Various news about skating

Final Results

Ice Dance

Original Dance

1 Tanith BELBIN / Benjamin AGOSTO USA 64.27
2 Tessa VIRTUE / Scott MOIR CAN 60.98
3 Jana KHOKHLOVA / Sergei NOVITSKI RUS 58.58
4 Nathalie PECHALAT / Fabian BOURZAT FRA 57.36
5 Cathy REED / Chris REED JPN 44.80
6 Xintong HUANG / Xun ZHENG CHN 44.26

Free Dance

1 Tanith BELBIN / Benjamin AGOSTO USA 98.71
2 Tessa VIRTUE / Scott MOIR CAN 95.73
3 Nathalie PECHALAT / Fabian BOURZAT FRA 93.27
4 Jana KHOKHLOVA / Sergei NOVITSKI RUS 90.87
5 Cathy REED / Chris REED JPN 75.43
6 Xintong HUANG / Xun ZHENG CHN 66.14

Result

1 Tanith BELBIN / Benjamin AGOSTO USA 162.98
2 Tessa VIRTUE / Scott MOIR CAN 156.71
3 Nathalie PECHALAT / Fabian BOURZAT FRA 150.63
4 Jana KHOKHLOVA / Sergei NOVITSKI RUS 149.45
5 Cathy REED / Chris REED JPN 120.23
6 Xintong HUANG / Xun ZHENG CHN 110.40

--------------------------

Men

Short Program

1 Brian JOUBERT FRA 85.39
2 Evan LYSACEK USA 83.70
3 Nobunari ODA JPN 79.35
4 Sergei VORONOV RUS 71.42
5 Jeremy ABBOTT USA 71.27
6 Vaughn CHIPEUR CAN 71.05
7 Florent AMODIO FRA 69.85
8 Jialiang WU CHN 66.90
9 Patrick CHAN CAN 66.03
10 Takahiko KOZUKA JPN 65.25
11 Chao YANG CHN 55.73 31.48
12 Konstantin MENSHOV RUS 54.99

Free Skating

1 Evan LYSACEK USA 154.86
2 Patrick CHAN CAN 151.95
3 Brian JOUBERT FRA 151.70
4 Nobunari ODA JPN 149.90
5 Jeremy ABBOTT USA 133.78
6 Vaughn CHIPEUR CAN 127.86
7 Takahiko KOZUKA JPN 125.68
8 Sergei VORONOV RUS 125.28
9 Chao YANG CHN 122.21
10 Jialiang WU CHN 116.96
11 Florent AMODIO FRA 112.47
12 Konstantin MENSHOV RUS 110.22

Result

1 Evan LYSACEK USA 238.56
2 Brian JOUBERT FRA 237.09
3 Nobunari ODA JPN 229.25
4 Patrick CHAN CAN 217.98
5 Jeremy ABBOTT USA 205.05
6 Vaughn CHIPEUR CAN 198.91
7 Sergei VORONOV RUS 196.70
8 Takahiko KOZUKA JPN 190.93
9 Jialiang WU CHN 183.86
10 Florent AMODIO FRA 182.32
11 Chao YANG CHN 177.94
12 Konstantin MENSHOV RUS 165.21

-----------------------------------

Ladies

Short Program

1 Mao ASADA JPN 75.84
2 Joannie ROCHETTE CAN 62.08
3 Miki ANDO JPN 62.08
4 Caroline ZHANG USA 58.88
5 Rachael FLATT USA 58.40
6 Alena LEONOVA RUS 54.72
7 Cynthia PHANEUF CAN 54.30
8 Binshu XU CHN 50.30
9 Candice DIDIER FRA 48.38
10 Yan LIU CHN 44.36
11 Katarina GERBOLDT RUS 42.42
12 Gwendoline DIDIER FRA 38.10

Free Skating

1 Mao ASADA JPN 126.03
2 Joannie ROCHETTE CAN 120.08
3 Caroline ZHANG USA 116.80
4 Rachael FLATT USA 113.41
5 Alena LEONOVA RUS 106.68
6 Miki ANDO JPN 105.44
7 Yan LIU CHN 91.05
8 Binshu XU CHN 82.96
9 Cynthia PHANEUF CAN 81.35
10 Candice DIDIER FRA 78.08
11 Gwendoline DIDIER FRA 75.77
12 Katarina GERBOLDT RUS 69.61

Result

1 Mao ASADA JPN 201.87
2 Joannie ROCHETTE CAN 182.16
3 Caroline ZHANG USA 175.68
4 Rachael FLATT USA 171.81
5 Miki ANDO JPN 167.52
6 Alena LEONOVA RUS 161.40
7 Cynthia PHANEUF CAN 135.65
8 Yan LIU CHN 135.41
9 Binshu XU CHN 133.26
10 Candice DIDIER FRA 126.46
11 Gwendoline DIDIER FRA 113.87
12 Katarina GERBOLDT RUS 112.03

