Joannie Rochette of Canada and Jeremy Abbott of the United States won the singles title at Skate Canada in Kitchener, Ont. yesterday.

In the ladies discipline, Alissa Czisny (USA) earned the silver medal and Finland’s Laura Lepistö clinched the bronze while Japan’s Daisuke Takahashi claimed silver and France’s Alban Préaubert captured the bronze medal in the men's event.

THE LADIES

Skating last to “Samson and Delilah,” Rochette earned 112.90 points (50.02 element score/62.88 program component score) for her sophisticated routine, setting a season best mark. She accumulated a total of 182.90 points. "It was one of those programs where I had to fight from beginning to end, and I'm proud that I did," she said. "It's good to know I have that in me, but I want to go home and work this program so that every element and every transition is right on and I can hit all my levels next time."

Rochette, the reigning World silver medalist, had the 4,450 spectators at The Aud behind her for her program. She landed her opening triple Lutz-double toe-double loop combination, but then stepped out of the triple flip. She also was off-balance on the triple loop and doubled the second Lutz. Rochette rallied to hit a triple toe-triple Salchow sequence and a double Axel-double toe loop combination.

“There were a few wobbles, and when I saw that triple loop on the replay, I was kind of proud of myself for hanging on to it," she said. "It was one of those programs where you need to fight from the beginning to the end. I’m proud I did. I will go home and work to make sure that every element, every transition is right on and that I get all my levels.”

Czisny ranked fourth in the free skate with 100.01 points (46.57/55.44) but remained in second place with an overall mark of 163.53. “I was a little bit disappointed with my performance today. I’ve been skating better. There were strong points of the performance and some things that I need to work on when I get back home,” she said.

The reigning U.S. champion's elegant program to “Doctor Zhivago” was highlighted by a triple Lutz-double toe, a triple flip, a triple toe as well as excellent spins and spirals. She fell on a Lutz and loop jump that both were downgraded. A triple loop was also cheated and downgraded.

Lepistö produced a triple Lutz, a triple loop-double toe and difficult spins and footwork, She earned a level four for two spins. The 2009 European champion reduced her planned triple toe-triple toe combination to a double toe-double toe and doubled a Salchow. She scored 102.78 points (48.62/54.16) and moved up from fourth to second with 158.52 points. "I'm not totally satisfied with my performance today, but it was better than it was in Nagano two weeks ago," she said. "I'm glad that I did better here than there."

Mirai Nagasu (USA), who w ranked third in the short program, dropped to fourth overall. She landed four triples, but both Lutzes received a deduction for the wrong-edge take off and she also stepped out of the second Lutz. Akiko Suzuki (JPN) pulled up from eight to fifth (147.72 points).

Rochette qualified for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final as well as Suzuki, who had won in China.

THE MEN

Abbott earned a season best of 153.99 points (74.59/79.40) and ranked second in the free skate, but edged Takahashi by a over one point to take the gold at 232.99. "It felt really great tonight. I just wanted to focus on my program and take it one thing at a time. I knew that I had the Grand Prix Final on the line but for me, it wasn't really the goal tonight," Abbott said. "It was just to stay focused and make it all the way through the program and I think I did that very well, so I was very pleased."

The reigning U.S. men's champion hit a solid quadruple toe loop right out of the gate of his program to “Symphony No. 3” by Camille Saint-Saens. Abbott went on to complete a triple Lutz-triple toe-double loop combination, a triple Lutz, loop and triple Salchow-double toe as well as difficult spins two of which were graded a level four. However, the reigning Grand Prix Final champion was off balance on the triple flip and stepped out of the triple Axel.

Abbott and Takahashi qualified for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final.

Takahashi delivered an entertaining program to “La Strada” to score 155.01 points (74.01/81.00), which was a season best. He won the free skate and overall compiled a mark of 231.31 points to earn the silver. "I'm happy for that result because I can go to the final. But the performance today was not good for me because I could not (do the) quad," Takahashi said. "I had some little mistakes and the speed was not there. But I improved more Im happy."

Takahashi tripled his opening toe loop that was planned as a quadruple. He hit two triple Axels (one in combination with a double toe), a triple Lutz-double toe, a triple Lutz-double toe-double loop and a triple flip. However, he had to fight for the landing of a triple loop and two-footed a triple Salchow.

Préaubert stood in fourth place following the short program and moved up with a Rolling Stones medley that featured eight triple jumps including two Axels and a triple flip-triple toe combination. Préaubert earned 139.98 points (70.18/69.80), improving his seasons best, and totaled 212.28 points. "I felt very good," the Frenchman said. "Today, it was my strategy not to try (the quad) and finally I am up here because I got a got results here. When I saw the field here, I couldn't think it would be possible to be up here because it was a very high level. I'm really proud of this result."

Michal Brezina (CZE) landed five triples to finish fourth with 202.32 points. 2009 European silver medalist Samuel Contesti placed just behind at 202.25 points. He missed a triple Axel but produced five clean triple jumps. Denis Ten (KAZ), who was ranked third in the short program, slipped to seventh overall due to several errors. Reigning World silver medalist Patrick Chan (CAN) fell three times and remained in sixth place.

Rochette Tops the Leader Board at Skate Canada

Joannie Rochette put down an impressive—and career best—performance in the short program Friday to win that segment of the competition at Skate Canada in Kitchener, Ont. The Canadian star scored 70 points. American Alissa Czisny is more than seven points back in second place with teammate Mirai Nagasu in third (56.34).

“I was really happy to do this after China. I was a bit disappointed there and I think I needed to change some things mentally when I went back home,” Rochette said. “I worked very hard, and I think we found a way to make me feel better. My goal tonight when I stepped on the ice was to feel calm and relaxed, and I think I achieved that. I still think I’m able to skate better, so it’s encouraging for the rest of the season.”

Rochette’s elegant interpretation of “La Cumparasita” was highlighted by a solid triple Lutz-double toe loop combination, a triple flip and double Axel. The reigning World silver medalist picked up a level four for the flying sit spin and a level three for the other two spins, the footwork and the spiral sequence. She received 38.40 element score/31.60 program component score to improve her previous personal best by 2.10 points. “I think it’s a great program and a great enough vehicle that I don’t need the triple-triple if I do all the elements properly. The main difference (here) is that I had a plan and I stuck to it,” she said.

Czisny put out a strong performance to “The Mask of Zorro” as well. “I always enjoy skating in Canada so I was happy to be back here in again,” she said. “I just went out there and tried to skate my best and enjoy the performance and build on my performances earlier this season.”

Czisny, who won the title at Skate Canada in 2005 and was the competition’s bronze medalist last year, nailed a triple Lutz-double toe, a triple flip and double Axel. The 2009 U.S. champion’s spins were fast and well-centered spins. Czisny’s score was also a personal best.

Nagasu’s playful program to “Pirates of the Caribbean” included a triple Lutz-double toe loop combination, a double Axel and a beautiful layback spin. However, she received some deductions for the triple flip for an edge attention (short take-off with wrong edge).

“Although my points weren’t as high as they were in China, I felt more confident in my skating,” she said. “Hopefully, by nationals, I’ll be able to put two and two together and get the points and the confidence.”

THE MEN

Meanwhile Canadian men's champion, Patrick Chan, struggled and landed in sixth place in the men's short program, which was won by American Jeremy Abbott. Japan’s Daisuke Takahashi and Denis Ten of Kazakhstan placed second and third, respectively.

Abbott delivered a strong performance to “A Day in the Life” by The Beatles. Abbott scored 79.00 points (42.60 element score/36.40 program component score). "After Japan, I really learned a lot about the program and places that needed a little tweaking. I feel a lot more comfortable with the program than I did in Japan. Going into Japan, I didn't feel very comfortable the program was still very, very new, less than two months old," he said. "Now its only two weeks older but having gone through it here, I do feel a lot more comfortable and confident going into tomorrow."

Abbott reeled off a triple flip-triple toe loop combination, a triple Axel and a triple Lutz as well as difficult spins and steps. The reigning Grand Prix Final champion earned a level four for all three spins and a level three for both step sequences.

