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They have a beautiful head of hair - they just haven't got it gelled to the ninths today,
2022 World Championships: Pairs Short Program
- Thread starter dorispulaski
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OMG I'm ecstatic! Yeah Ashley & Tim and Alexa & Brandon!
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Don't want to spoil the party, but we still need to be realistic about the circumstances...
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I’m just looking back to see what I missed and, wow! @skylark, you must tell me where you buy this! And lime curd, too. Signed, fellow lime lover
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Well, nobody got/skated for 9 in components as what is we're used to with Russian and Chinese pairs competing, but given the circumstances it was still an enjoyable competition from the last two groups
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The Ukrainians have withdrawn from the FS, citing not enough preparation time. 
https://www.instagram.com/p/CbdVVWlNhhV/?utm_medium=copy_link
https://www.instagram.com/p/CbdVVWlNhhV/?utm_medium=copy_link
A US team is going to win a small gold medal at worlds. I can't.
I think I’d fall over in shock were that to happen.
The Ukrainians have withdrawn from the FS, citing not enough preparation time.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CbdVVWlNhhV/?utm_medium=copy_link
I’m so sorry to hear that.
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That was a very satisfying final group.
I enjoyed all of that. If I were forced to bet right now, I'd say Tim and Ashley will win. I think the judges favored their elements with slightly higher GOE (apart from the loops). And NO I haven't verified that... just glancing at the scores as they appeared in the box.
I enjoyed all of that. If I were forced to bet right now, I'd say Tim and Ashley will win. I think the judges favored their elements with slightly higher GOE (apart from the loops). And NO I haven't verified that... just glancing at the scores as they appeared in the box.
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I may be going out on a limb here, but the USA looks like it will earn three spots for Worlds 2023....which would be first time to qualify three pairs since 2003. Twenty years!
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I haven't seen the performances yet but, it sure is nice to see Brandon and Alexa in 1st place after the short program. I know that Brandon has a Junior WC win with Haven but, this would be huge. I really like their LP and if they can nail it, they could win the gold.......All the way back to Tai and Randy since that's happened.
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LOL, I wonder why you're so 'unsure'?
The Japanese team are fortunate to only be five points behind the top two teams. If the judges didn't regard Miura/Kihara highly, they could have scored a point or two less, based on the clean performance by the Georgian team, and the skilled, experienced performance by James/Radford, with just a few slight miscues (basically due to J/R being new partners in their first season together).I thought Knierim/Frazier deserved 77+, but 76.88 is not far off the mark. I was impressed by K/F's very calm approach, and by the fact that they did just what they needed to do, and what was within their wheelhouse, nothing more and nothing less. And afterward, K/F maintained a cool, calm presence, which is important. Staying on an even keel is the way to be and the way to achieve. I also found it accurate that Ash/Timothy were given credit for their beautiful lines, style and unison. Ash's slight hand down on the sbs jump was minor. Plus, A&T are the only team in this field performing one of the harder triples. Skating last holds a different kind of pressure, which A&T managed with aplomb. Both U.S. teams deserve a lot of credit for how well they have performed and carried themselves and grown, all season long.
ETA:
The Georgians are a lovely, up-and-coming team, but they are still acquiring polish and experience in seniors. They are pulling it together, and I think it was a good decision by Georgian fed to go with Safina/Berulava, rather than their other very talented Georgian team (Metelkina/Parkman). By now, with S/B being given and having gained all the experience at Euros and the Olympics, they are seemingly in the best position to ensure bringing back a second spot next season for M/P.
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It’s happened. They’ve won the small gold medal.
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I thought Brandon and Alexa were great. I do prefer them to Ashley and Timothy I think because of their size differences. But it's just so fun/nice/pleasant/wonderful to see American teams one and two in an international pairs competition. I only wish Jess and Brian were there as well.
