Live Blog: 2007 Wolds Figure Skating Championship Ladies Short Program
This is my live report on the 2007 Worlds Figure Skating Championship in Tokyo. I will be reporting live on the ladies short program begining at 4:00 a.m. CST (2:00 a.m. PST and 5:00 a.m. EST).
The warm up for Group 5 is begining, they have a total of 6 minutes, all five skaters are on the ice. They are showing Midoriti Ito ight now who is commentating for the Japanese network.
Here we go, warm up is now over up first is Kiira Korpi of Finland
Kiira Korpi - FIN
Opens her program with a nice 3L-2T combination. footwork into her 3F, steps out of her landing. nice layback spin. Her spiral sequence has great stretch. Her straight line step sequence works well with the music. She attempts a 2A, but only manages to do a waltz jump. It is followed by her flying sit spin and than into a combination spin, that leads to her final pose. Her TE score 25.97 and PC at 23.68 a total of 49.63 currently ranked 2nd.
Joanne Carter - AUS
Joanne opens her program with a 3F-2T combination, somewhat leaning forward on the landing. Skates with a series of 3 turns into her triple toe, clean. Nice flying camel spin. Nice speed on her spiral sequence. She completes her 2A, now working on her straight line step sequence turning on both directions. Now working on her combination spin which includes various position, closing with her layback spin into a bielman. She ends her program slightly behind the music. TE score 28.04, PC score 20.42, Total score 48.46, currently ranked 3rd in the short program.
Yan Liu - CHN
Yan Liu is on the ice. She opens her pogram with her combination jump 3Z-2T, clean. Her foot work into a 3L shaky on the landing but pulls it off. Her flying camel spin with variation in positions. Gorgeous 2A, light and easy. Her straight line step sequence well timed with the music. Her next element is the combination spin, slow but has great positions. Beautiful spiral sequence with great extension of the free leg. Closing her progam with her layback spin. TE score 24.85, PC score 21.74, Total of 46.59. Currently ranked in 4th place.
Mira Leung - CAN
Mira is next, sakting to ‘The Pink Phanter’. She opens her program with her combination spin. Followed by her 3Z-2L combination, nicely done. Her footwork into her 3F, clean. Nice positions in her layback spin. She goes into her flying back camel spin. Nice stretch on her spiral sequence, but almost loses her balance. Pulls off the 2A, looks like it might of been cheated. Combination spin kind of slow, but has nice positions. Her last element is her circular step sequence which works well with the music. ‘I like this short program from Mira’. TE score 26.17, PC score 20.88, Total of 47.05. Currently ranked in 4th place. which I don’t agree, but ok.
Valentina Marchei - ITA
Valentina is on the ice. She opens her program with a 3Z-2T, 3Z looks to be double footed. Nice 2A. Her combination spin with change of foot has nice speed. She is skating with great speed and into her 3S, a little shaky on the landing. Great extension and speed on her spiral sequence. Nice centered layback spin. Lots of energy in her straight line step sequence with turns in both directions. Her final element is the flying sit spit with change of edge. Falls on her bum right at the end. The crowd laughs, it was kind of cute. Let’s see if she will receive a deduction for it. TE score 29.39, PC score 23.49, Total of 51.88. Currently ranked 1st in the short program.
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On the ice right now is Group 6 warming up.
Tugba Karademir - TUR
Tugba opens her program with her a 3T, steps out of the landing. Nice flow and speed into her 3S, has the same problem falls out of her landing doesn’t do a combination. Nice flying camel spin. Great extensions on her spiral sequence. Completes the 2A cleanly. Nice centered spin on her layback. Circular step sequence working well with the music highlights. Closing her program with some nice positions on her combination spins. TE score 21.91, PC score 19.88, Total score 41.79. Currently ranked 10th in the short program.
Carolina Kostner - ITA
Ms. Carolina is on the ice. She opens her program with a nice 3F-3T combination. Nice 3Z, bot jump passes had great speed. Goes into a clean 2A. Nice footwork in her circular step sequence. Nice flying back camel spin, lacking speed. Love the music she is skating too, has great positions on her spiral sequence. Her combination spin with change of foot, traveling a bit. Closes her program with her layback spin. Beautiful and solid program from Carolina. TE score 38.38, PC score 28.77, Total score 67.15. Currently ranked in 1st place. A new PB for Carolina.
