2019 U.S. Nationals

Another Nationals in the books! This was my 19th, and the overall level of skating was the highest I've ever seen. My first Nationals was Boston in 2001, which was during the height of the Michelle Kwan era. After Michelle's retirement came the era of Meryl Davis and Charlie White's genius ability. Now we have transitioned into the Nathan Chen era, where we are being treated to a type of athletic talent that we have never witnessed before. It was an honor and a privilege to be in the building for his performances in Detroit.

There were so many awesome performances last week. The junior free dance is always one of my favorite events, and this year it presented an abundance of riches. The Greens brought beautiful precision, while Nguyen/Kolesnik brought explosive passion. In the championship free dance, McNamara/Carpenter captivated me with their quiet yet emotional performance, and Chock/Bates lit up the entire building with their infectious joy.

Here are all my photos and videos from the event!

Thursday Photos
Friday Photos
Saturday Photos
Sunday Photos

An Evening on Ice 2015

This weekend I made my annual journey to L.A. for the US Foundation's Evening on Ice show. It's always such a fun event with world-class skating. This year's post-show Meet and Greet was also especially fun as it was set up so we could mingle and talk more with the athletes. It was so great to talk to some of my favorite skaters and meet some new ones!

Here's a run-down of the show with a few thoughts:

Gracie Gold - "I Am Here" by Beyonce. Jumps were a little scratchy but she looked very engaged with the music.

Meagan Duhamel & Eric Radford - "One" by Bono & Mary J. Blige. I LOVE seeing Meagan and Eric perform live. They really have a dynamic quality together.

Jeremy Abbott - "Black Skinhead" by Kanye West. Very modern and intense program. I prefer his more lyrical exhibitions, but this one was definitely entertaining.

Kimmie Meissner - "Latch" by Sam Smith (cover). There is so much joy in every movement Kimmie makes across the ice. She spoke to the crowd after the show, and she said five years ago she was really down about skating, and Nick and Tricia Laroche invited her to be part of the first Evening on Ice show and encouraged her to start skating again. It helped her find her love for the sport again, and she hasn't stopped performing since then!

Yuka Sato - I don't think I've ever seen Yuka skate live (unless she was on the '94 COI tour, which my old brain can't remember). Her blades are so quiet, and she looked so happy and peaceful in her performance.

Madison Chock & Evan Bates - "Interrupted Flight." I never get enough of seeing my faves! They bring so much elegance and beauty to the ice, and they are two of my favorite skaters off the ice, too. Get ready for a stunning free dance from them this season! ;)

Brendan Kerry - "Troublemaker" by Olly Murs. This was my first time seeing Brendan skate. He looks to have good basics, so I'd like to see how he can progress in the future.

Alissa Czisny - "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" by Madonna. Her jumps and spins were a bit off, but her simple glide across the ice is always so graceful and beautiful to watch.

Polina Edmunds - "California Dreamin" by Mamas and the Papas (cover). This was a new, edgier look for Polina, and I think she pulled it off. She did her trademark magnificent twizzle, which I love.

Shawn Sawyer - "We No Speak Americano." Shawn knows how to entertain, and his flexibility never ceases to amaze me. I could watch him spin and do spirals all day long.

Rohene Ward - "A House is Not a Home" by Luther Vandross. Very emotional performance from Rohene with some beautiful moves, including a killer layback and a hydroblade.

Richard Dornbush - "Don't Worry, Be Happy" by Bobby McFerrin. He pulled off a great triple Axel and had his usual playful style working with the crowd.

Daisuke Murakami - "Bring Him Home." I really like the bones of this program and am excited to see its progression as his short program this season. Daisuke said at the M&G that Frank wanted to stretch him as a performer this year with this piece.

Courtney Hicks - "Amazing Grace." This was such a beautiful performance! I can see that Courtney has been working hard on the artistic side of her skating. It was one of my favorites of the evening.

Karen Chen - "Nessun Dorma" by Luciano Pavarotti. It looks like Karen has grown a bit, and it's helped her look more mature on the ice. She skated with wonderful speed and did a great triple Lutz.

Beatrisa Liang - "Give Me Love" by Ed Sheeran (piano version). I'm now obsessed with this version of the song and need to find it STAT. Bebe always picks great music and shows her love for skating in her performances.

Jonathan Cassar - "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon & Garfunkel. The only way to describe Jon's skating is gorgeous and heartfelt. We all know he has killer spread eagles, but everything he does on the ice is special.

Derrick Delmore - I wasn't familiar with the song, but it sounded like Ricky Martin? Derrick can't stop smiling while he's skating, and it's obvious he's another one who loves any chance to get out there and perform.

Leah Keiser - "On My Own." Leah has grown so much and really has a striking presence on the ice. Loved her Ina Bauer.

Douglas Razzano - "Your Song" from Moulin Rouge. Any time I can see Doug skate and then chat with him afterward is a good day. I was very happy to hear he'll be a team leader for the Challenge Skate in Salt Lake City this year. He is a one-of-a-kind personality!

