Tennell, Nagasu, Chen earn Olympic spots
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Bradie Tennell, Mirai Nagasu and Karen Chen, the top three finishers at the national championships, were selected Saturday to the U.S. team for the Pyeongchang Olympics.
Three-time U.S. champ Ashley Wagner, who complained vigorously about the marks after the free skate, was not included. Four years ago, Wagner also finished fourth but was placed on the team ahead of Nagasu. Wagner wound up with a bronze medal in the team event.
“I really took time to remodel myself, because I didn’t want to feel that regret,” Nagasu said during the announcement on NBC’s “Today” show. “This has been about my journey and my goal to get here. To accomplish it last night has been a dream come true.”
The 19-year-old Tennell and Chen, 18, the 2017 U.S. winner, made their first Olympics. Nagasu, now 24, was fourth at the 2010 Games.
Alternates are Wagner (first alternate), Mariah Bell (second alternate) and Angela Wang (third alternate). Only Wagner has been to an Olympics among those three.
U.S. Figure Skating uses a committee to decide the squad, and it went with the results of Friday night. Past performances and a variety of other data are included in the decision-making.
The remainder of the team — three men, three ice dance couples and one pair — is scheduled to be announced today.
Rising star Tennell’s near-perfect free skate earned her first national crown. Tennell, a longshot entering the season, was spotless in the short program two days ago, then as the final skater in the long program she didn’t miss a trick under tremendous pressure. Her top competitors, Nagasu and Chen, already had put down superb routines.
“I just had to keep calm and focus on what I knew I could do,” Tennell said. “There’s the initial butterflies, but I kind of start to lose myself and keep going.
“I don’t think it’s sunk in quite yet. I’m still kind of shocked. It’s indescribable to me.”
Nagasu, U.S. champ 10 years ago and a 2010 Olympian, capped a sensationally sweet comeback with a flowing performance to finish second, assuring a spot in next month’s Olympics — a berth she was denied in 2014 by the selection committee. That position for Sochi was given to Wagner, who had a better overall record.
Chen, the defending champion, was third Friday night.
Husband-wife pair Chris, Alexa
Knierim take national title: U.S. champions again after all the terrifying health challenges of recent years, the husband-wife Knierims celebrated with those kid-sized, single servings of chocolate milk. Tiny pop-in straw and everything.
Alexa Scimeca-Knierim could exhale at last.
Just earlier, she leaned forward nervously awaiting the score, hands clasped. She knew full well the previous pair had performed beautifully. Her own program with husband Chris featured a few minor mistakes.
It also had a beautiful quadruple twist high above the ice with a slight flaw, yet they also were the only ones to even attempt the high-difficulty element in Saturday’s free skate.
“The feeling after when you know you’ve nailed your program and you just feel like so alive inside, and you just want to just like celebrate, because I knew all the mistakes we left on the table it was disappointing,” Alexa said. “So when we skated over to get our marks, I was unsure how the rest of our elements would be scored, and would it hold up to keep us at the top when we lost so many points on the jumps. So I was concerned whether we would win or not in that moment.”
Tarah Kayne and Danny O’Shea came into the free skate in second place, but Kayne fell on a throw triple lutz. That error came after a strong start to their program that featured nice double axels side by side in a beautifully choreographed performance to “Swan Lake.” They scored 131.87 for a total of 200.80.
Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Nathan Bartholomay, a 2014 Sochi Olympian with a different partner, were third.
Mia Manganello makes Olympic
team: Mia Mangenello made her first Olympic team with a thirdplace finish in the 1,500 meters at the U.S. speedskating trial in Milwaukee, capping a comeback following a five-year break from the sport.
Manganello qualified with a time of 1 minute, 59.28 seconds Saturday night. Brittany Bowe won the 3 3⁄4-lap race at 1:55.93, and Heather Bergsma was second at 1:56.13.
Bowe and Bergsma have already qualified for the Winter Games.
Manganello smiled as she circled the ice after crossing the finish line in time to qualify. She returned to speedskating in 2016 after focusing on professional cycling for five years. Inline to ice: Jackson is surprise Olympian at US trials: Erin Jackson surprised herself and almost everyone else at the U.S. speedskating trials, becoming a firsttime Olympian after just four months on ice.
Coming from the world of inline skating, Jackson qualified in the 500 meters by finishing third behind veterans Brittany Bowe and Heather Bergsma.
Bowe had the fastest time over two heats Friday night. She was quicker in her first run around the big oval, clocking 37.95 seconds. Her second run was 38.18.
Bergsma also was quicker in her first heat at 38.24. Her second trip was 38.42. Jackson was just the opposite. The 25-year-old skater from Ocala went 39.22 in her first heat. She was even better in her second run, going 39.04.
“I really wasn't expecting any of this, just coming in as a newbie, just trying to do the best I can,” she said, smiling. “I still don't even know.”
Jackson becomes the third African-American to make the U.S. speedskating team for the Olympics next month. She joins fellow long-tracker Shani Davis and short-tracker Maame Biney, who is originally from Ghana.
Bowe and Bergsma had already earned spots in Pyeongchang by finishing 1-2 in the 1,000, so doubling up in another event cleared the way for Jackson to join them.
On the men's side, Mitch Whitmore added the 500 to his schedule after making his third Olympic team in the 1,000.
He skated fastest in his first heat at 35.06. But Whitmore had slow reactions in both heats. Brian Hansen qualifies for third Olympic speedskating team: Brian Hansen qualified with a second-place finish in the 1,500 meters at the U.S. speedskating trials.
The 2010 silver medalist had a time of 1 minute, 46.64 seconds Saturday night. Joey Mantia won the 3 3⁄4-lap race at 1:46.31, and Shani Davis was third at 1:47.15.
Mantia and Davis have already qualified for the Olympics.
The 27-year-old Hansen earned a silver medal in team pursuit in 2010. He is returning to the Winter Games after ramping up training this past year following a break.