International Figure Skating May/June 2017

What a season it has been! Both the senior and junior World Championships were hard fought competitions and each had its highs and lows. Record-breaking performances, new champions crowned, favorites missing the podiums — Helsinki had it all. Not everyone claimed a berth to the 2018 Olympic Winter Games next February, but those who did not will have one more chance to do so later this year. As we went to print the news broke that Mao Asada has retired from competition. The 26-year-old medaled at just one competition last season (second at Finlandia Trophy), and that combined with a disappointing 12th place finish at Japanese nationals last December was likely the catalyst for her decision. Likewise, Meryl Davis and Charlie White are not returning to the competitive arena in…

One of figure skating’s most decorated stars has called an official end to his competitive career. After years of comeback talk, Evgeni Plushenko is now moving on to the next phase of his skating career. Plushenko officially announced his retirement on March 31 and, with more than one million followers on his social media accounts, it did not take long for the Internet to light up. “I have taken on a new role as a coach. I will prepare skaters for future Olympic Games,” the 34-year-old Russian star said. “I am tired of practicing new complex tricks on the ice. I am ready to step out of the limelight.” Following Four Continents in February, Plushenko acknowledged it would be impossible for him to compete against those currently at the top…

Ashley Cain and Timothy LeDuc were in two different places and two different spaces. Cain was contemplating the end of her singles career in Texas, while LeDuc was traveling the world performing on cruise ships Neither was completely satisfied with what they were doing and in May 2016, at the suggestion of U.S. Figure Skating (USFS) officials, they got together to work on some moves. “When USFS suggested I have a tryout with Timothy I wasn’t sure if I wanted to pursue pairs again,” Cain said. “After my partnership with Joshua (Reagan) ended I focused on singles for four and a half years and I thought that last season was possibly going to be my final one. “We started warming up off the ice and doing lifts, and I think…

Adecade had passed since Hongbo Zhao and his partner Xue Shen had waltzed off with the World pairs title in Tokyo, Japan. Sitting in the kiss and cry in Helsinki with his former coach, Bin Yao, and his two students, Wenjing Sui and Cong Han, the pride was visible on Zhao’s face when the final score was announced. Sui and Han sat on top of the leaderboard, the new World champions. It was Zhao’s first global victory as a coach. But it had been a long and often frustrating journey back to the top level of the sport for Sui and Han. The Chinese duo was forced to miss the first half of the season while Sui recovered from surgery for a right Achilles tendon injury she suffered in November…

It had been a rough first half of the season for Karen Chen. Haunted by boot problems and injuries throughout 2016, she eventually switched to a new manufacturer in the hopes of finding a solution. Despite trying many different boots, the problem persisted. Online discussion forums and members of the U.S. media were skeptical. Chen further fueled the debate when it became known she had choreographed both her programs — “On Golden Pond” for the short and Jalousie “Tango Tzigane” (Jealousy “Gypsy Tango”) for the free. The 17-year-old did not fare well at her two Grand Prix assignments in November 2016 — placing seventh in China and sixth in Japan — providing more fodder for the skeptics. Given the results of the first half of the season, Chen was flying…

Meryl Davis and Charlie White are hanging up their competitive skates. In a partnership that has spanned more than two decades the American ice dance duo has won it all. Throughout their storied senior career, Davis and White claimed 24 gold medals, including an Olympic crown, two World and five consecutive Grand Prix Final titles. Whether it was chasing a U.S. or World title — or even an Olympic gold medal — the most decorated ice dance team in American history never settled for anything less than being their best. They always knew, with utmost certainty, what was required to achieve their biggest goals and dreams. In what Davis described as a “bittersweet” decision she and White will not return to the competitive arena in 2018 to defend the Olympic…