Skaters who return to old programs or have new programs created for Natl Championships/Worlds/OLYs

[B.Cooper]

In light of Wagner returning to LaLaLand for her free skate, heading to US Nationals with about 4 weeks to train the program as well as fully recover from her ankle/foot infection....

What skaters left behind their autumn internationally competed programs, to return to older programs from prior seasons, or had brand new programs created for their national championships and the remaining international season? And, did they have success with the programs?

Not only interested in skaters for the current season, but in years past.

 

[Sylvia]

Today:

Savchenko/Massot announced that they'll return to last year's "That Man" SP for the Grand Prix Final. They will then decide later which short program to use for the Olympics.

http://www.sportschau.de/winterspor...-prix-finale-nagoya-savchenko-massot-100.html

The decision was made because Bruno is more comfortable with last year's short program. In their Europe on Ice interview last week, they said that it was Aliona who suggested this year's flamenco music, and that Bruno was initially skeptical, but agreed to try it. So I guess this decision doesn't come out of nowhere.

 

[BittyBug]

In the 2006 / 2007 season, Belbin and Agosto ditched That's Entertainment for a new program set to Amelie - they won Nationals and took the bronze at Worlds

In the 2005 / 2006 season, Johnny Weir went back to Otonal after not getting traction with his Amazonica program - he won Nationals but then went on to a disappointing 5th at the Olympics and 7th at Worlds

 

[VGThuy]

Shizuka Arakawa changed both her SP and LP right before the Olympics in 2006 and won. She originally had Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini for her SP and Fantaisie-Impromptu for her LP. After failing to make the GPF and battling with a deep and competitive Japanese team, she switched coaches from Tatiana Tarasova to Nikolai Morosov and changed her LP back to Turandot, a program she did for two seasons previously, but reworked some of the choreography and music cuts. She then adapted her Fantaisie-Impromptu LP to a SP. I read that Tarasova wrote her a letter telling her to go back to Turandot for Turin.

All of Arakawa's major international wins (2004 Worlds and 2006 Olympics) were with Turandot.

 

[VGThuy]

Some more that I remember:

Berezhnaya/Sikharulidze used their previous season's LP to Charlie Chaplin throughout the GP series in the Fall of 2001 and debuted their new Meditation of Thais LP at the GPF before the Olympics. They always intended to change their LP even though Elena and Anton wanted to keep Chaplin. Moskvina felt that they couldn't win with that program and insisted they do something classical.

Michelle Kwan was using her East of Eden SP all GP series in the Fall of 2001 but then went back to her four-year-old Rachmaninoff short program at the GPF and used it all the way to 2002 Worlds.

Sale/Pelletier were using "Love Orchid" (music by Rachmaninoff) all GP series in the Fall of 2001 but then had a killer skate skating to their 2000 LP to "Love Story" at the GPF (back then skaters had to do 2 LPs in the GPF) and had a really bad skate at 2002 Canadian Nationals to Love Orchid. So they decided to go back to Love Story.

I think Maria Butyrskaya was using her 2001 LP "Seventeen Moments in Spring" in the GP series before she debuted her Olympic LP at the GPF.

Sarah Hughes majorly reworked her Dapnis et Chloe LP after her third place showing at Nationals getting rid of the Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 2 parts Robin Wagner inputted in that program before. She ended up winning the Olympics.

Evgeny Plushenko changed the LP he was using in the GP series at the Fall of 2001 and ended up using a new Carmen LP for the Olympics. He won silver.

Ina/Zimmerman debuted a new LP at 2002 Nationals, I believe. Had a killer performance at the Olympics, placed 5th, skated less well at 2002 Worlds but got a world bronze for it...some think of it as sort of a make up for their placement at the Olympics.

Anissina/Peizerat did not change programs, but really re-choreographed their Martin Luther King speech FD for the Olympics. They ended up winning.

I can probably think of others later.

 

[kwanfan1818]

I read that Tarasova wrote her a letter telling her to go back to Turandot for Turin.

It's even better: Arakawa wanted to change her FS to "Carmen," and in that letter, Tarasova told her that was a mistake and that she should go back to "Turandot."

Sarah Hughes majorly reworked her Dapnis et Chloe LP after her third place showing at Nationals getting rid of the Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 2 parts Robin Wagner inputted in that program before.

ETA: I always thought that was a brilliant move mentally: Hughes didn't have a lot of time on her hands to think about her disappointing Nationals placement, because she had to focus on the new choreography between Nationals and the Olympics.

