Crystal Skate

The pairs' short programme left us all a bit dazed. The Olympic champions, Tatiana Volosozhar & Maxim Trankov finished on third place despite a great (albeit not flawless) routine. Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford exceeded expectations and finished ahead of them, but the biggest surprise were Wenjing Sui and Cong Han, who did a terrific Spanish Romance , which got them the first place. Will they be able to hold onto it? Alexa Scimeca/Chris Knierim  skate to one of the most beautiful soundtracks ever, that of Elizabeth: The Golden Age . It's glorious music, but a flawed performance. She falls both on the thrown triple Salchow and the side-by-side triple Toeloop, as well as steps out of the triple Flip. The side-by-side spins are not entirely in unison either. Their score: 118.69 . Overall: 190.06 . Ksenia Stolbova/Fedor Klimov  are not a lot better off than the Americans, but the quality is clearly higher. She singles out of the third triple Toeloop and falls on the side...

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...

Aliona Savchenko fought with all she had to be able to come back with a new partner and challenge her old rivals, Tatiana Volosozhar & Maxim Trankov. She and Bruno might be second after the short, but with only four points behind, they are going to give it their best to beat the odds. Kudos to Vanessa James/Morgan Cipres  for attempting a thrown quad Salchow at 11 in the morning. She steps out of it, but it is fully rotated. The other mistake is her double-footing out of the side-by-side Triple Toeloops, which were out of sync. The music is Romeo and Juliet , and I'm glad to see they are finally wearing costumes that fit the music rather than just being pretty. Love the exit out of the pair spin with him lifting her. Their score: 123.45 . Overall: 185.55 . Russia's best pair ever is back with a bang in Bratislava Photo:  AP Photo/Petr David Josek Valentina Marchei/Ondrej Hotarek  have sync issues both in the side-by-side triple Lutzes and the side-by-side spin...

I have heard talks about the Ondrej Nepela Trophy for years. It's one of those ghostly competitions not part of the Grand Prix Series, but that still makes waves through the amount of great skaters attending it. In all honesty, I've never watched it. I've never even researched it. My only interactions with it have been glancing over some skater or another's season overview and seeing that they've won it. So when I noticed the venue for the 2016 Europeans was the Ondrej Nepela Arena I had an "Oh, goodie" moment as in "Oh, goodie, I finally have the opportunity to find out more about it." For others like me, who don't really know who Ondrej Nepela was, here's what you need to know. He is basically the best skater Slovakia and the Czech Republic have ever had (no wonder they love him so much). Back in the day when Czechoslovakia was on the European map (1960s - 1970s), he won an Olympic gold medal, three World titles and the Europeans five...

Welcome to the 2014 Trophee Eric Bompard v. 2.0. This season, the event will take place in Bordeaux, in the exact city and venue (Meriadeck Ice Rink) it took place in last year. Even the hotel the skaters are staying at is the same. The poster still looks like a book cover and maybe the Kiss & Cry will be similar to last year's too. All in all, in terms of the event organisation, there is nothing new here. When it comes to the rooster of skaters, though, we will see some season debuts, but nothing too crazy. The event's beautiful poster Photo: ISU The most exciting to watch will probably be Tatiana Volosozhar/Maxim Trankov. The undisputed Olympic champions are back swinging if we're to judge by their choices of programme: Bollywood for the short and Dracula  for the long. They're also newlyweds, so the chemistry between them will be off the charts. Artistically more impressive, it will be interesting to see how they fare on a technical level with the Canadi...

Germany and Russia are famous in history for their rivalry. Tonight they're going to compete head to head, skate to skate in the most glamorous of sports for the biggest prize of all: an Olympic Gold Medal. There is hardly any difference in quality between Tatiana Volosozhar/Maxim Trankov and Aliona Savchenko/Robin Szolkowy, so let's wish them good luck, knowing that whoever takes the title home, is fully worthy of it. The start of the competition is in good hands with Felicia Zhang/Nathan Bartholomay . Skating on Les Miserbales , they finish with no error and stand out with some amazing lifts. Their score: 110.31 . Overall: 137.86 . Paige Lawrence/Rudi Swiegers need a bit of help from the Wizard of Oz today, as their routine is peppered with flaws. They both mess up the second Triple Toeloop and she can't hold the landing of the thrown Triple Loop. They are lovely to watch, but could have interpreted the characters a bit more, maybe even have the Wicked Witch make an ...

