U.S. Men in 2017 - articles & latest news

[chachacha]

Updated compilation of the top 5 contenders' detailed scores, from most recent competition this season going back to all the "body of work" (Tier 1-3) competitions from last season:

2017-18 ISU Season Best scores are bolded below; * = current ISU personal best score

Nathan Chen (ISU WS #5 [3720 pts] at end of 2017)
GP Final 286.51 Total, 1st (Tier 1)
103.32 58.14 45.18 9.00 8.79 9.11 9.07 9.21 0.00 #6 (SP 1st)
183.19 95.75 88.44 8.96 8.61 8.86 8.93 8.86 1.00 #4 (FS 2nd)

GP America 275.88 Total, 1st (Tier 2)
104.12* 59.56 44.56 8.89 8.64 9.07 9.00 8.96 0.00 #11 (SP 1st)
171.76 86.68 87.08 8.82 8.50 8.57 8.86 8.79 2.00 #12 (FS 2nd)

GP Russia 293.79 Total, 1st (Tier 2)
100.54 57.57 42.97 8.61 8.39 8.61 8.57 8.79 0.00 #10 (SP 1st)
193.25 104.85 88.40 8.96 8.57 8.89 8.89 8.89 0.00 #12 (FS 2nd)
275.88 Total, 1st

CS Salt Lake 275.04 Total, 1st (Tier 3)
91.80 47.40 44.40 8.85 8.80 8.85 8.95 8.95 0.00 #7 (SP 1st)
183.24 95.24 88.00 8.75 8.45 8.80 9.05 8.95 0.00 #13 (FS 1st)

2016-17 season:
World Championships 290.72 Total, 6th (Tier 1)
97.33 55.22 43.11 8.64 8.43 8.61 8.68 8.75 1.00 #28 (SP 6th)
193.39 110.61 84.78 8.54 8.39 8.32 8.64 8.50 2.00 #20 (FS 4th)

4CC 307.46* Total, 1st (Tier 2)
103.12 59.58 43.54 8.68 8.50 8.93 8.75 8.68 0.00 #19 (SP 1st)
204.34* 115.48 88.86 9.00 8.75 8.89 8.93 8.86 0.00 #24 (FS 2nd)

Nationals 318.47 Total, 1st (Tier 3)
106.39 62.07 44.32 8.93 8.57 9.00 8.86 8.96 0.00 #18 (SP 1st)
212.08 121.08 91.00 9.21 8.79 9.43 9.07 9.00 0.00 #20 (FS 1st)

Chen's ISU Personal Best Scores:
307.46 19.02.2017 ISU Four Continents Championships 2017
104.12 (SP) 24.11.2017 ISU GP Skate America 2017
204.34 (FS) 19.02.2017 ISU Four Continents Championships 2017

---

Adam Rippon (ISU WS #10 [3041 pts] at end of 2017)

GP Final 254.33 Total, 5th (Tier 1)
86.19 42.59 43.60 8.68 8.46 8.82 8.75 8.89 0.00 #2 (SP 6th)
168.14 81.78 87.36 8.71 8.43 8.79 8.86 8.89 1.00 #1 (FS 5th)

GP America 266.45 Total, 2nd (Tier 2)
89.04* 45.04 44.00 8.64 8.50 9.00 8.82 9.04 0.00 #10 (SP 2nd)
177.41 88.91 88.50 8.82 8.50 8.89 8.93 9.11 0.00 #11 (FS 1st)

GP Japan 261.99 Total, 2nd (Tier 2)
84.95 43.16 41.79 8.32 8.11 8.43 8.36 8.57 0.00 #9 (SP 4th)
177.04 91.46 85.58 8.54 8.29 8.75 8.46 8.75 0.00 #6 (FS 2nd)

CS Finland 249.88 Total, 3rd (Tier 3)
83.69 41.94 41.75 8.29 8.04 8.54 8.42 8.46 0.00 #6 (SP 3rd)
166.19 81.85 85.34 8.50 8.21 8.63 8.58 8.75 1.00 #16 (FS 2nd)

[Orange County Open 256.21 [89.33 SP, 166.88 FS] 1st in August]

2016-17 season:
[Qualified for Dec. 2016 GP Final but missed 2017 Nationals due to injury]

Rippon's ISU Personal Best Scores:
267.53 (Total) 12.11.2016 ISU GP Trophee de France 2016 (3rd)
89.04 (SP) 24.11.2017 ISU GP Skate America 2017
182.28 (FS) 12.11.2016 ISU GP Trophee de France 2016

---


Jason Brown (ISU WS #9 [3107 pts] at end of 2017)

