Cohen Not a Triple Threat in Qualifying

Sasha Cohen, the 15-year-old from from Laguna Niguel, finished second in her qualifying group Wednesday at the Junior World Figure Skating Championships in Oberstdorf, Germany.

Skating in Group B, Cohen, who finished second at the U.S. Senior National Championships last month in Cleveland, fell on her triple loop and had two shaky landings on other triple jumps. She finished behind Deanna Stellato, a 16-year-old from Glenview, Ill.

The third American competitor, Jennifer Kirk, 15, of Newton, Mass., won Group A and, according to Cohen’s coach, John Nicks, skated strongly while landing seven triple jumps, including a triple-triple combination.

The 48 skaters performed their long programs in this qualifying round, which will count for 20% of the final score. Cohen needs a medal at the Junior Worlds to qualify for the Senior Worlds March 26-April 2 in Nice, France.

Though her silver medal at nationals would normally earn Cohen a spot on the U.S. Senior Worlds team, Cohen is too young, according to age qualification standards. Only by medaling this week in Germany will Cohen be able to join Michelle Kwan and Sarah Hughes on the senior team in France.

Going into Friday’s short program, Kirk, who finished seventh at the senior nationals, and Stellato, who finished ninth at the senior nationals, are tied for first while Cohen and Tamara Dorofejev of Hungary are tied for third.

“The quality of Sasha’s skating wasn’t as good as it was at nationals,” Nicks said from Germany. “Unlike in Cleveland, where Sasha had very good practices, she’s struggled in practice here. She has seemed a little slow in practice, and today in competition she actually skated a little better than she had been. So I’m not very unhappy.”

Nicks said the important thing was that Cohen is among the leaders and will skate in the final group of six competitors Friday.

Stellato received five of seven first-place votes in Group B. Even with her fall, Cohen received two firsts. But the judges couldn’t seem to find a consensus on her skating, with one marking Cohen second, one third, two fifth and one sixth.

Besides Kirk, Stellato and Cohen dominating the junior women’s competition, Americans are also doing well in the other disciplines.

After the qualifying round and short program, Matthew Savoie of Peoria, Ill., is leading the junior men with Ryan Bradley of Colorado Springs, Colo., in fifth.

Tanhith Belbin of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., and Benjamin Agosto of Beverly Hills, Mich., are second after two rounds of compulsories in ice dancing, and Emilie Nussear of Clearwater, Fla., and Brandon Forsyth of Lexington, Mass., are third.

Amanda Magarian of Fresno and Jered Guzman, who was born in Garden Grove and now lives in Las Vegas, finished fifth in the pairs competition, and Larissa Speilberg of East Lansing, Mich., and Craig Joeright of Cleveland were 13th in the pairs.

The women’s competition ends with the long program on Saturday.