Shanghai 2015 - The Game of the Youths (Ladies Short)
One of the most anticipated events of these championships is the ladies'. Two of the youngest superstars to ever emerge out of Russia will be battling it out with the more-experienced Ashley Wagner, who is determined to give her best shot at winning the title.
Polina Edmunds comes here fresh from her surprising victory at the Four Continents Championships, and proves that her winning the title was not about luck, but about talent and hard work. I absolutely love the blue costume and her spins. Her presentation is not as spectacular as other skaters', but she's got time to improve it. Her score: 61.71.
Zijun Li's elegance is a natural extension of her delicacy, two attributes that Waltz of the Flowers helps emphasize. She waltzes around the rink beautifully and with no technical mistakes. She gets 61.83 points.
Kanako Murakami is just as delicate as the Chinese, but she is stronger technically, going for the jumps with more confidence. I do wish she'd look more at the audience while skating though. Especially with a song like Think of Me, that could help her connect with the audience. It would add to the presentation, which is already great. The phasing of the music is genius. Her score: 65.48.
Maurice Ravel's Bolero comes highly recommended. It's already helped Carolina Kostner climb the podium of the Worlds twice, and it will most certainly also help Elizaveta Tuktamysheva do it. Her being sexy in this routine makes me realise that perhaps the reason why she's never been on top like this before is that she couldn't express all the range of human emotions. Now that she's 18 though, some emotions are not weird anymore. She gets 77.62 points. P.S.: That is a big panda-pig.
This season hasn't been kind on Gracie Gold. There's still a sophisticated simplicity about her, but she seems to have lost control over her elements. She steps out of the triple Lutz, which prevents her from jumping the triple Toeloop. Furthermore, she never attempts it again, which leaves her with no combination. Her score: 60.73.
Satoko Miyahara is Japan's newest superstar. It's her birthday today and I don't think she could give herself a better present than a perfect performance on Mozart's The Magic Flute. Any gifts she does receive will surely come second to this. She gets 67.02 points.
Like any other 16-year-old, Elena Radionova just wants to have fun. But why not win a World medal while she's doing it? That seems to have been the thought-process behind her choosing Pepe Romero's De mi vera te fuiste for the short programme. It does the job because she looks so happy performing it, you can't help but smile and be happy with her. It's also proof that routines don't have to be sombre to impress. Her score: 69.51.
Well, there goes Ashley Wagner's dream of winning the Worlds this year, rolling down the hill at too fast a speed for her to ever be able to catch it. She falls on the triple Toeloop and over-rotates the double Axel. She gets 57.81 points.
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva has no problem taking the lead, but there has been a major change in whom she has to directly compete with for the gold because Ashley Wagner finished the short on 11th place, killing her chance at the title. Elena Radionova is still very much a threat to Tuktamysheva, but by the looks of it she will more likely be battling the Japanese skaters for the silver than steal the gold from Elizaveta. The final will be very interesting, so don't miss it.
Polina Edmunds comes here fresh from her surprising victory at the Four Continents Championships, and proves that her winning the title was not about luck, but about talent and hard work. I absolutely love the blue costume and her spins. Her presentation is not as spectacular as other skaters', but she's got time to improve it. Her score: 61.71.
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| If they gave fashion awards in figure skating, Polina Edmunds would win one for this gorgeous blue dress Source: Xiaolu Ghu/Getty Images Asia |
Kanako Murakami is just as delicate as the Chinese, but she is stronger technically, going for the jumps with more confidence. I do wish she'd look more at the audience while skating though. Especially with a song like Think of Me, that could help her connect with the audience. It would add to the presentation, which is already great. The phasing of the music is genius. Her score: 65.48.
Maurice Ravel's Bolero comes highly recommended. It's already helped Carolina Kostner climb the podium of the Worlds twice, and it will most certainly also help Elizaveta Tuktamysheva do it. Her being sexy in this routine makes me realise that perhaps the reason why she's never been on top like this before is that she couldn't express all the range of human emotions. Now that she's 18 though, some emotions are not weird anymore. She gets 77.62 points. P.S.: That is a big panda-pig.
This season hasn't been kind on Gracie Gold. There's still a sophisticated simplicity about her, but she seems to have lost control over her elements. She steps out of the triple Lutz, which prevents her from jumping the triple Toeloop. Furthermore, she never attempts it again, which leaves her with no combination. Her score: 60.73.
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| Ashley Wagner falls short of expectations Source: Xiaolu Ghu/Getty Images Asia |
Like any other 16-year-old, Elena Radionova just wants to have fun. But why not win a World medal while she's doing it? That seems to have been the thought-process behind her choosing Pepe Romero's De mi vera te fuiste for the short programme. It does the job because she looks so happy performing it, you can't help but smile and be happy with her. It's also proof that routines don't have to be sombre to impress. Her score: 69.51.
Well, there goes Ashley Wagner's dream of winning the Worlds this year, rolling down the hill at too fast a speed for her to ever be able to catch it. She falls on the triple Toeloop and over-rotates the double Axel. She gets 57.81 points.
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva has no problem taking the lead, but there has been a major change in whom she has to directly compete with for the gold because Ashley Wagner finished the short on 11th place, killing her chance at the title. Elena Radionova is still very much a threat to Tuktamysheva, but by the looks of it she will more likely be battling the Japanese skaters for the silver than steal the gold from Elizaveta. The final will be very interesting, so don't miss it.
I am happy for Liza and Elena but very sad for Gracie!!
ReplyDeletethe panda pig is so funny :))))
ReplyDeleteLiza's 3A made me go O_________O
What's wrong with Lena Radionova's score btw, she should have had 70-71 (well, obviously there's some fault at the end of the SP that I can't see)
What did I think? Well I think most of the ladies did their best and had great programs. US ladies were sure a disappointment (with the exception of Polina of course)! Gracie and Ashley were both capable of a lot more than what they did. Sad they weren't on their A game like most everyone else. They are not my favorite skaters, but I do like to see my country do well, so I do root for them. Glad to see Japan do so well even with the absence of Mao. Although I do miss Mao more than ever right now! Can't wait to see what happens in the LP
ReplyDeleteTukt did great, although I think her PCS is slightly too high (or was Mao's too low? ;)) So happy for the Japanese skaters at 3,4,5. I am crushed by Wagner and Gold, they really need to work on their consistency!
ReplyDelete