U.S. Men 2018-19 season (cont.) - news & updates

[Vagabond]

How tall is Farris? 5’9” or 5’10”?

7 cm. taller than Dolensky. Which is what the height difference appears to be in that photo.

http://www.isuresults.com/bios/isufs00012066.htm

 

[Sylvia]

I think it would be almost impossible for Tim to find a partner small enough for pairs.

I think Brooklee Han is (would have been) small/short enough for Dolensky - clip of them doing forward outside edge spirals together in May 2018: https://twitter.com/brookleeh95/status/973392241736626176 (music is "Evermore" which was Tim's artistic program for the inaugural Peggy Fleming Trophy last June)

Her ISU bio says she's 149 cm = under 5 feet tall.

 

[el henry]

l love Tim and his spins. I will miss them. It is truly the off season if we are discussing Tim Dolensky's height.

I have stood right next to him at summer comp. No skates. Tim is just about my height, maybe a skoosh taller. Therefore Tim is 5'7" (I don't know from meters and am not about to learn).

The scientific method.

 

[misskarne]

How tall is Farris? 5’9” or 5’10”? Dolensky posted a picture of them hanging out last summer and there looks like at least a two inch difference. Maybe more if Tim’s hair is a tad poofy.

I'm 172/5'8" and roughly the same height as Josh.

My favourite laugh was a 4CC bio a few years ago that listed Max at 5'8". He was barely higher than my shoulder. But Max - like Timothy - had the ice presence to make himself look much bigger than he was in reality.

I think Brooklee Han is (would have been) small/short enough for Dolensky : https://twitter.com/brookleeh95/status/973392241736626176

Her ISU bio says she's 149 cm = under 5 feet tall.

Brooklee (and Kailani) are both legitimately tiny in person. I feel like I loom over them.

 

[Sylvia]

USFS' Athlete Acceleration Summit (used to be called Program Components Camp) is taking place this weekend in Irvine, CA - Team USA skaters are helping out and so far I've spotted (via IG stories) Andrew Torgashev, Camden Pulkinen, Jimmy Ma. Instructors include Jonathan Cassar and Sean Rabbitt (both coach at Great Park Ice).

If I see anything interesting on social media, I'll post here or in the U.S. Ladies' thread.

 

[Theoreticalgirl]

The rink shut down about 2 weeks ago for a huge rehab. The only thing they are keeping is the ice foundation - the boards and seating are being redone. It is scheduled to reopen after Labor Day and is to look great. Keeping my fingers crossed!

But I believe only ~2 freestyle sessions are offered a day. That really is not enough ice time for a world class skater.

It always shuts down at this time of the year. The Ed Snider Hockey Foundation donated a large amount of cash this year to help convert it to being open year-round for hockey programs. I'm sure there will be freestyle options but mostly low-priority in the same way it is now. But I digress!

 

[Sylvia]

Alex Johnson has choreographed Alex Krasnozhon's programs for 2019-20 season: https://www.instagram.com/p/BwxykWLnh64/
(added to spreadsheet)

 

[el henry]

Alex Johnson has choreographed Alex Krasnozhon's programs for 2019-20 season: https://www.instagram.com/p/BwxykWLnh64/
(added to spreadsheet)

I was wondering if this IG meant that Alex J. had done the choreo for Alex K.; I’m glad to see it confirmed.

I am so here for this collaboration

 

[Theatregirl1122]

I believe this is the first time Vincent has shared anything publicly about potential college plans? I assume he applied to Brown, was accepted, and is getting a feel for the campus and university before making any decisions.

That seems unlikely? The deadline for decisions is in 3 days. Very few people are still deciding.

@Lacey, this is not a switch for Vincent. Vincent is a senior in high school. I assume you are confusing him for Nathan Chen who attends Yale.

 

[Sylvia]

Vincent graduated early at 16 from high school (Connections Academy online school) in the summer of 2017. I recall articles in which he mentioned he was deferring attending university and planned to take college classes online in the meantime. I don't know for a fact that he applied to colleges this past year but assume he did and that's why he was visiting the campuses of Brown and Columbia in the past several days.

ETA:

Or he could be just visiting college campuses while he has some free time. I just came across an IFS article published last fall that included this sentence: "His plan is to defer attending college for a couple of years, but wants to broaden his horizons."

