Members of the Glengarry Figure Skating Club scored positive results during the 32nd Ogopogo Freeskate.
Coach Alex Sergueev said everyone did well.
However Angelina Veltri, Nadia Snyman, Julia Crowther and Ekaterina Sergeeva performed better than expected. Sergueev was impressed with Crowther, who scored 14.32 points during the pre-preliminary skate. Crowther, eight, loved her first time competing in the event, which was also her first time on the competitive stage.
“It was fun,” said Crowther, who placed seventh. “I landed all my jumps. They (judges) were kind of strict.”
Crowther found her competition tough and said she felt some nerves.
“I thought I wouldn’t get a good mark,” said Crowther.
Veltri placed fourth in the introductory women.
“She had the best performance I saw, even much better than the practice,” said Sergueev.
“I did pretty good,” said Veltri. “I was just hoping to do my best.”
Veltri did find the other skaters to be very good making it a challenge for her. She also learned from the experience and knows what she needs to work on, mainly her jumps.
Sergeeva placed second behind Summerland’s Desiree Bortolussi, her only competitor in the gold interpretive. Bortolussi scored 51.91, while Sergeeva finished with 50.75. Sergeeva was happy with her performances, but noted she completed a few illegal jumps in her second skate. Sergeeva and her coach, who is also her father, had discussed the jumps before hand, but according to Sergueev, “they are teenagers and don’t listen sometimes” as she had forgotten what he told her.
“I’m really pleased with what she is doing,” said Sergueev.
“I just wanted to get a better mark and have a clean skate,” said Sergueeva. “I felt pretty good about it.”
Snyman, who placed sixth in the pre-introduction group, said she performed well and it was improvement from her last competition. She was focused on having a clean skate and accomplished that despite feeling nervous before skating.
“I just think of how I would do it during practice and do the same,” said Snyman. “It helps me skate better.”
“She knows her technical aspects need to improve,” said Sergueev. “She needs to do more double jumps.
She had a strong skate but needs to take it to another level. She is doing really good component marks and presentation.”
Sergueev said he knew it was hard for the skaters to compete but he knows they worked hard to be ready. What the skaters in the club need to work on is their freeskate program and more difficult jumps.
“It seems to me, it was very good experience for all of them,” said Sergueev, who has had discussions with his skaters. We still have two and a half weeks before regionals (in Armstrong.)”
Other results for the Glengarry Figure Skating Club from the Ogopogo are: Jordana McEachern placed eighth in the pre-preliminary ladies group one. In pre-preliminary ladies group two, Madison Maywood, Claire Hayter and Morgan Pearson were seventh, ninth and 10th respectively. In pre-preliminary ladies group three, Isabelle Tuckwood was ninth. In the pre-preliminary group five, Tatumn Page finished third. Tuckwood also placed fourth in the pre introduction group one, while McEachern and Page were seventh and eighth respectively. In pre introduction group two, Keara Anutooshkin was seventh. In intro women, Veltri was fourth, while Anne Lu was ninth. Full results can be found at www.skatinginbc.com/competitions/starskate/ogopogo-free-skate. A total of 250 skaters competed in the event.