Gao, Sotnikova set to duke it out in Austria

Christina Gao of the United States and Russia's Adelina Sotnikova.

Christina Gao isn't resting on her laurels this season.

The 16-year old, who placed 5th in the senior division at the U.S. Championships last season, won three bronze medals on the Junior Grand Prix circuit last season, including one at the Junior Grand Prix Final. She's upped her game considerably this season in hopes of reaching the top step of the podium.

Gao is now armed with a stellar triple flip-triple toe loop combination, one so breathtaking it draws comparisons to the triple-triple combinations of Olympic champ Yu-Na Kim, Gao's former training partner. With a base value of 9.30 points, the combination, if hit cleanly, could very well catapult the young American to the top of the standings this week at the Junior Grand Prix event in Graz, Austria.

She won't go unchallenged, though. Enter Adelina Sotnikova, the 13-year old Russian "wonderbaby" who makes her international debut this week. Sotnikova won the Russian National Championship in 2009 at the tender age of 11, but has struggled with growth spurts and harnessing the pressure of competition since. However, if she goes clean in both programs, she will be hard to beat; her spins, spirals and skating skills are among the best in the junior ranks.

It will be interesting to see which girl comes out on top Saturday afternoon. I suspect both will score higher than the other junior skaters have so far this season, and I think both are early favorites for the Junior Grand Prix Final and Junior Worlds.

Whatever the case may be, the Gao vs. Sotnikova rivalry looks to be one of the most interesting of the young season.

Gao's new free skate:


Sotnikova's free skate from the 2010 Russian Championships: