Pairs Free - Notes & Results

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Group # 1

Marina Aganina / Artem Knyazev UZB Start # 1
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Currently Free 1 Overall 1
Quidam – Cirque du Soleil her in silver-blue him in maroon
Sbs 2t / sbs 2a she single I think / thr 2s / so far there isn’t much between the elements /2tw / thr 2l – cheat sheet says thr 2a but I’m position it wasn’t / sbs flycam something happened to her I looked down and back up and she was standing waiting for him to finish / h to h press lift – no pos change / bods is quite good / pause at boards while music changes and into strt ftwrk which is together but simple / sbs 2f are clean / hip lift to star with one hand / fids iis very good / kkpair spin facing camels / another pair spin of pair sit then to her in cam him in sit /

You can see which seats are sold and which are for the ‘big shots’ or blocked by camers – the crowd is pretty good in the seats that are sold with these big empty blocks of seasts at centre ice /

Diana Rennik / Aleksei Saks EST Start # 2
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 Currently Free 1 Overall 1
Quixote, Bella Donna, Oceanic both in navy with mauve – looks quite good
Sbs 3s quite far apart think she double / thr 2s / facing step overhead no change of pos / sbs flycam nice fly & very good pos on spin & in perfect sync / spiral seq is nice if a bit slow / sbs 2f she single steps into ?? didn’t see it all but something didn’ look right / hip lift to star no hand change / 2tw is low but seems clean / thr 2l / bods is quite good – looks a little tentative but pos is fine / back h to h lift to carry with no hands him holding her by hip and leg / fids is a little slow going down but just fine once down / strt ftwrk is ok / really weird awkward chor going into pair spin / kind of weird awkward lift at end / she looks like she’s in pain bent over and holding her arm or stomach

Olga Boguslavska / Andrei Brovenko LAT Start # 3
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Currently Free 1 Overall 1
La Vita e Bella Soundtrack by Nina Rota her in red with black corset effect him in black with red sleeves /
Sbs 3t both had it then he fell quite far apart though / 2tw is ok / they’re much faster than either of the previous teams / thr 3 s looked good in air landed kind of stiff-kneed on 2feet / step overhead to press / thr 2l / a section with some nice chor / sbs 2a she single he 1-1/2 then turns into 2t he was still down / sbs flycam started out very good then he almost lost it / back h to h lift with ‘dip’ exit / front h to h lift / some playing & miming to music in front of judges / very nice nested spirals / pair spin with him in sit her in cam then reverse on other foot / strt steps move well / fids is very slow and ‘hippy’ going down ok once down /

Group # 2

Tatiana Volosozhar / Petr Kharchenko UKR Start # 4
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Currently Free 1 Overall 1
Notre Dame de Paris Soundtrack Her in black top yellow skirt with purple overskirt, him in black
Some moody music to start and their mirror skating matches / sbs 3t her good him flip out / 3tw is very nice / sbs 2a him good she fell out turns 2t / thr 3s / step overhead to hone hand press and set down / sbs flycam to catch knee get slow at end but in sync / fids is very good / spirals / thr 3s was high she had it then lost it / hip lift to sideways star with one hand to no hands briefly at end / h to h press lift came down early / bods is ok / strt ftwrk is quite nice good flow and matches well / pair spin nested cam to other foot her in cam him in sit / That actually was an enjoyable program to watch, it went by quite quickly (which is usually a good sign with me)

Kathryn Orscher / Garrett Lucash USA Start # 5
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Currently Free 1 Overall 1
Spartacus her in light blue with darker sash him in black with gold sequing around neck & belt
They start out fairly far apart back to back / 3tw is fairly high but a little crashy / sbs 3t he fell / thr 3f she had it and then leaned too far back on her blade and the heel dug into the ice and she had to put her other foot down to save herself / sbs 2a he was tight on landing but clean / music softens and they’re into sbs flycam which are nice / back h to h lift in straddle pos to one hand / spirals start out with nice inside nested and end with her draped over his leg / toe overhead to no handed star – very short though only covered about ½ of ice / then I missed something / thr 3s was huge and landed beautifully / bods is very nice just barely one rev but lovely pos / pair spin opposing cam to sbs cam to sit / music livens up and they’re in to O ftwrk which is fast & match with split jumps / hip lift to sideways no hand star to twisting flip exit – hard to describe (lifts are the most difficult thing to describe especially without taking a whole paragraph J

Milica Brozovic / Vladimir Futas SVK Start # 6
Ordinals 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 Currently Free 3 Overall 3
Piano Concerto NO 1&2 Rachmaninoff black with red trim & skirt
2tw is nice & high / sbs 3t her good him single think he got a bad pick / thr 3s step out / some nice steps to the music which has now slowed and they do some mirror skating / stpe overhead to platter? but using hands / thr 3l step out / sbs 3t her good again, him same as 1st one / fids / 2 hand hip lift both sakting forward kind of interesting & hard to describe / something went wrong on a lift or the end of the prev lift / sbs flycam were very nice / spirals were ok / hip lift to sideways star to one hand / strt steps were ok / bods is fine / pair spin is ok / I got a bit behind trying to describe things and it was hard to get caught up.

