2023-24 US Pairs Discussion - Chan you count Howe many teams we have?

[haribobo]

oops, wrong thread

 

[Trillian]

maybe country change?? idk efimova likely has finnish citizenship and it may be easier than skating for the US

Efimova might have Finnish citizenship, but Mitrofanov almost certainly doesn’t and would have trouble getting it. Like the other Nordic countries, Finland has pretty stringent residency requirements for people who want to become naturalized citizens. Unless they were to train in Finland most of the time, which seems like a more difficult path given the lack of high level pairs coaches, I can’t imagine this option even being on the table.

 

[Sylvia]

I just came across this interview (English version) that was published by SKATE INFO GLACE following Olivia Flores/Luke Wang's first silver medal at their JGP debut in Linz, Austria:

Interview Olivia Flores and Luke Wang

Americans Olivia Flores and Luke Wang won the silver medal at their first Junior Grand Prix in Linz, Austria. They were initially scheduled to return to the United States for a few days before heading to Budapest for their second Grand Prix. However, they learned that they would instead be going...

www.skate-info-glace.com

 

[Karen-W]

Tayside Trophy entries are finally available via their Sportity app and Ouellette/Newby-Estrella have been assigned for the US!

 

[Sylvia]

Naomi Williams wrote an appreciation post for her coaching team yesterday: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cx4XKWardaO/
Key sentence: " I still have big plans and hopes for this season."
Fingers tightly crossed for her!

 

[Sylvia]

Fun facts re. Ouellette/Newby-Estrella (USFS' International Assignments page has added the Tayside Trophy entries):

Nina last competed internationally in singles on the JGP in 2015 and 2016: http://www.isuresults.com/bios/isufs00054594.htm
Rique made his international debut in junior pairs back in 2015: http://www.isuresults.com/bios/isufs00035041.htm

 

[Karen-W]

Boston Open entries are up!

Five SENIOR teams - two are new to us!
Ouellette/Newby-Estrella
Efimova/Mitrofanov
Scott/Siianytsia

Megan Wessenberg (skated with Blake Eisenach last season)/Edoardo Caputo (skated with Laiken Lockley last season)
Mazie McFarland/Jordan Gillette (skated with Lillianna Murphy last season)

Five Junior Pairs teams -
Carpenter/Maravilla
Fletcher/Felberbaum
Cooke/Kennedy
Smith/McPike

new team of - Saige Belle Purther/William Church (last season skated with his sister, Margaret, who retired after Nationals)

Two Novice pairs teams -
VanWagner/Van Wagner
Tanner/Herbert

 

[Karen-W]

Looks like Kam/O'Shea are on their way to Finlandia!

https://instagram.com/stories/dannyoshea213/3205734136160415526?utm_source=ig_story_item_share&igshid=MTc4MmM1YmI2Ng==

 

[AngieNikodinovLove]

Their short program could become a favorite of mine this season. Hope they r able to make it consistent.

Ellie Kam & Danny O'Shea USA - 2023 Challenger Series - Finlandia Trophy Short Program

SP: 1st, LP: 1st, gold medalOct 6th-8th, Espoo, FIN

www.youtube.com

 

[happycamper2554]

Their short program could become a favorite of mine this season. Hope they r able to make it consistent.

Ellie Kam & Danny O'Shea USA - 2023 Challenger Series - Finlandia Trophy Short Program

SP: 1st, LP: 1st, gold medalOct 6th-8th, Espoo, FIN

www.youtube.com

She stayed on her feet for two of three throws. That was a good sign of improvement to me.

 

[moonvine]

She stayed on her feet for two of three throws. That was a good sign of improvement to me.

Yes. And the triple twist there also. Choo Choo, hype train coming through!!!

 

[~tapdancer~]

I didn't appreciate Danny back in the day, but I love this partnership! He is so strong. And she is improving so much.

 

[BrightSkates]

Small clips of Efimova/Mitrafanov from Boston NQS
https://twitter.com/ClaireCloutier/status/1711102997982245229?s=19
https://twitter.com/ClaireCloutier/status/1711179043243012560?s=19

 

[Joubabe]

Small clips of Efimova/Mitrafanov from Boston NQS
https://twitter.com/ClaireCloutier/status/1711102997982245229?s=19
https://twitter.com/ClaireCloutier/status/1711179043243012560?s=19

Did my eyes deceive me? Alisa landing her jumps? Very excited about this team!

 

[Sylvia]

Did my eyes deceive me? Alisa landing her jumps!

It looked like Efimova/Mitrofanov deliberately watered down their sbs jumps in their FS. They landed sbs 3S (with slightly negative GOE) in their SP - I've posted screenshots of their protocols: https://twitter.com/SylviaUnseen/status/1711454847575195806

 

[Sylvia]

Boston Open entries are up!

