showed none of his former flair. He had a troubled showing and looked uncomfortable and ill at ease. He completed his second triple Axel which he combined with a double toe but stepped out of his first attempt at this difficult jump. He fell twice on a triple loop and the second jump of the combination of triple flip to triple Salchow.

17. Steffel dropped three places from his 14^th place in the short with a free ranked 17^th best. Skating to well loved music from Bizet’s Opera Carmen dressed appropriately as a matador, Steffel began with a triple flip to double toe. He fell badly on his second move, a triple Lutz. His triple toe got a huge amount of air time with great length but he had to execute a double three to hold the landing. He succeeded with a triple loop but fell again on a triple Lutz. Later he brought off a triple Salchow and double Axel.

18. The handsome Bruni, performing to "The Mission" by Ennio Morricone, had a clean showing but had no triple Axel or triple-triple combination and dropped a place.

19. Balian, skating to "Winter Storm" on an appropriately icy, cold, wet day, had a very flawed showed which included ended in his singling an Axel.

Short Program

Free Skating