ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2008
Day Four
The ISU World Figure Skating Championships continued Friday
with the Men’s Short Program and the Free Dance. Again,
the Scandinavium Arena in Gothenburg was packed to capacity
with 9506 spectators.
Men, Short Program
The Men’s event kicked off with an exciting Short Program.
Jeffrey Buttle of Canada took the lead while Johnny Weir (USA)
edged Japan’s Daisuke Takahashi by 0.39 points for second
place.
Buttle gave a strong performance to “Adios Nonino”
by Astor Piazzolla, hitting a triple flip-triple toeloop combination,
a solid triple Axel and a triple Lutz out of footwork. The
2008 Four Continents silver medalist was awarded a level four
for the flying sit and the combination spin and a level three
for the two step sequences to pick up 82.10 points (44.07
element score/ 38.03 program component score). “I felt
very comfortable today on the ice. I have been practicing
hard and training well so I went out there today knowing that
all hard training was over and I was just going to enjoy myself
and have a good skate and I am glad that I did”, Buttle
told the press. “I can rely on my training, knowing
that I have been skating really well in practices at home,
so tomorrow, I just want to focus on the same feelings that
I felt today; feeling comfortable and confident. So, that
will be my main focus.”
Performing to “Yunona and Avos”, Weir nailed
a triple Lutz-triple toe combination, a triple Axel and a
triple flip. His jumps were smooth and effortless, and the
three-time U.S. Champion scored a season best of 80.79 points
(42.64/38.15).
Takahashi opened his innovative routine to a Hip Hop version
of Swan Lake with a triple flip-triple toeloop combination
but then stumbled out of his triple Axel. The Four Continents
Champion recovered to nail a triple Lutz and produced fast,
well centered spins, earning a level four for two of them.
The crowd cheered for his extravagant footwork. Takahashi
got a level three for both step sequences and scored 80.40
points (41.15/39.25).
Reigning World Champion Brian Joubert landed a quadruple
toeloop-triple toeloop combination, but fell on his triple
Lutz. He is currently ranked sixth (77.75 points)
Ice Dancing, Free Dance
The Ice Dancing event concluded with an interesting Free Dance
competition at a high level. Isabelle Delobel/Olivier Schoenfelder
of France claimed the gold medal and the title. Canadians
Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir took the silver and Russia’s
Jana Khokhlova/Sergei Novitski captured the bronze. All three
medalists stood on the World podium for the first time in
their career.
Isabelle Delobel/ Schoenfelder delivered a beautiful performance
of their “The Piano” Free Dance. The French completed
a rotational lift in a low position, a intricate yet flowing
footwork, a serpentine lift with changes of position and a
curve-rotational lift. They received a level four for the
steps and lifts and a level three for their spin to collect
104.96 points (53.57 element score/51.39 program component
score), surpassing their previous personal best of 101.96
points from three years ago. They were ranked second in the
Free Dance but remained in first place overall with 212.94
points.
“It is more than just being happy. It was a long way
for us. It is our first medal at Worlds and it’s the
gold medal, so this is just amazing”, Delobel said.
“We did a great job. We focused on our technical elements
but also skated with passion and emotion which gave us points
for the presentation”. Her partner added: “For
us, a dream has come true. We had a strong competition and
tried to stay focused to the end. It is a long time I’ve
skated with Isabelle and it is a long and a good story. It
makes us experienced and we have confidence in each other,
we know each other’s reaction. It’s not easy every
day, but in the end it’s positive”, he explained,
referring to the fact that the couple has been skating together
for 18 years.
Virtue/Moir gave an inspiring performance of “The Umbrellas
of Cherbourg”. They opened their romantic program with
excellent twizzles followed by a curve-rotational lift and
a combination spin. Their steps were difficult but looked
effortless. The 2008 Four Continents Champions scored a new
personal best of 105.26 points (54.69/50.59) and won the Free
Dance by just 0.32 points. Overall they moved up from third
to second at 208.80 points.
Khokhlova/Novitski’s dynamic performance to “Night
on Bald Mountain” and “In the Hall of the Mountain
King” was highlighted by their spectacular lifts and
a dance spin with many changes of positions. Their side by
side midline footwork was smooth and right on the music, but
Novitski briefly slipped during the circular step sequence.
The couple was awarded a level four for all elements except
for the two step sequences that were graded a level three.
The European bronze medalists earned 99.29 points (50.66/48.63)
which added up to a total of 203.26 points.
The competition at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships
2008 concludes Saturday with the Men’s Free Skating.
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