Overcoming challenges is what 2018 U.S. junior pair's champions Nica Digerness and Danny Neudecker do best. After a period of recovery due to a neck injury for Neudecker and an ankle injury for Digerness, the duo is healed, rested and ready to take the ice this week at the 2019 Warsaw Cup, part of the ISU Challenger Series, in Poland.
Their focus for this season is to keep all program elements strong and ultimately place in the top six in Greensboro for the 2020 TOYOTA U.S. Figure Skating Championships in January. "We have put a lot more time into our jumps this season," notes Neudecker. Digerness adds, "I think our choreography is also more intricate."
This season they will skate to "El Conquistador" by Maxime Rodriguez for their short program, which is a Spanish themed number that the duo calls "passionate, intense and aggressive." Neudecker acknowledges, "We have always skated to soft pieces, so this is definitely a change of style for us."
Their long program will remain the same as the 2018-19 season to "Arrival of the Birds" by Cinematic Orchestra and "Let It Go" by James Bay. However, expect to see new costumes and choreography from Digerness and Neudecker this season.
Approaching their fifth year as partners, Digerness and Neudecker agree that their personalities and abilities complement one another as a team. Digerness says, "He (Danny) is very strong, capable and outgoing. I am more mellow and easy-going." Neudecker adds, "We are both positive and respectful of each other which makes our partnership work so well."
Beyond the rink, Neudecker is in his final semester of undergrad at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs where he will continue in their graduate program for clinical mental health. Digerness has been watching videos of surgeries and soon plans to attend veterinary school.
Tune in to watch them take the ice at the Warsaw Cup in Poland this weekend!
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