Skate America 2018 - Men Final - Top 5 Highlights
The men's short programme ended after a few pleasant surprises and, at least for me, interesting scores. The final seemed to have brought some order back into the universe by re-establishing the value of some skaters who have been around for quite some time. These were the top five men of Skate America 2018:
I don't think there was ever any doubt in anyone's mind that Nathan Chen was going to keep the gold in the US. He skated to Land of All, which is apparently a song that always asks for grey costumes. 😊 With three quads, two of which were in combination, he didn't have any difficulties in becoming the new Skate America champion. Score: 189.89. Overall: 280.57.
The crowd loved Michal Brezina and for good reason. You could feel his rock routine suited him like a glove. I always say it's obvious when the skaters enjoy their music, and it definitely was here. He's known to have some of the best step sequences out there and he didn't disappoint in Everrett. His only mistakes were doubling out of the second 4Salchow and double-footing the landing of the second 3Axel. Score: 157.42. Overall: 239.51.
Sergei Voronov's free skate was very special as it was choreographed by the late Dennis Ten. It was peppered by mistakes, with three jumps double-footed and a fall on the Axel. That being said, he made a good attempt at the 4Lutz, which is a new element for him. Score: 148.26. Overall: 226.44.
Matteo Rizzo was the fourth 5-top skater to use contemporary music. He chose a medley by the Rolling Stones, which suited him quite well. He double-footed the 4Toeloop and second 3Axel, then couldn't quite centre his change combo spin at the very end. Nonetheless, it was a very energetic, enjoyable performance. Score: 147.72. Overall: 225.81.
Vincent Zhou only managed to finish fifth overall, but I think I've become a fan of his after this competition. There are things to improve presentation-wise, but he's getting there. The technical is better than most's; the only mistake I could spot was doubling out of the 4Flip. He was shakier on his feet than normally though. Loved the creative costume with the dragon wrapped around his left shoulder. Score: 149.37. Overall: 225.75.
This was a great event for Brezina and Voronov in particular, so I'm super excited for the rest of their Grand Prix performances this season. Their challenge is to maintain the level they showed here and only go upwards from now on. Nathan Chen did not skate perfectly, but he was miles better than everyone else, so I'm not at all concerned about his future. Finally, I'll look forward to seeing Vincent improve both routines, as they have lots of potential.
Quote of the competition is:
Want to know what else happened at Skate America 2018?
I don't think there was ever any doubt in anyone's mind that Nathan Chen was going to keep the gold in the US. He skated to Land of All, which is apparently a song that always asks for grey costumes. 😊 With three quads, two of which were in combination, he didn't have any difficulties in becoming the new Skate America champion. Score: 189.89. Overall: 280.57.
The crowd loved Michal Brezina and for good reason. You could feel his rock routine suited him like a glove. I always say it's obvious when the skaters enjoy their music, and it definitely was here. He's known to have some of the best step sequences out there and he didn't disappoint in Everrett. His only mistakes were doubling out of the second 4Salchow and double-footing the landing of the second 3Axel. Score: 157.42. Overall: 239.51.
Sergei Voronov's free skate was very special as it was choreographed by the late Dennis Ten. It was peppered by mistakes, with three jumps double-footed and a fall on the Axel. That being said, he made a good attempt at the 4Lutz, which is a new element for him. Score: 148.26. Overall: 226.44.
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| Selfie time for the leading men of this year's Skate America Photo: Lindsey Wasson/Getty Images North America |
Matteo Rizzo was the fourth 5-top skater to use contemporary music. He chose a medley by the Rolling Stones, which suited him quite well. He double-footed the 4Toeloop and second 3Axel, then couldn't quite centre his change combo spin at the very end. Nonetheless, it was a very energetic, enjoyable performance. Score: 147.72. Overall: 225.81.
Vincent Zhou only managed to finish fifth overall, but I think I've become a fan of his after this competition. There are things to improve presentation-wise, but he's getting there. The technical is better than most's; the only mistake I could spot was doubling out of the 4Flip. He was shakier on his feet than normally though. Loved the creative costume with the dragon wrapped around his left shoulder. Score: 149.37. Overall: 225.75.
This was a great event for Brezina and Voronov in particular, so I'm super excited for the rest of their Grand Prix performances this season. Their challenge is to maintain the level they showed here and only go upwards from now on. Nathan Chen did not skate perfectly, but he was miles better than everyone else, so I'm not at all concerned about his future. Finally, I'll look forward to seeing Vincent improve both routines, as they have lots of potential.
Quote of the competition is:
Want to know what else happened at Skate America 2018?
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| Pairs SP |
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| Men SP |
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| Pairs Final |
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