GP Final 253.81 Total, 6th (Tier 1) - qualified as 1st alternate when Jin WD
89.02 44.30 44.72 8.93 8.82 8.93 8.93 9.11 0.00 #1 (SP 4th)
164.79 75.71 90.08 9.00 8.93 8.89 9.11 9.11 1.00 #3 (FS 6th)

GP Japan 245.95 Total, 4th (Tier 2)
85.36 40.58 44.78 8.82 8.82 8.93 9.07 9.14 0.00 #11 (SP 3rd)
160.59 72.73 89.86 8.89 8.93 8.79 9.11 9.21 2.00 #11 (FS 4th)

GP Canada 261.14 Total, 2nd (Tier 2)
90.71 45.64 45.07 8.79 8.96 9.11 9.00 9.21 0.00 #10 (SP 3rd)
170.43 80.77 90.66 8.86 9.04 9.04 9.07 9.32 1.00 #12 (FS 2nd)

CS Italy 259.88 Total, 2nd (Tier 3)
83.01 39.26 44.75 8.80 8.80 8.90 9.10 9.15 1.00 #18 (SP 2nd)
176.87 85.07 91.80 9.10 8.90 9.20 9.25 9.45 0.00 #21 (FS 2nd)

[Skate Milwaukee 210.00 in July / Glacier Falls 234.01 [86.39 SP, 147.62 FS] 2nd in late July]

2016-17 season:
World Championships 269.57 Total, 7th (Tier 1)
93.10 48.00 45.10 8.96 8.96 9.07 9.00 9.11 0.00 #36 (SP 8th)
176.47 88.27 89.20 8.89 8.71 9.07 8.86 9.07 1.00 #17 (FS 7th)

4CC 245.85 Total, 6th (Tier 2)
80.77 38.77 43.00 8.50 8.50 8.57 8.64 8.79 1.00 #21 (SP 9th)
165.08 79.36 85.72 8.43 8.43 8.64 8.61 8.75 0.00 #16 (FS 6th)

Nationals 254.23 Total, 3rd (Tier 3)
79.23 35.80 44.43 8.82 8.79 8.86 8.96 9.00 1.00 #21 (SP 4th)
175.00 82.52 92.48 9.07 9.00 9.39 9.32 9.46 0.00 #17 (FS 3rd)

Brown's ISU Personal Best Scores:
273.67 (Total) 20.04.2017 ISU World Team Trophy 2017
94.32 (SP) 20.04.2017 ISU World Team Trophy 2017 (SP 5th)
182.63 (FS) 23.10.2016 ISU Skate America 2016 (2nd overall)

---

Max Aaron (ISU WS #14 [2526 pts] at end of 2017)

GP France 237.20 Total, 7th (Tier 2)
78.64 41.54 38.10 7.93 7.32 7.50 7.71 7.64 1.00 #7 (SP 8th)
158.56 82.70 75.86 7.86 7.32 7.54 7.64 7.57 0.00 #4 (FS 6th)

GP China 259.69 Total, 3rd (Tier 2)
83.11 44.50 38.61 7.89 7.50 7.79 7.75 7.68 0.00 #9 (SP 5th)
176.58* 96.60 79.98 8.21 7.71 8.18 8.00 7.89 0.00 #8 (FS 1st)

CS Salt Lake 261.56* Total, 2nd (Tier 3)
86.06 48.41 37.65 7.75 7.00 7.55 7.75 7.60 0.00 #2 (SP 2nd)
175.50 94.90 80.60 8.20 7.60 8.15 8.15 8.20 0.00 #12 (FS 2nd)

[Philadelphia Summer International 209.37 3rd in early August]

2016-17 season:
Nationals 227.80 Total, 9th (Tier 3)
72.54 36.62 37.92 7.96 7.36 7.46 7.68 7.46 2.00 #11 (SP 12th)
155.26 79.88 76.38 8.11 7.32 7.54 7.68 1.00 7.54 1.00 #6 (FS 6th)

Aaron's ISU Personal Best Scores:
261.56 (Total) 15.09.2017 ISU CS US Internat. FS Classic 2017
87.03 (SP) 18.11.2015 ISU CS Tallinn Trophy 2015 (1st overall)
176.58 (FS) 03.11.2017 ISU Cup of China 2017

---

Vincent Zhou (ISU WS #22 [2148 pts] at end of 2017)

GP France 222.21 Total, 9th (Tier 2)
66.12 32.12 36.00 7.46 7.04 7.00 7.29 7.21 2.00 #5 (SP 10th)
156.09 88.57 69.52 7.18 6.68 6.86 7.11 6.93 2.00 #1 (FS 7th)