Idora Hegel - CRO
Idora is on the ice and she opens her program with a 2Z-2T combination. footwork into a clean 3L. Nice speed on her layback spin. Nice extension of the free leg on her spirals. Spread eagle into her 2A, clean. Flying camel spin and into her circular step sequence. Closing her program with her combination spin, lacking speed. TE score 24.37, PC score 20.54, total score 44.91. Currently ranked 9th in the short program.
Elena Glebova - EST
17 year old Elena Glebova is on the ice, opening her program with a 3Z, falling off the landing edge. Nice speed in her spiral sequence. She completes a nice 3T-3T combination jump. Nice layback spin with great speed and well centered. She singles a planed 2A. Nice speed and variation of position in her combination spins. Her last element is her step sequence, kind of slow and simple. TE score 25.86, PC score 20.24, total score 46.10. Currently ranked in 8th in the short program.
Elene Gedevanishvili - GEO
Elene another 17 year old skater, opens her program with 3Z, nice height but falls on the landing. Planed 3F, turned into a double, but manages to add a 3T for the combination. Nice positions on her flying spin. Great extension and speed on her spiral sequence. Beautiful 2A and into her layback spin with great speed and positions. Nice straight line step sequence. Closes her program with her combination spin. Great speed and well centered. TE score 30.40, PC score 24.57, Total score 53.97. Currently ranked 2nd.
Artina Martinova - RUS
Artina opens her program with into a nice 3Z-2T combination. Nice height on the 3F. Clean 2A. Nice extensions on he spiral sequence. Nice variation of positions in her combination spins. Good speed on her circular step sequence. Flying camel spin, traveling a bit. Closes her program with a nice strong layback spin. TE score 31.81, PC score 22.68, Total score 54.69. Currently ranked in 2nd place.
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Group 7 will be on the ice for their warm up after a break while they flood the ice (BRB, I need coffee). Here we go, Group 7 is on the ice warming up. “We have some of the big names and contenders in this group. “Will Joannie do a triple-triple in the short program? Will Kimmie show us why she is defending World Champion? Or will Yu-Na out shine all of them?”
Joannie Rochette - CAN
Joannie is up first, she opens her program with a 3F-2T combination, leaning a little forward on the 3F. 3Z also leaning forward on the landing. Flying sit spin, little bit of traveling. Nice clean 2A. Beautiful positions in her layback spin. Nice straight line step sequence. OMG she looses her balance causing her to fall. ‘Oh no’. Nice speed and extensions on her spiral sequence. Her combination spins has some nice variations. She looks dissapointed. It was not a clean skate for her considering some of the top names are still to come. TE score 26.73, PC score 24.12, Total 49.85. Currently ranked in 6th.
Kimmie Meissner - USA
Defending World Champion Kimmie Meissner is up, she is sporting a nice simple black dress. She opens her program with a solid 3Z-3T combination. Nice edge work into her 3F, clean with lots of speed. She goes into her layback spin. Her spiral sequence still needs more work, but better than Nationals for sure. Clean and easy 2A. Nice variations on her flying spin. Good flow on her straight line step sequence. Closes her program with a solid combination spin. “Great performance from Kimmie. I think it’s her best one this season and her presentation skills did improve from Nationals.” TE score 36.38, PC 28.29, Total 64.67. Currently ranked 2nd place. It’s a new PB for Kimmie.
Yu-Na Kim - KOR
Yu-Na is on the ice. She opens her program with a nice and easy 3F-3T combination. Beautiful spiral sequence with lots of speed and extension. Nice height in her death drop. Nice edge work into a beautiful 3Z, great speed out of the jump. Nice footwork in her straight line step sequence, using the music well. Beautiful layback spin, well centered and with speed. Nice ina bauer into a 2A. Finishing her program with a solid combination spin. The crowd is on its feet. “I like this program from Yu-Na, she really sells it considering she is only 16 years old.” TE score 41.49, PC 30.46, Total 71.95. WOW. Currently ranked 1st place. A new PB for Yu-Na.