 

[Theatregirl1122]

Gotcha. I assumed his grade based on age. Either way, if he’d applied and been accepted, he probably would have decided. And he’s not switching colleges because he’s not in one.

 

[rinettoii]

That seems unlikely? The deadline for decisions is in 3 days. Very few people are still deciding.

@Lacey, this is not a switch for Vincent. Vincent is a senior in high school. I assume you are confusing him for Nathan Chen who attends Yale.

I’m still deciding where to go and I have 4 days to do so. Lol someone save me!

 

[Lacey]

That seems unlikely? The deadline for decisions is in 3 days. Very few people are still deciding.

@Lacey, this is not a switch for Vincent. Vincent is a senior in high school. I assume you are confusing him for Nathan Chen who attends Yale.

You are 100% right, and I obviously do know that Nathan attends Yale, but I assumed they meant he was switching for some bizarre reason. Thought it was weird and am publicly shamed for my stupidity. Guess I am not going to Yale, Brown or Columbia, or even Penn. These are smart kids and I clearly am not. OTOH I did, however, believe I had heard or read that the rink at Penn was being renovated, as much has been on Penn's glorious campus, including Franklin Field and its training internals and the squash courts, to say nothing of the many glorious newly built academic buildings.

Interesting about Vincent's educational path that Sylvia told us about.

 

[Marco]

Tim is also a talented musician and composer. He composed many of the pieces that he skated to.

Skaters are always in need of original music. I see a career for him in music composition.

Or at least music editing. Team Eteri would love him.

 

[Sylvia]

USFS' Athlete Acceleration Summit (used to be called Program Components Camp) is taking place this weekend in Irvine, CA - Team USA skaters are helping out and so far I've spotted (via IG stories) Andrew Torgashev, Camden Pulkinen, Jimmy Ma. Instructors include Jonathan Cassar and Sean Rabbitt (both coach at Great Park Ice).

If I see anything interesting on social media, I'll post here

Sean Rabbitt posted 4 group photos from AAS (1st one is the impressively large group of "Ice Men" with almost all of the aforementioned Team USA guys, plus John Kerr, Robin Szolkowy & Doug Razzano): https://www.instagram.com/p/Bw0X9m4FuWv/

Athlete Acceleration Summit is in the books! What an amazing experience and such an honor, having my own class and getting to share my information with this ginormous group of skaters! Amazing to see the amount of male athletes taking place!

Andrew Torgashev ("Loved skating and teaching at Athlete Acceleration Summit this weekend") - clip of him skating and a group photo (he also demonstrated for his coach/mom): https://www.instagram.com/p/Bw0wqiBlGLF/

Jimmy Ma shared this group photo with the Team USA skaters ("Always down for improvement"): https://www.instagram.com/p/Bw0kX3ZFBlM/

 

[Vagabond]

Guess I am not going to Yale, Brown or Columbia, or even Penn

Tread lightly.

 

[nathanfan]

Vincent said he had applied to colleges on this year’s pre-Nationals media call. Phil Hersh tried to get more information from him, but all he said was that he did apply to some schools early action.

It looks like he got accepted to Brown and Columbia, and I would guess other schools as well, that he hasn’t shared.

 

[Sylvia]

Re-posting the link to Nathan's interview before the Providence SOI show here: https://olympics.nbcsports.com/2019...-balancing-yale-university-and-elite-skating/
Excerpt:

Where will you spend your summer?
I will be mostly in California; however, I am gonna spend some time traveling into Japan, into some other places for shows, for choreography, for other things.

Who are you going to for your choreography?
I think the same as this year. I already talked to them. So, I’m most likely working with them again as long as they’re OK scheduling-wise. But I think Shae [Lynn Bourne] and Marie [-France Dubreuil] have definitely helped my skating develop a lot. I really enjoy working with them so I’m definitely going to try to do that.
...
Is it your plan to compete on the Grand Prix series again in the fall?
Absolutely. Yeah. As of right now, I’m still trying to figure out schooling. But I am planning on continuing school and skating, basically the same as this year.

