Dutch Figure Skating 2021-2022

[ladyjane]

Report on Dutch Figure skaters

Finlandia
Chelsea Verhaegh and Sherim van Geffem had to skate straight after the French champions in the RD which must have been rather overwhelming. For now they are in last (17th) place. I haven't seen the RD yet, so I won't comment on the contents.
Lindsay van Zundert is in 15th place (of 27 skaters). She didn't skate too badly but missed het 3-3 (was a 3 double) but no fall and I believe two footed het 2A. But it still was a pretty good skate.

JGP Linz
Julia van Dijk ended in 17th place out of 35 young women. She was 15th after the SP, but dropped a little bit in the FS (18th) resulting in a 17th place overall. She skated quite well (with a fall) but not at the level of the top skaters. She is enjoyable to watch however, and that's also an important point to make. So: well done Julia!

 

[ladyjane]

Olympic Games Judges talk - continued.
As I mentioned in an earlier post, there will be judges from the Netherlands in the judging panels in the Women's and the Pairs event. The team event will also have Dutch judges in the Pairs and in the Women.

It is now known who will be going - Ernestien Bakker for the women's event and Jeroen Prins for the Pairs event (and also in the pairs and women's parts of the Team event). Both have a lot of experience but have as yet never been able to judge at an OG because the last time there was a Dutch representative at the Olympics was in 1976 (Dianne de Leeuw who even got a silver medal). But Lindsay van Zundert qualified a spot for the OG at the last World championships, making this possible.

A fellow poster kindly informed me of this together with a source - on the Dutch Skating website. The information on the Team event is from the ISU document (https://www.isu.org/inside-isu/isu-communications/communications/26229-isu-communication-2428/file).

Jeroen Prins en Ernestien Bakker juryleden bij olympisch kunstrijden | Schaatsen.nl

Jeroen Prins en Ernestien Bakker zijn de twee juryleden in het kunstrijden die namens Nederland in actie komen tijdens de Olympische Winterspelen van Beijing. Beiden draaien al decennialang mee in de internationale competities, maar kwamen niet eerder in aanmerking voor de Spelen. De reden: als...

www.schaatsen.nl

The article also mentions who will be the substitutes: Hermi Ottemann (women) and Margo Pauw (pairs).

 

[ladyjane]

Finlandia is in the books!

Lindsay van Zundert had a great FS (even with a fall) and managed to climb 4 places in the standings (she was 15th after the SP, was 11th in the FS and ended 11th overall). Not a bad result in this deep field. Furthermore, she has improved her total tally with 7 points compared to Lombardia.

Chelsea Verhaegh and Sherim van Geffen were 17th in both the RD and the FD and remained in that place overall. A 5 points lower score than at Nebelhorn two weeks ago.

The next Dutch presence will be next week at the Mezzaluna Cup - Hanna Jakucs and Allessio Galli - and after that at the Denis Ten Memorial (28-31 October) where Niki Wories will compete. I hope Hanna has healed enough from her bout of Covid, so the ID couple can shine. And of course, I'm also hoping Niki will have a good competition after all her injuries last season.

There's going to be a big Dutch team at NRW Trophy (November 4-7) as this competition is considered as being part of the selection process for the Dutch at the European Championships. The other competition intended for selection purposes is the Golden Spin (8-11 Dec) of Zagreb

 

[ladyjane]

It is with great regret that I have to announce that Niki Wories no longer is on the list of women competitors of the Denis Ten Memorial. I do not know the reason. I hope she isn't injured (again).

Hanna Jakucs and Alessio Galli finally were back in business again, after Hanna had a severe bout of Covid and really had to take a lot of time to get over that. They competed at the Mezzaluna (Dance) Cup and were 7th out of 7 competitors. I have not seen them skate alas because I was enjoying a short holiday in the very country they were competing in: Italy. Hanna and Allessio got the European minimums at this competition which was a worthwhile result for later on in the season, as they will have to battle it out with Chelsea Verhaegh and Sherim van Geffem to determine who will go to Europeans. For good order: Chelsea and Sherim have already got their Worlds minimums for both the RD and the FD, so they're at a bit of an advantage.

