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SK A TE AMERIC A NUGGET S


Culture shock Diversity abounded as fans, athletes,


coaches and media fi lled Joe Louis Arena for 2013 Hilton HHonors Skate America. With six competitors representing Japan, including both the ladies and men’s gold medalists, Jap- anese fans occupied the Motor City to show their support for fi gure skating. Fans adorned the arena walls with homemade banners and signs encouraging both


Japanese and American athletes alike, cheering on each event with enthusiasm. Several autograph sessions took place with Team USA athletes on the concourse throughout the week, where fans fl ocked to form massive lines in the hopes of having their event pro- grams, autograph cards and homemade posters signed by their favorite skaters. While the event saw plenty of media coverage from hometown and national outlets,


more than half of the media workroom was occupied by Japanese journalists, including crews from TV Asahi, Fuji Television, Jiji Press and Tokyo Broadcasting System. Throughout the week, the positive energy created by the Japanese presence could be


felt by attendees and viewers, prompting Jimmy Morgan, the 2012 U.S. novice pairs bronze medalist with partner Alexandria Shaughnessy, to tweet: “I strive to have Japanese fans like Daisuke [Takahashi] has — ones that clap excitedly when I look at them from the ice.” — Mimi Whetstone


Hunger games John Coughlin has a hunger in his eyes. As the pairs


partner of Caydee Denney, Coughlin’s goal is to reclaim their 2012 U.S. title in Boston and be named to his fi rst Olympic team. After missing last year’s U.S. Champion- ships due to an injury, he’s hungrier than ever. But that doesn’t explain the Tastykakes. “They’re great. Do you want one?” he off ers to just


about anyone walking by backstage. After their fi rst Skate America practice at Joe Louis


Arena, Philadelphia fan Jim Bagley held out two boxes of the East Coast confection. Coughlin, who once skated at the University of Delaware, smiled as he carried the Pea- nut Butter Kandy Kakes off the ice. “Of course I ate them,” he laughed. “I shared them


with everyone … Mitch Moyer, Caydee — I even intro- duced the Canadians to Tastykakes.” While many skaters are accustomed to fl owers and teddy bears being tossed on the


Caydee Denney and John Coughlin


ice, Coughlin seems to attract snacks. “Apparently I look hungry,” he said. “There’s this wonderful woman who brings me homemade peanut butter eggs from her church group. Most of the time I get cookies. I really get a lot of treats during the off -season. When I was injured, I got a lot of snacks. I think fans just want me to keep up my caloric intake.” After their performance, where they fi nished fourth, Denney and Coughlin brought


two more gifts from Bagley into the kiss and cry. “Jim always tosses something with a Kansas City theme for me and something from Finding Nemo for Caydee,” Coughlin said. “He’s just a real nice guy.”


— Barb Reichert


Home-ice advantage The Skating Club of Boston is the home rink for the U.S. champion pairs team of Maris-


sa Castelli and Simon Shnapir. It’s a special place, one that their coach Bobby Martin brings with him to every competition. Here’s the story: Boston and Vancouver played in the Stanley Cup Finals in 2011. Both


teams won three games on their home ice. With the series tied, the Bruins’ Nathan Hor- ton brought ice from the Boston Garden and dumped it onto the Canucks’ ice during the morning skate; the Bruins fi nally broke through on the road and won the Stanley Cup. Ever since then, Martin has taken a little bit of the ice from The Skating Club of Boston


and carried it with him to all the competitions. “I put it in a tiny vial, let it melt down, then right before one of the practices I sprinkle


it on the ice,” Martin said. “They rub their blades in it and away they go. We always have our home-ice advantage. For the fi rst time (at the 2014 U.S. Championships in Boston), I won’t have to do that because we’ll be on our home ice.”


— Troy Schwindt SKATING 25


A whirlwind experience Detroit was buzzing in Octo-


ber when Skate America came to Joe Louis Arena: The Tigers squared off in Boston against the Red Sox in Game 6 of the American League Championship Series the same Satur- day night as the free dance, and the 36th running of the Detroit Marathon was held the next morning. Lyubov Denisova and Zachary


Ornelas crossed the fi nish line fi rst, but other fi nishers — ranging from serious competitive runners to fi rst- time marathoners — were surprised when Meryl Davis and Charlie White congratulated them and hung partic- ipation medals around their necks. Denisova, a 42-year-old native of


Russia, is a professional runner who lives and trains in Gainesville, Fla. Fit- tingly, the 22-year-old Ornelas is fi n- ishing up his teaching degree at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where Davis and White are juniors. The fi ve-time U.S. champions had a whirlwind competition as nev- er before. Countless family members, friends and well-wishers were in the crowd, and the skaters signed auto- graphs and posed for photos with more than 100 youngsters the after- noon after their victory. While they have won four Skate Americas in a row, this one in their hometown is the sweetest victory of all. “It’s really exciting performing


in front of a home crowd,” Davis said. “We really haven’t gotten to perform in front of an actual home crowd be- fore. We can defi nitely feel the love of the fans.”


— Lynn Rutherford


JAY ADEFF/U.S. FIGURE SKATING


JAY ADEFF/U.S. FIGURE SKATING


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