------------------------------------

Pairs

Short Program

1 Dan ZHANG / Hao ZHANG CHN 70.42
2 Yuko KAVAGUTI / Alexander SMIRNOV RUS 65.08
3 Caydee DENNEY / Jeremy BARRETT USA 56.58
4 Jessica DUBE / Bryce DAVISON CAN 55.44
5 Vanessa JAMES / Yannick BONHEUR FRA 46.20
6 Narumi TAKAHASHI / Mervin TRAN JPN 43.00

Free Skating

1 Dan ZHANG / Hao ZHANG CHN 123.40
2 Yuko KAVAGUTI / Alexander SMIRNOV RUS 120.07
3 Jessica DUBE / Bryce DAVISON CAN 108.68
4 Caydee DENNEY / Jeremy BARRETT USA 101.66
5 Narumi TAKAHASHI / Mervin TRAN JPN 82.91
6 Vanessa JAMES / Yannick BONHEUR FRA 82.59

Result

1 Dan ZHANG / Hao ZHANG CHN 193.82
2 Yuko KAVAGUTI / Alexander SMIRNOV RUS 185.15
3 Jessica DUBE / Bryce DAVISON CAN 164.12
4 Caydee DENNEY / Jeremy BARRETT USA 158.24
5 Vanessa JAMES / Yannick BONHEUR FRA 128.79
6 Narumi TAKAHASHI / Mervin TRAN JPN 125.91

*****************************

Team Result

1 United States of America 60
2 Canada 54
3 Japan 50
4 France 37
5 Russia 35
6 China 34

#entry35257

Calendar of Russian and International competitions in the 2009/2010

2009

September
15-19 - I stage of Cup Russia
24-27 - Nebelhorn Trophy - Obersdorf, Germany

October
06-10 - II stage of Cup Russia
08-11 - Finlandia Trophy - Vantaa, Finland
15-18 - Trophιe Eric Bompard - Paris, France
22-25 - Rostelecom Cup (former "Cup of Russia") - Moscow, Russia
29-01 - Cup of China - Beijing, China

November
04-08 - Coupe de Nice - Nice, France
05-08 - NHK Trophy - Nagano, Japan
10-14 - III stage of Cup Russia - Kazan
12-15 - Skate America - Lake Plesid, United States
19-22 - Skate Canada - Kitchener, Canada
25-28 - IV stage of Cup Russia - Moscow

December
03-06 - Final Grand Prix - Tokyo, Japan
09-12 - Memorial N. Panina (single and pair skating) - St. Petersburg
24-27 - Championship of Russia - St. Petersburg


2010

January
18-14 - European Championships - Tallinn, Estonia
20-22 - Open Championship and the championship of St. Petersburg - St. Petersburg

February
12-28 - Olympic Games - Vancouver, Canada
17-20 - Open Championship in Moscow - Moscow

March
03-06 - The final of Cup Russia
22-28 - World Championships - Turin, Italy ....

http://www.isu.org/vsite/vcontent/content/...ws-item,00.html

ISU Grand Prix schedules season 2009/2010

15 - 18 October - Trophιe Eric Bompard (Paris, France)
http://www.ticketnet.fr/shop/fr/manif.asp?...68&idtier=78768
22 - 25 October - Rostelecom Cup (former "Cup of Russia") (Moscow, Russia)
29 October - 1 November - Cup of China (Beijing, China)
05 - 08 November - NHK Trophy (Nagano, Japan)
12 - 15 November - Skate America (Lake Plasid, USA)
19 - 22 November - Skate Canada (Kitchener, Canada)
03 - 06 December - Grand Prix Final (Tokyo, Japan)



ISU Grand Prix 2009/2010 Announcements and Calendar of Events
http://www.sportcentric.com/vsite/vnavsite...av-list,00.html


Grand Prix assignments 2009/2010 (pdf)

Men
http://isu.sportcentric.net/db//files/serve.php?id=1451
Ladys
http://isu.sportcentric.net/db//files/serve.php?id=1450
Pairs
http://isu.sportcentric.net/db//files/serve.php?id=1452
Dance
http://isu.sportcentric.net/db//files/serve.php?id=1453

-------------------

... other ISU Communications in PDF or Word
http://www.isu.org/vsite/vnavsite/page/dir...av-list,00.html

Edited by cekoni - 1/6/2009, 00:56

Special Regulations and Technical Rules Single and Pair Skating and Ice Dance 2008
http://www.sportcentric.com/vsite/vfile/pa...8-0-file,00.pdf

ISU Judging System
http://www.sportcentric.com/vsite/vnavsite...av-list,00.html

-----------------

International Single & Pair Skating, Ice Dance and Synchronized Skating Competitions 2009/2010

ISU Communication 1564 (pdf):
http://isu.sportcentric.net/db//files/serve.php?id=1449


Edited by cekoni - 1/6/2009, 04:01

http://web.icenetwork.com/news/article.jsp...ce_pressrelease

ISU announces 2009-10 Grand Prix assignments

Entries for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series for the 2009-10 season have been released.

