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The World Figure Skating Championships are well underway in Gothenburg, Sweden. The competitive events just concluded, but TV coverage lasts two more days. Viewing began in the U.S. Thursday night on ESPN and ABC with the Pairs Short program and the Original Dance. Last night was the Ladies Short and Free Dance, and tonight is the Pairs Ladies Free Skate, followed by the Mens Free Skate tomorrow night. Due to time zones and tape delay, I already know who won all events, but I won't give that away here. I'll just report what to expect in the Free Skate events, and then I'll come back to the comments over the next few days with additional notes about how the skaters performed for those who like the element of anticipation. First off, in terms of the Americans, see my posts from the U.S. Nationals Ladies Short Program and Ladies Free Skate for how things stood coming into this event. The gold and silver medalists, Mirai Nagasu and Rachel Flatt, are not at Worlds because they're too young. They went to Junior Worlds instead. (I guess this is a relatively new rule because Tara Lipinski won Worlds at age 14 a decade ago. I don't know when or why it changed, but many people are speaking out about their opinions on the change now.) As the results stand going into the Free Skate, Kimmie Meissner, the most known name in U.S. ladies figure skating the past few years since her world title in '06, is in 9th place after the Short Program. She's had a rocky year and she skated well in the Short, but she only did a triple-double combination. It's just that other skaters had higher difficulty and also skated near perfect. So much for the American ladies having a chance at the podium. Bebe Liang and Ashley Wagner, the 5th place and 3rd place finishers from Nationals respectively are in 10th and 11th place after the Short Program. As of the Short Program, there's a small chance one of them could make the top 5, but medal likelihood is slim. Liang skated a strong program and looked happy about her skate. Wagner skated well too; she just didn't have the difficulty she needed to contend with the top group, turning her triple-triple into a triple-double and skating without the relaxed artistry of the top skaters. The final skating group for today includes leader from the Short Program, European Champion, Italy's Carolina Kostner, Joannie Rochette of Canada, Kiira Korpi of Finland, Yu-Na Kim of Korea (coming off an injury), Mao Asada, currently in second, and Yukari Nakano, currently in third, both from Japan. All of these ladies are solid, fantastic skaters and incredible to watch, especially the young Japanese and Korean skaters. Expect Kim, Asada and Nakano to shine along with Kostner, but don't count out Korpi. Note last year's champion, Miki Ando, is not in that group. She had a new look in her short program - very long with a more artistic flow, but she had the same problem as Meissner. What impressed me the most about this event was how few flaws were in the top contenders' programs. They were all excellent. Mao Asada's triple lutz, triple loop combination seemed effortless and its height was superb (my Dick Button word of the day). Kostner's triple-triple was equally impressive although technically less difficult. To be totally honest, I don't know why her points were higher than Asada's. I thought Asada was better. It must've been in the footwork difficulty, spin positions and little details. Kim took an unfortunate fall, but otherwise looked incredible given that she had been off the ice for a month. Every few years, the costumes fail to appeal to me in international events and while I admired the choices by Asada and Kim, Wagner and Sebestyen could have done better. I liked Korpi's unique choice, but the fabric selection was a bit off. I want to hire whoever did her make-up for Kimmie Meissner; it was gorgeous, and Meissner could use a bit of color for the TV. You might say that commenting about the costume and make-up choice is moot in a sporting event, but as a skater, it affects your movement and how you feel about the music. As an audience member, it affects your perception of the artistry as in a theater and it needs to be seen from the back row. As a judge, it affects how you