"I was very happy with my performance tonight. It was interesting to get through," Abbot said. "I had something happen back home with a family that I knew, so for personal reasons it was not easy to get through tonight. But I was very happy with how I skated and the program that I put out and Im excited to be in first place going into the free skate.

"There was this girl that I used to skate with back in Colorado and she died skiing. She actually hit a tree and died instantly. Her family was very, very sweet and I just wanted to do the best that I could in her memory, to do something more than for myself and my own placement tonight."

Takahashi opened his routine to a modern Tango titled “Cobe” with a triple flip-triple toe loop combination, but the second jump was underrotated and downgraded. The 2007 World silver medalist went on to complete a solid triple Axel and a triple Lutz. He was awarded a level four for the combination spin and a level three for the other two spins while the footwork was a level two. The Japanese star scored 76.30 points (39.20/37.10).

"I enjoyed skating tonight, but I regret I couldnt skate the (step sequence) to a higher level and I missed the first jump," he said. "[I rate it)]about 75 percent. This is the third time I have skated this program and the best overall. Im pretty happy about it."

Ten's performance came as a little surprise. "I'm very happy I was able to share everything I can do in training and for me, its quite unexpected for me to be here at the press conference with these great skaters. It's very nice for me to be here and I hope its not the last time."

The 16-year-old impressed the crowd and the judges with an excellent program to “Sing Sing Sing” that featured a big triple Axel, a triple Lutz-triple toeloop combination, a triple flip and level-four spins. The crowd rewarded the performance with a standing ovation and the judges with a score of 75.45 points (43.60/31.85). Ten improved his previous personal best of 68.54 points significantly.

THE PAIRS

Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy of Germany captured the pairs short program with a new personal best score. Russia’s Maria Mukhortova and Maxim Trankov and Canadians Jessica Dubé and Bryce Davison came in second and third.

Performing to “Send in the Clowns,” Savchenko and Szolkowy delivered a strong performance that featured a high throw triple twist, side by side triple toe loops and a triple twist. The two-time and reigning World champions earned 74.16 points (40.48 element score/33.68 program component score), a personal best. “ The performance today was not bad. Actually, it was quite good but not perfect. We were a little bit slow, kind of tired. But we concentrated on the elements," Szolkow said. "Skating in Canada is always great fun for us and to get the support from the audience is a great feeling every time."

Mukhortova and Trankov routine to “Appassionata” by Secret Garden was highlighted by a high triple twist and excellent side-by-side triple toe loops. The European bronze medalists score d65.80 points (37.12/28.68). "We don’t think about the final result, about medals, about podium. We just want to skate clean, our programs, every competition. We only think about this, not who wins or who loses<' Trnkov said. "It’s not so important. It’s important to be good on the ice."

Dubé and Davison landed a triple twist, but he caught her late. The 2008 World bronze medalists completed a throw triple loop and level-four spins, but Dubé singled the side-by-side Salchow. The Candian champions collected 57.90 points (31.14/26.76). "I felt really good. I guess my timing was a little quick," Dubé said. "I don’t really know what happened. I’ll just do it tomorrow."

ICE DANCE

Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada danced to the lead in after the compulsory dance. France’s Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat came in second while Canadians Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje ranked third.

Get Ready for 'Battle' No. 2

CBC Television announced today that its hit series "Battle of the Blades" will return next fall for a second season. Featuring world-class figure skaters and former NHL’ers, the 14-episode series sold out to live audiences every week, and wrapped up on Monday, Nov. 16 with an unconfirmed television audience of 1.736 million tuning in for the one-hour results finale.

In the first season, Jamie Salé and Craig Simpson won the show's title and in the process, $100,000 for their charity, the Spinal Cord Injury Treatment Centre. Shae-Lynn Bourne and Claude Lemieux finished second.

Overall viewership has been tremendous, with an average of 1.749 million viewers 2+ watching the seven performance shows on Sunday evenings, and 1.332 million Canadians 2+ tuning in for the Monday night results shows. Combined, "Battle of the Blades" reached one out of three Canadians with a total unduplicated reach of over 10 million.

“We could not be happier with the audience and advertising response to this truly Canadian series,” said Kirstine Stewart, general manager, CBC Television. “CBC continues to generate successful and relevant top-tier programming and the return of 'Battle of the Blades' is another welcome addition to our star-studded lineup.”

The show is the brainchild of Kevin Albrecht with development by Sandra Bezic. "Battle of the Blades" executive producers are John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Kevin Albrecht. It is produced by Insight Productions in association with CBC Television.

The overwhelming response to the show concept has led Insight Productions to look at expanding the franchise globally.

“We are thrilled that 'Battle of the Blades' has captured such a wide and diverse male and female viewing audience,” said John Brunton, Insight Productions president & executive producer. “It has tremendous international potential as a big name sports and entertainment brand, and we look forward to growing this franchise significantly over the coming years.”

The program’s unique format and mass appeal provided an ideal platform for advertisers. Season one sponsors DanActive, ARTISTRY Brands, McDonald’s and Kruger Products showcased their brands to millions of Canadians through innovative program integrations and sponsorship opportunities, including: co-branded vignettes; the DanActive Warm-up Zone; the ARTISTRY Style Studio; and signage and product sampling at the legendary Maple Leaf Gardens.

Viewers can learn more about the show and the competitors at at the official website for the series.

Yu-Na Kim won the ladies event at Skate America in Lake Placid while ice dancers Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto also climbed to the top of the podium. It was the second gold medal on the Grand Prix Series this season for the South Korean superstar and American ice dancers.

Kim earned $18,000 and a place in the Grand Prix Final. Belbin and Agosto split that amount and also found their ticket to Tokyo punched.

In the ladies free skate, the big story was American Rachael Flatt who claimed the silver behind Kim but won the free skate. Julia Sebestyen of Hungary took the bronze.

Performing to “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini” by Sergei Rachmaninov, Flatt reeled off a number of impressive triple jumps. She landed a triple flip-triple toe loop combination, a triple Lutz, loop, triple Lutz-double toe, triple flip-double toe-double loop and a triple Salchow. She also earned a level four for two spins.

Her last combination spin didn’t receive credit though, as the caller identified two separate spins because Flatt re-centered too far apart after a change of direction.

Flatt scored a season best 116.11 points to rank first in the long program. Overall she totaled 174.91 points to finish second. “I skated a clean program except for the last spin, which I did not get credit for. But I landed all my jumps. It was a great program, and I enjoyed every minute of it,” she said.

Kim collected 111.70 points (51.18 element score/61.52 program component score) and ranked second in the free skate. Overall though she easily claimed the title with a competition mark of 187.98 points. “I was too nervous today. I skated last and I had a perfect short program, so I felt the pressure," she said.

Kim opened her routine to “Concerto in F” by George Gershwin with a triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination. She ran into trouble after as she under-rotated the toe loop and stepped out of it. Kim then fell on a triple flip that was downgraded. “My first two jumps were weird and my body got tense. When I miss a jump, I try to refocus, but I didn’t do it this time,” the 19-year-old explained.

She did rally to pull off a double Axel-double toe-double loop, a double Axel-triple toe loop, a triple Salchow and a double Axel. The reigning World Champion received a level four for two spins and the spiral sequence and a level three for the combination spin and the footwork.

Sebestyen gave a solid performance to a medley of music by Raul di Blasio. Her program included four triple jumps and a double Axel as well as a flying combination spin that was graded a level four. However, she doubled the second Lutz and singled two Axels.

The 2004 European champion earned 100.49 points (47.13/53.36), which was a season best, and accumulated 159.03 points overall. She returned to the podium at a Grand Prix event after three years. “I am happy that I was able to concentrate again after the good short program. After Moscow (Rostelecom Cup), I’ve worked a lot on my free skating. I was a little tired in the middle of the program, but then I pulled myself together, because I knew that the triple toe-double toe at the end is a bonus jump,” Sebestyen said.

