Skaters Raise Stakes at a Dizzying Pace

Poor Todd Eldredge.

A few weeks after the five-time U.S. men’s figure skating champion landed his first quadruple jump in competition, Timothy Goebel landed three quads in his long program at Skate America, affirming the quad as a must-have for Salt Lake City men’s Olympic medal hopefuls.

Although Goebel must refine his artistry, he appears to have overtaken Eldredge in the Olympic race by winning the Skate America title and finishing second to Russia’s Evgeni Plushenko in the Nations Cup at Gelsenkirchen, Germany. Eldredge, who won the Midwestern Sectional championships last week en route to the U.S. National championships, didn’t try a quad at Skate America and put his hand down on the quad he tried at Skate Canada.

Michael Weiss, the 2000 U.S. champion, also has some catching up to do. In last weekend’s Cup of Russia at St. Petersburg, his first competition since he suffered a broken ankle, Weiss simplified several jumps and completed only three triples, finishing sixth.

The technical level continues to rise. Plushenko, fourth in this year’s world championships, defeated Goebel in Germany and fellow Russian Ilia Klimkin last weekend at St. Petersburg by doing a quadruple toe-triple toe-double loop combination in his long program. Goebel, who trains in El Segundo with Frank Carroll, landed a quadruple salchow in his Skate America short program and two in his long program in Germany, one in combination with a triple toe loop.

What’s next--a quintuple jump? It might come soon.

Dick Button landed the first double axel in competition at the 1948 Olympics, and Vern Taylor of Canada landed the first triple axel in the 1978 World Championships. The first quadruple jump in competition was a quadruple loop by Kurt Browning of Canada at the 1988 World Championships. Goebel was the first to do a quadruple salchow in competition, at the 1999 World Championships, the first to do a quadruple salchow in combination with a triple jump, and the first to do three quads in a program, at Skate America in 1999.

“Had you asked the skating fraternity 20 years ago if anybody could do a quad, they probably would have said no,” said Paul Martini, a Canadian TV commentator and writer who paired with Barbara Underhill to win the 1984 world pairs title. “I’m watching guys do them now and you see the odd one over-rotated. It’s not what they’re trying to do, but when you’re exerting that much energy and moving that quickly, it’s difficult to stop.

“If anybody is even remotely close [to a quintuple jump], probably the best bet is Timothy. He’s got a real natural predisposition to rotate quickly. It would have to be someone with that type of physique--slight of build and narrow-hipped.”

No female skater has landed a quad in competition. Martini believes women must first master the triple axel--which is 3 1/2 rotations--before they can try quads. Midori Ito of Japan became the first woman to land a triple axel in competition at the 1989 World Championships, and Tonya Harding became the first U.S. woman to land one at the 1991 World Championships. However, no U.S. woman has one in her repertoire.

“That’s actually more baffling to me than anything,” Martini said. “Tonya has been out of the sport for six years, and in that time, nobody has been able to do it. . . . Our sport is unique in that we have had so few changes in equipment and the surface on which we ply our trade. Gymnastics has spring-loaded the floor so they do all kinds of stuff they couldn’t do before. A lot of sports have had equipment advances, but ours, you could take a skate from 25 years ago and take one from today and they’re very similar. The materials may be different but overall, in terms of what they do, they’re the same. Any advances you’ve seen are in technique.

“It could be that it won’t be until we have a [Wayne] Gretzky of our sport, someone who is so amazingly gifted, that we make that leap.”

MIRACLE ON ICE, PART II

Herb Brooks’ appointment as coach of the 2002 U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team was more than a bow to nostalgia. It makes sense.

Brooks, who led the U.S. to gold at Lake Placid in 1980, advocates a free-flowing game that’s ideal for the wider Olympic ice surface. He’s familiar with the NHL after coaching the Pittsburgh Penguins most of last season and has recently been scouting for them. His association with the “Miracle on Ice” will also lure many elite U.S. players.

“I’m definitely in. Without question, I want to play on that team, especially when they bring in a guy like Herb Brooks and what he has accomplished,” said Phoenix Coyote winger Keith Tkachuk, who called the Nagano Olympics “the biggest waste of time” after the U.S. was eliminated by the Czech Republic, although he later recanted.

“He’s somebody I’d really like to play for. He’s a hero, after watching those Olympics. I think it’s important, especially with what we did in 1980. That brought myself and a lot of American players into hockey. This can bring better players from the U.S. into hockey.”

