Worlds 2005
Men’s Short Program
Nicky and Andrew in the studio when I come in, and Nicky is once more lamenting the loss of the six… and he’s in a natty pink shirt and tie today, very dapper looking once more. I’m sorry, but the makeover? It’s working for him!
Andrew wants to know why there is qualifying for the men’s short… Nicky says that there is a question mark when the Plushys and the Jouberts have to qualify… and we see a little of John Hamer as Nicky takes us through it… I note that he’s wearing gold blades (Freedom blades Nicky tells us for the kagillionth time) and they’re quite distracting in my humble opinion… Andrew does the maths for 5 groups of 6… realises they’re saving the best for last… and I reckon we’re going to miss Zoltan Toth if John is going in three or four minutes time…
Nicky tells the story of seeing Plushy’s sex bomb and he had nothing to say during it… his first thought was “Oh no” and his second was *mimes hands out and slackjawedness* -- Nicky, you took the words right out of my mouth.
Nicky’s now backing Lambiel, quotes Chris as saying that he thinks that Plushy is going for third place, because of the injury… Nicky thinks Plushy is all about the Olympics. Andrew asks about the development of the sport since the early 80s…and Nicky gives him a smile that is part benign amusement and part grimace, and mutters about the technical content, with the proviso to look out for the injuries…
And there’s John!
1 Zoltan TOTH HUN 30 23.35
missed
2 John HAMER GBR 29 23.78
In a navy blue velvet body suit with brown accents of net on the chest, and sparkles on the right hand side, black gloves…Jean Michel Jarre music…. Waving arms and ina bauer like moves to begin… Zoltan, we’re told, had a blinder to begin… 3flip and he’s leaning in the air but he lands it with style… flying sit spin nicely centred, he did not move… and plenty of rev, even if I’m not keeping count…combo lutz with hand down and he turned into the double toe… think it was double anyway… step sequence… circular… axel double and that was weird looking in the air… camel to sit really low change camel with travel on change to sit and upright spin with more travel… slides to the corner for a diagonal step that’s pretty damn nifty, lots of changes of edge and rotation… sit spin which is really low, change sit and was he meant to put his foot down there?... and he’s done. And he covers his face with his hand on the end, and he just looks devastated… the combination, if only, says Simon… a real shame…and it is, because that was a great program… good music, interpreted well, and he went like gangbusters throughout the whole thing… Chris tells us he’ll learn from the experience here… he’s done himself proud…anyone doing the Eurosport drinking game, you might want to slow down a little… went from 9th to 1st in Brit championships… we see the combo, didn’t get the lift on the lutz and he put the foot down so the second part won’t count… Chris also says 2ax not the best in the world, and he needs to get the level up on his sins…
Marks TE 22.25 PC 25.03 for 47.28 and second of two. 71.06 overall.
And we go back to the studio for Nicky’s views… he looks pretty dejected as well. Take that experience and grow from it he says…and we go through the whole thing again. Nicky likes the gloves… oh Nicky, you almost had me… points out that he didn’t take a long time to prep for the flip… centred spin…combo here, did he fail to attack enough asks Andrew…Nicky doesn’t know, says he just didn’t get enough height… he likes the step sequence, but can’t get over the combo… you can’t keep it with you, just have to leave it behind you and carry on… we see the diagonal step again, it flows well, there’s no break… marks the start and the end… I love his sit spin, can I just say that…and Nicky tells me that he did catch his foot on the sit change sit, which is not of the good… I feel better now… Nicky then goes to talk about the replay technology helping the judges to be more accurate…and just in case we’ve not seen it enough, we see the combination *again* … this is starting to bug me, there are other people on the ice, guys!
Which they remind us of by showing us the Kerrs in the compulsory…. I swear lads, if I miss Vakhtang, heads are going to roll… she’s in two tone blue, he’s in dark navy sparkles… and it’s a compulsory dance, so what can I say about it? Chris notes that they have the biggest pattern they’ve seen on the ice so far, were a bit short at one point on the second sequence… in the studio, Nicky says his mum would’ve been happy with that, notes how relaxed they were, how they looked like they were enjoying that… oooh and Navka and Kostomarov… we hear Nicky tells us they have wonderful edge, praises the extension of each movement… Andrew loves her outfit, it’s the gold one that has very little back to it, also very little front that I think she wore for ain’t no sunshine, and Nicky wonders of the code of decency… Andrew thinks she could be in Hollyoaks (Brit teen soap) with an outfit like that…and Tanith and Ben in burgundy…not the same quality or speed over the ice, Nicky from what he hears from the arena thinks they’re lucky to be in second place… have done well in GP series, have the reputation… he thinks the French in 6th for him were hard done by… Andrew asks why… jesus Andrew, how long is a piece of string?
And we’re back!
3 Roman SEROV ISR 24 26.89
missed
4 Viktor PFEIFER AUT 25 25.48
missed
5 Trifun ZIVANOVIC SCG 28 24.07
Yay! In a red soldier boy satin top, with black sparkles on shoulders and down the front, and black pants for march of the toreadors by Simon… Viktor was apparently great… off goes Trifun… into the double flip triple toe, and he won’t be happy with that… didn’t get the height… 3ax next and he lands on his backside… and stand and step dance on centre ice…stars into a flying sit that is nice and low if a little slow… how many revolutions was that? Step circular sequence… steps into the lutz, big pop to a single… oh dear… straight line step… Simon thinks he’s overpressing and he nearly went again in the steps… sit spin… change sit… and he’s travelling a bit … and up and out… and into camel to sit change camel to sit and he’s done, behind the music. Not much there says Simon, and Chris talks about the minus three on the lutz, with the tariff beginning really low as well… talks of the overcooked step sequence… and remembers the good free of Euros… well done to him for getting the second part of the combo he says… butterfly entry into flying back sit… and he grimaced after that pop on the lutz… eeek this is not going to be pretty…
Marks as I comment on the lack of a coach… TE 22.06 PC 23.21 for a total of 44.27 and 68.34 overall, as he’s last.