Fumie Suguri (JPN) came in fourth. She landed a triple Lutz-double toe (but got an edge deduction), a triple flip and three double Axels (148.99 points). Elena Glebova (EST) finished fifth. The highlight of her performance was a triple toe-triple toe combination (148.71 points).

Kim took 15 points and now tops the Grand Prix standings with 30 points. Flatt (13 points) now has 22 and will have to see if that is enough to qualify for the Grand Prix Final. Sebestyen (11 points) got 16 points from her two events.

THE DANCE

Belbin and Agosto (USA) danced to victory as they led form wire to wire. Below them, the standings shuffled. Italy’s Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte edged out Alexandra Zaretski and Roman Zaretski of Israel by less than one point to take the silver medal. Zaretski and Zaretski captured the bronze.

Belbin and Agosto turned in a solid performance of their lyrical dance to “Ave Maria” and “Amen” that was highlighted by beautiful lifts such as a serpentine lift and a curve lift. The current World silver medalists picked up a level four for all their lifts, the twizzles and the spin. They earned 95.62 points (46.90 element score/48.72 program component score) which added up to a total of 195.85 points.

“This has been a very exciting competition. It was a lot of fun to skate here in Lake Placid, so historic. Once again we felt like we were able to execute all three segments of the competition really well. Today was little bit hard," Agosto said.

Cappellini and Lanotte gave a passionate performance to “Requiem for a Dream.” The Italians routine was highlighted by a straight-line lift in a low position with her balancing in front of him and a one-armed rotational lift. Cappellini and Lanotte picked up a season best 85.73 points (43.60/42.13). They were ranked second in the free dance but overall moved up from third to second at 171.86 points, just 0.09 points ahead of Zaretski and Zaretski.

It was the Italian team's second silver medal on the Grand Prix circuit this season and has most likely qualified for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final for the first time in their career. “We are definitely excited about our result,” Cappellini noted. “We were not expecting this (to make the final). We’ve worked hard this year and this is a reward for our work. I can’t even feel the happiness yet, it’s a big thing. (The Grand Prix Final) is a very special competition. We’ll be there for the first time and we want to be up for the challenge.”

Skating to “Schindler’s List”, Zaretski and Zaretski produced a technically demanding yet flowing dance. They improved their season best score, and pulled up from fourth to third at 171.77 points. “We skated very well. This was one of our best free dances,” Roman Zaretski said. “This is our first medal (at the Grand Prix), so I have no words. We are still shocked! It was a big surprise.”

Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski (RUS) slipped from second to fourth. Several elements in their routine to “Meadowlands” received low levels (168.25 points). Kimberly Navarro and Brent Bommentre (USA) finished fifth with an elegant dance to “One” by U 2.

Belbin and Agosto earned 15 points and now proceed to the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final with the maximum of 30 points. Cappellini and Lanotte (13 points) have 26 points, which should be enough to make the Final. Zaretski and Zaretski (11 points) collected 18 points from their two events.

Chinese pairs team Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao and American Evan Lysacek were golden yesterday at Skate America in Lake Placid. Meanwhile Yu-Na Kim of South Korea took a huge lead in the ladies event and Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto of the United States strengthened their lead in ice dance.

The skaters are competing for a global pot of $180,000 (U.S.) and spots in the Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final, slated for Tokyo in December. Lysacek pocketed $18,000 for his win while Shen and Zhao were awarded that amount (as a pair) as well. The Chinese pair and American star have earned places in the final. “I really wanted to do a good job in my home country,” Lysacek said. “I’ve been to Skate America I think five times now and I have a lot of silvers and really wanted to win gold this year.”

THE MEN

Lysacek held on to the overnight lead to claim gold but the skaters in the spots below him shuffled spots. Shawn Sawyer of Canada pulled up from fifth to claim the silver medal and Ryan Bradley (USA) vaulted from eighth to third overall to capture the bronze medal.

Lysacek compiled a season best 158.55 points (77.55 element score/81.00 program component score) and racked up a total of 237.72 points. Lysacek won his first gold at Skate America.

The reigning World champion’s program to “Sheherazade” featured a triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination, two triple Axels (one in combination with a double toe), a triple loop, triple flip-double toe-double loop, a triple Lutz and strong spins. His only miscue came when he stepped out of the triple Salchow.

“My goal of this season was just to take one step forward at each event,” Lysacek said. “Tonight was obviously a much better score than China. I had no technical deductions tonight, so that was an accomplishment for me."

Sawyer scored a season best 137.96 (68.86/69.10) for his free skate and a total of 203.91 points to take his first Grand Prix medal of his career. “I’m extremely proud of myself,” he said. “I put so much passion into my training and when I come to compete and it doesn’t work out, I get really mad at myself. Today, I gave a real performance, I gave a show. My jumps were not all perfect, but they are not always perfect in practice.”

Sawyer put out a playful routine to “Amadeus,” a medley of music by Mozart. He landed a triple flip-triple toe loop combination, three other triples and showed off his flexibility in his spins that were all graded a level four. He stumbled on a cheated triple Axel and on the back end of his double Axel-triple toe combination.

Bradley stood in eighth place after a faulty short program but made up for it with the second-best free skate of the night. The American charmed the audience with his program, also skated to a Mozart medley from "Amadeus." He hit a quadruple toe and a quadruple-double toe combination as well as four clean triples and had two level-four spins. He stumbled on a triple flip and popped a Salchow.

Bradley earned a season best 138.88 points (70.38/68.50) and jumped on to the podium with 198.12 points. “I’ve been out three times this year internationally and I’ve been training so hard and so well, but the first two times (competitions) were really disappointing for me,” he said. “Today was just about putting everything together at the right time. It wasn’t perfect, but I’m excited to see a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel.”

Florent Amodio (FRA) slipped from second to fourth at 197.58 points,. Bradley edged him by less than one point. Amodio hit a nice triple Axel and triple loop, but most of his other jumps were not clean.

Tomas Verner (CZE) moved up from 11th to fifth place. He fell on a quad toe loop but landed six triple jumps (194.06 points). Brandon Mroz (USA), who was ranked third in the short program, plummeted to eighth after several errors.

Lysacek pocketed 15 points and proceeds to the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final with 28 points. Sawyer now has 16 points and Bradley has 11 points (he finished out of the points in Paris). Verner has 20 points from his two events and still a chance to qualify for the Final, depending on what will happen next week at Skate Canada.

THE PAIRS

Shen and Zhao of China continued their successful comeback this season by winning their second Grand Prix event this season. The husband-and-wife team collected 127.04 points (62.20 element score/65.84 program component score), and complied a competition mark of 201.40. “It wasn’t such a good performance today, because we felt tired. Some elements weren’t so good and we hope to skate better in the Grand Prix Final,” Zhao said.

Ukraine’s Tatiana Volosozhar and Stanislav Morozov took the silver medal while Dan Zhang and Hao Zhang of China moved up from fifth place to clinch the bronze medal.

Shen and Zhao landed side-by-side triple toe loops, a triple twist, throw triple Salchow and difficult lifts in their romantic “Adagio” routine. The couple received a level four for the spins, the spiral sequence and a level three for the rarely seen forward outside death spiral.

However, Zhao stumbled badly on the second jump in the double Axel-double Axel sequence. Shen put down her hand on the throw triple loop.

“We skated our free program better at the Cup of China. We are now looking at the protocol to see what we need to improve in our elements,” Zhao said “There is something still lacking in some elements.”

Volosozhar and Morozov earned a season best 110.12 points (56.40/54.72) and were ranked third in the free skate. Overall they remained in second place with171.82 points.

Their powerful program to “Pearl Harbor” included a big triple twist, throw triple loop and Salchow as well as level-four spins. The Ukrainians also picked up a level four for their impressive one-armed lifts.

Morozov struggled with the side-by-side jumps. He stepped out of the first jump of the triple toe-triple toe sequence and the second jump didn’t receive credit. He also doubled the side-by-side Salchow.