The upcoming Olympic season will include three major comebacks -- Sasha Cohen will appear at the Series-opening Trophee Eric Bompard Cachemire; Evgeni Plushenko will skate the next week at the Rostelecom Cup; and Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao will debut at the Cup of China.

Full entry lists are below....


2009 Trophee Eric Bompard Cachemire
Paris, France
October 15-18, 2009

Ladies
• Mao Asada, Japan
• Sasha Cohen, United States
• Gwendoline Didier, France
• Elene Gedevanishvili, Georgia
• Alexe Gilles, United States
• Yu-Na Kim, South Korea
• Kiira Korpi, Finland
• Carolina Kostner, Italy
• Yukari Nakano, Japan
• Caroline Zhang, United States
• TBA, France
• TBA, France

Men
• Ryan Bradley, United States
• Vaughn Chipeur, Canada
• Javier Fernandez, Spain
• Brian Joubert, France
• Peter Liebers, Germany
• Nobunari Oda, Japan
• Yannick Ponsero, France
• Alban Prιaubert, France
• Adam Rippon, United States
• Tomas Verner, Czech Republic
• Sergei Voronov, Russia
• Chao Yang, China

Pairs
• Adeline Canac and Maximin Coia, France
• Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir, United States
• Huibo Dong and Yiming Wu, China
• Jessica Dubι and Bryce Davison, Canada
• Vanessa James and Yannick Bonheur, France
• Maria Mukhortova and Maxim Trankov, Russia
• Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy, Germany
• TBA, France

Ice Dancing
• Zoι Blanc and Pierre-Loup Bouquet, France
• Kristina Gorshkova and Vitali Butikov, Russia
• Madison Hubbell and Keiffer Hubbell, United States
• Sinead Kerr and John Kerr, Great Britain
• Kimberly Navarro and Brent Bommentre, United States
• Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat, France
• Ekaterina Rubleva and Ivan Shefer, Russia
• Emily Samuelson and Evan Bates, United States
• Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, Canada

-------------------------------

2009 Rostelecom Cup
Moscow, Russia
October 22-25, 2009

Ladies
• Miki Ando, Japan
• Mao Asada, Japan
• Alissa Czisny, United States
• Candice Didier, France
• Katarina Gerboldt, Russia
• Oksana Gozeva, Russia
• Amelie Lacoste, France
• Alena Leonova, Russia
• Kimmie Meissner, United States
• Susanna Pφykiφ, Finland
• Julia Sebestyen, Hungary
• Ashley Wagner, United States

Men
• Florent Amodio, France
• Patrick Chan, Canada
• Takahiko Kozuka, Japan
• Andrei Lutai, Russia
• Brandon Mroz, United States
• Evgeni Plushenko, Russia
• Shawn Sawyer, Canada
• Adrian Schultheiss, Sweden
• Gregor Urbas, Slovenia
• Kevin van der Perren, Belgium
• Johnny Weir, United States
• TBA, Russia

Pairs
• Mylθne Brodeur and John Mattatall, Canada
• Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov, Russia
• Anastasia Martiusheva and Alexei Rogonov, Russia
• Keauna McLaughlin and Rockne Brubaker, United States
• Qing Pang and Jian Tong, China
• Maria Sergejeva and Ilja Glebov, Estonia
• Amanda Velenosi and Mark Fernandez, Canada
• TBA, Russia

Ice Dancing
• Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte, Italy
• Katherine Copely and Deividas Stagniunas, Lithuania
• Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier, Canada
• Meryl Davis and Charlie White, United States
• Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin, Russia
• Terra Findlay and Benoit Richaud, France
• Carolina Hermann and Daniel Hermann, Germany
• Lucie Mysliveckova and Matej Novak, Czech Republic
• Ekaterina Rubleva and Ivan Shefer, Russia
• TBA, Russia

----------------------------

2009 Cup of China
Beijing, China
October 29-November 1, 2009

Ladies
• Rachael Flatt, United States
• Kiira Korpi, Finland
• Carolina Kostner, Finland
• Bebe Liang, United States
• Mirai Nagasu, United States
• Joannie Rochette, Canada
• Fumie Suguri, Japan
• Akiko Suzuki, Japan
• Diane Szmiett, Canada
• Binshu Xu, China
• TBA, China
• TBA, China

Men
• Stephen Carriere, United States
• Samuel Contesti, Italy
• Evan Lysacek, United States
• Armin Mahbanoozadeh, United States
• Nobunari Oda, Japan
• Yannick Ponsero, France
• Kevin Reynolds, Canada
• Denis Ten, Kazakhstan
• Sergei Voronov, Russia
• Ming Xu, China
• TBA, China
• TBA, China

