Shanghai 2015 - Pleasant Surprises and Underdogs (Men Final)
The odds are incredibly high for Yuzuru Hanyu, Javier Fernandez and Denis Ten, who are currently occupying the three podium positions. While the Japanese will look to keep his World title, the Spanish will want to upgrade last season's bronze, going head-to-head against the Khazakh. Good luck!
Maxim Kovtun's problems with the quad Toeloop continue; they might need to have a chat because for whatever reason, he can't land it. He also steps out of the triple Axel, but otherwise his performance is on the up since yesterday. His score: 159.98. Overall: 230.70.
What a performance from Nam Nguyen! The Canadian training alongside the top two contenders enjoys himself out there, which sends off a nice vibe to everyone watching. La Strada is a story dominated by two opposite genres - comedy and tragedy - and he pulls both of them off fabulously. One detail of the choreography that gets my attention is the way he uses his eyes to switch emotions - when he looks down, you can see the tragedy, but when he raises his eyes, he is back to his comedic self. This might be a way of expressing the fact that the artist must always wear a happy mask whenever he looks at the audience, but when he is all by himself, the mask comes off to reveal a tragic destiny. He gets 164.86 points. Overall: 242.59.
When it comes to Michal Brezina, I feel that we've been robbed of an exceptional programme all throughout this season. His Marriage of Figaro has everything it needs to be spectacular on paper, but he never aces all the elements, which downplays the presentation. He doubles out of the quad Toeloop, the quad Salchow, the triple Toeloop and the triple Salchow, and over-rotates the quad Salchow. Nice touch with the courteous bow to the judges though. His score: 136.99. Overall: 213.83.
Alexei Bychenko's fourth place at the Europeans was a nice surprise, but he isn't anywhere near making as good an impression here. He steps out of the first triple Axel and falls on the second. Presentation-wise, his routine was not the most emotional, but we have to keep in mind that epic music is less about emotions and more about glory. He gets 134.28 points. Overall: 209.26.
Oh, if only Florent Amodio's homage to Africa were as flawless technically as it is artistically. The gloves with eyes painted on them are a nice touch I didn't notice before. The crowd doesn't seem to love it much though; maybe it's a cultural thing. His biggest errors are doubling out of the triple Loop and Lutz. His score: 148.78. Overall: 229.62. P.S.: Great to see him and Nam Nguyen making faces at each other.
Another great artist, Misha Ge has the same disadvantage as the Frenchman: he doesn't even attempt to jump a quad. That is a shame because if he had a quad, he could threaten some of the skaters at the top - that's how good this performance is. He gets 156.37 points. Overall: 234.89.
Adam Rippon tries to premiere his quad Lutz tonight, but he only manages a double. He also doubles out of the triple Flip. The music is Piano Concerto No. 1 by Franz Liszt, which he interprets beautifully. He has fabulous spins too. His score: 154.57. Overall: 229.71. P.S.: There are two panda bears having a party backstage, by the way (if you don't know what I'm talking about, Nam Nguyen and Misha Ge are fooling around with their plush toys).
Russia and quad Toeloops are not in the best of terms today - Sergei Voronov doubles out of the first and triples out of the second. He also singles out of the triple Axel. All these errors affect the presentation. You can almost hear him thinking about them rather than paying attention to the feel of the music. He gets 133.71 points. Overall: 218.41.
Denis Ten almost turns the ice rink into the venue of an Oriental party with his excellent performance. He follows the rhythm of the music both on the slower part (the strings) and the faster one (the drums) perfectly, offering great contrast between the two. He steps out of the first quad Toeloop and the second triple Axel though. His score: 181.83. Overall: 267.72.
Well, isn't this unexpected? Yuzuru Hanyu looks so confident at the start only to single out of the quad Salchow and fall on the quad Toeloop seconds after. He pulls himself back together after that, which means his title is not really threatened once you add up the short programme score. Great variation on the cannonball spin. He gets 175.88 points. Overall: 271.08.
Stop the presses - Javier Fernandez might just win this competition. If his first quad looks as easily done as breathing, he chokes on the second, but manages to pull the third one seamlessly. He will not have the advantage artistically though. His score: 181.16. Overall: 273.90. P.S.: He wins and I squeal so loudly, I'm expecting my neighbours to come asking if I'm alright any second now.
It's hard to focus after a performance like that of the Spaniard because you might unconsciously think anything else will pale in comparison to it, as Han Yan seems to. He falls on the quad, the triple Axel and the triple Lutz. It's quite the shame because there's real potential for greatness here. He gets 144.70 points. Overall: 229.15.
