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Broadmoor's Flatt falls short of top-three finish(Gazette, The (Colorado Springs, CO) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Feb. 7--VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA --On the international stage, one subpar performance typically knocks a figure skater out of medal contention. Back-to-back shaky outings make the podium an afterthought. Broadmoor Skating Club member Rachael Flatt learned the hard way Friday at the Four Continents Championships, struggling to a seventh-place finish with an error-filled long program more damaging than her mediocre short. Flatt wowed the judges with precise spins and flashy movement but lost about 8 1/2 points for turning a triple toe loop into a double after a triple flip and reducing a triple salchow to a double. She finished 17 points behind winner Yu-Na Kim of South Korea. Caroline Zhang took fourth. Alissa Czisny was ninth. "I could have done better," said Flatt, a Cheyenne Mountain High School junior. "I did the best I could. I'm a little disappointed." In ice dancing, Meryl Davis and Charlie White edged Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir by 0.58 of a point for gold. Emily Samuelson and Evan Bates took bronze. Kimberly Navarro and Brent Bommentre were sixth. Broadmoor members Jeremy Abbott and Brandon Mroz, as well as 2006 Olympian Evan Lysacek, will compete in today's long program. Lysacek is second, seven points in back of Canadian Patrick Chan. Abbott is fourth, and Mroz is fifth. For Flatt, adjustments are needed heading into the world championships, an Olympic qualifier next month in Los Angeles. The U.S. women failed to crack the world podium the past two years. Not since 1962-64 have they gone three years without a world medal. Flatt must rediscover the flair that propels fans to their feet, the pep that puts smiles on judges' faces, the vibrancy that lifted her to silver medals at the U.S. Championships and Cup of Russia. She also can't afford mistakes. A sloppy triple toe loop doomed her at nationals, and she was downgraded in Wednesday's short for the incorrect takeoff edge on a triple lutz. "I have a lot of work ahead of me," Flatt said. "I'm willing to make all the changes in my programs and my skating to make sure I get on that medal stand." Broadmoor coach Tom Zakrajsek sees plenty of potential in Flatt. "That's why she trains," he said. "She talks about everything that she needs to do to improve. If she got that out of this competition, that's more than most people would get out of a competition." NOTES American dancers triumph When Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir left the door open, Meryl Davis and Charlie White jumped through Friday with authority, becoming the first American ice dancers in three years to win the Four Continents Championships. Davis and White received high marks for a curve lift-rotational lift combination that preceded a circular step sequence. They also were rewarded for a midline step sequence. "It felt powerful and emotional," White said. Abbott to attempt quad Broadmoor Skating Club member Jeremy Abbott confirmed he'll try a quad toe loop, a jump with four rotations, in today's long program. He needs it after a short program in which he fell on a triple lutz and touched the ice on a circular step sequence. He trails Canadian Patrick Chan by 13 points. "It's finally time," Abbott said of the quad. "It's not over. I'm still in it. I have some more fight in me." Flatt gets makeover Don't fret if you hardly recognize Broadmoor member Rachael Flatt. Last month, Flatt signed with MAC Cosmetics, a Canadian company that's providing her makeup through the 2010 Olympics. The company's previous spokeswomen included Christina Aguilera, Pamela Anderson and Madonna. Flatt had her braces removed in December. Her new smile is all over her recently launched Web site, rachaelflatt.net. To see more of The Gazette, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.gazette.com. Copyright (c) 2009, The Gazette, Colorado Springs, Colo. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |