Crystal Skate

Alexa Scimeca Knierim & Chris Knierim were the biggest fighters of the day The pairs' final showcased a lot of strong couples and complex, difficult routines. Unlike the ice dance, some of the skaters we expect to compete for some of the most important titles at the end of the season were present. Natalia Zabiiako/Alexander Enbert  fit into this category. One of the most interesting battles, which we might see at the Grand Prix Final, will be between them and their co-nationals, Tarasova/Morozov. Until then though, they won the NHK Trophy with a sad love story and a single mistake of not jumping the 3Salchows in sync. Their score was 140.66  for the free and 214.14  in total. I am still surprised by the silver medalists, Cheng Peng/Yang Jin . I remember when they were first paired up and they were so awkward many people didn't give them much time together. Well, those people were wrong! Their relationship has grown a lot and her confidence is glowing these da...

Who says you can't wear fake armour on ice? Not Natalia Zabjiako and Alexander Enbert If you ask me what my favourite Grand Prix event is, I will say without a doubt that it's the NHK Trophy. Why? It's easy! The atmosphere in the ice rink is second to none. Japanese fans can appreciate great figure skating louder and more energetically than any other nation. That energy is felt even by far away viewers like me. So although it is always being held nine hours ahead of my timezone, I never fail to catch up on it. Hosted by Hiroshima, this season's NHK Trophy was as exciting as ever, particularly in the ladies and men's events. Despite the fact Elizaveta Tuktamysheva  was the main rival of all their best skaters (and indeed finished first with 76.17 points), the Japanese crowd rained gifts on her as soon as she finished her brilliant performance. She reminded me of Mao Asada, the last skater who got the crowd on their feet because of perfectly executed 3Axels. It...

Do you remember that awkward season when Ilinykh/Zhiganshin and Sinitsina/Katsalapov had just switched partners? Well, we're experiencing that in the pairs' event this season. The swap between Peng/Zhang and Yu/Jin seemed to have been a good decision at the Cup of China, at least for the Yu/Zhang pair, but how will their fare against rivals from Canada and Russia? Let's start with their former partners, Cheng Peng/Yang Jin , who are not doing badly at all. I really like their short routine - it's funny, the costumes are great, the choreography is interesting, the technical is pretty good as well... The only problem is that they don't really look at each other unless they must. I imagine it's not easy being told one day you've a new partner, so it's natural that chemistry will take some time to develop. Their score: 70.84 . The unlikely winners of the short programme, Evgenia Tarasova/Vladimir Morozov Evgenia Tarasova/Vladimir Morozov look like t...

The NHK Trophy 2015, held this year in Nagano, was supposed to bring the most anticipated pair duel on the ice: Meagan Duhamel/Eric Radford versus Tatiana Volosozhar/Maxim Trankov. However, due to an injury suffered by Tatiana, the Russian skaters had to withdraw. This leaves the Canadians' way to the gold medal absolutely unobstructed, but raises a question as to who will climb on the other two steps of the podium. Amani Fancy/Christopher Boyadji  skate to La Vie en Rose , but the presentation is missing a spark. The dark costumes don't help with the mood either. Technically, she puts a hand down on both jumps. Their score: 42.52 . Vera Bazarova/Andrei Deputat  seem stronger than I've ever seen them, to be honest. The music is Nocturne No. 2  by Chopin. Love the transition out of the thrown triple Loop and into the death spiral. They get 64.06  points. Jessica Calalang/Zack Sidhu 's choreography is very clever. It's a Man's, Man's World  is a song ful...

Meagan Duhamel/Eric Radford's supremacy in the pairs' event seems tough to interrupt, but Yuko Kavaguti/Alexander Smirnov are not famed for being the most lyrical pair for no reason. Let's see if they manage to get ahead and if Xiao Yu/Yang Jin are ready for their first Grand Prix Final ever. Dee Dee Leng/Simon Shnapir  never take their eyes off each other, which not only proves they have great chemistry, but also makes the presentation of Miss Saigon  more believable. They mess up every jump except the thrown triple Salchow. Their score: 92.33 . Overall: 138.24 . Mari Vartmann/Aaron van Cleave 's Concierto de Aranjuez  is lovely presented, but I'd love to see them push themselves a bit more and do some dance steps; this is Spanish music, after all. They have a couple of mistakes, mostly dodgy landings and lack of synchronicity. They get 96.67  points. Overall: 145.36 . See you in Barcelona! Photograph: Atsushi Tomura/Getty Images Asia Vera Bazarova/Andrei...