PORTLAND, Ore. — Nonstop pain in her left foot prevented Rachael Flatt from trying a much-anticipated combination, one of the most difficult in women’s figure skating. And it might keep her from reaching the podium in what should have been a slam dunk.
The Cheyenne Mountain High School graduate passed on a triple lutz-triple loop because of an undiagnosed injury that began in her calf, then she botched the substitute maneuver, and she didn’t have the undeniable consistency that made her an Olympian in limping to a fourth-place finish Saturday in the short program of Skate America at the Rose Garden.
“I did what I could,” said Flatt, who marked 2.8 more points for switching from a double toe to a triple toe, yet lost 7.4 points on the combination and couldn’t compensate despite a clean triple flip and a precise double axel totaling 8.57 points. “Obviously, it wasn’t my best. . . . I’m known for my consistency. I need to make sure that I get my body healthy.”
Three-time European champion Carolina Kostner of Italy, who topped Flatt last month at the Grand Prix Series opener in Nagoya, Japan, leads Flatt by 9.26 points, and Flatt trails Kanako Murakami of Japan by 3.73 points and Joshi Helgesson of Sweden by 0.15 of a point. Caroline Zhang is fifth, and Cheyenne Mountain graduate Alexe Gilles is ninth.
Olympic silver medalists Meryl Davis and Charlie White won the short dance, comprised of segments of the Golden Waltz, by 3.21 points over Canadians Vanessa Crone and Paul Poirier and 4.14 points over Canadians Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje.
Maia and Alex Shibutani placed fourth, and Lynn Kriengkrairut and Logan Giulietti-Schmitt took sixth.
Results from the men’s free skate and the pairs free skate were unavailable at press time. Competition in the women’s free skate and the ice dancing free dance will be held today at Skate America, the fourth of six Grand Prix events carrying $180,000 in prize money, as well as qualifying points toward the Grand Prix Final next month in Beijing.
