Five stories to watch at Trophee Bompard
Adam Rippon
The first of six Grand Prix events gets underway this week in Paris, France. While most of the focus will be on the early match up between reigning world champ Yu-Na Kim and 2008 world champ Mao Asada, here are five stories to keep an eye on at Trophee Eric Bompard.
Adam Rippon nailing his triple axel
Adam Rippon is one of the most talented male skaters the U.S. has seen in a long time. He has great edges, stellar technique, and spins that won‘t quit. But, Rippon can’t stop struggling with his triple axel under pressure. In the past this has kept him looking at the podium instead of climbing it at key events. I’m guessing this weekend will be the one that he finally nails it in both his programs and drops that monkey off his back.
Kostner keeping it clean
Carolina Kostner left longtime coach Michael Huth and moved to Los Angeles after her technical meltdown at the World Championships last March. This weekend is the perfect stage for Kostner‘s redemption. She has everything it takes to be a world and Olympic champion–just not the mind. Kostner’s been working with a sports psychologist, and if her doubts don’t creep in and dictate her performance, there could be an upset in the making.
Ryan Bradley living up to his potential
Ryan Bradley, a familiar face on the international scene, has spent the past few seasons making it clear how important skating is to him. Still, after a near-perfect skate and a silver medal at the 2007 U.S. Championships, Bradley’s been unable to regain the consistency and results he showed three years ago.
If there were a season to finally put it all together, this is it. Bradley started last year’s Grand Prix series with a bang, winning silver in Canada, before stumbling to a 5th place finish two weeks later in Paris. He can’t afford any hitches this season if he wants to climb the steps in Spokane. He’ll make a serious statement this week if he can produce a pair of strong programs and end up in the top three.
Unfortunately, if the past is any indication, Bradley will have another return trip home without the hardware.
Emily Samuelson & Evan Bates
Emily Samuelson & Evan Bates stealing the silver
Samuelson & Bates, second in the U.S. at last year’s Nationals, have what it takes to make a lasting impression on the dance stage. They’ll have to wait out one more season standing in the shadows of Tanith Belbin & Benjamin Agosto and Meryl Davis & Charlie White, but Samuelson & Bates are the future of American ice dancing. Winning the silver this week in Paris is probably a stretch–but the team has the tools to make it to the top. It’s only a matter of time, and that clock could start this weekend.
Nobunari Oda taking the title
Nobunari Oda has dominated Grand Prix events in the past, and he has the opportunity to pull an upset over France’s Brian Joubert this week. To do this, he’ll have to keep his head together and shut out Joubert’s hometown crowd. His new long program isn’t easy; in fact, it’s the strongest I’ve seen in a while. If he skates clean, he’ll quiet Joubert‘s cheering section and might just take the trophy.
This weekend’s event has the potential to be great. With a full card in all disciplines, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a dull moment. While they may not be the stars of the show this weekend, if Kostner, Rippon and Bradley, along with the rest, deliver in Paris, it could be a sign of medals to come. Reading between the lines of the main headlines could bring with it the keys to the rest of the season.
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Great post! While I love watching the headliners, I always think its important to watch the skaters waiting in the wings because there’s always someone to come in and take the competition by surprise. Like you said, Rippon is incredibly talented and has great style. Oda and Bradley also have unique styles that are great to watch. I’m curious to see how Kostner does in Paris. I was there at the Staples Center last March and was very disappointed and surprised at her poor skate. As for Samuelson and Bates, I think they are unfairly overlooked sometimes. They make an awesome team and I always look forward to watching them. Their gold-medal winning free dance at Junior Worlds in 2008 is one of my favorite figure skating programs ever. Thanks for giving these skaters the attention they deserve!
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Politics will likely keep Samuelson and Bates from winning the silver. A bronze would be great for them. They were kept down a bit at Worlds.
I think Yu-Na kicking Mao’s ass is a big focus.
Zhang won’t be doing her full jump arsenal here. She is definitely one to watch.
Rippon did pretty good triple axels to defend his junior world title. He continues to improve. I think he can challenge Joubert and Oda if the marks aren’t rigged. I think Oda will likely win based on how he has been skating lately. Joubert is full of excuses.
I’d also pay close attention to Ryan Bradley’s Levels, GOE and PCS. He doesn’t have good levels on his spins and footwork. And the judges don’t seem to think the quality of his skating is all that good. Bradley is known as a fun show skater…and it is a pretty well deserved reputation. The boy was born to be a pro skater. He is like a modern day Steven Cousins.
Bradley absolutely needs clean programs to medal. His skating (like Mroz’s) is dependent on jumps.
Great post again Jenny! Just back from Paris and it is interesting to read your comments in retrospect. It was a shame that both Ryan Bradley and Carolina Kostner yet again could not give the performances of which they are both so capable. Carolinas nerves are obviously still getting the better of her and Frank Carroll is going to have his work cut out to help her conquer than by Olympics. I love the humour in Ryan Bradleys long programme but maybe the jumping errors got the better of him and he didn’t deliver it as well as he did at Nebelhorn
Oda’s long programme is a delight and if it is looking so good this early in the season when he reckons it is only 70% ready he is a real threat for Olympic Gold. Adam Rippon looked great and although those axels are still not 100% he fully deserved his Bronze medal. Interesting to see that it looks like Tomas Verner seems to have conquered whatever plagued him last season, the second half of his programme was weaker but his 4t3T was a beauty.
Samuelson and Bates I will have to reserve judgement on for now. It was the first time I have seen them and although they are obviously very talented skaters for me they don’t have the star quality that either Davis and White or Virtue and Moir showed at a similar stage in their career.
Looking at some of the performances here from medal contenders, especially Joubert, Savchenko and Szolkowy, this is shaping up to be a very interesting year. There is such depth in all disciplines that mistakes could cost very deeply this year. I actually don’ t have a lot of worries about Savchenko/Szolkowy as I don’t think their disastrous free was in any way indicative of their skating it was just one of those bad days which hit us all from time to time!
I really think that Mao Asada and Tarasova need to relook at her free, here she had one beautiful Trpile axel combination but then underrotated the second and that combined with teh underrotations on all of her loops