“Today we didn’t do the first two elements,” Morozov said. “Overall it was a bit difficult to skate, but after the errors on the jumps we did all the other elements very well and were rewarded for it. We’ve fought and tried to give our best, so we are quite satisfied overall.”

Zhang and Zhang stood in fifth place after the short program. They rallied in the free skate, performing to “Sheherazade." The reigning World silver medalists scored 111.35 points (58.47/52.88) and moved up two spots with a total mark of 168.19.

“Today I’m very happy,” a smiling Hao Zhang said. “Yesterday we made errors. Today wasn’t our best either. We almost didn’t sleep last night and felt tired.”

Zhang and Zhang nailed a double Axel-triple toe loop combination and side-by-side triple Salchows. The successfully executed a high triple twist as well as a throw triple loop and Salchow.

Their only major glitch came in the side-by-side combination spin where he was off balance.

Keauna McLaughlin and Rockne Brubaker (USA) came in fourth at 165.37 points. They completed a triple Salchow-double toe combination, a triple twist and level-four spins, but both stepped out of the double Axel and she two-footed the throw triple Salchow and loop.

Amanda Evora and Mark Ladwig (USA) placed fifth. Their routine included a throw triple Lutz, a triple twist and difficult lifts and spins, but both the solo jumps were under-rotated and downgraded (148.33 points).

Meagan Duhamel and Craig Buntin (CAN) withdrew during the free skate as Duhamel had injured her right ankle in the warm up and then took a bad fall on the throw triple loop in the program. They stood in third place following the short program.

Shen and Zhao earned 15 points for their win and have qualified for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final with the maximum of 30 points. Volosozhar and Morozov (13 points) and Zhang/Zhang (11 points) both collected 24 points overall and will have to wait and see if they make it to the final.

THE LADIES

Kim of Korea captured the ladies short program and established a new record score en route. Rachael Flatt (USA) and Hungary’s Julia Sebestyen came in second and third.

Kim, the reigning World champion, skated last and put out another splendid performance of her cool James Bond program. She earned 76.28 points (44.00/32.28). “My short program is very special to me. It makes me enjoy the competition,” she said. “I was very nervous, because my short program in Paris (at the Trophée Bompard) was perfect and I felt the pressure. But as soon as my music started, I felt comfortable on the ice.”

She nailed an effortless triple Lutz-triple toe combination, the triple flip and a double Axel out of a spiral move. The 19-year-old was awarded a level four for two spins and the spiral sequence and a level three for the footwork and the combination spin.

“My footwork and the last spin were a little slow,” she said. “When I saw my score, I didn’t realize at first that it was a new world record score.”

Flatt risked a triple flip-triple toe loop combination right out of the gate, but fell on the second jump. The 2008 World junior champion recovered to land a triple Lutz, a double Axel and produced two level-four spins. Flatt earned a season best 58.80 points (33.40/26.40) for her performance to “Sing Sing Sing.”

“’m very happy about the fact that I did get credit for it (the triple-triple combination),” Flatt explained. “It was a little bit of a slip up. I don’t remembering falling even in training. My choreographer Lori Nichol said, ‘Just bounce if you have a mistake,’ so this is kind of something what I’ve been taking into account. I’ve been training just to forget about it (a mistake) and move on, continue with a clean program. This is kind of what I did today.”

Skating to “Song from a Secret Garden, ” Sebestyen received 58.54 points (32.10/26.44), a season best. “I was very happy at the end of my program, because it was one of my goals to skate a clean short program,” she said. “This was better than in Moscow (at Rostelecom Cup). The jumps were the same, but the spins and the footwork were better. A clean short program was the first step for me."

Fumie Suguri (JPN) finished fourth at 56.05 points. Elena Glebova (EST) is currently ranked fifth (52.28 points).

ICE DANCE

The original dance for the 2009-10 season is the folk/country dance. Belbin and Agosto built on their lead and are ranked ahead of Russia’s Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski and Italians Anna Cappellin and Luca Lanotte.

Belbin and Agosto’s Moldavian dance was energetic. The routine was highlighted by a straight-line lift with changes of position, fast twizzles and smooth footwork.

The reigning World silver medalists earned a season best 60.95 points (29.90 element score/31.05 program component score). With two portions of the competition completed, they have accumulated 100.23 points.

“Today’s original dance felt really good. We really had a great time out there today,” Agosto said. “We felt like we were able to improve on our performance a little bit from China. We only had a week, but we really wanted to keep the energy up a little bit higher and to make it more of a dance.”

Khokhlova and Novitski’s Russian dance scored 49.53 points (21.90/27.63) and were ranked fifth in the OD, but held on to second place overall at 86.47 points. “Although not everything went the way we would have liked it, it still was a positive day,” Novitski said.

Cappellini and Lanotte scored 54.09 points (27.80/26.29), a season best, and were ranked second in this portion of the event. They have now 86.13 points. “We are very happy with our performance. It was very strong, very clean and the crowd was amazing,” commented Lanotte.

Alexandra Zaretski and Roman Zaretski (ISR) are currently ranked fourth at 83.83 points. Kimberly Navarro and Brent Bommentre (USA) finished fifth with an entertaining Brazilian dance (81.47 points).

Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao of China took a commanding lead in the pairs event at Skate America in Lake Placid yesterday. Reigning World champion Evan Lysacek of the United States stood in first place after the men’s short program while Americans Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto danced to an early lead. Skate America is the fifth of six events this season in the Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series. In each event, the skaters are competing for global prize money of $180,000 (U.S.).

THE MEN

Lysacek captured first place in the men’s short program ahead of Florent Amodio of France and Brandon Mroz of the United States, who placed second and third, respectively.

Lysacek delivered a passionate performance ofto “Firebird” to earn 79.17 points (39.62/39.55). “I took a lot of pride skating in my home country tonight, and I really like this program,” Lysacek said. “I was in China the week before last and I had a good first step to the season, but this event is a little different challenge.”

Lyscaek landed a triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination, a triple flip but he cheated the triple Axel and it was downgraded by the technical panel. His three spins were graded level four. “It hasn’t happened in a long time,” Lysacek said about the deduction for the triple Axel. “Honestly, I just slipped and that happens sometimes. I have to be very conscious not to leave a grey area at all. That’s my responsibility.”

Competing in his second senior-level Grand Prix event of his career, Amodio posted a personal best 72.65 (39.90/32.75). “Today it’s a really good result for me to be in second place after the short program at Skate America. I am very happy to have done a good program,” he said. “I’ve had problems with my skates earlier this season but I was able to solve them and to get back to my level of skating.”

The French teenager nailed a beautiful triple Axel, a triple Lutz and a triple Salchow-triple toe loop combination. He earned a level three for both step sequences and a level four for the change foot sit spin. His combination spin was graded a level one by the technical panel.

Mroz went for a quad-triple toe combination, but did a three-turn out of the second jump. He also had to fight for the landing of the triple Axel. The reigning U.S. silver medalist scored 71.40 points (40.90/30.50), setting a season best score. “Today I did definitely better than at my last Grand Prix, which is great,” he said. “I had a few turn outs which is the adrenalin pumping but nevertheless got the job done by the number. It was going to be on home turf today and I just want to rock it hard in the long and give a good show tomorrow.”

Adrian Schultheiss (SWE) is currently ranked fourth. His solid program included a triple Axel and a triple Lutz-triple toeloop combination (67.55 points). Shawn Sawyer (CAN) came in fifth. He landed a triple flip-triple toe loop combination and showed excellent spins, but he doubled the Lutz and stepped out of the triple Axel (65.95 points).

Andrei Lutai (RUS), whose luggage with his skates arrived only a few hours before the competition, finished sixth (60.54 points). 2008 European champion Tomas Verner (CZE) faded to 11th after missing his quad toe attempt and doubling the Axel and the Lutz (55.90 points).

THE PAIRS

Shen and Zhao of China took the lead with a score almost 13 points ahead of the second-place finishers, Ukraine’s Tatiana Volosozhar and Stanislav Morozov. Canada’s Meagan Duhamel and Craig Buntin followed in third.

