State Farm U.S. FS Championships: Men's Short Program

ESPN aired coverage of the 2001 State Farm U.S. Figure Skating Championships held in Boston, Mass., at the Fleet Center. Hosted by Terry Gannon, Peter Carruthers, and Leslie Gudel, this event featured the Men's short program. During the Men's short program, eight elements are required: Double or triple axel, footwork into triple or quad jump, jump combination, flying spin, camel or sit spin with change of foot, combination spin, and two footwork sequences. Should these elements not be executed properly, the following deductions will be made: Falling on a jump, .3 - .4, landing a jump in two feet, .2 - .3, stepping out of a jump, .2 - .3, and touching down with a free foot or hand, .1 - .2. First to skate was 20 year old Matt Savoie. He missed his opening jump, a triple axel, which is uncharacteristic of his former skating abilities. He received a .4 deduction for this. He completed his triple flip/triple toe loop combination, but was hesitant on the landing. During his camel spin, he completed six revolutions on each foot, something that the judges also require. For his technical marks, they ranged from 4.9 to 5.1, and his presentation marks ranged from 5.2 to 5.4. Next to skate was 16-year-old Johnny Weir. He opened with a triple lutz/triple toe combination, which was very nice and had a good, clean delivery. He failed on his axel by only completing a single. Explanation: he fell short of rotation. To add to his defense, he is skating with a hip injury that he sustained during New Year's. Technical: 4.6 - 5.0, Presentation: 4.9 - 5.5. 25-year-old Trifun Zivanivic was up next, who opened with a solid triple flip/triple toe loop combination. His triple axel was well executed, as was his triple lutz. He skated with lots of conviction, and had an excellent performance. Technical: 5.4 - 5.6, Presentation: 5.5 - 5.7. Next, was 29-year-old Todd Eldredge, who made his 11th trip to the Senior Nationals. He attempted a quad tow with a double toe combination but only completed a double, which was a complete disaster for him. He fell short of rotation and took a big deduction for this unfortunate mistake. His triple axel was great, which showed that he was back on track. He had quick, clean spins and rotated at a fast rate. I don't think that anyone can spin as well as Todd can. Technical: 5.4 - 5.6, Presentation: 5.7 - 5.8.

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