6 Ari-Pekka NURMENKARI FIN 27 24.83
Red shirt, black sparkley waistcoat and black trousers, and a red rose on his left chest… he’s 21…Tango Buenos Aires is the music… arms and blonde hair a flying, around he goes for the triple lutz double toe and he’s down on the lutz, and doesn’t do the second part… that was a hard fall. And slide to centre ice and off again, eyeing up the judges… and down the ice into the 3flip which is perfect… flying camel spin… which is slow slow slow and goes to catch foot and out… circular step right out of that move… axel double is fine… sit spin change sit spin with travel on the second part… diagonal step… plenty of wiggling of the hips… spread-eagle to centre ice… camel spin to sit nice and fast with variation on position change to catch foot half biellman type camel, and crossfoot spin and he’s done, right on the music. Chris thought it a lovely program… shame about the lutz, praises the balance and the choreography… good to see him come back from the lutz… butterfly entrance into flying camel…
Marks TE as the girlies scream… 23.56 PC 26.29 for 48.85 with ded of 1, and 73.68 and 4 of 6.
Warm-Up Group 2
7 Vakhtang MURVANIDZE GEO 26 25.07
Oh my darling, please don’t screw this up… you know how I feel about Vakhtang…
and Simon said in warm up that he will always surprise you… was dreadful in his
qual… in a navy blue tight t-shirt avec sparkles… he does not look confident!
He’s almost mugging the judges…
Marks TE 26.85 PC 26.74 for 52.59 and 77.66 and he’s 3rd of seven.
8 Frederic DAMBIER FRA 20 28.48
Sweetie, you are too good to be this far down… and his costume is black, with white stripes on it that look like the keys of a xylophone…and there are black net cut outs in it along the sides… Annick sends him out… and Simon makes note of her surname change, and since I’ve never learned how to spell her maiden name properly, I promptly forget the new one… he takes his time coming out… 9th last year….oh, Dumont is her new name? I can spell that! Carmina burana…begins kneeling down and turning… arms outstretched… loads of speed… 4sal triple toe landed with little hop but it’s gonna count! That was impressive… come on now… spread eagle into the axel triple and that was clean… camel spin to sit to almost shotgun, change sit… and out of that… bit of travel on spin. To the boards for the midline step… not bad, if a little slow and he seemed to end it quite far away from the boards, into the flying sit which looked ok… in the corner of the rink… setting up the steps into the triple flip clean as a whistle… circular step … plenty of attitude… and into the sit spin hop to change sit spin change sit spin with arms up over his back and he’s done and he pulls open the top to reveal flames of fire and he is thrilled as well he might be! Wow wow and can I say wow? Great close up of him on the way into the axel… big hug from Annick… quad sal was great didn’t have good running edge on the triple toe at the end but he landed it… kept his composure well says Simon… wobbled a little on recentreing the flying sit spin… great shot of Annick when he finished, all she needed was a set of pompoms.
Marks TE 37.03 PC 31.07 for 68.10 for 96.58 and first overall with an eleven point lead. And a new PB
9 Kristoffer BERNTSSON SWE 21 28.21
He’s in navy blue, shiny top, kinda pleathery effect on it, hella shiny… trousers are not something of the same material, luckily, for if he fell, he’d never stop sliding… only 22 he is… music is she wants to move, breathe… and he starts kneeling on the ice on one knee… trousers are shiny, but more like a tracksuit shiny… steps to begin … the axel triple is clean. Not much running edge but not much prep going into it either… combo lutz toe… and triple to both but he was damn low on the knee on that lutz, and he did well to stay on his feet and keep the hand off… flying sit spin… fine… music speeds now as he goes into his circular step and the crowd are clapping… good flow along the ice… triple flip is clean… and he grins… camel spin with travel to sit and up…change sit… to upright… and pause… to the boards for the midline step… and this is good. Sit spin now change sit spin, nice and low good changes of position and he’s done, miming holding his heart… and he’s happy with that! Crowd liked it… Simon thinks he was a little slow in some parts but that the jumping was very secure… Chris not sure if free foot touched down on the triple lutz… calls the triple flip cracking… and well done Chris, it was a two footed landing… flip well linked with the steps that came before it…
Marks 35.29 PC 29.25 for 64.54 and 92.75, second overall.
