2006 U.S. Figure Skating Championships

I attended my very first U.S. Figure Skating Championships in St. Louis this year! I saw the Senior Ladies SP and all four senior LPs. While I was disappointed that my favorite skater, Michelle Kwan, was forced to withdraw with an injury, the skating was still very enjoyable, and there were several wonderful performances from not only the winners and medalists, but many of the lower-ranked skaters as well. I also got to meet some fellow skate fans who I previously had only "known" via the internet skating message board that I visit, which was very cool.

Here are photos I took of the winners of the senior events:


Inoue & Baldwin 


Belbin & Agosto 


Johnny Weir 


Sasha Cohen 

More photos can be found in my Flickr album, and other details about my St. Louis trip are on my travelblog.

I had a blast and I hope I will have the opportunity to attend another Nationals in the future!

2002 Champions on Ice - Chicago, IL

I attended the matinee performance of John Hancock Champions on Ice on May 4, 2002. This was the fourth COI I've attended (I saw the show in 1996, 1998, and 1999). I had pretty good seats (10th row, lower level near center ice) which gave a good vantage point from which to see the skaters and get an idea of their speed/flow across the ice. This was my first chance to see several of the skaters (e.g. Slutskaya, Plushenko, Cohen, Lang/Tchernyshev) in person, and Chicago got some unexpected additions to the cast (Totmianina/Marinin, Kalesavich/Parchem, Chait/Sakhnovsky).

I managed to get some decent photos at the show, thanks mostly to a new zoom lens I recently got for my camera. :)

The show intro was in typical COI format, starting with a short light show, followed by the featured performers doing a few moves to contemporary pop songs:

Totmianina/Marinin - Get This Party Started
Nicole Bobek - Hey Baby
Rudy Galindo - Love Shack
Lang/Tchernyshev - ?
Philippe Candeloro - I'm a Believer
Sasha Cohen - I Love Rock & Roll
Punsalan/Swallow - Your Mama Can't Dance
Surya Bonaly - Whenever, Wherever
Michael Weiss - ?
Kazakova/Dmitriev - Wherever You Will Go
Victor Petrenko - All Star
Chait/Sakhnovsky - Woman
Elvis Stojko - Elevation
Michelle Kwan - Here Comes the Sun
Timothy Goebel - Hero
Irina Slutskaya, Evgeny Plushenko, Sarah Hughes - The World's Greatest


Nicole Bobek (music from Moulin Rouge/Material Girl) - Good energy from Nicole to start off the show. Fell on her first jump (2axel) but later hit a nice 3toe and another 2axel. Some nice spins as well. She's a great dancer and moves very well.


Kalesavich & Parchem 

Kalesavich/Parchem (Harry Belafonte song) - The first surprise solo number of the show. :) I believe Aaron Parchem is from the Chicago area which would explain their participation here. Cute "tropical"-themed number. They were fairly slow, and Stephanie fell on a throw 3sal, but they did do some nice lifts (including a Detroiter) and other pair moves.


Lang & Tchernyshev 

Lang/Tchernyshev ("Parisian Walkways") - They got a fairly muted response upon introduction, but the crowd really got into their routine as it went along. Great sustained hydroblade move midway through drew cheers. The sight of Peter T. in a tank top drew "wows" from some of the ladies seated near me. :)

Philippe Candeloro ("Wild Wild West") - Cheezy to be sure, but the crowd just loves him. The only skater I've ever seen bring a clothes hamper out onto the ice with him. :) Typical Philippe program with some big jumps, ankle spin, clothing removal, and audience attack. Had one lady smack his rear end a few times, asking her to hit harder each time, until another lady seated next to the first one hit him really hard. :)

Punsalan/Swallow ("Because/One") - Kind of a dark, moody number. I like their flow and power over the ice. They did some cool lifts that exhibited their strength and her flexibility.

Dan Hollander (South Park/Mrs. Doubtfire) - He's done this program on tour before, but Dan still had the audience in stitches as soon as the lights came up. Starts off as Cartman from South Park, then segues into a Mrs. Doubtfire getup. :) He miffed a couple of triples but it didn't really affect the performance; he also did a back flip. Fun number, but I'm hoping that his terrific skills (esp. the footwork!) are showcased in a new program next year.

