2014 European Championships - The Dancers, Part 1
Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat's withdrawal has once more opened a whole new world of possibilities for ice dancers. The French couple decided to focus on the Olympic Games rather than risk an injury in Budapest, as did Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev. This makes the perfect opportunity for Elena Ilinykh and Nikita Katsalapov to change last year's silver medals with the gold ones they almost got. But what will Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte have to say about it?
Isabella Tobias/Deividas Stagniunas' Marylin Monroe theme suffers from a flawed step sequence and lack of speed in the first part of the dance. They earn 56.76 points.
Penny Coomes/Nicholas Buckland chose a modern Fred Astaire and Jurassic 5 for their short programme. The twizzles are strong and the interpretation is good enough, but as pretty as Penny's dress is, she needs to go all the way and learn that longer means more spectacular. Their score: 61.76.
Chicago might be enjoyable to watch every time we see it, but Ekaterina Riazanova/Ilia Tkachenko are just not cheeky enough to tell the story accurately. Technically, there's nothing wrong. They earn 60.35 points.
Gabriella Papadakis/Guillaume Cizeron (the couple who replaced Pechalat/Bourzat) have a couple of tiny mistakes in their routine: she stumbles in the finnstep sequence and has a late entrance into the twizzles. However, because this is their first Senior European competition, we'll let them slide. Their score: 53.33.
You can tell Elena Ilinykh/Nikita Katsalapov know what the stakes are from the very start. Their finnstep is fast, glitzy and absolutely fabulous. For all the criticism I've thrown their way, it's time to admit this programme deserves a gold medal. The costumes are a welcomed bonus. They earn 69.54 points.
It's the story of the lady and the lucky 'doofus' for Nelli Zhiganshinaa/Alexander Gazsi. They tell it well and are every bit as original as we know them. What makes this story even more special is that it has a second part in the free dance. Unfortunately, their twizzles continue to give them a bit of a struggle. Their score: 59.79.
Pernelle Carron/Lloyd Jones' twizzles are not as delightful as their first song would have us believe, but the routine is alert and fully enjoyed by the skaters. They earn 56.35 points.
The dancing feet of Anna Cappellini/Luca Lanotte are simply perfect today. As joyful as we know them, but perhaps more motivated than ever before, they don't waste a single breath of air. No wonder they come out victorious. Their score: 69.58. They can barely believe it themselves that tomorrow they could be European champions.
Charlene Guignard/Marco Fabbri need to be more consistent in their interpretation of Cabaret. There are bits where they play the parts well, but they lose it as soon as a more difficult element comes along. If they can just combine both sides, they'll do excellent in the future because they've got plenty of potential. They earn 58.17 points.
Julia Zlobina/Alexei Sitnikov have improved since last year by picking a theme and sticking with it. It's The Pink Panther for them and a surprisingly high technical score. It's a funny touch how they incorporated inspector Clouseau's clumsiness in the routine. Their score: 59.82.
With a lot less than one point between Italy and France, the sky will be the limit in the free dance.It's nice to know that whomever wins these Europeans, will become the champions of the continent for the first time.
Isabella Tobias/Deividas Stagniunas' Marylin Monroe theme suffers from a flawed step sequence and lack of speed in the first part of the dance. They earn 56.76 points.
Penny Coomes/Nicholas Buckland chose a modern Fred Astaire and Jurassic 5 for their short programme. The twizzles are strong and the interpretation is good enough, but as pretty as Penny's dress is, she needs to go all the way and learn that longer means more spectacular. Their score: 61.76.Chicago might be enjoyable to watch every time we see it, but Ekaterina Riazanova/Ilia Tkachenko are just not cheeky enough to tell the story accurately. Technically, there's nothing wrong. They earn 60.35 points.
Gabriella Papadakis/Guillaume Cizeron (the couple who replaced Pechalat/Bourzat) have a couple of tiny mistakes in their routine: she stumbles in the finnstep sequence and has a late entrance into the twizzles. However, because this is their first Senior European competition, we'll let them slide. Their score: 53.33.
You can tell Elena Ilinykh/Nikita Katsalapov know what the stakes are from the very start. Their finnstep is fast, glitzy and absolutely fabulous. For all the criticism I've thrown their way, it's time to admit this programme deserves a gold medal. The costumes are a welcomed bonus. They earn 69.54 points.
It's the story of the lady and the lucky 'doofus' for Nelli Zhiganshinaa/Alexander Gazsi. They tell it well and are every bit as original as we know them. What makes this story even more special is that it has a second part in the free dance. Unfortunately, their twizzles continue to give them a bit of a struggle. Their score: 59.79.
Pernelle Carron/Lloyd Jones' twizzles are not as delightful as their first song would have us believe, but the routine is alert and fully enjoyed by the skaters. They earn 56.35 points.
The dancing feet of Anna Cappellini/Luca Lanotte are simply perfect today. As joyful as we know them, but perhaps more motivated than ever before, they don't waste a single breath of air. No wonder they come out victorious. Their score: 69.58. They can barely believe it themselves that tomorrow they could be European champions.Charlene Guignard/Marco Fabbri need to be more consistent in their interpretation of Cabaret. There are bits where they play the parts well, but they lose it as soon as a more difficult element comes along. If they can just combine both sides, they'll do excellent in the future because they've got plenty of potential. They earn 58.17 points.
Julia Zlobina/Alexei Sitnikov have improved since last year by picking a theme and sticking with it. It's The Pink Panther for them and a surprisingly high technical score. It's a funny touch how they incorporated inspector Clouseau's clumsiness in the routine. Their score: 59.82.
With a lot less than one point between Italy and France, the sky will be the limit in the free dance.It's nice to know that whomever wins these Europeans, will become the champions of the continent for the first time.
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