Junior Competition Kicks off in Nashville

The first day of competition at the 2022 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships opened with junior men's and pairs short program and junior rhythm dance. For many competitors, it was their first time skating in front of a live audience for a while, due to the pandemic.

Junior Pairs
 
Sonia Baram and Daniel Tioumentsev (Los Angeles FSC/Dallas FSC) took the lead in the junior pairs short program with a sparkling performance in which they completed a Level 3 triple twist and side-by-side double Axels. They scored 62.26, leading the field by nearly 8 points. Baram and Tioumentsev are a new team, only skating together since March 2021.
 
 "I think it was a pretty great short [program], especially for our first time at nationals (U.S. Championships) that we're competing together," said Tioumentsev.
 
Although Tioumentsev has competed at several past U.S. Championships, this is Baram's first time at the event. Baram qualified not only in junior pairs, but also junior ladies.
 
"It's not easy," Baram said of competing in two disciplines. "But I committed to it; I said I'm going to do it. So I'm going to pull out my best performances."
 
Isabelle Martins and Ryan Bedard (Chicago FSC/Northern Ice SC) placed second in the short program, earning 54.89 for their program to "House of the Rising Sun," which featured successful side-by-side double Axels and a Level 4 lift.

"It felt really good to be back on the ice in front of a lot of people," Bedard said of performing for the audience in Nashville.
 
Unlike the first-place duo, Martins and Bedard have skated together for many years.

"This is our seventh nationals (U.S. Championships) together," said Martins.
 
The team had to rely on that experience to step on the ice at Bridgestone Arena.

"Leading to nationals (U.S. Championships), we didn't get to train as much as we'd like to, because I got COVID-19 three weeks ago," Bedard revealed. "So we've only been able to train for a week before this competition. We've only done a handful of programs."
 
"We just had to trust our training from the whole season," Martins said of preparing for the championships. She said that they focused primarily on getting their cardio fitness back, as opposed to perfecting elements.
 
Cayla Smith and Andy Deng (Fort Wayne ISC) finished third in the short program, scoring 48.70 points for their performance to Moonlight Sonata" which featured successful side-by-side double Axels.
 
"There are a few things we can improve on here and there," Smith said of their program. "But we're pretty happy with it."
 
It was Smith's debut at the U.S. Championships; Deng competed a few years ago in juvenile pairs.

"It was the first time at a big venue [for us], so a [there were] little bit of nerves here and there," Deng noted.
 
"We've been working a lot on stamina and details, and also a little bit more expression," Deng said of their preparation for the event.
 
Ellie Kam and Ian Meyh (Broadmoor SC/All Year FSC) placed fourth in the short program with a score of 46.16.

The pairs free skate is set for Wednesday, Jan. 5 at 4 p.m. ET.

Junior Men
 
Will Annis (SC of Boston) has already crowned U.S. champion twice; he won the juvenile title in 2017 and the novice title in 2019. Today, he opened his bid to become U.S. junior champion by winning the short program with a score of 75.81. Skating to "Wake Me Up When September Ends" by Green Day, Annis completed all his jump elements cleanly, including an opening triple Axel.
 
"I thought it went pretty well," Annis said. "I had a couple shaky spins, but that's OK. I did the hard stuff. Overall, I'm pretty happy with it." He added that he tried to focus on his presentation more than usual in this program.
 
Annis competed twice on the Junior Grand Prix circuit this fall, and feels the international experience was useful at this event.

"I think that it definitely helped," Annis commented. "I got more experience with bigger competitions. So coming into nationals (U.S. Championships), I know I can handle a competition like this. And if I do well here, I'll get some more of those [international assignments]."
 
Kai Kovar (Wasatch FSC) skated into second place with a program to "Ninja" by Maxime Rodriguez.

"I'm trying to perform in ninja warrior style," Kovar said. "I enjoy it. I've loved this program the whole year."
 
Kovar landed a triple Axel, triple flip, and triple Lutz-double toe combination to score 68.70.
 
"The first three elements were very successful. I wish I could have done one of my triples at the end of my Lutz," said Kovar. "But, it's fine. I have tomorrow. I can make up for it and that's what I'll focus on. I thought everything else was executed well."
 
Kovar said that he felt confident coming into the U.S. Championships.

"I've been training pretty hard, and I've been skating my programs every day with sections. I've been pretty consistent."
 
Maxim Zharkov (Dallas FSC) placed third with a score of 67.07. Skating to "Paint It Black," Zharkov landed a triple Axel and triple flip, but had trouble with his triple Lutz-triple toe loop combination.
 
"I feel like overall, it went pretty well," Zharkov said. "Obviously, there's things that could have been done better. But I'm pretty happy with the outcome of it."
 
Last year at the U.S. Championships, Zharkov also had a good short program, but struggled in the free skate. He's hoping for a different outcome this year.
 
"I've developed a more positive outlook on running programs and consistency through my elements, and I've brought that into my training. I feel a lot better and stronger [now]."
 
Beck Strommer (Alpine SC) finished in fourth place with 64.44. Strommer's program was highlighted by a triple Lutz-double toe loop combination, Level 4 step sequence and two Level 4 spins.

The junior men's competition concludes tomorrow with the free skate at 1 p.m. ET.
 
 Junior Ice Dance

Angela Ling and Caleb Wein (Peninsula FS/Washington FSC), who placed fifth at last year's U.S. Championships, took the lead in the short program. Skating to a remix of "Ain't No Sunshine" and "Get Up Offa That Thing," the duo earned a new personal-best score of 64.99. They earned Levels 4 and 3 on their Blues step sequences.

"It felt pretty good," Wein said of their rhythm dance. "For me personally, the first little bit, I was sitting [down] into my legs. But then I was able to get into things."

Leah Neset and Artem Markolov (Magic City FSC) finished right behind the leaders, with a score of 64.31. Neset and Markolov, who train in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with Elena Dostatni, were sixth in junior ice dance at last year's U.S. Championships.

The duo skated to "Feeling Good" by Michael Bublé and "DJ Turn It Up" by Yellow Claw. All their elements earned Levels 3 or 4.

"I think we really tried to show our best tonight," Markolov said. He added that they had focused on improving their step sequence prior to the event.

Vanessa Pham and Jonathan Rogers (SC of Houston/Texas Gulf Coast FSC) took third place with a performance that was by turns elegant and sassy. They scored 55.36.

"I feel really good about our skate," Pham said.

"We didn't have any goals in terms of placement, other than being proud of what we did," Rogers added.

The couple admitted that they were initially nervous to tackle this year's street dance rhythm.

"We're more trained in the elegant [style of dance]," Rogers said. "But it was interesting stepping outside of our comfort zone."

"When I heard hip-hop was the theme, I was like, 'Oh, no,'" Pham recalled with a laugh. "But he was excited about it. And I was like, 'Okay, I have to learn how to do this.'"

Helena Carhart and Volodymyr Horovyi (Florida Everblades FSC) had a slight misstep at the start of their rhythm dance, but recovered to place fourth. The team scored 54.97.

"I think we got a little off timing with each other," Carhart said of the slip. "But we saved it well. We were able to pick right back up."

Carhart and Horovyi were pleased with their expression. "There were a lot of moments where we can see our connection in the program," Horovyi said. "So we're proud."

The junior ice dance event finishes tomorrow with the free dance at 7:30 p.m. ET.

Fans can watch the junior competition live and on-demand on Peacock Premium. Visit the 2022 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Virtual Fan Experience for a behind-the-scenes look at the event.