Some english PREVIEW ....
http://www.isu.org/vsite/vcontent/content/...ws-item,00.html22 Oct 2009
ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating - Rostelecom Cup, PreviewThe 2009/2010 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating continues with the Rostelecom Cup in Moscow, Russia from October 23 to 25. The skaters compete for a global prize money of US $ 180, 000 per individual event of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating and receive points according to their placements. The top six skaters/couples of the series will proceed to the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Tokyo, Japan.
Reigning Olympic Champion Evgeni Plushenko (RUS) headlines the Men’s field. The three-time World Champion stages his comeback at the Rostelecom Cup after retiring from competition in 2006. He will meet old and new rivals in Moscow. 2008 World bronze medalist Johnny Weir (USA) and 2009 Four Continents bronze medalist Takahiko Kozuka (JPN) are ready to challenge Plushenko. Other contenders include reigning European bronze medalist Kevin van der Perren (BEL), ISU Junior Grand Prix Final Champion Florent Amodio (FRA) and Brandon Mroz (USA). World silver medalist Patrick Chan (CAN) withdrew from the Rostelecom Cup due to injury....
http://www.goldenskate.com/articles/2009/cor_preview.shtmlOctober 18, 2009 By Elvin Walker
2009 Rostelecom Cup of Russia
PREVIEW The 2009-10 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating continues this week in Moscow, Russia with the Rostelecom Cup. Approximately 60 skaters from 18 countries will attempt to earn points towards qualification to the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final to be held in December in Tokyo. Japan's Mao Asado looks to be the first skater to qualify for the Final after winning the silver medal last week behind Korea's Yuna Kim....
MENThe big story in Moscow is the return of 2006 Olympic Champion Evgeni Plushenko to competition after a three-season hiatus. Plushenko has been lured out of retirement in order to compete for a second Olympic title, and he will make his season debut at this competition.
Plushenko brings with him some lofty expectations, and this competition will be a good test to see if he is fit and mentally prepared to return to the upper echelon of skating. Though no solid evidence has been presented to the public, it is rumored that Plushenko has taken his comeback very seriously, and is near peak form. That spells trouble for the rest of the field, but it will be interesting to see if the three-time World Champion will be able to reacquaint himself with the rigors of competing for an entire season under the new judging system.
Plushenko has selected Concierto de Aranjuez for his short program, and will return to his roots by performing to music by Edvin Marton for his free skate.
Trying to defeat the Olympic champion will be a group of men who are hungry for medals.
American Johnny Weir is returning to international competition after a 10-month break after failing to make the Four Continents or World Championships team last winter. Weir has remained with his coaches, Galina Zmievskaya and Victor Petrenko, but the 2008 Worlds bronze medalist has enlisted the help of David Wilson to construct his new programs.
Wilson selected Raul DiBlasio's I Love You, I Hate You for Weir's short program, and a selection of music that brings together the theme"Fallen Angels" for the free skate. Weir was quoted as saying that he feels that this free skate is the best program that he has ever had.
The three-time U.S. Champ headed to Russia well in advance of the competition in order to acclimate to the time change, and to reacquaint himself with the country he calls a second home. In order to challenge for the gold medal, or even a spot on the podium, Weir will have to demonstrate that his technical skills are sharp and prove that he has been working hard over the summer.
Takahiko Kozuka shot up the leaderboard last season, medaling in all of his international competitions minus the World Championships where he placed sixth. The Grand Prix Final runner-up has world-class skating all around, and is always in the hunt for medals if not the gold.
This season, Kozuka will skate to Bold as Love by Jimmi Hendrix for the short program, and to a guitar concerto by Michael Kamen for his free skate. The Four Continents bronze medalist needs to bring his A-game to Moscow if he hopes to challenge the likes of Plushenko and Weir, but he is a lock for the podium.
Another American, Brandon Mroz, could play the role of spoiler in Moscow. The 2009 U.S. silver medalist has all of the technical tools that he needs to reach the podium, but he will need all of them if he hopes to do so. Mroz jumps so quickly that his quads look like triples, but he still needs work on the overall packaging of his programs.
Mroz has planned a peppy short program of music by Tito Puente, Perez Prado, and Terry Snyder, and has a more traditional free skate to Beethoven's Symphony no. 5 Romance in F Major.
Newcomer Florent Amodio from France and veteran Kevin van der Perren of Belgium could very well steal the show from the pre-event favorites. Amodio is fresh off the junior circuit, winning the Junior Grand Prix Final last season, and is already showing signs of greatness on the senior level.
Amodio is the 2009 French silver medalist, and the he also won the French Master's in Lyon earlier this season over teammate Brian Joubert. The 19-year-old has a full arsenal of triple jumps, and has a mature style already in his young career.
Van der Perren seems to always be in the hunt for medals when he competes, but has been plagued with injuries throughout his career. The Belgian champion competed earlier this season in Finland, and placed a disappointing 12th behind skaters that he normally defeats. Van der Perren will have to be healthy and skate cleanly to win a medal in this field.
Other participants include Finland's Ari-Pekka Nurmenkari (27th, 2009 World Championships), Shawn Sawyer from Canada (12th, 2006 Olympic Games), Sweden's Adrian Schultheiss (18th, 2009 World Championships), and Gregor Urbas of Slovenia (21st, 2009 World Championships). Two Russian men, Artem Borodulin (13th, 2009 European Championships) and Ivan Tretiakov (2nd, 2009 Nebelhorn Trophy), complete the roster.
PAIRS
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Elvin's Picks LADIES
1. Ando JPN
2. Asada JPN
3. Wagner USA
4. Leonova RUS
5. McCorkell GBR
6. Sebestyen HUN
MEN
1. Plushenko RUS 2. Kozuka JPN
3. Amodio FRA
4. Mroz USA
5. Weir USA
6. Schultheiss FRA
PAIRS
1. Pang/Tong CHN
2. Kavaguti/Smirnov RUS
3. McLaughlin/Brubaker USA
4. Martiusheva/Rogonov RUS
5. Bazarova/Larionov RUS
6. Brodeur/Mattatall USA
DANCE
1. Davis/White USA
2. Cappellini/Lanotte ITA
3. Crone/Poirier CAN
4. Platonova/Grachev RUS
5. Copely/Stagniunas LTU
6. Riazanova/Tkachenko RUS