Crystal Skate

One could argue that comebacks in figure skating are a bad idea (check out Johnny Weir's performance this season), if it weren't for Yuna Kim's astonishing start of a second attempt to become Olympic Champion once more. She proved that 'veterans' are a force to be reckoned with at the same time that some of the most experienced skaters out there show signs that they can't cope with the youth invasion. You have to admit, no matter how big a Kim fan you are, that her return on the ice made you if not a bit nervous, then at least curious. Suddenly, it didn't matter anymore what the other skaters did; everyone was waiting to see if she is still 'The Queen.' The fact that it took her a lot less than expected and what looked like almost no effort at all to make the world title hers again proves how brilliant this Korean skater is. Not that she needed to prove  that. Her Short Program featured James Bernard's Kiss with a Vampire  and the chore...

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...

You simply cannot analyze this season and overlook the Olympic Champions who may be the first skaters in a while to have high chances of winning their second Olympic gold medal. Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir had two beautiful routines this year that I simply can't go on without talking about. In the other corner we've got two Russians who switched to team Azerbaijan and whose debut was brave though a bit junior-ish. Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir started the season with a waltz composed by Sir Anthony Hopkins ( And the Waltz Goes On ), showing us a side to the famous actor that few knew about. Tessa's two dresses for the waltz were absolutely gorgeous, even though the first one caused a few technical problems (remember Skate Canada where Scott got tangled into Tessa's dress?). The programme had a great flow to it, the choreography was very beautiful and the polka steps were so smooth it didn't bother us that they were performed on a waltz. But the real piece of re...

You've probably noticed how figure skating is changing every year; the rules get a little less strict (who else is excited about lyrics in single and pairs competition starting 2014/2015?), programmes get a little riskier and skaters are trying new elements each year (remember Aliona Savchenko/Robin Szolkowy's thrown triple Axel?). Ice dance in particular is an area where you can bring as many innovations as you'd like, but some skaters take that opportunity and dress it up in something ridiculous they then call originality. Others know that innovation is like pepper: you use a teaspoon and it adds flavour, you use a fistful and it sets you on fire. Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje are no strangers to using new regulations in their programmes; whether they're using a prop (i.e.: Kaitlyn's scarf for the 2007/2008 original dance) or using iconic words to set the scene (Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman's voices at the start of their Moulin Rouge routine back in 2010/2...

This season was, above everything else, about change, whether we witnessed it happening or we wished we had. Two ice-dance couples in particular proved what a difference change (or lack of it) can make. Nathalie Pechalat/Fabian Bourzat from France put on quite a Moulin Rouge show on ice. Being French definitely gave them the advantage of choosing a cultural-rich theme they probably grew up with. The music ( Gaite Parisienne  by Jacques Offenback; Sous le ciel du Paris  by Yves Montand) was delightful and the short dance was cheeky and very enjoyable (definitely top 5 best short dances of the season). The award for best performance has to go to Nathalie though because she played her role every second of the program, while Fabian often seemed a bit empty-eyed. As good as the short was, their long program was way below expectations. Fitted more for shows than competitions (especially if you're talking pre-Olympic season), the Rolling Stones Medley was nothing more than danci...

Wonder-children are not rare in figure skating, as Russian ladies have been proving this season, but being one of them is a great challenge that most often than not skaters can't cope with. Both Denis Ten and Artur Gachinski know this a little too well, but while the Kazakh seems to have outgrown his problems, those of the Russian are in full bloom. For most of the season, and when I say most, I mean 90% of it, Denis Ten was nothing more than a skating disaster. He seemed to be going nowhere but down, and that bright future everyone predicted for him just a few years ago, was slowly, but surely dying out. And then suddenly he came in second in the World Championships, and not only that, but the truth is he should have won it. His choice of skating both the SP and the LP on the soundtrack of The Artist  instead of going for two different themes was mature, original and very classy. The difference between the two programs is a bit blurry, especially if you haven't seen t...

It was all about the Triple Lutz this season for Meagan Duhamel/Eric Radford. They did it side-by-side and as a throw-jump, and it's no wonder medals started raining down on them (gold at the Canadian Championships and the Four Continents, silver at Trophee Eric Bombard and Skate Canada, and the big bronze at Worlds). This was the pair's best season so far and they were some of the season's best. Their short program music was La Boheme , a famous opera written by Giacomo Puccini. Although their costumes are sometimes a bit of a let down because they're not very expressive, this time Meagan accessorized her red dress with a flower in her hair and Eric's red scarf really made a difference. What they're best at, besides the Triple Lutz, are original entrances and exits into and out of elements. In the free skate, they skated on Philippe Rombi's Angel.  The music and choreography were gorgeous, but they should have worn something more angelic and less dinner...

