Semi-Recent Developments in Ice Dance

If you’re a devoted skating fan, you’ve been juggling simultaneous live streams for the past few weeks, trying to keep up with the deluge of events. If you’re more laid back about your love for figure skating, you might not have known there was anything going on at all. Regardless, there is no way you… Continue reading Semi-Recent Developments in Ice Dance

2019 US Nationals Preview: Championship Ice Dance

Welcome to the third installment of The Finer Sports’ 2019 US National Championships preview! In this one, I’ll take a deep dive into the 12 ice dance teams competing at the senior level this year. For more information on how these previews are structured, see Part 1 of my Ladies’ Preview. Ice dance is the… Continue reading 2019 US Nationals Preview: Championship Ice Dance

Ice Dance Roundup: Twelve Recent Programs to Watch

It’s hard to explain to the casuals that September is the busiest part of the figure skating season. September 13-15 was the annual “hell weekend” for dedicated fans, with two Challenger Series competitions and a Junior Grand Prix event. There was another Junior Grand Prix the weekend before, and two more Challenger Series the weekend… Continue reading Ice Dance Roundup: Twelve Recent Programs to Watch

16 Great Ice Dance Performances of 2017-18

Because it was an Olympic year, everything seemed heightened in 2017-18. When I asked a friend to help me narrow down my lists of best performances, she instead convinced me to add more. And there was no way to shorten my list of the season’s biggest disasters. If all goes well, my look back at… Continue reading 16 Great Ice Dance Performances of 2017-18

Lake Placid Ice Dance Championships Recap: All Aboard the Rhumba Train

Skating fans are used to busy weekends, especially in the era of live streams and YouTube. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a weekend in July so crammed with skating, though. Between July 27 and 30, fans had to choose among the Glacier Falls Classic, a high-profile American club competition; a South Korean test event… Continue reading Lake Placid Ice Dance Championships Recap: All Aboard the Rhumba Train

The 16 Most Epic Skating Disasters of 2016-17

Skating fans like to pretend we’re in it for the successes: the biggest and cleanest jumps, the most engaging and original performances, the mascara-ruining happy tears in the kiss and cry. But there’s something cathartic about an enormous failure. Often, the most memorable programs at a competition are not the technically cleanest ones, but the… Continue reading The 16 Most Epic Skating Disasters of 2016-17

2017 Junior Worlds Field Guide: Ice Dance

Of the four disciplines at Junior Worlds this season, ice dance is the easiest to predict. Unless someone falls or in some other way has the worst skate of their lives, we know who’s going to be on the podium – although not necessarily the order in which they’ll place. Below those three golden teams,… Continue reading 2017 Junior Worlds Field Guide: Ice Dance

5 Things I Learned from the 2017 US National Figure Skating Championships

Another U.S. Nationals is in the books, and as usual, I have a lot of opinions. So many opinions, in fact, that this is going to be a multi-part post. It’s not the only Nationals I have strong feelings about – I got out several thousand words on the Russian men a few weeks ago –… Continue reading 5 Things I Learned from the 2017 US National Figure Skating Championships

2017 US Nationals Field Guide: Junior Ice Dance

The 9th-best American dance team is better than most countries’ 2nd-best team. Enjoy your ice dance golden age, America.