The ladies short program was fun to watch. Not everyone was flawless but there were some solid performances.
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Alaine Chartrand from Canada |
As shallow it may sound: I loved Alaine’s hair.
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Alena Leonova from Russia |
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Alena Leonova from Russia |
Alena kept last year’s Charly Chaplin short program which I really like. It’s entertaining and she plays her role so well. I also admire her for not giving up despite the incredible depth of ladies skating in Russia which will probably prevent her from ever going to Worlds again.
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Brooklee Han from Australia |
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Brooklee Han from Australia |
Brooklee is one of those skaters who seem to have fallen in love with Nebelhorn Trophy and keep on coming back. (Reminds me of a comment from Liz Manley: she posted last year on Instagram under a picture some skater took in Oberstdorf how much she has always loved to skate there – which must have been … quite some time ago). Brooklee has great spins and is never boring to watch.
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Courtney Hicks from the US |
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Elizaveta Ukolova from the Czech Republic |
Elizaveta is outstandingly tall for a ladies skater. Therefore, it looks a bit funny when she stands next to her coach Anton Kovalevski (who can’t be much taller than Sergei Davydov).
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Kaetly Osmond from Canada |
We already saw her win her first Nebelhorn Trophy a few years ago and liked her right away. She is an elegant, expressive skater.
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Kailani Craine from Australia |
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Kailani Craine from Australia |
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Kailani Craine from Australia |
Kailani was my biggest discovery at the ladies event. Boy, this girl can dance. Very, very entertaining skater.
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Karoliina Luhtonen from Finland |
Not just her unitard stood out. There was something different and special about her short program.
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Lea Johanna Dastich from Germany |
She is still a very juniorish skater but it was sooo cute to watch her reaction after her very solid short program performance.
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Mariko Kihara from Japan |
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Mariko Kihara from Japan |
I know I’m generalizing here but Asian skaters tend to have a bland facial expression. Mariko is different. She was beaming throughout her program. She looked so happy at the end.
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Mirai Nagasu from the US |
Mirai left me wondering how she feels about coming back to Oberstdorf. When she won silver at Junior Worlds, she was a tiny little girl with effortless triple jumps. I still remember her super cute exhibition costume including an umbrella. In the meantime, she has grown a lot and has a womanly figure. Jumping must be much more difficult for her. Skating must feel like a totally different sport.
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Nathalie Weinzierl from Germany |
Nathalie isn’t back in shape after her severe injury from last season. She has always been a consistent jumper but had problems with her jumps here in Oberstdorf. I hope she can fight her way back because she seems to be such a nice, hard working girl.
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Niki Wories from the Netherlandes |
Niki made me remeber Karen Venhuizen.