Pairs
• Meagan Duhamel and Craig Buntin, Canada
• Amanda Evora and Mark Ladwig, United States
• Lubov Iliushechkina and Nodari Maisuradze, Russia
• Vanessa James and Yannick Bonheur, France
• Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao, China
• Tatiana Volosozhar and Stanislav Morozov, Ukraine
• Dan Zhang and Hao Zhang, China
• TBA, China

Ice Dancing
• Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto, United States
• Madison Chock and Greg Zuerlein, United States
• Federica Faiella and Massimo Scali, Italy
• Xintong Huang and Xun Zheng, China
• Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski, Russia
• Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje, Canada
• Xiaoyang Yu and Chen Wang, China
• Anna Zadorozhniuk and Sergei Verbillo, Ukraine
• Alexandra Zaretski and Roman Zaretski, Israel
• TBA, China

----------------------------------

2009 NHK Trophy
Nagano, Japan
November 5-8, 2009

Ladies
• Miki Ando, Japan
• Becky Bereswill, United States
• Annette Dytrt, Germany
• Alena Leonova, Russia
• Laura Lepistφ, Finland
• Yan Liu, China
• Sarah Meier, Switzerland
• Kimmie Meissner, United States
• Yukari Nakano, Japan
• Cynthia Phaneuf, Canada
• Ashley Wagner, United States
• TBA, Japan

Men
• Jeremy Abbott, United States
• Kristoffer Berntsson, Sweden
• Artem Borodulin, Russia
• Michal Brezina, Czech Republic
• Vaughn Chipeur, Canada
• Brian Joubert, France
• Takahiko Kozuka, Japan
• Adam Rippon, United States
• Daisuke Takahashi, Japan
• Jeremy Ten, Canada
• Johnny Weir, United States
• TBA, Japan

Pairs
• Mylθne Brodeur and John Mattatall, Canada
• Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett, United States
• Rena Inoue and John Baldwin, United States
• Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov, Russia
• Ksenia Krasilnikova and Konstantin Bezmaternikh, Russia
• Paige Lawrence and Rudi Swiegers, Canada
• Qing Pang and Jian Tong, China
• Narumi Takahashi and Mervin Tran, Japan

Ice Dancing
• Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev, Russia
• Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier, Canada
• Meryl Davis and Charlie White, United States
• Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin, Russia
• Allie Hann-McCurdy and Michael Coreno, Canada
• Sinead Kerr and John Kerr, Great Britain
• Lucie Mysliveckova and Matej Novak, Czech Republic
• Cathy Reed and Chris Reed, Japan
• Jane Summersett and Todd Gilles, United States
• Anna Zadorozhniuk and Sergei Verbillo, Ukraine

-----------------------------------

2009 Skate America
Lake Placid, N.Y., United States
November 12-15, 2009

Ladies
• Sasha Cohen, United States
• Rachael Flatt, United States
• Elene Gedevanishvili, Georgia
• Elena Glebova, Estonia
• Sarah Hecken, Germany
• Joshi Helgesson, Sweden
• Tugba Karademir, Turkey
• Yu-Na Kim, South Korea
• Susanna Pφykiφ, Finland
• Julia Sebestyen, Hungary
• Fumie Suguri, Japan
• TBA, United States

Men
• Florent Amodio, France
• Ryan Bradley, United States
• Andrei Lutai, Russia
• Evan Lysacek, United States
• Brandon Mroz, United States
• Takahito Mura, Japan
• Yasuharu Nanri, Japan
• Kevin Reynolds, Canada
• Shawn Sawyer, Canada
• Adrian Schultheiss, Sweden
• Tomas Verner, Czech Republic
• Jialiang Wu, China

Pairs
• Meagan Duhamel and Craig Buntin, Canada
• Stacy Kemp and David King, Great Britain
• Keauna McLaughlin and Rockne Brubaker, United States
• Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao, China
• Tatiana Volosozhar and Stanislav Morozov, Ukraine
• Dan Zhang and Hao Zhang, China
• TBA, United States
• TBA, United States

Ice Dancing
• Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto, United States
• Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte, Italy
• Madison Chock and Greg Zuerlein, United States
• Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder, France
• Kristin Fraser and Igor Lukanin, Azerbaijan
• Kristina Gorshkova and Vitali Butikov, Russia
• Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski, Russia
• Caitlin Mallory and Kristian Rand, Estonia
• Kimberly Navarro and Brent Bommentre, United States
• Alexandra Zaretski and Roman Zaretski, Israel