 

[ladyjane]

Some additional news.

Niki Wories will be competing at the Challenger in Poland, the Warsaw Cup (let's hope she remains listed and actually competes!), Nov. 18-21.
Daria Danilova and Michel Tsiba are also scheduled to compete there as well as Hanna Jakucs and Alessio Galli.

Two weeks before that, at the NRW Trophy in Dortmund
both Niki Wories and Lindsay van Zundert will compete,
both Dutch pairs will compete (so far they are the only pairs teams listed in that competition),
and both Dutch ID teams will compete (in a slightly deeper field with teams from 5 countries participating in that event).

The results will count as a first step in being selected for Europeans. The second selection competition will be at Golden Spin (as mentioned in an earlier post).

At NRW there will also be some Dutch action on the junior level: 7 junior women are scheduled to compete there. Dani Loonstra and Julia van Dijk have both skated in the JGP circuit this season. I don't know why Mikai van Ommeren (who also skated in the JGP) is not taking part here but is skating at the The Volvo Open Cup in Latvia instead.

18​ Jane KNOESTER NED​ 19​ Dani LOONSTRA NED​ 20​ Lilia LUPANOVA NED​ 21​ Emilie SCHOP NED​ 22​ Isabella SMIT NED​ 23​ Julia VAN DIJK NED​ 24​ Jolanda VOS NED​	​
​		​

 

[La Rhumba]

Hello, I've been meaning to post this link here. My friend in Amsterdam sends me skating links to watch TV interviews and features, especially concerning Sjoukje Dijkstra, 1964 Olympic Champion, and Joan Haanappel, European Bronze Medalist and former Eurosport Commentator, who has been working with talented skaters in her own school, separate to the Dutch Federation.

Opmars kunstrijdster Van Zundert beroert iconen Dijkstra en Haanappel

Opmars kunstrijdster Van Zundert beroert iconen Dijkstra en Haanappel

"Ik zie mezelf in haar", zegt Sjoukje Dijkstra over het 16-jarige talent, dat volgend jaar de olympische finale hoopt te halen.

www.nos.nl

Article and Video on Lindsay Van Zundert.

Though I'm sad to see Sjoukje has lost some weight and looks not so well. I hope she's okay.

I think of Sjoukje and Joan like the Netherlands Torvill & Dean, however much time passes and new skaters come and go, the press and media always think of them and talk to them about Skating, but in this case, they have actively helped Lindsay to qualify for Olympics.

 

[ladyjane]

Thank you so much @La Rhumba ! I had read an article about the prize Lindsay got (out of the hands of Sjoukje and Joan) but this one is about so much more than that. I had completely missed it. It's just lovely to read how Lindsay cherishes the support of these two veterans.

 

[ladyjane]

Some interim news.\

For anyone interested in Niki Wories I've posted (summaries and translations of) interviews with her which were originally published on the Dutch Skating website in her fan fest (https://www.goldenskate.com/forum/threads/niki-wories.56733/page-2).

 

[ladyjane]

While most of us were watching the Gran Premio Italia, the Dutch team was in Dortmund, Germany for the NRW Trophy. I happened to be in Dortmund myself, but regrettably wasn't allowed inside so had to watch from my hotel room - app. a 5 minute walk away from the action. There was a good live stream though.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, there were 7 (!) junior women in a field of 20 (originally 22, but 2 withdrawals). Dani Loonstra was 5th (121.70 points) followed by Julia van Dijk in 6th (121.68 points). A difference of 0.02 points, a nice bit of rivaly there especially as they turned the tables on each other: Dani was 5th in the SP and 8th in the Long, and Julia was 8th in the SP and 5th in the long. Next Dutch girl was Isabella Smit in 10th (110.20), followed by Jolanda Vos in 12th (105.25), Lilia Lupanova in 15th (96.04), Emilie Schop in 17th (87,21) and finally Jane Knoester in 18th (83.44).

