World Championships 2005
Men - Short Program
The Disclaimer: 
I am not infallible, I cannot guarantee not to have made any mistakes and since it’s impossible to mention everything, there are bound to be some omissions. If you have any comments, disagreements or corrections, feel free to
contact me, I’ll appreciate any input.

Since these reports are based on Eurosport TV broadcast, I can never be sure about the issues like speed or ice coverage.

Some abbreviations I use:
‘coe’ = change of edge
‘held’ on jumps means the landing was just held, hung on to, so the flow out probably will be poor and free foot might be put down quickly
‘held’ on spirals and lifts refers to the CoP rules requiring the skaters to hold them for at least 3 seconds
‘overrotated’ means turning out of the jump and putting the foot down, while ‘turned out’ means turning out of the jump, without the free foot touching the ice

The reviews are arranged according to the starting order. Full results can be found by clicking on one of the links below:
Men: Short Program – Results
Men: Qualifying + Short Program – Overall Result


1. Zoltan Toth /HUN/

2. John Hamer /GBR/

3flip off steps – slightly leaning back
high flying sit – messy air position and slow rotation
3lutz (hands and foot down)/turn/2toe
circular step sequence – the pattern seemed short
2axel – off-axis, poor flow out
combination spin – mediocre
diagonal step sequence
sit to broken leg/change sit – weak second position

The music has been quite monotonous throughout and he hasn’t been responding to it a lot in any case. The spins were slow and with quite poor positions. Nevertheless credit to him for giving it all and attacking the program strongly as usual.

3. Roman Serov /ISR/
4. Viktor Pfeifer /AUT/

5. Trifun Zivanovic /SCG/


2flip/3toe
3axel – fall
flying sit
circular step sequence – slight wobble, slow and not selling
steps into 1lutz
straight line step sequence – messy
sit into holding foot var and coe/change sit
camel/sit/change camel/sit into coe

After the first two mistakes, he really lost it and stopped selling the program, which wasn’t too ambitious in the first place, but at least it had some crowd pleasing choreography touches, which he unfortunately wasn’t able to bring out this evening.

6. Ari-Pekka Nurmenkari /FIN/

3lutz – fall
3flip – great
flying camel – with butterfly entrance and sit position in the air, into doughnut
circular step sequence – the pattern was clearly incomplete
2axel – great
sit to broken leg/change sit with coe – ok
straight line step sequence – looks like improved content
mitf moves into ???/sit+var/camel+var/upright

He has very nice basic quality (skating skills, carriage, lines), it was quite a well choreographed program and the two jumps he did land were of very good quality. The spins didn’t rotate very fast but were difficult and had nice positions.

7. Vakhtang Murvanidze /GEO/

big 1axel
3lutz/3toe – good
flying camel into inverted position into doughnut
steps, huge gap, 3flip – fall
straight line step sequence – fantastic edgework and from barrier to barrier
camel/cranston camel/sit/change camel/catchfoot/fi upright
circular step sequence – again using edges all the time
camel/cranston camel/change camel to inverted position to doughnut

Negative body language from the start. At least he kept selling the program and had a great suave feel, perfectly fitting the music. Improved his spins, adding difficulty but there was something wrong with them, which I can’t really vocalize. Maybe his positions weren’t extended enough? You can see that he can do those jumps and its just mental when he falls on a triple flip soon after landing a perfect triple lutz/triple toe combination.

8. Frederic Dambier /FRA/

4salchow/3toe – just held the toe
spread eagle, break, 3axel – scratchy coming out
?/sit/L/change sit with coe – had to re-centre it
straight line step sequence – weak
into flying sit with camel position in the air – travelling after landing
3flip – steps?
circular step sequence – again weak execution
sit/jump to sit to coe/change sit with hands behind back

Taking extremely long time for a prep talk. That was a comeback skate he was looking for. Great for him, nevertheless, this isn’t a well put together program with his movements and layout of elements not bearing a lot of relation to the music. He’s the kind of skater who can deliver the goods but the quality of most of his elements is quite poor. I also though that his programs last season were better than the ones he is using this year.