-------------------------------------

2009 Skate Canada
Kitchener, Canada
November 19-22, 2009

Ladies
• Alissa Czisny, United States
• Sarah Hecken, Germany
• Joshi Helgesson, Sweden
• Amelie Lacoste, Canada
• Laura Lepistφ, Finland
• Jenna McCorkell, Great Britain
• Sarah Meier, Switzerland
• Mirai Nagasu, United States
• Cynthia Phaneuf, Canada
• Joannie Rochette, Canada
• Akiko Suzuki, Japan
• Caroline Zhang, United States

Men
• Jeremy Abbott, United States
• Michal Brezina, Czech Republic
• Stephen Carriere, United States
• Patrick Chan, Canada
• Samuel Contesti, Italy
• Armin Mahbanoozadeh, United States
• Alban Prιaubert, France
• Daisuke Takahashi, Japan
• Denis Ten, Kazakhstan
• Jeremy Ten, Canada
• Kevin van der Perren, Belgium
• TBA, Canada

Pairs
• Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett, United States
• Jessica Dubι and Bryce Davison, Canada
• Anabelle Langlois and Cody Hay, Canada
• Maria Mukhortova and Maxim Trankov, Russia
• Ksenia Ozerova and Alexander Enbert, Russia
• Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy, Germany
• Caitlin Yankowskas and John Coughlin, United States
• TBA, Canada

Ice Dancing
• Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev, Russia
• Andrea Chong and Guillame Gfeller, Canada
• Katherine Copely and Deividas Stagniunas, Lithuania
• Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder, France
• Federica Faiella and Massimo Scali, Italy
• Madison Hubbell and Keiffer Hubbell, United States
• Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat, France
• Emily Samuelson and Evan Bates, United States
• Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, Canada
• Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje, Canada

http://www.goldskate.ru/news/fullnews.shtml?newsid=453

On Russian language!

Календарь основных всероссийских и международных соревнований по фигурному катанию на коньках в сезоне 2009-2010 гг.
(Kalendar of major national and international competitions in figure skating in the season 2009-2010)
http://www.goldskate.ru/schedule


Положение о всероссийских соревнованиях по фигурному катанию на коньках
(Regulations of the All-Russian competitions in figure skating)
http://www.goldskate.ru/schedule/Polozhenie2009-2010.pdf

----------------------------------------

Nebelhorn Trophy (September 24-27, 2009)

The 2009/2010 Olympic season should kick off with a bang as a star-studded field head to the quaint German town of Oberstdorf during the week of September 24-27, 2009. The Nebelhorn Trophy has been designated as the Olympic Qualifier for countries who have yet to secure spots for the upcoming Olympic Games in Vancouver, Canada....

... preliminary list of entrants:
http://www.skatetoday.com/insideedge.php?b...page=latestblog

----------------------------------------

Isu Grand-prix Rostelecom Cup 2009, Moscow

Schedule:
(pdf) http://isu.sportcentric.net/db//files/serve.php?id=1492

----------------------------------------

http://www.euroskate2010.eu/?page_id=243〈=en

Schedule

The ISU European Figure Skating Championships will take place in Saku Suurhall between 19th and 22th of January 2010.

Tuesday 19th January
13:30 Ice Dance – Compulsory Dance
18:45 Opening Ceremony on ice
19:30 Pairs – Short Program

Wednesday 20th January
11:45 Men – Short Program
18:30 Pairs – Free program followed by a medal ceremony

Thursday 21st January
13:00 Ice Dance – Original Dance
18:45 Men – Free Skating followed by a medal ceremony

Friday 22nd January
11:00 Ladies – Short Program
18:40 Ice Dance – Free Dance folloewd by a medal ceremony

Saturday 23rd January
13:30 Ladies – Free Skating followed by medal ceremony

Sunday 22th January
15:30 Gala Exchibition

Golden Skate Awards, Edition III

Even if we still don't have any confirm about Evgeni's partecipation, I wish to open this new topic - Golden Skate Awards is on it's 3° Edition, and this year it will be October 10th, at Turin.
Sarah Meier, Stιphane Lambiel, Savchenko/Szolkowi, Valentina Marchei and Samuel Contesti have confirmed their presence.
The tickets are on sale allready (online).
Let's wait the end of the August to have an ufficial announcement of the cast, and hope that Evgeni will come to Turin again.
Font: http://www.torinolympicpark.org/eventoDettaglio.aspx?idE=52

Edited by cekoni - 17/9/2009, 03:13

http://www.goldenskate.it/

2009 Golden Skate Awards , 10.10.2009, Palavela Arena, Torino

Skaters :

Hot Shivers Italy
Faiella/Scali Italy
Dela Monica/Kocon Italy
Samuel Contesti Italy
Stephan Lambiel Switzerland
Sarah Meier Switzerland
Viktor Petrenko Ukraina
Irina Slutskaya Russia
Denkova/Staviski Bulgaria

I'm glad that he will not appear

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/blogs/2009/09/can...beat_headi.html
September 14, 2009, Posted by Pj Kwong

Canada's the team to beat heading into the new season

Canada has established itself over the last two seasons as the No. 1 figure skating nation in the world.
With a medal in three of the four disciplines at both the 2008 and 2009 ISU World Figure Skating Championships, we are the nation to beat in the upcoming season.

