Indy Challenge Presents Great Skating in Pairs
by Alexandra Stevenson, Special to U.S. Figure Skating Online |
| Brooke Castile and Ben Okolski |
Go to complete results at the Indiana/World Skating Academy FSC web site
(8/25/06) - The 16th annual Indy Challenge Pairs and Dance Competition, held Aug. 18-20, in Indianapolis, had a little bit of everything. At least nine teams took the ice in each of the four pairs levels (intermediate through senior), making the three-day event this country's biggest pairs competition outside of the U.S. Championships.
Like the Lake Placid Dance Championships, the Indy Challenge is probably the most important summer competition for new and rising pairs teams. Personal critiques are given to skaters from top-ranking U.S. Figure Skating officials, and the event is used as a screening process for possible international assignments.
A joint U.S. Figure Skating-Professional Skaters Association seminar was also held during the event, providing important information about the international judging system for the upcoming season.
Among the faculty at the seminar were Olympic coach Oleg Vasiliev, Dr. Caroline Lawless, technical specialist David Kirby and judge/technical controller Wendy Enzmann, who advised coaches and skaters to check U.S. Figure Skating Online every day for updates and clarifications for the international judging system.
But the core of the Indy Challenge is the skating, and the participants showcased talent that proved U.S. pairs skating is on the rise.
Senior
Brooke Castile & Ben Okolski (Arctic FSC), who finished eighth at the 2006 State Farm U.S. Championships, won the short program (skated to Pink Floyd's “Shine on You Crazy Diamond”) by 2.70 points. They were second in the free skate by a marginal 0.97 points. Had the scores from both sections been combined (the short programs and free skates were considered separate events), they would have won overall.
“It was not our best,” the 20-year-old Castile said. “Our goal is not to make any mistakes.”
She fell on her throw triple Salchow in the free skate, set to “Requeim for a Dream,” and he put his hand down on the double Axel in the short program.
“I love this free – the whole idea – the music, the costumes, the moves, everything,” Castile said. “It shows off all of our strengths.”
She wore a dark blue sleeveless outfit with a neck band and a lacy white trim on a dipping hem. He was in matching blue with white and turquoise topping.
They have devised a new lift which they call a “GB,” which stands for “Gentle Ben.” At one point she is completely horizontal in the air before diving into the exit.
“It's a reverse star entry,” Okolski said. “We were playing with things about a month and a half ago, and this was the result.”
World Junior champions Julia Vlassov & Drew Meekins won the free skate but were third in the short program. Vlassov, who will turn 16 on Aug. 29, said she wasn't too upset about the short program, although she fell on the throw triple loop. They also received negative GOEs for both their side-by-side double toe loops and a level 3 double twist.
They skated far better in the free skate, interpreting the classic “Legend of the Glass Mountain.” Their only noticeable error came when she stepped out of their throw triple Salchow.
“This was our senior debut, and we haven't had much training time,” Vlassov said. “We're working on getting more speed.”
Meekins, 21, said, “We were thrilled to get over 100 points for the first time for the free. It's also the first time we've had over 150 combined with the short.”
They have been given two senior Grand Prix events: Cup of China and NHK Trophy.
Second in the short and fourth in the free were Jeremy Barrett and his new partner, Caydee Denney (Southwest Florida FSC).
Fourth in the short and third in the free were Chloe Katz and Joseph Lynch (SC of New York), who were 10th at the 2006 U.S. Championships.
Junior
Despite her fall on the throw triple Salchow, the new partnership of Keauna McLaughlin (Los Angeles FSC) and Rockne Brubaker (Broadmoor SC) won the short program by a substantial 8.56 points.
They interpreted music from the movie “Somewhere in Time,” which was used so successfully by the Canadian World silver medalists, Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon, for their free dance.
Brubaker, who turned 20 on June 21, won the 2005 U.S. junior title with Mariel Miller and planned to compete for the senior title. However, shortly before the 2006 event, they dissolved their partnership.
After teaming up with McLaughlin, he decided to stay in juniors since McLaughlin is so young. She turns 14 on Sept. 25.
McLaughlin fell badly on her hip in the warm-up. Although adrenaline helped her through the performance, the following day she awoke with pain and soreness, and the team withdrew from the free skate.
Current U.S. novice champions Jessica Rose Paetsch & Jon Nuss (Broadmoor SC) gave a promising showing.
They were unfortunate in the short program. Skating to music from “Anastasia,” Paetsch fell from a very high and long throw triple Salchow, which she had flown through beautifully in the warm-up. They were third in that segments, 1.43 points out of second place.
However, interpreting “Sing Sing Sing” and “Singin' in the Rain” with great enthusiasm, they won the free skate by 7.46 points despite getting no points for their 12th and final move, a Group 3 lift.
Paetsch, 13, and Nuss, 19, both said they were excited and looking forward to traveling to Hungary for their first international. They are scheduled to compete Aug. 31-Sept. 3 in the Junior Grand Prix in Budapest, along with McLaughlin and Brubaker, and Kaela Pflumm & Christopher Pottenger, who did not take part in this event.
The runners-up for the 2006 U.S. novice title, Andrea Best & Trevor Young (Detroit SC), were second in both the short and free programs.
The two 18-year-olds have kept last year's short program music, “Pink Panther,” wearing matching black pantsuits with suitable pink trimming. Their free skate has a more serious tone with the stirring music from “Samson & Delilah.”
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| Julia Vlassov and Drew Meekins |
Novice
U.S. novice bronze medalists Tracy Tanovich & Michael Chau (Southwest Florida FSC) survived a near collapse on a Group 5 lift in an ambitious “Don Quixote” program to win the free skate by 4.26 points.
Tanovich, who turned 10 on August 15, and Chau, who will be 16 at the end of November, were second in the short, 2.57 points behind the winners. They presented an interesting routine to “The Race,” vroom music that was particularly suitable for Indianapolis, home of the famous auto race.
The short was won by the new team of Amanda Luchau and Andrew Speroff (Broadmoor SC).
This was the second meeting for these two pairs this season. In mid-July they battled it out in Aston, Pa., at the Liberty Summer Competition with similar results: Luchau and Speroff won the short, and Tanovich and Chau took first in the free.
In the free skate in Indianapolis, there was practically a three-way tie, with only 0.54 of a point separating second, third and fourth (where Luchau and Speroff finished).
Caitlin Yankowskas (Colonial FSC) and Daniyel Cohen (Elite Training Academy), who finished 10th at the 2006 U.S. Championships in novice, edged into second in the free skate after being seventh in the short program.
Luchau and Speroff's rinkmates in Colorado Springs, Brynn Carman (Broadmoor SC) and Chris Knierim (Colorado College SC), who are also a new pair this season, were third in both the short program and free skate.
Intermediate
Jessica Schilkey (Port Huron FSC) and Daniel Palmeri (St. Claire Shores FSC) won the free skate with 61.52 points, 8.04 more than locals Cassie Andrews and Nicholas Anderson, who were skating on their home rink.
Schilkey and Palmeri did not fall and gained the extra 10 percent credit for doing their throw double Salchow and sequence of double Lutz to double flip jumps late in the program.
Andrews and Anderson had two falls, and only one of their 11 moves – their throw double loop – received the extra credit for being near the end of the routine.
They were only 1.26 points ahead of third place Haven Denney and Brandon Frazier (Southwest Florida FSC), who had problems with their single Lutz to single flip jump sequence.