ETA another article from the Providence show:
Jeff Jacobs: World champion Yalie Nathan Chen electric on and off the ice: https://www.nhregister.com/sports/j...World-champion-Yalie-Nathan-Chen-13802347.php
Excerpts:

“It has been great,” Chen said. “It definitely was a little bit of a learning curve at first. I figured out how to manage the two. It has been an experience I did not want to miss out on, especially being accepted to Yale. I’ve really enjoyed my time there. I’ve met a lot of great people. It’s reassuring that there are so many students out there that are so busy with their own academic lives and extracurriculars and doing amazing things with their time.

“It’s also awesome to see how normal they are. You can have normal conversations, relax and be a college student.”

“At the end of the day, what we’ve done outside of school doesn’t really indicate what’s going to happen within your academic life,” Chen said on Saturday. “You’re trying to establish your place in the academic community and what we do becomes a sort of side job. Knowing what these people can do at Yale in and out of the classroom at the same time has been inspiring to some to some extent and definitely reassuring to know I am capable of doing the same.”

 

[Sylvia]

New article on Vincent (he "says the left knee injury isn’t severe and won’t impact his preparation for the 2019-20 season"): https://www.teamusa.org/News/2019/A...ebrates-Banner-Skating-Season-And-Looks-Ahead
Excerpt:

At just 18, so much is still undecided for Zhou. There’s the question of where he’ll attend college (he’s had a few offers of admission, while declining to name his shortlist), and whether or not he’ll go the Chen route of balancing his studies and elite level training (he’s undecided, though looking into the possibility taking leaves of absence to prepare for major competitions). Long term, he’s pondering a courseload that tilts toward pre-med with an eye toward going into sports psychology or business and economics. Philosophy also remains a huge interest.
What he is sure of is that he’ll continue pushing to become a more complete skater.
“I’m not against trying new ideas,” he said. “I still have lots of room to grow and lots of areas I can expand to. I have no clue what my programs are going to be yet. I will say that my show programs are very, very contemporary and different and I’m having a blast performing them. I’m very open to trying new things.”

 

[Sylvia]

Updates so far in May:

Jason announced today that Schindler's List will be his 2019-20 free skate, choreographed by David Wilson - brief clips: https://www.instagram.com/p/BxVg44fnZUn/

Andrew Torgashev shared an IG story clip recently of him skating to Debussy's "Clair de Lune" (re-posted by a fan): https://www.instagram.com/p/BxSMcQdncZ7/
(I'm putting it here instead of in the Programs/Choreographers thread until more is known.)
Andrew helped out at USFS' Jump camp (May 10-11 in CO Springs), along with Alex K., Camden and Tomoki.

I heard Vincent is not skating in the SOI shows in Anaheim or San Jose this weekend. He did speak eloquently (a snippet: "In sports in general, and especially skating, the learning curve never ends - once you get to a certain point you can always get better... I think improving in this sport is more about about your own desire than anything else.") to USFS' Jump camp attendees with Mirai on Thursday night - FB video link is posted in this thread: https://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/th...f-keynote-speakers-wagner-nagasu-zhou.105610/

Nathan's freshman year at Yale is finished; he went back to California and bowled last night with Michal Brezina and his wife Danielle, Mariah Bell ("please please please get a gutter ball!"; her IG story clip caption read: "Love you and all Nathan but can't you be bad at something "), Marin & Taichi Honda - IG stories re-posted by a fan: https://www.instagram.com/p/BxVXMSqA7p0/

Alex Johnson posted a IG story on May 7 from a hospital bed with the caption: "After 5 years with a torn Labrum and hip impingement - I'm finally on the road the recovery! "

Sean Rabbitt is still landing triple-triples in practice (3S+3T): https://www.instagram.com/p/BxTK5RdHesW/

Jordan Moeller raised over $5000 at his 8th Annual "One Skate at a Time" show last Saturday in Crestwood, IL - here's a group photo and message shared by him: https://www.instagram.com/p/BxK1j2Blbh-/

I have a vague memory that Emmanuel Savary posted an IG story quite a while ago that he worked with Evgeni Platov on his programs again.