This past week in Vancouver, Skate Canada has held its high performance training camp for the top 22 figure skaters in the country, including all four defending champions.
Among the activities planned for the athletes was a media scrum held after the practice sessions on the second day, where over 40 accredited members of the media got the chance to ask the questions they wanted of all the skaters.
Although the attention is clearly on the more well-known names, like Canadian men's champion Patrick Chan, it is clear that skating in general seems to be on the rise in popularity among the journalists, as evidenced by the number of questions for all of the skaters in the room.

Chan and Joannie Rochette, the Canadian women’s champion, were both silver medallists at the world championships in March.
This season, they are choosing to make their mark with superb free programs from choreographer Lori Nichol, showcasing their newfound maturity.
Patrick is skating to "The Phantom of The Opera" and Joannie to "Samson and Delilah." In each case, the skater is expressing the story from which the music is taken – using their interpretation and characterization to help frame their free programs.

Not an easy road

Despite the quality of the programs, it isn’t going to be an easy road this season as “comeback” seems to be the name of the game with a number of Olympic medallists returning to competition.

Earlier this year, American skater and 2006 Olympic silver medallist Sasha Cohen announced that she would be returning to competitive figure skating in the hopes of finally achieving gold in 2010.
She will have her work cut out for her with the 2008 world champion from Japan, Mao Asada, and defending world champion from Korea Yu-Na Kim already at the top of the heap both technically and artistically.

Also returning to the international scene are Russia's Evgeni Plushenko, the 2006 Olympic champion, and Swiss Stephane Lambiel, who won silver in Turin.
The defending world champion from the United States, Evan Lysacek, will be skating with a no-holds barred attitude, while Brian Joubert of France will no doubt be trying to vindicate himself after what he considered to be a disastrous bronze medal finish at the worlds in 2009.

A lot has changed in the last four years. The “comeback kids” are really going to have their work cut out for them if they are going to maximize the points under the judging system which has continued to evolve since the last Olympics.

Jessica Dube and Bryce Davison, Canada’s pair champions and world bronze medallists in 2008, have returned to a more romantic feel to their free program using music from “The Way We Were” soundtrack.
It is the sense of connection that they were going for in what Bryce calls a return to their “comfort zone.”

Sentimental favourites

China’s two-time Olympic bronze medallists from 2002 and 2006, Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao, will undoubtedly be sentimental favourites having announced their return to skating in time for this season. Many skaters have said that it is very hard to leave the sport if you didn’t get the chance to accomplish what you had hoped and this is the case with this Chinese team.
The two-time and defending world champions from Germany, Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy are early favourites as a result of technical but not necessarily artistic prowess.

Ice dance Canadian champions and two-time world medallists Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir are both in excellent shape. Their bronze medal at the worlds last year is considered to be somewhat of a miracle considering that Tessa had spent the majority of the season off the ice due to surgery on her leg.
Their free dance in competition at the worlds was only the fifth time they had done their program. Having seen their free dance to music from Mahler’s "Fifth Symphony," it can be accurately described as a masterpiece.
The difficulty, the musicality, and the passion with which they skate the program will certainly give them an edge in heading for an Olympic podium finish.

There will no doubt be lots of competition from the 2009 world champions, Russia's Oksana Domnina and Maksim Shabalin, and Americans Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto, who were the 2006 Olympic Silver medallists.

Only in the Olympic season does the competition get serious right off the bat and this one is no exception.

The Grand Prix series schedule has been altered this season so that the competition starts in France and ends in Canada. This means that the final spots for this year’s ISU Grand Prix final, which will be held in Tokyo in December, will not be decided until then.

So, Finland will not see Plushy

http://www.stll.fi/finlandia_trophy/entries/

FINLANDIA TROPHY 2009 - ENTRIES (14.9.2009)

