Crystal Skate

The men's short programme was without a doubt the most thrilling in Helsinki. Not only did we watch top skaters compete against each other, but we also saw how easy the leader can change at this level. It all culminated of course with Yuzuru Hanyu being first at a very comfortable distance from Michal Brezina, who is on second with also quite a gap between himself and Boyang Jin, who is third. I'm sure the final will provide some equally exciting action. We're not off to a good start, I'm afraid. Philip Harris  doubles out of the 3Toeloop, Flip and Loop, puts a hand down on the second 3Axel and falls on the 3Toeloop. The song he skates to, Coldplay's Fix You , is one we've often seen in figure skating lately. Score: 123.67  -> 182.66 . Valtter Virtanen  is a slight improvement both from the Brit and from his own performance yesterday. He steps out of the 4Toeloop and singles the 3Axel. Choreography-wise, I really like the storytelling approach to La Strad...

Japan's Yuzuru Hanyu set a very high standard with his programme The Grand Prix of Helsinki is undoubtedly the most exciting one for a lot of figure skating fans. One of the reasons is the presence of the Olympic champion, Yuzuru Hanyu. Another is the fact we get to see Michal Brezina and Junhwan Cha skate again. They both achieved great results at Skate America, so I hope they manage to keep up the same level here. Philip Harris  is first to go, with a self-choreographed routine set to Bloodstream . He double-foots the landing of the 3Lutz and doubles out of both the 3Flip and the 3Toeloop. His spins are not the most flexible, but the programme is enjoyable. Score: 58.99 . Andrei Lazukin  impresses today with no mistakes and a charming interpretation of I Put a Spell on You . I love the way his step sequence matches the different nuances of the music, slowing down and speeding up with the song. Score: 82.54 . Alexei Krasnozhon  is another newbie to perform wel...

Remember the good old days when figure skating predictions were easy to make? Well, for the most part, those days are completely gone. What we're living at the moment are the even better days when medals are easy to grab for anyone with a technical prowess and convincing presentation. One of the disciplines where this is obvious is the men's. Cup of China 2017 wasn't any different. The podium was unexpected, so I've put together a few lines on how we got there. SHORT Max Aaron  finished the short on 5th place. His routine is set to Les Miserables , another programme that is part of a bunch of increasingly emotional choices we've seen from him in the past few seasons. There were a lot of big arm movements in the choreography, which I know some people don't like, but I'm always supportive of his attempts to up the artistry. Technically, his flying camel spin was a bit slow and he put a hand down on the triple Axel. His score: 83.11 . Keiji Tanaka  remind...

The men's final promises to be a repeat performance of last season's Europeans if we're to judge it merely by the top three men after the short programme - the same top three men as in Bratislava. Will Javier Fernandez, Maxim Kovtun and Alexei Bychenko all manage to keep their medals from last season? I'll start with Moris Kvitelashvili , who has three quads in his routine, but steps out of the Toeloop one. He also steps out of the Loop, and struggles to match his transitions to the pace of the music. That being said, he's got an amazing jumping technique. His score: 161.35 . Overall: 238.20 . I always look forward to Chafik Besseghier 's routines because he's able to express a wide range of genres. It's epic music today and no mistakes, although he has to save a couple of jumps. Some of his spins are not that great - a bit of travelling, a bit of bent knee. He gets 151.40  points. Overall: 227.59 . The host's Michal Brezina doesn't manag...

The men were the last to present their short programmes in Ostrava. Much like in the ladies' event, the surprises were not at the top, but just a couple of places below. Javier Fernandez  proved once more than he can get himself out of every kind of awkward landing, after he saved an incredibly low quad Toeloop, and still jumped a perfect triple after. The Spanish seem to have an extensive repertoire of hand movements in their traditional dances, and Javier must have made use of all of them in the transitions of Malaguena . His score: 104.25 . Javier Fernandez's transitions were the best of the day I knew it was odd that Maxim Kovtun  wasn't Russia's front-runner, and he proved me right today. He finally ended a programme without a flaw this season. His low spins are not some of the best out there, but he had an awesome variation on the flying camel spin. The comedy of Hazmat Modine's Bahamut  came out in the gestures. He earned 94.53  points. Alexei Byche...

Over in the men's event, my predictions were shook until they shattered to the ground. Well, actually, not really, but there were a few bittersweet surprises for me in the top five. The first pleasant surprise came from France. Chafik Besseghier  exceeded my expectations and landed himself in fifth place. His music was Seal's It's a Man's World . I find his spins very interesting - some he needs to work on (camel), others he's really good at (low spins). His score: 80.68 . Alexei Bychenko  stayed true to his worth and ended right on the tails of the podium contenders. His quad Toeloop looked effortless and his personality on the ice was very endearing. The music, Chambermaid Swing , fit him like the gloves he was wearing. Again, some spins, like the umbrella spin, were not quite perfect, knees bent and all. He got 86.81  points. I've said this before about Mikhail Kolyada , but it is still true - he needs to make sure his comedic body language reaches his ...

Ironically, the only final that seems predictable at the moment is the men's. Japan's hold on the gold  is strong, but can it be taken from Hanyu? Fernandez has great chances of taking the silver to Spain, while Chan could easily snatch the bronze. That doesn't mean we should underestimate the likes of Shoma Uno and Boyang Jin, who are waiting for the top three to make the kind of mistake that would knock them off the podium. Denis Ten 's beautiful Romeo and Juliet  suffers from a few technical errors. His biggest mistake is falling on the quad Toeloop. He gets himself back together in the second half of the programme, but this is not going to be good enough to get on the podium. His score: 151.58 . Overall: 230.13 . Deniss Vasiljevs  skates to Adagio for Tron  by Daft Punk. The medley is very smartly put together, but I'm not sure Jeff Bridge's voice makes much sense for the routine. It is a cool detail though. I love his camel combo spin - it's got an ...