Teammate Jeremy Roenick agreed. “I don’t think you can think of the ’80 Olympics without thinking about Brooks,” he said. “I remember seeing him jumping up and down behind the bench. That’s a big mental piece of memory. . . . He’s going to tell his stories of that experience, and that alone is worth a trip.”

New York Ranger defenseman Brian Leetch, a two-time Norris Trophy winner and a 1988 and 1998 Olympian, also sees Brooks as the right choice. “It’s good he’ll have some time to look at players and make evaluations. A coach who’s working full time might not be able to do that,” said Leetch, who was playing in a peewee tournament when Brooks’ 1980 team triumphed. “He coached in the NHL recently and will have time to see European teams and players.”

Said Ranger goalie Mike Richter, who grew up near Philadelphia and was an Olympian in 1988: “Back in 1980, we all pretended to be [Flyer goalie] Bernie Parent or [Flyer forward] Rick MacLeish, but when the Olympics came, suddenly we all wanted to be Mike Eruzione, Ken Morrow and Jim Craig. . . . No matter who’s the coach, it would be an honor and privilege to play, but I do think Herb Brooks has had a lot of success, judging by what he did with the Penguins. He’d be a guy anybody would like to be under as a player.”

PICABO, WHEN WILL WE SEE YOU?

Skier Picabo Street, who suffered a broken left leg and ruptured ligaments in her right leg in a horrible crash in March 1998, has delayed her return until next week at the earliest.

Street, who won gold in the super G at Nagano in 1998 and silver in the downhill in 1994 at Lillehammer, had arthroscopic surgery to repair a partial meniscus tear in her right knee last week. She has been training full time since May. Street may compete next weekend in World Cup downhill and super-G races at Lake Louise, Canada, or Dec. 9-10 at Val d’Isere, France, the site of World Cup downhill and giant slalom races.

HERE AND THERE

Alexei Yagudin, who lost to Goebel at Skate America, avenged that at Skate Canada. Irina Slutskaya of Russia won the women’s title over Michelle Kwan, who simplified several jumps and tripped on a simple backward move. Slutskaya also won the Cup of Russia, ahead of compatriot Elena Sokolova. Sarah Hughes and Sasha Cohen of the U.S. were third and fourth, respectively. Kyoko Ina and John Zimmerman of the U.S. were seventh after the pairs short program and moved up to fourth. . . . Kwan and Goebel qualified for the Grand Prix Final, to be held February in Japan. . . . Three-time world champion and two-time Olympic silver medalist Elvis Stojko of Canada, sidelined because of tendinitis, might return in the NHK Trophy event Nov. 30-Dec. 3 in Japan. . . . Scott Hamilton, the 1984 men’s figure skating gold medalist, will begin a farewell tour with the Stars on Ice troupe. Hamilton, who founded the tour in 1986, plans to reduce his schedule. After a preview Saturday at Lake Placid, the show will travel the U.S. from Dec. 28-April 7. . . . Pairs skaters Sima and Amir Ganaba, who train in Costa Mesa with John Nicks, qualified for the Junior Grand Prix final next month at Ayr, Scotland. The U.S. and Russia each qualified nine entries.

Derek Parra of San Bernardino, who recently qualified for the U.S. allround long track speedskating team, finished seventh in the 1,500 and third in the men’s B-division 5,000 in the season-opening event at Berlin. Parra, who was a U.S. and world inline champion, trains in Greenfield, Wis. . . . Maria Garcia of Carson qualified for the U.S. women’s short-track World Cup team but can’t compete because she’s 15, too young by International Skating Union standards. . . . Speedskating moved its headquarters and major races to Salt Lake City from West Allis, Wis., in preparation for the 2002 Games. The Wisconsin oval holds many memories: It’s where Eric Heiden trained before he won five golds at Lake Placid and was home to Bonnie Blair (five golds over three Games) and Dan Jansen (one gold).

The managerial and coaching staffs for the Canadian men’s Olympic hockey team will be different from the 1998 group. The choice of Gretzky as director of player personnel was expected, but his pick of first-year Edmonton Oiler General Manager Kevin Lowe seems risky. Coach Pat Quinn will have considerable input in personnel decisions--and will emphasize offense even though defense disciples Jacques Martin and Ken Hitchcock are his assistants.