Two American Announcements, and One Sort-Of Announcement

Gracie Gold settled in Michigan under Zueva and Epstein; Ashley Wager hints at her Olympic season music; Joshua Farris coming out of retirement.

Since the National Championships ended a couple of weeks back, things have been mostly quiet in U.S. skating. Those who qualified for the later season have been busy preparing, and those who didn’t have been busy too. Last Friday Ashley Wagner sent minds spinning with a tweet with a very strong indication of what her long program music for next season is going to be. But official statements didn’t show up until this Wednesday, when two skaters made them. One was the answer to a question left over after Nationals, and not at all surprising. The other nobody anticipated at all.

Gracie Gold Joins Zueva’s Growing Stable of Singles Skaters

When Gracie Gold left Kansas City coachless and licking her wounds from a disastrous and early-ended season, it was initially thought she’d go home to Chicago first. But instead she ended up in Canton, Michigan. Message board gossip firmly placed her as working with Marina Zueva and Oleg Epstein. On Wednesday she confirmed she’s going to stay there with them.

That no longer is the shock it would’ve been half a year ago, when Zueva only coached ice dancers. Patrick Chan hasn’t been doing too badly under her full-time tutelage. Nathan Chen has found going between her and main coach Rafael Arutunian to be a truly winning combination. Gold’s worked with them as choreographers in the past too. They did both the programs she started the last Olympic season with, and while she ultimately changed the short, she got some of her best results with the long program that was their creation.

It’s also not terribly far from Chicago. If at any time she thinks it might help to once again work with old coach Alexander Ouriashev, and Zueva and Epstein allow it, she can easily get to him. After the season’s she’s had, she might like having that option still on the table.

Whether Zueva and Epstein are the kind of coaches that can help a skater with Gold’s current emotional issues and lack of confidence is something everyone’s about to find out. Then again, they never had to specifically be coaches for singles skaters to meet that particular challenge.

Is Ashley Wagner Skating to La La Land?

Most skaters don’t choose their music for next season the winter before. It’s not an entirely unknown thing. But most wait until their season is over. Even those who do make their choices this early usually wait until the summer to announce them.

Ashley Wagner has not actually named her music for next season. But last Friday, she revealed on Twitter she’d chosen it, with a telling GIF:

If Ashley Wagner is indeed skating to La La Land, it would actually be smart of her to reveal it early. The moment the movie came out, the soundtrack was identified as one everyone was going to want to skate to next year. One skater even suggested they negotiate who gets it. (Note the first response.) But now, Wagner no longer has to worry about being hers one of too many La La Land programs. No other top American lady will touch it. Even if they’re not absolutely sure she’s skating to it, they can’t take the chance. She’s the undisputed top dog among American ladies, and none of the others will want to risk an unfavorable comparison to her.

Even internationally, this could decrease the amount of La La Land programs among the ladies. They won’t want the task of matching Wagner either. Even the ones who are favored to beat her would play with fire trying to skate to her music. No ladies skater in the world can portray a character with her ferocity and feeling. Her La La Land program would undoubtedly have her bringing Mia vividly to life. Even skaters who would think they could match her will likely want to have their music to themselves.

Men and couples may still use the soundtrack. But they probably won’t do it as well as Wagner either.

Joshua Farris Returning to Competition

Two years ago, Joshua Farris was a rising star in U.S. men. Then that summer, he suffered three concussions in as many weeks. He sat out the entire 2016 season, for much of it unable to even be in normal light. Finally, last June, he decided it was too dangerous to return to the ice, and announced his retirement. Fans the world over mourned.

But on Wednesday, he announced he’s coming back. His symptoms are finally entirely gone, he’s apparently already gotten all of his triple jumps back, and it seems he’s just not done yet after all. He even speaks of doing quadruple jumps again, unintimidated by the fact that he got the first of the concussions practicing it.

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If he comes back at that level of full strength, he will absolutely be a contender of for the Olympic team. It won’t be easy, though, especially since the U.S. may have only two men’s berths for the game. It will be very hard indeed to unseat Nathan Chen, and there are many men all competing for the other one or two spots on the team. If he’s so much as lacking the quads, he might not get into that picture.

But when he says the results aren’t what he cares about most anymore, if that’s true, then he doesn’t need to contend for the Olympics for this return to be a success. Joshua Farris is a beautiful skater, with a classical style and technique that’s wonderful to watch. Just being able to watch him on the ice again, by itself, will be a thing worth having.

Next: Miyahara Out with Stress Fracture in Hip

Of these skaters, we’ll next see Ashley Wagner, as she’s competing at the World Championships in March.