It’s been a loooooong time since I have written one of these and it makes me happy to be sitting in front of my laptop and thinking about what to write for my favourite audience – a skating audience.

In the blink of an eye, my friends Charlene Bailey, Mazin Thomas and I decided that we wanted to share the kind of skating conversations that are going on all around us especially during the figure skating Grand Prix season and our show #3Turn3 was born (https://youtu.be/kI287inaXOg). Look for us on a Friday morning at 10am ET at least for next week.

Skating pals from left to right Charlene Bailey, Mazin Thomas and Pj Kwong aka 3Turn3

I keep thinking that I might be ‘over’ skating and then like some kind of strange and seductive cocktail, I only need to find it on TV for a split second, and I am right back to where I have been my whole life – thinking and loving what I see at the rink.

Skate Canada International was on TV today and as I toggled between CBC and NBC’s coverage, I loved listening to the analysts and their opinions and watching the drama play out on the ice. There were some standouts in all 4 disciplines, and this is where I get to share what I saw and what I think.

The Women: WOW! 4 Triple Axels (including attempts) in the short program! Former American champion Alyssa Liu has been waiting a while to capture my attention again; it was worth the wait. The trio of Russian women, Kamila Valieva, Elizaveta Tuktamysheva, Alena Kostornaia each as accomplished and talented as the next are a reason to celebrate the evolution of women’s skating as far as I am concerned.

The Men: Nathan Chen – you made me clutch my pearls last week! As he said in an interview, every streak has to end some time and his streak that started in 2018 was ended by fellow American Vincent Zhou at Skate America. This week’s short program was much more like Nathan’s regular competition. I want to mention fellow American and all-around great person – Jason Brown – what a delight!

The Ice Dancers: Canadians Piper Gilles and aul Poirier are memorable for so much more than their mango costumes. Their time has come. If there was ever a season for the World Bronze medallists to shine, the Olympic season is it. I was (honoured to be) invited to see their free dance before they had even publicly announced the music. It gave me all the feels and is a program that is as important as an Olympic program should be.

The Pairs: I said it on #3Turn3. I believe that Wenjing Sui and Cong Han from China aren’t going to let their shot at Olympic Gold slip through their fingers. I saw the Olympic Silver medallists skate their short and free live in Beijing at the recent Olympic test event and was mesmerized. They have always been a solid team but as they have evolved they have been able to bring out a maturity that is beautiful and authentic and celebrates their dynamic. Love it. Winning Skate Canada by a 30-point margin, even with an error, was the icing on the cake.

There is so much skating and yet so little that sticks in my brain. I have just given you some great options for your own YouTube or streaming playlist.

I’m baaaaaaaccckkkkk…and happy to be here 🙂 No trick – all treat!

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