Cup of China unearths new pairs combination | Golden Skate

Cup of China unearths new pairs combination

Skating Moose

Spectator
Joined
Nov 8, 2011
Amongst other things to come out of the recent Cup of China in Shanghai was the unearthing of a new powerhouse pairs combination... Dylan Muscovitch and Hao Zhang. :laugh:

While I'm not entirely sure of all the steps that led to the joke, at the short program press conference, Hao Zhang was stretching on the floor while waiting for Kavaguti and Smirnov to join them. Muscovitch and Moore-Towers felt this was a good idea so joined him and soon all three were happily stretching away together (to the joy of many of the photographers in the audience). Despite some language barriers, Dylan and Hao seemed to have become good friends and, while practicing for the Gala Performance on Sunday night, Dylan joked on a few occasions about pairing up with Hao in a 'Blades of Glory'esque performance.

I suspect that this may also have led to the decision to switch the pairs in the finale of the Gala, such that Mark Ladwig went out with Wenjing Sui, Cong Han partnered Amanda Evora, Hao Zhang took Kirsten Moore-Towers for a spin and Dylan Mscovitch lifted Dan Zhang. While the skaters were a little dubious to start, it was (in my opinion) a really special moment which really showed the sense of friendship and support amongst the skaters.

Festivities continued after the finale finished as the crowd filed out of the auditorium and the skaters squeezed through the gates. Muscovitch and Hao Zhang got together and had a bit of a spin in the middle of the rink before Muscovitch and Moore-Towers teamed up with Evora and Ladwig to do a double spin in the middle of the ice. This was then followed by some super impromptu jumping performances by Yuzuru Hanyu and Nan Song.

I'm not sure whether any of this was captured on the television cameras, but I wish I'd had my camera at the time.
 

prettykeys

Medalist
Joined
Oct 19, 2009
I can't find the clips right now, but they were captured because I saw them. :biggrin: What a nice event, what great sportsmanship and camaraderie. You left out the part where Yuzuru and Nan hugged after their quads. Adorable!
 

NorthernDancers

On the Ice
Joined
Jan 15, 2010
Dylan Moscovitch is a fantastic ambassador for the sport, and a true champion. At Nationals last year, from where I was sitting, I could see all the pairs teams before they went on the ice to warm up and skate. Before the warm up, 3 of the 4 teams were joking around and interacting. It was such fun to watch, and set a great example that a skater should never take themselves too seriously. It started even before on the bus to the rink already when Dylan and John Mattatall were joking around about their "10th anniversary" at Nationals. Dylan is truly a leader with other skaters, from the youngest to the older ones, and together with KMT (yes, she is naturally that perky), is probably one of the reasons why the Wirtz camp is seeing so much success. I believe Dylan is also coaching, which I'm guessing he is pretty good at. This guy is naturally the real deal with a huge heart for skating and a huge heart for people, all tied up with a huge sense of humour.
 

CdnSkateWatcher

On the Ice
Joined
Jan 21, 2010
This isn't a "new" thing for Dylan ... he's a member of the IceMen a comic "old-time precision skating" team comprised of former and current Canadian skaters - they perform to raise money for Breast Cancer - and they do some fantasic and very amusing shows,which include, on occasion, the guys lifting each other in pairs lift. IIRC, Dylan did something similar in the gala for Canadian Nationals last year.

Seriously, Dylan is a fantastic guy, the Ice Men do wonderful work, and the entire troup are a credit to the sport. Here's a link ...

http://www.theicemen.com/Home.html
 

Violet Bliss

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 19, 2010
And Hao lifted and spun with Daisuke before, teaching and preparing Mao and Dai for Worlds 2010 Gala.

Maybe Nan lifting Yuzuru is more impressive, seeing he's not a Pairs or a big guy. :) The Power Kids sure are cute together.
 

skateflower

Match Penalty
Joined
Nov 5, 2011
Dylan Moscovitch is a fantastic ambassador for the sport, and a true champion. At Nationals last year, from where I was sitting, I could see all the pairs teams before they went on the ice to warm up and skate. Before the warm up, 3 of the 4 teams were joking around and interacting. It was such fun to watch, and set a great example that a skater should never take themselves too seriously. It started even before on the bus to the rink already when Dylan and John Mattatall were joking around about their "10th anniversary" at Nationals. Dylan is truly a leader with other skaters, from the youngest to the older ones, and together with KMT (yes, she is naturally that perky), is probably one of the reasons why the Wirtz camp is seeing so much success. I believe Dylan is also coaching, which I'm guessing he is pretty good at. This guy is naturally the real deal with a huge heart for skating and a huge heart for people, all tied up with a huge sense of humour.

Moscovitch/KMT are a fantastic pair. I love their speed and energy. Their lifts are mind-boggling. They have further improved the technical prowess by adding a 3t+3t+seq this season. They definitely belong to top 5 in the world now. I think they have a decent chance to medal at the GPF if they skate clean. In my opinion, they're already ahead of Z/Z and the other Canadian pair. They can definitely knock off K/S if they're lucky.
 

doubleflutz

On the Ice
Joined
Oct 20, 2010
Moscovitch/KMT are a fantastic pair. I love their speed and energy. Their lifts are mind-boggling. They have further improved the technical prowess by adding a 3t+3t+seq this season. They definitely belong to top 5 in the world now. I think they have a decent chance to medal at the GPF if they skate clean. In my opinion, they're already ahead of Z/Z and the other Canadian pair. They can definitely knock off K/S if they're lucky.

I'm really starting to like them, but I want Skate Canada to buy them some lessons with Stanislav Morozov, because their twists really bug me. All their other elements are so great, and then their twists looks like something you'd seen in novices in terms of the height. Everything other part of the twist is usually fabulous, she's just so low. But their skating skills are just wonderful, and while their programs aren't always my style, I respect that they choose stuff that works really well for them and that they obviously love performing to. I don't know how they'll fair for Sochi, but I hope they stick around for a good long time.
 

skateflower

Match Penalty
Joined
Nov 5, 2011
I'm really starting to like them, but I want Skate Canada to buy them some lessons with Stanislav Morozov, because their twists really bug me. All their other elements are so great, and then their twists looks like something you'd seen in novices in terms of the height. Everything other part of the twist is usually fabulous, she's just so low. But their skating skills are just wonderful, and while their programs aren't always my style, I respect that they choose stuff that works really well for them and that they obviously love performing to. I don't know how they'll fair for Sochi, but I hope they stick around for a good long time.

I think you're just nitpicking. If they have weakness in only one element, I would say they're far ahead of most other top pairs. Let's do a bit of counting.

S/S' twist is not that great either and their death spiral is usually very ugly.
V/T do not have any obvious weakness in any element.
K/S. What can I say, I can't truly name any of their elements as high quality. Their twist is e thworst. Their throws have no height and distance and they usually have very weak landings. Those lifts are simply unwatchable. The spins, steps... This is a reason they could no longer get high marks even with relatively 'clean' skating once the Russian federation abandons them this season. The GOE on their elements is coming down to earth as it should.
Z/Z. Spins, steps, lifts are bad.
P/T. Spins and lifts are ugly.
 
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