Moves of 2012 - Fully Extended Free Leg Twizzles

I love twizzles because they are one of the few moves you can subjectively compare teams performance in it. You might be thinking "What is she saying? Doesn't she know they are not a couple anymore?" Well I do.. But lets look at what Hubbell&Donohue and Gilles & Poirier twizzles this season. What a coincidence that the first part of their twizzles are unique and quite the same. They are performing the first set of twizzles with a fully extended free leg. In my opinion Donohue and Hubbell's is much better. But thats not the point. This is very unusual. I love the fact that people are trying to renovate the twizzle concept and go beyond borders to make something dissimilar. Absolutely loving these twizzles. Not only they are difficult to execute they also require a great balance indeed and even the slightest unsynchronization is out there, clearly you need to be bold to include this kind of movement into a program. My God I love this flash of dazzle called twizzle don't I :) Sorry for the terrible print screens

Skate America Short Dance Review

Opening the Grand Prix Season with SA and from the firs day of it here goes expected and unexpected. Davis and White are no doubt going to take gold from this challenge, this is inarguable. It was demanding and captivating  SD performance. They always make a way to show it look effortless yet a hard worked program. It is so important to secure the balance within these two. Most of the ice dancers except Virtue and Moir cannot make it show as it. They always make great performances but when they seem exhausting and painful while making a move I believe jury cuts out points. Because that is not how ice dancing should. You need to make a difference there. Team Canton students are always reaching this success.
Davis and white exhibited a clean program today. Some points I want to touch; they were slower than usual in the twizzles. I believe they went with a different kind of enty to it so they couldn't speed up as usual. They had their own entry to twizzles for many years which makes it so easy for them to reach the speed they need and help them provide the best way. I believe they need to change it to old one or they won't gain the highest score in twizzles because Virtue and Moir and Pechalat/Bourzat are both performing it in 3 sections with and extra. As for  the Pechalat and Bourzat what an intriguing program and what a shame to Bourzat's fall. This can't be happening to them again. If they miss it again in the world because of an incident again I may cry. They always give such a tremendous positive energy and vibe to it.
They deserve to be in a good spot. Their quality of skating progresses in every season. They didn't let the fall effect them. Greatest outfits of the 2011 season in SD. Lovely choice of music, not an expected one so I appreciate their originality and

essence as a team.Zhiganshina and Gazsi on the other hand didn't deserve those higher presentation scores from Hubbell and Donohue whom exhibited an impeccible program in terms of speed, intricate moves and correct vibe of Cha Cha. Latin theme just suited the way of their style. They are true showstoppers. Terrific synchronization and so many great edgework on the program. Their only weak point was base values of their executed elements.
It was very low in comparison to the others it caused them not to gain much points from element scores and they got left behind. They need to make urgent changes in their second step sequence to get higher values. Paul and Islam;
what a shame to a great teamwork. Except of their falls they were flowy and sophisticated on the ice. There were no mistakes in anywhere in the program besides the 3 collapses. The quality of their skating is sensational and they look elegant. They have an undeniable chemistry between them. My God what a shame!

2011-2012 SEASON PRE-REVIEW....................................... VM vs. DW - Music choices- Ending relationships and newly teamed couples-Coach wars!

I'ts another season coming up not more than a month ahead of us.. So looking foward to it because all of the teams especially Virtue / Moir and Davis / White will have a topnotch battle and will push themselves as hard as they can because a lot of talented young couples leaving junior level and becoming part of the senior competitions can be a serious and undeniable thread for them. Remember Virtue / Moir were on the podium in worlds in their second year in seniors so we never now what can occur in the events. It relies on how far they can go and how much they can force themselves to seperate their programmes from another teams. Virtue / Moir's missing the gold last season after becoming Olymic champions could cause them to work harder and go even more extreme with lifts, the area where they are tremendous and unique.Unarguably they launched a brand new era with their lifts in ice dance and since then other teams have been pushing themselves to make thriving lifts and a prominent genre of a lifting style has occured over the last couple of years. It was so diferent early in the 00's where teams were technically making much more easier and fleeting lifts. Mark my word, we will see the greatest lifts of all time this season. 