10 Jamal OTHMAN SUI 23 27.08
He impressed the lads in qualifying… pale dirty cream top with ribbed material, with black trousers…the young ladies love him notes Simon, when they’re not following Chris…since I’m neither young nor a lady, I feel no shame in noting that I’m following Nicky around (help me… please…) … his first worlds, he’s only 18… my affectionate and tender beast is the music… that’s about the tenth translation I’ve heard of that phrase… lovely lines and he gets applause for just starting! Steps around… and into the back spiral and then the triple flip… nice smile when he landed that… down to the other end for the triple lutz double toe and he needed to work on the lutz but he got it… flying camel… to catch foot camel and how does he get his body into those positions? Into the back sit spin with mad amounts of travel, change sit spin… nice speed though… midline step… crowd are clapping… little hop at the end… 2ax is tiny but landed and that’s a nice nice smile… circular step… and I don’t want to say anything but I’m enjoying this immensely… and he’s beaming just look at him! Camel spin to layback spin to sit change camel to catchfoot half biellman and he’s done! Ooooh and I’m so sorry to do this to you sweetie, but I love him! Not the most tech demanding says Simon, and he’s right, but that’s not the point! Chris used the word finesse to describe it, and I have to agree… he’s one of those rare skaters that you could quite happily look at without him ever doing a single jump… the flow, the line, the sense of joy as Simon calls it… wonderful skating we saw there. And he’s got a great smile too, if you want a purely shallow POV – and this is me, do you lot really expect anything else?
Marks TE 26.35 PC 28.54 for 54.89 and 81.97, he’s 4th overall and there are definite whistles.
11 Gheorghe CHIPER ROM 19 29.25
Navy blue suit with wide sparkles of white down the legs…big white V thingy down the front of it, and a big sparkley white buckle on the belt… the missus sends him out… he’s 26… he’s got a scary looking coach with the missus too…groove collection is the music… shaking of the hips to begin… eyes up the judges… into the combo triple flip triple toe, secure as anything… slide in minispread with arms crossed…nice! Crowd are clapping as he goes to the axel triple and he’s down…not enough height…flying sit spin… steps when he comes out of that… dancing on centre ice… then into the circ step… and this is nice, plenty of counter turns and edge work that Chris calls brilliant… into the lutz and down he goes… oh no says Chris… turns into the sit spin change sit spin… and to the boards f or the midline step and again, great footwork… end to end. Into the centre for the camel to sit change camel to sit to upright and stop and he’s done. And if only, if only, if only… great program, great choreography, if he could only have those two jumps back… Simon is wondering if he might not qualify… Chris thinks the spins might save him, he has the change foot sit, combo spin and probably circ step at level 2… and it’s pascal camerlengo with him… overdid the triple axel, over rotated it says Chris… lutz, weight was toppling back right the way through, landed on the back of the skate… Chris loved the spins and the footwork…
Marks TE 30.25 PC 28.62 for 56.87 and 86.12 and he’s 4th tonight and 3rd overall. So he’s gonna be ok.
12 Karel ZELENKA ITA 22 27.90
Black outfit, with cluster of orange sequins on his left shoulder… champion of Italy for last three years, born in Czech Rep…Simon says didn’t go to euros because the Italian fed thought they should have a real Italian for Torino!!! Quixote by Bond the music… coached by dad… steps to begin… lots of speed to axel which is high and doubled… not what he wanted… quad combo next… which is not what he does, that was triple lutz double toe… Simon you lied to me! Flying sit spin … not terrible… steps to the triple flip with a lean but clean… circular step now… not as much difficulty as others that we’ve seen… camel spin to sit and upright to change sit and wobbly on that… and midline step from the boards… again not much with the content… does get it end to end though…sit spin change sit… and his spins just look messy and I’m not so sure why… very loose, would that be a term I could apply? Chris also talks of the spins, calls them slow compared to what we’ve seen so far… flip he did well to hold, ankle went right over on the landing… footwork close-up… Chris tells us it’s going to be a close call to see if he makes it into the free…
Marks TE 29.19 and PC 26.36 for 55.55 and 83.45 for 5th place and he just hangs on by the skin of his teeth… Jamal is in 24th… is it wrong for me to be happy for him. (And hordes of Jamal fans scream, “Yes! Shut up woman!”)
Break for ice resurface as we go back to Andrew and Nicky in the studio, and I go to get my dinner.
Warm-Up Group 3
13 Min ZHANG CHN 13 30.12
He’s wearing a floaty confection in varying shades of blue, and then we go to a break… of course we do… and when we come back, it’s Emanuel. I’m not happy.
14 Emanuel SANDHU CAN 16 29.73
Andrew calls him “exciting.” Brown trousers, blue shirt, with brown lattice strips on it, with cut outs of red, as if someone’s stabbed him. Do. Not. Type. It. Time to stand up and be counted says Simon… disaster in qual, but has been practising well… nice lines as he begins… build up for the quad toe triple toe which he nails… spread eagle on the way out of that… axel to come now… and he singles it…. Flying sit… and I gasped on that axel… sit was fine and now we’re off again for the steps into the triple flip which is nicely done, and out of that he flies around the ice in a step sequence which I’m fairly sure is circular, it’s done at the end of the ice, rather than in the centre…camel spin lovely position change camel … and out… to the boards, for the midline step… I’m watching his feet and I’m liking what I’m seeing… and this is him and this is me, so that tells you plenty… and it was end to end… and into the camel to sit nice to butt spin and eeeew and change foot camel to sit to shotgun and upright and he’s done. Canadians roar, but he sticks his tongue out and shakes his head because he knows… may sound harsh Simon says but he had to be pristine… Joanne smiles at him as he comes off, and we see the combo again and it was clean as anything… steps could be level three ponders Chris, and the spins are definitely up there he says…
Marks as we hear him say “Sorry about the axel guys” to the camera… he says he’s tired to Joanne… he was setting it up and then he saw something at the last second, a rut? Sounds like he thought he was going to catch a rut? TE 33.72 as Chris says lesson learned don’t look down! PC 33.58 for 67.30 and 97.03, just first overall, but second on the night.
