Sasha Cohen glided with ease to the top of the standings at Lalique Trophy on Friday, skating a lyrical, error-free short program.
A 19-year-old picture of elegance, Cohen flew through her opening triple lutz-double toe loop jump, landing softly and then moving right into a triple flip at high speed.
The American also displayed her trademark flexibility with spellbinding spirals, forward and backward, in which she extended her leg 180-degrees in the air. Afterward, she credited her smooth performance with having learned to deal with the pressures of competition.
"I felt good out there, and I'm really learning how to compete well," Cohen said. "I can count on myself."
Facing a field of unpolished women competitors, Cohen is almost guaranteed the gold when the event concludes with the long program on Saturday. Her closest rivals are Shizuka Arakawa of Japan and Julia Sebestyen of Hungary.
Neither Arakawa nor Sebestyen has made a significant mark on the international skating circuit, but both skated admirably Friday. Arakawa came in second and Sebestyen was third.
In the men's event, reigning world champion Evgeni Plushenko won the short program despite skating without his usual flamboyance and nearly crashing to the ice on a jump.
Plushenko is a great overall skater, but his routine on Friday was flat -- he put his hand down to keep from hitting the ice after a quadruple toe loop jump, and his spins and footwork looked labored.
American champion Michael Weiss, whose has been haunted by inconsistency, performed without a fall or major fumble. But he skated too conservatively, forsaking a planned quadruple-triple jump combination for a triple-triple instead.
The strategy hurt him. Weiss had been a favorite in the event, but he finished third behind newcomer Daisuke Takahashi of Japan, a high-school student whose inspiring performance included an effortless triple flip-triple toe loop jump combination.
Frenchman Brian Joubert -- who has an impressive repertory of technical skills -- fell on a standard triple axel and likely won't be a threat to Plushenko or Takahashi.
In the pairs event, Tatiana Totmianina and Maxim Marinin of Russia won their short program, ahead of Chinese skaters Dan Zhang and Hao Zhang. The US national titleholders, Tiffany Scott and Philip Dulebohn, were third.
Bulgarian ice dancers Albena Denkova and Maxim Staviyski, who placed third at the world championships this year, were in first place after the original dance Friday.
Somewhat oddly, France's Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder were second even though both smacked the ice after he lifted her up at the end of their program and then tripped. It was by far the worst error committed by the 11 couples in the event. Canadians Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon were third.
SSC Napoli will have to wait one more week to seal the Serie A title after on Sunday being held to a goalless draw at Parma, while closest rivals Inter drew 2-2 in a dramatic game with SS Lazio. Antonio Conte’s team stayed one point ahead of Inter and were unfortunate not to win after twice striking the woodwork through Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Matteo Politano, while Scott McTominay also had a free-kick tipped onto the crossbar. The away side thought they would be handed a chance to take the points from the penalty spot in the 96th minute when David Neres
A stunning Lamine Yamal strike on Thursday helped crown Barcelona La Liga champions with a 2-0 win over local rivals RCD Espanyol, with victory ensuring Real Madrid cannot catch them at the top of the table. Yamal’s effort and Fermin Lopez’s goal took Hansi Flick’s side seven points clear of Los Blancos with two matches remaining, to clinch Barcelona’s 28th title and complete a superb domestic treble. Only the UEFA Champions League title escaped an exciting young Barca side this season, as they won the league for the second time in six years, at Espanyol’s ground again just as in 2022-2023. Back then,
Jannik Sinner on Thursday marched into the semi-finals of the Italian Open after destroying Casper Ruud in straight sets 6-0, 6-1, while Coco Gauff won a marathon three-set battle with China’s Zheng Qinwen to advance to the women’s singles final. American Gauff is to face Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in today’s title match after pulling through 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 7-6 (7/4) in a match that lasted over three-and-a-half hours. Ruud was supposed to be Sinner’s toughest test in Rome since he came back from his three-month doping ban, as the Norwegian came into the match in hot form on clay after winning in
Omar Marmoush’s stunning long-range strike on Tuesday upstaged Kevin de Bruyne on the Manchester City great’s Etihad farewell. Marmoush let fly from about 30m to put City ahead in their 3-1 win against AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League. The victory moved Pep Guardiola’s team up to third in the standings and left qualification for the UEFA Champions League in their own hands heading into the last round of the season. “It’s really important. To be in the Champions League after what happened [this season] will be really nice,” the City manager said. De Bruyne was making his final home appearance for City before
RSS