2013 WOR LD F IGU RE S K AT I N G CHA MPION S H IPS
the 2013 U.S. pairs silver medal af- ter skating together just 10 months. In London, their soaring triple twist — one of the highest-scored in the entire event — along with big throws and challenging lifts, earned them a ninth-place finish at their first of what they hope will be many World Championships. “We just came into this com-
petition like [we would] any other competition; we didn’t want to put any big pressure on ourselves,” Knierim said. “We wanted to skate like normal, put it all out there and have a good time.” Tey did more than that: Sci- meca and Knierim’s finish, com- bined with the 13th place earned by U.S. champions Marissa Cas- telli and Simon Shnapir, gives the U.S. two pairs entries for the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi. A top-10 Worlds placement
is impressive for a new team, espe- cially one that wasn’t sure it would compete in London at all. Scimeca and Knierim’s Colorado Springs training partners, 2012 U.S. cham- pions Caydee Denney and John Coughlin, were assigned to the event, but could not compete due to Coughlin’s continuing recovery from hip surgery. Denney and Coughlin’s with- drawal opened the door, but Scime- ca injured her right foot while prac- ticing at the 2013 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Japan. Te injury was treated with a combination of therapy and an- ti-inflammatories, and the pair was given the go-ahead for London. “We’re fortunate we got the
opportunity to come here,” Knier- im said. “If [Denney and Coughlin] got that opportunity, we would be cheering for them. I know they are doing the same for us. We’re all a team there at the rink.”
Te pair opened with a 12th-
place short program, marred by an under-rotation call on their triple Salchows. Teir free skate to the Life is Beautiful soundtrack featured their best-ever spins, death spiral and steps, as well as side-by-side triple Salchows and a fine throw triple loop. Teir only mistake was Scimeca’s step-out on the landing of a throw triple flip, and they earned 117.78, upping their personal best by nearly 13 points. Tey ended the event with 173.51 points. “Te program felt really good, calm and relaxed, just like anoth-
er day at the office,” Knierim said. “We’ve been focusing on making sure we get the levels [on our ele- ments], doing a little bit more than what is needed so we don’t get into the gray area.”
Te winsome duo, teamed
by coach Dalilah Sappenfield last April, are also a couple off-ice. It’s a situation Sappenfield doesn’t usu- ally recommend, but one she feels works for them.
“I actually think it helps Alexa and Chris, because there is such a good balance and there is a comfort zone,” she said. “When either one is having a bad day, they help each other versus get mad at each other.” Tatiana Volosozhar and Max-
im Trankov, second the last two seasons, skated two emotionally riveting and technically superior programs to win by more than 20 points, bringing the World pairs title back to Russia for the first time since 2005. Four-time Ger- man World pairs champions Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy took silver, while Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford landed side-by- side triple Lutzes in both of their programs and won bronze, Canada’s first World pairs medal since 2008. Castelli and Shnapir also made
their Worlds debut in London, but arrived there via a dramatical- ly different route than Scimeca and Knierim. Te two Boston-based skaters, teamed in 2006, almost ended their partnership after plac- ing a disappointing fifth at the 2012 U.S. Championships. After some soul-searching — and a gentle push from their primary coach, Bobby Martin — they decided to rededi- cate themselves to each other. “Even when things seem bleak,
you’ve got to work though it,” Shna- pir, 25, said. “Breaking up and not fighting through issues is not neces- sarily the easy way out, but you will find more success by sticking to it and working through the problems.” Te U.S. champions were 13th
in the short after Shnapir fell on a triple Salchow. Although put in the difficult position of going first in the free skate, their tango routine — choreographed by Julie Marcotte in Quebec — was clean and stylish, including side-by-side triple toe loops, fine throws and exciting lifts. Teir score, 108.32, was some- what under their season’s best, perhaps reflecting their spot in the skate order.
“We’re a little confused by [the
scores], but we skated the best we could and we’re just happy we did what we came here to do,” Castelli, 21, said. “We’re thrilled with what we
put out there today; the scores are what they are, you can’t control that,” Shnapir said.
Like Scimeca and Knierim, the Marissa Castelli and
Simon Shnapir show off their personalities in their short program. The couple finished 13th overall.
two are planning bigger and better things for next season. “Tis year has been a lot of new things for us, between going up to Canada and getting new programs done, to the way we communicate and work together,” Castelli said. “It’s a completely new team,
new relationship,” Shnapir said. SKATING 27 Alexa Scimeca and
Christopher Knierim perform their Life is Beautiful free skate. The couple finished ninth overall in their Worlds debut.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF MICHAEL KASS
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