Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri (ITA) take gold in the Ice Dance Free Dance at the ISU European Figure Skating Championships in Kaunas (LTU) © ISU
Ice Dancers Charlène Guignard/Marco Fabbri (ITA) retained their ISU European title as competition wrapped up Saturday at the ISU European Figure Skating Championships in Kaunas (LTU).
Charlène Guignard/Marco Fabbri (ITA) claim second European title
Italy’s Charlene Guignard/Marco Fabbri kept their European Ice Dance crown and Lilah Fear/Lewis Gibson of Great Britain repeated as silver medalists. When Lithuania’s Allison Reed/Saulius Ambruvelicius claimed the bronze, the crowd of 11,000 spectators at the packed Zalgirio Arena went crazy. It was the first European Figure Skating medal for Lithuania since 2006 when Margarita Drobiazko/Povilas Vanagas had taken the bronze as well.
Guignard/Fabbri had drawn to skate last and took to the ice looking composed. They delivered a beautiful performance of their dance to “The Theory of Everything”, enacting the story of unconditional love.
The 2023 ISU World silver medalists collected a level four for the lifts, the spin and the twizzles while the one foot step and the circular step sequence were rated a level three. The Italian Champions scored 127.58 points for a total of 214.38 points.
“We are super happy, not because of a really clean performance, but how we managed the competition and the stress which was high tonight,” Fabbri shared. “Especially in front of this crowd which was unbelievable. They supported the Lithuanian couple, which is normal since we are in Lithuania, but the support we received was one of the best we ever had.”
The couple enjoyed their second win more than their first one a year ago.
“Last year we felt the pressure to win, we were the favorites, and we really wanted to achieve this goal. This year, we didn’t come here with the same stress,” said Fabbri. “Today was a bit hard, maybe because we were tired, or we felt the pressure unconsciously, so it was not a super clean performance. But there are more emotions compared to last year. We enjoyed the competition more,” Fabbri explained.
Fear/Gibson had chosen a completely different style with their upbeat “Rocky” program.
Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson (GBR) in the Ice Dance Free Dance at the ISU European Figure Skating Championships in Kaunas (LTU) © ISU
The NHK Trophy Champions completed difficult lifts and steps, earning a level four for the lifts and his part of the diagonal step sequence and the twizzles. The exit of the dance spin was a bit wobbly and the element garnered a level three.
The British Champions earned 125.62 points and remained in second place at 210.82 points.
“We had a couple of little blips, but we fought till the very end. From start to finish,” Fear pointed out. “We really took the energy from the crowd and I'm still very proud of us. “Skating to Rocky helped us to fight. And also the amount of sweat out there. Because it was so hot out there, we were like we are at the gym, boxing all the way through. We really fought right till the end. I think it really embodies the program and it's even more fulfilling when we can tell the story through us,” she added.
Gibson was highly impressed with the crowd. “Skating after such a big applause (for Reed/Ambrulevicius, LTU), I don't think I have ever heard anything like that in Ice Dance before.”
The arena shone in yellow-green-red – the colors of Lithuania – when Reed/Ambrulevicius took onto the ice.
Allison Reed and Saulius Ambrulevicius (LTU) in the Ice Dance Free Dance at the ISU European Figure Skating Championships in Kaunas (LTU) © ISU
Dancing to “Enough of Our Machines” and “Children”, the two-time ISU Grand Prix bronze medalists turned in another excellent performance, executing difficult elements with ease. They picked up all level fours and threes except for Reed’s part of the diagonal step sequence that merited a level two.
The Lithuanian Champions posted a new personal best of 122.64 points and when their final score came up, and they and the crowd knew they had won a medal, the noise became even more deafening.
“We are both without words, I want to scream from the top of my lungs,” Reed said. “We heard the crowd more right after.
“We both have a way of tuning into each other, and disconnect as much as we can, but the music gets quieter by the end and I couldn’t hear it, so I was counting on both of our feelings. The crowd was absolutely amazing,” she continued.
It was a special day for Lithuania as January 13th is Remembrance Day.
“It’s special - we fought for our freedom and today we fought for our country again and we did it,” Ambrulevicius said. “We’ve been through a lot and it’s been a long road and we are finally here.”
Two-time ISU Grand Prix bronze medalists Evgeniia Lopareva/Geoffrey Brissaud (FRA) came fourth with their expressive dance to music by Sergei Rachmaninov on 197.17 points. Loicia Demougeot/Theo Le Mercier (FRA) moved up from eighth to fifth with a modern interpretation of “Moonlight Sonata (192.15 points) while 2023 ISU European bronze medalists Juulia Turkkila/Matthias Versluis (FIN) settled for sixth this time on 192.08 points.
For full results see here.
Schedule of the event
The schedule of the ISU European Figure Skating Championships is as follows:
Wednesday, January 10: Pairs & Men’s Short Programs
Thursday, January 11: Women’s Short Program, Pairs Free Skating
Friday, January 12: Rhythm Dance & Men’s Free Skating
Saturday, January 13: Women’s Free Skating & Free Dance
Sunday, January 14: Exhibition Gala
For full entries and results, please see the ISU event page and the official website. Follow the discussion on social media using #EuroFigure and #FigureSkating.
Where to watch the ISU European Figure Skating Championships 2024:
The ISU European Figure Skating Championships will be live streamed on the Skating ISU YouTube Channel. Geo-restrictions will apply in markets where TV rights are in place. You will find the full list in the Where to Watch news here.
Subscribe to the Skating ISU YouTube Channel to receive alerts when the live streams start and when new videos are posted.
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