Article - Nationals 2004

Emanuel Sandhu wins Canadian men's figure skating title for third time NEIL STEVENS

EDMONTON - The tension was evident an infuriated Emanuel Sandhu clenched his fist around a plush brown dog in the mixed zone at the Canadian Figure Skating Championships.

"It was qualifying, so I don't really give a crap right now," Sandhu said as he wound his finger around a loose thread on the back of the stuffed animal -- a souvenir tossed to him by a member of the sparse audience of about 500 at Rexall Place.

"I get so frustrated when I go out and make mistakes."

The defending champion's performance in the qualifying round yesterday paled in comparison to the masterpiece he delivered last month in Colorado Springs.

At the Grand Prix Final, Sandhu made international headlines with a victory over world champion Evegeni Pulshenko, of Russia.

Yesterday, Sandhu started his routine by touching a hand down on a quad toe. After that, he seemed to unravel, popping two Axels, doubling a Lutz and two-footing the loop.

Yet, the qualifying round at the nationals hardly matters in the scheme of things for front-runners like Sandhu.

The 23-year-old from Richmond Hill, Ont. still finished first in Group A with marks ranging from 5.3 to 5.6 for technical merit and 5.5 to 5.7 for artistic impression (The old judging system remains in effect for this competition.)

"To be honest, I just wanted to get my solo done," Sandhu said. "The rest of the week is what I'm concentrating on.

"It's all about focusing. Maybe I thought qualifying is not that big of a deal. It's not that difficult. So you tend not to focus as much, maybe."

Mediocrity reigned yesterday as most top skaters emerged from the ice with negative reviews on their own performance. They can all take consolation in knowing the qualifying round counts only 20% towards the final mark. The top 12 in each group advanced to the short program on Friday.

Only seven skaters failed to qualify, including Tim White, who juggles skating with a full-time job as an assistant manager at Ziggy's Fish and Chips in Lindsay, Ont., and Joel Geleynse who is planning to tour the country in conjunction with his recently-released compact disc called In Rebellion of Camouflage.

As expected, Jeffrey Buttle finished first in Group B with the top performance of the day. His marks ranged from 5.1 to 5.8 for technical merit and 5.3 to 5.7 for artistic impression.

But even Buttle was far from thrilled with his showing.

"What can I say? That was not good." said Buttle, who missed the Grand Prix Final last month with a brutal case of food poisoning from bad chicken. "Overall I would say it's probably going to be my worst performance of the week but it's done with.

"I guess if I'm happy about something, it's that I went for the Axel."

Buttle popped a single Axel first, then a double and finally the triple

"I think I should have done a fourth," he laughed.

Sandhu and Buttle are considered the favourites to win the men's singles event, but Ben Ferreira, Jayson Denomee and Fedor Andreev should not be counted out.

The top two finishers advance to the World Figure Skating Championships three months from now in Dortmund, Germany.

"I definitely want to make the Worlds team," Buttle said. As long as I put out two good performances I think I'll be able to do that."

So is there value in bronze at these championships?

"Definitely, for sure," Buttle said. "But I already have a bronze."

Edmonton � A rash of mistakes and miscues didn't keep Canada's top two male skaters, Jeffrey Buttle and Emanuel Sandhu, from winning qualifying rounds at the Canadian figure skating championships yesterday.

Buttle, still on the recovery trail from food poisoning that caused him to withdraw from the Grand Prix Final in Colorado Springs three weeks ago, had a bumpy ride in the first qualifying round. He scaled down his quadruple toe loop into a single, tried three times before he landed a triple Axel successfully, and doubled a triple Lutz.

Eight of nine judges placed Buttle first, handing him high presentation marks for his exquisite choreography, line and interpretation. Two judges gave him a presentation mark as high as 5.9 out of 6.0 and nobody could quibble with that; Buttle has been giving people goosebumps all season with his Samson and Delilah routine, one he says is his favourite. Buttle won the NHK Trophy in Japan, and was the second-highest point winner to qualify for the Grand Prix Final.

Sandhu, who ended up winning the Grand Prix Final when Buttle withdrew, admitted he didn't take the qualifying round seriously enough yesterday and wasn't focused. The qualifying round is worth only 20 per cent of the final mark.

