Canada leading pairs after short program at Skate America
LAKE PLACID, N.Y. — American skaters Nathan Chen and Adam Rippon gave the home crowd what it wanted Friday night: Chen with a pair of powerful quad jumps, and Rippon with what he calls a “trashy dance-club program.”
“I think we made a good team. I think we’d make an even better Olympic team,” Rippon said with a big smile.
The fans and judges at Skate America agree. Chen and Rippon hold the top spots following the men’s short program at the last Grand Prix event before the Final.
Chen leads with 104.12 points, and Rippon is next at 89.04.
Both Olympic hopefuls are still trying to qualify for the Grand Prix Final in Japan next month.
Russia’s Sergei Voronov is in third place at 87.51.
Meanwhile, Meagan Duhamel from Lively, Ont., and Eric Radford from Balmertown, Ont., lead a field of frustrated pairs skaters after the short program.
Duhamel said the 2014 Grand Prix Final winners felt “tight,” and they struggled with their twist. The two-time world champions won at Skate Canada this year but were disappointed to lose levels on three elements Friday. The Canadians didn’t think they’d stepped back.
“Overall, this was a lot better than Skate Canada,” Duhamel said, “and it’s going to be better at the Grand Prix Final, and it will be better at the Olympics.”
Duhamel and Radford scored 75.37, beating China’s Yu Xiaoyu Yu and Zhang Hao at 73.67. Germany’s Aliona Savchenko and Bruno Massot were third at 72.55. Massot, a Frenchborn skater, was competing for the first time since passing his German citizenship test.