U.S. Ice Dance 2018-19 season news & updates

[VGThuy]

To be fair, Chock/Bates have always been able to get level 4s on steps and patterns (hello 2015 Worlds) but that hasn't stopped people from saying her edges aren't on par with some of her peers and with Evan. Maybe they're talking about overall edge quality. Maybe this is one of those things people talk about regarding how ice dance judging and level calling doesn't appropriately judge ice dance anyway when we had the discussion about how the new -5/+5 GOE range took power away from the callers and some people argued it was a good thing as some see it as sort of a ridiculous way to judge ice dance anyway. However, maybe the fact Chock is able to get level 4 also shows FSU narratives or "established facts" like "Chock/Gilles has bad edges" or "they're weaker than their partners" are hard to kill once they've been spread long enough even when some facts indicate those narratives may not be entirely true like if say Gilles/Chock manage to hit higher levels on their partners in the elements where each partner are individually called now.

 

[platniumangel]

Oh dear. There are like a crazy number of talented young U.S. guys without a partner and/or maybe without a partner right now: Jeffrey Chen, Logan Bye (maybe), Benjamin Starr, Howard Zhao, Kenan Slevira (maybe), Caleb Wein (maybe). All medalists at some level at U.S. nationals.

Wow, several junior teams either aged out or broke up. Any one know if the novice medalists plan to move up to Jr?

 

[Dobre]

Wow, several junior teams either aged out or broke up. Any one know if the novice medalists plan to move up to Jr?

No, I don't know. But my guess would be that both Tkachenko & Kiliakov and Lin & Sletten will move up. Both have done novices three seasons. I believe T&K are just now age-eligible for juniors. L&S didn't get to go to Nationals their first season and really only just sprinted to the top of novices this past season. But now that they are there & have already done three seasons, I would guess they will move up. Both teams won events in the North American Challenge Series this season (above Canada's top two novice teams) and both medaled (1st & 3rd) at their post-Nationals international event in Italy. Karnes & Aksenov will probably move up too. Per Sylvia, he will be 17 in April.

 

[RoyThree]

Oh dear. There are like a crazy number of talented young U.S. guys without a partner and/or maybe without a partner right now: Jeffrey Chen, Logan Bye (maybe), Benjamin Starr, Howard Zhao, Kenan Slevira (maybe), Caleb Wein (maybe). All medalists at some level at U.S. nationals.

Also wondering what happened to Cameron Colucci. He looked quite promising with Katherine Grosul a few years back (not so much with Daria Popova). I think I saw his younger brother competing in one of the lower levels this year.

 

[Dobre]

I think I saw his younger brother competing in one of the lower levels this year.

Alexander Colucci is on ice partner search--yet another Nationals medalist right now without a partner. Gissibi & Colucci won Pacific Coast Sectionals this year in intermediates after splitting results with Sensenbrenner & Sperry. But then G&C didn't compete at Nationals, and now he is on IPS.

The last I heard about Cameron was clear back in June. He attended the Chesapeake Open Dance Camp and appeared to be trying out with Gianna Buckley but they apparently didn't team up.

 

[Dobre]

And James Koszuta is on IPS now too. It's a shame. I felt like Haines & Koszuta still had room to grow as a team, and there was plenty of space for them to compete at Senior Nationals. I know it's asking a lot to move up into that senior field with at least 6 top 24 teams in it, but I always hope.

 

[insideedgeua]

I heard that Logan Bye is Skating with Holly Harris ( Australia ). But that was second hand and I haven’t seen them myself.

I don’t know, but I’m assuming he may be planning to represent Australia.

 

[Yazmeen]

This may sound harsh, but we may have to consider one big thing with all these splits, namely the time and money drain that comes with being half of an elite pairing. We have the proverbial embarrassment of riches in ice dance right now. There's a very good chance that at least 2 of the 3 ice dance teams that went to the Olympics last year will be going in 2022. And that at least a few of the best teams below them could be headed to either 2022 or 2026. How many years (and how much money) do teams with a lesser chance of making the National senior podium or even coming close in the future want to spend before they say, "enough?"

 

[Dobre]

Oh, of course. But I do like to see teams reach their potential within the sport.