Sandhu won the second round with unanimous support from the judges, although two of the nine judges tied him with 18-year-old upstart Christopher Mabee of Tillsonburg, Ont., who dazzled the audience with his relentless power and speed. Sandhu's higher presentation marks broke the ties, awarding him first-place marks across the board.

Mabee ended up third, losing a five-four judges' split with Fedor Andreev, the Canadian bronze medalist from last year. Nicholas Young of St-Hubert, Que., was fourth in his qualifying round; he was fifth at the Canadian championships last year.

In the first qualifying round, Buttle lost one-first place mark to two-time Canadian bronze medalist Ben Ferreira of Edmonton, who got off to a fast start by landing eight triple jumps, including two triple Axels, one in combination.

Jayson Denommee of Asbestos, Que., the 2001 Canadian silver medalist who is making a comeback after a demoralizing season last year when he finished eighth in Canada, is in third place in the first round, while snatching two second-place ordinals from Ferreira.

One judge, however, placed the promising Shawn Sawyer, 18, of Edmunston, N.B., ahead of Ferreira, and another placed him ahead of Denommee.

After a brilliant win at the Grand Prix Final, where he defeated two-time world champion Evgeny Plushenko of Russia, Sandhu's lack of enthusiasm for the task at hand yesterday showed. He landed a quadruple toe loop - double toe loop combination as well as a triple Axel - triple toe loop, but both were flawed with a hand down after the quad, and a turn between the two jumps of the Axel combination. He doubled his first two attempts at a triple Axel, and then, like Buttle, attempted an unscheduled third one.

Asked what happened, Sandhu, clearly frustrated, said: "I don't know. It's qualifying, and I don't really give a crap about it�There's really no point in saying more.''

"He did the tough stuff, but it looked messy,'' said coach Joanne McLeod.

The key to Sandhu's success at the Grand Prix Final, was good, intense training, but he didn't get that before he came to Alberta this week. Before he knew he would be going to the Grand Prix Final - he was invited at the last minute because two other skaters who had qualified before him pulled out - he had committed to skating some shows in Germany. The day after he returned from Germany, he was obligated to make another trip to Edmonton for a press conference promoting the Canadian championships.

McLeod said yesterday that they made a decision to train only jumps in practice this week, rather than do a run-through of his program, but unfortunately, it showed.

Buttle also didn't get in the training he wanted either. He was forced to withdraw from the Grand Prix Final after showing symptoms of food poisoning; Buttle thinks he ate some tainted chicken on the way to Colorado Springs.

"I've been struggling a little bit �getting my strength back,'' said Buttle, who admitted he lost seven pounds from his light frame after the illness. He said he felt fine four days after he returned from Colorado Springs, but really didn't get his strength back until last week.

Since he returned, he's been forcing himself to eat as much as he can, especially protein, and he's been lifting weights. But it wasn't quite enough for yesterday's effort.

"What can I say?'' Buttle said afterward. "It was not good. I guess if I'm happy about something it's that I went for that third Axel.

"The first one, I just lost intention just as I stepped in. So I wobbled and that was that. The second one was fine. I don't know what I was doing.''

He said he cursed himself for missing the second one, and immediately made up his mind to try it again. IT was a gamble, but it worked.

Buttle, who hasn't landed a quad in competition this season, said he was nervous going into his attempt yesterday because he didn't get time to do one on the warmup. However, he did land one in an early practice yesterday.

Overall, his effort was decent, Buttle said. "I got the Axel, even though I didn't feel 100 per cent. It's going to be my weakest program of the week. It's done with.''

He said he'll try quads in both the short and long programs later this week.

The brightest spots came from the lesser lights, all skaters who are trying to show off their wares in the two-year runup to the 2006 Olympics in Turin. Last February, Denommee left his longtime coach Josee Normand for brothers Stephane and Thierry Yvars, finding someone "with a bit bigger boot to kick my butt.'' He had almost quit.

Right off the bat, Denommee lost 20 pounds, decided to eat more healthy foods, and trained under the exacting discipline and organization of Stephane, the former coach of Annie Bellemare.

While he may have done only 50 programs in training leading up to national championships in other years, this year he has done 200. It showed yesterday.

And he also plans to get married to longtime girlfriend Genevieve Dnis, a former pair skater, on July 31. He's skating in 1 1/2-year-old boots that have been rebuilt three times because he says he's poor these days, saving up all his money for his marriage.

In spite of it all, Denommee landed an enormous triple Axel - triple toe loop combination and five other clean triples.

