Day 8: Your Favourite Ladies Program

You know how it goes. No exhibitions. No previous repeats of programs (already or to come). The list of (my) contenders:

• Michelle Kwan - 5 time World Champion, 9 time American Champion, and Olympic Bronze and Silver Medalist.
• Tara Lipinski - Olympic, World, and American Champion.
• Joannie Rochette - Olympic Bronze Medalist, World Silver Medalist, and 6 time Canadian Champion.
• Yuna Kim - Olympic and World Champion (Top Koreans do not compete in their National Championships at this point - Kim only competed as a Senior (and won 5 times) while she was Junior age-eligible.
• Peggy Flemming - Olympic Champion, 3 time World Champion, and 5 time American Champion.
• Liz Manley - Olympic Silver Medalist, World Silver Medalist, and 3 time Canadian Champion.
• Karen Magnussen - Olympic Silver Medalist, World Champion (last Canadian woman to do so), and 5 time Canadian Champion.
• Lu Chen - 2 time Olympic Bronze Medalist, World Champion, and 9 time Chinese Champion.
• Irina Slutskaya - Olympic Bronze and Silver Medalist, 2 time World Champion, and 4 time Russian Champion.
• Kristi Yamiguchi - Olympic Champion, 2 time World Champion, and American Champion. Also 2 time American Pairs Champion (with Rudy Galindo).
• Katarina Witt - 2 time Olympic Champion, 4 time World Champion, and 8 time East German Champion.
• Oksana Baiul - Olympic, World, and 2 time Ukrainian Champion.
• Nancy Kerrigan  - Olympic Bronze and Silver Medalist, World Silver Medalist, and American Champion.
• Josee Chouinard  - 3 time Canadian Champion and Canada's biggest disappointment internationally :)
• Sasha Cohen - Olympic Silver Medalist, 2 time World Silver Medalist, and American Champion.

Strangely enough, this list was easier to narrow down than the mens' list. Perhaps there is less perfection in ladies' skating? Perhaps I've been so tunnel-visioned on my favourite lady skaters that I have skipped/avoided/not remembered skaters that should be on this list. Hmmm. We'll never know. Whatever the case, this was a much easier list to create.

There is one performance I am purposely leaving off as to me it qualifies for another post in this series and I promised no re-posts. If you know me well, you'll know the performance ;)

Honorable Mention: Karen Magnussen - Worlds - 1973 - Perhaps this is Canadian bias. Okay. Fine. It is. But there was something special about Karen and I am still in awe of her when I see her around the rink coaching at competitions. I even got her autograph when I was 17 :) She was the last Canadian woman to win a World Championship and that was in the days of Janet Lynn even!!

The Top 5:
5. Michelle Kwan - Tosca - 2004 -If you know me, you know that I'm not a fan of Michelle. However, even I can acknowledge the passion, power, and emotion behind this performance.

4. Sasha Cohen - Dark Eyes - 2006 - Sigh. I just can't believe this girl never reached her potential. Her jumps when they were on were perfect, plus she had flexibility, power, and baby ballerina...all in one. This program was stunning and for sure had me thinking she'd be Olympic champion (alas her freeskate wasn't as hot).

3. Irina Slutskaya - Wonderland - 2005 - Rewatching this program I acknowledge there are simple messy errors and her spins were definitely not perfect. She did an extra loop that ended up with no points, but I remember watching this program then and even now and the joy that she is skating with emanates. Skaters simply don't skate like that anymore - to me watching someone skate with joy is better, perhaps, than watching perfection. And this story, this skate - that's joy.

2. Yuna Kim - Gershwin Concerto - 2010 - Okay. I'm not one to go gaga over Yuna. Especially in light of her recent (negative) media attention. I don't think she's the greatest thing ever and I don't bow to her presence. But this program was magical and yes, I'd say perfection.

And the winner is...

1.  Joannie Rochette - Concierto de Aranjuez - 2009 Nationals. Okay. Like you didn't see this one coming. I know I'm obsessed, but how can I not be? Her subtle choreography is what gets me. The ability to move in time with the nuancing of the music, while maintaining textbook completion of her jumps. She has never gotten a jump downgrade on a clean triple (ie: many skaters land "clean" but in fact are short rotation and complete on the ice). She has never gotten an edge call on a lutz (aka: flutz). This program gives me chills. She was 2nd going in at Nationals (to Cynthia) and that was shocking. She let it all go and just wow. Wow.