Sasha Cohen ("Hernando's Hideaway") - A very solid routine. She is noticeably slower over the ice than most of the other top ladies, but she has great presence. Hit a 2axel, 3flutz, 3sal, 3toe. Gorgeous positions as always, and her LFO spiral was held on a nice deep edge (really!). Got a good crowd response.

Totmianina/Marinin ("Never Met a Girl Like You Before" (?)) - Not terribly exciting, but this number did have a bit more flair than their competitive programs. Very nice throws and lifts.

Michael Weiss (The Doors?) - Michael showed off his new "freedom" blades several times in this number. He fell on one triple (I think a 3toe?) but hit a few clean ones as well in between his breakdancing maneuvers. :)


Surya Bonaly 

Surya Bonaly ("March with Me") - Surya threw in tons of jumps throughout this program (mostly 3toes and 2axels), although she did stumble out of a couple. I don't think she used the music particularly well, but I did enjoy the energy she put into her performance. She did *two* backflips, including one landed on one foot right into a back spiral!

Rudy Galindo (Village People medley) - Great way to close out the first half of the show. He could probably do this routine on tour for the next 10 years and crowds would still eat it up. Got some nice 3toes and 2axels in before popping another 3toe then singling an axel. The crowd clapped along through most of the routine and many people joined in the "YMCA" portion. :)

Irina Gregorian ("Start the Commotion") - Started off the second half. Did some amazing things with several hula hoops while skating, including a 2toe and several spins and spirals all while keeping the hoops moving. Dan Hollander assisted by bringing out more and more hula hoops for Irina. :) Ended by "hula-ing" a huge slinky.

Chait/Sakhnovsky ("Stranger In My House") - Another surprise performance. They are fast and move well, but I didn't really get into this number.

Elvis Stojko ("That Girl") - A typical Elvis number: pointing at the crowd, singing along to his music, kissing someone in the audience, and doing some big jumps and lots of fast footwork.


Besedin & Polischuk 

Besedin/Polishchuk ("The Swan") - A goofy routine with tons of simply amazing acrobatic tricks. Incidentally, it was easy to take photos of them because they barely moved from one spot on the ice. :) They got a huge audience response.

Timothy Goebel ("Freedom") - Tim had some jump trouble tonight, leaning on a few triples and popping/stumbling out of a 3flip. Still this was a good program that showed some additional improvement in his musicality and carriage, especially in his spins. The local boy (he's from Rolling Meadows, IL) got a nice ovation from his hometown crowd.

Irina Slutskaya ("Cotton-Eyed Joe") - This was a fun number, very different from Irina's recent competitive programs. She hit a nice 3loop out of 3 turns, and a 3salchow. Spins were nice and fast, as was her overall skating. I wasn't as blown away by her athleticism as I was expecting, but this was an enjoyable skate.

Victor Petrenko ("Who Let the Dogs Out") - Another cheezy program. We've seen better from Victor, but I was impressed that he was able to jump (3toe, big 2axels) with that stuffed dog strapped to his arm. :)

Kazakova/Dmitriev (The Matrix) - A very innovative program with lots of original moves. They did their "air throw salchow" as well as a move where she did a double jump out of a death spiral, sort of. I think they did a throw 3toe also (she may have put her foot down on the landing though).


Michelle Kwan 

Michelle Kwan ("Fields of Gold") - Wow, as beautiful as this program is on tv, it was 10 times better live. :) It was smooth and seamless, yet still athletic; her power doesn't seem to come across as well on tv. Hit a 2axel, 3toe, 3lutz, and 3toe. Spins were nicely positioned and well-centered. Her ending RBI-RBO change-edge spiral drew a huge cheer. I think I held my breath through the entire program. :) Michelle received the only standing ovation of the night aside from the finale.

Evgeny Plushenko ("Carmen") - This was a nice program filled with lots of jumps. He did a 3toe-3toe-2loop (it might have been 3loop!) to open. He really gets into the choreography, putting his all into the many arm and head flourishes throughout. :)

Sarah Hughes ("I'll Never Say Goodbye") - Sarah's program was very pretty and she covers the ice very well. Her skating still lacks a bit of polish but she's come a very long way since I first saw her skate in person almost four years ago. She hit most of her jumps (2axel, 3sal, 3lutz, 3toe) but singled the loop out of a spiral/3 turns. Got a very nice ovation from the crowd.

