Cohen Wins Short Program, In Golden Position at U.S. Championships Options

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Sasha Cohen gave an inspiring performance to take the lead after short program at the 2006 U.S. Championships. Cohen hit a triple-double combination, performed her trademark spirals to perfection, and sold her elegant and artistic performance to take the lead. She scored 65.15 points. Cohen’s performance was particularly impressive as she had been sick with the flu prior to the event. “I really enjoyed the performance tonight, and I’ve had a whole week of unknowns being in bed with the flu, so I think I spent the majority of the past five days in bed," she said. "I am really happy that I have been getting better, and I am really well trained and this is definitely half as good as I have been doing in practice.”

Emily Hughes skated one of her best performances in recent memory to take second with 59.11 points while Bebe Liang, the last skater of the night, came in third with 58.82. Kimmie Meissner, who bobbled her triple lutz-triple toe to open her program (she had trouble on the landing of the first jump and then took an extra step before attempting the next jump) was in fourth, compiling 55.03 points. Alissa Czisny had a disappointing skate. She fell twice and landed in fifth place. Czisny, who suffered a two-point deduction for her falls, scored 51.01.

Emily Hughes (below, left) is in second place after the short program while Sasha Cohen sits securely in first place. Photos by Susan D. Russell