The first act of the epic battle between Russia and Germany for the supreme gold medal is here. Both Tatiana Volosozhar/Maxim Trankov and Aliona Savchenko/Robin Szolkowy know that while a short programme cannot get you a victory, it can sure make you lose it. They've got three and a half minutes to get the advantage and not a single second can be ignored. Maylin Wende/Daniel Wende 's November Rain is almost perfect. All the jumps are landed, the costumes are very beautiful, but she falls right after the death spiral. Sometimes luck will work against you in figure skating. In terms of interpretation, they could have turned the volume up on the sadness, but we'll forgive them as they were clearly too excited to be skating at the Olympics to pull off a tragic mask. Their score: 59.25 . It's all a bit too simple, too slow and too inexpressive for Julia Lavrentieva/Yuri Yudrik , but these are their first ever Olympic Games, so just being here is a success for them. She ...

Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy have withdrawn from competition due to a cold, after finishing the short on second place. With their biggest rivals out of the way, it is almost certain Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov will claim the European gold once more. The biggest question now is who will finish second? Vera Bazarova and Yuri Larionov seem the obvious answer, but Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov are anything but quitters. Vanessa James/Morgan Cipres bring back Requiem for a Dream , the song that used to be skaters' darling. They pair it with Angels and Demons , but except for the costumes, there isn't much that mimics the epic battle. Choosing the fastest music part to do the slowest elements doesn't help either. The only technical mistake was her fall on the second Triple Toeloop. They earn 122.45 points. Overall: 185.48 . Married life suits Maylin Wende/Daniel Wende , who are more in sync than ever before. Their music is the soundtrack of Your Highness...

PAIRS Anastasia Martiusheva/Alexei Rogonov  have a beautiful choreography, but they need to work on their presentation, especially Anastasia. The side-by-side Double Axels were just Singles, the thrown Triple Flip failed and the thrown Triple Loop was double-footed. Their score: 96.40 . Overall: 145.37 Narumi Takahashi/Ryuichi Kihara  took out all the drama, patriotism and love out of Les Miserables . Technically, she singled the Double Toeloop and double-footed both thrown jumps. They obtained 86.59  points. Overall: 138.13 Paige Lawrence/Rudi Swiegers 's routine was beautifully structured, but would have been enhanced by more epic costumes. She fell on the Triple Toeloop, singled the Double Toeloop and fell again on the thrown Triple Lutz. The side-by-side spins were in sync, but too far way from each other. Their score: 100.77 . Overall: 153.55 Marissa Castelli/Simon Shnapir  aim to defy belief in their careers. Although he doubled the Triple Toeloop and s...

MEN Adam Rippon won the crowd over with his passionate interpretation of Carmen . The costume still looks a a bit odd, but the rest of the presentation was great. Technically, his quad was dodgy and he had a little stumble at the end. His score: 82.25 . Konstantiv Menshov had speed, charisma and some beautiful moments on ice, but fell on the Triple Lutz. He obtained 73.57  points. Max Aaron grabbed the ladies' attention with his Latino footwork, but lost control on the Triple Lutz. His score: 76.21 . Jeremy Abbott 's routine was charming and smooth. He double-footed the Quad Toeloop, but otherwise delivered a good skate. He obtained 78.78  points. Sergei Voronov looked dashing in his black and white costume. The programme itself benefited from difficult footwork and flawless technique. His score: 79.80 . Nobunari Oda truly made his homeland proud today. Skating on Cotton Club , he landed every jump and showed off his showman abilities. Excellent job! He obtain...