Andreev was impressive, considering he had little sleep before his performance yesterday. He got up at 5:45 a.m. on Monday to catch a flight from Detroit, where he trains to Minneapolis. But when the plane developed mechanical problems, Andreev ended up sitting by himself for nine hours in Minneapolis before catching another flight to Edmonton. He arrived at midnight in Edmonton, missed a practice, but he was relieved to find he had to skate in the second qualifying group.

"I made a few silly mistakes,'' Andreev said. "But it was good, considering the way I felt.''

Mabee skated like a non-stop freight train, barely slowing to take a breath, and showed why he won a bronze medal in a very tough Junior Grand Prix Final last month. His goal had been only to qualify for that Final, but his efforts stood up well against seasoned international competitors. Mabee had never competed at a Grand Prix Final before.

Every men's competitor in the Junior Grand Prix Final skated cleanly. The top four all landed seven triples, and the top three all landed triple Axels. For the first time, Mabee landed a triple Axel - triple toe loop combination at a competition at that event.

Yesterday, Mabee landed a triple Axel - double toe loop, but he was most pleased that he was cool under fire, not allowing problems to bother him. And he had one yesterday: the hook on one of his skates blew out during the program, causing him to stop. After the problem was fixed, he carried on with a powerful line of footwork.

Five years ago, in only his first year as a junior skater, Mabee was a tiny competitor who prompted standing ovations at the Canadian championships. He was only 13 then. He's grown a foot since. He wanted to show that he belongs with the best in Canada. And yesterday, he showed he was well on his way.

Sawyer showed exquisite line and unique tricks, including a wonderful new spin he has dubbed the Sawyer spin, where he brings his leg up beside his head. He is reminding many of Olympic bronze medalist Toller Cranston, who invited Sawyer to skate in a show at a time when Sawyer was so young, he didn't even know who Cranston was.

EDMONTON (CP) - The qualifying round separated the contenders from the pretenders at figure skating's BMO Financial Group Canadian championships on Tuesday.

Emanuel Sandhu moves on to the next round, and Tim White goes back to Ziggy's Fish and Chips.

Two sessions were held and, to favourites such as Sandhu, they were nothing more than glorified practices. With qualifying worth only 20 per cent of the overall mark, the best stuff was saved for more important phases of the competition. Only about 200 spectators showed up at the city's 16,000-seat arena to watch a field of 31 trimmed to 24.

``The rest of the week is what I'm concentrating on,'' said Sandhu, who didn't land half the jumps he did last month in winning the Grand Prix final in Colorado.

It didn't matter. The defending champion from Richmond Hill, Ont., was judged best in his session, followed by Fedor Andreev of Ottawa and Chris Mabee of Tillsonburg, Ont.

Jeffrey Buttle of Smooth Rock Falls, Ont., was first in the other session with a better performance than the one by Sandhu. Ben Ferreira of Edmonton was second and Jayson Denomee of Asbestos, Que., was third.

The battle for gold by the time the free skating show rolls around Saturday is expected to be between Sandhu and Buttle, who was runner-up last year.

``It's going to be a question of who has the better skate on that day,'' said Buttle. ``I think either of us is capable of taking the title.''

White won't be around. As one of the men lopped from the list Tuesday, he goes home to Lindsay, Ont., where he's assistant manager of Ziggy's Fish and Chips. The 24-year-old skater has no regrets.
``Even if I finish last, I don't care,'' he said before learning the judges had indeed placed him last. ``This was all about proving to myself that I could get here. ``I'm proud of that.''

He's a pairs skater but his partner quit so he tried nationals on his own, even though competing against full-time pros made him a rank outsider.

``I don't consider it to be a handicap,'' he said of the necessity to hold down a full-time job. ``If it means working 40 hours a week to train for 12 hours a week, I'm prepared to do that.

``I'll find a pairs partner and be back next year.'' He can't win a medal but give him an A for attitude.

Meanwhile, Andreev was happy just to make it to the rink after arriving at midnight Monday night. The 2003 bronze medallist trains in Detroit where his mother, Marina Zoueva, is a skating choreographer, and his connecting flight west didn't pan out. The six-foot-one, Moscow-born skater was stranded for nine hours.
``I was stuck in Minneapolis, helpless,'' he said. ``Considering all that, it felt pretty good'' to skate well Tuesday.