15 Timothy GOEBEL
Oh Timmy… I’m not saying a thing. As Plushy looks on, Timmy is in royal blue, with sparkles on the cuffs and on the collar… starts at the boards, says his prayer…and so do I… spinny steps to begin… step sequence, well that’s different to begin… and tis’ also nice, midline step… combo quad triple toe… and he’s down on the quad… oh no… timmy, I’m sorry… into the axel prep and he gets that… stars to flying sit… nicely centred… and then into sit spin change sit spin…. And up and out. Steps into the triple flip and that leaned like anything… split jump and spread for the circ step, stars then into camel to sit nice and fast change camel to sit to held foot spin and crossfoot spin, and he’s done, leaning back and arms outstretched as he crosses himself… I have never seen him look so pale… strangely constructed program says Chris… split jump in step sequence is pushing it he thinks… and the spin in the opening step he thinks was a violation… that was a hard fall on the quad, not fully rotated, Chris thinks it’ll be marked as triple with minus three ded… he kept fighting they say, as the crowd cheer the forthcoming Russian… we see Audrey in the replays…
Emanuel says axel was little cautious, hesitant, now he kicks himself, something to work for for long on Thursday
Marks TE 31.95 PC 32.00 for 62.95 and 92.73 and he’s 4th… oh dear says Simon.
16 Andrei GRIAZEV RUS 17 29.54
In mostly black, with violent pink/orange fluorescent sash on his chest and trailing down his left arm, while on his right is gold epaulette and gold sparkley trims, three lines of sparkles going down his arm and listen to the roar of that crowd… the flags they are a waving… his music is Carmen… there’s a lot of that this year. He has no quad… but here we go… crowd are right into it, steps into the triple lutz triple toe… which Simon calls a flip but I think perhaps not… and he corrects himself…axel triple is wonderful… and why do we see Tatiana then??? Around the corner he goes… and back along the ice to the triple flip, perfect. Flying camel… with bent leg to catch foot spin… running steps to begin the circ step… and this is looking well… and he’s not afraid to make eye contact with the judges! Ends it with a little glidey move…then sit spin super low, change sit spin… to the boards… and midline step… he’s flinging himself about all over the place and the crowd are buying everything he’s selling… and it was board to board… back to centre for the camel spin to sit to butt spin and upright, change sit to upright and change position to scratch spin and he’s done and wow! Hats off to the lad and no mistaking it… people are standing and I do believe that were I there, I would be doing likewise… magnificent… and a big hug from Tatiana… she’s in tears! Even without the quad, Simon says, he’s surely going to lead… Chris praises each of the eight elements…step seq used every part of the blade… and there’s Evgeny Platov handsome other woman …that cannot be Maia Usova! Anyone?
Marks – big long wait – TE 37.41 PC 33.28 for 70.69 and 100.23 and number one, and listen to that roar! New PB for him.
17 Kevin VAN DER PERREN BEL 14 29.92
In black, with pastel coloured sequins and the word exit on his back… there are arrows on the top as well… and so many sequins…and gloves…Chris says he looked good on the warm-up… everything by safri duo is the music… he’s 22… 6th at Euros… come on now… off we go… mime bits to the techno music… turns and steps into the axel triple and he just about kept the hand off… phew… off again for the combo lutz toe… triple on both and perfectly clean…huge flying sit… breathe Jeanine, breathe… and stop… him, not me… and drums go and he goes off into the circular step sequence… which I like but there seemed to be a couple of stops in there which the judges might not… steps along the length of the rink to the triple flip which is clean and he roars! Sit spin change sit spin with a bit of travel after the change… and slides to the boards for the midline step which starts quite a bit away, has great content in between, picking out the music well… and ends right at the boards… which It didn’t at Euros if I remember me correctly … camel to sit change camel to sit to scratch and he’s thrilled and punching the air… Ooooh I’m happy with that! So happy! Chris talks about qualifying for Olympics, have to be in top 24, but different feds have different rules, Holland is in top 12, Chris knows, and poss Bel too, so he’s looking to move up and he beams as he hugs his coach… hand stayed off on the axel but was it fully rotated Chris wonders? And now I’m wondering… Chris wants to see it again and so do I now!
Griazev is very happy today, didn’t do well yesterday, but today he tried his best and he did very well today.
Marks TE 34.68 PC 31.83 for 66.51 and 96.43 and 4th overall. The lads query Sandhu being above him after the single axel, and I didn’t think about that… Chris wants a steward’s inquiry…
18 Sergei DAVYDOV BLR 18 29.38
Cerise/pinky wine colour, with silver lattice work on the top, and darker crimson accents on the arms… bolero-ish music… off he goes… into the long build up for triple axel and down he goes… heavy fall… around the corner he goes… down the other end for the lutz triple which he just hangs onto and double toe not looking secure as a combo there… flying sit spin… nice and fast in that, and he changes position in it too… sets up the double flip and there was a long pause before he did it…camel spin change camel spin, as Simon notes we’re coming down to earth with a bump… step sequence down the middle of the rink… nice turns in that, and right into the corner with it…camel spin to sit to layback change camel to sit o crossfoot upright and out of that … and circular step here… and this is bolero now… and slides to a stop and he’s done, just about on the music. A tough skate Chris calls it… we see the axel again and he was off axis right the way through… just held the lutz and that toe was ropey too… will be dropping opines Chris…
Kevin with Gwendal!!! And speaking French! Kevin is v happy, best short he’s ever done and to produce it at worlds is thrilling for him.