GP China 256.66 Total, 4th (Tier 2)
80.23 45.66 36.57 7.43 7.21 7.04 7.57 7.32 2.00 #6 (SP 8th)
176.43 102.35 75.08 7.64 7.29 7.50 7.61 7.50 1.00 #5 (FS 2nd)

CS Finland 250.01 Total, 2nd (Tier 3)
76.10 40.64 35.46 7.21 7.04 6.79 7.25 7.17 0.00 #2 (SP 6th)
173.91 97.97 75.94 7.71 7.25 7.71 7.63 7.67 0.00 #13 (FS 1st)

[Skate Detroit 275.33 Total, 1st [97.68 SP & 177.65 FS] in July]

2016-17 season:
World Junior Championships 258.11* Total, 1st (Tier 3)
78.87 42.97 35.90 7.21 7.04 7.29 7.18 7.18 0.00 #35 (SP 5th)
179.24* 104.66 74.58 7.43 7.04 7.71 7.50 7.61 0.00 #19 (FS 1st)

Nationals 263.03 Total, 2nd (Tier 3)
87.85 48.53 39.32 7.82 7.64 8.11 7.89 7.86 0.00 #15 (SP 3rd)
175.18 93.24 81.94 8.36 7.96 8.29 8.25 8.11 0.00 #21 (FS 2nd)

Zhou's ISU Personal Best Scores:
258.11 (Total) 16.03.2017 ISU World Junior Championships 2017
80.53 (SP) 09.09.2016 ISU JGP Yokohama 2016 (2nd overall)
179.24 (FS) 16.03.2017 ISU World Junior Championships 2017

Nathan Chen is of course going! Adam Rippon, I'm sure is also going, but it's the 3rd spot that most likely will go to Jason Brown or Max Aaron. I really hope Max has the skates he is capable of having and gets the third spot. Jason is a very artistic skater but just does not have the technical scores outside of the overall Judges and USFSA political pull that has kept him up and high on the scoring in PC marks to offset his lack of quad ability. Max has improved so much in his artistry and should be the third spot if indeed he skates well and the judges give him the scores he deserves. I love watching figure skating, but it's such a political sport that unlike Football and other sports, athletes are not always judged on what they do on the ice, but on where they are in the political pecking order of the sport. I'm rooting for Max to get the third spot

 

[maureenfarone]

Yeah because preening and posing are world class!

Honestly if his short was half as good as his long I would agree. But that short should be scored in such a way to put him pretty far down going into the free.... It won't because USFSA has decided that it's "his turn" so preening and posing will get rewarded. And the sad part is he can do so much more as is shown in his long.

IMHO that short has been so overmarked it's sad!

I don't care for Adam's SP either, but he has scored well with it at his international competitions this season.

 

[Sylvia]

Because more than 5 senior men are competing in San Jose...

Alex Johnson is "Feeling great heading into San Jose next week!" (jump clips with a spin at the end): https://www.instagram.com/p/BdOWTGvg5M2/?taken-by=alexmartinj

Local Dallas area article on/video of Tim Dolensky: Really, figure skaters in Euless? Olympic hopefuls are making themselves at home there

Ashley Cain's 2 photos on her Instagram confirm that Jimmy Ma has moved to Texas from NY/NJ to train with their group (incl. Dolensky & Alex Krasnozhon): https://www.instagram.com/p/BdLyEsJDf13/?hl=en&taken-by=icegirlash

 

[Vagabond]

more than 5 senior men are competing in San Jose...

 

[Jayar]

I think that there are some people who are not fans of figure skating, but instead fans of certain skaters. There is a big difference. At the end of the day, the team will be who it is. Some people will be disappointed. Some people will be elated. Bottom line-- three men in the US can go to the Olympics. There are currently about 30 senior men in the US. That is a 10% chance of making the team. 27 men will watch the Olympics from their home. Ubering a particular skater or tearing down another will not help increase or decrease the odds.

 

[eurodance2001]

Yeah because preening and posing are world class!

Honestly if his short was half as good as his long I would agree. But that short should be scored in such a way to put him pretty far down going into the free.... It won't because USFSA has decided that it's "his turn" so preening and posing will get rewarded. And the sad part is he can do so much more as is shown in his long.

IMHO that short has been so overmarked it's sad!

Preening and posing won Witt an Olympic Gold medal so why not? LOL.. He's been scoring well with this SP all year from different international panels so it is what it is.. If USFSA feels otherwise, then we'll soon find out.. I'm glad it's almost time for Nationals..

 

[Dobre]

Adam Rippon, I'm sure is also going

Well, he's as sure a bet as Voronov was at Russian Nationals, I suppose.

