2015 Skate America! The Men and Ladies

This weekend, the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series kicked off in the cheesetastic city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin with Skate America 2015. There have been some B-level international events over the summer and early fall, but this was the first competition of the season that really and truly mattered. Some of the best skaters in the world faced off for the first time in the lead-up to the 2016 World Championships in Boston. There were some triumphs. There were some not triumphs. Join me as I take us through a journey of the men and ladies of Skate America

Men

The United States Figure Skating Association can rejoice. A U.S. man won this event for the first time since Evan Lysacek did it in 2009. And to top it off, it was an unquestionably heterosexual man who can land quads. The coverage on IceNetwork and NBC all week has made much of the New Max Aaron. Yes, our jump-drilling boy is now an artiste who took ballet classes over the summer and has learned to connect with his music on a deep, personal level. Let’s be real – Max Aaron is never going to be artistic. I saw improvements this weekend, but when you’re starting from Tonya Harding level, the only way to go is up. There is still a distinct hockey player quality to his skating, and he really lets his performance quality drop when difficult elements are approaching.

Still, something seems to be working with Max’s new approach to training, because I saw a competitive fire in him at Skate America that was completely lacking last season. I wasn’t surprised that he nailed the short program. He skated early after a slew of low scores, and the crowd was on his side. I am incredibly impressed with how he handled the long program coming in as the unexpected short program leader. Max doubled out of the second half of his planned quad salchow + triple toe combination at the start of the program. In the past, the wheels would have flown off and that would have been the end. But he kept his focus up, most memorably nailing a quad salchow in the second half of his program. Max is typically a skater who scores 6’s and 7’s in program components. He got 8’s across the board in the long program here. Accurate? I don’t think so, but program components tend to rise the more consistently you land quads. I imagine Max’s scores will continue to increase as he puts in more performances like this. It’s hard to believe, but Max could really be in the mix for the podium if he keeps up his performance level through Worlds.

The performance of the long program for me was definitely from Shoma Uno, the reigning World Junior Champion. At 17, he displayed maturity and artistry beyond his years. His complete command of the ice is incredibly impressive for somebody so small in stature. Turandot has been done to death in figure skating, and it’s easy to get buried under the weight of that music, but Shoma matched the intensity and then some. It was a living room standing ovation moment. The costume confuses me. It’s very St. Patrick’s Day Irish step dance class recital. The Japanese Figure Skating Federation can afford better styling for their future star. Shoma actually outscored Max Aaron in the long program, but a fall on a quad toe attempt in the short program cost him the gold medal. Shoma’s jumps are worrisome.  He looks very off-axis in the air much of the time, and his landings tend to be wild. There is no flow out of those jumps. Everything is landed by the skin of his teeth. The quality of his other elements is so high that his substandard jumps are very jarring.  Shoma is the opposite case of many top juniors who successfully transition to the senior ranks – he already has the quality and refinement, but he’s missing reliable jump technique. I will have to light a candle and say a prayer every time he takes the ice.

Jason Brown’s bronze medal finish here might be a disappointment for many fans, but it’s honestly better than I expected in this field. Jason tends to gain confidence as the season goes along, and he’s looked very rough in early season events this year. He also put the quad toe in his long program for the first time here. He landed the jump cleanly in practice for the first time a whopping two weeks ago. It surprised no one that he underrotated and wiped out on the element here. Jason is a joy to watch, but he has no margin for error given that he has the easiest technical content of the top skaters in the men’s field. He won last year’s U.S. National Championships on spins, footwork, and program components. That’s honestly how he won the bronze here too, as his feet did not seem to be beneath him at any point in the competition. 

Jason’s programs are full of transitions and intricate choreography. Even when the jumps fail him, he does not abandon his performance quality. I would still like to see more maturity from Jason’s presentation. The short program is pure Cheese-Whiz. Winks and finger guns galore. The long program is pretty, but it doesn’t go anywhere. I need more drama. It would help if he lost the ponytail. He needs to pull a Michelle Kwan, cut off all his hair, and give us the angst. Find your inner Russian darkness.

Yan Han can usually deliver a good short program, but you can always count on him to fall apart in the long. The judges were very ready to put him on the podium here. His jumps are huge and beautiful, and he has incredible basic skating skills. The presentation is there, even if it never feels authentic. It’s like when the football player decided to be in the high school school musical for kicks and giggles. I did enjoy his decision to skate to “Kissing You” from Romeo + Juliet. His sparkly black top looked very ready for Beijing’s top gay bar. Unfortunately, single axels and toe loops kept him off the podium here.

Konstantin Menshov reminds us that Russians have internal drama and angst that the rest of us can never hope to understand. He has told us that his long program is about his personal struggle against his inner demons. As he chose to skate to “Mad World” from Donnie Darko, we can only assume said demons take the form of giant evil bunny rabbits. He actually skated to the Adam Lambert cover of that song from American Idol……because figure skating. At the age of 32, Konstantin deserves respect for delivering two quads in the short program. He popped almost everything in the long program, but hey, it was a long weekend.