Japan and Russia are in a serious competition for the gold medal. Will experience or youth win the day? Gabrielle Daleman has a lot of work ahead of her. Wearing a sparkling purple costume, the Canadian lands a dodgy triple Lutz, completely fails the triple Flip and the triple Salchow and ends with an over-rotated double Axel. The program doesn't say much artistically either, but Gabrielle can pull of some beautiful spins. She gets 92.00 points. Overall : 140.82 . Lenaelle Gilleron-Gorry 's geisha costume is the only beautiful part of her program. Failing all the Flip jumps and a triple Toeloop makes her lose energy and brings her presentation grades down. Her score: 72.39 . Overall: 121.80 . The distance between technical elements and presentation is huge today for Elizaveta Tuktamysheva . First she jumps a single Lutz, then she over-rotates the double Axel and falls on the triple Toeloop, and finally, she has a dodgy landing on the last double Toeloop. And yet, her pr...

The podium of the Pairs seemed settled before the SP even started, but one of the pairs decided to prove that they have a future together against all odds. Marissa Castelli/Simon Shnapir delivered an ambitious program with original spins and lifts. Their speed was great and the music ( Payadora  by Julian Plaza) suited them very well. The only big mistakes were the fall on the thrown quad Salchow (but hats off in front of them for trying it) and the lack of synchronicity in the side-by-side spins. They got 115.12 points. Overall: 172.30 . Cheng Peng/Hao Zhang have improved since the Worlds. He seemed a bit less over-protective of her, which means that she is slowly rising to his level. Even if she might not reach it while teamed with him, the experience can only benefit her.Despite her fall on the thrown double Axel, the program was enjoyable to watch. Their score: 115.78 . Overall: 174.40 . Vanessa James/Morgan Cipres got the crowd standing and che...

Figure skating is, before everything else, an unpredictable sport. Although more often than not, a Short Program can win a medal, sometimes the odds change in the last minute, as this final proved. Romain Ponsart did his best to express the tragedy of Swan Lake  and in terms of presentation skills, he has a bright future ahead of him. The only problem with this routine is that it was a bit too ambitious: he planned two quads, but touched the ice on the first and fell on the second. That single Axel didn't help his score either. He got 208.20 points. Overall: 165.59 . P.S.: Quirky ballet dance happening in team France's camp. If Yi Wang is a fan of Metallica or not is anyone's guess. Despite skating on their music, the Chinese didn't seem to put a lot of heart into his program. Technically, he failed the quad, but his best jump was the triple Salchow. His score: 125.27 . Overall: 183.57 . Han Yan 's routine was about a masquerade, which is why his costume...

Stefania Berton/Ondrej Hotarek finally found their true calling after years of unsatisfactory results as single skaters. In the process, they've also put Italy on the pairs skating map for the first time in history.The European Bronze Medalists have just got to be on the Best List this season. Both music choices suited them very well ( Paint It Black by The Rolling Stones for SP and Poeta en el viento  by Vincente Amigo for LP), which proves that they can interpret any role. They still have a lot to learn about executing their elements flawlessly and being synchronized in the side-by-side spins, but the Italians (or so to speak, given that Ondrej is Czech) are on their way to success. True, they may find an obstacle if Vera Bazarova/Yuri Larionov ever get back to the program quality that made them famous, but that only means figure skating will get even more interesting to watch. An honorary mention to their friendship with Michal Brezina, who has been helping them wi...

Tatiana Volosozhar/Maxim Trankov snatching both the European and World title right from underneath Aliona Savchenko/Robin Szolkowy's nose is the most exciting and disappointing thing of 2012/2013 as far as Pairs skating goes. How come the same event is both the worst and best thing we've seen this season? Well, it'a bit complicated... Aliona and Robin's choice of SP music this season -  Kismet by Bond - didn't really say a lot to the audience and that was reflected by the scores they got. The Germans used to have fun, energetic and original programs, so what on Earth was this one about? It doesn't matter how good you are technically, if the music isn't right, your program will not impress. Unfortunately this was the case here, and it really is a shame because once upon a time not so far away, you waited impatiently for their routine to start and you never got the feeling it's rusty on the edges. Their Flamenco   Bolero  by Gustavo  Montesano was a...