JUVENILE
JUVENILE GIRLS As the second event of the day
on Saturday morning, Jan. 26, the juvenile girls enjoyed performing in front of a large crowd at the Con- vention Center, located inside the CenturyLink Arena.
Among others sitting in the bleachers and taking in the action were Richard Dwyer (“Mr. Debo- nair”), 1985 U.S. champion Tiffany Chin, pairs coach Jim Peterson and U.S. Figure Skating President Patri- cia St. Peter. Along the fringe of the rink were many of the top seniors, who took a break to peek in at the future of the sport. Tose included U.S. silver medalist Gracie Gold, who was on hand to support rink- mate Maxine Marie Bautista. Up sixth in the field of a dozen
skaters, Karolina Calhoun posted the best score of the event — 49.25 points — with her program to “Ave Maria.” Bautista secured the silver with 46.76 points, while Akari Na-
kahara carted home the bronze with 46.66 points.
Calhoun, who trains under
coach Anna Baram in California, landed a pair of double-double combinations in the second half of her program. She also earned a Lev- el 3 on one spin and a Level 4 for her program-ending layback spin. “At first I was a little nervous
because these are the top 12 in the country,” Calhoun, a seventh-grad- er, said. “My biggest problem, though, is just competing against myself and I don’t try and think about the other skaters.” Baram called Calhoun, 13, the
hardest worker at the rink. “She’s a role model for the
skaters around her, the way that she works, the way that she trains, the way she thinks about skating,” Baram said. Bautista displayed her spirited personality with her program to the theme from Beware of the Automo- bile.
Te 11-year-old from River
Grove, Ill., delivered a well-round- ed routine that ended with a Level 4 spin.
“Te nicest thing about her is that she is what a real juvenile girl is,” said Scott Brown, who helped choreograph her program. “She loves to skate and you can see that by the smile on her face. I think her whole package was very youth- ful and really what a juvenile girl should be.” Supporting Bautista in Omaha
was Gold. Bautista said the stand- out skater helps her during practice and inspires her.
Coach Alexander Ouriashev
said he is thrilled with his young skater’s results. “She’s really a beautiful and cute little skater,” he said. “She’s a hard worker and professional. She’s training with Gracie Gold and learning a lot from her.” Nakahara, who has won recent
National Showcase titles for her performance talent, turned it on for the audience in Omaha. Skating to “Dance of the Tum-
blers,” Nakahara showed off her skating skills and presentation qual- ities.
Te 10-year-old from Los An- geles turned in an almost flawless performance, her coach Susan Ber- ens said. “She skated strong, no wob-
bles; that’s about the best she has done,” Berens said. Berens called Nakahara a de-
light to coach. “She’s the easiest little skater to teach and she’s always energetic and always wants to learn more and more,” she said. Krystal Edwards, 10, of Ra- leigh, N.C., finished with the pew- ter medal, earning 44.12 points. — Troy Schwindt
JUVENILE BOYS
Talk about a close one! Less than one point separated
GOLD MEDALIST
KAROLINA CALHOUN
gold from pewter as the juvenile boys mixed the right amount of skill with the right amount of cute to put on a quite a show in Omaha. Maxim Naumov led the way and won his first U.S. title with a score of 46.59 points. Drawing on the experience of his seventh-place finish at the 2012 U.S. Junior Championships and the energy of his personal cheering section fea-
turing novice competitor Daniel Petrenko, Naumov skated a clean program to “Rock Prelude” and “Dramatico.” Te program featured a pair of double Axels, a Level 4 sit spin and a double Lutz-double toe loop combo. His program compo- nents score of 23.48 points was eas- ily the highest in the field. “I went for everything and
tried my best,” Naumov said. “I’ve been working on my double Axel and making it good for the compe- tition. It paid off.” Since sectionals, Naumov has battled knee pain that has hindered parts of his training. However, that wasn’t about to stop the 11-year-old in his medal quest. “I have had a lot of pain in my knees so I have tried to limit things,” he said. “It really hurt when I was skating but it’s worth it every time. If you have pain, just skate through. Usually I am so into the program, I forget about it.” Silver medalist Kendrick
Weston, with 46.28 points, earned his first medal in three tries at the juvenile level. Coach Lisa Kriley encouraged her charge to begin competing in qualifying events two years ago at the age of 10 because his home club, Salt Lake Figure Skating, hosted the 2011 U.S. Ju- nior Championships. Since then, his skating has progressed to a level that has made him competitive as a juvenile. Weston’s technical mark was the highest of the competition at 25.56 points.
“I could have done my double
Axel better, but I have been a lot more consistent with my jumps, including my Axel, and my spins since last year,” Weston said. “I think today choreography and my combo spin went well.” Within minutes of his
bronze-medal performance, Sasha Lunin was looking ahead. After quickly noting that everything in the “Escala” free skate went well, Lunin talked about what’s next. “I’m already working on tri-
ple jumps,” he said. “My mom and dad (who coach their son) make me work hard. I got a double Axel, which is the hardest jump I can do, and now I’m moving on.” After his free skate, Dinh Tran,
who secured the pewter medal with 45.77 points, was ready to cheer on his favorite senior competitors, Kee-
SKATING 47
PHOTOS BY MELANIE HOYT
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