Slutskaya, Plushenko Sweep Events at Marshalls World Cup of Skating
by Alyson Lobert, Special to U.S. Figure Skating Online |
| Irina Slutskaya Photo by Michelle Harvath |
Marshalls World Cup Results and Photos
(12/3/04) — Detroit-area skating fans received an early holiday present on Friday night, and it came in the form of the Marshalls World Cup of Figure Skating. Held at the Palace of Auburn Hills, the annual event brought together skating's biggest stars to battle for the $50,000 first-place prize money. This year, it was Russia's stars who shined the brightest under the glare of competition; Evgeny Plushenko and Irina Slutskaya each took first place.
Plushenko earned three perfect 6.0 marks as he took the title; Evan Lysacek skated first but still managed to pull off an upset, finishing second. In ladies, Slutskaya finished above World medalists Michelle Kwan and Sasha Cohen who placed second and third, respectively.
Fresh off of two gold-medal finishes on the Grand Prix circuit, Slutskaya continued her winning ways. She fired off a seven-triple performance to capture the title, which she earned despite suffering from jetlag and a knee injury sustained in training.
Overcoming obstacles is nothing new for Slutskaya, who is competing in her first full season after being sidelined, and hospitalized, with inflammation around the lining of her heart.
“It's my life right now,” Slutskaya said of her skating. “I will fight for my wins, I will fight for my titles.”
Slutskaya's competitors were glad to see her triumph over her recent setbacks.
“I'm so happy for her,” Cohen said. “Every athlete has down times. It's nice to see you can have tough times and get out of it.”
Kwan, friends with Slutskaya since they met at the 1994 World Junior Championships, agreed.
“First, second, third — who cares? Health is the most important,” Kwan said.
Kwan placed second behind Slutskaya. Skating to her “Bolero” free skate for just the second time in competition, Kwan completed five triple jumps.
“It felt pretty good, but I had some rough patches,” Kwan said.
Returning to competition after injuring her back in October, Cohen placed third. A lack of conditioning due to missed training time was a factor in her performance, which included just three triple jumps.
“It was definitely tough to push through to the end,” she said.
The Marshalls World Cup of Skating marked just the second time this season that skating fans have had the opportunity to see Kwan and Cohen compete. Kwan elected not to compete on the Grand Prix circuit; Cohen's back injury forced her to withdraw from her Grand Prix assignments.
Jennifer Kirk, performing her free skate to a medley of music by the Beatles, placed fourth; Alissa Czisny took fifth place. Angela Nikodinov singled a planned triple flip and popped a double Axel, finishing sixth.
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| Evgeny Plushenko Photo by Paul Harvath |
Plushenko took the men's competition convincingly. His program, set to Hungarian composer Edvin Marton's interpretation of “The Godfather” score, included a quadruple toe loop and seven triple jumps. But despite Plushenko's jumping prowess, it was his intricate footwork that garnered the loudest applause from the Auburn Hills audience.
Second place in the men's competition went to Lysacek. Skating to “Singing in the Rain,” Lysacek performed a triple Axel-triple toe combination, as well as six other triple jumps.
“I felt really good, really comfortable,” Lysacek said. “The audience was great.”
He admitted to being bolstered by the presence of his mother in the stands.
“I was stoked,” he said. “She hasn't seen me much this season.”
Lysacek was a last-minute replacement for Timothy Goebel, who withdrew from the event due to injury.
Though he fell on his quadruple toe loop and a triple Axel, World silver medalist Brian Joubert placed third behind Plushenko and Lysacek. U.S. champion Johnny Weir took fourth place after landing six triples including a triple Axel-triple toe combination. Ryan Jahnke finished in fifth place, while Russian Andrei Griazev was sixth.
Between the men's and ladies' competition, the audience was treated to two exhibition programs; U.S. ice dancing champions Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto and U.S. pairs champions Rena Inoue and John Baldwin performed for the appreciative Auburn Hills audience.