MEN
Van Der Perren Kevin BEL
Martinez Ian CAN
Brezina Michal CZE
Minkkinen Mikko FIN
Nurmenkari Ari-Pekka FIN
Virtanen Valtter FIN
Brummer Clemens GER
Liebers Peter GER
Bacchini Paolo ITA
Zelenka Karel ITA
Mura Takahito JPN
Murakami Daisuke JPN
Takahashi Daisuke JPN
Domanski Przemyslaw POL
Menshov Konstantin RUS
Voronov Sergei RUS
Berntsson Kristoffer SWE
Sazonets Vitali UKR
Carriere Stephen USA
Johnson Alex USA
.
LADIES
Frank Kerstin AUT
Samson Myriane CAN
Ikonnikova Olga EST
Korpi Kiira FIN
Lepisto Laura FIN
Poyito Susanna FIN
Dytrt Annette GER
Hecken Sarah GER
McCorkell Jenna GBR
Marchei Valentina ITA
Sawada Aki JPN
Takeda Nana JPN
Doronina Ksenia RUS
Leonova Alena RUS
Helgesson Joshi SWE
Helgesson Viktoria SWE
Bereswill Becky USA
Oberstar Molly USA
.
ICE DANCE
Geil Kira-Matsyuk Dmytro AUT
Kiudmaa Kristina-Trohlev Aleksei EST
Lindholm Henna-Kanervo Ossi FIN
Beier Christina-Beier William GER
Herrmann Carolina-Herrmann Daniel GER
Kerr Sinead-Kerr John GBR
Towler-Green Phillippa-Poole Phillip GBR
Hoffmann Nora-Zavozin Maxim HUN
Pajardi Isabella-Caruso Stefano ITA
Platonova Anastasia-Grachev Alexander RUS
Beknazarova Alla-Zuyev Vladimir UKR
Frolenkova Nadezhda-Kasalo Mikhail UKR
Summerset Jane-Gilles Todd USA

Thanks cekoni <3 Lutai will take part in Perm??

I dont know - probably

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http://web.icenetwork.com/news/article.jsp...8&vkey=ice_news
By Jean-Christophe Berlot, special to icenetwork.com

Figure skating season begins in France

(09/14/2009) - There were two hot topics in Orlιans this past weekend as the elite skaters of France gathered for their first competition, the French Masters. Brian Joubert was supposedly unveiling his new free program, crafted by former ice dancing world champions Albena Denkova and Maxim Staviski. The other subject that got tongues wagging was Isabelle Delobel's baby, which was expected to arrive during the competition.

Though both stories gained a lot of steam, and The Masters, allowed for a valuable review of French figure skating on the eve of the upcoming Olympic season.

Joubert's new program

Many were wondering about Joubert's new free program.
"Finally, this is a winning program," one international judge present in Orlιans commented after seeing it.

Joubert's 2008-2009 season ended in turmoil, as he cut ties with former coach Jean-Christophe Simond and decided to train again with Laurent Depouilly, who had helped him win his first European Championship in 2005. Many then wondered how Joubert could renew his repertoire and undertake the necessary changes to his skating style.

"We decided to keep last year's short program," Joubert explained. But Joubert will be skating a new free skate this season. After long discussions, the team finally decided to ask Albena Denkova and Maxim Staviski to help him build what should be his Olympic free skate.
Joubert missed his quad in both the short and free programs in Orlιans, and he lost to 2008 Junior Grand Prix Final winner Florent Amodio. His showing, however, reassured federation experts and judges.

"I am well aware that there is still a lot of work ahead of me," Joubert said. "Yet I am on track. And I love this program."

Delobel's baby is still on its way

"Is the baby there yet?" Pernelle Carron, one of Delobel's best friends and a teammate in Lyon, did not hesitate to ask.
No, Delobel's baby was not showing up yet. Olivier Schoenfelder, Delobel's on-ice partner, was in Orleans to commentate the competition for a television sports channel (Schoenfelder is also studying journalism). He also agreed to comment on the duo's own situation for icenetwork.com.

"Isabelle kept training until an advanced stage", he explained. "She stopped around seven-and-a-half months of pregnancy." In the second half of July, both of the duo's new programs were ready. Schoenfelder trained with Delobel until she had to stop, after which he started training by himself again. Schoenfelder had already endured such a period of training alone earlier this year, when Delobel injured her shoulder at the Grand Prix Final.

Many experts were concerned about Delobel's pregnancy itself and the weight she might have gained. Schoenfelder was reassuring on this point.
"Isabelle's pregnancy went really well, and this is quite a chance. She did not gain much weight, and after she stopped training, she went to the Alps, [with her husband Ludovic Roux, a skiing coach] and I know she was really careful there. Now the main thing is that birth itself goes well". In fact, the time Delobel needs to recover prior to coming back to the ice will depend heavily on how the baby is born.

Men

Four men are in contention for the two Olympic berths France has. Joubert has already qualified for one, but Yannick Ponsero, Alban Prιaubert and Amodio have just three months to grasp the other.

Ponsero finished fourth at the 2009 European championships. He has worked on his amplitude and keeps improving on his consistency. In Orlιans, he had trouble with both of his programs, and his trademark quad Salchow eluded him.
"He is working so much," his choreographer Claudie Lucine said sadly.
"I train mentally also every day," Ponsero assured.