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I've been mentioning for several years the historical aspects, coupled with the fact that U.S. teams have been very good and improving since way back in 2015 with the rise of the Knierims and Denney/Frazier. As everyone should realize by now, both teams lost huge momentum due to injury and illness in the following seasons. Therefore, both teams struggled to regain fitness, confidence, and respect from the judges. At the same time, other U.S. pairs teams stepped up and stepped in to make some impact competitively, which led to the U.S. pairs division growing. (For example, Ash/Timothy, partnered in 2016; Calalang/Johnson, partnered in 2018; the former Kayne/O'Shea, partnered in 2012; Lu/Mitrofanov, partnered in 2016; and for a short time Mervin Tran, with Marissa Castelli/ later with Olivia Serafini; as well as for three seasons, the former Stellato/Bartholomay, 2016 - 2019).
One of the wonderful hallmarks of this group of U.S. pairs teams, is that they all greatly respect each other and cheer each other on. They have all helped each other to grow, to persevere, and to excel. Witness the facts that once the Knierims broke up their on-ice partnership, Brandon* paired with Alexa, and magic happened; Jessica Calalang split with her former partner, Zach Sidhu, and Brian Johnson split with his former partner, Chelsea Liu -- then voila, having been training mates, Calalang & Johnson paired up, and magic happened! As you can see, there are a number of U.S. teams who were paired and competed fairly well before re-forming promisingly with other partners (another e.g., Liu/O'Shea, who I hope will be able to skate again). So, U.S. pairs has been experiencing depth and competitiveness for awhile now, both domestically and internationally (at least in the second tier, and striving). This, despite all the dismissiveness and unfair low disregard in a number of quarters.
I have also pointed out historically that the highly regarded Canadian pairs were off World and Olympic podiums from 1963 through 1982 (a total of 20 years),*** until the rise of Barbara Underhill/ Paul Martini in the early 1980s. The U.S. has also been off World & Olympic podiums now, for a total of 19 years ** - Correction 18 years (not counting 2020 due to pandemic cancellation). During the late 60s and throughout the 1970s, U.S. pairs teams were competitive and placed on podiums, particularly JoJo Starbuck/Ken Shelley, and their heirs, Tai Babilonia/ Randy Gardner. Later, Watson/Oppegard; the Carruthers; Kuchiki/Sand; Meno/Sand; Ina/Dungjen; and Ina/Zimmerman, the last U.S. team to medal at a World championships. Plus, many more quality teams, such as Yamaguchi/Galindo; Urbanski/Marval; Stiegler/Zimmerman; Aaron/Settlage; Aaron/Deardorff; Cain/Reagan; Zhang/ Bartholomay; Castelli/Shnapir; Marley/Brubaker; Denney/Barrett; Yankowskas/Coughlin; Denney/Coughlin, Evora/Ladwig; Pfund/Santillan; plus throw jump record-holders Vise/Trent and Inoue/Baldwin.
ETA:
*Brandon paired with Alexa once he had mutually split with Haven Denney, after they had given it their all post her serious knee injury/rehab (circa March 2015 - August 2016); Haven/Brandon had a wonderful final two seasons (2018-2019; 2019-2020), especially in light of the serious nature of Haven's knee injury, and the psychological/ physical difficulty of coming back as a confident jumper
** I double-checked, and I'm wrong. Since Ina/Zimmerman won bronze in 2002, U.S. pairs teams have been off World and Olympic podiums for 18 years as of 2021. This is because 2020 does not count due to Worlds cancellation
*** Oh boy, I'm not good at math! I checked again for the Canadian pairs stat to be specific. I counted several times, and it is 20 years (not 19) off the World and Olympic podiums for the Canadians. Maria & Otto Jelenik won gold for Canada in 1962, and then must have retired. Before them, Barbara Wagner/Robert Paul dominated for Canada, winning four straight World championships (1957 - 1960) and an Olympic gold medal (1960). So, I suppose Canada was in for a down period after those golden years. In any case, the Germans and the Russians began to take over pairs for the most part with the rise of Belousova/ Protopopov in the mid to late 1960s. The U.S. was also competitive, usually in bronze medal position here and there during the 60s and 70s, until Tai/Randy's World championship in 1979, the first since Karol & Peter Kennedy in 1950 (who have the distinction of being the first U.S. and the first North American pair to win a World medal; they also won Olympic silver in 1952).
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I'm a big fan of the Japanese team, but I would actually have put C-G/L ahead of them in PCS. Like you and the judges, I would put K/F behind both of them in PCS.
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