9. Kristoffer Berntsson /SWE/

3axel – short preparation, high but poor running edge out
3lutz/3toe – two-footed, got into shoot-the-duck on lutz but managed to hold on to the toe
flying sit with coe it seems – ok
circular step sequence – “Breathe” is going madly and is overshadowing him, quite weak execution
3flip
camel/sit/L/change sit/fi upright – quite slow
straight line step sequence – projects more now but still not very strong
sit to coe/change sit to holding his foot

Starting with breathing and heartbeat choreography into bouncy, urban “She Wants to Move” and more heartbeat to finish. It’s great how from a terminal headcase, he changed into a strong fighter! I have no idea how did he manage to hold on to that combination. The team tried to make this program interesting, however the problem was that he seems very shy and doesn’t project enough, gets quite overshadowed by the powerful, racing music.

10. Jamal Othman /SUI/

3flip off a back spiral
3lutz/2toe – poor flow out
camel to inverted position to doughnut
sit to coe/change sit+var
diagonal step sequence – seemed quite basic
2axel off transitions
circular step sequence – better than the previous one, more edgework
into camel with coe/sit+var/change camel/catchfoot

Capturing the mood of the music straight from the start. The way he uses his long arms is quite amazing, constantly performing some upper-body choreography. Lots of difficulty on the spins, although he could improve the speed of rotation.

11. Gheorghe Chiper /ROM/

3flip/3toe – great
3axel – fall
into flying sit with camel position in the air, possibly tried coe
circular step sequence – difficult and secure
steps, break, 3lutz – fall, was leaning backwards
turns into sit to coe to var/change sit with coe
straight line step sequence – lots of detail on both steps and choreography
camel/change camel/sit/fi upright

Selling it right from the start and considering that he usually has problems projecting, this was a great effort and both choreography and the elements looked even more improved since Europeans. Even after both mistakes, he still gave it all on the straight line step sequence. That was a great effort.

12. Karel Zelenka /ITA/

2axel – poor flow out
3lutz/2toe
steps into flying sit with coe into var – coe only held 1 rev
3flip – no flow out
circular step sequence – heavy, lacked flow
?/sit/Y/change sit with coe to var
straight line step sequence – weak execution, slow
sit with coe to var/change sit to holding his foot

His father-coach looks very scary and he is indeed a very scary man. I remember him making Karel do multiple quadruple toe-loop attempts in practice at 2003 Europeans.

Coming back to this performance, this wasn’t a good skate. His lines were much messier than usual, he seemed quite slow, his skating looked heavy and the quality of most elements was quite poor. The choreography looked very basic as well. I assume he’s still not back to full form after his injury.

13. Min Zhang /CHN/

14. Emanuel Sandhu /CAN/

4toe/3toe – toe possibly cheated
1axel
into flying sit+var
steps into 3lutz
circular step sequence –
camel spin with bent leg and possible attempt at coe at end
straight line step sequence – not really selling it
camel/sit/Sandhu/change camel/sit+var/Y

After the mistake on the axel, the performance was quite subdued, he held back and didn’t sell the program as well as he can. It was quite flat but then I was in shock from Eurosport not having shown Min Zhang because of showing more freedom blades.

15. Timothy Goebel /USA/

serpentine step sequence
4toe – fall
3axel
into scratch butterflies into flying sit – decen position
sit two pos/change sit+var
3flip
circular step sequence – three-turned twizzles
camel/sit/change camel/sit/L/scratch

His presentation has improved beyond belief this season. This wasn’t as good a skate as the one at NHK Trophy but now has decent carriage and lines and even a feel for the music. Improved positions and rotation on the spins as well.

16. Andrei Griazev /RUS/


3lutz/3toe
3axel – poor flow out
3flip – no steps before
flying camel to inverted position to doughnut
circular step sequence –
sit to holding his leg/change sit to holding his leg to coe
straight line step sequence -
???/camel/sit/Sandhu/sideways/fi upright/scratch

He has improved his presentation since last season but he still is quite a “juniorish” skater. There was some reaction to the music but things like carriage or lines still need a lot of work. But he’s getting there and he has a great team behind him. Both his step sequences were really flashy and Yagudin-esque but not very difficult.

Tv idiots showed a shot of Tarasova in the middle of his performance.