Julia Shapiro / Vadim Akolzin ISR Start # 7
Ordinals 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 Currently Free 4 Overall 4
Moulin Rouge soundtrack both in navy with silver seqins trim
Music starts out fairly soft and builds (piano) quickly / sbs 3t him good she stumbled out / very low 2tw / now we’re into the beat and the crowd is clapping / thr 3s fell slid almost into the boards got up just in time / hip lift to star / sbs 2a he fell out her good turns 2t / pair spin opposing cam to crouch / back h to h press lift no chg pos or hands / sbs flycam started out very good then went out of sync / music is now quiet again and they do nested spread eagles and spiral seq / thr 2t / bods is quite good / carry lift with her in ‘swan dive’ pos across his body / strt steps are ok / fids is fine / pair sit spin to back opposing camels /

Thanks

as always Rosaleen! Are your fingertips raw from typing yet? We so appreciate your on-going reports.

DG

Poor Diana Rennik - something's really not right with her, whether an injury or illness, I don't know, but she looked really bad, and almost looked as if she was coughing up blood at one point - hope I'm mistaken there!!!

she did well to finish the programme at all, I think - all the best to her, hope she's feeling better soon!

kat.

Glad O&L did not do too badly. I realize they fell and all, but really not bad for the first trip to Worlds.

O&L were at worlds last year, too.

Group # 3

Valerie Marcoux / Craig Buntin CAN Start # 8
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Currently Free 1 Overall 1
Rockin” Gypsies, Cancion Triste dark red on top black pants & skirt in shape of scarf
Some nice intertwining dancing in place to spanish guitar / 3tw is nice with hands over head catch / thr3l great distance no too high / they’re flying / sbs 3t turns 2t she landed pitched forward on toe at dead stop but stayed on one foot on 3t / hip lift to star to reverse star to flip out / bods is nice / pair spin cam to him in sit to rev cam to pos change / spirals inside out very nice / carry lift her on her back / fids goes down lovely and is nice & low / they were slowing down but have now picked up the pace / sbs 3t he fell / sbs fly cam sit good sync on cam got out at end of sit bit far apart / back h to h lift straddle take off to one hand / thr 3s good distance / strt ftwrk is difficult & fast & turns both ways / true lasso lift to star to helicopter /

Rena Inoue / John Baldwin jr. USA Start # 9
Ordinals 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 Currently Free 2 Overall 2
Wonders of the New World, Pearl Harbour her in shades of peach him in white shirt with black pants
Bit of nice chor to set things off / sbs single walley into 3t he fell timing was off / 3tw was short rot and crashy on landing / sbs 2a turns 2t – cheat sheet says 3t but don’t think it was / thr 3s good distance – no height / toe overhead with stepthrough / bods is very nice right into pair spin opposing cam to back opposing cam to her upside down / press lift to no hands crouch / spiral spread eagle section is to nice soft section of music / carry lift with her in 180 degree split him holding her by foot / thr 3l fell on stomach / sbs flycam are ok think out of sync a little / sbs ftwrk is fast & detailed – very nice / back h to h lift with changes & meno & sand exit which the crowd gasped at / fids with unique ending where he is skating forward in a circle and pulling her /

Eva-Maria Fitze / Rico Rex GER Start # 10
Ordinals 1 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 Currently Free 3 Overall 3
Waterworld soundtrack both in black her skirt has some white
Moving fast right off the bat / sbs 3t turns 3s his sal was awkward but I think clean don’t think hers was both toes were clean– went by too fast J / 3tw was very short rot and crashy / sbs 3t at far end of rink – not sure if entirely clean / thr 2a think it was 2footed / sbs spins – I didn’t really see them trying to catch up with notes of what had already happened (pairs is tough to do J) toe overhead lift that looked shakey going up and his turns were jerky no change of pos but they managed to do it / spirals were ok / thr 3s - didn’t really see it but crowd sure cheered so think it was clean / fids / hip lift to sideways split / h to h lift where she’s upside down / strt steps are good / the crowd is going more & more nuts with every move they do / pull arabians into pair sit spin to change of foot – spin got slow at end and he was on 2 feet for the last couple of revs/ They did a great job though skating at home / Sorry I lost track of part of their skate / They are just thrilled and so they should be /

