It’s Russian skating Christmas, everybody! Videos are up from the Russian test skates event and many of skating’s biggest names have new programs for us. Here are the video links and a few comments from the top Russian ladies:
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva Short Program Free Skate These programs were without her now signature triple axel (which I am sure we will see later) but the rest of her jumps look consistent for this early in the season. Her music choices work for her and build very well. I’m not sure I’m seeing a *ton* of improvement in her performance skills, but time will tell. She’s sticking with her gauzy and dark costume theme again this season- I actually like her LP dress, but her short program dress has me scratching my head. Elena Radionova Short Program Free Skate Technically, Elena looked about the same as we saw at the end of last season- consistent with a few bobbles here and there. I thought her short program music was a tad overwhelming, but hopefully she grows into it as the season progresses. I was already eye rolling at her Titanic free skate music (with Celine vocals) but did there have to be quotes from the movie too? Too cheesy for me but the instrumental music sections aren’t bad. Evgenia Medvedeva Short Program Free Skate Evgenia jumps a lot like Elena- they both set up very slowly and deliberately, with jerky, scratchy movements to muscle jumps out- that is not my favorite. Also not my favorite, she backloads the crap out of her short program to maximize bonus points. Her music choices are both slow, classical selections that are pretty, yet uninteresting. Though not my style, I am interested to see her skating judged against the other top senior ladies this season. Julia Lipnitskya Short Program Free Skate It’s good to see Julia back on the ice after her rough season last year. Her jumps looked improved from what we’ve last seen of her, but there is still work to be done on them before Skate America. Her short program music baffles me completely- I like the “Can’t Help Falling in Love” section, but I think the music change is so poorly chosen for her. She is so incredibly talented that I would love to see her skating at her best again. Adelina Sotnikova Short Program Free Skate The 2014 Olympic Champ took a step towards her comeback, showing two programs at the test skates. Her jumps show improvement, but she’s still nowhere near the shape she was in two seasons ago. I liked her samba short program, but personally her J'suis Malade free skate is too powerful for her. Her SP dress is a gorgeous color, but the tassels on the chest are distracting. For the long, I like the dress itself but the bedazzled heart doesn’t mesh well. Anna Pogorilaya Short Program Free Skate Anna’s still showing the shades of disaster that plagued her at the end of last season, with falls and silly mistakes. I actually liked both of her music choices, but she doesn’t have the performance skills to pull them off successfully. Her short program dress was fine enough by me, but her long program dress needs some major editing. Unless Anna can pull it together quickly, she’s in danger of being eclipsed by the many other talented Russian ladies. I did not have a chance yet to watch the men’s, pairs or ice dance videos but I have shared them all on my Twitter page if you would like to check them out (which you should!)
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