Mmmm. Interesting development.
You all know how upset I was when Annabelle and Ruben split, because I saw them as the hot future prospect for German Pairs skating. But, when I read the explanation (he was struggling to throw her because she was having a growth spurt), I could understand why.
But, I have to admit at first I was baffled by Mari's eagerness to skate with Ruben.
This is going to sound really bad, and I wish I could think of a way of putting this more diplomatically, but I can't. So apologies to Ruben.
My initial thought was: if Ruben is struggling to throw a teenage girl because she is growing, how is he going to throw a fully grown woman?!
However, that was before I looked at their respective ISU Bios, and found that Annabelle (163cm) is 10cm taller than Mari (153cm).
So I suppose the problem Ruben was having is specifically to do with Annabelle's height, rather than the more general body changes that are happening with her.
Now that I have cleared that up, I can see that this is a very good move for both Mari and Ruben. Ruben has got himself a partner, and Mari has now got herself a better partner than she had.
As for their current partners, I can't see them pairing up. Aaron is the same height as Ruben, so he is likely to come across the same problems as Ruben did with regards Annabelle's height.
More importantly, Aaron is 27, while Annabelle is 15. How many years would they be able to get together before he decided to retire?
Yes, the age difference is the same as we have with Zhang Hao and Peng Cheng. But, no disrespect to him, but Aaron van Cleave is not the same quality of skater as Zhang Hao.
So, for me, Aaron has only 2 options available to him:
- Retire.
- Go back home to Canada as a new partner for Kirsten Moore-Towers.
(I would have suggested persuading Margaret Purdy to come out of retirement, but she is even taller than Annabelle!)
Annabelle has been quite clever, and continued to compete in Singles skating at the same time as she was competing in Pairs. So, if she can't find a partner, she can always fall back on that.
I just had a look at Ice Partner Search, and there are not that many male Pairs skaters on there at the moment, and none in Germany. Given Ruben's problems, I kept an eye out for guys taller than him, and there are are only 9 on there that fit this criteria.
So, Annabelle might be better off concentrating on the Singles career.
Anyway, all the best to Mari and Ruben for their new partnership, and to Annabelle and Aaron for whatever the future holds for them.
CaroLiza_fan