Sabrina Lefrancois / Jerome Blanchard FRA Start # 11
Ordinals 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 Currently Free 3 Overall 3
Once Upon a Time in America soundtrack her in white him in grey vest & pants white shirt
3tw a tiny bit crashy / sbs 3t perfect timing except she was pitched forward on landing turns 2t bit far apart / thr 3l think she 2footed / lift think toe over head didn’t cover much ice and was really slow at end / fids is nice / music changes to a slow beat and they dance to it / thr 3s 2foot? Something happened wrong / sbs 3s he fell / carry lift with lying on back over his head and he goes into spread eagle / music changes to quick march and they’re into sbs steps that match it very well crowd is clapping along / bit of fun choreography / hip lift to sideways no hand star / more dancing & palying with music / sbs cam way out of sync to sit and they got it back pretty much / pair spin nested cam to her in cam him in sit think he put his foot down /

Congrats to Marcoux and Buntin.
It looks like a solid effort for their first (?) trip to worlds.

Sorry this took a while - couldn't get connected right away -- the final group is now on the ice for their warm-up


Group # 4

Dan Zhang / Hao Zhang CHN Start # 12
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Currently Free 1 Overall 1
Czardasfnrstin by Kalman both in dark purple tops shading to lighter purple then white at hem
Coming around for 3tw lateral with huge air the crowd ooooohhhh / to other end for sbs 2a turns into 3t / thr 3loop not great height like other chinese teams but good distance she pitched a bit forward on landing / hip lift to sideways star with many revs & good speed with no hands / and I’m getting behind them . . . sbs 3s bit far apart but clean / combo spin – can’t remember it / thr 3s / spirals are nice / bods is very good fast rotation / toe over head to star to carry lift in star pos – stopped rotation which is hard / fids is very low with multi rot / true lasso lift to one hand / strt steps are fast with good detail / pair spin is good back end was cam to sit to crouch./ It was a very good skate but not great (I’ve seen them better) there were little things like the landings of both throws were a bit jerky sbs jumps not as perfect as they could be. Don’t get me wrong it was a very good skate, but if the rest of the top 8 teams all skate well, there’s going to be very little to separate them and these ‘little things’ will start to have to be taken into account.

Dorota Zagorska / Mariusz Siudek POL Start # 13
Ordinals 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 Currently Free 2 Overall 2
Warsaw Concerto / shades of mauve & blue him with navy pants
Hip carry lift / thr 3l nice smooth landing / sbs 3t turns 2t looked almost perfect timing to me / some interesting chor into 3twk not really high but competely rotated with nice catch / softer music and there’s some chor with nice feeling / fids lhas unique exit that’s pretty / sbs 3t he double she fell / lift that I didn’t really see the takeoff of / kthr 3 sal she landed low in the knee but it was clean / did I miss a bods that the cheat sheet says should be there ? / I’m getting way behind again . . help / pair spin was nice / press lift to one hand multi revs and one hand set down / combo spin – didn’t really see it / there was another lift that was really nice with a flip out / strt steps / then a final lift / I was too far behind to try and see them and write them, so just watched them J People have often they do the tricks but there’s no feeling – that’s not true anymore there’s a new softness to their skating and it really looks good on them. I’d have them in 2nd right now.

Julia Obertas / Sergei Slavnov RUS Start # 14
Ordinals 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 Currently Free 3 Overall 3
The Truman show soundtrack both in dark silver lame with a bit of light blue sequins on her /
Sbs 3t she fell out think he was clean turns 2t / 3tw very nice with good hang time on replay landing was a bit crashy / sbs 3t both may have been clean but not in sync and she had a very tight landing / thr 3f is nice / toe over head to one hand kind of swingy / h to h sumersault lift to press / bids is really neat & unique where she goes into shoot duck and he’s onh 2feet in small inside spread eagles / fods ?? was trying to write up previous one / music really softens - thr 3l both hands down / some nice chor during this slower section / h to h toe overhead to one hand / sbs flycam good sync nice pos / sbs steps are good – wirth music / hip carry lift to him holding her by boot & leg / pair spin in various pos kept up the speed / hit ending pos a little early. A very good skate

