2002 U.S. FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS: HUGHES IS ONE FOR THE BOOKS.Byline: Brian Dohn and Rich Hammond Rich Hammond Los Angeles Daily News sports writer. Instrumental in bringing the Los Angeles Kings hockey organization closer to the fans. He is the atypical "what a guy" to Kings fans everywhere. Rich Hammond on himself. Staff Writers A few more strong competitions and Sarah Hughes For the US District Court judge, see . Sarah Elizabeth Hughes (born May 2, 1985 in Great Neck, New York) is an American figure skater and the 2002 Olympic gold medalist. might find herself atop both the women's figure skating figure skating Sport in which ice skaters, singly or in pairs, perform various jumps, spins, and footwork. The figure skate blade has a special serrated toe pick, or toe rake, at the front. world and a few best-sellers lists. ``One of my friends said, 'Oh, I saw I could buy a book about you online,' '' Hughes said, referring to an unauthorized biography An unauthorized biography is a biography about a person that was not approved or otherwise authorized by the subject of the biography. Unauthorized biographies are published usually about celebrities. . ``It was actually really cool because I never thought anyone would write a book about me. I mean, I'm only 16, I haven't lived that long. But she didn't include everything. I could still write some more things.'' Depending on what happens the next few days in the U.S. Championships, Hughes might have an entirely new story to tell. A product of Great Neck, N.Y., Hughes is among the contenders in the championship ladies' competition, which begins today at Staples Center This article has multiple issues: * Its neutrality is disputed. * It may contain original research or unverifiable claims. * It does not cite any references or sources. with the short program. Two Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, natives, Sasha Cohen
Alexandra Pauline "Sasha" Cohen (born October 26 1984) is an American figure skater. She is the 2006 U.S. National Champion, 2003 Grand Prix Final Champion, and 2006 Olympic silver medalist. of Laguna Niguel and Angela Nikodinov Angela Nikodinov (born May 9, 1980 in Spartanburg, South Carolina), is an American figure skater. She is the 2000 Four Continents Champion. Biography Nikodinov is the daughter of Bulgarian immigrants, and speaks Bulgarian fluently. of San Pedro, will also challenge four-time defending champion defending champion n (SPORT) → defensor/a m/f del título defending champion n (Sport) → champion(ne) en titre Michelle Kwan Michelle Wing Kwan (關穎珊) (born 7 July 1980) is an American figure skater and media celebrity who has won nine U.S. championships, five world championships, and two Olympic medals. and vie for the three spots on the U.S. Olympic team. Kwan is the automatic favorite in every domestic competition she enters, but Hughes, who finished second at nationals last year, is rapidly earning attention within the skating community. ``Last year there were similar expectations because people expected me to make the World Team, so I had to learn to deal with them last year,'' Hughes said. ``But (expectations) don't really negatively affect me because I look at what I want to accomplish in a certain competition, and in this competition I'd like to make the Olympic team. ``It's most important to make the (Olympic) team right now. Being a national champion would be great and it's something that I'd like to be, but right now the most important thing is to make the team.'' Hughes has made tremendous strides in just four years at the championship level. She finished fourth in the nationals in 1999, her first year at that level, then finished third in 2000 and second last year. Hughes' international breakthrough came at last year's World Championships with a third-place finish. Hughes will now try to make the Olympic team in her first attempt even though she's the youngest among the top contenders. --Men's finale: Five-time champ Todd Eldredge and defending champ Tim Goebel are expected to battle for the top spot in tonight's men's long program. A subplot sub·plot n. 1. A plot subordinate to the main plot of a literary work or film. Also called counterplot, underplot. 2. A subdivision of a plot of land, especially a plot used for experimental purposes. is former two-time winner Michael Weiss' attempt to reach the Olympics. Weiss is in fifth place after a disastrous short program Tuesday in which he missed poorly on two jumps. But he could climb into the top three if he skates well and Matthew Savoie (in third place) and Johnny Weir (fourth place) struggle. Weiss must finish at least third in the long program and Savoie and Weir must finish below him. The top three finishers in the men's competition qualify for next month's Olympics in Salt Lake City. Eldredge and Goebel are guaranteed spots provided they don't combust com·bust v. com·bust·ed, com·bust·ing, com·busts v.intr. 1. a. To catch fire; burst into flame: The fire started when a pile of oily rags spontaneously combusted. in the long program. ``I just tell him to believe in himself because he's certainly capable,'' said Audrey Weisiger, Weiss' coach. ``When athletes doubt themselves, you have to find that switch to (give them confidence).'' While Weiss fights for his Olympic survival, Eldredge is contemplating whether to attempt a quadruple jump in his routine. He doesn't have to decide until he steps on the ice as the next-to-last skater in the men's bracket. Eldredge skates 17th out of 18, one slot after Goebel. If Goebel doesn't hit his quad jumps or doesn't have a strong routine, Eldredge might not have to attempt a quad to win. He also could nix the quad if he wants to ensure a top-three finish. TODAY'S SCHEDULE At Staples Center 12:30-3:10 p.m.: Championship ladies' short program. 4:15-7:50 p.m.: Championship men's long program. 8:30-10:20 p.m.: Championship dance original dance. TICKETS Ladies' short program: $85/$75 lower bowl, $35/$25 upper bowl; Men's and dance: $85/$75 lower bowl, $35/$25 upper bowl. ON THE ICE Tim Goebel survived a stunning slip in Tuesday's short program and goes into today's long program tied with Todd Eldredge for the lead. Eldredge is going for his fourth U.S. national championship in what is expected to be his last year of competition. The race for third place and the final Olympic spot should be close between Matthew Savoie and Johnny Weir. The women skate their short programs today, with Sasha Cohen, Sarah Hughes and Angela Nikodinov all challenging four-time defending champion Michelle Kwan. TV TODAY --8 p.m.-11 p.m.; ABC ABC in full American Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. television network. It began when the expanding national radio network NBC split into the separate Red and Blue networks in 1928. ; men's short program, pairs short program; men's long program CAPTION(S): 4 boxes Box: (1) TODAY'S SCHEDULE (see text) (2) TICKETS (see text) (3) ON THE ICE (see text) (4) TV TODAY (see text) |
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