Crystal Skate

The calmest discipline of this season's Cup of China was the pairs'. Although we didn't see a lot of drama or unexpected plot twists, the competition was a warm-up for what is sure to be a more tumultuous season for the pairs. Here are how the top five pairs in Beijing performed: SHORT Valentina Marchei/Ondrej Hotarek  finished the short programme in 5th place. They skated to Tu vuo fa l'Americano , a comedic song that went viral a couple of years ago. At first I thought the routine wasn't as funny as advertised, but they picked up the comedy in the second half of the programme, once the difficult technical elements were out. With a bit more practice, I'm sure they'll manage to spread out the fun throughout the programme rather than concentrate it in the second half. Their score: 68.48 . Kirsten Moore-Towers/Michael Marinaro  were in the perfect position to 'steal' a medal after the short. They skated to Sweet Dreams , a blues song that would h...

The Olympic champions are back! How many times have we hoped to hear these words? Well, they're true tonight, and although they've been back all season long, tonight's the night when we get to see if Tatiana Volosozhar & Maxim Trankov are reclaiming their supremacy in the pairs skating. They're up against the technical Duhamel & Radford, their own team mates Stolbova/Klimov and the delightful Sui/Han. We shouldn't forget, of course, about Aliona Savchenko/Bruno Massot . They have a whimsical piece of music ( Creature de Siam  from Kurios ) and less whimsical costumes, but a good performance overall. That triple twist is huge! Their score: 74.22 . Miriam Ziegler/Severin Kiefer  skate to the quirky It's Oh So Quiet  by Bjork. They don't get as crazy as the music requires and they're slightly out of sync with it too at times. I like the different feature on the low position of the pair spin though. Technically, she doubles out of the triple Salc...

Has anyone else noticed that some Grand Prix events are changing their name? You probably have, and you're probably already aware that it's because the sponsors are changing. So Hilton HHonors Skate America became Progressive Skate America, and the Lexus Cup of China has switched to the Audi Cup of China. The name change doesn't really have much importance unless you want to discuss finance and politics, which I really don't, but I thought I'd at least acknowledge it. Another change we'll witness this season in Beijing, where the competition is held, has to do with German pair skating. No, it doesn't concern Aliona Savchenko/Bruno Massot (both officially German skaters now), but another, less troubled pair: Mari Vartmann/Rubert Blommaert. The two got together at the beginning of the season, after splitting up with their former partners Aaron van Cleave and Annabelle Proelss. The rest of the pair rooster doesn't bring any surprises on the ice. Wenji...

Figure skating is an ever-fighting battle - newbies fight to prove themselves and superstars fight to stay on top. Who will be victorious today? There is a lot of mystery in Ksenia Stolbova/Fedor Klimov 's The Man and the Shadow , and an aura of unease. Love the two original lifts, but they make quite a few mistakes: she steps out of the thrown triple Salchow and falls on the side-by-side one, the synchronised spins are not in sync and they finish behind the music. Their score: 125.65 . Overall: 189.06 . I'm not sure why Julianne Seguin/Charlie Bilodeau  are wearing dark blue for  A Whiter Shade of Pale , but the performance is so good, I don't really care. Love the difficult entries into their lifts. One error: they are out of unison on the side-by-side triple Toeloops. They get 124.64  points. Overall: 189.49 . The medalists Photograph: Tasos Katopodis / Getty Images Xuehan Wang/Lei Wang  are another pair specialising in difficult entries into lifts. I a...

Don't you just love that tinniest second before the boy throws the girl across the ice, when everybody in the audience gasps and holds their breath simultaneously? And then the girl lands perfectly, knee bent, free leg fully extended and the crowd erupts into cheers. Be ready for plenty of such moments - the pairs' short programme is about to begin. We see the consequence of last season's rule change immediately, as Jessica Pfund/Joshua Santillan  skate to Sara Bareille's Gravity . Lovely song, but the presentation is quite dull. There is also a shaking moment in the step sequence where he struggles to get up from a kneeling position. Still, overall, not bad. They get  50.20  points. Another relatively new pair to perform very well are Xuehan Wang/Lei Wang . Skating to Romance , the Chinese skaters ace every single element. Their score: 64.95 . I really love the way Kristina Astakhova/Alexei Rogonov  use words to set the scene for their programme. Really approp...

