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Left to right: Patrick Chan, Javier Fernandez, Nobunari Oda Click to enlarge.

(27 October 2012) Windsor, Ontario.

Men's Event

Chan Recovers from Japan Open Debacle, but not Enough to Hold Off Fernandez

1. Overall 253.94; 1.SP 85.87 (46.41+39.46); 1.FS 168.07 (85.15+83.92 -1) Javier Fernandez, Spain, could hardly believe he won and was grinning from ear to ear, saying, “It is my first international gold.” Last year in Skate Canada, the 21-year-old from Madrid, who began training with Brian Orser in Toronto in 2011, won the SP but dropped to second overall.   This time he won both the short and long
to take home the gold.

Fernandez presented his Short Program to The Mark of Zorro gaining a lead of 3.35. That was despite a double three turn on the landing of the second jump in his combination of triple Lutz to triple toe, and being saddled with an “e” for wrong edge take-off on the first jump. He had opened with a +1.71 quad toe loop and +1.57 triple Axel. Two of his three spins were Level 3. The third spin and his steps were Level 4. His components ranged from one 9.0 down to four 7.25 for Transitions and Linking Footwork.

In his Free Skate, set to a Charlie Chaplin melody, he tripled and fell on his first jump of his initial element, a planned quad toe to double toe, but brought off the following quad Salchow, which earned him a total of 12.21 points. The following triple Axel got 9.07. His spins were all Level 3 but the steps were again Level 4. At the half way point, when the bonus marks click in, he presented a quad toe to double toe and banked 13.47.

Fernandez also presented a triple Lutz to double toe, triple loop, triple flip-loop-triple Salchow, and second triple Salchow – all with positive GoEs. His only negative, apart from the initial fall was a minimal -0.04 on his Level 3 flying change foot camel spin.

He previously trained with Nikolai Morosov, the Russian, but said that relationship was a problem because Morosov traveled too much. “I like to sleep in my own bed,” the youngster declared, meaning that he didn’t like to travel unnecessarily. Orser says he finds him fun to teach and challenging. He certainly is a persistent pupil. In one practice in Finland, he fell badly four time, including on a quad Salchow, but still bounced back up. In that event he took bronze.

But, in Windsor, he finished an astounding over ten points ahead of the second placed home country favorite, dethroning Patrick Chan in his own country. Orser admitted, “Patrick initially set the standard you had to beat, but the youngsters have taken aim and doing their best to be better. That’s the way it always is.”

Vern Taylor, another Canadian, is credited with doing the first triple Axel in worlds in 1988, but Orser soon became known as Mr. Triple Axel because he was the first to present and land smoothly that jump on a regular basis. “Then, the others took aim and also began presenting triple Axels. Then I had to up my game and do two triple Axels. It’s the same with Patrick. Now everyone takes aim to topple him. That’s the way skating develops.” His components rose to two 9.25 for Interpretation down to a 7.50 for Transitions and Linking.

2. Overall 243.43; 2.SP 2.FS 160.91 (75.13+86.78 -1) Patrick Chan, the five-time Canadian champion, made a coaching change for this season. He is still trained in Colorado Springs, but by Kathy Johnson and Eddie Shipstad. His routines were created by David Wilson and Jeff Buttle. His SP is to Rachmaninov’s Elegie in E Flat Minor. He had trouble right from his first move. Instead of quad toe to triple toe, he did triple-triple, and then nearly fell on his triple Axel. He put one hand on the ice and then flipped over and put the other hand down. However, it was not counted as a fall so he didn’t get deducted a point. The rest of the routine was good. He was even awarded a +3, the maximum GoE, +3, from one of the nine judges, for his triple Lutz, and two +3s for his Level 4 straight line steps. Two of his spins were Level 4 with +0.64 for both his change foot camel and flying sit. His third spin was Level 3 with +0.43. His Level 4 with +1.50 GoE.

His FS is to music from Puccini’s La Boheme. He began with a quad toe but the second jump was a double instead of triple. He still banked 12.31. He put a hand down on his second quad toe loop, which lost 1.43 from its base of 10.30. After a +0.90 triple Lutz, he executed his Level 4 straight line steps earning 1.90 over the base value of 3.90. That reflected six of the nine judges awarding the maximum +3 Grade of Execution, while the other three gave two +2 and one +1. After a Level 3, +0.71 change foot camel spin, he fell on his triple Axel, which was given an arrow for slight under-rotation.