The patriotic-themed finale had everyone dressed in varying combinations of red, white, and blue. As in past COI finales, there was some group choreography combined with short solos from all/most of the skaters. Some highlights included a change-edge (LFI-LFO) spiral from Sasha Cohen (really nice position, although slower/less-steady than Kwan's), backflip into spiral from Surya Bonaly, Nicole Bobek's trademark spiral, a great scratch spin from Rudy Galindo, spiral into 3 turns into 3loop from Sarah Hughes (hit it nicely after missing it in her program), and a beautiful split falling leaf from Michelle Kwan (she was the last skater to come out for the finale). Then various groups of skaters did coordinated moves before they all went back into a final formation to acknowledge the crowd as fireworks went off overhead. Received a well-deserved standing O.

Overall, I really enjoyed the show! The level of skating was high despite the cheeze factor of many of the routines. :) I still prefer competitive skating to shows/exhibitions, but since competitions don't take place in Chicagoland too often, I definitely plan on attending COI again in the future.

2002 USFSA Midwestern Sectionals

I attended the final day of competition of the 2002 USFSA Midwestern Sectionals, which took place in Northbrook, IL, on November 17, 2001. Top finishers in each event at sectionals advance to the 2002 US Figure Skating Championships in February in Los Angeles.

For now, I just have a few photos up, but soon I will post a review of the events that I saw.

(You can click on each photo below to view a larger version)


Andrea Gardiner, 1st place senior ladies 


Alissa Czisny, 2nd place senior ladies 


Ann-Patrice McDonough, 3rd place senior ladies 


Andrea Aggeler, 7th place senior ladies 

Skating Haikus

My very own skating haikus:

Spin, lean back, arms up
Free leg turned out, and behind
Button's fave layback

Tape in VCR
Michelle? Tara? No - Barney!
Set the channel wrong

turns, speed, rotation
physics make skating a great
sport for engineers

some commentators
misinterpret skating rules
confusing skate fans

Dick sings "Thank Heaven..."
skate fans cringe and wonder if
Button's gone batty

quad boy Tim Goebel
and world champion Michelle Kwan
romance in SoCal?

For more skating-related haikus and other poems, visit Walkingcow's Skating Haiku Page.

1999 Champions on Ice - Chicago, IL

Here's my review of the 1999 Champions on Ice show which took place on May 1, 1999 at Chicago's United Center.

The Cast:

First half
Elizabeth Manley | Timothy Goebel | Nicole Bobek | Michael Weiss | Anissina & Peizerat | Alexei Urmanov | Berezhnaia & Sikharulidze | Surya Bonaly | Rudy Galindo

Second half
Laurent Tobel | Todd Eldredge | Klimova & Ponomarenko | Elvis Stojko | Oksana Baiul | Victor Petrenko | Kazakova & Dmitriev | Philippe Candeloro | Michelle Kwan | Brian Boitano

I was happy to have gotten much better seats for this show than I did the last two times I attended. I got my ticket two weeks ago and got second row seats, halfway between center ice and one of the "non-lutz" corners, towards the skaters' entrance area. Last year, I was about six or seven rows from the top of the United Center :) so my viewing experience was much different this time around! Last year, it was neat to be able to see the ice coverage patterns of the skaters; this year, I was able to notice facial expressions, hand movements, and other details. It was also a bit scary watching a skater set up for a jump right in front of me. :)

I've added some photos to the review; all photos can be clicked on to bring up a larger version.

The show started off with the typical opening number. All the skaters seemed to be "on" ... interestingly, Punsalan & Swallow came out for the opening, but unless I completely blanked out on them, I believe they did not do a solo number.

The first solo number was by Elizabeth Manley, skating in a black and neon costume with black pants. Did a few double jumps, and some great spins, including a nice scratch spin.

Local boy Timmy Goebel skated to "Zoot Suit Riot" and hit a nice 3sal to open his program. He then fell on another jump at the far end of the rink (could have been a 4sal attempt???). Timmy needs to work on his performing quality, but he has potential.

Nicole Bobek did her Blondie medley. Not quite as electric as we are used to seeing, but she was sporting a new shorter hairdo. :) Hit a big 3toe, but turned out of a 2axel. She did a lovely spiral of course, plus a long, low hydroblading glide.