Apparently this could be the year with most of the ending relationships and re-teaming since the 90's. I can't even track anymore. Hubell's announced end of their relationship and Madison will continue her career with Zachary Donahue and his former parner Piper Gilles teamed up with Paul Poirier. Crone and Poirier ended their relationship this year either and Vannessa is still looking for a partner. Madison Chock and Greg Zuerlein's partnership also ended after Zuerlein retired from competition and Chock teamed up with Evan Bates whom also announced his ending relationship with his former partner  Emily Samuelson this year. Emily teamed up with Todd Gilles, Piper Gilles brother. Kerr's also announced their retirement from competitive skating in April 2001. There is still uncertainty between Domnina and Shabalin's partnership. They were planned to compete this season but it seems like Shabalin yet to be fully cured Oksana Domnina is probably searching for a new partner.

Hubell and Donohue will be coached by Krylo team (Anjelica Krylova, Massimo Scali, Elizabet Punsalan and Pasquale Camerlengo) and they will skate FD to "Put a Spell on you" by Nina Simone so it will definitely be a romantic and passionate. One of the programs I'm definitely looking foward to it. Piper Gilles and Poirier will be choreographed by the one and only Christopher Dean so I'm expecting a splendid, unique and post-modern programme just like Crone/Poirier's Elenor Rigby last year. They haven't revealed their choice of music so wonder continues. Music will tell us a lot about their programme. Chock and Bates will be dancing to Chopin's Prelude in E minor coached by Zueva and Shpilband. Belbin and Agosto skated to a collection of Chopin's including prelude in e minor so I'm assuming its one of Shpilband's favorites. This programme will be elegant and sophisticated. 

Samuelson and Todd Gilles will be choreographed by one and only Christopher Dean so I'm pretty excited about this couple either. They haven't revealed choice of their music yet. SD theme will be latin this year obviously because looking at the music choices of most of the teams, they all will be skating to a collection of Rhumba, Samba, ChaCha, Merengue or Bachata.. Virtue and Moir are the luckiest couple here. They will cut their last season's FD and here it is a perfect Latin medley SD performance. That programme didn't get the attention it deserved so it will be nice to see that rotational lift again. Although I have doubts about their choice for FD. Fred Astair - Funny face is a nice song but they could have chosen a better one if they really wanted to dance with a Gershwin song, there are better ones.
I don't think that its suitable for ice dancing but I believe they will exhibit a fascinating FD performance anyway. I would like to see them combining romance and port-modernizm again so much just like in "Greatest gig in the sky" performance that wish for them to skate to songs like Anyway- Genesis, Live with me-Massive Attack so I'm a little dissapointed.
Davis and White's music on the other hand is what a spectacular choice; Nino Rota's La Strada, is a very passionate, dramatic and intence piece of music. I'm sure they will perform another legendary programme this season. Pechalat and Bourzat's moving to U.S to work with Camerlengo/ Krylova so this is definely their year. So many new teams are working with them. Their FD will be an Egyptian. I have never seen an example of it on ice dance before. If you guys have any then please post it. They are working with Kader Belmoktar and Mourad Merzouki particulary on the basic egyptian routines and overall choreography whom Egyptians. I't will be unique and if they can nail this performance could be one of the most popular ones on the ice dance history.
As for the Cappellini / Lanotte  couple whom getting along very well will be dancing to Astor Piazzola's "Oblivion" very classic but good choice.But I'm very sure after seing their Requiem for a dream performance that every character suits Anna well and she is enchanted in more passionate performances. Coming to discovery team of 2010 Ilinykh and Ktsalapov, they have ended their relationship with Zhulin to start working with Morozov and Tarasova, they will be skating to Ave Maria which is a very sensual, religious and profound music. I have this feeling that they are going to be amazing on ice this season artistically as much as good they are technically. Looking at Bobrova and Soloviev, they will be performing with "Faust" I'm hoping adagio but they will probably dance with a collection from every popular part of it. So their kind.My sentimental favorites Weaver and Poje working with Bourne as well as Camerlengo and Krylova will be performing with Je Suis Malade from Lara Fabian, along with the classical choices this season I think this is the best choice among all.

Last but not least, It will great to see Hoffman and Zavozin back this year after her sickness it will be intriguing  how will they perform.
See you in Skate America!