Prιaubert, who is the most experienced internationally of the three, seems to have gone back to his humorous style, at least in his short program to "William Tell's Overture," where he portrays a horse rider. Prιaubert's free program is quite different, however.
"I skate my free program to rock 'n roll, which is quite unusual in the men," he explained. "I am a big fan of the Rolling Stones, and my parents have the complete edition of their works. I went to see them in their last tour, and I felt their music would set fire to the rink!"
Prιaubert finished third in Orlιans, just ahead of Ponsero. Amodio, who won the Junior Grand Prix Final last December, worked with a choreographer for the first time in his career. Alexander Zhulin and Stanick Jeannette, a former European medalist, devised his two programs.
"Here I am, just brand new to this competition. I am here without any objective, simply to skate my two programs as well as possible," he said earlier. His victory proved that he was on the right track.

The upcoming Grand Prix events should provide good indication about which of the three will skate in Vancouver next February.

Ice Dancing

Along with the men's competition, ice dancing is traditionally the field where French skating is at its best.

The sport, however, had to endure something of a tsunami at the end of last season. In addition to Delobel's pregnancy, the third-ranked team of Carron and Matthieu Jost decided to split. The duo had just wrapped up a credible ninth-place finish in Los Angeles when Carron announced to Jost that she would not be skating with him anymore.
So the Carron-Jost couple gave birth to two new pairs, as both Carron and Jost are now skating with new partners. Neither team, however, can qualify to compete in the upcoming Olympics, as neither Carron nor Jost's new partners are of French nationality.
Carron teamed up with Lloyd Jones, a 20-year-old ice dancer from Great Britain. The duo devised their programs themselves.

"We had hoped that Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon [who came to Lyon last June to create Delobel and Schoenfelder's free dance] could help us as well", Carron explained. "Yet we did not have the budget for it, so we decided to create our routines ourselves. So it is like our babies!"
"Indeed," Romain Haguenauer, who coaches Carron and Lloyd in Lyon explained, "We have given them only a little help. They have done most of the work themselves. This way, it reflects their own personality, which helps them a lot, as a starting couple, especially since Lloyd still has limited experience."

Jost paired with Olga Orlova, a Russian skater who had been training with Nikolai Morozov in the USA for the last four years.
"I was in contact with Morozov at the time when Pernelle announced that she was leaving me," Jost recalled. "So I knew that Olga was by herself. Two hours after we met, our legs were matching, it was incredible. I have to admit that Olga is taller and more powerful [than Carron], so actually it is easier to skate together".

Meanwhile, Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat have been training actively. After taking fifth place at worlds in Los Angeles last March, they skated in the French and Japanese skating tours and returned to Moscow to create their new programs. Last summer they spent a month in Epinal, in the east of France, with their coach, Alexander Zhulin. Both of their programs were entertaining, creative and highly technical.
"Our work has given us more amplitude and maturity, and we wanted to show it in our programs. The ones we created with Sasha [Zhulin] should help us prove it", Pιchalat explained.

They displayed renewed amplitude and confidence in Orlιans and proved that they are the clear leaders of French ice dancing in the absence of Delobel and Schoenfelder.

The French skaters are now preparing for the Grand Prix season, which will open in just a month with the Eric Bompard Trophy in Paris.

I stage of "Russian Cup" - Samara

SP - Men & LP - Women ... homevideos

https://www.youtube.com/user/NikaQuest#grid/uploads

I stage of "Russian Cup" - Samara, 15-19.09.

- news:
http://www.goldskate.ru/news/fullnews.shtml?newsid=464

- Results - details (by days):
http://www.goldskate.ru/news/fullnews.shtml?newsid=460
http://www.goldskate.ru/news/fullnews.shtml?newsid=461
http://www.goldskate.ru/news/fullnews.shtml?newsid=462
http://www.goldskate.ru/news/fullnews.shtml?newsid=463
http://www.goldskate.ru/news/fullnews.shtml?newsid=464

Men, the final results
1. Konstantin Menchov (St. Petersburg) 211.20
2. Sergei Dobrin (Moscow) 185.80
3. Nikita Mikhailov (Moscow) 181.93

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"Nebelhorn Trophy 2009" - Oberstdorf, Germany 24 - 27 Sept
(Olympic Qualifying Event)

Entries/Results & Time Schedule

http://www.isuresults.com/results/nt2009/index.htm

... some interesting participants

MAN
Stephane LAMBIEL SUI
Michal BREZINA CZE
Yannick PONSERO FRA
Stefan LINDEMANN GER
Ivan TRETIAKOV RUS

WOMAN
Elena GLEBOVA EST
Kiira KORPI FIN
Alissa CZISNY USA

PAIRS
Aliona SAVCHENKO / Robin SZOLKOWY GER
Ksenia KRASILNIKOVA / Konstantin BEZMATERNIKH RUS
Tatiana VOLOSOZHAR / Stanislav MOROZOV UKR
Brooke CASTILE / Benjamin OKOLSKI USA

ICE DANCE
Nora HOFFMANN / Maxim ZAVOZIN HUN
Isabella PAJARDI / Stefano CARUSO ITA
Ekaterina RIAZANOVA / Ilia TKACHENKO RUS
Meryl DAVIS / Charlie WHITE USA