He got +1.2 extra for his triple loop, but then he stepped out of his triple Lutz which was meant to be a combination. The following element was a Level 4 flying sit spin with +0.71. Then came a triple flip to single loop to double Salchow, which was meant to be a triple but still got an extra +0.50.

After the choreographed sequence which earned two +3s out of a possible 9, he executed a +0.29 double Axel and finished with a Level 4, +0.71 GoE Change Foot Combination spin. It was definitely NOT vintage Chan. His components included five 9.25s down to five 8.0s

Afterwards, he seemed to be in of shock. He spoke but not much made real sense. “Any champion – I met 11-time world surfing champion Kelly Slater, and he just lost this year. Everyone is going to lose sometime. It happens. You have to learn from it. I feel really comfortable looking the judges in the eye.”

3. Overall 238.34; 3.SP 82.14 (44.61+37.53); 3.FS 156.20 (78.48+77.72) Nobunari Oda, a 25-year husband and father of a two-year-old son, who stay in Osaka in Japan, even though he does most of his training in Barrie, Ontario. He performed his SP to The New Moon in the Old Moon’s Arms. He opened with a +1.57 quad toe loop to triple toe loop but he couldn’t hold the landing on the following triple Axel. All four elements, which get Levels (three spins and the footwork) received the maximum 4 with good Grades of Execution. His third jump, a triple flip, earned +0.60 over its base level.

His Free Skate was created to Paul Dukas’ interpretation of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. His first jump, a quad toe loop, was landed securely but with a very deep knee bend. For this element, three judges gave 0 which means satisfactory in every aspect, but two gave -1 and one punched in +1. He ended up with -0.14 taken off the base value of 10.30. Then came two triple Axels. The first was so good, it earned two +3s, six +2s and one +1. But on the second, he stepped out of the landing and couldn’t do the double toe loop with which it was combined. He lost two full points from the base level of a triple Axel of 6.80.

Once again he received Level 4 with positive GoEs for all four of the elements which are rewarded with levels. “I was very satisfied with that,” he said later. However, his triple Lutz to triple toe loop, set for when the bonus points click in, received an “e” for wrong edge take-off on the first jump. After a triple flip to double toe loop, a triple loop, a triple Salchow, he did his last jump, a triple flip, which received an arrow for slight under-rotation and he lost -0.70 for this jump.

Oda has now competed in Skate Canada three times. He won a bronze in his first entry in 2005, and then a silver in 2010. So this is his second bronze.

4. Overall 218.72; 5.SP 74.61 (38.66+36.95 -1); 5.FS 144.11 (69.41+74.70) Florent Amodio, France.

5. Overall 213.60; 8.SP 69.41 (36.51+33.90 -1); 4. FS 144.19 (73.91+70.28) Ross Miner, USA, performed a SP to Rachmaninov’s Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini. He began with a Quad Salchow and almost had it but had to put two hands on the ice to keep from falling. His triple Axel was good and he earned a full point over its base value. Then came his first spin, which was a Level 4 change foot combination, which earned an extra +0.50. But then he fell on his triple Lutz which was meant to be his combination. His second spin, a change foot camel earned Level 3 with just the base value. That was followed by his Level 4 steps which earned an extra +0.60. He ended with a Level 4 flying sit spin which got an extra +0.71.

After the disappointment of the SP, the 21-year-old executed a good Free Skate and pulled up three places. His routine was to the stirring music Captain Blood by Erich Korngold. He opened with a planned Quad Salchow but only executed a double. However, that was followed by a triple Axel to double toe loop which earned an extra +0.86 and a 0.71 triple Axel. His flying sit spin was Level 4 with 0.50. Then came a triple Lutz combined with a triple toe loop which gained an extra +0.36. His change foot combination spin was Level 4 with +0.36. But then he doubled his planned triple loop and his triple flip gained an “e” for wrong edge. After the Choreo Sequence, he did a spread eagle into a double Axel and finished with a change foot combination spin which gained 0.50 GoE over the base value for the top Level 4. His components ranged from one high of 8.0 down to a low of 6.25.

He said he had learned from this event and was looking for his next Grand Prix, which is in Japan.