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
Tag: Hubbell and Donohue
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
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
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: Championship Ice Dance
The United States has the strongest ice dance program in the world. Even the Just Happy to Be Here contingent is terrific.