Crystal Skate

Last season, Akiko Suzuki and Elene Gedevanishvili emerged as two promising names, winning a World bronze medal, for the Japanese, and a European bronze medal, for the skater from Georgia. This season, the fairy-tale came to a not-so-happy ending - Gedevanishvili ended 14th at the European Championships, while Suzuki finished on 12th place at the World Championships. Despite it, there is something about these ladies that will always catch our eyes. Akiko Suzuki managed to finish the season a lot less bruised than Gedevanishvili. In fact, if we look carefully at  her competitions and ignore the fiasco from the World Championships, we'll realize this was not a bad season at all for her - silver at the Four Continents, silver at both Grand Prix competitions, bronze in the Grand Prix Final and a brilliant gold at the World Team Trophy. Her short programme music was a mash-up between the Kill Bill  and Once Upon a Time in Mexico  soundtracks. The programme was a hit, even...

Every season new wonder-children seem to emerge out of Russia. Some make it, most fade away. But there's two ladies in particular that despite being so new we're still having trouble spelling their names correctly, have already made sure we'll forever remember them. Emerging out of a sea of ridiculously skilled skaters, for Adelina Sotnikova and Elizaveta Tuktamysheva this season was, before everything else, about proving they can stand out and shine on their own. At age 16, Adelina Sotnikova seems to have made a pact with herself not to mess up the moment she's been waiting for all her life: her debut on senior international ice. Dressed in a beautiful black dress, with a red flower in her hair, the teenager skated a mature short programme on the song Capriccio Espagnol . With an almost flawless jumping technique, incredible spinning speed and a complex choreography, this routine was the perfect introduction to the world of senior figure skating. It was almost screa...