Marks TE 22.03 PC 28.56 for 49.59 with ded of 1 and 78.97 and he’s 13th at the moment. With 12 to go, he’s not going to qualify!
Warm-Up Group 4
19 Jeffrey BUTTLE CAN 8 32.00
Black waistcoat and pants, white shirt… little white trim on the coat, and a white cross shaped clasp at the waist… come on Jeffrey… oh look at that smile! Look at those Canadian flags wave! Rachmaninov Prelude in C Minor and he takes his time, gets himself settled… turns and off he goes… I love his lines… spread eagle, I love that too… along the ice and into the triple flip triple toe and he looked so confident… spiral… more steps… and along for the axel triple! Woohoo! Nails it said Simon, and he’s not floating through a circular step… great footwork praises Simon… and when I watch it back I’m sure I’ll agree…stars into flying sit which we see on the skycam is dead on the spot… around the corner and along the diagonal with steps into the triple lutz, not great running edge but clean, and then camel spin to change camel lovely arch and goes to catch foot… midline step… plenty of content here… and the crowd appreciating that… and slides to the camel to sit variation change camel to sit and pretzel spin and he’s done, behind the music but oh boy oh boy and I loved that!!!! Break from typing to clap enthusiastically… it had everything says Chris, triple lutz was weakest element, Chris thinks he rushed the takeoff… I’m so happy! That combo was a thing of beauty… axel also a smasher… Chris calls the step seq sensational, Simon says he was beautiful to watch… I know Simon, I know! We see Rafael Artunian in the slomos…
Marks TE he says hi to everyone at home… and he’s beaming! TE 40.50!!! PC36.89 for 77.39 and 109.39 and he’s the new leader! Happy dance, happy dance, and I didn’t jinx him!!!
20 Johnny WEIR
Red red top on the right hand side, and then darker on the rest of his chest and he’s in black trousers, has been getting injections to stave off the pain of the foot injury… was going for everything during the warm-up which Eurosport bless them, showed us, and long may they continue to do so… Ooooh I’m nervous again now…cross your fingers if you love beautiful skating says Simon and I would but it tends to make typing hard… rondo capriccioso is the music… speed to begin… and sets up the axel and he goes down on the triple…oh no… and you could hear the crowd groan/gasp… triple lutz triple toe is perfect… stars into the sit spin which is so low and change sit spin, also as low…steps, circular step… nice speed, good moves… he just moves so easily, doesn’t he? Steps to the flip triple… and then flying sit spin with skate blade held… and to the boards… for his midline step… and this is something to behold… back up now for the stars into the camel spin to sit spin laybackish spin change sit spin with travel to variations n that, and then leg up in front of him and he’s done… and he looks so disappointed. Chance of a medal, says Simon, virtually gone, and Chris says it’s definitely gone… he kept fighting Chris says… was slow with right leg going back… combo was lovely… praises the fast circ step… Simon invokes the memories of Dallas and people saying he hadn’t got the guts, says he’s just proved them wrong…
Marks as he speaks to the camera in Russian and the girlies scream… he thanks his fans, now that’s classy! TE 35.93 PC 35.57 for 70.50, and 102.70, 3rd on night and second overall.
21 Daisuke TAKAHASHI JPN 12 30.13
Black mostly, with hot pink diamond shapes on the sleeves, which are puffy in the extreme… will they lift him up or slow him down? Back of the outfit is also pink, as is the shirt, so I’m thinking some kind of halter necked waistcoat effect… and no it’s not, it’s just the jumpsuit and the way they have the material… only 18… nyah from mission impossible sdtk… 19 tomorrow… steps to begin incl spread eagle…quad triple toe combo to begin Simon says… and he gets both and the spring on the quad was something else! Triple not as well landed but clean… axel now and that was clean too… flying sit spin nice and fast and centred… and stop at centre ice and do little steppy steps, and then turns… we’re into the circular step now… and he stumbles on that… oh dear me says Chris… and then steps into triple flip and no dear me there… sit spin change sit spin… and to the boards midline step very clearly marked… and it gets the girlies going again… and end to end he went… camel spin at centre ice, to sit spin to layback change sit spin and scratch spin and slide to stop and he’s done…and he doubles over, clutching his right knee, just underneath it…either injury or cramp…Chris saw him grimace halfway through, didn’t know if it was part of it or not…and there it is, you can see it in the slomo… and he’s being helped off… he’s getting that boot off the second he sits down, he all but ran for the couch… very little momentum from the first part of the combo Chris tells us… he loved the whole thing and it was something else… choreographed by tarasova and why am I not the least bit surprised? And he’s got a bag of ice on the right knee… and he’s trying to wave… shin splints Chris thinks?
Marks and there’s the doctor up.. TE 39.58 PC 32.60 for 71.18 and 102.31 and he’s in 3rd overall, second on the night. Jeffrey still leads.