Performing to “Who Wants to Live Forever,” Shen and Zhao performed a lovely program to score a personal best 74.36 points (41.10 element score/32.96 program component score). It was a nice birthday present for Shen, who celebrated her 31st birthday yesterday. “I think we skated overall better than we did at the Cup of China, although I felt a little tired,” Shen said.

The married couple was easily the class of the field. They hit solid side-by-side triple toe loops, a high triple twist and throw triple loop. The three-time World champions were awarded a level four for their spins, the hand-to-hand lift with difficult variations and a level three for the footwork. Only the backward outside death spiral was a level two.

“Last night, I went to bed at 7.30 in the evening, and today I had to skate the short program at this time! The time difference to China is 13 hours,” Zhao said. “We felt really good and did all our elements clean. We are very happy about that.”

Volosozhar and Morozov collected 61.70 points (35.30/26.40) in their routine to “Dreams Illusions.” They opened the program with side-by-side triple toe loops, but he stepped out of the landing. “Today I made a little error on the toe loop,” admitted Morozov. “Overall it felt a little hard to skate, maybe because of the time change, but it wasn’t bad. Hopefully we’ll skate cleaner tomorrow.”

Volosozhar and Morozov’s program was highlighted by a huge triple twist, a one-armed lift and throw triple loop. Volosozhar and Morozov received a level four for both spins.

Duhamel and Buntin scored a season best 59.64 (33.84/25.80). The Canadians landed a double twist and a triple toe loop in their program to “Hotel California” but their throw triple Lutz was wobbly.

“We had a great start tonight,” Buntin said. “It’s only our second time out with this short program. We did quite a few little technical errors. It gives us something to looking forward to tomorrow.”

Keauna McLaughlin and Rockne Brubaker (USA) finished fourth at 58.4 points. They completed a triple twist and throw triple loop, but she popped the Salchow. Dan Zhang and Hao Zhang (CHN) are standing in fifth place. Dan Zhang doubled the Salchow and their side-by-side spin was out of sync (56.84 points).

ICE DANCE

Belbin and Agosto (USA) too the early lead in ice dance after the compulsory dance, which was the Golden Waltz. Russia’s Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitski and Italians Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte were in second and third place, respectively.

Belbin and Agosto put out a flowing performance and made the difficult steps look easy. The reigning World silver medalists posted a season best 39.28 points (20.22 element score/19.06 program component score).

“The Waltz felt great today. After China (Cup of China), we really wanted to go home and work on just performing more and having more speed and ice coverage. So we felt really good about how we skated and we are happy to see that our scores went up a little bit,” Agosto said.

Khokhlova and Novitski earned a season best a score best score of 36.94 (18.96/17.98). “We are for the very first time in our career at Skate America, and this is also quite interesting for us. We aren’t so frequent guests in America, and so we were a little surprised that we even have fans here,” Novitski said. “The second competition is always easier. Obviously you already got some experience and it should be getting easier with each competition. So it was easier here (than at their first event Cup of China) and we skated more freely. It’s a plus for us that we had the Waltz in both our events.”

Cappellini and Lanotte scored 32.04 points (16.90/16.14). “The performance was good, but not perfect. We had a couple of small mistakes, but the judges are sitting so close to the ice and they see everything,” Lanotte noted. “We know that we can do much better. We made a lot of changes to our skating in our work after switching coaches. (New coach) Muriel Zazoui works in a different way. We have improved our skating skills.”

Alexandra Zaretski and Roman Zaretski (ISR) came in fourth at 31.93 points. Kimberly Navarro and Brent Bommentre (USA) finished fifth (30.19 points).

NBC Sports and Universal Sports will present 14 hours of live coverage this weekend of the 2009 Skate America, the fifth stop on the 2009 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series. Reigning World champions Yu-Na Kim and Evan Lysacek headline the ladies and men's fields, respectively.

Skate America is being held Nov. 12-15 in Lake Placid, N.Y. where skaters from Team USA will compete against athletes from 18 other countries, all vying for points and prize money. Coverage on NBC Sports begins Sunday at 2 p.m. ET and coverage on Universal Sports begins Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET.

NBC Sports' broadcast will feature live coverage of the ladies free skate and next-day coverage of the men's free skate. Universal Sports will carry live coverage of the men's, pairs and dance finals and the men's, ladies, pairs and dance short programs.

NBC Sports Olympic figure skating broadcast team of Tom Hammond, Scott Hamilton, Sandra Bezic, and Andrea Joyce will call the action.

U.S. TEAM

LADIES: Competing from Team USA are 2008 World junior champion and two-time U.S. silver medalist Rachael Flatt, 2008 U.S. junior champion Alexe Gilles and 2007 U.S. silver medalist Emily Hughes. Flatt finished fourth at last year's Skate America and this is Gilles debut on the Grand Prix circuit. This is the fourth appearance at Skate America for Hughes, who came in fourth at this event in 2007.

Sasha Cohen was scheduled to compete at the event. She withdrew earlier this week. See our article with Cohen’s announcement.

MEN: Two-time U.S. and reigning World champion Evan Lysacek will attempt to win his first Skate America title in six tries. Lysacek won the bronze medal at last year's event. Joining Lysacek is 2007 U.S. silver medalist Ryan Bradley, who's making his third appearance at the event, and 2009 U.S. silver medalist Brandon Mroz.

PAIRS: Reigning two-time U.S. champions Keauna McLaughlin and Rockne Brubaker have medaled at every Junior Grand Prix and Grand Prix event they have entered and will look to continue the trend at Skate America, where they won silver last year. 2007 U.S. champions and 2008 U.S. bronze medalists Brooke Castile and Ben Okolski return to the Grand Prix Series for the first time since 2005.

ICE DANCING: Five-time U.S. champions and reigning World silver medalists Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto will look to claim their fourth Skate America victory in Lake Placid. Competing alongside Belbin and Agosto will be 2009 U.S. bronze medalists Kimberly Navarro and Bren Bommentre and 2009 World junior, U.S. junior and Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final champions Madison Chock and Greg Zuerlein.

INTERNATIONAL STARS

Reigning World champion Yu-Na Kim is the heavy favorite for gold in Lake Placid. Fumie Suguri (JPN) and Julia Sebestyn (HUN) are also in the ladies field.

The men’s event also will feature Tomáš Verner from the Czech Republic and rising French star Florent Amodio.

The battle for gold in the pairs event will likely be between the two Chinese teams Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao and Dan Zhang and Hao Zhang. The American will also have to vie against Canada’s Meagan Duhamel and Craig Buntin.

In ice daace, reigning European champion Russia's Jana Khokhlova and Sergei Novitksi and Italy's Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte (fifth at European and 10th in the World last year) should be in the medal hunt.

The competition will be broadcast on NBC Nov. 15 from 2-4 P.M.

Universal Sports, available in more than 56 million homes, will broadcast 12 hours of live coverage of Skate America from Lake Placid. Details below (all times ET):

Friday 11/13
Pairs Short (Live) - 7:30 p.m.-9 p.m. ET Men's Short (Live) - 9-11 p.m. ET

Saturday 11/14
Original Dance (Live) – 2-3:30 p.m. ET
Pairs Free (Live) - 4-5:30 p.m. ET
Ladies Short (Live) – 7-9 p.m. ET
Men's Free (Live) - 9-11 p.m. ET

Sunday 11/15
Dance Free (Live) – 4:30-6 p.m. ET
Ladies Free – 7-9 p.m. ET Repeat of NBC Sports show

In Canada, CBC is broadcasting coverage of the competition. Its broadcast schedule is as follow:

Saturday 11/14 1-2 P.M. and 6 P.M. (Live)
Sunday, 11/15 2-6 P.M. (Live ONT, Delayed West)
Sunday 11/16 12-1 A.M. (Local)

Sasha Cohen, the 2006 Olympic silver medalist, three-time World medalist and six-time U.S. medalist, announced today she will not compete at Skate America because of an injury. She will be replaced by 2007 U.S. silver medalist Emily Hughes.