Anabelle Langlois / Patrice Archetto CAN Start # 15
Ordinal 2 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 6 Currently Free 4 Overall 4
Lawrence of Arabia her in purple with light blue at neck and skirt / him in black with gold trim & purple over one shoulder / dramatic opening in place to drumb eat music / thr 3s good height & distance / sbs 3t he hand down she spun out on 2feet / 3tw was short rot but catch wasn’t crashy / sbs 3t tiny bit far apart but clean & in sync turns 2t / true lasso lift to one hand to flip out / music softens and nested spread eagle sequence is nice / behind back h to h lift to change of hands & pos / nice carry lift / spair spin is on short side but very nice & kept speed / spirals outside spread eagles seq / thr 3t landed low in knee but it was clean good distance, not much height / sbs spins cam sit were in sync / hip lift to change of hand to upside down exit / bids with her flipping over to other side / strt steps are very well done and very difficult / their unique fids kwith the travelling entrance / There were a couple of things not as good as they could be and some things that were better than the others (lift entrances on 2 of them are more difficult than the other teams) – their emotion was good – I really don’t know where I’d place them in relation to the other teams. You could argue them being anywhere from 2nd to 4th depending on what’s more important to you

If I can I'll post after each team in the final group

Group # 5

Maria Petrova / Alexei Tikhonov RUS Start # 16
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 3 Currently Free 1 Overall 1
The Circus Princess her in black with silver sequins & bit of white on skirt, him in black with ½ white vest
They take their time getting to starting places / nice little lift in place / fast around end of ice into sbs 2a turns 3t he had a hand down then 2ft / fids is fast & good / some dancing to increased tempo of music as crowd claps / thr 3l is good / 3tw isn’t really high but perfectly clean catch on full rotation / music softens and they do their spiral seq which is really nice / step over head with multiple pos changes including sideways start / and step overhead with step through to onehanded crouch pos / some nice chor as music tempo increases and crowd claps / sbs 2a / sbs fly cam to sit bit far apart but in perfect sync / some chor where he mimes playing violin and she skates around him - I liked it / thr 3s w2foot landing / hip lift to sideways star no hands with twist out / carry lift with her balancing on his leg and him on one leg / bods / strt steps to rousing music and the crowd is really into this program / neat kind of spinny lift with her on his back / pairs spin is excellent great speed & really nice pos / Oh Boy -- ahead or behind the Zhangs – I’m inclined to put them ahead even with the error – Pet / Tik’s chor is much more complex than the zhangs and this program had a coheision that the Zhangs didn’t. Now we’ll see what the judges do J

Qing Pang / Jian Tong CHN Start # 17
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Currently Free 1 Overall 1
Reflections on a theme of Paganin Red & pink with black
Sbs 3t turns hop 2a / 3tw with great hang time / thr 3s again is huge / lift that I didn’t see the take off of / sbs pair spin is very good if I remember right / music gets really soft and so do they some nice chor with good feeling / bods is good with 2 revs and they keep the feeling &* crescendos of the music right into their spiral spread eagle ina section – they’re really skating with the music every beat every nuance / sbs 2a / there’s constant transisitions in this program no empty stroking or crossovers / huge thr 3l / hip lift to star to him in spread eagl all with one hand / fids is credibly low & soft / music picks up and they’re doing their O ftwrk which is excellent / step overhead lift to platter to star to twist out / pair combo spin is very good no loss of speed / and that went by SO FAST I can’t believe it’s over !!! There’s no doubt in my mind that this should be in 1st place right now. There was only 14 elements to Pet/Tik’s 15 -- one less lift, if my cheat sheet is right.

They got a 6.0 but of course we don't know if it counted

Tatiana Totmianina / Maxim Marinin RUS Start # 18
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 Currently Free Overall
Art on Ice Navy with illusion on shoulders

Sbs 3s he was a bit squeaky on the landing but clean / sbs 3t 2t / spirals are ok / 3tw was rotated but she had to grab his shoulder / thr 3l is good with distance but not much height / some nice emoting chor to music / nice carry lift with her on his upper leg / press lift to one hand with one hand set down / another lift the same with different pos from her 2 hand set down / thr 3s distance – no height / O ftwrk goes well with music / carry lift with her in upside down split him holding her with one hand / fids with him in different pivot – she still goes down very slow & awkward / sbs spin weren’t in perfect sync but were close together / him lift to star / bids is ok / pair spin is nice / It was a very good program – well skated but I didn’t get near the sense of emotion or oneness with the music that I got from Pang & Tong. Don’t know if it’s because they always leave me somewhat cold and I’m being hard on them but I’d have this in 2nd without any question at all


They also got a 6.0

According to Eurosport live audio...