22 Ivan DINEV BUL 11 30.71
Navy blue velvet, with much white doilies cut up and pasted on his outfit… one is fully on his shoulder, a couple more on his cuffs, and the rest are cut up and pasted on his legs. Typewriter is the music… oooh and there are letters on the doilies… piano like music… very delicate compared to what he normally odes. And the triple lutz double toe is impeccable… steps around and into the triple axel leaning all over the place and just about landed it, threw himself off axis and out of the circle, how did he stay on his feet?… flying sit is fine…circular step as the typewriter chimes in the music… and the bell rings and everything… not so sure he’s skating really to the music there but still… steps into a double flip and he got that all wrong… camel to sit spin, change sit to upright… and around he goes… and to the boards… midline step… nice but nothing spectacular… sit spin with travel to change sit spin… and steppy steps to begin and he just grimaces. Coach Igor Paskevitch injured in car accident and he had to miss Turin completely… this performance Simon says was back to the bad old days, as Chris says he just can’t handle the pressure… he used to make everything look easy they say, then Chris remembers how he became a superstar in Bulgaria… and he was all over the place there, needed to settle down, get into the ice and get the knees working…
Marks TE 26.27 ouch. PC 29.39 for 55.66 and 86.37 and he’s 10th at the moment, with 8 to go… and he runs his hand through his hair. Several times.
23 Sergei DOBRIN RUS 9 31.70
Black pants, yellow t-shirt, with a fluorescent green tie stapled around his neck… oh no. Does no-one tell these boys that some things just do.not.work??? He looks about twelve, being charitable about it, and the crowd go wild… 3rd in world juniors, and he’s only 18… I’d be looking for a birth cert myself… black cat white cat the music… starts with big triple Simon says, the axel… and he has to put a turn onto that, then does the triple toe, put foot down so toes won’t count,… goes to the end of the rink, does nice triple lutz. Then stops at the boards to mark start of midline step and that’s plenty of moving there… and the crowd are clapping so much I wonder how he can ever hear it… stops well short of the barrier he does… double axel… flying camel spin with travel… nice back position though, and goes to catch foot spin… and running steps to begin the circular step… which just seems to be a smidge slower than the rest of his skating but maybe that’s just me… sit spin… change sit spin… and out… and around again and it’s not just me, he is slower, right? Camel spin to sit to upright and change catch foot camel to upright to scratch spin and he’s one. And is there a roof still on the building, I want to know! Crowd love him… Simon has him staying where he is, perhaps dropping a little… and Simon says, “If only”… Chris thought that it was a junior program… step between axel and toe… Simon says federation rushed him in to gain experience and he coped well… crowd never let up the whole time…
Marks TE 28.32 PC 30.26 for 58.58 and 90.28 and a tenth place. Whistles abound… no leniency says Simon.
24 Samuel CONTESTI FRA 10 30.82
All in black, t-shirt however is black with elements of brighter patterns lying underneath when it catches the light… 3r in nationals, 22 years old, music is La Phare… kinda miming thing to begin… French almost carnival like music… lots of speed… axel triple and he kinda slid on the way in maybe? Landed it on his side on the ice… oh dear. Down the ice for the lutz and he’s down on that on his back and sliding. And oh dear. And he was under rotated so marked as fall on double… and flying sit is ok. Crowd clap to try to get him back… triple flip and he stumbles out of that as well… sit spin… with arms up behind his back, change sit… and out of that… and miming circus stuff here at centre ice… and the crowd are still clapping bless them…circular step is really fast… and a little stumble? Then back again and blinding in it… camel spin change camel to sit spin to upright and out… and to the boards and the midline step… again, really fast footwork… and he’s done. Didn’t really hold the ending pose, and really, who can blame him? Simon says the lights went out after the first minute… looked a bit rough to Chris, lost axel right from takeoff edge… no elevation on the lutz… skate landed certainly a quarter short… so two marks off at the end for the two falls… Chris predicts not a pretty sight on these marks… such a shame too.
Marks TE 20.17 PC 28.63 and his head is in his hands… for 46.80 and 77.62 and he’s in 20th place… which means he’s out. Ouch.
Jeffrey leads, from Weir, Takahashi, Griazev I think…thereafter I lose it. Oooh Davydov is back in! 18th at the moment…
And back to Nicky and Andrew in the studio… waffle waffle highlight cakes… they talk about Sandhu and I tune it out, then to Griazev… then my Kevin… Andrew points out that IOC say that if you’re in the top 24, you can go to Olympics, talks of the Bel fed saying that Kevin needs to be top twelve, and he thinks that’s rough… Nicky agrees… says it’s special to go to the Olympics… and now here’s my Jeffrey… Nicky says that straight from the off it was competent and sure and everything done well, looked sure of himself, sure of the elements, overall interp of music didn’t come over for him, sometimes music a background for the elements… Andrew says he [Nicky] was unmoved by the performance yet held it in high regard technically… I had no such issues as I’m sure you all know! We see Takahashi again… Nicky praises how he was hurting yet could blank out the pain, thinks it amazing he stayed in kiss and cry, that we were so programmed to do that… Andrew compares him to Jack Sparrow and Michael Jackson and I have no idea what the heck he’s talking about…. We see Johnny and it didn’t come off for Nicky what with the element being missed and all, Johnny didn’t look like he was enjoying his program… he thinks he’ll be feeling lucky to be in second place with not having done the triple axel… lovely spins he says… Johnny was inspired by Oksana Baiul, Andrew wants to know what happened to her…Nicky tries to talk around her going off the rails…right now she’s doing shows.
Someone emails Nicky to ask him about the change… he says he was going through his David Ginola phase, thought the long hair would work with the ladies… it didn’t, so he tried something new. Nicky? It’s working! Keep it, don’t change! Why did he do ice dancing? His dad took him jumping one day, he kept falling, said it was stupid, he didn’t want to, dad said fine. Next day, mum took him ice dancing, said he didn’t want to do it, that it was stupid, she said shut up and carry on, so he did! And he’s funny too!