Jason Brown is under no pressure, either from a home-crowd or the prospective of a medal, which means he can simply have fun out there, and he certainly does. He is an amazing actor, expressing every emotion in Tristan and Isolde. He really needs to start jumping quads though. The only mistake is double-footing the landing of the second triple Axel. His score: 163.97. Overall: 248.29.
This has definitely been the most exhilarating final of these championships. Congratulations to Javier Fernandez for winning Spain's first World title in figure skating (may I suggest his birthday be made a national holiday in Spain?), congratulations to Yuzuru Hanyu for his silver medal and last, but not least, congratulations to the bronze medalist, Denis Ten.
Maxim Kovtun's problems with the quad Toeloop continue; they might need to have a chat because for whatever reason, he can't land it. He also steps out of the triple Axel, but otherwise his performance is on the up since yesterday. His score: 159.98. Overall: 230.70.
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| Nam Nguyen, the event's underdog Source: Xiaolu Ghu/Getty Images Asia |
When it comes to Michal Brezina, I feel that we've been robbed of an exceptional programme all throughout this season. His Marriage of Figaro has everything it needs to be spectacular on paper, but he never aces all the elements, which downplays the presentation. He doubles out of the quad Toeloop, the quad Salchow, the triple Toeloop and the triple Salchow, and over-rotates the quad Salchow. Nice touch with the courteous bow to the judges though. His score: 136.99. Overall: 213.83.
Alexei Bychenko's fourth place at the Europeans was a nice surprise, but he isn't anywhere near making as good an impression here. He steps out of the first triple Axel and falls on the second. Presentation-wise, his routine was not the most emotional, but we have to keep in mind that epic music is less about emotions and more about glory. He gets 134.28 points. Overall: 209.26.
Oh, if only Florent Amodio's homage to Africa were as flawless technically as it is artistically. The gloves with eyes painted on them are a nice touch I didn't notice before. The crowd doesn't seem to love it much though; maybe it's a cultural thing. His biggest errors are doubling out of the triple Loop and Lutz. His score: 148.78. Overall: 229.62. P.S.: Great to see him and Nam Nguyen making faces at each other.
Another great artist, Misha Ge has the same disadvantage as the Frenchman: he doesn't even attempt to jump a quad. That is a shame because if he had a quad, he could threaten some of the skaters at the top - that's how good this performance is. He gets 156.37 points. Overall: 234.89.
Adam Rippon tries to premiere his quad Lutz tonight, but he only manages a double. He also doubles out of the triple Flip. The music is Piano Concerto No. 1 by Franz Liszt, which he interprets beautifully. He has fabulous spins too. His score: 154.57. Overall: 229.71. P.S.: There are two panda bears having a party backstage, by the way (if you don't know what I'm talking about, Nam Nguyen and Misha Ge are fooling around with their plush toys).
Russia and quad Toeloops are not in the best of terms today - Sergei Voronov doubles out of the first and triples out of the second. He also singles out of the triple Axel. All these errors affect the presentation. You can almost hear him thinking about them rather than paying attention to the feel of the music. He gets 133.71 points. Overall: 218.41.
Denis Ten almost turns the ice rink into the venue of an Oriental party with his excellent performance. He follows the rhythm of the music both on the slower part (the strings) and the faster one (the drums) perfectly, offering great contrast between the two. He steps out of the first quad Toeloop and the second triple Axel though. His score: 181.83. Overall: 267.72.
Well, isn't this unexpected? Yuzuru Hanyu looks so confident at the start only to single out of the quad Salchow and fall on the quad Toeloop seconds after. He pulls himself back together after that, which means his title is not really threatened once you add up the short programme score. Great variation on the cannonball spin. He gets 175.88 points. Overall: 271.08.
Stop the presses - Javier Fernandez might just win this competition. If his first quad looks as easily done as breathing, he chokes on the second, but manages to pull the third one seamlessly. He will not have the advantage artistically though. His score: 181.16. Overall: 273.90. P.S.: He wins and I squeal so loudly, I'm expecting my neighbours to come asking if I'm alright any second now.
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| Yuzur Hanyu, Javier Fernandez and Denis Ten Source: Xiaolu Ghu/Getty Images Asia |
Jason Brown is under no pressure, either from a home-crowd or the prospective of a medal, which means he can simply have fun out there, and he certainly does. He is an amazing actor, expressing every emotion in Tristan and Isolde. He really needs to start jumping quads though. The only mistake is double-footing the landing of the second triple Axel. His score: 163.97. Overall: 248.29.
This has definitely been the most exhilarating final of these championships. Congratulations to Javier Fernandez for winning Spain's first World title in figure skating (may I suggest his birthday be made a national holiday in Spain?), congratulations to Yuzuru Hanyu for his silver medal and last, but not least, congratulations to the bronze medalist, Denis Ten.
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