In figure skating, exhibitions are like that nice glass of red wine one might enjoy at the end of a really pesky day of work. They're the long satisfied breath you let out or the triumphant fist bump in the air that means: 'I've done it!' Concurrently, they are also a way to show off. Sure, it's nice to be able to throw the rules out the window for a change and skate to whatever, in whatever, however you want it. But figure skaters like being in the spotlight, and what better time to shine than when there is nothing restraining you from showing your full potential? What that means is that some athletes will go to unbelievable lengths to put on a show, like when Adelina Sotnikova  did rhythmic gymnastics on ice,  or when Javier Fernandez  made a mix-tape to get us to get off our butts and join the gym.  These programmes were so good, they will never be forgotten. But they wouldn't have been as fantastic had they not benefited from some terrific costume choices....

The pairs' final is undoubtedly the one China has been waiting for the most. Pairs is, after all, the discipline in which they thrive. If that's not enough of a reason, today is the last competitive day of Qing Pang and Jian Tong. The whole of Shanghai is going to be willing them to retire with a third World title, but it is more likely that they will finish their careers with a second World silver medal. The gold medal looks to be heading to Canada, in which case we will witness Duhamel & Radford's first World victory. Harry Potter on ice, but not really Source: Xialo Ghu/Getty Images Asia Amani Fancy/Christopher Boyadji  bring an all-British story on ice: Harry Potter. It is a story I never thought I'd see in figure skating despite the gorgeous soundtrack, because it's too complex to condense in three and a half minutes. There's barely any elements of it in the choreography, which proves my point. They make a mess of it on a technical level as well:...

Last time we saw the pairs, Canada's Duhamel & Radford proved that they shouldn't be underestimated, not even when they're going up against Russian excellence. Sui & Han also proved that sometimes having a clean programme is all you need to get to the top. Will they manage to keep those standings after the free? Cheng Peng/Hao Zhang 's Alegretto  isn't really as cheerful as the name suggests; on the contrary, it is filled with angst, which they could express more. They're so much better than yesterday though with only two mistakes: in the side-by-side double Axels and in the side-by-side spins. Their score: 129.33 . Overall: 191.79 . The pairs' podium Photograph: David Ramos/Getty Images Europe I wish Wenjing Sui/Cong Han 's choreography was more specific so that we could get a glimpse of the story behind Tchaikovski's Francesca da Rimini . The way they present the routine instead is by emphasizing the different nuances of the music ...

Tonight is a big night for Barcelona, as it hosts its first ever Grand Prix Final of figure skating. Let's hope it will help inspire some of the younger spectators to take up this beautiful sport. Surely that's something Spain wishes to achieve this weekend in the hope that they can continue on the successful path set by Javier Fernandez. The first event of the Final is the short programme of the pairs. The favourites here are Stolbova & Klimov, but every single one of the six couples have plenty to offer, and they will give their best to get as close to that most-desired gold medal as they can. Good luck to them all. It's not easy being first, especially at an event of such magnitude, but Xiaoyu Yu/Yang Jin  keep their nerves under control. The only mistake is in the side-by-side spins, which are not in sync. Presentation-wise, they look dressed for an opera or a ballroom rather than for a tribal piece, so maybe they should consider making their costumes more accur...

