Two rise as future of U.S. skating

Mirai Nagasu didn’t catch much of the TV coverage of the world figure skating championships last month in Tokyo.

But she had a good excuse. She doesn’t have cable TV.

Caroline Zhang didn’t watch much either.

She gave up TV for Lent, although she admits she peeked a few times at the coverage on YouTube.

But the rest of the world might be tuning in to watch them in the very near future.

The U.S. figure skating establishment is pinning its hopes on that.

Nagasu, who won the U.S. junior title in January, and Zhang, who won the world junior title last month, are considered the top two up-and-comers in U.S. figure skating. For a sport that has been struggling to grab TV viewers as it did in the glory and very golden days of the Tonya Harding-Nancy Kerrigan era, Nagasu and Zhang just might be what the sport needs.

They’re cute. They’re bubbly. And they can skate.

The 13-year-old Southern Californians were featured Friday night in the Marshall’s U.S. Figure Skating Showcase, an event that will be televised April 14 on ABC. They were part of a power-packed cast, with 2006 world champion and reigning U.S. champion Kimmie Meissner, newly crowned U.S. men’s champion Evan Lysacek and Olympic silver medalist Sasha Cohen.

Although they are future stars -- Zhang was featured in Sports Illustrated’s “Faces in the Crowd” -- Nagasu and Zhang were very much in awe of the current stars.

“I think it’s really cool to skate on the same ice as them,” said Zhang, an eighth-grader from Irvine. “I spent a lot of time, like, looking at them.”

The Marshall’s event marked only the second time Nagasu, of Arcadia, had ever skated under full spotlights.

While many of the veteran skaters traveled to this event without their coaches, Nagasu and Zhang were very reliant on theirs. Nagasu trains with Charlene Wong, who worked with longtime national competitor Amber Corwin. Zhang’s coaches are Ming Zhu Li and Sondra Holmes.

Physically, Nagasu and Zhang are tiny. Nagasu stands at 4 feet 7; Zhang is 4-9. On the ice, however, they have a presence that makes them appear much larger. They can jump with the best. But they also have mature artistry and extreme flexibility that make you think they are well beyond their 13 years. Nagasu will turn 14 two days after this event is televised. Zhang’s 14th birthday is May 20.

They have some growing to do, but both are on the fast track. The fact that they were invited to skate in this event is an indication of that. When the Champions on Ice tour stops in Anaheim (May 26) and Los Angeles (May 27), Nagasu and Zhang will be guest performers.

In the absence of nine-time U.S. champion Michelle Kwan and Cohen, Meissner has been the most publicized U.S. skater. But Nagasu and Zhang are quickly being added to the picture. What the U.S. Figure Skating Assn. especially likes about them is that they could become on-ice rivals, something that has always generated ratings -- especially when it comes to women’s figure skating. The short-lived Kwan-Tara Lipinski battle helped draw millions of viewers. Obviously, so did Tonya and Nancy and the 1988 Olympic “Battle of the Carmens” between Debi Thomas and Katarina Witt.

With U.S. Figure Skating’s longtime TV contract with ABC hanging in the balance, some are wondering if Nagasu and Zhang can save the sport.

“I have talked to Mirai about this,” said Wong, who has worked with Nagasu since last summer. “The adults on her team are all on the same page. We want to look at this as a huge opportunity -- not only for the sport but for herself. She just has to keep doing her best and be happy doing it.”