Many of the athletes listed above are young athletes that have not even begun to reach their potential on the JGP yet. I was just pointing out that we have quite an unusual number of young guys who have medaled at Nationals at some level or another and are on the list, really looking for partners and to continue competing. (And a few others who have lost partners but left the door open to continue skating themselves). Usually, one expects to see more top girls; but it seems like there are an unusual number of young U.S. guys with Nationals medals looking for partners right now. (Among the girls, there are Pogrebinsky & Jenna Hauer).

 

[Debbie S]

I heard that Logan Bye is Skating with Holly Harris ( Australia ). But that was second hand and I haven’t seen them myself.

I don’t know, but I’m assuming he may be planning to represent Australia.

Are they with Marina? I don't know anything about the partner, but if they could make it to Worlds or even the GP ( I think Logan has aged out of JGP?) that would be great. I believe it's hard to get AUS citizenship if you don't live there, so they probably wouldn't make it to the Olys.

 

[Donut Knoll]

And James Koszuta is on IPS now too. It's a shame. I felt like Haines & Koszuta still had room to grow as a team, and there was plenty of space for them to compete at Senior Nationals. I know it's asking a lot to move up into that senior field with at least 6 top 24 teams in it, but I always hope.

He was with Jocelyn Haines who is 16 yo and does not have to move up ...

 

[Dobre]

I don't know anything about the partner

Holly's SP from the 2016 Dresden JGP:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luxA2YIVItk

Her ISU bio:
http://www.isuresults.com/bios/isufs00101088.htm

Holly is a nice, expressive skater. She was Australia's 2017 junior singles ladies champion. (The one who was injured prior to last year and lost her season, right? If I remember correctly?)

 

[chinamom]

Alexander Petrov is also on ice partner search

 

[rinkside]

Are they with Marina? I don't know anything about the partner, but if they could make it to Worlds or even the GP ( I think Logan has aged out of JGP?) that would be great. I believe it's hard to get AUS citizenship if you don't live there, so they probably wouldn't make it to the Olys.

Logan is at University of Michigan and Marina is in Fla.

 

[wickedwitch]

He was with Jocelyn Haines who is 16 yo and does not have to move up ...

Having a partner who she's extremely well matched with like Koszuta should be a priority over an extra year or two at juniors. I'm going to really miss H/K's skating.

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

They captured all my attention on the Junior Circuit this season!!!!

https://www.ifsmagazine.com/nguyen-kolesnik/

NGUYEN-KOLESNIK: GOLDEN AMBITIONS

Avonley Nguyen and Vadym Kolesnik are causing quite a stir in the U.S. junior ice dance ranks.

In just their second season as a team, Nguyen, 16, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, and Kolesnik, a 17-year-old from Ukraine, already have a solid résumé and hardware to back it up.

Nguyen and Kolesnik will make their World Junior Championships debut in Zagreb, Croatia, next week and have their sights set on a golden finish. “We would like to be in first place. There is no point in going if you are not expecting to win. If you go, your goal has to be to win,” Kolesnik said.

 

[aftershocks]

... if say Gilles/Chock manage to hit higher levels on their partners in the elements where each partner are individually called now.

Well, both Gilles and Chock have obviously gotten better over time, with their blade skills.

In just their second season as a team, Nguyen, 16, a native of Cleveland, Ohio

Aha, so I was right. Avonley Nguyen is from Cleveland, Ohio.

 

[VGThuy]

Well, both Gilles and Chock have obviously gotten better over time, with their blade skills.

That doesn't stop people from saying they still aren't on par with some of their female peers or partners as people are still saying it now, which was obviously my point.

 

[aftershocks]

^^ Mmmm, ah well. When you get a reputation I suppose, fairly or unfairly, it sometimes sticks. So much in figure skating is not always fair. And in any case, having a good eye for figure skating blade skills is not really something everyone truly has, so maybe sometimes it's about going on what you've heard rather than really understanding what to look for, or realizing what you are looking at.

 

[insideedgeua]

Are they with Marina? I don't know anything about the partner, but if they could make it to Worlds or even the GP ( I think Logan has aged out of JGP?) that would be great. I believe it's hard to get AUS citizenship if you don't live there, so they probably wouldn't make it to the Olys.

I’m sorry, I don’t know who they are with.

 

[her grace]

Taking the above reports of splits, here's the state of U.S. junior dance. Splits are in red, number of JGP events this season in parenthesis, years remaining of junior eligibility as a team in brackets.

