SAN JOSE, Calif. — Ashley Wagner picked the perfect time for the performance of her career.
Wagner won her first title at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships on Saturday, salvaging what was an otherwise dismal night of splats and spills with a majestic rendition of “Black Swan.” She finished with a score of 187.02 points and then watched as two-time champion Alissa Czisny and Agnes Zawadzki, a 17-year-old from Colorado Springs, melted down.
When the final results were posted, tears filled Wagner’s eyes and she rested a hand on the shoulder of coach John Nicks. It was further affirmation that Wagner had made the right choice last summer, when she left her family on the East Coast and moved to California to train with Nicks.
“I was really nervous going out there because I felt like it was getting to the point where I wanted it so bad,” Wagner said. “Then I remembered that I’ve made all these changes for a reason. I’ve learned so much in my time in California and I needed to use that new training.”
Wagner beamed as she stood on the podium, her smile as bright as the gold medal around her neck.
“I’m in shock,” she said. “It hasn’t hit me yet.”
Czisny finished second and Zawadzki third.
Zawadzki won the short program, and looked early on as she might hang onto the top spot. She opened with a double axel-triple toe loop combination that was bigger and smoother than any other jump done by any other woman did Saturday night. But Zawadzki is just two years removed from winning the junior title, and she quickly appeared overwhelmed by the moment.
She fell twice, crashing on a triple lutz and a triple salchow, and popped a triple toe that was supposed to be the opening jump of a combination. She also brushed up against the boards on a triple lutz-double toe combination. She dropped all the way to seventh in the long program and barely managed to hold off Caroline Zhang for third place.
“I’ve never been in this position so it’s a different feeling for me,” Zawadzki said. “I’m happy with what I’ve accomplished.”
Earlier, Meryl Davis and Charlie White claimed their fourth straight ice dance title.