“I have been battling this injury for a while,” Cohen said. “After meeting with my orthopedic surgeon, it was determined that in order for me to fully recover, I should not compete this week.”

Cohen withdrew from her first Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series assignment, Trophée Eric Bompard, in early October after being diagnosed with tendonitis in her right calf. “I’m very disappointed I won’t be able to compete in Lake Placid,” Cohen said. “I’ve been going to physical therapy and training with every intention of being healthy and ready for this competition.”

Hughes, who finished seventh at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games, last competed at Skate America in 2007, when she finished fourth. Last season in her only Grand Prix event -- Trophée Eric Bompard -- she placed ninth. She later withdrew from nationals due to an ankle injury. It was the second straight year she pulled out of the U.S. Championships.

In October, Hughes placed second at the North Atlantic Regional Championships. She won the short program and finished second in the free skate. Samantha Cesario edged out Hughes for the gold by a mere 0.07.

“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to compete for the fourth time at Skate America,” Hughes said. “It is especially exciting to be representing the United States in my home state of New York and at such an historic Olympic setting as Lake Placid.”

Cohen said she will continue her physical therapy and training, with the goal of competing at the 2010 U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Spokane, Wash, Jan. 14-24, 2010. Cohen announced in May her intention to return to competitive skating following a three-year absence. Her last competition was the 2006 World Figure Skating Championships in Calgary, Canada, where she earned the bronze medal.

“Life was nice and easy, but I miss having a challenge to step up to,” the two-time Olympian told IFS last spring while on tour with Stars on Ice. “I felt like I had one more Olympics in me. … It will be my last chance and I did not want to let it pass me by.”

Cohen has been training in Lake Arrowhead, Calif., under the direction of Rafael Arutunian, a former coach of two-time Olympic medalist Michelle Kwan.

Miki Ando of Japan came out on top in the ladies event at the NHK Trophy in Nagano, Japan this weekend while Brian Joubert was golden in the men’s discipline. Qing Pang and Jian Tong of China skated to victory in the pairs event while ice dancers Meryl Davis and Charlie White proved gold is their color as they collected their second medal of that hue this fall in the Grand Prix Series.

THE LADIES

There was a lot of shuffling in the standings in the ladies discipline. Russia’s Alena Leonova won the free skate to surge from fifth to second while overnight leader Ashley Wagner (USA) slipped to third. Ando stood in second place following the short program.

Ando also ranked second in the free skate with a score of 106.33 point (48.93 element score/58.40 program component score). She complied a competition mark of 162.55 points, which was enough to push her to the top of the podium for the second time this season. “I stood in the middle of the podium for the first time in Japan [at a Grand Prix event], but I’m not really happy, because my free skating wasn’t competitive,” Ando said.

The 2007 World champion had to overcome a shaky start when she under-rotated and two-footed her opening triple Lutz attempt in her “Cleopatra” routine. Ando went on to complete a double Axel-double toe loop combination, a big triple loop and triple Salchow and a triple Lutz. She fell on the back end of an attempted triple toe-double loop combination. The reigning World bronze medalist received a level four for the flying combination spin, the flying sit spin and the spiral sequence.

“I am pleased to be in the Final, and I will train hard for it and try to become stronger mentally,” Ando said. “I’m looking forward to the finale in Tokyo, so I can show the people in Japan a better performance.”

Leonova turned in an entertaining program to “Chicago” that featured five clean triple jumps, but she stepped out of the triple toe-triple toe combination and her triple Lutz was wobbly. The flying combination spin was graded a level four, while the combination spin and the spiral sequence got a level three. The World junior champion collected 108.51 points (57.07/51.44), setting a season best and accumulating 160.85 points to move up from fifth to second.

“I am very pleased with my free skating. I almost did the triple toe-triple toe combination,” she said. “I just stepped out of it, but I’m still very happy, because this is the first time that I got credit for it in competition.

“If I can go to the Grand Prix Final, it would be another chance for me to present myself, and I want to make up for the mistakes that I made in the short program, like some of the levels.”

Wagner started with a shaky triple flip-double toe combination into her routine to “Polovetsian Dances” and then hit a triple loop and double Axel. She struggled with her jumps in the second half of the program, stumbling on a triple Salchow, a double Axel (in sequence with a triple flip) and singling her Lutz. Wagner picked up some points for solid spins that got level four and threes.

The two-time World Jjnior bronze medalist scored 99.45 points (45.61/53.84) with a competition mark of 155.99 points. “It wasn’t the best program, but I still accomplished some of the goals that I wanted to accomplish here,” Wagner said. “I’m on the podium, so I’m pretty happy with that overall. Going through the program, I think I just was a little bit tired. I’ve been on the road for three weeks. By the time I got to the long program it’s been a long trip.”

Following the Rostelecom Cup in Moscow, the skater hadn’t returned home but trained in Austria before coming to Japan.

Yukari Nakano (JPN) slipped from third to fourth place with 152.35 points. She completed three clean triples and strong spins, but she doubled the Lutz, a triple flip was cheated and she fell on an under-rotated triple Salchow. European champion Laura Lepistö (FIN) came in fifth after doubling a Lutz and a Salchow and singling a loop.

Ando collected the maximum of 30 points from her two wins in the Grand Prix series and has qualified for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. Leonova earned 13 points in Nagano and now has 24. Wagner (11) points collected 24 points as well, but is ranked behind Leonova because of a tie breaker.

Sarah Meier (SUI) withdrew from the ladies event after the warm up due to an acute inflammation of her right Achilles tendon. She stood in 8th place following the short program.

THE MEN

Joubert earned a season best score of 147.35 (70.65 element score/76.70 program component score) and racked up a total score of 232.70 to win the gold medal. “I am very happy about this competition. I’ve never won NHK Trophy,” Joubert said. “We’ve worked a lot a lot, but we had only one week and I wasn’t completely ready. Winning this competition is great, but I still have a lot to work on.”

Johnny Weir (USA) moved up from third place to second and newcomer Michal Brezina from the Czech Republic came from sixth place to grab the bronze medal.

Overnight leader Joubert skated last and knew what his competitors had done and what he needed to do. The three-time and reigning European champion opened his routine to “Ancient Land” by Ronan Hardiman with a solid quadruple toe loop followed by a triple Salchow. He stumbled on the triple Axel but recovered to reel off two triple flips (one in combination with a double toe), a triple Lutz, triple loop-double toe and triple Salchow-double toe. He received a negative grade of execution on both flips because of the take off from the wrong edge.

His flying sit and change sit spin were graded a level four while the footwork and the combination spin were a level two.

Weir, the reigning ISU Grand Prix Final bronze medalist, scored a season best 139.35 points (68.15/71.20) and ranked third in the free skate. His competition mark of 217.70 was enough to move him up a spot and claim the silver medal. He edged Brezina by just 0.22 points. “I was very happy that I was able to push through this week. It is definitely a medal well earned,” Weir commented.

Weir earned a level four for two of his spins and a level three for both step sequences. He landed a triple flip, a solid triple Axel-triple toe combination, another triple Axel and three more triples in his lyrical routine titled “Fallen Angel,” which is set to music from the movies “City of Angels” and “Lady Caliph.”

The only major glitch was a popped loop jump. “Of course there were mistakes that shouldn’t be made later in the season. It [competing in spite of illness] will help me immensely in the season, because I had this very stressful and difficult situation behind me and I came out with a medal,” Weir said.

Brezina stood in sixth place after the short program and turned a playful program to “An American in Paris” by George Gershwin. Brezina got a personal best of 146.68 points (78.78/67.90) and totaled 217.48 points (personal best as well) to jump on to the podium in the first senior-level Grand Prix event of his career. “This is my first senior Grand Prix, and I’m very happy with my medal. I skated almost clean in both programs, which is what I wanted. I hope that I can continue to skate like this in my next Grand Prix, Skate Canada,” Brezina explained.