 

[TAHbKA]

And then there is Brian Joubert who always started a season with something and ended it with `The Matrix' and the Russian version of him - Petrova/Tikhonov, who skated `4 Seasons' forever

 

[screech]

After struggling with his gorgeous Glenn Gould program, Jeff Buttle returned to a reworked Samson & Delilah for the 06 O's, where he came 2nd in the LP and won the bronze medal (missing the silver by less than 4 points - essentially his popped loop).

Also, maybe not the intention of the thread, but didn't Elvis opt to do his 94 LP (or a version of it) for the 02 season for his O's 'swan song'?

 

[ros01]

Didn't Michelle Kwan also drop A Day in the Life and/or Miraculous Mandarin? It's a long time ago...

I vividly remember Belbin/Agosto switching to Amelie, as BittyBug said. I was so glad they did. The That's Entertainment program was the last word in bland, in my recollection.

 

[VGThuy]

Didn't Michelle Kwan also drop A Day in the Life and/or Miraculous Mandarin? It's a long time ago...

I vividly remember Belbin/Agosto switching to Amelie, as BittyBug said. I was so glad they did. The That's Entertainment program was the last word in bland, in my recollection.

She dropped her Eric Clapton "Rush" SP for "East of Eden" by 2001 Nationals. Miraculous Mandarin was a new program she debuted in February 2001 at the GPF and some thought she was thinking about dropping Song of the Black Swan for it but ended up sticking with Song of the Black Swan and won Worlds with it.

 

[caseyedwards]

Khokhlova and Novitzki changed to Firebird in 2010 after flopping really bad with something awful in fall of 2009 and I thought it was just BRILLIANT!!

This was the “disaster”

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UA_fBKoCH-s

This was the “rescue”

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YG3cUNZvfbo

It did help them! They beat Kerr’s and p/b at euros and that was a lot. They were dumped! They just collapsed. Many will say they just went down because of d/s or Novitski injuries return but I think it was more than that.

 

[blue_idealist]

Khokhlova and Novitzki changed to Firebird in 2010 after flopping really bad with something awful in fall of 2009 and I thought it was just BRILLIANT!!

This was the “disaster”

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UA_fBKoCH-s

This was the “rescue”

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YG3cUNZvfbo

It did help them! They beat Kerr’s and p/b at euros and that was a lot. They were dumped! They just collapsed. Many will say they just went down because of d/s or Novitski injuries return but I think it was more than that.

Hehe, I'd been spared the 'pleasure' of ever seeing the original FD before.

 

[Braulio]

Also, maybe not the intention of the thread, but didn't Elvis opt to do his 94 LP (or a version of it) for the 02 season for his O's 'swan song'?

Elvis used the same Long Program for 3 straight olympics (94,98 and 2002)

 

[alj5]

Elvis used the same Long Program for 3 straight olympics (94,98 and 2002)

But at least he added different music to the same choreography.

 

[Japanfan]

Elvis used the same Long Program for 3 straight olympics (94,98 and 2002)

He didn't use the Bruce Lee for 1998. Googling didn't generate a name for the program, but it was definitely not the Bruce Lee.

I thought it was sad when Elvis brought the Bruce Lee back for 2002, and skated so much worse than he had in 1994. It just highlighted how limited his range was a skater. I really loved Elvis for his competitive spirit and insistence on being himself, and was so pleased when he earned World silver in 00, allowing him to out on a high note.

 

[MsZem]

Pechalat/Bourzat switched back to their old Circus program before 2010 Worlds. They finished 3rd in the FD/4th overall. The Kerrs went back to their Scottish OD before 2010 Worlds, and finished 5th.

Savchenko/Szolkowy switched their SP in the 2014 season. They had an Andre Rieu short through Euros (where they WD before the free skate) and used an SP version of their old Pink Panther program at the Olympics and Worlds. I think it was the right decision for them.

Carolina Kostner also did a mid-season switch in 2014, from Humoresque and Scheherazade to Ave Maria (new, based on an EX) and Bolero (previous season's LP). That was absolutely the right call. Ave Maria was sublime and Bolero was a great fit for her. I don't think she'd have medalled at Sochi with her original programs.

And then there is Brian Joubert who always started a season with something and ended it with `The Matrix' and the Russian version of him - Petrova/Tikhonov, who skated `4 Seasons' forever

In 2008-9 Joubert started the season with Last of the Mohicans (I will never forget the feathered monstrosity at the 2008 Masters) and switched to a combination of The Matrix Reloaded and Requiem for a Dream before Euros (which he won).