Five SENIOR teams - two are new to us!
...
Scott/Siianytsia

Megan Wessenberg (skated with Blake Eisenach last season)/Edoardo Caputo (skated with Laiken Lockley last season)
Mazie McFarland/Jordan Gillette (skated with Lillianna Murphy last season)

Haley Scott/Danil Siianytsia withdrew from the Senior Pairs event - that should mean they are not eligible to advance to the U.S. Pairs Final, November 7-12 in Tacoma, WA.

Megan Wessenberg (3rd in the Senior Pairs event with Caputo) shared an Instagram story photo showing them sitting with Stefania Berton Brubaker in the Boston Open kiss & cry so they are training in the Chicago area (where Caputo was based last season).

McFarland/Gillette placed 4th of the 4 Senior pairs at Boston Open.

new [Junior] team of - Saige Belle Purther/William Church (last season skated with his sister, Margaret, who retired after Nationals)

Purther/Church WD from the Junior Pairs event. ETA that he updated his icepartnersearch.com profile on October 6.

 

[ice coverage]

... Megan Wessenberg (3rd in the Senior Pairs event with Caputo) shared an Instagram story photo showing them sitting with Stefania Berton Brubaker in the Boston Open kiss & cry so they are training in the Chicago area (where Caputo was based last season).

McFarland/Gillette placed 4th of the 4 Senior pairs at Boston Open.

Purther/Church WD from the Junior Pairs event.

Gillette apparently has remained with Berton and Brubaker group at Fox Valley as well.
McFarland/Gillette also were with Stefania Berton in Boston Open kiss and cry, per McFarland's Instastory photo.

William Church still is with Berton and Brubaker too, as far as I can tell.

Fun facts re. Ouellette/Newby-Estrella (USFS' International Assignments page has added the Tayside Trophy entries):

Nina last competed internationally in singles on the JGP in 2015 and 2016: http://www.isuresults.com/bios/isufs00054594.htm
Rique made his international debut in junior pairs back in 2015: http://www.isuresults.com/bios/isufs00035041.htm

I enjoyed reading Ouellette/Newby-Estrella's new FanZone bio, such as this part about Nina:

"... First tried skating at a birthday prty but since there's only one rink in Hawaii, her mom promised her she could start group classes if they ever moved to the mainland. When that happened, she fell in love with the sport ..."

Nina Ouellette and Rique Newby-Estrella - Figure Skating - U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone

Nina Ouellette and Rique Newby-Estrella (86) She/Her | He/Him - 2023-24 SEASON NOTES RD Music: Music from The Firebird by Igor Stravinsky FD Music: "Notte

usfigureskatingfanzone.com

 

[Sylvia]

"Learn a little more about pairs skaters Max and Val in this episode of fresh faces for the 2023 season!" (1-minute video featuring Plazas/Fernandez, uploaded today by USFS): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VlBkSzpPNY

 

[Sylvia]

Update with just one NQS event (Boston Open in two weeks) left -

Updating @Karen-W's previous scores list after CS Finlandia Trophy & the final Pairs NQS at Boston Open:

Senior teams (14 of 15 have competed now; 3 received 2 initial GP assigments each)

Emily Chan/Spencer Akira Howe ISP (bye) [CoC and NHK Trophy]
Ellie Kam/Danny O'Shea ISP (bye) 182.07 (CS Finlandia Trophy, 1st place) [GPdF and GP Espoo]
Valentina Plazas/Maximiliano Fernandez ISP (bye) 169.37 (Nebelhorn), 161.51 (John Nicks IPC) [SkAm and GPdF]

*Alisa Efimova/Misha Mitrofanov 185.04 (debut at Boston Open) *should be eligible for the ISP in April 2024
*Katie McBeath/Daniil Parkman 181.39 (Middle Atlantics), 170.46 (Glacier Falls) *should be eligible for the ISP in Dec. 2023
Chelsea Liu/Balazs Nagy ISP 165.20 (Autumn Classic Int'l), 175.91 (Glacier Falls) [Finlandia-WD, SkAm]
Isabelle Martins/Ryan Bedard ISP 152.64 (Autumn Classic Int'l), 135.17 (John Nicks IPC), 157.05 (Glacier Falls)
Ellie Korytek/Timmy Chapman (ISU age-ineligible) 156.18 (Glacier Falls)
Nica Digerness/Mark Sadusky 155.27 (Broadmoor Fall Classic)
Linzy Fitzpatrick/Keyton Bearinger 130.22 (Middle Atlantics), 152.54 (Battle of the Blades)
Maria Mokhova/Ivan Mokhov ISP 127.05 (Nebelhorn), 145.75 (John Nicks IPC) [CoC] CoC conflicts with the US Pairs Final, so they should have a bye to Nationals as a result
Nina Ouellette/Rique Newby-Estrella ISP 142.72 (Boston Open), 131.37 (John Nicks IPC); [Tayside Trophy Senior B later this week]
Evelyn Grace Hanns/Danny Neudecker ISP 121.34 (Broadmoor Fall Classic), 137.53 (John Nicks IPC) [SkAm]
Megan Wessenberg/Edoardo Caputo 132.32 (debut at Boston Open)
Mazie McFarland/Jordan Gillette 106.79 (debut at Boston Open)
Haley Scott/Danil Siianytsia WD from Boston Open

