2016 PROGRESSIVE SKATE AMERICA WAGNER, GOLD
PREPARE TO FACE OFF IN GRAND PRIX OPENER
by LYNN RUTHERFORD Te 2016 Progressive Skate America,
set for Oct. 21–23 in the Chicago suburb of Hoffman Estates, offers fans something new: Ashley Wagner and Gracie Gold squaring off in a Grand Prix event. “It’s sure going to be an intense start to
the season,” Wagner said. “Usually, we ex- pect our first competition to be the Grand Prix Final. For me, it will be good to get prepared right off the bat and know what I’m up against.” Gold reigns as U.S. champion, but it’s
Wagner who arrives with the upper hand. Te three-time U.S. champion had ca- reer-best performances at the 2016 World Figure Skating Championships, where she won the silver medal. After months of hard training under coach Rafael Arutunian this summer, she heads into her 2016–2017 campaign more confident than ever. “I will show up fit and ready to go,”
Wagner vowed. “Heading into the (2018) Olympics, this rivalry is only going to build, and that’s exciting for skating fans to watch. I’m ready to play my role.” Gold won bronze when Skate America
was last held at Sears Centre Arena in 2014. She spent part of the offseason regrouping from a disappointing fourth-place finish at the 2016 World Championships, but after she licked her wounds, Gold and coach Frank Carroll prepared her most technically packed programs to date. “I’m jazzed for it,” Gold said of the
matchup with Wagner. “I grew up skating in the Chicago area and I’ve competed at this rink. It’s familiar territory and that’s al- ways good.” Angela Wang, winner of two interna-
tional medals last season, makes her Skate America debut. Te three U.S. ladies will square off
against one of the all-time greats: three- time World champion Mao Asada of Japan, who won the event in 2013.
ICE DANCE Maia Shibutani and Alex Shibuta-
ni skate this season’s short dance to Frank Sinatra’s “Tat’s Life,” and to paraphrase the lyrics, they’re back on top with their first U.S. title and a World silver medal. Te siblings would like nothing better than to add a Skate America title to their growing résumé.
“Tere’s a kind of swagger to [“Tat’s 18 OCTOBER 2016
Life”] that, at this point in our career, we really like,” Alex said. “Our programs this season are some of the most dynamic we’ve ever done.” “We can’t wait to start competing this
season,” Maia said. “Our movement, our choreography, how we’ve grown — we real- ly think our programs are exactly the right next step for us.” Madison Hubbell and Zachary Dono-
hue are also strong bets for the podium. Te U.S. bronze medalists, who moved to train in Montreal, Quebec, last season, are com- ing off a sixth place at Worlds. “Tere is some pressure to do well at
Skate America,” Hubbell admitted. “We took a big leap and now if we don’t take an- other leap, it could feel disappointing. Our coaches have been reminding us that if you do the work, then the reward will be there.” Two Russian couples — Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev, and Elena
llinykh and Ruslan Zhiganshin — will challenge the U.S. teams.
MEN Adam Rippon made his senior Grand
Prix debut at Skate America in 2008 and won a silver medal in 2013. But he counts this Skate America as perhaps the most spe- cial.
“As U.S. champion, you expect to be
asked to do Skate America, and I’m glad I got it,” he said. “It’s a chance for me to get the home-ice advantage, not have any sort of travel jet lag. I’m going to do two events beforehand, so I feel I’ll be ready.” Rippon, who placed a career-high
sixth in the world last season, thinks that at age 26, he is hitting his peak. He hopes to add a quadruple toe loop to his jump arse- nal in time for Skate America. “I never want to look back and say, ‘I
could have done more as a skater,’” Rippon said.
Competing at his fourth consecutive
Skate America, 2015 U.S. champion Jason Brown missed most of last season with a back injury. Fully recovered, the exuberant showman could well land a quad or two at the Sears Centre Arena, but well-balanced, entertaining programs remain his primary focus.
“I don’t want people to look down at
their phones while I’m spinning, because they’re waiting for the jumps,” Brown said.
Gracie Gold
Ashley Wagner
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