Warm-Up Group 5
25 Evan LYSACEK
Looking resplendent in his matador costume with more gold trim than you can shake a stick at… I adore this guy from US Nationals and oh me oh my, I almost want to apologise to him in advance… espana cani… yellow cumberbund I could do without… loads of speed into the first jump, 3ax yes, he nailed it! And he looks so confident as Simon tells us he has no quad…. Triple lutz triple toe though and he nailed that! Flying sit is travelled but nice and fast… you could see that on the ice… and into the circular step… good lot of that done as turns on one foot… more steps and arms waving and into the triple flip…. Come on now… yes! And he clenches his fists and beams….sit spin change sit spin, great position and change of edge on the second one methinks… to the boards for the straight line step, and look at him sell this! Crowd are clapping…. And he’s just motoring through this… half the time I nearly think he’s going to topple over! Camel spin to sit change camel to sit and change of edge again and variation and scratch and he’s done! Right on the music and he jumps at the end of it and oh my that’s so cute! Pumping his fists at the end of it, and look at that smile! Excellent excellent excellent! Will he go in front of Jeff Simon asks, and Chris thinks he might, spins had change of edge, change of speed, difficult entry… he gets a hug from Frank…Chris notes he doesn’t get a lot of elevation on his axel…or that could be on all his jumps… he’s not making it clear…and we see the jump at the end again… and he’s waving and winking and he’s very happy. As am I.
Marks TE 38.71 PC 34.71 not as good as Jeff… for 73.42 and 105.55 overall; he’s second. And I’m ok with that. Weir still in third.
26 Stefan LINDEMANN GER 4 32.50
In pinstripes and sparkles, all black… sparkles pipe the collar, and I love this guy. I really do. And I apologise to him in advance as well, just in case…music is Earnest, sdtk… come on now… bouncy kinda music to begin that gets the crowd going… starting off with the quad toe, triple toe… sets it up first… no! down on the quad and the crowd just moan… oh bugger… around the corner and down for the axel… oh no! single… something missing with him says Simon…camel to sit nice and low to upright with travel change sit spin, and out of that… they’ve not heard of an injury… and the flip no! fall on a triple and he’s down on the ice… and Simon’s never seen him miss three in a row… midline step… nice and the crowd are clapping but this is going to be tough to take… steps went end to end and nice entry into back sit change sit… quite a bit of travel in there though… circular step now… and this is nicely done and he’s making eye contact with the judges, huge flying sit nicely centred and he’s done, behind the music. Nightmare says Simon… he wonders have they overdone it with him… all the competitions plus competitions and galas… he’s looked flat to him yesterday and again tonight and Chris says yes, he looks tired… and he looks completely defeated…and I’m gutted for him… no respectability at all says Simon and jeez could you twist the knife any more? Goes on to say that they both love him, support him, Chris especially, but that wasn’t the real Stefan out there… and he just shrugs in the kiss and cry when he sees himself on the camera…
Marks … anyone know the criteria of German fed for Olympics? TE he’s shaking his head… 22.18 ouch! I think I bruised! 33.28 PC for 53.46 overall, and he’s 14th 85.96 total score. I say again – ouch.
27 Stephane LAMBIEL SUI 1 38.00
All in black, and with a funny looking collar of green, and green on the cuff of his left arm… hello to the bouffant… Spanish caravan the music… come on now… skates backwards… and spins… around the corner… and up the ice… 3ax yes perfect. Mind you, I said that at Euros… quad triple toe coming next… he had to work on the landing of the quad but got t…wonder about free foot on the triple…flying sit is beautiful and so low.. and so fast! Into the steps to the triple flip and yes, free foot low but I thought it stayed off, Chris says no, touch down… he’s not treating it like it did, beams through the straight line step, and now the circular, and he’s just having such fun with it and the crowd are clapping… and the footwork is great…. Camel spin to sit with variation and butt spin change to sit spin and he gets faster and scratch spin that makes everyone roar and off that, into a sit spin that’s blindingly fast and change sit… and out… and he’s done! Superb says Simon… and he puts his hand over his heart… and now the arms are waving and the hands are in the air… loved it. Even with the couple of questions I have over a couple of the landings, Chris is saying the lutz touchdown was the only mistake, spins are level threes, poss step seq too… and the axel was fine…. And so was the triple toe, he got it fine… mea culpa and the final triple…gotta say, there might not have been…
Stefan…just wasn’t a good day for me… had a good feeling before the competition, I just can’t explain why I missed the first jump and from then on it just got worse… will try to do my best from here on in…
Marks TE 42.56 PC 37.72 wow! 80.28 for 118.28 and a nine point lead overall! And he leaped up when he saw that! New PB by more than ten points!
