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Bradie Tennell still leads short program despite fall; Mirai Nagasu and Karen Chen coming up


Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto reacts after her performance in the women’s short program. (Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images)

The final figure skating medal event — women’s singles — begins Tuesday at 8 p.m. Eastern. We will be updating this story throughout the night with live results and analysis. Chelsea Janes is reporting from Gangneung Ice Arena and Des Bieler is in Washington.

American Bradie Tennell out of first place

The arrival of the fourth group brought the beginning of the true medal contenders, and it didn’t take long for Bradie Tennell to fall out of the first-place position she’d held from the very start of the competition. Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto, the first skater of the group and the 19th overall to take the ice, scored a 73.18, easily besting Tennell’s 64.01.

The score was a personal best in the short program for Sakamoto, a 17-year-old who just completed her first season at the senior level.

Tennell falls on first jump

NBC’s Johnny Weir called it a “shocking error” —and with good reason. Bradie Tennell, who had shown remarkable poise and consistency in her climb to a surprising win at the U.S. national championships that led into the Olympics, fell to the ice on her first jump combination Wednesday.

“It was definitely unexpected,” Tennell said (via Associated Press) of her fall on a triple toe loop, “but things happen. We’re all human. We all make mistakes. You just have to get up and keep going.”

Tennell, 20, managed to land the first part, a triple lutz, but she failed execute the next, a triple toe jump. She received a one-point deduction for the error and finished with a score of 64.01 points.

Despite her status as the U.S. champion, Tennell was the first woman to skate Wednesday, well ahead of American teammates Mirai Nagasu and Karen Chen. The order was based on the world rankings, and out of the lowest-rated group of skaters, Tennell drew the first position.

In an interview with NBC’s Andrea Joyce, Tennell said that, on her fall, she let her left arm “get away” from her, and that she “just kind of sat down,” but was not of a mind to let the mishap mar the rest of her program. She acknowledged that it was a “challenge to be the first one out there” to compete in the short program.

Her fall likely rules out any realistic hope of winning a medal after the free skate is held Friday.

Tennell earned a season-high 68.94 points for her short-program performance during last week’s team competition.

Tennell still in first through three groups

The heavy hitters have yet to take the ice, but after a costly spill during her short program, American Bradie Tennell can take comfort from the fact that she was still in first place, and comfortably so, after the first three groups of six performed. Tennell’s 64.01 points had her well ahead of Slovakia’s Nicole Rajicova, in second place with 60.59 points, and Germany’s Nicole Schott (59.20).

The fourth group is set to feature the other two Americans, Mirai Nagasu and Karen Chen. The fifth group boasts the two gold-medal favorites, Evgenia Medvedeva and Alina Zagitova of the Olympic Athletes from Russia team.

Figure skater’s figure-skating brother grimaces through her performance


Loena Hendrickx of Belgium (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Belgium’s Loena Hendrickx was visibly upset when she finished her short program, after she popped her final axel, costing her a better score. Suffering along with her was her brother Jorik, who was shown on NBC’s cameras grimacing anxiously through her routine.

Jorik Hendrickx was well-positioned to know what his sister was going through, as he was coming off a 15th-place finish in the men’s singles competition earlier in the week. That’s right, Team USA’s Maia and Alex Shibutani are not the only pair of figure skating siblings at the Games.

Jorik Hendrickx also has something in common with another member of the American skating team, Adam Rippon, as both are proudly out gay men. Meanwhile, his sister managed to post the seventh-best score as of her performance and was in good position to qualify for Friday’s free skate.

Figure skating to AC/DC?


Hungary’s Ivett Toth (Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images)

GANGNEUNG, South Korea — Hungary’s Ivett Toth took the ice in a leather motorcycle-style vest, complete with intimidating logo on the back, and skated to AC/DC. You read that right.

Most skaters opt for a medley. Most skaters opt for slightly more varied medleys. Toth, instead, chose to start with Back in Black before providing the world with something it never knew it needed until that moment: the combination of figure skating and Thunderstruck.

“That was an interesting program,” NBC’s Tara Lipinski said afterward. “Interesting is a great way to put it, Tara. I felt like I was in a dream that wouldn’t end, and by dream I mean nightmare,” Johnny Weir added.

