Edmonton’s Kaetlyn Osmond fine tunes new programs for upcoming figure skating season
Canadian women’s champion will unveil more subdued, refined numbers leading up to Sochi Olympics
EDMONTON - Kaetlyn Osmond’s Mambo has danced its way out of the building and the last of the bells have tolled for Carmen.
Osmond, the 2013 Canadian women’s figure skating champion, is leaving the 2012-13 season behind and looking ahead to her first Olympic season as she unveils two new programs with the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia, just six months away.
Osmond’s short program features selections from the Bob Fosse musical Sweet Charity.
“We wanted to find two programs that were good enough for her,” said Lance Vipond, Osmond’s choreographer.
Vipond said figure skating fans will see a more refined and restrained Osmond because she will play a different character. While she flew though her Mambo short program last year, this season both fans and figure skating judges are in for a different approach from the 17-year-old native of Marystown, N.L., who now lives in Sherwood Park, an Edmonton suburb.
“I think the movements are more subdued,” said Osmond, who trains out of West Edmonton Mall with the Ice Palace FSC club as well as at the Terwillegar Recreation Centre. “More refined and more controlled.”
“It’s got a slower beginning,” said Ravi Walia, Osmond’s coach. “(It’s) jazzy and fun.”
The stage production of Sweet Charity has been adapted for the ice, according to Vipond.
“We’ve used at lot of the arm movement from the musical,” he said. Many people may recognize the music in the first half, set to the tune Hey, Big Spender.”
“I’ve always loved that music,” said Vipond, who has choreographed Osmond’s programs since she was 10.
“The beginning is almost subtle flirtation and situated low into the ice,” said Osmond, who’s currently ranked 8th in the world.
Osmond said in the second part she’s “more snobbish,” as the music changes to Rich Man’s Frug.
She said her favourite part is near the finish.
“Always good thing that the ending is your favourite part,” Osmond said, laughing.
After a search, which extended into May, Walia and Vipond found music from Cleopatra for Osmond’s long program, where she portrays a young Cleopatra who is confident and powerful.
“It took several months of listening to a lot of different pieces of music,” Walia said.
When entering an Olympic year, the key is “to find something that hasn’t been used a lot,” he said.
“We knew what we wanted; we just couldn’t find the music.”
What they were looking for was a unique piece of music which portrayed a strong character for Osmond to bring to life on the ice. Vipond believes Osmond can play the young Pharaoh.
“Cleo is a little bit more mature ... but not that more of a stretch than last year (Carmen)” Vipond said.
“Cleopatra was a real person, not like Carmen.”
Walia said the Cleopatra choreography is “very challenging. This long program is softer in parts, very different from last year.”
He said Osmond loved the piece from the start.
“The beginning is me getting everyone’s attention,” Osmond said. “When Cleopatra rises to power, it’s really entertaining, I find.”
The programs allow Osmond to showcase her best attributes and skating skills to the audience.
“She has such a strong personality and (is) so beautiful on the ice,” Vipond said. “She’s always exceeded my expectations.”
According to Vipond, the challenge is to develop programs Osmond will enjoy performing and crowds can appreciate. Vipond, who lives in Brantford, Ont., will travel back to Edmonton in September to ensure the programs are where they should be.
“She keeps surprising me,” said Vipond. “It already looks like a package. I think, overall, she looks on track.”
Right now, it’s a matter of “ironing out the details” in the programs, he said.
Learning the programs, however, are a bit of a challenge in the beginning.
“Once you get it all, it becomes more muscle memory by the end of the year,” said Osmond, who has more time to prepare for the Grand Prix season this year.
Last year, her first competition was in July when she competed in Skate Detroit and snatched a bronze medal. This season, Osmond’s first GP event will be Skate Canada in October, where she will look to defend her title against Japan’s Akiko Suzuki and world champion Yuna Kim from South Korea.
In November, Osmond travels to Moscow for the Rostelecom Cup. Her competition includes world silver medallist Carolina Kostner from Italy and Japan’s Kanako Murakami, who placed fourth at the world championships in London, Ont., in March.
Excluding the triple Axel, the only triple jump not in Osmond’s arsenal is the triple loop. Walia said Osmond is landing the jump in practice, but it’s not consistent. There is a spot for it in the long program.
“It’s the fourth jump in the program,” Walia said. “Each week we want to get closer to our goal ... it’s looking really promising for the season.”
Osmond is looking forward to showing the world her new programs. The first test will be the Wild Rose Invitational in Calgary Aug. 9-11.
“I’m really excited,” said Osmond. “These programs are really different.
“If I can get the judges to love these programs as much as I do, I think it’ll work really well.”
Copyright (c) The Edmonton Journal 原文
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