Clare Seo Preparing for Senior Level

Soon, students at Colorado Springs' Cheyenne Mountain High School will be lining the halls for their first day of school. Despite the school year just beginning, rising sophomore Clare Seo will already have a great deal on her mind.
 
The part-time student will be flying out to Courchevel, France to compete in the first Junior Grand Prix of the season as the school year gets underway.
 
"[Coach] Tammy [Gambill] and I are focusing on intense training to prepare for the high altitude," said Seo, who placed third at the same event, known as Golden Skate, last year. "And, we're really trying to strengthen my Lutz-toe in the second half of my short program."
 

The reigning U.S. junior champion is already accustomed to practicing at high altitude as Colorado Springs sits right above 6,000 feet. Courchevel, a ski town in the Alps, has areas that sit slightly higher. Knowing how to compete in Courchevel will help Seo greatly and put aside some nerves as she introduces her new programs on the international stage.
 
Since finishing sixth at the 2022 World Junior Championships, Seo has been busy crafting programs with her team to highlight her speed and edges. Her short program, choreographed by Drew Meekins, is set to "Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, Op.28" by Min Kym.
 
According to Seo, the piece starts off slowly and then becomes strong and fast. With this music, Meekins is hoping Seo is able to show off a speedy step sequence. 

Meanwhile, Seo will skate her free skate, choreographed by Catarina Lindgren, to "Summer" and "Winter" from Vivaldi's The Four Seasons. Similar to the short program, Vivaldi's pieces have a fast tempo that fits Seo's style of skating.

"Clare has natural speed. She's a very fast little skater," Gambill told Fan Zone in April. "She has great performance quality. Her step sequences are strong. She has a lot of really good qualities and now I'm trying to get her to emote more and express the program."

Both of the new programs will be used as Seo competes on the junior stage internationally and the senior level nationally this season. Over the summer, Seo got a feel for the senior level at smaller competitions, but found herself disappointed by her performances.
 

"The last two competitions I did were not so good. I didn't feel ready," Seo explained. "After Junior Worlds, I was kind of tired. But, I didn't have time to rest. I needed to keep training."
 

Despite her success last season, Seo struggled to find boots that fit properly and fought to make her triple-triple combinations consistent. She did not want to lose any training time this season considering she was set to make her senior debut. Unfortunately, after her short program at the Glacier Falls Summer Classic in July, Seo was in 13th place. But she recovered in her free skate and rebounded to place fourth overall. A couple of weeks later, Seo placed first at the Cup of Colorado, despite missing two jumps in her free skate.
 

"I still really want to do clean programs in competition, but that doesn't matter as much," Seo shared of her current focus. "I need to enjoy competitions more and not be afraid of them. Tammy wants me to be more confident and ready when I compete as a senior skater. I feel like I'm starting to do that now."

Currently, Seo is not expected to compete at the senior level again until later this season at a U.S. Championship Series qualifying competition and, hopefully, at the 2023 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships.

Until then, Seo will continue working on her confidence and maturity on the ice and balancing her life as a high school student. When Seo returns from France, the 15-year-old will be returning to a busy routine of morning classes at Cheyenne Mountain, afternoon skating sessions and evening online classes at home.