Patrick Chan had a magnificent free skate beginning with quad toe-triple toe, quad toe both perfectly landed, two beautiful triple lutzes, he did a couple of mistakes doubling a triple axel and a triple loop but it was a stunning program overall in which he reminded us his great skating quality. After a disappointing beginning of season, this was a victory and earned 176.91 getting the gold with 34 points on the silver medalist.
Takahiko Kozuka had problems on his opening quad toes, one was two footed (and maybe under rotated) and fell on the other. Then regrouped and landed a couple of triple axels and other five triples including a triple lutz-triple toe almost at the end of the program. He received very good program components score, the best after Chan in this segment. He got 153.65 and a spot for grand prix final.
Michal Brezina had a struggling Skate America and short program but found himself back in his free skate. He fell un quad salchow but he had a good recovery in the secon half of the program with two great triple axels and other six clean triples scoring 150.73
Konstantin Menshov was fighting for his first grand rix medal but got a fourth place here. He started with a brilliant quad toe, missed the second one which became a triple toe-double toe, did a couple of very high triple axels, but then struggled in the landing of some jumps and doubled a final double toe. He wasn't the strongest artistically, earned 146.99
I have to say, up to this season I found Chan's skating to be so robot-like I could hardly stand to watch him.
ReplyDeleteBut he has really turned it around in a way I would not have thought possible - leaving his former coach seems to have done him a world of good. While his skating is still a little mechanical - there is some actual projection of feeling which makes him a pleasure to watch now. I really applaud him for addressing his problems even though the judging world was propping him up.
He and Christina Gao are two good big surprises for me this season thus far.