World championships brings plenty of contenders
Monday, March 17, 2008 | 03:06 PM ET
The excitement of world figure skating championships will begins Tuesday in Gothenburg, Sweden. There are 203 skaters and teams entered in the event from 48 nations, which makes for the largest field ever.
This is the eighth time that Sweden has hosted the worlds since 1897 and the first since 1976. Regardless of the disciplines here, there are many different ways to look at the fields.
For instance, defending men’s champion Brian Joubert of France looked very strong early on in the season but was felled by a virus that has taken quite a toll on him. As recently as the European championships, Joubert was quoted at being only 70 per cent healthy, which could easily hamper his ability to claim his title for the second consecutive year.
Joubert's faces plenty of challengers to his crown as Japan’s Daisuke Takahashi has been beyond solid this season, except of course for the time he was defeated at the Grand Prix final by former two-time world champion from Switzerland, Stephane Lambiel. He'll also get stiff competition from newly crowned European champion Tomas Verner of the Czech Republic, Canadians Jeffrey Buttle and Patrick Chan and Johnny Weir from the United States.
The women’s field is just as interesting. Defending world champion Miki Ando of Japan has not won an event this season and is facing a serious threat from teammate and 2007 silver medallist Mao Asada, as well as last year’s bronze medallist from Korea, Yu-Na Kim.
She will also be looking to hold off 2008 European champion Carolina Kostner from Italy and the 2006 world champion Kimmie Meissner of the U.S. As if this weren't enough competition, Finland's Laura Lepisto has settled in very well to the senior international competition and recently skated to a bronze medal at the European championships while fellow worlds competitor, Sarah Meier from Switzerland, took the silver.
Look for experience to play a huge role in determining the outcome of the ice dance event. Russian Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin, who won the Grand Prix final, withdrew from worlds last week due to injury. As a result, the American team of Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto, who won silver at the same event, may finally reach the top. They will be strongly challenged by the veteran French team of Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder. This event also will be exciting to watch because of the next generation of skaters who will undoubtedly become 2010 Olympic contenders.
Look for names like Canada’s Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, Russia’s Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitsky, Italy’s Federica Faiella and Massimo Scali and Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White to make their presence felt.
The pairs event doesn’t have a current defending champion but it does boast the 2006 world champions from China, Qing Pang and Jian Tong.
However, the Chinese pair is considered 'beatable' and will feel the heat from teammates and silver 2006 Olympic medallists Dan Zhang and Hao Zhang, Canadians Jessica Dube and Bryce Davison. The real will come from two-time European and Grand Prix final champions Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy, of Germany, who have been virtually unstoppable all season.
Pj picks:
Men: Daisuke Takahashi (JPN)
Ladies:Yu-Na Kim (KOR)
Pairs: Aliona Savckenko and Robin Szolkowy (GER)
Dance:Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto (U.S.)
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About the Author
Pj Kwong is CBC Country Canada's figure skating expert. A television commentator since 2001, the veteran figure skating coach has covered five of the last seven ISU World Figure Skating Championships, two ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships, several Four Continents and Grand Prix Finals for CBC, CTV, TSN and TBS, to name a few.
Fluent in English, French, German and Spanish, Pj has travelled the world as public address announcer, working at three Olympic Games, two world figure skating championsips and several Skate Canada and Canadian national championships.
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- Saturday, March 22, 2008
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- Highs (Asada) and lows (Ando) colour compelling women's final
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- Women's free skate final should be a dandy
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Comments
Kari Fleming
i think the mens competition will be takahashi,lambiel, and weir(in no particular order). But we cant count out Joubert.The women will be Asada, Kim, and maybe kostner, but im gunning for Meissner.Pairs Savchenko and szolkowy, but my personal favs are the zhangs. in ice Dance It will be Belbin and Agosto and Delobel and schoenfelder
Posted March 20, 2008 03:23 PM
David
Pickering
PJ,
Once again, very astute predictions and commentary. On a slightly homerish front, and I do apologize if I repeat some of Bridget's earlier sentiments, but I really do hope that this championship is the "corner" Canada's skating team turns this year, as they rise form several sub-par efforts these past few years.
As someone that grew up idolizing the likes of Brian Orser, Kurt Browning, and Wilson & McCall, I was most impressed with their desire, showmanship, and most importantly, their ability to perform under pressure and deliver the big performance when it counted most, the World Championships. These consistent masterpieces helped weave a web of Canadian Ice Magic, which will be talked about for years. Don't get me wrong, the current crop of bladed battlers are impressive as well, and every much as talented, however, what they have they been unable to show to date are consistent performances (with the exception of Tessa and Scott, who for all intents and purposes are still rookies on the senior international scene).
This week I look forward to seeing the likes of our Ladies, Mens, Pairs and Dance teams make a indelible mark in skating history and take the Scandanavian country of Sweden by storm.
...and, in closing, to quote Kurt Browning, "You can never count out the Canadian."
Posted March 18, 2008 01:41 AM
Brigitte Laskowski
If you look at the numbers in the singles disciplines, you'll notice that this year the ladies and men who competed at the 2008 Four Continents Championships had higher mark totals than any body who competed at the 2008 European Championship. This bodes well for my extended Skate Canada team mates. Here's hoping that they remember to "Just Have Fun!" and not start thinking to much about placement, their competition or being judged. I'd love to see our Canadian team just skate with their hearts playing with their music having fun! Go Canada!!!
singerskates out.
Posted March 17, 2008 07:15 PM
skating mom
Calgary
What is it about Tanith and Ben that makes you think they will win...is it just because it's their turn because the higher ranked teams have left? I think technically and artistically the newer teams are actually stronger and it will be a shame if Tanith and Ben win just because they have been there the longest. It's still too easy for the judges to place the dance teams based on their unofficial rankings by proping up the program component marks.
Posted March 17, 2008 05:43 PM