The first Challenger Series event for the Pairs discipline, the John Nicks Pairs Challenge gave some hints to the competitive season ahead.
Hosted September 3rd and 4th at the Skating Club of New York’s facility along the Hudson River in Manhattan, in a rink with hockey glass and no seats for spectators, the event’s vibe was more like a monitoring session with judges than an international competition. There was no kiss and cry, limited dressing room space, and teams all mingled and cheered for each other throughout the event. It led to a friendly, informal atmosphere, despite the high quality of the skating on display – and the stakes for some of the teams.
The competition was perhaps most notable as an early head-to-head for U.S. pair teams, including two pairs newly eligible for international competition, and a final chance for the teams vying for the host spot at Skate America to make their case.
The Podium
Reigning U.S. national champions Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea solidified their position as the top US pair by winning the gold in New York. They secured a personal best of 67.46 in the short program, a creative interpretation of Rain, in Your Black Eyes.
Perhaps more importantly, in their free skate they landed a throw triple loop with positive GOE for the first time in competition. It was also only the second time they’ve ever landed a throw triple, but Ellie stayed on her feet, at least, for the other two throws in this competition.
The programs emphasize their musicality and strong transitional content. The team noted that they don’t take their PCS strength for granted, and want to keep pushing themselves to try new transitions and to show off their ability to skate in unison as they gain experience together.
2024 U.S. silver medalists Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov also secured the silver here, and were first in the free skate. They were happy to win a medal in their first international competition.
Their flamenco-style short program requires precision to remain in sync with all the accents in the music, and Misha noticed that the difference in speed in a colder rink than they were used to meant making adjustments as they skated. Alisa had to work hard to stay up on the landings of the side-by-side jump and the throw, showing impressive strength and determination.
In the free skate, the jump landings were challenging, but the strong pair elements and connected skating made up for it. The program, to “Je Suis Malade,” allows Alisa and Misha to show a softer, more emotive side of their skating, and build on the connection between the relatively new partners.
Another team new to the international scene were the Uzbek pair of Ekaterina Geynish and Dmitrii Chigirev, who placed second in the short program, and third overall. The team previously skated for Russia in 2022/23, and were accompanied in New York by decorated Russian pair coach Nina Mozer.
As might be expected from one of Mozer’s teams, they displayed great height in their twist and crisp technique throughout each element. However, their side-by-side jumps were not as strong as I expected, given that they have performed side-by-side triple flips in the past. Ekaterina especially seemed to struggle on the triple toe in the free skate.
They looked confident in practice and competition with their throw triple flip, but a hard fall on the throw loop in the free skate impacted their performance, and they seemed to struggle to keep up with the tango music from that point to the end of the program.
These three medalists were expected to meet again at Nebelhorn in a few weeks, although the Uzbek team has since withdrawn. Assessing any improvements they can make in the interim will be interesting.
Early Success and Early Disappointment
Kelly Ann Laurin and Loucas Éthier from Canada took fourth place. They have scored well in domestic competition already this season, and showed the improved speed and power in their skating. Their short program to Seperate Ways (from the Stranger Things soundtrack) emphasizes that power, and it’s clear that rock music really suits them. Loucas noted after the short program the focus was their components because they know they have solid technical elements. Their coach told them beforehand to “let go” and skate with freedom.
In the free skate, they landed side-by-side triple loops, the best jumping element of the teams competing. Their free skate had several nice choreographic moments, highlighting the connection between Kelly Ann and Loucas, and playing up the sexiness for the audience and judges. The program (to a remix of U2’s “Elevation”) seemed hesitant and empty in places, however. I was disppointed, since I was looking forward to seeing the team with choreography from David Wilson and Sandra Bezic. Perhaps the pacing needs to be adjusted – or possibly, as the program gets more mileage and the technical content improves, they can inhabit the story and music better throughout.
U.S. team of Katie McBeath and Daniil Parkman were another pair making their international debut, having secured the release for Daniil to compete for the U.S., and were the favorite for the Skate America host spot coming into this event. While several other teams might have hoped to challenge that designation – and perhaps were encouraged after Katie and Daniil’s errors in the short program put them into 10th – the final placement of 5th (3rd in the free skate) proved Katie and Daniil’s overall strength.