Junior teams (11)
Olivia Flores/Luke Wang ISP 154.52 (2nd place at JGP #3 Istanbul), 147.22 (2nd place at JGP #2 Linz), 123.40 (Glacier Falls) [JGPF - qualifies them for a bye]
Naomi Williams/Lachlan Lewer ISP 138.19 (Glacier Falls) [WD from both JGP #5 Budapest & JGP #6 Gdansk]
Adele Zheng/Andy Deng ISP 106.92 (JGP #3 Istanbul), 126.16 (Battle of the Blades)
Audrey Park/Carter Griffin ISP (though not yet listed on USFS' website) 119.67 (Golden West)
Sydney Cooke/Matthew Kennedy (ISU age-ineligible) 117.44 (Boston Open), 105.85 (Middle Atlantics)
Ashley Fletcher/Aaron Felberbaum ISP 111.47 (Boston Open), 97.76 (John Nicks IPC), 97.83 (Battle of the Blades)
Melania Delis/Jaden Schwab (ISU age-ineligible) 104.31 (Golden West), 88.94 (Glacier Falls)
*Reagan Moss/Jakub Galbavy 103.04 (Middle Atlantics) *eligible for the ISP in 2024-25 per Slovak federation release
Saya Carpenter/Jon Maravilla (ISU age-eligible but not yet listed in ISP) 99.54 (Broadmoor Fall Classic), 102.36 (John Nicks IPC)
Catherine Rivers/Nathan Rensing (ISU age-ineligible) 101.39 (Glacier Falls)
Cayla Smith/Jared McPike (YOG age-eligible) 78.97 (debut at Boston Open)

Novice teams (9)
Milada Kovar/Nickolai Apter 102.22 (Broadmoor Fall Classic), 93.24 (Golden West)
Taisiya Shapovalova/Sebastian Malczyk 88.60 (Boston Open), 98.00 (Golden West), 93.59 (Glacier Falls)
Baylen Taich/Michael Chappa 97.35 (Broadmoor Fall Classic)
Jolena Grohne/Reede Lunt 97.20 (Broadmoor Fall Classic)
Clara Finkelstein/Mark Williams 91.88 (Golden West), 78.43 (Glacier Falls)
Tallulah Tanner/Sam Herbert 88.95 (Battle of the Blades)
Joyce Lu/Wyatt Lu 88.22 (Golden West)
Anna Krasnopeeva/Mitchell Castelletti 67.03 (Broadmoor Fall Classic)
Tyler VanWagner/Patrick VanWagner 38.11 (Boston Open), 37.14 (Middle Atlantics)

ETA - ISU Season Best Total Pairs Scores (Challenger & JGP series) as of Oct, 9, 2023:

11	Ellie KAM / Danny O'SHEA	USA	ISU CS Finlandia Trophy 2023	07/10/2023	182.07	S
13	Valentina PLAZAS / Maximiliano FERNANDEZ	USA	ISU CS Nebelhorn Trophy 2023	22/09/2023	169.37	S
15	Chelsea LIU / Balazs NAGY	USA	ISU CS Autumn Classic 2023	15/09/2023	165.20	S
24	Olivia FLORES / Luke WANG	USA	ISU JGP Istanbul 2023	08/09/2023	154.52	J
26	Isabelle MARTINS / Ryan BEDARD	USA	ISU CS Autumn Classic 2023	15/09/2023	152.64	S
39	Maria MOKHOVA / Ivan MOKHOV	USA	ISU CS Nebelhorn Trophy 2023	22/09/2023	127.05	S
50	Adele ZHENG / Andy DENG	USA	ISU JGP Istanbul 2023	08/09/2023	106.92	J

 

[Sylvia]

Nina Ouellette/Rique Newby-Estrella ISP 142.72 (Boston Open), 131.37 (John Nicks IPC); [Tayside Trophy Senior B later this week]

O/N-E scored 137.30 at Tayside Trophy (5th of 5 teams).

