Women skaters intrigue with triple Axel potential at World Championships
As many as five women in the field could perform the difficult jump this week in Montpellier, led by Higuchi Wakaba, who landed the jump at Beijing 2022.
Figure Skating
Will anyone land the triple Axel cleanly in women's competition at the World Figure Skating Championships this week?
A lot of intrigue in Montpellier, France, surrounds the topic, with five women attempting the difficult, high-scoring jump during the second day of practice at the Sud de France Arena on Tuesday (22 March).
While Beijing 2022 Olympic bronze medallist Sakamoto Kaori of Japan – the favourite to win in the absence of the Olympic gold and silver medallists Anna Shcherbakova and Alexandra Trusova – does not have the jump in her repertoire, any of the five who tried the three-and-a-half rotation jump could propel themselves into podium contention should they land it cleanly during their programs.
Three of them – South Korea's You Young and Sakamoto's Japanese compatriots Kawabe Mana and Higuchi Wakaba – tried the triple Axel in Beijing, with only Higuchi producing a clean attempt. American Alysa Liu, who didn't try the jump in the Chinese capital, has attempted multiple during her practice sessions in Montpellier.
You's South Korean teammate Lee Haein, who is only in Montpellier as a replacement for Kim Yelim, became the fifth woman to attempt the triple Axel in practice this week on Tuesday, having not done so on Monday.
Beijing Olympians have company in triple Axel stakes
Of course, attempting the triple Axel in practice does not mean the skaters will opt for the jump during their actual competition routines. However, the time could be ripe for Lee to join the fray of potential triple Axel jumpers.
The Korean has been practising the jump in training, but has yet to attempt it internationally, opting for the double Axel en route to winning Four Continents silver in January.
She tried the jump three times during her practice session on Tuesday afternoon, albeit not during her short program music run-through, appearing to land each slightly short of the rotations required.
With the ISU's exclusion of skaters from Russia and Belarus, Lee could be well-placed for another international medal should she land the jump cleanly in competition – especially if the other skaters' efforts at the Axel fall short.
Her teammate You looked to be struggling on the jump on Tuesday, under-rotating it during her short program run-through before falling twice more on it during general practice.
Higuchi, Kawabe rusty on triple Axel
Both Higuchi and Kawabe tried multiple triple Axels in the final group of women's practice but both looked rusty.
Kawabe, who fell on her triple Axel in Beijing, stepped out of nearly all of her attempts on Tuesday. She did land one in practice a day earlier, however.
Higuchi, who landed the triple Axel successfully twice during the Olympic Games, did not try the jump in her main practice session on Monday but did so on Tuesday, stepping out of her first during her short program run-through.
After falling on the jump again later in the session, the Japanese repeatedly attempted Axel jumps for the remainder of her time on ice.
The other woman to consider is Liu, who in addition to having the triple Axel in her repertoire is also the only skater in the field who has landed a quad jump internationally.
For the second day running, she opted against performing any quadruples in practice.
The American's triple Axel during her free skate run-through looked under-rotated, but she looked comfortable with her remaining jumps and appeared to enjoy her time out on the ice.
Women's competition begins with the short program from 11:10am to 3:55pm on Wednesday, 23 March.