She earned a 53.22 for the program, her best of the season, eighth at the midway point of the short program competition — though the skaters generally get better as they go. But to all of you sitting and thinking you can’t figure skate because you would want to skate to AC/DC, take heart. Dream big. Olympics big.

As a side note, Toth skated just after Australia’s Kailani Craine, who chose not to pay homage to her country’s foremost rock band.

Rippon helping keep Nagasu loose

If Mirai Nagasu is experiencing nerves ahead of her performance, it’s not because Adam Rippon isn’t doing his best to loosen her up. NBC showed Rippon, who helped Team USA win bronze in the team competition and has been a breakout star at the Games for his exuberant, amusing commentary, cracking up Nagasu with some mock-fighting antics in a warm-up room.

With one entertaining interview after another, Rippon proved such a hit with NBC viewers that the network offered him a job for the rest of the Games. After agreeing to take it, he had a change of heart because he wanted to remain in the athletes’ village and join Team USA for the closing ceremony.

NFL royalty is on hand

During the break between the second and third groups, NBC’s cameras showed Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald in attendance at the competition. The 11-time Pro Bowler was decked out in Team USA gear, and surely appreciated the fact that America’s own Bradie Tennell was in first place at that point.

According to the Arizona Coyotes, Fitzgerald, a native of Minnesota, tried out ice skating for the first time last year as he joined that team during a practice session. Here’s hoping he is sticking with it and picked up some tips Wednesday.

Future Olympic figure skaters?

Yamaguchi sends ‘best wishes’

Kristi Yamaguchi, who gave the United States a gold medal in ladies’ singles figure skating at the 1992 Games in Albertville, France, is rooting for Team USA’s trio of Bradie Tennell, Mirai Nagasu and Karen Chen. “Bring it ladies!” the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame member tweeted.

Tennell still on top after first two groups

Twelve skaters have now taken their turns on the ice, and the first one to go, Team USA’s Bradie Tennell, is still in first place. Actually, she’s on top by a comfortable margin, with her score of 64.01 well ahead of the woman currently in second, Brazil’s Isadora Williams (55.74).

However, the top skaters will come later in the evening, as the order was determined largely by the world rankings. Tennell, who won the U.S. national championship but struggled with injuries for most of last season, was grouped with the women further down in the rankings and drew the first position.

Tennell scored well despite falling during her initial jump combination, but that mistake is expected to cost her a high finish tonight, and ultimately a place on the podium.

Crowd into Beyoncé

French skater Berenice Mae Meite started skating her short program to a slow, acoustic version of Beyoncé’s Halo, and that was beautiful and all.

Then, she did what no one had done yet this morning, and woke up the crowd — with the help of Beyoncé, of course. She dropped the signature beat, then chorus, of “Run the World,” and the crowd here loved it. They’ve been politely excited about familiar skaters or hometown competitors so far. But Meite inspired the first dose of, well… hype.

Best costume? Mambekova is an early winner


Kazakhstan’s Aiza Mambekova (Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images)

Kazakhstan’s Aiza Mambekova, the ninth skater to perform, won the early award for most arresting outfit. She wore a stylish black dress that was cut high at the thigh and a bejewelled head piece.

“I need that headpiece,” NBC’s Johnny Weir said. Co-analyst Tara Lipinksi called Membekova’s program “not great” but added, “I really feel like she gave us full diva” with the outfit and her artistry.

Kazakh cheering section makes itself heard

GANGNEUNG, South Korea — As you might expect, Korean skaters have been greeted with roars here. A large cohort of American fans cheered Bradie Tennell, and the Americans are just generally well-received by crowds here. Chinese fans created a uniformed cheering section. None of that should be surprising.

But one of the largest assembled sections so far belongs to Kazakhstan, and it made itself known for Kazakh Aiza Mambekova’s short program.

Tennell gets highest score of first group

The competitors in the women’s short program have been divided into five groups of six skaters each, with a short break in between each mini-session. The first skater of the evening, Tennell posted easily the highest score in her group, despite falling on her first jump combination.

That, of course, kept the U.S. national champion in first place in the early going, but her mistake is expected to cost her dearly before the evening is over.

