When Alexa Scimeca-Knierim and Chris Knierim announced this May that they would train under Aljona Savchenko, it sent a frisson through the skating world.
The couple, married in June 2016, were teamed by Dalilah Sappenfield in April 2012 and had trained with her in Colorado Springs, Colorado, ever since. Chris had been coached by Sappenfield since he started pairs in 2006. And Savchenko, fresh off winning the 2018 Olympic and World titles with partner Bruno Massot, had never worked as an elite coach.
But at ages 27 and 30, having battled through significant illness and injuries, it was time for Alexa and Chris to take a big risk.
"I think a lot of people always say about us: 'Oh, if they can just get it together,'" Alexa said. "It's kind of like, 'They have everything it takes, but if they can just do it all in one program, at the right time, then they would be something special.' So I think (Savchenko) can help with that."
Last season brought Alexa and Chris a second U.S. pairs title, and their two strong performances in the Olympic Team Event helped lift the U.S. to a bronze medal in PyeongChang. But weeks later, at the 2018 ISU World Figure Skating Championships, they placed 15
th, their lowest finish in five trips to the event.
"It was not a difficult decision to keep skating, and it was not a difficult decision to switch coaches, but it was an emotional decision that had a lot of heartache," Alexa said.Â
"With three and a half years left, potentially, in our career, we're doing everything we can to make sure it's as successful as possible," Chris said.
So the couple's two cats and two dogs are being cared for by Alexa's mom, Tina. Chris' beloved race car, rebuilt by hand, is housed temporarily in his family's garage. And the couple is settled in Obertsdorf, a picturesque town nestled in the Alps of southwest Germany and the site of Nebelhorn Trophy, where they made their season's debut on Thursday.
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If anyone knows what it's like to upend your life to pursue a dream, it's Savchenko. She did it twice: moving from her birthplace in Ukraine to Germany to team with Robin Szolkowy in 2003, and re-making her career more than a decade later by joining forces with Massot and a new coaching team.
"If you want to reach something, you need to change sometimes," Savchenko said. "It's a choice in life. Four years ago, (after) I was 11 years with Robin and (coach) Ingo (Steuer), I decided to change direction because I wanted to reach for something. I was hoping and doing."
"Or when I left Ukraine," she added. "I was 19 and had no (German) language and no money. It is life -- you have to change, or say you are happy where you are."
Alexa was attracted to Savchenko's personal history of struggle, which includes fighting back from many injuries.
"Aljona did what she did because she's mentally strong, and I think every athlete can grow in that department," she said. "I know that's a place that I need improvement, and I think there's no one better than her that can teach me."
Alexa and Chris spent nearly two weeks with Savchenko in Oberstdorf in May, trying things out. After that, the skaters trained largely on their own in Alexa's hometown of Chicago for a month, where Savchenko joined them for a week. Six weeks later, they began training with Savchenko in Oberstdorf.
"We don't have the time, in a sense, to play around," Alexa said. "If we're going to keep going, then it has to be all or nothing. And that's why we're taking such a big jump."
"That's a big thing we didn't do before," Chris said.
Savchenko and her husband, British-born artist Liam Cross, accompanied Alexa and Chris to U.S. Figure Skating's Champs Camp in late August; after that, Savchenko went to Berlin to work up a new show program with Massot. Aljona, Alexa and Chris have been training together in Oberstdorf the past several weeks.
"I will be coaching and doing shows," Savchenko said. "This year, it's really busy. We worked a lot on skating skills. You cannot do all things together, you need to do it step-by-step. We try to make everything softer and (focus) on a couple of elements. All things need time."
Savchenko paused before adding, "And I don't want to change. I want to make (elements)
better. Now, with the new GOEs (Grades of Execution), we need to work on this." (GOEs now range from -5 to +5).
The team created two new programs, both with choreographer Benoit Richaud: a short program to "Castle" by Halsey, and free skate to James Vincent McMorrow's version of "Wicked Game."
"The free program shows a softer side to their skating," Savchenko said. "We try to make everything flow. This year, we will see how this style works."
Asked about their new programs, Alexa and Chris both responded that they preferred to let the skating speak for itself. But Chris added they were happy with their progress thus far.
"We've been working really hard and skating more than we ever have, and being on the ice more than we ever have," he said. "I think it's really going to show in our skating. We've been changing a lot with all of the elements, so it's going to take a little bit of time to get everything going. But we're very happy with the progress."
"We're not trying to rush anything or make expectations right now. We know this year is a building year for us."
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