Michael Weiss 

Michael Weiss got the crowd going with his fun KC & the Sunshine Band medley. Excellent jumps (3lutz, 3flip, 3toe), nice spins, wild costume, very entertaining! This is a terrific program for him.

Marina Anissina & Gwendal Peizerat performed a version of their passionate "Man in the Iron Mask" routine. Very nice, crowd loved them.

Alexei Urmanov skated to "I Put a Spell on You" in a way-too-big-and-colorful shirt. :) Stepped out of a 3axel, then nearly jumped into the boards on a 3toe (but saved it nicely). Got a good crowd response as well.

Elena Bereznaia & Anton Sikharulidze did their mesmerizing "Impossible Dream" program. Amazing spirals and eagles, glorious edging... plus a big throw 3sal. Impressive speed, and very quiet skating. Wonderful!

Surya Bonaly skated to a Russian (?) folk song. Triples all over the place, including walley-walley-split-3toe! She used the build up in the music towards the end of her program to good effect, setting up for her one-footed backflip. Nice ovation for her; she seemed to be very popular with this crowd.


Rudy Galindo 

Rudy Galindo closed the first half of ths show with his Village People medley. Stepped out of a 2axel in the beginning, but hit a couple more good ones, plus a couple of 3toes. Of course, many in the crowd joined him for the YMCA portion of the program. :)

The second act started with Laurent Tobel, dressed as a pot-bellied soldier. Lots of pratfall-type tricks, plus a big 3flip. Neat footwork sequence where he swizzled (?) down the rink on one foot, narrowly avoiding the bottle of "vodka" he had placed on the ice.

Todd Eldredge did his "Pity the Child" program. I don't care much for the song, but Todd was definitely on for this performance. Great 3loop, 3axel, 3lutz, 3toe. Wonderful spins. Good speed throughout as well.

Marina Klimova & Sergei Ponomarenko skated a very relaxing routine to "Evergreen"... nice, soft, romantic skating. Very smooth.

Elvis Stojko performed to "What I Like About You" and really worked the crowd. Lots of footwork! I think he hit a 3axel at the far end of the rink (not positive).


Oksana Baiul 

Oksana Baiul did her Bach program. This program has grown on me since I first saw it. She was hit-and-miss with the jumps: got a 3toe and 2axel, stepped out of a 3sal, and wiped out on the final 2axel (she hit the ice with an audible "argh!")... She seemed to really appreciate the warm crowd response.

Victor Petrenko skated his Michael Jackson medley program, much to the crowd's delight. Hit a 3toe, 2axel, 2sal. Fun dance moves. Great show program.

Oksana Kazakova & Artur Dmitriev skated to "Fly Me to the Moon" and were very dynamic. Awesome lifts, and a big throw 3toe (may have been two-footed). The move in which Artur turns while holding Oksana upright in front of him, right into throw 2sal, is really amazing. Neat series of "cartwheels" by Oksana over Artur's back towards the end of the routine.

Philippe Candeloro treated us to his wonderful "D'Artagnan" routine. Started working the crowd even before his music began. Hit some nice jumps, then unexpectedly fell backwards after a backflip! He made up for it by trying another backflip, and hitting it perfectly. Great swordplay, and very effective footwork.


Michelle Kwan 

Michelle Kwan skated her lovely "One More Time" program. Just wonderful choreography, line, flow... She did 3toe, 3lutz out of steps, 3sal, and 2toe, plus several gorgeous spirals, nice split jumps, and many interesting connecting moves. The performance was expressive and emotional, without being overdone. I'm so glad I got to see this one live!

Brian Boitano closed the show with a Sinatra medley. Very powerful, sweeping movements throughout the program. Hit a big 'Tano 3lutz plus a couple of other triples. Nice program.

The swing-themed closing group number was definitely a cut above the mish-mash closing of previous seasons. The group interaction was fun, and well-choreographed. Highlights included a 4-person death spiral (!) with K&D and B&S, two sets of simulataneous 2axels by Galindo, Eldredge, Urmanov, and Boitano, and side-by-side backflips by Bonaly and Candeloro. Neat way to close the show. Hats off to Sarah Kawahara for doing a great job with the number.

Once again, I left the show amazed, impressed and very satisfied. Also, I realized, by the number of blurry photos that I got back, that I need to learn a lot more about action photography! Hopefully by next year I'll have it down pat. :) Thanks to all the skaters and crew for a very entertaining show!