Yamaguchi-Galindo Take Pairs Title

Kristi Yamaguchi of Fremont, Calif., and Rudi Galindo of San Jose, world junior champions less than two years ago, won the pairs title Friday night in the U.S. figure skating championships at the Baltimore Arena.

But as brilliantly as they skated, earning a standing ovation from the crowd of 9,836, their victory was overshadowed by a judging controversy.

Even though Olympians Natalie and Wayne Seybold of Marion, Ind., who were leading entering the freestyle program, made several major mistakes, including two falls, they were awarded second place and will join Yamaguchi and Galindo at the world championships next month at Paris.

Just missing a berth on the U.S. world team were third-place finishers Katy Keeley and Joseph Mero of Costa Mesa, although some U.S. Figure Skating Assn. officials believed that the pair deserved to finish ahead of the Seybolds.

Moments before the USFSA president, Hugh Graham, went onto the ice to present the medals, he turned to associates and said, “This just blows the fun of the awards.”

Natalie Seybold said that a lace on one of her boots snapped early in the program, causing their mishaps.

The Baltimore Arena crowd gave its first standing ovation of the night to Christopher Bowman, 21, of Van Nuys. He easily won the men’s individual program, which counts toward 30% of the final score.

That moved Bowman, a 1988 Olympian, into second place overall entering Sunday’s long program. After winning the compulsory figures competition Thursday and finishing second in the original program, Denver’s Daniel Doran, 22, leads. Todd Eldredge, 17, a former world junior champion from San Diego, is third.

One of the favorites here, Olympian Paul Wylie of Denver, is fourth overall.

Notes

Atlanta’s Shepherd Clark, who trains under Carlo Fassi in Colorado Springs, won the junior men’s championship. John Baldwin Jr. of San Diego was third. Alex Chang of Seal Beach finished sixth and Richard Alexander of San Diego 10th. . . . Chris Mitchell of Rolling Hills was 12th and Troy Goldstein of Culver City 13th after the men’s original program. . . . Tisha Walker of Thousand Oaks won the junior girl’s original program and is third overall entering Sunday’s long program. World junior champion Jessica Mills, coached by Barbara Roles in Harbor City, is fifth. Natasha Kuchiki of Canoga Park is ninth. . . . Kara Berger of San Diego and Jay Barton of Torrance are fourth in junior dance after the original set pattern. Dana Schneider of South Pasadena and Stephen Laumann of Thousand Oaks are 12th.