The reigning World Junior silver medalist nailed six clean triples, including two triple Axels, that all received positive grade of execution marks from the panel of judges. The Czech skater also earned a level four for two spins and a level three for the footwork and the flying sit spin. I knew this (NHK Trophy) was a difficult Grand Prix.,” Brezina said. “I didn’t expect a medal, but I thought of what my father always says, ‘Everybody can beat everybody.’”

Daisuke Takahashi (JPN) finished fourth. He landed five triples, but he stumbled on a quad toe loop attempt, missed a triple loop and toe loop that were downgraded as well (214.29 points).

Jeremy Abbott (USA) plummeted from second to fifth. His routine contained four clean triple jumps, but he crashed on a quad toe attempt, a triple flip and a triple Axel (208.45 points).

Joubert picked up 15 points for his win and collected 24 overall. He will now have to wait and see if that is enough to get him to the ISU Grand Prix Final. Weir (13 points) now has 22 overall and also will know only after the last two events if he qualified for Tokyo. Brezina (11 points) will compete again in two weeks at Skate Canada.

THE PAIRS

Pang and Tong of China scored a personal best 199.65 points to win gold in Nagano. Russia’s Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov claimed the silver medal, and the bronze went to Rena Inoue and John Baldwin (USA).

Pang and Tong turned in a dynamic performance to “The Impossible Dream” from the musical “The Man of La Mancha.” The reigning ISU Grand Prix Final champions hit their opening side-by-side double Axel-double Axel sequence, the triple toe loop, a high triple twist, throw triple loop and Salchow. The 2006 World champions were awarded a level four for their side-by-side spin, the death spiral, the pair spin, spiral sequence and all three lifts. They collected 132.35 points (69.63 element score/62.72 program component score), a personal best.

They moved up one spot to take the gold in their second Grand Prix event this season. “We achieved a new personal best score today, and that makes us very happy. We skated very well, but there are still some things we can improve. In the three weeks before the Grand Prix Final we will work on solving these issues and then we want to skate our very best there,” Tong said.

Skating to “Valse Sentimentale” by Peter Tchaikovski and to “On the Blue Danube” by Johann Strauss, Kavaguti and Smirnov went for a quadruple throw Salchow, but Kavaguti took a bad fall. The Japanese-born skater needed a medical break before she was able to continue the performance.

“I dislocated my shoulder in the fall and it didn’t go back so easily, therefore we had to stop the performance,” Kavaguti said. “I just thought that I have to finish the program, but now to be honest, it does really hurt now. I skated the program just with my spirit.”

As if nothing had happened, the couple then reeled off side-by side triple toe loops, a triple twist, a double Axel-double Axel sequence and a throw triple loop. The European silver medalists received a level four for their spins, their lifts and the forward inside death spiral.

They posted a season best of 124.15 points (65.39 element score/61.76 program component score). They received a one-point deduction for the fall and two-point deduction for the interruption of the program. Kavaguti and Smirnov totaled 193.05 points and slipped from first to second place.

The couple was forced to withdraw from the exhibition gala.

Inoue and Baldwin’s program to Peter Tchaikovski’s "Piano Concerto No. 1" included side-by-side triple toe loops, a sequence consisting of two double Axels, a throw triple loop and difficult lifts. Only their triple twist was messy and Inoue fell on the throw triple Axel. The 2006 Four Continents champions picked up 106.26 points (59.14/49.12). In addition to the deduction for the fall, they lost a point because of a time violation.

They moved up from fourth to third at 158.78 points overall. “From the beginning of our program we were able to enjoy our skating,” Inoue noted. “Now we have to go back and prepare for our nationals. This will be the height of our season.”

Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett (USA), who stood in third place after the short program, came in fourth after she fell on the throw triple Lutz and he singled an Axel. They completed a throw triple loop and a triple twist (151.43 points).

Mylene Brodeur and John Mattatal (CAN) moved up one spot to fifth. They produced side-by-side triple toe loops, a triple twist and throw triple Salchow (150.71 points).

Pang and Tong pocketed 15 points and have now qualified for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final with the maximum of 30 points. Kavaguti and Smirnov (13 points) most likely will have qualified with 26 points. Inoue/Baldwin (11 points) earned 20 points overall.

ICE DANCE

Davis and White (USA) led from start to finish and won by a 25-point margin of victory over Sinead Kerr and John Kerr of Great Britain who took the silver. Canadians Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier earned the bronze.

Davis and White put out a captivating performance of their powerful “Phantom of the Opera” program. The routine was highlighted by a straight line-rotational lift with many changes of position by Davis, a straight line lift with him skating backwards on one foot while she balanced on his leg, fast twizzles and intricate footwork.

The crowd awarded the couple a standing ovation. The judging gave them 100.79 points (49.50 element score/program component score). Overall the couple racked up 201.97 points and took their second Grand Prix gold medal this season.

“Sometimes it is a little bit tough being the last event the day after everyone else is finished competing. I think we all were able to make the most of it. It was a really good event for all of us. For Meryl and myself, we skated really well, technically speaking we were able to emote,” White said. “At this point, we are getting pretty comfortable with it (the program). The Olympics are still ways away, but I think that we should be able to have a really great program by then.”

Kerr and Kerr produced innovative lifts such as a lift with her doing a handstand on his knee and a straight line lift in a low position. As usual, their inverse lift where Sinead Kerr lifts her brother, was a crowd favorite. However, Sinead Kerr was a little off-balance in the twizzles that were graded a level one. The diagonal step sequence received a level two as well, while the lifts and the spin were a level three. The sister-and-brother team scored 86.16 points (43.00/43.16) which added up to 177.73 points overall.

The Scots claimed their first silver medal on the Grand Prix circuit and the second medal this season. They had won two bronze medals last year. “We were pleased with our technical score; it improved since our last Grand Prix. I did a few silly mistakes. Hopefully that can be improved on for the next one,” Sinead Kerr noted.

John Kerr added: “It would be great (to qualify for the Grand Prix Final for the first time). I think it kind of does depend on the way some other results go, but obviously if we could make it to the Grand Prix Final, it would be an amazing achievement for us. We always want to do everything that’s in figure skating and Grand Prix Final is something that we’ve never done before.”

Crone and Poirier completed interesting lifts including a stationary lift with him spinning on one foot in a deep position, level-four twizzles and a serpentine step sequence that received a level three. The Canadians posted a season best score of 84.51 points (43.20/41.31) and claimed bronze at 165.89 points.

It was the second Grand Prix medal for this young team. They were silver medalists at Skate Canada in 2008. “This was a much stronger performance of our free dance from the last Grand Prix. There are still a few things that we need to fix, and the level of performance can always improve so that’s what we’ll look to work on towards our next competition,” Poirier said.

Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev (RUS) finished fourth with a powerful performance of “Adagio” (160.01 points). Xintong Huang and Xun Zheng (CHN) skated to “Adagio” as well and moved up from sixth to fifth place at 154.90 points.

Davis and White took 15 points and are qualified for the Grand Prix Final with the maximum of 30 points from their two wins. Kerr and Kerr (13 points) now have 24 points from their two events and have to wait and see if they will qualify for the Final for the first time in their career. Crone and Poirier (11 points) collected 20 points in their two events.

Brian Joubert and Ashley Wagner took the lead after the short programs at NHK Trophy today in Nagano, Japan. In pairs, Russia’s Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov captured the lead while Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White are ranked first in ice dance.

France's Joubert put down a strong short program to skate into first ahead of U.S. skaters Jeremy Abbott and Johnny Weir who followed in second and third, respectively.

Joubert earned 85.35 points (46.80 element score/38.55 program component score), significantly improving his score from the Trophée Bompard. “I am very happy with today’s performance," he said. "It was difficult for me after my first Grand Prix. I was very disappointed there, and it was important for me to do this kind of program today."

The French star nailed a strong quadruple-triple toe loop combination and a triple Axel in his fast-paced routine to “Rise” by Safri Duo, but he did a three-turn out of his triple Lutz. The European champion went on to complete two level four spins and level three footwork. "This gives me confidence for the rest of the competition,” Joubert said.