Ross Miner seems like a really nice guy. It doesn’t surprise me that his idea of edgy is skating to the music of Queen in faux-leather. He has a very pleasant quality to his skating. Ross is a hard worker, but he was very winded by the end of his long program. I fear that persistent injuries have really impacted his training regimen, and he’s going to continue to get buried in an increasingly tough U.S. men’s field.

Denis Ten…….oy. The reigning World and Olympic bronze medalist had a pretty abysmal go of it at his first competition of the season. Denis truly has the whole package. His dream posture and edge quality speak to the OCD perfectionism of coach Frank Carroll.  When he’s on, his jumps are huge and picturesque. Denis is never ready to go at the beginning of the season. His training life is always full of drama. He is usually ill, injured, or facing visa problems. This year his new boots weren’t working for him. I always cast a little side eye at skaters who pin their woes on boot problems. However, Frank started sharing that Denis has a hip injury, which was very apparent after the long program. He was practically limping off the ice. If he really was injured, I question the wisdom of letting him compete at this event. After three years of medaling at the Olympics or Worlds, he doesn’t have anything to prove to anyone. We’re used to Denis bombing his Grand Prix events and showing up ready to go at Worlds. I think he should sit out his next event and focus on delivering at the big events in the spring.

The regression of Takahito Mura from absolutely dominating the beginning of last season to scraping out the bottom of his first Grand Prix assignment this year has been truly astonishing to see. He got through two quads at the start of his long program here, but things went to hell in a handbasket after that. Taka has excellent skating skills, but presentation has never been a strong suit. When the jumps are gone, his long program feels very, very long. In fact, I asked my viewing partners why I was not able to fast forward live events. I appreciated his very ornamented top, as it was quite appropriate to the theme of Howl’s Moving Castle. Perhaps it impeded his jump rotations? Things to consider…

Florent Amodio…..bless. Short program: Triple salchow, triple axel, triple lutz+double toe. There are ladies’ skaters who present more technical content than that. He went for the quad salchow in the long program, but it wasn’t really close to rotation, and it was a hard fall. Florent remains an entertaining and very French performer. He actually failed to complete a spin at the end of his long program…a difficult mistake to make. Still, there are very few skaters who can hold the audience in the palm of their hand through a long and convoluted IJS step sequence the way Florent can. One has to wonder how long Florent will continue competing at this level, as he never looks trained and gets increasingly poor results. Some people are born for show skating.

Ladies

The winner of this event was the 15 year-old Russian wunderkind du jour. The rate the Russians pump these girls out is almost as astonishing as the rate at which they burn out (more on that later). This year’s model is named Evgenia Medvedeva. The reigning World Junior Champion has those Russian nerves of steel. When she took the ice in her short program, you could see in her eyes that she knew she was going to win. Somewhat controversially, Evgenia backloads both of her programs with jumps to maximize that 10% technical score bonus for second half jumps. There is a lot of pleasant skating and spinning for a couple of minutes, and then a non-stop jump drill. To her credit, she tends to land them. She even extends her arms over head on almost every single jump to maximize those grade of execution marks. It’s a nice flourish, but after the fourth jumping pass with flailing arms we’re like……ok, we get it. 

Evgenia’s presentation is lacking, but she does display more refinement than her Russian peers. She has nice, expressive arms and does not hit any offensive positions. Her spins display excellent speed and centering, and there are no garish, hyperextended flexibility moves. I would like to see more deliberate choreography and true connection to the music. There is lots of aimless Russian arm waving in both programs, but not worse than any of her compatriots. With these young Russian girls, one has to wonder how long the jump technique is going to last. Evgenia’s jumps look quite secure, and she jumps from her legs rather than her arms. I think that bodes well for longevity, but the test of puberty is a difficult one to pass unscathed. As it stands, she will be a force to be reckoned with this season.

This event was a mixed bag for Gracie Gold. On the one hand, she showed up here looking very trained and in excellent shape. She was looking much faster and stronger than she usually does at this point in the season, and her jumps were huge, confident, and secure. Gracie is a vision on the ice. Frank Carroll is a miracle worker. The refinement and maturity were unmatched by anyone else in this event. Her presentation is still very beauty pageant. Gracie is not a Michelle who feels the music in her soul of souls. But she does present well to the audience, and I could tell the crowd was engaged. 

