2017 U.S. ADULT CHAMPIONSHIPS
CHAMPIONSHIP MASTERS INTERMEDIATE-NOVICE LADIES
Hockey, more practice lift Reynolds to title
BY BARB REICHERT
To look at Rachel Reynolds (Los Angeles FSC) in her elegant off -the-shoulder black dress, it’s hard to imagine her in hockey pads. Yet it’s that rough sport that she credits with helping push her to the gold medal. “I have to give my boyfriend, Travis, a
lot of credit for introducing me to hockey,” said Reynolds, who won the event with 41.40 points. “T at helped my stamina a lot. It helped my legs get stronger and now I skate faster.” Performing to “Charms,” the dynamic athlete packed a technically challenging pro- gram and earned a Level 3 combination spin. Her legs certainly did not tire in the end, as she executed a late double Salchow-loop-loop to tack on a few more points. After earning the silver medal last year,
Reynolds, a skating instructor, knew she need- ed to put in more work.
“I think the competition is really won in
practice,” she said. “I knew I needed to train more so I worked a lot more on my spins in practice. Lots of run-throughs.” Reynolds was quick to credit her coach
Erika Shorr, “who picked me up, helped me up and made me a much better skater.” Shorr has been training Reynolds for three years. “I am so thrilled that Rachel came here
this year and skated a clean program and was focused on doing the very best she could,” Shorr said. “I’m with her through thick and thin, and she knows it.” Reynolds dedicated her victory to Lea
Bottacini, an Italian fi gure skater she trained with at Lake Arrowhead in California. Bottaci- ni died in 2016, leaving behind a husband and two children. Reynolds needed every point she could
get, as silver medalist Karissa Williams (Arctic FSC) fi nished right on her heels with 41.15 points. Wearing a leopard-inspired dress and
matching headband, Williams, 32, skated to “Great African Moments” by Michael Whalen that transitioned into the theme song from Coming to America. An adult competitor since 2007, Williams’ opening fl ying camel set the tone for an energetic performance that earned 24.18 component points. She began her jump elements with a stunning double toe. “T at jump is a hit or miss jump for me,”
Williams said. “I’m naturally an edge jumper, so the toe jumps tend to have a little bit of a personality. But today my toe loop was on. My double loop turned into a single, but I at least stood up on that.” Williams, a skating instructor, performed
three of the same jump — single loop. T e deduction was the diff erence between silver and gold. “T at’s a little bit of a disappointment,
SKATING 21
knowing how close the scores were,” she said. “Hey, I’m still smiling. My goal was to perform the program. I dug up this program halfway through the season — which I don’t recommend for my students — but I just returned to an old friend and my old friend was a good friend to me tonight.” Carlie Sanders (SC of
Nevada), 26, earned the bronze medal with 37.61 points. After show- ing some early
nerves, Sanders took control and performed an Axel-half loop-double Salchow to “Beetho- ven’s Five Secrets” by the Piano Guys. “I think I kind of calmed down and
relaxed a little after the fi rst two elements,” she said.
With famed choreographer Rohene Ward
on the boards, Sanders plans to add some more diffi cult elements to her repertoire next year. Charlene Mills (Utah FSC) gained the
pewter with 37.27 points.
(l-r) Karissa Williams, Rachel Reynolds, Carlie Sand- ers, Charlene Mills
PHOTO BY JAMES GODWIN
JAY ADEFF/U.S. FIGURE SKATING
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70
