Team USA skaters said it again and again: performing for sold-out crowds at Saitama Super Arena at the 2019 World Figure Skating Championships was something special.
"To skate in front of this wonderful Japanese audience is a dream come true," Madison Hubbell, who with Zachary Donohue won a second World ice dance medal, said. "We felt we put out our finest free dance of the season, which was our goal. We thank all of the Japanese fans for filling the stands and cheering."
Bradie Tennell's near-perfect free skate, including two triple-triple combinations, lifted her from 10th after the short program to seventh overall. Her first words in the mixed zone were about the crowd.
"The audience was amazing," she said. "The atmosphere in Japan is always so wonderful and so supportive, and I'm truly grateful for all of the fans that come out. Skating in Japan is truly special and I love it here."
The enthusiastic support goes beyond goodwill. Some coaches think it inspires skaters to push their boundaries, both technically and artistically.
"Skating Japan is euphoric," said Tom Zakrajsek, who with Tammy Gambill and Christy Krall trains
Vincent Zhou and many others in Colorado Springs, Colorado. "There is such genuine kindness. They support all of the skaters."
"They have lots of different (country) flags in their laps, and when skaters come on they raise their countries' flags," he added. "They want other countries' skaters to do well, the same as they want (Japanese) skaters to do well. I really feel when Vincent was competing, the fans were sincerely rooting for him."
Zhou, whose World bronze medal performances in Saitama far surpassed his earlier this season, agrees with his coach.
"It really did feel magical out there," he said. "To put out a heartfelt performance in front of an incredible Japanese audience was unbelievable."
Hubbell and Donohue, Tennell and Zhou – along with fellow Team USA members
Nathan Chen,
Mariah Bell, and Ashley Cain and Timothy LeDuc – get another chance to revel in Japanese fans' affection at the ISU World Team Trophy, which kicks off last night in Japan with the rhythm dance, and concludes on Saturday with the ladies' free skate, followed by exhibitions.
It's the sixth time Japan has hosted the popular event since 2009, and it is the first WTT not held in greater Tokyo. This season, skaters converged in Fukuoka, a large harbor city located on the northern shore of Japan's Kyushu Island. The six nations with the best results this season – in order: Russia, U.S., Japan, France, Italy and Canada – sent two men, two ladies, one pair and one ice dance team to vie for prize money, bragging rights and, possibly, new personal best scores.
Skaters arrived in Fukuoka just in time to for the iconic sakura (cherry blossom) season, when pink blooms blanket parks and line the streets. Some had elected to remain in Japan to train following the World Championships last month.
"We came here at the best time of year, because we get to see the lovely cherry blossoms," Cain and LeDuc wrote in an email interview. "There's a nature trail filled with cherry blossoms in the hills above the rink we're training in, and it's quite a sight."
Since placing ninth in Saitama, the U.S. pair champions have trained in Fukuoka alongside members of the Russian squad, including World pair bronze medalists Natalia Zabiako and Alexander Enbert.
While the Texas-based duo's primary coaches are Darlene and Peter Cain, they also work with Nina Mozer, who coached Maxim Trankov and Tatiana Volosozhar to Olympic gold in 2014 and trains Zabiako and Enbert, among others.
"We are so lucky to have the opportunity to work with Nina during the two weeks between Worlds and Team Trophy," the skaters wrote. "We are focusing on continued improvements on our technique and making plans for next season."
This is Cain and LeDuc's second World Team Trophy. Like their U.S. teammates, they cherish any opportunity to compete in Japan.
"The competitions are always very well run and the organizers are always very accommodating and friendly," they wrote. "The fans we've met are always so grateful for our skating performances, and they give the most amazing and personalized gifts. Skating here is definitely a unique and special experience and we're so happy to get to do it twice (this season)."
With their top-ten finish, Cain and LeDuc achieved their primary goal: qualifying two U.S. pairs for the 2020 World Championships, to be held in Montreal, Quebec. In their third season together, they hit impressive elements – including two different side-by-side triple jumps, and a Level 4 triple twist – in their free skate in Saitama.
"We've worked especially hard on the twist and it's been quite a journey," the skaters wrote. "We're so happy to be getting higher levels and GOE's (grades of execution), which is due to a collaborative effort by our coaching team."
"Nina Mozer and her team, and Dalilah Sappenfield (in Colorado Springs), have really helped us perfect our technique to be able to get the Level 4 (twist)," they added. "Peter and Darlene Cain have worked hard to help us with our consistency and confidence on our elements. Being a third-year team, and understanding our bodies better, really helps our elements. We're excited to get higher GOE's and show some new lifts next season."
Zhou, too, trained in Japan following his bronze medal win in Saitama. The U.S. silver medalist trained in Osaka with Mie Hamada, coach of Japanese stars Rika Kihira and Satoko Miyahara, with whom he has worked several times the past two seasons. A recent Instagram post showed off a quadruple "Rippon" Lutz, done with both arms overhead.
"Vincent was 100% healthy in Saitama, and he has been for a while," Zakrajsek said of Zhou's late-season improvement. "Earlier this season, he was competing injured (with back and shoulder problems), which was not fun."
Despite the difficulties, Zakrajsek is glad the skater pushed through the first half of 2018-19, including two Challenger Series and two Grand Prix events, before hitting his stride in the season's second half.
"In hindsight, even if he wasn't yet where he wanted to be, (those events) did get him ranking points, so he could have a good starting order at Worlds," Zakrajsek said. (He skated 28th in the short program, in the penultimate warm-up group.) "Then, by the time U.S. Championships came around, he was much stronger."
While in Japan, Zhou and mom Fay Ge took time out to meet with fans.
"His mom texted me that they had gone to breakfast with some of his fans," Zakrajsek said. "You feel like a rock star in Japan. Fans even come up and ask coaches for autographs."
On Thursday, Zhou, Cain and LeDuc, and their U.S. teammates will get down to work. World Team Trophy is serious – prize money totals $1 million – but it's also far more relaxed than other competitions, with teammates cheering each other on and, often, competing for the honor of wearing the silliest hat.
"Definitely, the comradery among the U.S. team is awesome," Cain and LeDuc wrote. "Skating is so individual, so to have the chance to compete as a team is so fun, and the chance to bond with the other countries is great."
"It's an experience like no other," they added. "We have a great team this year and we have a real chance at winning the title."
After the first day of competition, Team USA has moved into the top spot with 50 points. They are just two points ahead of Japan with 48 points and 12 points ahead of Russian with 38 points. Competition continues tonight with the pairs short, free dance and men's free skate. Fans can watch the event live on the
Figure Skating Pass on NBC Sports Gold.
