Savchenko/Szolkowy (GER) capture third World title in Russia
Germany's Aliona Savchenko/Robin Szolkowy captured their third World title. Newcomers Tatiana Volosozhar/Maxim Trankov of Russia took the silver medal and Qing Pang/Jian Tong of China settled for the bronze.
Savchenko/Szolkowy put out a perfect performance to “Pink Panther”, reeling off a big throw triple flip, a triple toe-triple toe sequence, double Axel and difficult lifts and spins. The European Champions posted a new record score of 144.87 points and racked up a total of 217.85, which also is a new record score. The previous record score was set by Xue Shen/Hongbo Zhao (CHN) at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games with 216.57 points. “I think this third World title will go into the history of German figure skating. The performance felt as good as the performance at the 2007 European Championships. This title is special because, first of the performance we gave, second because it was in Moscow and third because it is the third title”, Savchenko explained. “It was a perfect skate at the end of this long season”, added Szolkowy.
Voloszhar/Trankov's dynamic program to “Romeo and Juliet” featured a triple twist, a triple toe-double toe combination, a triple Salchow and throw triple loop. The Russian Champions earned 140.38 points to move up from third to second at 210.73 points. “We just wanted to present ourselves, as we are a new team. This was our first major international competition as we were unable to compete at the Europeans because I hadn't been cleared yet to compete for Russia. We just wanted to show our best performance and that's what we did”, Voloszhar said.
Overnight leaders Pang/Tong gave an emotional performance to “Liebestraum” and produced a triple twist, two triple throws and level-four lifts, but Tong struggled with the solo jumps. He singled and Axel and doubled a toeloop. The defending World Champions scored 130.12 points, which was a seasons best, but slipped to third with 204.12 points overall. “We were a little nervous today and it is a pity we didn't skate as well as we could have, but we will try harder next time”, Pang said. “Today it would have been a good opportunity for us, but we missed it. It is our coach's birthday and we have been skating together for 18 years. Maybe I thought too much and grew too nervous, maybe that's why it was hard”, Tong noted.
Yuko Kavaguti/Alexander Smirnov (RUS) moved up from fifth to fourth with a solid performance as well (187.36 points). Vera Bazarova/Yuri Larionov (RUS) completed a strong showing of the Russian pairs in fifth place (187.36 points).
The ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2010 continue Friday with the Ladies Short Program and the Short Dance. For more information, full entry lists and results please see: www.isu.organd http://www.isuworlds2011.com/