In 2012-12, he started the season with Inception (which was promising) and switched to Gladiator.

 

[TAHbKA]

And Yagudin who started the season with a broken arrow and switched to .. I don't remember really to what

 

[tony]

And Yagudin who started the season with a broken arrow and switched to .. I don't remember really to what

Tosca. Lol

 

[tony]

Savchenko/Szolkowy had an Andre Rieu LP In 2010 but after they skated extremely poorly at Eric Bompard, they ditched it for the new ‘Out of Africa’ program. It was only 2 weeks old when they set the (at that time) World Record at Skate Canada.

 

[caseyedwards]

Hehe, I'd been spared the 'pleasure' of ever seeing the original FD before.

Well they lost to the Israeli ice dance team at skate America! The zaretskis. I wonder how bad it would have gotten If they had been stubborn!

 

[TAHbKA]

Well they lost to the Israeli ice dance team at skate America! The zaretskis. I wonder how bad it would have gotten If they had been stubborn!

Zaretskis were a solid top 10 both in the Worlds and Euros at that point. It does not alter the fact Khokhlova/Novitski's programem was a nightmare, but losing to Zaretskis is hardly `the terrible thing that could happen to a skater'

 

[Jeschke]

Savchenko/Szolkowy had an Andre Rieu LP In 2010 but after they skated extremely poorly at Eric Bompard, they ditched it for the new ‘Out of Africa’ program. It was only 2 weeks old when they set the (at that time) World Record at Skate Canada.

'You'll never walk alone' would have been the perfect vehicle for olympics.
Such a great triumph march. A shame it got ditched!

 

[SmallFairy]

And Yagudin who started the season with a broken arrow and switched to .. I don't remember really to what

Tosca. Lol

Judges didn't like Broken Arrow and told him to come up with something else, wasn't it? I thought BA was a cool program, Tosca was kind of meh, though it had lots of the choreo from Broken Arrow in it
Yags lost Euros to Plush and had to do something, lol. He took a gruesome revenge at Worlds. I was beyond thrilled! That said, Yags had one of his best SP ever that year, Nutrocker.

 

[SmallFairy]

Dai also changed his SP, from that Beatles medley to Moonlight sonata. I was totally ok with that Don't remember what year.

M/D reused their Don Q SP for Lillehammer, but they had been pros since they used it last time, so I guess that wasn't such a big deal. More like keeping a SP for two seasons.

I feel this season the "going back to old programs" and "changing programs mid-season", both because "it's not working" is crazier than ever before.

 

[TAHbKA]

Judges didn't like Broken Arrow and told him to come up with something else, wasn't it? I thought BA was a cool program, Tosca was kind of meh, though it had lots of the choreo from Broken Arrow in it
Yags lost Euros to Plush and had to do something, lol. He took a gruesome revenge at Worlds. I was beyond thrilled! That said, Yags had one of his best SP ever that year, Nutrocker.

Am not sure about the judges, but TAT said in one of the TVshows that she was away and let Yagudin and erm.. someone else, I can't rememebr who it was ? Morozov? toy around and choreograph a programme. They ended up with a `Broken Arrow'. TAT let Yagudin skate it in Euros and after that asked him to cut the crap and created a Tosca, which was dead boring, but won the competitions

 

[misskarne]

Max Aaron had the Virgen de la Macarena SP made between Cup of China last year and US Nationals after skating to Nessun Dorma for the first part of the season. That disastrous outing was the only time we saw it.

Jason Brown also had a new SP between the GP and TCC in 2015-2016. I don't remember what it was called but he only skated it at TCC and maybe one or two summer events; then he changed to Writing on the Wall.

EDIT: Jason's was Apassionata. In a real Rohene special "wtf this is so kid-like" costume.

 

[paskatefan]

Todd Eldredge had skated to "Chess" @ 1995 Skate America (and won the comp.), but changed to "First Knight" a little later in the 1995-1996 season, and the rest is history (1996 World Champion)!

 

[Vash01]

This thread belongs in the Trash can, I think. There is no news, article or interview here. Just speculation. At least Sylvia provided a recent link of an announcement.

 

[Allisanna]

US dance champions Elizabeth Punsalan and Jerod Swallow debuted a brand new tango free dance at the 1998 Olympics. They finished 7th, but many felt they were underscored.

 

[skategal]

Weaver & Poje ditched Spartacus and went back to Je Suis Malade this season.

They switched after the Senior B comps...