With the senior women it became pretty interesting, as two women are wanting to get the Olympic berth that Lindsay van Zundert managed to qualify The Netherlands for at the last Worlds. One is Lindsay herself, and she delivered rather brilliantly by winning the NRW Trophy for the second time in a row. She was second after the SP, but had a such a good FS that she won with almost 8 points to spare (169.91). She did triple-triples (3Lz-3T) in both programmes, although the second jump was underrotated in both cases. No matter, she is definitely on the rise. Niki Wories was 8th although she also managed to get that triple-triple in her SP (124.92 points in total). Regrettably, there were some falls for Niki (I sincerely hope she has not injured herself) and the necessity to twice get 186 points in selected competitions for the Olympic berth looks to be far away. Having said that, Niki is mostly skating for herself, and states she has found the joy in skating again, Olympic berth or not.

In Ice Dancing there is no Olympic berth on the line, but the 2 Dutch couples are really very comparable in where they stand internationally, which makes another rivalry as there's only one spot at Europeans and Worlds (taking into account the necessary minimum TES of which I'm not sure either of them have for now although Chelsea and Sherim had those points last year, so maybe those still count ). Chelsea and Sherim were the better couple in this competition (6th vs 7th for the other couple) but the difference is very small (123.47 vs 122.00). Having said that, Chelsea and Sherim had the best RD, while Hannah and Alessio were better in the FD. Really exciting!

The pairs competition was a complete Dutch affair, so the results won't contribute to anything in relation to minimum TES and stuff, but of course do give a bit of a picture where the couples stand against each other. Daria and Michel won rather resoundingly (152.46 vs 123.44) but one has to realise Nika and Dmitry are coping with an ankle injury as well as a rather heavy aftermath of suffering from Covid. Still, Michel and Daria seem to be the best bet for now as to who will skate at Euros.

A last remark: Mikai van Ommeren (junior woman) was scheduled to skate at the Volvo Open Cup in Riga, Latvia but has withdrawn. I don't know why.

 

[Andrea82]

In Ice Dancing there is no Olympic berth on the line, but the 2 Dutch couples are really very comparable in where they stand internationally, which makes another rivalry as there's only one spot at Europeans and Worlds (taking into account the necessary minimum TES of which I'm not sure either of them have for now although Chelsea and Sherim had those points last year, so maybe those still count ). Chelsea and Sherim were the better couple in this competition (6th vs 7th for the other couple) but the difference is very small (123.47 vs 122.00). Having said that, Chelsea and Sherim had the best RD, while Hannah and Alessio were better in the FD. Really exciting!

Minimum TES are

Europeans: 28 in RD and 44 in FD
Worlds: 33 in RD and 47 in FD

V/VG have the minimums for Worlds because least season's scores from Winter Star and LuMi Trophy are still valid.
J/G have the minimums for Euros but not for Worlds (in neither segments).

 

[ladyjane]

Thank you @Andrea82 !

 

[ladyjane]

Confirmation: Niki Wories, Daria Danilova/Michel Tsiba (pairs) and Hanna Jakucs/Alessio Galli (Ice Dance) are all still scheduled to compete this weekend at the Warsaw Cup Challenger event. I'll be back to report afterwards.

Golden Spin of Zagreb is a selection competition (for Euros) for the senior members of the Dutch team. Like at NRW Trophy in Dortmund, all the senior skaters are scheduled to compete:

Women: Niki Wories and Lindsay van Zundert
Pairs: Daria Danilova/Michel Tsiba and Nika Osipova/Dmitry Epstein
ID: Chelsea Verhaegh/Sherim van Geffen and Hanna Jakucs/Alessio Galli.

Contrary to NRW Trophy the fields are pretty deep in all disciplines: 36 women, 28 pairs and 23 ID couples. Let's hope they all stay listed and compete!