Julia Sebestyen - HUN
Julia is up, she opens her program with a nice 3F. Hands down on the 3Z before adding the 2T for her combination. Slow on the flying camel spin. Nice extension of her free leg on the spiral sequence. Clean 2A. Nice layback position. Her cicular step sequence has nice energy. Her last element is the combination spin. “It wa s a solid skate for her standards, she is happy even with the mistake on combination jump.” TE score 33.10, PC score 26.88, Total score 59.98. Currently ranked 4th place.
Yukari Nakano - JPN
Yukari from JPN is on the ice. She opens her program 3Z-2T combination, it wasn’t pretty but clean. 3F, again not pretty, maybe it’s because of her free leg not wrapped tightly around when in the air. She goes into her combination spin, great speed and position. Nice speed and extension on her spiral sequence. Beautiful layback spin with nice variations of positions. Nice footwork with the music. Spread eagle into a clean and solid 2A. Nice positions on her flying camel spin to end the program. “She is happy with her skate and so is the crowd.” TE score 33.71, PC score 26.91, Total score 60.62. Currently ranked 4th in the short program. A new PB for Yukari.
Susanna Poykio - FIN
Susanna from Finlad is on the ice. She opens her program with a nice and solid 2A. Followed by a 3Z-2T combination, looks like her 3Z might have been double footed. Nice edge work into her 3F, clean. Nice and well centered layback spin. Spiral sequence is a little weak. She needs to hold the positions longer. Her combination spin has nice positions but lacking speed. She stubles lightly on her straight line step sequence. She closes the program with her flying spin lacking speed. Finishing the program slightly behind her music. The replay shows that she did not double foot the 3Z. TE score 31.51, PC score 26.65, Total score 57.16. Currently ranked in 6th place.
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The final group is on the ice warming up. Here we go…
Sarah Meier - SUI
Sarah Meier is up first. She opens her program with a solid and high 3Z-2T combination. Her 3F had a slight touch down with her free leg. Nice combination spin. Nice speed on he spiral sequence. Death drop into a back sit spin. Her straight line step sequence is simple but nicely done to the music. Slight bobble on the landing of her 2A. Nice centered layback spin to end her program. TE score 31.64, PC score 26.88, Total score 58.52. Currently ranked in 6th place.
Miki Ando - JPN
From Japan Miki Ando is up. She opens her program with a nice strong 3Z-3L combination. Great footwork into her 3F with lots of speed on the landing edge. Nice position on her layback spin. Nice and easy 2A. Her spiral sequence has great speed, but needs more extension and stretch. Great speed in her flying back sit spin with change of edge and position. Difficult and fast on her straight line step sequence, well timed with the music. She closes her program with her combination spin, solid with great speed and positions. The crowd is on it’s feet. Miki is happy with that one. TE score 38.67, PC score 29.31, Total score 67.98. Currently ranked 2nd in the short program.
Mao Asada - JPN
Mao Asada is on the ice. Can she beat Yu-Na who has the lead right now? I love thi program of hers. She opens with a beautiful 3Z, so easy and light. Now setting up for her combination jump. 3F-1L, huge error for Mao, it was supposed to be a 3L. The crowd was shocked. Nice extension and flow on her spiral sequence. Nice easy 2A. Beautiful positions on her combination spins. Great speed and flow on her footwork sequence. Nice flying sit spin, ending her program with a lovely layback spin. It was not a clean skate for Mao, she looks surprised, however she still smiles. TE score 31.20, PC score 30.12, Total score 61.32. Currently ranked 5th in the short progam. “She is about 10 points behind Yu-Na who is the leader right now”
Emily Hughes - USA
On the ice is Emily Hughes. She opens her program with a solid 3F-2T combination. Now setting up for her 3Z, landing tight and shaky. Great extension on her spiral sequence. Great speed on her combination spin with some great variation on positions. Clean 2A into her layback spin. Nice speed and position. Good energy on her straight line step sequence, not as difficult as some of the othe skaters. She ends her program with hery flying sit spin. She is happy with her skate. “Although it was a clean skate for Emily, there is something about the quality of her skating that I don’t like.” TE score 33.79, PC score 27.09, Total score 60.88. Currently ranked in 6th place with a new PB for Emily.