1) Green/Green (0 w/d inj) [4]
2) Nguyen/Kolesnik (2 events) [3]
3) Gropman/Somerville (2 events) [2]
4) Brown/Brown (2 events) [5]
5) Cesenek/Yehorov (0 events) [1]
6) Haines/Kozuta (1 event) [N/E, he ages out]
7) Ales/Tsarik (0 events) [2]
8) Elder/Elder (2 events) [3]
9) Wolfkostin/Zhao (1 event) [5]
10) DelCamp/Gart (1 event) [4]
11) Efimova/Petrov (1 event) [N/E, he ages out]
12) Purnell/Purnell (0 events) [1]
13) Udell/Udell (0 events) [N/E]

These splits along with Gunter/Wein's (2 events) earlier split is making space on the JGP for some new teams. I suspect all three of the top novice teams will move up to jr. They are

1) Thachenko/Kiliakov [6, she's aging in]
2) Lin/Sletten [4]
3) Karnes/Aksensov [4, she's aging in]

There could be other enterprising novices that make the move, too, who aren't on the radar yet, much like the Browns this season.

 

[happycamper2554]

Claire Purnell posted on Instagram that nationals was her and her brothers last event. It seems from her post that it means retirement, but not 100% clear.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtbUfS_hIo4/

 

[azcalder]

Anna Nicklas & Max Ryan, who train in Ann Arbor, are moving up to juniors.

 

[Dobre]

Claire Purnell posted on Instagram that nationals was her and her brothers last event.

I am glad they had such a good set of performances, then, at Nationals for their final competition together. This is a team for whom making it to Junior Nationals was probably a very big goal and it was nice that they continued to work together to achieve it.

 

[blue_idealist]

Efimova/Petrov split: https://www.instagram.com/p/BuhqhPeFHdh/

 

[Debbie S]

Jocelyn Haines's message: https://www.instagram.com/p/BuW0_LMngPV/

 

[Dobre]

Alexander Petrov is also on ice partner search

For what it's worth . . .

Per his profile, he is 6'2." He also trains at least part-time in Novi. He has a long way to go; but if Pogrebinsky is interested in skating for the U.S., he is the tallest guy I can recollect that is coming through the pipeline.

 

[Debbie S]

For what it's worth . . .

Per his profile, he is 6'2." He also trains at least part-time in Novi. He has a long way to go; but if Pogrebinsky is interested in skating for the U.S., he is the tallest guy I can recollect that is coming through the pipeline.

Per her IG, Pogrebinsky has moved back to CA and is attending school full-time. Sounds like she is majoring in kinesiology/exercise science and she seems very happy.

 

[Spun Silver]

Per her IG, Pogrebinsky has moved back to CA and is attending school full-time. Sounds like she is majoring in kinesiology/exercise science and she seems very happy.

It seemed to me she really, really wanted to continue, but maybe she's moved on now. I still miss her.

 

[platniumangel]

Taking the above reports of splits, here's the state of U.S. junior dance. Splits are in red, number of JGP events this season in parenthesis, years remaining of junior eligibility as a team in brackets.

1) Green/Green (0 w/d inj) [4]
2) Nguyen/Kolesnik (2 events) [3]
3) Gropman/Somerville (2 events) [2]
4) Brown/Brown (2 events) [5]
5) Cesenek/Yehorov (0 events) [1]
6) Haines/Kozuta (1 event) [N/E, he ages out]
7) Ales/Tsarik (0 events) [2]
8) Elder/Elder (2 events) [3]
9) Wolfkostin/Zhao (1 event) [5]
10) DelCamp/Gart (1 event) [4]
11) Efimova/Petrov (1 event) [N/E, he ages out]
12) Purnell/Purnell (0 events) [1]
13) Udell/Udell (0 events) [N/E]

These splits along with Gunter/Wein's (2 events) earlier split is making space on the JGP for some new teams. I suspect all three of the top novice teams will move up to jr. They are

1) Thachenko/Kiliakov [6, she's aging in]
2) Lin/Sletten [4]
3) Karnes/Aksensov [4, she's aging in]

There could be other enterprising novices that make the move, too, who aren't on the radar yet, much like the Browns this season.

I thought I saw somewhere that the Elders are retiring too? Can anyone confirm?