Indholdsfortegnelse for July/August 2017 i International Figure Skating

While it may be the offseason, many in the figure skating world are not on vacation. Athletes are getting new programs choreographed, costumes designed and sewn and, hopefully, some time to wind down after a long season. Not so for the IFS team. We have been hard at work since the end of the season, putting together this special summer issue. Our cover story is a journey through the career of Mao Asada, from her first international through to her last. So many things we had forgotten that happened during what was an amazing career for the now 26-year-old Japanese star. We hope you enjoy the trip down memory lane. Our Top 20 from the 2016-2017 season were chosen for many different reasons. There were so many memorable moments, it…

The 2017-2018 Grand Prix Series assignments, which were published on May 25, have inspired some controversial conversations. Most notably, about who got what and who did not receive any assignments. Some of the veteran competitors are headed to events they have not contested for a number of years, or ever before, and at every stop of the Series, there promises to be at least one showdown given the entry lists. The order of events has been switched for the Olympic season. Yuzuru Hanyu will open his season at the first event, Rostelecom Cup. It has been six years since he competed at the Russian Grand Prix, winning the title in 2011. Nathan Chen has also been assigned to this event, which will make for an interesting competition. All four reigning…

Though Yuzuru Hanyu closed out the 2016-2017 competitive season on a high note, the path to his second World title was not an easy one for the Japanese superstar. Hanyu challenged himself last season by including four quads in his long program, but that came with a price. Although his success rate of landing the quad loop was reasonable, he struggled to pull off two clean programs in competition. He finished second to Patrick Chan at Skate Canada, won a fourth consecutive Grand Prix Final title — the only man to do ever do so — and lost to Nathan Chen at Four Continents. His fast-paced short program with its complex choreography and difficult transitions challenged Hanyu throughout the season. “With this program I felt I could relate to the…

Former Finnish champion Kiira Korpi announced her engagement to her longtime boyfriend Arthur Borges on May 7. Korpi and Borges have been living in New York City for the past year. Borges is a director at the upscale Tom Ford fashion house. Timothy Goebel, the 2002 Olympic bronze medalist, and his longtime partner Thomas Luciano tied the knot on April 29 in New York City. The couple announced their engagement in April 2016. Goebel, a partner manager at Google, is working toward a master’s degree at NYU Stern School of Business. IT'S A GIRL Japan’s Takahiko Kozuka, 28, and his wife Yukari Oshima, 33, welcomed their first child, a girl, on April 25. The baby arrived at 11:20 a.m. and weighed in at 2925 grams (6.44 pounds). Kozuka and Okishima…

Adam Rippon seemed to pick up right where he had left off. After winning his first U.S. title and placing sixth at the World Championships in 2016, he medaled at both his Grand Prix events last season and earned a spot at the Grand Prix Final for the first time in his career. But just weeks before he was to defend his national title, Rippon suffered a season-ending injury and his momentum came to a screeching halt. “It was Jan. 6. I was warming up before my first session, talking with Rafael (Arutyunyan, his coach) before I got onto the ice,” Rippon recalled. “I did two little jumps in front of him and I came down really awkwardly on one of the two little hops that I was doing on…

Evgenia Medvedeva She is the undisputed reigning queen of the ice. The numbers cannot be ignored — in the past two seasons, the Russian teenager won 10 of the 11 competitions she entered — none of which were close calls — and currently owns all the World record scores. Medvedeva leads the way when it comes to achieving “firsts.” She was the first female skater to crack the 200-point mark (at the 2017 World Championships) and ended her season by racking up 241.31 points at the World Team Trophy, a score later ratified by the International Skating Union (ISU). She is the first lady to successfully defend a World title since Michelle Kwan’s repeat victory 16 years earlier, and is the first Russian lady to ever win back-to-back World crowns.…

Mao Asada had the good fortune of arriving on the skating scene on the heels of Shizuka Arakawa’s historic 2006 Olympic victory in Torino, Italy. Japanese fans rode the wave, embracing not only their national hero, but also the sport. Though Asada never claimed an Olympic gold medal, she became an icon in her homeland, and around the world. She not only elevated ladies figure skating artistically and technically, Asada was a driving force behind the popularity of the sport in Japan today. Though her artistic endeavors began in a tutu in ballet class that was not stage Mao Asada was destined to shine on. In 1995 at age 5, she began taking skating lessons. It did not take long for her to be identified as a talent and Asada…

CREATIVE FORCE World-renowned choreographer Sarah Kawahara is globally acknowledged as one of the leaders in her craft. The innovative and creative productions she has designed over the decades span many art forms. Kawahara, who started skating at age 6, trained with the legendary Osborne Colson in Toronto. She joined Ice Capades at age 17 and toured with the troupe for seven years. In 1982, she played the Strawberry Queen in Toller Cranston’s award-winning television production “Strawberry on Ice.” Kawahara’s choreography career began with her production of “ICE” for Radio City Music Hall/Shipstad Productions starring Peggy Fleming, and over the ensuing decades crafted programs for some of the biggest names in skating. John Curry, Robin Cousins, Kristi Yamaguchi, Michelle Kwan and many others performed Kawahara’s programs during their respective careers, on…

When Australia’s Brendan Kerry skated into 15th place at the 2017 World Championships, he felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. His placement guaranteed his nation — and likely himself — a berth in the men’s event at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games. “Worlds this year — keeping in mind that an Olympic quota spot was on the line — was a lot more nerve wracking than not only any other World Championships I have competed at, but a lot scarier than competing at Nebelhorn in 2013,” Kerry said in reference to the last-chance qualifier for the 2014 Olympics. “Having done pretty well at the past few World Championships, there was an expectation that I should be able to hold my own in that field…

Gabrielle Daleman still remembers the moments of doubt that could have scuttled the upward trajectory of last season — the inner demons she had to conquer en route to the greatest night of her young career. On a night at Trophée de France last November Daleman had reason to believe she was embarking on a successful season, following a short program that earned the 19-year-old Canadian a personal best score. She sat in second behind Russia’s Evgenia Medvedeva, and in prime position to win her first Grand Prix medal. But, consumed by doubt as she took the ice for the free Daleman faltered and crashed, placing fourth overall. “I started doubting myself, doubting my training and my mental game — everything,” she explained. “I had a phenomenal short; I was…

HISTORICAL EXHIBITION Over the decades, Dick Button, 87, has amassed a vast collection of historical skating memorabilia, and he is now sharing some of it with the world. “The Art of Figure Skating through the Ages: The Dick Button Collection” is currently on display at the Fenimore Art Museum in Cooperstown, New York. The exhibit, which opened on April 1, includes 17th century Dutch paintings, photographs, sculptures, costumes, antique skates and 20th century sculptures, all of which are on display for the first time. On July 15, Button will join JoJo Starbuck and Dorothy Hamill in a retrospective symposium that will focus on figure skating over the last century. Audience members will be able to ask questions at the end of the discussion. Tickets for this event are $60. Prior…