Alysa Czisny - USA
Aysa is on the ice, taking her time to get to her opening pose. Her smile is so beautiful. She opens her program with her flying sit spin. Setting up for her combination jump. She falls on her 3F. Pops the 2A, only manages to do a waltz jump. Beautiful spiral sequence with great extension of her free leg. Footwork into her 3Z, clean adds a 2T making it into a combination. Smart!. Great variation on her combination spin, well centered and fast. Nice flow and speed through out her straight line step sequence. Very strong layback spin to end her program. She looks dissapointed but smiles through it. “Sorry Alysa fans :(, I was rooting for her to also do well.” TE score 24.03, PC score 26.40, Total score 49.42. Currently ranked in 17th place.
Elena Sokolova - RUS
Elena is on the ice as the final skater. She opens her program with her 3Z-2T combination jump. Now setting up for her 3L, nice and clean. She goes into her flying camel spin, lacking speed. Her spiral sequence has good speed. Nice and easy 2A, immediately going into her layback spin again lackign speed. Her striaght line footwork well timed with the music. She closes her program with her combination spin. Nice positions but slow again. Finishing behind her music. TE score 29.51, PC score 26.32, Total score 55.83. Currently ranked in 11th place.
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That concludes the short program. Visit ISU for the complete results. Overall it was a great short program for the ladies, a few surprises among the top contenders but it will definitely be a battle during the free skate, it’s still anybody’s game.
I wan to thank MKforum.net and it’s members for their support on my first live report. Let me know your thoughts on today’s short program by leaving your comments.
A Typical American Idol Result Show
Yes, it seems to be a trend this year.  Sanjaya did not get the boot. America must love him. Â
Although I failed to report on the performances of the Top 11 on Tuesday night, I do remember the ones that did well and the ones that failed to impress me. Melinda Doolittle once again rocked the house, along with Jordin Sparks, Blake Lewis, Chris Richardson and Lakisha Jones. Â
Unfortunately the same can not be said for Phil Stacey, Chris Sligh, Stephanie Edwards, Sanjaya Malakar, Gina Glocksen and Haley Scarnato who showed off her slut skills more than her vocal talent. I guess now that Antonella Barba is gone she figured she would follow her footsteps and use her sex appeal to her advantage.Â
The highlight of Tuesday night would have to be Sanjaya’s performance, where the camera man couldn’t help but focus on a little girl crying during his awful performance. Simon said well, the girls face says it all.Â
Last night as I watch the result show, heavily anticipating that Sanjaya Malakar would be going home, I was shocked to find that he was not even in the bottom two which caused me to grab my cat and throw her across the room. Grrrr. j/k, I didn’t really throw her… But I did punch the wall.
Instead of Sanjaya packing his back and getting ready to leave on a jet plane, surprisingly, we find Chris Richardson and Stephanie Edwards in the bottom two. The audience reaction of loud cries of boo’s, said it all. They did not agree. Again who the hell in America is voting to keep Sanjaya Malakar? If he makes it past the top 10, I’m going to start a petition for him to be removed from the competition.Â
In the end, I was so sad to say goodbye to one of my favorite contestants this year Stephanie Edwards, yes I agree that her performance on Tuesday night was not the best one, however she still has one of the better voices that is hot and current today. I knew sooner or later that one of the three divas would be going home, reminiscent to AI4 with Latoya London, Jennifer Hudson and Fantasia Barrino were in the bottom three and it was Jennifer Hudson who got the axe that night.
Sanjaya should have not made it to the Top 12, now we find him making it to the Top 10 which means he is going to be part of the American Idol tour. When will America get it right?Â
Late Show with Adam Sandler
This is a video of Adam Sandler filling it for David Letterman on the Tonight show. Adam Sandler was supposed to be a guest on the show along with Don Cheadle to promote their new movie ‘Reign Over Me’. However when David Letterman got sick, Sandler decided to fill in for him. This video shows a great interview with Matzah Ball and Don Cheadle.
