Figure Skating Championships th LIVE in London, Ontario, CANADA
See The 2013 WORLD
TOUR PACKAGES INCLUDE
* 7 nights deluxe hotel accommodations * Admission to our opening reception * Breakfast served daily at your hotel * Transportation to and from the arena *
Reserved All-Event LOWER DECK TICKETS
* Practice session passes * Admission to our closing brunch and * Tickets to the Gala Exhibition of Champions
For complete details and reservations go on line to.... www.dashtours.com or call
1-800-265-0000 ONE CALL and YOU’RE THERE
An AUTHORIZED TOUR OPERATOR for the 2013 ISU World Figure Skating Championships
Known for their daring lifts and throws, Castelli and Shnapir believe 2013 will be their year.
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at Skate America, won the bronze medal at NHK Trophy and won the title at the Ice Challenge in Graz, Austria. Tey said they were excited to win their first Grand Prix medal, as well as a little bit disappointed. “We wanted to do better,” Castelli said. “Te long program was a little disappointing for us. We got great scores but we knew if we did what we could do every day in practice we would have been up there. Overall, we’re happy how our hard work has paid off for us, even when we don’t skate our best.” “One thing we’re both thrilled about is not only are our scores climbing a bit, but our components have really gone up, way more than our technical,” Shnapir said. To get their programs this season, Castelli and Shnapir headed to
Montreal to work with Julie and Bruno Marcotte and Richard Gauth- ier. Tey have made half a dozen trips so far for choreography and what they call “touch-ups.” Julie Marcotte choreographed their short program to “Stray Cat Strut” and “Te Pink Panther” and their free skate to “Payadora.”
Te team has benefitted greatly, they said, with the occasional change in their training routine. “Everyone needs a change of scenery,” Shnapir said. “Getting out for a couple of days really can be inspiring.” Te team has been working on a throw triple Axel for more than
two years, and they have attempted it in competition several times. As of December, they were planning a throw double Axel and throw triple Salchow in Omaha, with the possibility of upgrading if selected to com- pete at the World Championships or Four Continents Championships. “If we make it to Worlds, we’re definitely going to try it [throw
triple Axel or throw quad Salchow],” Castelli said. “We’re really work- ing on the whole program, not just one individual element. We’re working on the flow in and out of each element and making it a seam- less program.” “Tey have a lot of mileage on those bigger throws,” Martin said.
“Our main objective has been to improve every aspect of their skating, improve their consistency, their relationship to each other, so they don’t necessarily need the big elements. We still have this extra trick up our sleeve that we’ve yet to pull out. It takes something to win U.S. nationals, but it takes something else still to compete against the best in the world.”