Braden Overett - "Feelin' Good" by Michael Buble. Braden has comedic skating down to a science. He was one of my favorites back when he was competing, and I'm so happy he's still performing. You can't buy that kind of charisma.

Here are all my photos from the show and the Meet & Greet plus a couple of videos. I wanted to take more, but I had some obstruction issues. => PHOTOS & VIDEOS

2015 U.S. Nationals-Saturday Events

My posts always get shorter as the week goes on. Today I just have to say a big WHOO HOO for Madi and Evan and their awesome skate and their first national championship!! And also a huge WOW to Ashley Wagner for her kick-ass performance. She was so in the zone it was scary!

Now I shall go to sleep and say my goodnight prayers for a spectacular men's free skate tomorrow.... I'd like to see these two guys at the top of the podium (any order will be fine!):

Here are the rest of my photos from Saturday => PHOTOS

2014 Olympics - Meet the U.S. Ice Dancers

Today begins the ice dance event in Sochi - an event that I have been anxiously awaiting for four years. Let's meet all three teams that will be representing the U.S.!

Meryl Davis and Charlie White

Meryl Davis and Charlie White train in Canton, Michigan and have been skating together for seventeen years. They are six-time national champions (the most ever national titles by a U.S. ice dance team), two-time world champions, and the 2010 Olympic silver medalists. They have brought American ice dance to all new heights, and throughout all their success, they remain two of the most genuine, down-to-earth people around. So many of their programs I've loved, but if I had to choose one to feature... well, I can only narrow it down to two! The first is their Samson and Delilah free dance from the 2008-2009 season. It was the program that made the world take notice of them, and when they performed it at the world championships in L.A. and the building was shaking around me, I knew it was a moment we'd talk about years later.

My other favorite program of theirs is their Notre Dame de Paris free dance from 2012-2013 season. This was another program I was lucky enough to see live at the world championships in London, Ontario, and it was another moment I'll never forget. This program elevated the emotional connection between Meryl and Charlie and showcased the raw passion in their skating. There was something so breathtaking about how they threw themselves completely into the program and lived each note of the music.

And here's one of my favorite photos I've taken of Meryl and Charlie - this was during their free dance at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver:

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Madison Chock and Evan Bates

Madison Chock and Evan Bates train in Novi, Michigan and are a relatively new team. They've been skating together for less than three years, but their chemistry was palpable right from the start. With their large height difference, they are able to perform stunning lifts, and I love how they're able to do both light-hearted and powerful, romantic programs well. My favorite program of theirs is their jazzy Chopin free dance from their first season together in 2011-2012. It was so different from anything I'd seen, and I love the playfulness and danciness of it.

And here's one of my favorite photos I've taken of Madi and Evan - this shows one of their light-hearted programs, their short dance at 2013 nationals:

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Maia and Alex Shibutani

Maia and Alex Shibutani train alongside Meryl and Charlie in Canton, Michigan. I first saw this brother and sister duo at the junior level at the 2008 national championships. They already had people buzzing, and they quickly shot up the ranks and made a huge splash in their first year on the senior level, winning the bronze medal at worlds. It's been so fun watching them grow up into seasoned performers. I've always been so impressed with their technical precision and their musicality. Their elegant style was very much on display in their 2008-2009 Cinema Paradiso free dance, which is my favorite program of theirs.

Here's one of my favorite photos I've taken of Maia and Alex - showing how intense they were about their Michael Jackson free dance at nationals this year:

I love all three of these teams so much and hope they have the time of their lives performing their Olympic programs!

Don't forget to enter the Olympic Extravaganza giveaway below. The fourth prize will be given away tomorrow!

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Monday Moves

Monday Moves is back! It's been a hectic couple of weeks with nationals and then work craziness last week once I returned from Boston. Work is still out of control, so I haven't had time to write a recap of my thoughts on nationals, but I didn't want Monday to go by without posting. Today I'm featuring one of my favorite ice dance lifts from nationals - Madison Chock and Evan Bates' opening lift from their Les Miserables free dance. It's a stunning combination lift! The straight-line part where Madison goes up into the air right on the crescendo of the music gives me goosebumps every time.

Monday Moves

With the figure skating season quickly approaching, I thought I'd start doing something new on Mondays. Instead of Music Monday, I'm starting a new series called Monday Moves where I share skating moves that I live for. Today's featured move was part of Madison Chock and Evan Bates's 2011-12 jazzy Chopin free dance. Check out the beautiful lunge by Evan followed by a gorgeous split lift:

U.S. International FS Classic-Practice Videos

Here are a couple of videos from Friday morning free dance practice at the 2012 U.S. International Figure Skating Classic.

Madison Chock & Evan Bates - Dr. Zhivago partial run-through

Lynn Kriengkrairut & Logan Giulietti-Schmitt - "Turning Tables" and "Rumour Has It" partial run-through