Best battle for National Champion this year?

[Tonichelle]

you know, I voted for Evan and Johnny... but now I'm wondering if ICE DANCE in the US will be the biggest battle... I really feel that Melissa and Denis are ready and capable of challenging for gold... and then there's teh battle for third...

 

[goodbyemylover]

I feel U.S. ladies and men, Canadian men, and Russian men are going to be the most interesting battles for this year.

Having been mounting for a while now, I feel Lysacek vs. Weir is going to come full swing this year. Hips willing, that is. Evan has started to really emerge as a big contender in every competition he attends within the last year. Some may call him overrated, but there is no question he is a serious threat to Weir in the 2007 Nationals. Weir has also been suffering inconsistency, for whatever reason.

The Canadian men are always particularly interesting in Nationals. Jeffrey Buttle typically places higher than his countryman, Emanuel Sandhu. However Sandhu is no stranger to the title of National Champion himself and though he's terribly inconsistent, there is a World Champion lurking beneath his...Sandhu-ity. With his injury, Buttle may have lost some of his momentum. You never know. (I'm waiting for Sandhu to finally do it, but I'm not betting!)

And the Russians leave me with a desire to see how well Sergei Dobrin does. I've started to really enjoy his style; but Klimkin is his senior. Is that a good or a bad thing? Remains to be seen. We might all start to really miss Evgeni.

 

[Ptichka]

I chose Weir/ Lysacek, but I think the most fascinating will be Asada vs. Ando.

 

[Oscilla]

I think the most fascinating will be Asada vs. Ando.

Will be? Shouldn't it be more past tense?
It would have been more fascinating had Ando not been injured. It was pretty depressing to watch her pause during her program and finish it with a dislocated shoulder.

 

[slutskayafan21]

you know, I voted for Evan and Johnny... but now I'm wondering if ICE DANCE in the US will be the biggest battle... I really feel that Melissa and Denis are ready and capable of challenging for gold... and then there's teh battle for third...

Have you kept up on the scores of Gregory/Petuhkov vs Belbin/Agosto on the GP circuit? Yes Belgin/Agosto may be showing vurnerability in the judges eyes among their competitors in the elite 5 teams of the World but at the U.S level?

 

[R.D.]

The most exciting rivalry has already passed...at Japanese Nats. The US nats choice needs to be changed to "Meissner vs. Hughes" in which I think that's a no-brainer (no battle there).

 

[Jaana]

I think that the Nationals are interesting only in those cases that e.g. two or three rather even skaters are competing for one place at the Worlds... If there are two strong skaters competing and there are two or three places at Worlds, the result in Nationals is of no special interest, in my opinion, as the win has no special meaning.

 

[slutskayafan21]

When now that all these are over with which 1 was the best? None were all that enthraling right to the end I am afraid, but the best if I had to choose was maybe the Marcoux and Buntin vs Dube and Davison-Canadian National pairs Champions one? It was probably the closest of this group.