28 Evgeni PLUSHENKO RUS 2 37.98
Sedate for him, with basic black with a smattering of silver sparkles… Simon at one point said that he heard a rumour that Plushy’s injury is all in his head, so to speak, that he’s just completely knackered, and that the Russian federation put real pressure on him to appear here… don’t know about that but just said I’d tell you all anyway… as I do maths in my head, badly, to figure out he’s going to need a score of 81. something to beat Stephane… Moonlight Sonata the music… and the noise of the crowd as I say that no-one in thee world should do this piece of music ever again, but that’s just me… starts with hand over his ear….good idea! Away he goes… plenty of speed….quad and he falls! Fall on the quad toe… I screamed… on his hip…axel… and he was leaning but he got it…gutsy Simon calls it…flying camel spin… electric guitars playing this and he goes to catch foot camel and that looked kinda slow… stops and goes into the circular step sequence… picks out the music really well in this … and the lutz triple is clean… sit spin change sit spin… nice and centred…. And to the boards and look at him sell this now… feet are flying and the crowd are screaming… arms are waving… good stuff… and glide on one foot by the judges… camel spin to sit to biellman change sit to shotgun to scratch spin and he’s done. And there’s a big roar, and a big smile, but he looked at the judges with complete defiance there during that glide, Simon says… Chris talks about his guts… that quad toe, Chris says, had to be backwards – if it’s not, he’s in big trouble…because it would be marked as a fall on a triple??? See, I’m getting good at this! Slo mos, here we go… Simon wonders is it the groin, the knee, or just fatigue… yeah, he got the rotation on the quad, so minus three on quad, not triple…
Lambiel with Gwendal… saying when you give everything, when you really want to prove you’re the best and something goes for you like that… I wanted to show everyone what I could do, show everyone who the real Stephane is, who the strong one is… he had goosebumps before the music started, from the moment it did it was like a dream
Marks TE 35.99 PC 38.29 for 73.28 and 111.26 – 4th on the night and second overall… and there are whistles but Simon thinks that he was marked kindly on the first set of marks…seven points behind Lambiel, Chris says he’ll never get those back, the form that he’s in… Lambiel, not Plushy.
29 Brian JOUBERT FRA 3 33.00
Black costume with red piping in horizontal rows along the chest, and red trim along the Alexis Carrington like shoulder pads…red gloves, and the red sash on his waist…gets the words from Veronique Guyon as he goes out… selection by the blue man group… starts with steps towards judges, then glides away… who can blame him really… down for the quad … quad toe triple toe… nicely done. Around we go now and down for the axel yes, triple! Didn’t get the height but got it, and the flying sit is ok… nicely centred, eventually… and stop in front of the judges… runs away now in to the circular step…mimes skipping… plenty of turns and counter turns, well marked… around we go now and steps to the triple flip… and he made that look easy…camel to sit to laybackish change sit to upright and out to the boards…straight line step which reminds me that Yags will never be gone as long as he’s skating… nice footwork here… and sit spin change sit spin, travel n the second part… and he’s stepping and he’s done, right on the music, and he roars at the end… he is happy with that. Well done you… takes his bows… almost superhuman Simon calls him… that quad was a beauty…
Plushy rinkside… he’s injured, problem with
groin, didn’t skate two and a half weeks after Euros, he’s in bad condition,
but he should skate, must skate in hometown in Moscow in worlds, likes skating
here, but when you had bad condition, you can make strange? And he had a big
mistake in combo, but for two weeks skating he’s fine and he’s fine with the
result, and it’s
Marks TE 41.95 PC 37.71 for 79.66 and 112.66 – second overall, and six points behind Lambiel… looking good for Stephane and I wonder idly if I should delete that sentence before deciding to let it stand…
30 Chengjiang LI CHN 5 32.23
Red top with mandarin collar of black, with silver sparkles on it… collar pipes down to the centre of the shirt, in black, with sparkle accents finishing off the fastening… black trousers… music is something to do with the book of Chinese martial arts…treasured book says Simon… which accounts for the arm movements as he moves off… quad to begin… and he gets it with a triple toe at the end of it… nicely done, completely secure, really high…axel triple has a low landing and free leg just off…flying camel… change of edge on that spin, I’m sure… out of that… steps into the triple loop… nicely done. Camel spin to sit spin nice and low and up change sit spin to scratch spin… and out… back around the corner and he smiles as he begins a step sequence… which I’m pretty sure is serpentine, now that’s something different… and into spinny steps and a stumble as he goes into the midline step… Chris remarks on it too so I know it’s not just me… and out of that and into the sit spin change sit spin… and he’s done. Looks happy with that… Chris thinks it’s interesting that he’s doing the loop here, not the lutz or flip, fell on lutz in the qual, and then didn’t do the flip, so it’s either injury or psychological… he’s not sure which… that quad was a corker I gotta say… and the free foot did stay off on the axel…
Joubert with Gwendal… he’s very proud, wasn’t easy because of the stress, was less so than yesterday, but wasn’t going to give up, gave it his best, still in contention… Gwendal says he thought he was just ahead of Lambiel on the tech… Brian says didn’t see enough of performance to judge but he’s very happy for him
Marks TE 38.66 PC 33.75 for 72.61 and 104.84 overall and he’s 6th in front of Weir.
Which means. Lambiel, Joubert, Plushy, Buttle, Lysacek, Li! Are the one to six – go Jeff!
Weir, Takahashi, Griazev, Sandhu, Dambier and Van Der Perren
Berntsson, Goebel, Dobrin, Dinev, Chiper Lindemann up to 18
Serov, Zhang, Zelenka, Othman, Pfeifer, Davydov make up the free
Not qual – Vakhtang, Contesti, Toth, Nurmenkari,Hamer and Zivanovic are out.
Back to Andrew and Nicky… as Andrew tries to make it look like he knows something… Nicky is smiling… takes us through Stephane and his jumps… praises him to the skies. He thought that tech Joubert could beat him, but artistically, not enough… does Joubert have what it takes asks Andrew? Yes says Nicky, but if Lambiel holds it together, he will take it. (Which means he’s doomed; Nicky’s a bigger jinx than I am) Talk of the new marking system, six points can be overcome, but he can keep it together… pairs free tomorrow… and we’re done!