Totmianina & Marinin squeaked out the gold by just edging out Pang & Tong--1st place, 6 judges to 3

No further comment until I see the LPs...

Shen & Zhao are skating right now, knowing that gold is out of their reach, but presumably reaching for a medal of any color.

Sarah

Tatiana Totmianina / Maxim Marinin RUS Start # 18
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 Currently Free Overall
Art on Ice Navy with illusion on shoulders

Sbs 3s he was a bit squeaky on the landing but clean / sbs 3t 2t / spirals are ok / 3tw was rotated but she had to grab his shoulder / thr 3l is good with distance but not much height / some nice emoting chor to music / nice carry lift with her on his upper leg / press lift to one hand with one hand set down / another lift the same with different pos from her 2 hand set down / thr 3s distance – no height / O ftwrk goes well with music / carry lift with her in upside down split him holding her with one hand / fids with him in different pivot – she still goes down very slow & awkward / sbs spin weren’t in perfect sync but were close together / him lift to star / bids is ok / pair spin is nice / It was a very good program – well skated but I didn’t get near the sense of emotion or oneness with the music that I got from Pang & Tong. Don’t know if it’s because they always leave me somewhat cold and I’m being hard on them but I’d have this in 2nd without any question at all


They also got a 6.0

Tatiana Totmianina / Maxim Marinin RUS Start # 18
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 Currently Free Overall
Art on Ice Navy with illusion on shoulders

Sbs 3s he was a bit squeaky on the landing but clean / sbs 3t 2t / spirals are ok / 3tw was rotated but she had to grab his shoulder / thr 3l is good with distance but not much height / some nice emoting chor to music / nice carry lift with her on his upper leg / press lift to one hand with one hand set down / another lift the same with different pos from her 2 hand set down / thr 3s distance – no height / O ftwrk goes well with music / carry lift with her in upside down split him holding her with one hand / fids with him in different pivot – she still goes down very slow & awkward / sbs spin weren’t in perfect sync but were close together / him lift to star / bids is ok / pair spin is nice / It was a very good program – well skated but I didn’t get near the sense of emotion or oneness with the music that I got from Pang & Tong. Don’t know if it’s because they always leave me somewhat cold and I’m being hard on them but I’d have this in 2nd without any question at all


They also got a 6.0

Xue Shen / Hongbo Zhao CHN Start # 19
Ordinals 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Currently Free 1 Overall 2
Swan Lake her in white him in ‘prince’s costume of black & red

Some nice chor to set modd / sbs 2a turn 3t in perfect sync and big jumps / thr 3s is huge as usual / sbs 3t close together and in perfect sync / bods is nice / pair nest cam neat pos change to crouch with good speed (most difficult pos according to Isabelle Brasseur ) sbs steps flow with music / sprial spread eagl / fids goes down and 2rev and up very smooth & easy / 3tw is huge and clean catch / true lasso with multiple revs and to one hand / the emotion is building / thr 3l is huge and clean / some nice chor moves to usic / toe over head to one hand / sbs spins to change in music cam to butterfly in middle to sit / to hand to hand lift with her on her back I looked away for a second and there might have been a little problem on the dismount ‘cause when I looked up they didn’t look to be in positions of perfect sync. I’ll have to see the replay. For my money this is a better program and better skated than Tot/Mar.


More 6.0's than I could count -- actually
tech 2 & pres 10 but of course we don't know how many counted

I am glad O&L managed to move up one spot... and 3 spots overall from last season - so they are headed in the right direction. I am proud of them and their gorgeous throws!!!

Thank you Rosaleen soooo much for those reports. Here are actually the scores of the top 3:

1 Xue SHEN / Hongbo ZHAO CHN
5.7 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 6.0 6.0
5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0
2 Tatiana TOTMIANINA / Maxim MARININ RUS
5.6 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.9 5.9
5.7 5.7 5.8 5.8 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 5.9 6.0
3 Qing PANG / Jian TONG CHN
5.6 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8
5.7 5.7 5.7 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.9 5.9 6.0


Despite everything, I am glad for T&M.

Good for S&Z. I just love 'em. Too bad that earlier mistakes prevented them from the gold. I find both Russian pairs BORING, and it's a bit of a bummer, IMO, that that type of skating wins gold. However, I know that S&Z didn't stay on their feet and that shouldn't win gold either.

I wanted S&Z to win so much but I'm OK with silver.

Dee

And I'm happy with TT/MM winning Gold - it must have been incredibly difficult for them, to skate after Pang/Tong, who just got a 6.0 and knowing they have to stay in front of them by skating clean or otherwise opening a door to Zhen/Shao. - They prooved themselves being real champions.