Figure Skating

Several 2006 Olympians will be battling for a chance to compete at the 2010 Games, while some skaters - like Canadian pair Anabelle Langlois and Cody Hay -- will be getting a jump on the season this weekend when they skate at the 41st Nebelhorn Trophy in Oberstdorf, Germany.

More than 75 per cent of the quota spots for the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games were determined by the results of the 2009 World Figure Skating Championships. The remaining spots will be determined at this week's event, which kicks off on Thursday and concludes on Saturday.
The Olympic competition will include 30 men, 30 ladies, 24 ice dance couples and 20 pairs. Quota spots for 24 men, 24 ladies, 19 ice dancers and 16 pairs have already been determined.

Seven dance teams are competing for the five remaining quota spots and nine pairs are competing for four spots. There are six places left in both the men and the ladies events with 23 men and 28 ladies fighting for them.

Several 2006 Olympians will be battling for Olympic quota spots for their countries. On the men's side, Stephane Lambiel, the silver medallist at the 2006 Turin Games, will return from a professional career to try to regain a spot for Switzerland. It will be his first competition since the 2008 World Championships. Germany's Stefan Lindemann, who retired after placing 21st at the 2006 Games, is also attempting a comeback. Viktor Pfeifer, who finished 22nd at the 2006 Olympics for Austria, tried competing in the U.S. for a few seasons before switching back to Austria last season. He will try to earn a spot for the Austrians.

In ladies, Hungary's Julia Sebestyen will try to qualify for her fourth Olympics. Her best finish was 8th at the 2002 Salt Lake Games. Luxembourg's Fleur Maxwell, who placed 24th at the Olympics in 2006, but then retired, will attempt a comeback.

In ice dancing, only Hungary's Nora Hoffman, who was 17th with Attila Elek in 2006 is competing for a chance at a second Olympics. She will be competing with a new partner, Maxim Zavozin.

None of the pairs competing for quota spots at the Nebelhorn Trophy have been to the Olympics, so Estonia, Greece and Chinese Taipei all have a chance to earn their first Olympic spots in figure skating.

There are many skaters from countries that have already qualified spots who are trying to get a head start on the season by competing at the Nebelhorn Trophy, trying out their new programs and taking in early feedback from the judges.

Germany's two-time world champions, Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy, three-time Nebelhorn Trophy winners, are heavy favorites in pairs. Ukraine's Tatiana Volosozhar and Stanislav Morozov, who were 12th at the 2006 Olympics, American pair Brooke Castile and Ben Okolski, the 2006 Nebelhorn pairs champions, Russia's Ksenia Krasilnikova and Konstantin Bezmaternikh, the 2007 world junior pairs champions, and 2008 Canadian champions Anabelle Langlois and Cody Hay will challenge.

Langlois from Gatineau, Que. and Hay, from Dawson Creek, B.C, missed most of last season due to injury when Langlois broke her right fibula in July 2008 and needed two surgeries. Hay trained mostly without her last season and greatly improved his technique during that time.

The Canadian pair will keep the programs they had started in 2008 when Langlois got injured since they have never been seen in a competition. Their long program is to a song called Sunrise from the soundtrack from Grand Canyon Suite. Their short program is a waltz to Fascination. They are gearing up to perfect their programs and start their efforts at securing one of Canada's two pairs spots in the Olympics.

The favorites in ice dancing are Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White, who narrowly missed bronze at the 2009 World Championships. Fighting for podium spots will be Israel's Alexandra Zaretski and Roman Zaretski and Lithuania's Katherine Copely and Deividas Stagniunias.

Back to defend her title will be 2008 Nebelhorn Trophy gold medalist Alissa Czisny, the 2009 U.S. ladies champion. The 2007 European bronze medalist Kiira Korpi of Finland, Estonia's Elena Glebova and Hungary's Sebestyen will challenge.

Czech Michal Brezina, the 2007 Nebelhorn Trophy men's champion, will have the most difficult task in repeating. In addition to Lambiel and Lindemann, Brezina, who trains in Oberstdorf, will be challenged by France's Yannick Ponsero. Fedor Andreev, who competed for Canada for most of his career, was hoping to skate for Azerbaijan in hopes of qualifying for his first Olympic Games. However, he will not compete in the Nebel Trophy, reportedly because the Azerbaijan federation did not get the proper paperwork through in time.