FIGURE SKATING
Ballet coach helps lift Hase/Volodin (GER) to first place after Pairs Short Program
01 Nov 2024
Minerva Hase/Nikita Volodin (GER) shone in the Pairs Short Program to take the lead at the ISU Grand Prix de France in Angers (FRA) on Friday.
Reigning ISU World bronze medalists Hase/Volodin skated to a three-point lead ahead of 2023 ISU European Champions Sara Conti/Niccolo Macii of Italy. The defending Grand Prix de France Champions Lia Pereira/Trennt Michaud of Canada came third in the first segment of the competition.
Hase/Volodin put out a passionate performance of their Blues program to “You Were Mine”, starting off with a triple twist and following up with a triple Salchow and throw triple loop. The 2023 ISU Grand Prix Final Champions earned a level four for their side by side spin, death spiral, lift and step sequence to score 73.72 points, just below their personal best of 73.94.
The death spiral was a highlight of a passionate performance from Hase/Volodin (GER) which earned them first place © ISU
“We don't come here with any expectations about points. We know that Nebelhorn Trophy was a good first competition and I think it's still early in the season, so we don't expect to skate every time perfect and clean,” Hase said.
“We're really happy with the short program for now and try to stay concentrated for the free program and then let's see where it brings us.”
Hase explained that they are working with a new ballet coach to improve their expression and choreography.
“We have a new addition to our team, it's a ballet dancer from Leipzig who comes every Saturday to Berlin and we work three to four hours with him on the programs, just on the choreo on the ice and off the ice and he really helps us to look on the details and develop the choreo side which we still have a lot of room to improve,” she said.
Conti/Macii went for a dramatic program to “Carmen” that was highlighted by a level-four triple twist, triple Salchow and a difficult lift. Only the throw triple loop was somewhat shaky. The 2022 World bronze medalists earned 70.79 points.
Conti/Macii (ITA) put their own dramatic spin on Carmen, and end the Short Program in second position © ISU
“Actually, I chose the Carmen, because we chose another music at the beginning,” Macii revealed.
“We wanted to skate Love of My Life, but after one month and a half, we didn't really enjoy it. I changed it, because I think Sara is a volcano. She has a lot of passion. I chose the Carmen, and everybody said, yes, but… Remember that there are a few Carmen in the history of this sport, so you need to do it properly. We're trying to do our version. I don't remember anybody in pairs skating since a long time that did it.”
Pereira/Michaud delivered an upbeat performance to “Sing, Sing, Sing”, hitting a set of triple toes and a throw triple Salchow for a season’s best score of 64.38 points.
Reigning Grand Prix de France Champions Pereira/Michaud (CAN) achieved a season's best score with their upbeat performance © ISU
“We didn't really put too much pressure on us winning last year,” Pereira commented.
“We just really wanted to improve from our skate in Oberstdorf [Nebelhorn Trophy]. We had a good five, six weeks to really put in the work. And we feel like we did that [improving] today.”
The 2024 Skate America bronze medalists Alisa Efimova/Misha Mitrofanov (USA) remain close to the podium on 64.08 points after a strong Flamenco program, while 2024 Skate Canada silver medalists Ekaterina Geynish/Dmitrii Chigirev (UZB) lie fifth on 61.38 points.
For full entries, schedules & results, see the ISU Grand Prix series page, ISU Grand Prix de France event page and the official Grand Prix de France website.
Check out the ISU Grand Prix Standings to find out who is on their way to qualify for the Final:
Men Women Pair Skating Ice Dance
What & When
The schedule of the Grand Prix de France is as follows:
Friday, Nov 1: Pairs & Women’s Short Programs, Rhythm Dance, Men’s Short Program
Saturday, Nov 2: Pairs, Women’s & Men’s Free Skating, Free Dance
Sunday, Nov 3: Exhibition Gala
Follow the ISU Grand Prix events:
The schedules of each ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating event are available below:
- 18 - 20 Oct 2024 Skate America in Allen, TX (USA)
- 25 - 27 Oct 2024 Skate Canada International in Halifax (CAN)
- 01 - 03 Nov 2024 Grand Prix de France in Angers (FRA)
- 08 - 10 Nov 2024 NHK Trophy in Tokyo (JPN)
- 15- 17 Nov 2024 Finlandia Trophy in Helsinki (FIN)
- 22 - 24 Nov 2024 Cup of China in Chongqing (CHN)
The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final:
- 05 - 08 Dec 2024 Grenoble (FRA)
About ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating
The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series started in 1995 (previously known a s the ISU Champions Series) and consists of six invitational international senior events and the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. The top six of the past World Championships are seeded. Competitors collect points in their events towards the qualification for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. Only the top six Skaters / Couples in each discipline can qualify for the Final.
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