Katie shared they are very happy to be eligible and see how far they can go in international competition. She was nervous before the short program, which may have led to their mistakes, but she was able to leave that behind for the free skate. Both skaters confirmed that the twist is their favorite element, and they worked hard on it over the summer, making sure they get the split. According to skatingscores.com, their twist was scored the highest in the competition in both programs. They doubled the attempted side-by-side triple flips in the free skate, but looked strong in their solo jumps in practice.
It was a disappointing sixth-place finish for Rebecca Ghilardi and Filippo Ambrosini from Italy, a team currently ranked third in the world standings. The Italian champions skated intense and choreographically-complex programs that highlighted their emotional range and maturity. Even though Tango de Roxanne and Phantom Of the Opera have been used endlessly in skating, Rebecca and Filippo found new nuances in the stories and emotions they presented.
The short, choreographed by Daniel Aggiano and Carolina Kostner, has powerful energy from start to finish. Rebecca did a spinning knee slide into a huge throw triple lutz, followed by a complex and very fast group 4 lift with spectacular ice coverage. Rebecca’s jumps remain a weak point for the team, but looked somewhat improved here.
Unfortunately, in the free skate, a freak loss of balance from Filippo resulted in bringing down a lift early, and then errors in their final spin meant the element received zero points. It was a disappointing finish to a beautiful program, and hopefully something that Rebecca and Filippo can quickly move past when they compete at Lombardia Trophy.
The Finnish team of Milania Väänänen and Filippo Clerici are continuing to steadily improve their pair skills, landing a strong throw triple lutz in the free skate, and finishing seventh. Notable moments included the spread eagle entrance into the back outside death spiral from Milania, and the fiery energy of their new short program to music from Kill Bill. It is a better fit for the team than their Great Gatsby free skate, which they are reusing this year.
The quest for technical minimums
Yuna Nagaoka and Sumitada Moriguchi of Japan secured eighth place, with personal bests in both programs. They remain just over 2 points short of the technical minimum score for Worlds. However, both programs were marred by uncharacteristic falls on side-by-side jumps.
The quality and execution of their pair elements continue to improve, and the minimums look well within reach on a better day. Their skating skills also put them in a strong position, although they were unable to showcase the programs as well as they would have liked with the errors.
Isabella Gamez and Aleksandr Korovin of the Philippines placed ninth and also secured new personal bests in both programs (though they also remain short of the technical scores they need to return to Worlds).
Their triple twist and throw triple loop received good grades of execution in the short program, and the elegant choreography prompted one judge to place them third for composition. They will need to fix the downgrades of Isabella’s triple salchow, and improve the level of their death spirals to move up, but they have the look of a high-ranking team.
John Nicks Trophy was also an opportunity for us to see U.S. pairs teams that don’t often make it to international competition. While they didn’t challenge the dominance of the top three U.S. teams, each of the teams nonetheless showed improvements.
Nica Digerness and Mark Sadusky (10th) landed several strong throws (including the rarely seen throw triple toe), and presented a fun latin short program with lots of charisma. The team struggled on the twist and side-by-side jumps, however.
Naomi Williams and Lachlan Lewer (11th) were very happy to be competing in their first senior competition, and Lachlan shared the experience really makes them want to up their game since they can see where they need to go.
The World Junior bronze medalists from last year explained they are keeping their short program for a second season in order to do something that is light and fun and sets them apart, rather than compete with the older teams at a mature and dramatic style. Unfortunately, two falls in the free skate meant it was hard to appreciate their new program.
Moments of quality despite disappointing mistakes – this was also the story for pairs like Greta and John Crafoord of Sweden (12th) and Sophia Schaller and Livio Mayr of Austria (15th). While both teams were disappointed in their performances here, the Crafoords have some of the most interesting transitions and spin positions in the pairs field, and Sophia and Livio showed great expressiveness in their Aretha Franklin medley short program. I hope we will see more of these qualities from both teams in the season ahead.
Read More: Anna’s interview with Ellie Kam & Danny O’Shea at 2024 Worlds
One Reply to “John Nicks Pairs Challenge 2024 – Recap”
Very exciting to see Gamez and Korovin’s improvement. They now both have Filipino citizenship so are highly motivated for the Olympics.