17. Kevin van der Perren /BEL/

very long set-up into 3axel – almost hand down, over the toe
3lutz/3toe – good
flying sit+var
circular step sequence –
3flip – no steps before
sit to broken leg to hands behind back
straight line step sequence –
camel/sit to holding his leg/change camel/sit to hands behind his back/scratch

He didn’t sell his program anywhere near as good as at Europeans and it was quite empty in any case. But spins have improved a lot and other than the axel, his jumps have been of his usual great quality.

18. Sergei Davydov /BLR/


3axel – fall
3lutz/2toe – somehow held both jumps
flying sit+difficult variation
steps, big gap, 2lip
camel/change camel – basic
diagonal step sequence – wobble towards the end
camel/sit/sideways/change camel/upright var
circular step sequence – music is overshadowing him, seemed he didn’t complete the pattern

Horrific mix of Bolero. It’s difficult to do much with that music in any case, and not only the program didn’t do him any favours but his basic quality looked much worse than usual.

19. Jeffrey Buttle /CAN/

3flip/3toe
3axel – not great flow out
circular step sequence
flying sit+var – I think landing and take-off on same foot
steps into 3lutz – over the toe
camel to inverted position/change camel to doughnut
straight line step seqeuence – nothing to do with the very slow music whatsoever
camel/sit var/sit var/change sit/camel coe/upright

Finished slightly behind music. Great lines and carriage and very good skating quality but big question mark over interpretation and choreography. I find it quite sad that for most people having flashy choreography touches, good lines and flow equals good CH and IN. While the two latter come under SS and PE, there actually are other things, which need to be taken into consideration than the former, like timing those to the music, layout of the elements in relation to the ice surface and the music, and many others. For example I have no idea what did the quick straight line step sequence have to do with very slow music at the point.

20. Johnny Weir /USA/

3axel – slightly underrotated, fall
3lutz/3toe – weak flow out
scratch butterflies into sit/change sit+var
circular step sequence –
steps into 3flip – poor flow out
into flying sit+var – I think take-off and landing on same foot
straight line step sequence –
into scratch butterflies into camel/sit/sideways/change sit/cannonball/Y

While Jeffrey Buttle at least has very good basic quality, I find the massive hype surrounding Weir really puzzling. His lines are usually clean but his use of his carriage and arms, and even his skating skills could be better. Furthermore why does everyone say that he has good jump landings, when he usually loses a lot of speed coming out of his jumps. As for this particular program, the way elements are laid out and the way he moved had little to do with the music.

21. Daisuke Takahashi /JPN/

4toe/3toe – just held the triple
3axel
flying sit to coe
some posing
circular step sequence – tripped
into 3lutz – just held, no flow out at all
sit+var to coe/change sit
straight line step sequence -
camel/sit/sideways/change sit to coe/upright

His basic quality is quite good and there were some nice choreography touches but this program visibly lacked transitions. He came limping off the ice and got an ice pack and the team’s physiotherapist was massaging him in the kiss and cry.

22. Ivan Dinev /BUL/

3flip/2toe
3axel – completely off-axis, messy step out
flying sit to coe – slow
circular step sequence - weak
2flip
camel/sit/ to holding his leg/change sit (travelled)/fi upright/scratch
straight line step sequence – slow and heavy
sit to coe/change sit to holding his leg - slow

The costume and the music was just appalling. Typewriter sounds, heard throughout and a black suit with lots of white letters stuck. Like a mad person from an asylum. Poor quality of steps and spins and all over the place on the jumps. Sadly this was his (in recent seasons) usual messy, inconsistent self.

23. Sergei Dobrin /RUS/

very long set-up into 3axel(step out)/3toe
3lutz – poor flow out
straight line step sequence – slow
2axel
camel to catchfoot
circular step sequence –
sit/change sit – slowish
camel/sit/L/change camel into doughnut/upright – not sure of positions here

This was quite out of this league, a clearly a junior program. He seemed slightly slower, the steps and spins were quite basic and of quite poor quality and the planned jump content was very easy. He only had just over a week’s notice before this competition so I assume he didn’t have enough time to re-choreograph the program for senior standards.

Horrific costume. Bright yellow t-shirt with silver brocade on the black trousers with bracers and a neon lime tie.