Retired skaters:

Tim Dolensky (masked on the left) is playing a thief in the 1977 show on the Symphony of the Seas cruise ship: https://www.instagram.com/p/BwxSTTwlz9c/

Grant Hochstein has started running 5k races:
Before his first race last weekend: https://twitter.com/Grant_Hochstein/status/1125020778615820288

Guys, I’m running my first ever 5k this morning. I haven’t been this nervous since my last skating competition. #running #beginner #anxiety

After: https://twitter.com/Grant_Hochstein/status/1125122464898437121

Hey! I did it, my first race! I won my age group and got 6th out of 520! Universal Studios Hollywood 5k next weekend! #running #CincoDeMayo

Max Aaron enjoyed visiting Polina Edmunds and Elliana Pogrebinsky in San Francisco last weekend: https://www.instagram.com/p/BxOd40CFSPT/

Joshua Farris was sighted coaching at U.S. Regionals/Sectionals in October/November 2018 (in the final screencap he is with junior Alex Wellman who may have started skating pairs recently) - screen caps made by a fan: https://www.instagram.com/p/BrfXtaJBrvr/

Adam Rippon is attending SOI in Anaheim as a spectator tonight. For those who miss Adam's skating like I do, On Ice Perspectives' Jordan Cowan uploaded his "Shallow" outdoor exhibition from last December in its entirety - link is posted in his Good News thread here: https://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/threads/the-adam-rippon-good-news-thread.90289/page-32#post-5580308 (Adam recently launched his new YouTube channel and links to recent videos also are posted there.)

 

[Sylvia]

Camden Pulkinen's first interview after his coaching change: http://figureskatersonline.com/news...kinen-wants-to-show-improvement-in-all-areas/

 

[aftershocks]

Camden Pulkinen's first interview after his coaching change: http://figureskatersonline.com/news...kinen-wants-to-show-improvement-in-all-areas/

Camden reveals exactly what I suspected and previously mentioned in an earlier post re the issues Camden had with his fp, throughout last season:

"I didn’t connect to the [free skate] music as much as I really would have like to. Yet, at the end of the day, ... I put the learning experience on myself. The free [skate] never really worked out for me. I don’t blame the music [West Side Story] or anything else other than myself. It really never connected enough with me, and I never really loved it as much as my short ..."

 

[clairecloutier]

Cross-posting a link here to an interview I did with Alex Johnson: https://adivinesport.com/2019/05/14/interview-with-alexander-johnson-2019/

Alex talks about his new job, his side career in choreography and coaching, and his show appearances this spring.

 

[Sylvia]

Tomoki Hiwatashi article by Paula Slater: https://www.goldenskate.com/2019/05/tomoki-hiwatashi/

For the upcoming season, Hiwatashi is working with Tom Dickson on his new free skate to Igor Stravinsky’s Petrushka in which he will portray a puppet. The short program music is still to be determined, but the skater will have opportunities to go to Canada to spend time with Mark Pillay again.
...
For next season, one of his goals are to show the world his versatility as a skater, especially with his new free skate.
“I want to show people that I have a lot of variety and that I can do more than what I did last year and the year before,” said Hiwatashi.

ETA:

Andrew Torgashev shared an IG story clip recently of him skating to Debussy's "Clair de Lune" (re-posted by a fan): https://www.instagram.com/p/BxSMcQdncZ7/
(I'm putting it here instead of in the Programs/Choreographers thread until more is known.)

Andrew revealed his program music on his website earlier today and that he choreographed his own programs: http://figureskatersonline.com/andrewtorgashev/my-2019-2020-season-programs-are/
SP: "Bloodstream" by Tokio Myers (includes "Clair de Lune")
FS: Giacomo Puccini's Tosca performed by Luciano Pavarotti

 

[miffy]

Awww I love Tomoki!

“I feel like I have more ideas that I can possibly use in the future,” Hiwatashi said, while recalling that at event at banquets, he was the one who always sits and eats. “I’m not really the guy who goes out and starts dancing.”

 

[rosewood]

“I got better at that,” he said. “I tried to get better at landing my jumps, getting the correct levels, and I feel like my skating skills in general have improved over the past few years. I also think I’ve gotten better with expression and performance.”

“I want to show people that I have a lot of variety and that I can do more than what I did last year and the year before,” said Hiwatashi.

The fact that he has proven his consistency time after time this past season is a big part of how the skater grew in confidence. He grew in the belief that his training and consistency has really helped him know that he has the capability of being in the top echelon in the world of figure skating.

