Memorable Debuts on the JGP | Golden Skate

Memorable Debuts on the JGP

labgoat

labgoat

Punch & Oranmama - my spirit animal
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Joined
Jan 3, 2007
As we wait for the JGP assignments to be announced, I thought it would be fun to remember some of the memorable JGP debuts. The JGP was started in August of 1997 and a complete listing of the events and some videos links are in my REWATCH thread for the JGP 1997-present. If you have found any videos that I have not for this thread, please let me know and I will add them in.

The first videos I have found are from 1998-1999 and were held at one of my training rinks at the Detroit Skating Club. I am watching in person a young Jamie Silverstein & Justin Pekarek skate an OD to a waltz that instantly took my breath away and made them skaters to watch. The video links directly to them as the final skaters.


This video has all the skaters ODs and the link for the FD is here.

Please share your favorite JGP debuts - old or new while we wait for this year's announcements.
 
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The next year 1999-2000 JGP Nagano featured the debuts of Song Gao, Stephane Lambiel, Tanith Belbin & Benjamin Agosto and Flavia Ottaviani & Massimo Scali and a dazzling pair of young ladies - Jennifer Kirk and Yukari Nakano (3A attempt!).
@elektra blue A WTFabric worthy costume in the exhibition from Yamato Tamura!
 
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The most brilliant debut in recent years for me was Marly winning gold at their first ever JGP and one of their first ever competitions together.

Martina Adriano-Kent and Charly Laliberté-Laurent. They no longer skate together after a disastrous Next Gen competition following their bronze medal at worlds. So there's that. Will that remarkable debut lead to something great in the end ?

I am looking forward to Lia Cho's debut this year. You guys let me know what you think :)
 
This is who immediately came into my head when I saw this thread:

Alina Zagitova (RUS) - 2016 ISU Junior GP St. Gervais SP
Alina Zagitova (RUS) - 2016 ISU Junior GP St. Gervais FS

Suffice to say, she won the SP by 3.95 points, the FS by 11.56 points, and overall by 15.51 points. Kaori Sakamoto (JPN) in her third season on the Junior GP circuit was 2nd in both segments and overall.

It was the first time I had seen Alina and, even though I had seen what she was scoring in domestic competitions and had put her top of my Predictions, I was still shocked by how good she was.

Even now, every time I hear the "Don Quixote" music, in my head I see Alina in her red FS dress.

CaroLiza_fan
 
These old videos show how little coverage there was at the beginning of the JGP.
 
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The OP made my mind go immediately in two different directions:
- the most memorable JGP debut I actually watched live and got enchanted forever - 14 year old Isabeau Levito's The Swan SP in Courchevel, France, in 2021. So beautiful, so gracious, I was won all at once and will remember it forever (frankly, I don't remember any other junior debut so vividly and passionately).
- the same second my mind started to wonder - and what was Yuzuru's debut like, have I ever seen it? And yes, he debuted at 13 years of age, in 2008, in Italy, with FS which is pretty well known by now as he would win both JGP Final and Junior Worlds with it the next season, but the SP, his real debut, the first time he stood on JGP ice, is much less known... and yet, watching both you can see very well already that he was extremely talented and great things were ahead of him. it's so.... unmistakably Yuzu (the video can be played on YouTube only and on no other site, sorry!).
So here you go, enjoy!
And yes, you can definitely see the huge difference in the quality of recordings mirroring the changing importance enjoyed by JGP over the years.
And the fun fact is Isabeau's Swan is skated to the instrumental version of the piece known as Notte Stellata when sang with lyrics. Yes, the same Notte Stellata Yuzu made his iconic exhibition gala at 2018 Olympics and the title song for his annual charity ice show years later. :)

Here's Yuzuru...

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.
www.youtube.com www.youtube.com

and here's Isabeau...

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.
youtu.be youtu.be
 
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Magill said:
The OP made my mind go immediately in two different directions:
- the most memorable JGP debut I actually watched live and got enchanted forever - 14 year old Isabeau Levito's The Swan SP in Courchevel, France, in 2021. So beautiful, so gracious, I was won all at once and will remember it forever (frankly, I don't remember any other junior debut so vividly and passionately).
- the same second my mind started to wonder - and what was Yuzuru's debut like, have I ever seen it? And yes, he debuted at 13 years of age, in 2008, in Italy, with FS which is pretty well known by now as he would win both JGP Final and Junior Worlds with it the next season, but the SP, his real debut, the first time he stood on JGP ice, is much less known... and yet, watching both you can see very well already that he was extremely talented and great things were ahead of him. it's so.... unmistakably Yuzu (the video can be played on YouTube only and on no other site, sorry!).
So here you go, enjoy!
And yes, you can definitely see the huge difference in the quality of recordings mirroring the changing importance enjoyed by JGP over the years.
And the fun fact is Isabeau's Swan is skated to the instrumental version of the piece known as Notte Stellata when sang with lyrics. Yes, the same Notte Stellata Yuzu made his iconic exhibition gala at 2018 Olympics and the title song for his annual charity ice show years later. :)

Here's Yuzuru...

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.
www.youtube.com www.youtube.com

and here's Isabeau...

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.
youtu.be youtu.be
Click to expand...
Lovely memories of their early days.
Yuzu’s free skate from the same event

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.
youtu.be youtu.be
 
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Forgot to post a link for Marly

only 5 months into the partnership will pretty much all triples.. so sad they didn't make it



we haven't seen either of them competing for a while...

Charly is apparently partnered with Nina Ouellette but they haven't signed up for anything yet

Martina is MIA
 
4everchan said:
Forgot to post a link for Marly

only 5 months into the partnership will pretty much all triples.. so sad they didn't make it



we haven't seen either of them competing for a while...

Charly is apparently partnered with Nina Ouellette but they haven't signed up for anything yet

Martina is MIA
Click to expand...

They caught my eye too! One of the hard to swallow splits since everything was there.
 
The the epic battle of Mao Asada & Yuna Kim 2004-05 JGPF. What a group of ladies with Kira Korpi as the host pick.
Ladies SP | FS
1 Mao ASADA JPN SP | FS
2 Yu-Na KIM KOR SP | FS
3 Kimmie MEISSNER USA
4 Kiira KORPI FIN*
5 Meagan DUHAMEL CAN
6 Akiko KITAMURA JPN
7 Aki SAWADA JPN
8 Nana TAKEDA JPN
9 Danielle KAHLE USA
 
2005-2006 JGP season featured the battles of Meryl Davis & Charlie White vs Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir with a bonus appearance by Emily Samuelson & Evan Bates and a young Kaitlyn Weaver with Charles Clavey and Tina Pratt with Todd Gilles. Sadly I haven’t found any of their skates..
 
Aliona Kostornaia comes to mind. she was 16th at nationals the previous year and came blazing onto the scene placing 2nd and 1st at her two JGPs and silver at the final and Jr Worlds.

here's her SP from JGP Poland 2017

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.
www.youtube.com www.youtube.com
 
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