SENIOR MEN “He’s committed to being in the ballet stu- some crafty foot-
work, Aaron found himself in fourth place with 79.13 points. Abbott grabbed the short
program lead with his enter- taining “Spy” program, scoring 84.10 points, with Miner second at 80.99 and Aaron’s rinkmate, Josh-
ua Farris, third with 79.78 points. In the free skate, performed to West
Side Story, Aaron electrified the crowd with an explosive program that was launched with a quad Salchow-double toe loop combination and a quad Salchow that generated 26.87 points. Tere was no doubt about each of those jumps as Aaron landed them with conviction. Level 3 and Level 4 spins and footwork car-
ried Aaron into the middle of his program, where he turned it on again with his jumping prowess. Seven triple jumps, including two triple Axels, lifted the audience to its feet as the program drew to a dramatic close. “I’ve always wanted a standing ovation and that just kind of happened,” said Aaron, who skated first in the final warm-up group. “Tat was the best part. People just stood up because they were excited and that’s all I want is the ex- citement. I want to create that new atmosphere and bring it to more people.” Aaron has taken a page from two-time
reigning World champion Patrick Chan, who trains with Aaron in Colorado Springs. Chan, who represents Canada, is arguably the sport’s best jumper and has Aaron’s full attention when it comes to any advice he shares. “I know how Patrick trains every day and
how he jumps and I compare myself a lot to him,” Aaron said. “I see how he goes about his days and he makes sure he gets his programs done. He’s told me what it’s like to be at an event with great men, putting out quads and clean pro- grams. He’s taught me how to compete, how to be on the World stage.” While Aaron admits he doesn’t have the ar- tistic talents of some of the other top skaters in the U.S. and world, he is excited about bringing his athleticism to current skating fans and, hope- fully, a new fan base. “It might take time for people to get used
to my style,” Aaron said. “I know I’ll take a lot of criticism for it, but that’s what it takes when you’re at the top and I’m ready for it. I read the article on icenetwork and all the comments that were under it, and there were a lot of negative comments. But I talked to Sandra Bezic and many top people and they said don’t read that stuff, let people get used to you. Don’t change for them. You are who you are.” Zakrajsek, however, said Aaron spends sig- nificant time improving his artistic side.
SKATING 17
dio and the dance studio and working on his components and posture, and learning about the artistic part of our sport, and I really feel all the criticism he’s getting is totally unjustified. “He’s 20 years old. It’s not like he’s ignoring
that part of the sport. He doesn’t want to just be a jumper, but he’s awesome at jumping. I think Max has a great balance going on right now.” Miner, the U.S. bronze medalist in 2011
and 2012, moved a step closer to the title with a pair of sensational programs that also includ- ed the quad as the opening element. Te athlete from Te Skating Club of Boston finished sec- ond in the short program and second with his Captain Blood free skate. While his quad in the short program was de-
clared under-rotated, it was clean as a whistle in the free skate. He did pop his triple Axel, though, which likely cost him the title.
Max Aaron delivers one of his explosive jumps in his short program. Max Aaron waves to the crowd after learning his free skate scores.
PHOTO BY JAY ADEFF
PHOTO BY JONATHAN DANIEL/GETTY IMAGES
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