Ubering a particular skater or tearing down another will not help increase or decrease the odds.

Well said. It does increase the odds of getting one's heart broken and "outrage" when the results don't fall in line with one's assumptions. Neither is a particularly pleasant experience. Might as well go into the competition with an open mind. Cheer for the athletes we love and acknowledge the real challenge they are up against. The accomplishment is a huge one, both for those who make the team and for those who compete without making it.

 

[BittyBug]

There are currently about 30 senior men in the US. That is a 10% chance of making the team.

I'm pretty sure that Nathan Chen has more than a 10% chance of making the team.

 

[vesperholly]

Judging by his Instagram, Alexander Johnson has gone back to last year's Peter Gabriel FS to "In Your Eyes"

 

[DimaToe]

Nathan Chen has been the most successful singles skater for the U.S. the last two seasons, so as has been stated before, one of the Olympic spots is already his. Should Rippon and Brown skate cleanly they would take the other 2, that being said, Jason Brown seems to have a pattern of injuries around this time of the season, and Adam has also seemed to be injury prone as of late, so were they not to be that great at Nationals and Zhou pulls a Karen Chen in San Jose, I could easily see either of them off of the team. Max Aaron is more of a longshot IMO, yes I know he beat Zhou on the GP but on the day if both skate well, Zhou would have a TES advantage over him, and Rippon/Brown would have the PCS advantage.

Were it other other seasons when the U.S. didn’t have a world contender, I would say that both Rippon and Brown are locks, but like with Russia and Voronov, having a top contender gives the federation the freedom to not name their #2 man and instead give the younger skaters the chance for more championship experience.

 

[SmallFairy]

Nationals really needs to start soon! I mean, really!

 

[insideedgeua]

There’s often a big difference between who I’d like to be on the team, and who I think really will be on the team.

I’d like it to be Nathan, Adam and Max ( and I have a soft spot for Grant).

But I think it will be Nathan, Adam and Vincent.

 

[misskarne]

Once again, it will come down to the tech panel and how many of Zhou's obvious URs, and how many of Rippon's and yes, even Jason's get called or let go.

 

[Alilou]

Don't know if this has been posted or not. Article by Beverley Smith about Vincent Zhou

https://bevsmithwrites.wordpress.com/2017/12/28/vincent-zhou-and-his-steep-learning-curve/

 

[pinky166]

Jason can score higher than any US man not named Nathan Chen if he skates clean. That’s true internationally and nationally, even without a quad, the key is his being healthy and capable of skating clean. So far this season that’s been a struggle, but the reality is that Jason has the highest score ceiling and lowest score floor of the non Nathan contenders for the team. A severely flawed FS from Jason Brown has scored in the 160s several times, the same can’t be said for Adam, Max, or Vincent. I think Jason’s fate is in his own hands, the international judges like him so all he needs to do is skate well and the spot should be his. I’m not even a huge fan of his, but the quality of his skating is obvious and the judges do respond to it.

 

[VGThuy]

I think Jason definitely has the highest floor in terms of the U.S. Men, but I don't believe he has the highest ceiling if we see men with multiple clean fully-rotated quads. I think his PCS and GOE is definitely higher than most of the other men (for good reason, though Adam is closer than I initially thought according to the judges) and that provides him with a cushion, but if Max and Vincent do like 3-6 more quads than him throughout the course of the SP and LP, that TES BV is hard to overcome even with that drastic PCS and GOE advantage. The likelihood of Max and Vincent doing multiple clean, fully-rotated quads might not be as high as initially thought, but now we're seeing Jason not skating up to his capabilities either so both scenarios require a bit of hope.

I prefer Jason to both Max and Vincent, and I was seriously hoping for Vincent but it seems his skating needs more time to grow with him getting taller and it becoming more apparent he seriously needs to work on his knees in SS and skate with more power and ease, but I do think if he can get his jumps together, he'd be very hard to beat. Max has improved a lot in the past few seasons and if he skates with real confidence and hits those jumps, I do think he should be scored higher than he has been in the past.

 

[skateboy]

Nathan has a new haircut:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BdRLLVVhfU8/

 

[VGThuy]

Nathan has a new haircut:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BdRLLVVhfU8/

Hey, he used the Shibs' hair stylist.

 

[Spun Silver]

Oh no. I loved the curly locks.

 

[maureenfarone]

I have the totally ridiculous wish that all skaters could go to the Olympics once in their career They all work hard and I enjoy them all!