Mabee looks to improve on his ninth-place finish in his debut at the senior level at last winter's nationals. Only 18, he is one of Canada's top prospects in the sport. Last month in Sweden, he won a bronze medal at the Junior Grand Prix final, becoming the first Canadian to step onto the men's singles podium at the annual meet.

``Our hope is to squeeze into that last group of five and make the national senior team for next season,'' said Lee Barkell, who coach's Mabee with Doug Leigh in Barrie, Ont.

``I really can connect with an audience,'' said Mabee, who has been competing at nationals since he was 11.

Matthew King of Watford, Ont., was 11th in his group and advanced, which was surprising given that only two weeks ago he fractured a rib when the car he was driving hit black ice and crashed. The 21-year-old skater had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee - his landing knee in skating - a month ago.

``I came here for the experience and to see if I could do this under pressure,'' he said, adding he had no preconceived notion of winning a medal.

Like White, King is a part-time skater who works as cook at a Strathroy, Ont., Burger King to pay for his skating lessons.

Joel Geleynse of the Ottawa-region community of Inkerman, didn't advance but he's got other irons in the fire. The 23-year-old singer-songwriter's recently-recorded CD, In Rebellion of Camouflage, will be in stores soon.

The rivalry between Emanuel Sandhu and Jeff Buttle for No. 1 men's singles status in Canadian figure skating gets torqued up a notch during the national championships this week.

This is not a rivalry as yet comparable to the Sandhu-Elvis Stojko meetings of recent years, and it's not remotely close to the memorable Stojko-Kurt Browning showdowns that packed arenas in the early 1990s. But it is a rivalry that will become increasingly interesting to watch through to the 2006 Winter Olympics.

Sandhu, the 23-year-old Richmond Hill, Ont., native who trains in Vancouver with coach Joanne McLeod, fell twice but still earned high enough marks to edge Buttle and win his second national title last January in Saskatoon. At the world championships in Washington, Sandhu finished eighth while Buttle was a disappointing 15th.

Two months ago, Buttle, a 21-year-old native of Smooth Rock Falls, Ont., who trains in Barrie, Ont., with coaches Lee Barkell, Wendy Philion and Doug Leigh, was second while Sandhu was fourth in the MasterCard Skate Canada International meet in Mississauga, Ont. What's more, Buttle outskated Sandhu throughout the Grand Prix series.

Yet, at the GP Final in Colorado Springs, Colo., in mid-December, Sandhu upset world champion Evgeni Plushenko to win gold, while Buttle withdrew because of a flu.

Now they meet again � Sandhu, the serious artiste trained in ballet, and Buttle, the bubbly showman who studies chemical engineering at the University of Toronto on the side.

Add Edmonton's Ben Ferreira, trying to get back onto the podium for the first time in three years, other previous medalists Fedor Andreev of Ottawa and Jayson Denommee of Sherbrooke, Que., and hot prospects such as Christopher Mabee of Tillsonburg, Ont., and it promises to be a good show.

Jennifer Robinson, 27, the Windsor, Ont., native who also trains at Leigh's Mariposa School of Skating, is aiming for a seventh women's national senior crown. Joannie Rochette, a 17-year-old from Montreal, was runner-up last year and added experience this season makes her a serious contender.

The meet opens with two women's qualifying sessions Monday and two men's qualifying sessions Tuesday. Women's free skating is Friday night, the pairs final is Saturday afternoon, the men's free skating is Saturday night and the free dance is Sunday afternoon.

Anabelle Langlois of Grand-Mere, Que., and Patrice Archetto of Montreal should win their first national pairs title after finishing fifth at the 2003 worlds and fourth at the recent GP Final.

They let the Canadian title slip through their fingers last winter, when Jacinthe Lariviere of Princeville, Que., and Lenny Faustino of Woodbridge, Ont., emerged with gold. Faustino returns with a new partner, Hjordis Lee of New Westminster, B.C.

Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon of Boisbriand, Que., are overwhelming favourites to win the ice dance title, and Megan Wing and Aaron Lowe of Vancouver also should qualify for worlds in Dortmund, Germany, in March.

The 16,839-seat Rexall Place has been configured to accommodate from 9,000 to 10,000 spectators, which is a sign of the skating times. The last time the nationals were held in this arena, in 1994, it was sold out the night Stojko edged Browning for men's gold after being runner-up four years in a row.

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