South Koreans roar for homegrown youngster


(Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images)

15-year-old Kim Hanul, from South Korea, did not display many nerves as she hit her opening triple lutz-triple toe loop combo, if not completely perfectly. She got roars from the crowd at Gangneung Ice Arena after a solid, fall-free performance, albeit one marked, as analysts Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski noted, by under-rotations.

Kim scored 54.33, putting her in third place in the early going. Another South Korean skater, Choi Dabin, was set to compete just before the final group took the ice.

Pants make rare appearance in women’s figure skating


Latvia’s Diana Nikitina competes in the short program. (Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images)

GANGNEUNG, South Korea — Strange as it is out of context, Diana Nikitina of Latvia is wearing pants, and I am surprised to see it. Most female skaters compete in skirts of some kind, and I’ll be interested to see how many more come out in pants instead.

Maybe this is obvious, but in listening to people around the sport talk about this, the general assumption is that judges think traditionally. Figure skating tradition includes skirts. So it’s cool to see someone buck the trend — and cooler to see her earn a season’s best of 51.12 points in the short program, which she did, to great reception from what I’m assuming isn’t a majority Latvian crowd here.

Sparse crowd at start of short program session

GANGNEUNG, South Korea — I’m not sure what it looks like on television, but from this seat — a few yards from Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir — the Gangneung Ice Arena looks at least half empty as Bradie Tennell wraps up here warm-up and prepares to kick off the women’s short program. It’s 10 a.m. here, and crowds have generally been late-ish to arrive throughout the Games, but this crowd is noticeably sparse.

The crowds have been huge for local favorites like short-track speedskating, but less so for the sports with less notoriety here. Perhaps this crowd will fill in as people pick up their coffees and file through security. I would have expected a more packed house.


(Chelsea Janes/The Washington Post)

American Bradie Tennell skates first

U.S. champion Bradie Tennell will be first to take the ice during the ladies short program at Gangneung Ice Arena. Her compatriots, Mirai Nagasu and Karen Chen, will compete in Group 4, while gold medal favorites Evgenia Medvedeva and Alina Zagitova of Russia will go in the final group of the session.


(Times local; Tennell is scheduled to begin at 8:08 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday night)

What you need to know

How to watch: NBC Sports Network will have live coverage of the event beginning at 8. NBC is also scheduled to show portions of the competition. Events are also available by live-streaming at NBCOlympics.com or on the NBC Sports app.

What to watch: Every competitor in the women’s short program must complete a jump combination, a footwork sequence, an axel (either double or triple), another triple jump and three spins in an aesthetically pleasing two minutes and fifty seconds. To be in the medal hunt, a skater will have to score somewhere above 75 points. The competition will conclude with the free skate program, which begins Thursday at 8 p.m. Eastern.

Who to watch: Evgenia Medvedeva and Alina Zagitova, two Olympic Athletes from Russia, figure to vie for the top two spots, with Medvedeva needing to establish a wide lead in the short program. Americans Mirai Nagasu, Karen Chen and Bradie Tennell look to make an outside run at a medal. Nagasu has been the buzz of these Games after cleanly landing the difficult triple axel in the team event last week, while reigning national champion Tennell boasts one of the hardest programs in the competition. Other medal contenders include Japan’s Satoko Miyahara and a pair of Canadians, while Italy’s Carolina Kostner returns after winning bronze at the 2014 Sochi Games. Another Sochi Olympian, Ashley Wagner, was left off the American team after finishing fourth at U.S. nationals.

Learn more: Robert Samuels previews the women’s short program, with a focus on the Russians. Tik Root explains how Olympic figure-skating scoring works. Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir will be offering sometimes pointed commentary. Color-coded green and red boxes offer clues to the technical scores.

Read more Post coverage of the PyeongChang Olympics:

For many U.S. figure skaters, immigrant heritage yielded a champion’s mind-set

Ice dancing is sensual. The Shibutanis try to portray passion of a different kind.

Analyzing the ice dancing finals: Three gold medals could have been awarded

U.S. figure skaters stay sharp, thanks to a man toting leather, scissors and a blade

Figure skaters' brains may adapt to ignore the signals of dizziness. (Anna Rothschild,Malcolm Cook/TWP)

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