The Joe Luis Arena might not have been blessed with the roar coming from a full ice-rink, but that didn't stop skaters from starting the Grand Prix 'marathon' at full speed. Here are the highlights of the first grand prix competition. MEN Tatsuki Machida   was the surprise of the event. Skating on the soundtrack of East of Eden , a 1955 film starring James Dean, he plummeted to the top after a flawless programme in the short, defeating his two more experienced countrymen, both of whom were favourites for the podium. The long programme featured Igor Stravinski's Firebird  and a tacky costume, but was otherwise delivered beautifully. His score: 91.18 (Short Programme), 174.20  (Long Programme), 265.38  (Overall). Jason Brown 's astonishment when he saw his SP score proves just how much talent this 19-year old has. He skated on Prince's The Question of U  and managed to finish the short on second place despite lacking a quadruple jump. Unfortunately, his...

When Tatiana Volosozhar joined Maxim Trankov, Aljona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy decided they were no longer going to train together with her. That decision previewed just how good Volosozhar and Trankov were going to be and shows that Savchenko always knew the day would come when both couples would become favourites for the Olympic gold. Tatiana Volosozhar & Maxim Trankov  - by defeating the Germans both in the World and European Championships last year, they take the lead, at least for now. They've been showing us amazing concepts ever since their debut in 2010/2011, and this year won't be different. Their short programme music is called Waltz Masquerade  by Aram Khachaturian ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCoLUMURunQ ). Having already seen it in action at Nebelhorn Trophy, I can say it is absolutely fabulous. Doesn't Trankov look dashing in that uniform? The long programme is even more intricate: Jesus Christ Superstar  by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Aliona Savchen...

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...

The Pairs Short Program's big absentees are the Japanese skaters, and the biggest names are Tatiana Volosozhar/Maxim Trankov. It is nice to see Cheng Peng/Hao Zhang finishing a not so good season with a clean SP. She seemed to struggle a bit with the dance steps of the program, but otherwise it looks like Mr. Zhang's experience is a good influence on her. They get 58.62 points. Marissa Castelli/Simon Shnapir deliver a fun program, although their costumes could use some work (you just don't wear plain black clothes when you're skating on the Pink Panther ). Except for his fall on the Triple Salchow and the tiniest lack of synchronicity in the side-by-side spins, the elements were good as well. Their score: 57.18 . Safri Duo seems to go well with French skaters, even though Vanessa James/Morgan Cipres seemed a bit slow this time. Still, their clean skate got the audience cheering throughout it. They get 58.73 points. P.S.: Check out who stopped by to cheer f...

The Ladies' competition is packed with potential champions, and with Yuna Kim missing, it is now time for Japan and Russia to have a skate off against each other. Thrilling, right? It is not an inspiring day for Gabrielle Daleman . From the costume to the failed combination and the over-rotated Flip, the Canadian seems to be struggling with her Avatar  routine. She gets 48.82 points. Lanelle Gilleron-Corry (another new face) brings a bit more on the ice. With a lovely combination of two Triple Toeloops and a good Double Axel, the Frenchwoman gets a score of 49.41 points. P.S.: who else almost didn't recognize Brian Joubert with red hair? An original spin and perfect jumps will get Kexin Zhang the lead for now, but that choreography could have been delivered with a bit more heart. She gets 54.97 points. P.S.: Don't you want team China's Panda Bear caps? Kaetlyn Osmond recovers after the fall on the Triple Toeloop and what a recovery that is! Charming a...

What makes this year's WTT stand out (in the wrong way) are the big absentees: Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir, Meryl Davis/Charlie White and Nathalie Pechalat/Fabian Bourzat (yeah, they're still one of the best couples even though they made a mess at Worlds). The ice-dance competition will suffer severely in quality due to these absences. Don't get me wrong, I'm still very much looking forward to it, but let's be honest: Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje are the only ones likely to be impeccable on ice, and if they don't take the gold medal, I'll eat my hat. So there's not much unpredictability there. Team France probably took the biggest hit. Besides Nathalie and Fabian, they also lost Florent Amodio, who is probably the most cheerful skater out there. As for the host team, Japan, there is no one registered in the pairs competition! Did anyone know you could do that in a World Team Trophy? Then again, I suppose Japan doesn't really have an option given tha...

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...