Kwan-spiration: "The Red Violin"

This commanding performance from the 2000 World Championships was the first time we saw, what my sister calls, "The Michelle Kwan fighter face." Michelle was on fire in this freeskate, moving up from 3rd to 1st. As the British commentators said, "Seven triples added to her supreme presence around the ice.".... "She still has a spellbinding presence."

Indeed!!

Back to School Inspiration: Kurt Browning's 1994 Short Program

One of my favorite Kurt Browning programs is his 1993/1994 technical program--the one he notoriously flubbed at the Lillehammer Olympics. I wasn't able to find a clean version of that competitive program anywhere on You Tube, but I did find this video of Kurt performing it at the 1994 World Team Figure Skating Championships. This isn't the best I've seen Kurt skate it, but it's still pretty darn good. There's no denying his technical genius (look at that footwork!) and his effervescent showmanship.

Enjoy!

Back to School Inspiration: Todd Eldredge's "Independence Day"

One of Todd's best competitive skates at the 1997 Champions Series Finals (now renamed the Grand Prix Final). Todd finished second here to Elvis Stojko. Stojko made history at the event with the sport's first-ever quad-triple combination.

Despite having no quad, Todd's skating had everything else: a high-flying triple axel, fast, centered spins, and dynamic choreography that built as the music crescendos at the end. Bravo to Todd, an American Champion!

Michelle Kwan's "No One" by Alicia Keys

I was listening to Pandora this morning and heard "No One" by Alicia Keys. Of course, the song reminded me of when Michelle Kwan skated to it in Yu-Na Kim's All That Skate show in South Korea two years ago. While I don't think this is my favorite Michelle program, it's still definitely worth a look, as all Michelle programs are. In any case, it's always a joy to see Michelle on the ice, especially since her appearances are so few and far between in recent years.

Enjoy!

Happy Birthday to me! Some All-time Favorite Performances

In honor of my 29th birthday today, here are some of my favorite skating performances of all time:



1.) Michelle Kwan's "Taj Mahal" from the 1997 World Championships:

2.) Artur Dimitriev and Natalia Mishkutenok's "Piano Concerto No. 2" by Sergei Rachmaninoff:

3.) Marina Klimova and Sergei Ponomarenko's 1992 Olympic Freeskate to the music of Bach:

4.) Alexei Yagudin's "Overcome":

Happy Belated Birthday to Michelle Kwan: "On My Own" from Les Miserables

Michelle Kwan celebrated her 32nd birthday on July 7th. Obviously I'm a little late with posting something in honor of her day, but better late than never, right? In honor of Michelle's birthday, here is her beautiful exhibition from the 1997/1998 season to "On My Own" from the musical Les Miserables.

Happy belated birthday to Michelle. Enjoy!

Happy July 4th! Paul Wylie's "JFK"

Happy Independence Day! Enjoy Paul Wylie's first-rate performance to the movie soundtrack "JFK" by composer John Williams. Brilliant skating!