Mars’ south pole ice found to be deep and wide
Just more proof that there was once life on Mars…
New measurements of Mars’ south polar region indicate extensive frozen water. The polar region contains enough frozen water to cover the whole planet in a liquid layer approximately 11 meters (36 feet) deep. A joint NASA-Italian Space Agency instrument on the European Space Agency’s Mars Express spacecraft provided these data.
This new estimate comes from mapping the thickness of the ice. The Mars Express orbiter’s radar instrument has made more than 300 virtual slices through layered deposits covering the pole to map the ice. The radar sees through icy layers to the lower boundary, which is as deep as 3.7 kilometers (2.3 miles) below the surface.
“The south polar layered deposits of Mars cover an area bigger than Texas. The amount of water they contain has been estimated before, but never with the level of confidence this radar makes possible,” said Jeffrey Plaut of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena Calif. Plaut is co-principal investigator for the radar and lead author of a new report on these findings published in the March 15 online edition of the journal Science.
Everything You Need To Know To Prepare For Spider-Man 3
If you are a Spider Man fan, be sure to read this article. Get ready for Spider Man 3, set for release this summer.
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You’d be hard-pressed to find a person who’s not excited about Spider-Man 3. In the five years since director Sam Raimi first introduced us to Tobey Maguire as the webbed crusader, we’ve experienced what is, perhaps, one of the greatest comic-related superhero trilogies of all time. And, if what we’ve seen so far of the third film is any indication, it’s going to positively knock our socks off. In preparation of the film’s release, we’ve collected a slew of information from Cinematical, AOL Movies and Moviefone and decided to provide you with a Spidey 3 FAQ … featuring an all new character guide. Not sure what the story is about? Wait, a black Spider-Man? Who is he? And what about this blonde girl Gwen Stacy? Does she really think she’s going to steal Mary Jane’s man?
For you Spidey fanatics, consider this FAQ just another reason to get pumped up about the film. And, for those who don’t know much about the superhero — and may have missed one or two of the other films — but still want to make it appear as if you’re “in the know” (oh, you know who you are), then feel free to use us as your primary Spidey resource. Spider-Man 3 officially swings into theaters on May 4.
So, what’s the film about?
From the official Spider-Man 3 website: In Spider-Man 3, based on the legendary Marvel Comics series, Peter Parker has finally managed to strike a balance between his devotion to M.J. and his duties as a superhero. But there is a storm brewing on the horizon. When his suit suddenly changes, turning jet-black and enhancing his powers, it transforms Peter as well, bringing out the dark, vengeful side of his personality that he is struggling to control. Under the influence of the suit, Peter becomes overconfident and starts to neglect the people who care about him most. Forced to choose between the seductive power of the new suit and the compassionate hero he used to be, Peter must overcome his personal demons as two of the most-feared villains yet, Sandman and Venom, gather unparalleled power and a thirst for retribution to threaten Peter and everyone he loves.
Can you tell me more about the main characters in the film?
Sure thing! From Movefone’s official They Came in ‘3′ Spider-Man 3 character guide:
Peter Parker/Spider-Man
Though Spidey (Tobey Maguire) is finally recognized as a hero (all it took was saving the world … twice), he has a new worst enemy: himself. Not only is he guilt-ridden over killing the wrong man in avenging his uncle’s death, he’s infected by an alien symbiote that stains both his suit and his psyche.
Mary Jane Watson
The love of Spidey’s life may now know his favorite hobby, but that hardly erases tension between Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst) and Peter. She’s a perennial target of his adversaries, though it doesn’t seem to bother her too much. But her man’s super-ego? That can cause a lover’s quarrel.
Eddie Brock/Venom
Taking a Break!
I’m sure you guys notice the lack of activity on the Peogles blog. I’m actually taking a little break and on vacation. I’ve been in Toronto for the last couple of days now, and I won’t be back to my regular routine until Tuesday. However being here has given me a few ideas to blog about. Stay tuned!