Crystal Skate

The biggest surprise of the short programme was seeing Kaori Sakamoto end on seventh place. At almost the opposite end of the rankings, Alina Zagitova finished right where everyone put her: first position. How are these two ladies going to fare in the final? The Russian is bound to keep her place, but how high can the Japanese rise? These are the main questions swarming in my head before this final. Rika Honko  goes first, which is a position she must not be used to - we normally see her in the last group of the Grand Prix events. I didn't see her skate yesterday, but I imagine this is miles away from that. The choreography of Child of Nazareth  is intense and energetic, just as we are used to seeing from her. She makes no mistakes. Score: 105.48  -> 156.59 . Viveca Lindfors  comes out wearing a gorgeous costume which you could easily turn into a gown fit for the Oscars, so I am a bit surprised to see the routine is set to Les Miserables . That being said, the...

The ladies of the day Photo: Lindsey Wasson/Getty Images North America The ladies' short programme was my favourite out of the four short events in Everett, so I am expecting a lot of great performances in the final. Japan had three really good contenders for the podium, so don't rule out a Japanese win across the board. The biggest obstacle in their way seems to be Russia's Sofia Samodurova, who has already made quite the impression here. Unfortunately, we need to begin the event with bad news: Loena Hendrickx has withdrawn from the competition due to injury. Alaine Chartrand  starts the final. If you watch her hand gestures, you will notice a theme running throughout the programme. She skates to Sunset Boulevard   by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Love her flying sit spin. Score: 108.50  -> 155.49 . Polina Tsurskaya  has told us a Russian tale today - check out her songs if you have no idea what I'm talking about 😉. She's wearing a really cool costume, which ...

Satoko Miyahara at her be st Photo: Lindsey Wasson/Getty Images North America When I looked at the ladies entries for Skate America 2018, I didn't recognise most of them. I knew of course Satoko and Elena, but then unfortunately the Russian got injured and I was left with one of my two sure bets out. Most of the skaters are new faces for me, so I was really excited to see the results. I became even more excited when I realised the top 5 ladies in the short programme are almost all skaters I'm either only a little familiar with or not at all. Satoko Miyahara  was pure grace from the beginning to the end. The choreography seemed to grow, as she started with a closed-in pose and finished in an open stance. Her dress was absolutely gorgeous. The song was Patricia Kaas' Song for the Little Sparrow . She made no mistakes whatsoever. Score: 73.86 . Kaori Sakamoto  was lovely to watch. Her transitions were rougher around the edges than Satoko's, but then each skater...