by Laurie Nealin, Special to U.S. Figure Skating Online
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| Emily Hughes at the 2005 State Farm U.S. Figure Skating Championships |
Event Results, News and Photos
(3/3/05) - Emily Hughes surprised observers but not necessarily herself in claiming the bronze medal behind two diminutive dynamos from Asia on Thursday at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships in Kitchener, Ont.
For the victor, Mao Asada of Japan, and South Korea's silver medalist Yu-na Kim, both 14-years-old, their success was the cherry on top of their amazing debut seasons on the international stage.
For Hughes, finishing with a bronze medal in the first major international test of her career wasn't too bad either.
While Hughes, 15, will be able to challenge for an Olympic team berth next season, Asada and Kim are not eligible to compete at the 2006 Winter Games in Torino or the senior Worlds in Calgary because of their youth.
Asada, who also made history as the first woman ever to land a triple Axel in a World Junior Championship, collected an impressive 119.13 points in the free skate, amassing 179.24 points in all. That was over 20 points more than Kim, who leapfrogged from sixth place in the short program all the way up to the number two spot.
Kim earned an impressive 110.26 points for her finale, a total of 158.93 overall. Hughes scored 96.47 in her drive for the podium on Thursday and 147.89 in all.
With Asada's victory, Japan has won three consecutive women's World Junior titles and five in all since the event began in 1976.
Earlier this season, Asada earned her first entry in the record book with her winning skate at the Junior Grand Prix Final, which also included a triple Axel, the first ever executed in junior women's competition. Kim also won silver at that event.
In Kitchener, Asada completed six flawless triple jumps in a performance so smooth and seemingly effortless she seemed to be floating on a cushion of air. As the final notes of Jerome Kern's "La Boutique Fantastique" sounded, the audience rose as one and cheered.
"I'm very satisfied for today's performance. I was a little nervous before, watching the other skaters on TV," said Asada, who was the last of 24 competitors to skate. "When it was my turn, the nervousness was gone and I was very happy with what I did."
Kim held the audience spellbound with her performance to the delicate sounds of "Papa, Can You Hear Me?" She delivered six triple jumps including a triple toe-triple toe combination.
"Since I made so many mistakes yesterday in my short program, I was nervous, my body was tense," Kim said through an interpreter. "But today, I am very happy.
"I'm very happy about this first world medal in Korean figure skating history. Now I have to skate harder to earn better medals," said Kim.
Although Kim has never competed on the world stage or been to Kitchener before, she has a cosmic connection to the event and the city. In an amazing coincidence, her coach, HungJung Chi, competed in Kitchener at the 1987 World Juniors. Chi doesn't remember her ranking, only that she was "very low" in the standings as had been the case for all Korean competitors before Kim came along.
Kim and Hughes both enjoyed standing ovations at the end of their near-flawless efforts.
"I had a standing ovation at nationals and I knew how it felt," said Hughes, basking in the glow of her tremendous skate that was equal in intensity but superior in content to the one she delivered in Portland.
To the strains of Sleeping Beauty, Hughes ticked off six triples and judging by the smile on her face, she enjoyed every second of her four-minute program. Coming in to the season her goal was to improve her performance every time out. Mission accomplished.
"As far as I knew coming here, I was my biggest competition. I'm glad I accomplished what I did," said Hughes, whose sister Sarah, the 2002 Olympic champion, called before the final to wish her luck.
U.S. skaters Alissa Czisny and Kimmie Meissner, second and third, respectively, heading into the final, came out like gangbusters but fizzled in the second half of their programs. Both missed two triple jumps which cost them dearly.
Meissner, 15, dropped to fourth overall with 146.63 points, while Czisny, 17, was sixth with 136.99, after singling a Salchow and falling on a double Axel.
"I was really stupid at the end of my program. It was disappointing but the beginning was good," said Meissner, who counted four triples and singled out on two others. "I stopped thinking, I guess."
Asked about the ISU regulation that requires competitors to be 15-years-old by July 1 this year to be eligible for the Olympic Games, Meissner's coach Pam Gregory said the rule "is a stupid one."
"Why not let the best compete?" she asked, noting that Meissner was competing at the World Juniors, despite finishing third at the U.S. Championships because she is too young this season for the senior event.
While the Japanese federation is blessed with a number of women who would do their country proud in the Olympic arena, it is an unfortunate situation for Korea since Kim is their only elite-level competitor in any discipline.
The championships continue on Friday with the men's short program and ice dance finale. Canadian and American skaters are in contention for medals in both events.
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