SENIOR ICE DANCING
DAVIS AND WHITE WIN FIFTH U.S. TITLE F
ONE MORE AND THEY WOULD HAVE THE RECORD TO THEMSELVES by LYNN RUTHERFORD
or Meryl Davis and Charlie White, being great isn’t good enough. Te skaters arrived at the 2013 U.S.
Championships fresh off a convincing win at the Grand Prix Final in Sochi, Russia, where they defeated longtime training partners and ri- vals, Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, the reigning World and Olympic champions from Canada. In the lead-up to Omaha, they set about
improving their programs, adding a dash of new choreography here, a new position or two there and, to bring it all together, even greater speed and flow. Well-matched perfectionists they are, they
even had fun doing it. “Marina [Zoueva] has a lot of exercises, a lot
ICE DANCING GOLD
Meryl Davis/ Charlie White 197.44
SILVER
Madison Chock/ Evan Bates 175.91
BRONZE
Maia Shibutani/ Alex Shibutani 174.21
PEWTER
of techniques, which we have used for years to build speed and power,” Davis, 26, said. “We re- ally focused on those after the Grand Prix Final and through- out the holiday season, which was actually a lot of fun for us. Charlie and I really enjoy pushing ourselves physically and athletically.” It showed in their performances. In their playful yet
sophisticated short dance to music from the classic ballet Giselle, they flew around the ice with refinement and uni- son, gaining Level 4s for all of their elements, including the two sections of the challenging Yankee Polka. Te program earned 79.02 points, the highest U.S. short dance score ever. “We worked with our ballet teacher to make sure we hit
all of the details of the program,” Davis said. “Tis routine in particular is about the details, and it’s been really educational. Researching, working the details — that’s how we’re going to approach our skating from here on out.” Te 2011 World champions selected their free dance
music to Notre Dame de Paris, the 1998 musical based on Victor Hugo’s novel “Te Hunchback of Notre-Dame,” to
Madison Hubbell/ Zachary Donohue 167.86
show their increased on-ice chemistry, and their performance in Omaha was their best yet, with new choreographic highlights to emphasize the love story.
Tey did not put a foot wrong, producing perfect twizzles, an
elegant spin and lifts, and swift steps, all of which gained Level 4s from the technical panel.
“Tere is a part that I
think really brings the program togeth- er, a long extended edge at the begin- ning of the last section of the music,”
White, 25, said. “It’s a really special moment in the program that helps bring it all together and also creates excitement going into the end.” Davis and White shattered their own records and
earned 118.42 points for their free dance and 197.44 points overall, finishing more than 21 points ahead of silver medal- ists Madison Chock and Evan Bates. “Te flow, into and out of the lifts and other elements,
has improved so much, it’s amazing,” Zoueva, who coach- es her teams in Canton, Mich., said. “At the same time, they are showing the man-woman relationship on the ice more than ever before.” With their fifth U.S. title, Davis and White have
joined elite company. Five other U.S. ice dance teams – Judy Schwomeyer and James Sladky, Judy Blumberg and Michael Seibert, Elizabeth Pun- salan and Jerod Swallow, Naomi Lang and Peter Tchnernyshev, and Tanith Belbin and Ben
(l-r) Madison Chock/Evan Bates, Meryl Davis/Charlie White, Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani, Madison Hubbell/Zachary Donohue
24 MARCH 2013
PHOTO BY JAY ADEFF
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