 

[ladyjane]

I just got informed that at Skate Celje (Slovenia, taking place upcoming weekend) there will also be some Dutch skaters. To my regret, I don't know them. Here's the skaters involved:

Sr Women: Frederique Koning
Jr Women: Tessel Clerkcx and Ymke Yagersma.

Edit: There's also a senior Dutch Man competing: Iwan van Hulst

Anyone who knows some more, is welcome to post here of course.

 

[ladyjane]

A Dutch Jr woman has been competing at the Tallinn Trophy in Estonia: Roos van der Pas. As the Jr competition is now finished, I can inform you all about her placement and results. In the SP she was 14th (36.65 pts) out of 18 competitors. It seems she has had a fall (1 point deduction). In the FS she was 16th out of 17 competitors (1 WD) with 2 points deduction, but managed to hold on to 15th overall with a total score of 96.64 points.

 

[ladyjane]

Some reporting from the Warsaw Challenger:

Niki Wories is in 13th place (out of 29) with 54.32 points (TES: 28.88) after the SP. She got the minimum TES for Euros with her score, but she had the minimum TES for Worlds 2020, and I presume that still counts.

Daria Danilova/Michel Tsiba are in 14th place (out of 20) with 55.45 points after the SP. It was an SB, so they are improving during the Season. They already had the minimum TES for Worlds, but they confirmed that today in their TES score 30.57 (minimum TES for Pairs in Worlds is 27).

 

[gordana]

Let me add some words about Daria and Michel. They skated without any falls, only with some minor mistakes and were very happy with their skating just after having finished their performance. I think I saw them so glad and content for the first time.

 

[ladyjane]

Thank you @gordana ! Yes, they looked pretty good (on the stream). I am really happy for them!

 

[ladyjane]

Follow up report.
Alas, Daria and Michel did not do so well today at Warsaw Cup. I still see improvement compared to their last official outing (despite the marks, I don't really count NRW Trophy), but they had some big mistakes. 15th out of 19. But I suspect they would rather have been 16th out of 20 because the reason for there only being 19 was horrifying. Pairs can be so dangerous, and it wasn't 'just a fall' for the American couple that had to be helped off the ice. Worrying.

Dance: Hanna and Alessio are in 18th place (53.51 points) out of 22 after the RD. Enough points for Euros TES, still not enough for Worlds. I'm hoping for them to do well tomorrow!

 

[ladyjane]

Last report from Warsaw Cup

Women:
Niki could not hold onto her 13th place, as she was only 18th in the FS with 93.60 points (and a deduction). A total of 147.92 left her finally in 16th place. The positive upside on this that she got more than 20 points higher than during her outing at NRW Trophy. She is improving.

Dance:
Hanna and Alessio did not have their best outing today as they fell down a few places to end 21st. No falls or anything (thankfully), but it must be a disappointment to them to not be able to hold on.

Report Skate Celje

Junior Women (28 participants)
Tessel Clercx is in 7th place with 45.50 points after the SP.
Imke Jagersma is in 23rd with 31.36 points after the SP.

Senior Women (10 participants)
Frederique Koning is in 8th place with 32.34 points after the SP.

Senior Men (Wow, we've got a man in this competition!!!! Only just realised this, and edited an earlier post). 8 participants in total.
Iwan van Hulst is in 7th place with 41.23 points after the SP.

Great to see so many Dutch skaters in the international circuit.

 

[ladyjane]

Final report Skate Celje.

Junior Women
Tessel Clercx lost 2 placements and ended in 9th overall with 114.50 points
Ymke Jagersma improved on her standing in the FS and ended in 18th place (she had the 16th FS) with 94.24 points

Senior Women
Frederigue Koning remained in 8th place after the FS with an overall total of 99.45 points.

Senior Men
Iwan van Hulst remained in 7th place with an overall total score of 122,49 points.

Edit:
I just saw that there was also a young boy entered in the Basic Novice competition and he actually won in this event (5 competitors). Congratulations to Leon Lo!

Among the Basic Novice girls, there were three groups, and Eliza-Rosa Mera and Elina Sucur were 11th and 14th respectively (out of 15) in their group.