U.S. ladies look to rebound after lackluster quadrennium

It's no secret that the last three years haven't gone so well for the American ladies on the senior international stage. Up against Korean phenom Yu-Na Kim and a strong Japanese contingent in Mao Asada, Miki Ando and Yukari Nakano, U.S. female skaters have struggled to capture gold in international events. Add in Canadian star Joannie Rochette and Italy's Carolina Kostner, and even making the podium has been a daunting task.

I don't think it's entirely fair, however, to say that the talent pool has dried up in American ladies figure skating. Michelle Kwan's decade of dominance and Sasha Cohen's strong international record may have spoiled us a bit, and when we don't hear the "Star Spangled Banner" play at World championships or Grand Prix events, we begin to assume that our skaters just aren't that good.

In my opinion, that's a selfish mentality to have. We have so many bright young hopes in the United States, but that's exactly what they are -- young. Rachael Flatt just turned 17 last month, but she has already claimed two National silver medals, a Junior World title and, in March, skated her way to an astonishing 5th place at the World Championships. Mirai Nagasu won the 2008 U.S. title at age 14, and has two Junior World medals to her credit as well. 16-year old Caroline Zhang has three Junior World medals -- including a gold in 2007 -- and finished third in the World Team Trophy in April behind Asada and Rochette, the current World silver medalist who she only trailed by less than seven points.

And that's not even half the talent. Ashley Wagner, Angela Maxwell and Alexe Gilles have all recorded strong showings on the senior and/or junior international stages. Five of the possible eight spots at last year's Junior Grand Prix Final were won by U.S. ladies, and Becky Bereswill and Gilles finished 1st and 3rd there, respectively. American women have won eight of the last nine Junior World medals, and swept the podium in 2007 and 2008.

The purpose of this post isn't to make excuses for the performances/results of U.S. ladies, or to try and make it seem like solid junior results will result in senior international medals the next season, because many times they don't. However, I think it is important to realize that the absence of Kwan and Cohen have thrust our relatively inexperienced skaters into the spotlight. Yes, the results haven't been ideal since the 2006 Olympics, and yes, the United States only qualified two women for the upcoming Vancouver games, but I think there's been a lot of learning experiences and many positives to take away from the past three years.

In order to be more competitive with the top international ladies, our American girls must focus on fully rotating their triple jumps in order to avoid harsh downgrades, increasing their speed (which will then boost their Program Component Scores) and putting two clean programs together. Staying healthy and injury free will also be important to achieving better international results.

Anything is possible in Vancouver, even an American lady sneaking in for an Olympic medal. It will take two perfect programs and probably some mistakes from a few of the top skaters, but I'm not counting anyone out yet. The uber-consistent Flatt and Zhang will definitely be podium threats if they qualify for the Games, and one can't forget Nagasu or Wagner, either; both have a style that is very well received by international judges.

With a few more years of experience and some growth, there is no doubt in my mind that our girls will be vying for gold medals once more.