Abbott opened his elegant performance to “A Day in the Life” by The Beatles with a solid triple flip-triple toe loop combination followed by a triple Axel and triple Lutz. The reigning ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final champion was awarded a level four for the change foot sit spin and the flying sit spin and a level three for the combination spin and both step sequences.

Abbott scored 83.00 points (45.40/37.60) and surpassed his previous personal best of 78.26 points clearly. “I was very nervous coming in, because it’s a lot of new firsts for me,” the 2009 U.S. champion admitted. “This is the first full competition I’ve done (this season) and I have a new coach and a lot of new things happen to my life. So I was very anxious to see how it would turn out. My training has been going very well and I felt that I just kept everything the same (like in practice).”

Skating to a program he titled “I Love You, I Hate You,” Weir landed a triple Lutz-triple toe loop, a triple Axel and triple flip. He earned up a level four for two spins and a level three for the combination spin and the circular footwork to post a season best score of 78.35 points (41.70/36.65). “After my season premiere in Russia (Rostelecom Cup) just two weeks ago I was very angry with myself and the way I’ve skated there. So when I went home in the short period between the two competitions I worked very hard to change my mentality.

“When I went on the airplane I got very sick and I’m proud that I could still push through this situation and have a fever and still compete and really show the level of training that I’ve done this summer.”

Daisuke Takahashi (JPN), who competes in his first Grand Prix event since 2007 since missing the last season due to injury, landed a triple flip-triple toe loop combination, a triple Axel and a somewhat shaky triple Lutz, but went down in the circular footwork (78.18 points). Takahiko Kozuka (JPN) completed at triple Lutz-triple toeloop combination, a triple flip and three level-four spins, but crashed on the triple Axel.

THE LADIES

Wagner is having a terrific start to her season. She collected silver at Rostelcom Cup in Moscow almost two weeks ago. In Nagano, Wagner skated solidly and capitalized on mistakes by competitors. She won the ladies short program ahead of Japan’s Miki Ando (who won the Grand Prix event in Russia) and Yukari Nakano.

Wagner, a two-time World junior bronze medalist, collected 56.54 points (29.62 element score/26.92 program component score). Her routine set to “Once Upon a Time in America” featured a triple flip-double toe loop combination, a triple Lutz and two level-four spins, but her double Axel was cheated and downgraded.

“I am pretty happy with my short program. Obviously first place is a good place to be, but it was not my best performance. My double Axel was downgraded. That was a little silly of me, but tomorrow in the long program I’ll be able to redeem myself and do a clean double Axel like a senior lady should be able to do,” Wagner said.

Ando is in a close second. The 2007 World champion scored 56.22 points (28.70/28.52).

She opened her program to a modern version of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s “Requiem” with a triple Lutz-double loop, but two-footed the Lutz. She fell on the triple flip, but landed the double Axel. Ando was awarded a level four for the combination spin and a level three for the flying sit spin and the spiral sequence, but the layback spin was just a level one.

“The short program was a disaster, not because of the errors on the jumps, but because I couldn’t show the emotion,” Ando said. “I wanted to do a triple-triple combination, but my coach and I decided that I should to a triple-double, and it felt to me like something was missing and therefore I felt weaker. The triple-triple is a key point for winning this season and I’ve done many times.”

Nakano also had trouble with a jump. She under-rotated her triple Lutz and stepped out of it and had no combination. The Japanese skater recovered to hit a triple flip, a double Axel and showed beautiful spins. All three spins received a level four. Nakano earned 54.92 points (28.40/26.52).

“I couldn’t repeat my seasons best from the Grand Prix in France. The mistake I made was very unfortunate. The other elements were good, and this is a good lead for tomorrow,” said Nakano who claimed the bronze in Paris. “Today is today, I’ll forget about it. I’ll start from scratch in the free skating and I’ll make sure to get all the points that I can get.”

European champion Laura Lepistö (FIN) finished fourth after popping the second jump in her planned triple toe-triple toe combination, but she produced difficult spins, a triple loop and double Axel (53.64 points). World junior champion Alena Leonova (RUS) hit a triple flip-double toe combination but fell on a triple Lutz to come in fifth at 52.34 points.

ICE DANCE

The compulsory dance at the NHK Trophy was the Tango Romantica. Davis and White danced to the lead ahead of Great Britain’s Sinead Kerr and John Kerr and Ekaterina Bobrovaand Dmitri Soloviev.

Davis and White put out a solid Tango Romantica that earned them a season best score of 38.09 (18.90 element score/19.19 program component score). “We felt like it was a good dance today. It was improved since Russia. We tried to add a little bit of romantic flair. We worked on a few things technically and performance-wise since Russia,” Davis said.

Kerr and Kerr skated also well and picked up 35.04 points (17.42/17.62), but didn’t achieve a new seasons best. “I think the Waltz had a bit of time to improve because we did the Waltz in Finlandia (Trophy) as well, so we improved the Waltz for France (Trophée Bompard). For this competition, we felt technically we did it (the Tango) well, but because it was our first time out with it we probably didn’t present as much as we could to. So that leaves something to work on for the future. We were careful to make it tidy,” Sinead Kerr said.

Bobrova and Soloviev produced a nice Tango as well to score 31.72 (16.54/15.18) points. “This is our second competition of the season, we did a competition in Russia before and also did the Tango there. This is our first Grand Prix event this year and we had a nice start as we skated the Tango quite well. We’ll improve it for our next Grand Prix, Skate Canada,” Soloviev explained.

Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier (CAN) finished fourth at 30.51 points. They achieved a seasons best as did Anna Zadarozhniuk and Sergei Verbillo (UKR), who came in fifth with 29.67 points.

THE PAIRS

Kavaguti and Smirnov grabbed the lead in the pairs ahead of Qing Pang and Jian Tong of China. Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett (USA) came in third.

The couple from St. Petersburg earned a season best of 68.90 points (38.94 element score/29.96 program component score). “We were very active in these past one and a half weeks after the Rostelecom Cup,” said Smirnov. “We wanted to make up for the weaknesses we showed there. We skated quite well today, but it wasn’t ideal yet. We still had some problems with our elements, not all of them were as clean as we wanted them to be."

Performing to “The Swan” by Camille Saint-Saens, Kavaguti and Smirnov's routine was highlighted by their superb side-by-side triple toe loops, a throw triple loop and a triple twist. The reigning European silver medalists were awarded a level four for their spins and the lift while the death spiral and the footwork were graded a level three.

Pang and Tong earned a level four for their spins and the lift. The reigning Grand Prix Final champions picked up 67.30 points (37.74/30.56). “After the Grand Prix in Russia we made a little change to our footwork, because it was a level two in Russia, and now we got a level three, which makes us happy,” Tong said.

Their lyrical program to “The Pearlfishers” by Georges Bizet opened with a mistake as Tong put his hand down while the couple performed with a side-by-side triple toe loops. "We had a small mistake today, the landing of my triple toe loop was not good, hopefully it will be better tomorrow,” Tong said.

They recovered nicely to reel off a high triple twist and throw triple loop and are in position to strike gold.

The Americans were pleased with their performance. “This is our first Grand Prix ever and we felt great. We just switched to this program about a month ago,” rarrett said. “We started out with a different program earlier and it wasn’t quite working for us, so we switched to Firebird and I think it suits us much better. It was a good start today, but there is still a lot of work to do.”

Denney and Barrett skated first out of the eight pairs. Their dynamic routine to “Firebird” included a triple twist, triple toe loop, throw triple Lutz and a level four spin. The backwards outside death spiral received only a level one. The U.S. silver medalists scored 55.20 points (33.08/22.12).

Rena Inouea an John Baldwin (USA) are currently ranked fourth. They completed a throw triple loop and a double twist, but Inoue fell on the side by side double Axel (52.52 points). Ksenia Krasilnikova and Konstantin Berzmaternykh (RUS) finished fifth at 51.32 points. They landed a double twist and a throw triple flip, but Krasilnikova stumbled on the side by side triple Salchow.