Hard work paid off, Tomoki! Looking forward to seeing what he'll show us next season.

 

[Sylvia]

Camden Pulkinen has been in Telfs, Austria (photos): https://www.facebook.com/Eislaufschule/posts/2189851344464249
I assume he may be getting choreography with Lambiel like he did for his SP last year in Latvia?

"Stéphane LAMBIEL and his team of Skating School of Switzerland offer an interesting spring camp from 16th of May 2019 until 26th of May 2019 in ICEART in IceSportArena Telfs."

 

[Sylvia]

Alex Krasnozhon's complete music selections are posted on his website now (both programs choreographed by Alex Johnson): http://figureskatersonline.com/alexkrasnozhon/skating/

SP:
“Runaway” from Westworld: Season 2 (HBO series) by Ramin Djawadi
“Freedom” by Pharrell Williams (clip posted by him last month: https://www.instagram.com/p/BxqJFulFXTU/ )

FS:
Prelude from Fahrenheit 451 by Bernard Herrmann
“Louis’ Revenge” & “Santiago’s Waltz” from Interview with the Vampire by Elliot Goldenthal
“The Hunters Prelude” from Bram Stoker’s Dracula by Wojciech Kilar
“Archangel” by Two Steps from Hell (clip: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bxmz3VknsDW/ )

 

[aftershocks]

Tomoki Hiwatashi working with Tom Dickson to portray a puppet in Petrushka! I missed that news (post #534 above). I can't wait to see the final product, or the early version of it at the beginning of the season. Tomoki is a wonderful skater with his own unique style. It will be fun seeing how he continues to grow and develop his prodigious talents.

Having seen your above post about Krasnozohn's new programs awhile ago in Programs/Choreo thread @Sylvia, I had just come here to talk about it even before you cross-posted.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bxmz3VknsDW/?igshid=1qryici09pwhk
This looks like a great vehicle for Alexei (even tho' this is just a clip of the ending footwork sequence). I think Alexei still needs to work on finishing out his movements though and polishing his delivery. I like his raw, earthy style, but I really think he could benefit by taking some ballet classes focusing on stretch, position, and becoming more aware of line. It's not about becoming balletic. I think it's more about understanding movement techniques and body awareness.

Just think of how Nathan Chen took ballet lessons as a youngster (and he could have become a ballet dancer). But, he was more interested in the athleticism and artistry of figure skating. Nathan has a raw, unique quality about his movement aesthetic, which is bringing such a different, edgy vibe to men's figure skating. And that's a good thing. But more importantly, Nathan has at least a knowledge of ballet technique to balance who he is as a skater. Even Nathan could pay a bit more attention to line and position, and utilizing what he learned about posture. However, at least Nathan does have a sense of grace, an understanding of music, and his early ballet training backing him up.

I believe Alexei's current vehicles would definitely benefit by his paying a bit more attention to finishing off his moves, really hearing the musical nuances in how he's moving, and just stretching more. Again, that doesn't mean neutralizing his raw, earthy personality. It's more about furthering and enhancing who he is via perfecting more body awareness and understanding of technique. In that way, Alexei will begin to be taken more seriously re PCS scores. But I think the fp music is looking excellent for Alexei to push himself to grow. Also the sp music and choreo are interesting for Alexei, but he will still need to pay more attention to polishing his movement skills.

 

[Sylvia]

These 12 men (first 11 competed at 2019 Nationals) were tweeted as have entered the Aerial Challenge jump competition to be held at the Broadmoor World Arena in Colorado Springs on June 29, 2019:

Tomoki Hiwatashi
Camden Pulkinen
Andrew Torgashev
Jimmy Ma
Emmanuel Savary
Ben Jalovick
Lucas Altieri
William Annis
Matthew Nielsen
Joseph Klein
Eric Prober
Maxim Zharkov

Nathan is in Korea right now for Yuna Kim's "All That Skate" show (GSD thread: https://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/th...at-skate-2019-in-seoul-korea-june-6-8.105673/ ) and is scheduled to perform in a benefit for the Michael Weiss Foundation (glad to hear it's still going!) in Leesburg, Virginia on Saturday, June 15 - event & ticket info: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ion-it...-michael-weiss-foundation-tickets-62341877233