 

[Alilou]

A great re-write of Leonard Cohen's First we take Manhattan by Beverley Smith about Adam Rippon. It's definitely worth a read. And of course listening to the great Leonard Cohen is always worthwhile.

https://bevsmithwrites.wordpress.com/2017/12/28/adam-rippon-making-music/

(Will cross post in Adam's thread)

 

[el henry]

Oh no. I loved the curly locks.

Me too. I may not be Nathan's biggest fan, but I did like the curls. I liked Adam better with curls too. At least Charlie White kept his while skating competitively....

 

[Spun Silver]

A great re-write of Leonard Cohen's First we take Manhattan by Beverley Smith about Adam Rippon. It's definitely worth a read. And of course listening to the great Leonard Cohen is always worthwhile.

https://bevsmithwrites.wordpress.com/2017/12/28/adam-rippon-making-music/

(Will cross post in Adam's thread)

That tells us at least as much about Mr. Smith as about Adam. Wot larx!

 

[shine]

Oh no. I loved the curly locks.

Good thing is they grow back. I prefer Mom the hair stylist to this

 

[Alilou]

That tells us at least as much about Mr. Smith as about Adam. Wot larx!

Yes, she's a great writer.

 

[olympic]

I think Nathan's hairdo is great. It gives him a more streamlined look which helps since he is 5-6.

In response to posts upthread, I don't recall Team Jason alluding to any injuries and I think his less-than performance at the GPF was due to the near-last minute notification of his inclusion in the final being held all the way over in JPN. He had tweeted he received word of his qualification on the Friday before, and had to fly that Sunday through a 17 hour time change. It could have screwed up his training plan for December. But, I'm not worried about him.

I'd really like to see Adam get the Rippon Lutz. It might allow him to get over 90 in the SP internationally, but I think the shoulder issue might keep that from happening. Jason's best in the SP is 93 at last year's Worlds in Helsinki. It would be nice to see Adam know he can go head-to-head if Jason is at his best. It would also be very interesting to see what a clean Zhou is capable of in the SP. At CoC, he had 2 falls and a UR but was still scored 80. I think clean would be in the 90s, too. Max has his work cut out for him. He needs to nail the 4-3 and get FW for the 4S. He has a shot but it's a narrow one. Nationals next week (NEXT WEEK ... someone pinch me!) will be very interesting.

 

[Firedancer]

Don’t think this was posted: An article based on Adam’s teleconference: https://www.mercurynews.com/2017/12/27/skater-adam-rippon-no-reason-i-shouldnt-be-on-olympic-team/

I wish Icenetwork (or someone else) would post the actual audio recordings of these teleconferences like they used to.

Of the skaters not named Nathan, I still think Adam had the best fall and goes into Nationals in the best position. I would still like to see the third spot go to Jason. But he will need to skate better than he did on both his trips to Japan this fall, as I do think Vincent will show improvement over what he showed on the Grand Prix.

 

[Doggygirl]

A great re-write of Leonard Cohen's First we take Manhattan by Beverley Smith about Adam Rippon. It's definitely worth a read. And of course listening to the great Leonard Cohen is always worthwhile.

https://bevsmithwrites.wordpress.com/2017/12/28/adam-rippon-making-music/

 

[Firedancer]

Teleconference comments from Nathan and Jason:
Nathan:
From Michelle Kennedy:

Nathan Chen is still planning 2 quads in the short and 5 in the free skate for the #USChamps18.
Nathan Chen: "Every competition has been a test for me to play around with different layouts..." He will use all that information about what worked best to prepare himself for the Olympics. #USChamps18
Nathan Chen will be performing the quad lutz, quad flip, quad toe, quad salchow and will repeat one of those jumps in the free skate, but would not disclose which one. He did confirm that it won't be the quad loop. #USChamps18

From Lynn Rutherford:

On his #USChamps18 call, @nathanwchen confirmed he is sticking with his plan of 5 quads in his free skate in San Jose. Quad loop is "off the table" for now.
More @nathanwchen: He was thrilled to work with @VeraWangGang and on new costumes for #USChamps18 & #PyeongChang2018: "Costumes were the missing link all season .... I'm so grateful for the opportunity to work with her." @EvanLysacek was involved as well.

Jason:
From Lynn Rutherford:

On #USChamps18 call, @jasonbskates says, "Run-throughs are going great. I'm itching to get on the plane and get (to San Jose) already." He added he had not missed a beat training since Grand Prix Final & feels he is in great shape.
More @jasonbskates: He has a new free skate costume for #USChamps18 and has changed the order of some elements in the free, to improve the flow of the program: "It works with the story and the flow .... I'm really excited."

 

[misskarne]

New costume for Jason

Hurry up, I want to see the comments from Max's teleconference