Gracie does not have that killer instinct of an Evgenia Medvedeva. After nailing the triple lutz+triple toe combo at the top of her short program, she tensed up and performed a double flip. This would ultimately cost her the gold medal at this event. Gracie’s long program was excellent until she doubled a planned triple salchow at the end of the program. Popping is unacceptable in the current judging system. Go for the triple and fall. One must also question the wisdom of placing a triple flip in Gracie's short program. This has never been a strong jump for Gracie, and it's a high-risk element in the short. She will get more points for a well-executed triple loop than a questionable flip even though the flip is worth more points. Gracie’s program components were through the roof here. The judges were ready to give her the win. Her goal of winning Worlds in Boston is a very possible one, but she can’t throw away easy points. The Russian girls certainly won’t. A styling note: I know we’re skating to Firebird, but does the dress have to be so damn literal? Keep the red, lose the feathers.

Satoko Miyahara no doubt felt disappointed by the outcome of this weekend’s events. The reigning World Silver Medalist has been consistent all summer and fall and performed very well here in both programs. Satoko is a very musical, graceful skater with beautiful spins, excellent edge quality, and perfect OCD posture. She is also a very tiny girl. Despite mature packaging, she reads very young on the ice. Despite good basic skating skills, she doesn’t generate much speed and power, and she covers less ice than the other top ladies. Most damning of all, her jumps are very small. Her grades of execution are always going to be lower than the likes of Gracie Gold’s, and international technical panels tend to slam her for underrotations, fairly or not. Satoko is a fan favorite, and many observers are upset over her bronze medal finish here. The best Satoko can do is continue to be consistent and hope other top ladies falter, as they did at the last World Championships.

Skate America saw a strong Grand Prix debut from Kazakhstan’s Elizabet Tursynbayeva, who finished a surprising fourth. Let’s be real: this girl is 10, right? She looks like a child. Regardless, I was very impressed by Elizabet’s competitive prowess and her strong skating skills for someone so young. I noticed a stark contrast between Elizabet and similarly petite Satoko Miyahara. It seemed like there wasn’t enough ice in the rink for this girl to cover! The OCD perfectionist in me would like to see Elizabet straighten her free leg and pay more attention to her lines. She has a lovely, soft, expressive style that would be strengthened by better extension. I want to know why Brian Orser is making this poor girl skate to Yentl and “Send in the Clowns.” This is not a charity event at a gay retirement home. Let’s give this girl something a bit younger to work with.

This was also the Grand Prix debut of Karen Chen, who has been the next Great American Hope for the past four seasons or so. Karen has some truly remarkable qualities. She flies across the ice without any effort, she knows how to sell a program, and she has a heavenly, Kwan-like spiral that we have not seen from a top ladies’ skater in years. Consistency has always been an issue for Karen. After a stellar short program, she completely collapsed in the free skate after missing her opening lutz+toe combination. Even when she’s skating well, she is prone to underrotations, and international technical panels do not give her the benefit of the doubt. There’s usually drama in Karen’s training life. This year, she has apparently tried 14 different pairs of boots this season and nothing is working for her. I wonder if the Russian girls who have been consistently beating her on the junior (and now senior) international stage have the luxury of trying on so many damn boots. Karen has the talent to be a top contender, but it’s going to take consistently delivering two programs under the big lights for her to be taken seriously by international judges. We also need to talk about the styling. I get the French flag tribute on the long program dress, but it’s a little too fabulous for Les Miz. I don’t think Eponine had access to a bedazzler. Please bring something more muted to your next event.

Yulia Lipnitskaya…….no words. Ok, I will find some. It’s sad to see the wheels continue to come off, as I do really like her. It’s just time to have a come to Jesus moment and accept that the jump technique that served her so well as a 15 year-old doesn’t work anymore. I saw this coming in Sochi. The jumps were small and scary, and she still had some growing to do. She can fake it through a short program, but the long program always proves that the emperor has no clothes. She still has that incredible flexibility, but she looks like she hates her life when she’s on the ice. And off of it, actually. Note how she looked positively suicidal in the Kiss and Cry after both programs. Her coach said the goal was for her to just survive both programs. This girl has an Olympic Gold Medal (in the team event……but still). It’s hard to watch her at this point. It must be difficult for her to go through such a terrible career low while her young training mate Evgenia Medvedeva is doing so well. A note about the short program: is it a cruel joke to make this girl skate to Elvis? She looks like she wants to be literally anywhere else in the world but on the ice during that program.  The Lisa Frank rainbow explosion dress just adds to the absurdity of it all.

Mariah Bell’s Grand Prix debut certainly went better than I thought it was going to, considering some real trainwrecks at her early season events. She is such an engaging skater with some beautiful qualities. I don’t think the jumps are secure enough for her to really be a contender internationally right now, but I hope she continues to push herself through U.S. Nationals. The long program dress though…..I get it. Born on the 4^th of July = Vietnam angst = broken American dreams = tattered American flag. But sometimes less is more. I point to Nancy Kerrigan’s simple yet iconic all-white Vera Wang dress from her program to the same music.

There unfortunately isn't much to say about the rest of the ladies at this event. There was not a lot of great skating happening. As Nancy Armour of the Associated Press says.....figure skating needs a gong sometimes. 

Pairs and dance tomorrow! Stay tuned!