It's time for the new Chinese pairs to make a name for themselves, or at least that's what the short programme results seem to imply. Wenjing Sui and Cong Han are very close to winning their second silver medal of the season, while Xuehan Wang and Lei Wang would also like another bronze-worthy performance after Cup of China. The gold is undoubtedly going to stay in the hands of Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov. Failed death spirals are a rare sight in figure skating, but unluckily for Miriam Ziegler/Severin Kiefer , they add one to their luggage of technical mistakes today. The fault lies with her as she loses her edge. Their score: 88.91 . Overall: 139.92 . Kirsten Moore-Towers/Michael Marinaro 's costumes are fabulous, depicting disintegrating chessboards. Only one mistake here, his hand down on the side-by-side triple Salchows. They get 108.06  points. Overall: 159.13 . Nicole della Monica/Matteo Guarise  have the same presentation problem as in the short. She is j...

There wasn't a lot of groundbreaking action in the pairs' events at this Grand Prix, and the spell is unlikely to be broken in Bordeaux. Stolbova & Klimov have virtually no rivals, while the second and third places will certainly be occupied by someone who's never been on the Eric Bompard podium. But who exactly? Kirsten Moore-Towers/Michael Marinaro  start the competition with a visibly shakier Cell Block Tango than at Skate Canada. She falls on the thrown triple Loop, and he struggles with the exit of the second lift. Their score: 51.07 . Xuehan Wang/Lei Wang 's theme couldn't be vaguer. Their song title simply says: Romance. Overall, they are however better than the Americans because they have no technical errors. They get 63.25  points. Stolbova & Klimov's death spiral Photograph: Jamie McDonald/Getty Images Europe Miriam Ziegler/Severin Kiefer 's C'est pas l'amour  and Zydeko  couldn't be more appropriate for a French crowd...

We start off the final with a clear image of who the winners will be (Duhamel and Radford, obviously) which would normally make for a dull competition. However, because China and Russia's new pairs are debuting their rivalry for the runner-up position, there's still hope of some thrills. Plus, this is figure skating and twists of fate can happen anytime. Mari Vartmann/Aaron Van Cleave  have chosen Joaquin Rodriguez's famous Concierto de Aranjuez  for the long routine. It is, I'm afraid, filled with mistakes such as lack of synchronicity and a hand down on the first thrown jump, a triple Flip. Their score: 97.46 . Overall: 145.89 . The Great Gatsby  is an ambitious story for beginners like Brittany Jones/Joshua Reagan  to tell. They don't capture any of the angst, or love for that matter, but by God they are  amazing technically. Although their side-by-side spins are pretty bad, the jumps are clean and the lifts are so difficult they almost make me nervo...

This is Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy's last chance to win a World gold medal and more than probably, Germany's last presence in the spotlight for a while. Will they succeed or is it time for a new pair of World champions? Vanessa James/Morgan Cipres  give us a scare with a terrifying fall right at the end, a mistake you can see he's more than sorry for. The rest of the programme is very good despite a very small error in the Triple Twist. Their music is a mash-up of the soundtracks of Angels and Demons  and Requiem for a Dream . Their score: 119.89 . Overall: 183.90 . The jumps, the lifts, the spins, the interpretation... Kirsten Moore-Towers/Dylan Moscovitch  are in perfect sync. They even do a risky lift with only one leg on the ice. The only mistake is her hand on the ice while landing the thrown Triple Salchow. Great speed as well while looking like veritable movie stars on Nino Rota's music medley. They get 136.21  points. Overall: 205.52 . Cheng Pe...

Aliona Savchenko & Robin Szolkowy have postponed their retirement to win one last World gold medal and you know they're not going home without an epic fight. Will any of the other couples be able to defeat them? Here's the first act: Maylin Wende/Daniel Wende  may not be the top German pair, but once in a blue moon, they have a performance you just can't take your eyes off. This is one such performance. Skating on November Rain , they ace every element. Their score: 58.19 . Julia Antipova/Nodari Maisuradze 's senior debut is not at all bad. Skating on Beethoven's Five Secrets , this pair is excellent technically, but the presentation is nowhere near as good. Everything is pretty, of course, but there is no personal mark on the routine, no story. The costumes are again quite standard, emanating a classical Russian air. They get 66.78  points. Cheng Peng/Hao Zhang  have grown immensely in just one year of skating together. I'm glad they proved me wrong...