"Learn a little more about pairs skaters Max and Val in this episode of fresh faces for the 2023 season!" (1-minute video featuring Plazas/Fernandez, uploaded today by USFS): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VlBkSzpPNY

2nd video in this series features Chelsea Liu/Balazs Nagy (1:40 mins.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p88TSKIUeBM
It goes with this Fan Zone article by Troy Schwindt (Oct. 13) - quotes are from last month's Autumn Classic International in Pierrefonds:

Liu and Nagy: New Partnership Revamps Passion for Skating - U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone

The brand-new pairs team of Chelsea Liu and Balazs Nagy, who take center ice next week at 2023 Humana Skate America in Allen, Texas, is a partnership that wasn't

usfigureskatingfanzone.com

ETA link to Isabelle Martins/Ryand Bedard's Oct. 6th reel video ("throw triple loop + throw triple sal"): https://www.instagram.com/reel/CyEVL0Bvl1Q/

 

[BrightSkates]

Why was H/N replaced by M/B at Skate America? H/N seems to still be training from Mishkutenok's latest post this week so it doesn't point to injury

 

[Sylvia]

H/N seems to still be training from Mishkutenok's latest post this week

Do you mean her Instagram story clip? (I missed seeing it, if so.) Hanns/Neudecker still have train for the Pairs Final, Nov. 7-12 in Tacoma, WA.

 

[Samurina]

Why was H/N replaced by M/B at Skate America? H/N seems to still be training from Mishkutenok's latest post this week so it doesn't point to injury

Prolly bc Martins/Bedard have had better performances and its up to the feds discretion on replacing athletes. Also H/N fell pretty bad at their last assignment so their may have been a concusion. Also in my opinion M/B are the smarter pick in terms of athlete development as Neudecker has gotten the TBA spot before with previous partner and is latest partnerships have been shortlived and not too successful; however, MB are relatively young and have triple twist, sbs, and throw so there is more opportunity for development

 

[Karen-W]

Prolly bc Martins/Bedard have had better performances and its up to the feds discretion on replacing athletes. Also H/N fell pretty bad at their last assignment so their may have been a concusion. Also in my opinion M/B are the smarter pick in terms of athlete development as Neudecker has gotten the TBA spot before with previous partner and is latest partnerships have been shortlived and not too successful; however, MB are relatively young and have triple twist, sbs, and throw so there is more opportunity for development

Agreed.

Honestly Hanns/Neudecker never made a LOT of sense to me in the first placed based on their scores during the summer comps and even after John Nicks IPC and the Broadmoor Fall Classic. I can understand, to an extent, the rationale of giving them a chance to get on the ISU SB, but nothing I was seeing score/protocol-wise gave me much confidence in that decision.

Martins/Bedard are no great shakes, but they've at least managed 150+ at a Challenger, so they're not going to embarrass themselves out there and probably won't be destined to finish last.

 

[Sylvia]

Today Naomi Williams (right foot in a boot) posted a video of an off ice lift outside with Lachlan Lewer: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CyjYwlrxqAd/

Fall weather in CO>>
+ Getting back at it, 5 weeks after surgery 🩵

 

[Sylvia]

2nd video in this series features Chelsea Liu/Balazs Nagy (1:40 mins.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p88TSKIUeBM
It goes with this Fan Zone article by Troy Schwindt (Oct. 13) - quotes are from last month's Autumn Classic International in Pierrefonds:
https://usfigureskatingfanzone.com/...-partnership-revamps-passion-for-skating.aspx

Claire's Liu/Nagy article is longer and has more quotes (eta) & background info on both of them - thank you! :

“We’re Back”: The Surprising Return of Chelsea Liu & Balazs Nagy

Chelsea Liu and Balazs Nagy will make their Grand Prix debut as a team this weekend at Skate America in Texas. Earlier this fall, they finished just off the podium at Autumn Classic International i…

adivinesport.com

 

[Karen-W]

Seems like Kam/O'Shea returned to Canada post-Finlandia for training and are now heading back to the US.

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[Wyliefan]

Chan/Howe are out of Cup of China.

https://twitter.com/AnythingGOE/status/1714945636313772320?t=NVcOcv8pGFH7E4dYjkr9LA&s=19

 

[AngieNikodinovLove]

I’m telling you if Chelsea lands her jumps, this is a world quality team already. I think they are my favorite US Paris team right now. I’m glad her stylist committed to the blonde color and not the yellowish it was over the summer.

I wish they were not marking the jumps, I think the only thing that they should be practicing are the jumps

well, I guess I should break out the ole wallet and join kiss and cry and see what’s going on over there.

 

[skatfan]

Seems like Kam/O'Shea returned to Canada post-Finlandia for training and are now heading back to the US.

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It’s interesting that they are spending this time in Canada when Danny was so clear about wanting to be based in CO Springs.