They sparked two decades of U.S. ice dance excellence

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They sparked two decades of U.S. ice dance excellence

Not long after Ben Agosto switched from singles skating to ice dance at age 10, he faced up to the reality that winning medals on a global stage might be impossible for a U.S. ice dancer.

Why wouldn’t he think that way, given the evidence?  After all, one of his first coaches, Susie Wynne, had retired from competition after finishing fourth at the 1990 World Championships with Joe Druar, having decided, as she puts it, “We had topped out.  That was the best we could do.”

That fourth place would, in fact, be the best finish for a U.S. team at worlds over nearly two decades since Judy Blumberg and Michael Seibert won their third straight world bronze in 1985, a span in which Soviet and Russian teams won 15 of 18 world titles, four of five Olympic titles and nine of 15 Olympic medals.

Until Agosto and Tanith Belbin ended that drought in 2005.

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Chock and Bates talk past, present future. Will it include 2026 Olympics?

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Chock and Bates talk past, present future. Will it include 2026 Olympics?

Theirs is a career noteworthy for its longevity and its achievements.

Ice dancers Madison Chock, 31, and her soon-to-be husband, Evan Bates, 35, have filled their résumé with just about every medal possible during a skating partnership that began 13 seasons ago.

Chock and Bates are the defending champions going into this week’s World Figure Skating Championships in Montreal, where another medal of any color would be their fifth, making them the most decorated U.S. ice dance team ever at the world meet.

They have won an Olympic team event medal, now a gold from the 2022 Winter Games as a result of the doping disqualification of Russia’s Kamila Valieva - although when they will receive it still remains anyone’s guess given the latest appeals in a case that already has dragged on for more than two years.

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Kamila Valieva adds short program winner to her controversial role

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Kamila Valieva adds short program winner to her controversial role

How do you watch with any pleasure an Olympic event in which the International Olympic Committee has all but called one of the competitors a pariah?

Not just any competitor, but Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva, the one who has been favored to win the gold medal in women’s singles, which remains possible after she won Tuesday’s short program.

One whose presence in the event was so controversial the IOC declared there would be no medal ceremony for it anytime soon, and perhaps not for months, should Valieva finish in a medal position.

That there would be a similar delay in the presentation of the medals from last week’s team event, in which Valieva helped the Russian Olympic Committee team finish first while making history as the first woman to land a quadruple jump at the Olympics.

Waiting for Valieva to skate, as the 26th of 30 in the short program starting order, could anyone really give the others the attention their skating deserved?

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An extraordinary Kamila Valieva stood alone in her sport again

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An extraordinary Kamila Valieva stood alone in her sport again

There are moments in watching sports when you know you were seeing the extraordinary, when what you saw needed no further enhancement, nothing to reaffirm the accuracy of your impression.

And yet, those moments are enriched when they occur before thousands of eyewitnesses, all ready to express their awestruck appreciation for the athlete who created them.

So it was a shame that there could not have been a packed house at the Capital Indoor Stadium to give Russian Kamila Valieva the loud and immediate tribute she deserved for one of the most stunning performances in Olympic figure skating history.

It was enough to make those in the global audience watching from a distance want to stand and applaud in front of the television or laptop or mobile phone that conveyed the images of this 15-year-old living up to a standard (again) she has set and that only she can reach.

Valieva expressed pleasure, according to Russian media, at seeing the standing ovation from the U.S. athletes in their team box. Her fellow skaters understand better than anyone Valieva's remarkable short program.

It is not only that Valieva lands extraordinarily difficult jumps, but also the way she executes them, with striking extension of arms and legs and the flow that follows her landings. It is not only that she is in utter command while flying across the ice but the way she lets go to express herself while doing it.

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Once again, World Team Trophy has six countries, but only three medal contenders...and that doesn't add up to much of a competition

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Once again, World Team Trophy has six countries, but only three medal contenders...and that doesn't add up to much of a competition

The big problem with the competitive aspect of the World Team Trophy is having just three countries with a chance to win medals now that Canadian skating has hit a fallow period since its athletes won the team gold medal (and three individual medals) at the 2018 Olympics.

Only Canada, Russia, the United States and Japan ever have won medals at the World Team Trophy, which has a six-country field, two entries per country in each segment of singles and one couple in pairs / dance. Canada’s last WTT medal came five editions ago (2013.)

Only Canada, Russia and the USA have won team medals at the Olympics since the 2014 addition of the event, where the field has 10 countries with only one singles skater and one couple in the short programs, after which the field is cut to five countries for the free skates.

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