24. Samuel Contesti /FRA/

3axel – went off-axis, fall
3lutz – short on rotation, fall
flying sit – short on rotation?
no steps into 3lip – lean, step out and hands down
sit to coe to hands behind back/change sit – back to front
circular step sequence – pattern seemed incomplete
camel+var/change camel into inverted pos/sit/fi upright
straight line step sequence – lots of content but quite messy

Very unbalanced program with no choreography at the beginning where all the jumps were crammed in, but there was some nice interpretation later, which I think would look really great if he was able to perform it in a clean program. But this was a total disaster and he’s not even going to qualify to the free program. It’s his first Worlds and it just seemed that he just completely freaked out.

25. Evan Lysacek /USA/

3axel – great
3lutz/3toe – great
flying sit to coe – difficult entry
circular step sequence – quite basic and toe-steppy
three-turns into 3flip - great
sit to holding leg/change sit to coe
straight line step sequence – going for difficulty but messy
combination spin ?/change camel/sit to coe/cannonball/scratch – got distracted here

Why is he using this mediocre short program for the third season?!! It’s not doing him any favours, he’s actually a better skater than that. There was a lack of height on the axel, which could have been pre-rotated but other than that, he had great jumps, quite difficult and decently executed spins. It’s only the steps, which were disappointing.

As for the components, his carriage and lines are dead straight but he’s just too stiff and there wasn’t really anything in the program for him to work on. Just checking the elements and maintaining a nice, tango-ish posture.

26. Stefan Lindemann /GER/

4toe – fall
1axel
camel/sit to holding foot/Y/change sit(travel)
steps, 3lutz – fall, went off-axis
straight line step sequence – good
sit to var to coe (v slow)/change sit to var
circular step sequence –
flying sit to var

What an unbelievable disaster! Also finished slightly behind the music. Nevertheless, he was performing his choreography very well as if nothing happened, for which he deserves a lot of credit.

27. Stephane Lambiel /SUI/

3axel - ok
4toe(hung on)/3toe – poor flow out
difficult entry into flying sit to var to coe
3lutz off steps – hesitation on landing but hung on
diagonal step sequence – and he’s selling it very well
serpentine step sequence – slight stutter but very good flow throughout
camel/sit to var to sandhu/change sit (travel)/fast upright
sit to hands behind back to coe/change sit to var

Seemed quite tense at the beginning but once all the jumps were done, he has let loose and sold the rest of the programs extremely well with his usual beautiful quality. A question mark over the construction of the program, though, with jumps crammed in at the beginning, the steps in the middle and the spins at the end.

28. Evgeni Plushenko /RUS/

4toe – fall
3axel – slightly off-axis but hungs on strong
flying camel – difficult entry, to doughnut
circular step sequence – pattern seemed short, ok but not as good execution as usual
3lutz – over the toe
sit/change sit – back to front
straight line step sequence – again ok but not his usual flare
camel/sit/bielmann/change sit/Y/upright

You can see that he is obviously injured. He had problems on all the jumps, the step sequences lacked his usual sparkle and the spins were slower than usual.

29. Brian Joubert /FRA/

4toe(hung on)/3toe – not great flow out
3axel – pulled
flying sit to coe
circular step sequence – very toe steppy, hard for me to believe this could be Lv2
3flip – just one turn before
camel/sit/change sit/Y
straight line step sequence – again, very toe steppy and how can it be Lv2?
sit to coe/change sit to var

Good, solid skate for him but the difference in terms of the overall quality between him and other guys in this (and some in the previous) group did not work in his favour. I find it quite surprising how the judges suddenly started awarding him massive components this season.

30. Chengjiang Li /CHN/

4toe/3toe – huge
3axel – just held, free foot down quick
flying camel – with bent free leg
3loop off steps – over the toe
?/sit/Y/change sit(travel)/scratch
serpentine step sequence – quite basic, not covering a lot of ice
straight line step sequence – stumble at start, quite weak
sit to holding his foot/change sit+var+coe

Somehow managed to pull through until the end, just saving the two latter jumps and struggling a little on the steps, which were weaker than during his GP. The music was terribly tedious, with an unchanging beat and he should start looking for a new choreographer. He can skate to the beat, he can do better than that but you can’t really do much with such a boring, flat piece.
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