Local figure skaters hope to shine at ISU Grand Prix
Despite just missing out on a gold medal to open the season at the ISU Figure Skating Grand Prix, China's world champion pair Pang Qing and Tong Jian expect to sparkle spectators in their hometown later this week.
The Cup of China, the third stop in this season's grand prix, will kick off tomorrow in Harbin, capital city of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.
Competing in front of hometown fans, Pang and Tong are expected to regain their confidence and put on a good show.
"We made some big mistakes in the American stop, our first international competition this season, and some of our difficult movements weren't recognized by the judges," said Tong, who settled for a silver medal in the season-opener where he and his partner had been considered favorites to win.
"Although the failure shocked us a lot, the home ice will help us regain our confidence. We hope to perform our best in our hometown."
For the new season, Pang and Tong have changed their free-skating routine music to "Romeo and Juliet", injecting some difficult elements into the linking footwork and transitions.
"Some of the elements we regarded as high levels were only judged in low," Pang said. "We didn't expect the score to be so low."
The pair said they have made some changes to their routines according to their scores from the opener in the US.
"We have improved some elements in some of our lifts and jumps," said Tong. "Although the time is limited for us to practice, we will try our best."
The Cup of China, which will conclude on Sunday, will attract more than 60 skaters from 16 countries and regions.
World champion skaters will highlight the competition. The women's singles skaters include South Korean Kim Yu-na, the 2006 world junior champion and the gold medalist at the 2006-07 grand prix, Italian Carolina Kostner, the 2007 European champion, and American Caroline Zhang, the 2007 world junior champion.
On the men's side, Swiss Stephane Lambiel is a two-time world champion (2005 and 2006). Veteran Li Chengjiang and China's 2007 Asian Winter Games champion, Xu Ming, are also expected to shine on their home soil.
The ice-dancing competition will feature the silver medalists from the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games, Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto from the US.
China's star pair Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo, who have withdrawn from the competitions, will participate in the exhibition gala on Sunday.
It is the fifth time China will host a figure skating grand prix competition. Due to the renovation of the Capital Stadium in Beijing, the competition was moved to Nanjing, the capital city of east China's Jiangsu Province, last year. The renovation is also the reason for this year's move to Harbin.
(China Daily 11/07/2007 page22)
