Three top pairs experienced their share of ups and downs this past autumn. How each responds in Detroit is one of the event's top storylines.
Two-time and reigning U.S. champions
Alexa Scimeca-Knierim and Chris Knierim arrive in the Motor City with some momentum, having secured a
bronze medal at NHK Trophy in early November after a lukewarm finish a few weeks earlier at Skate America. They boosted their score by nearly 20 points between the two events, despite their continued difficulty landing their side-by-side triple jumps.
The first half of their season has been full of challenges. After the Olympic campaign, the couple moved to Germany to train under Olympic champion-turned-coach Aljona Savchenko in Oberstdorf. At Skate America in late October, they announced their return to the United States. They have since relocated to Irvine, California, to train under coaches Jenni Meno and Todd Sand.
"We are in a new environment and we are enjoying the transition," Scimeca-Knierim said.
Earning a third U.S. title, Knierim said, would be "incredible. It would help secure a spot on the World Team and we would love the opportunity to be back at the World Championships."
Tarah Kayne and Danny O'Shea, the 2016 U.S. champions and reigning U.S. silver medalists, also made some big changes. They moved from Florida to Colorado Springs in August to train with Dalilah Sappenfield, which allowed Kayne to receive treatment at the Olympic Training Center for a knee fracture.
"I am finally feeling healthy, uninhibited and ready to take on the season for the first time in years," Kayne said.
Kayne and O'Shea, the 2018 Four Continents champions, started slow at NHK Trophy, but improved by more than 27 points at the
Grand Prix event in France where they collected the silver medal. Out of their 18 elements in France, only two received negative grades of execution. They followed up with
a strong outing at the Challenger Series stop in Tallinn, Estonia, winning the free skate and the silver medal.
Ashley Cain and Timothy LeDuc entered the season ready to show that they are
strong contenders for the U.S. title.
"We feel established as a team," Cain said. "We don't feel like we are fighting to prove ourselves as much. We know who we are, and we are comfortable with who we are. That is the biggest difference this season."
Cain and LeDuc's highlight of the Grand Prix season occurred
at Skate America, where they rebounded from a disappointing short program to crush it in their free skate and win the bronze medal.
Cain suffered an injury in the free skate at Golden Spin of Zagreb in Croatia, where the team was second after the short program. She hopes to be back to full health in Detroit.
For more information and tickets, visit the event website here. Read the full championship competition preview in the January issue of SKATING magazine.
