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These are my comments and thoughts on Sarah Hughes

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January 2000

What I feel about Sarah's Improvement:

Sarah has improved so much! I'm so proud of her! For one thing her skating flows more and when she strokes it's so powerful and swift. She glides effortlessly across the ice. I love her improved jumping technique. She has basically gotten rid of her habit of spotting on the takeoff of her jumps and the flow and speed coming out of her jumps is magnificent. Her landing positions are much more extended with the free foot pointed. I have also enjoyed her improvement in spins. Her "Y-spin" is very extended with straight knees and spins nicely with speed. Her catch spin has gotten faster and higher. I also love her back camels. The way she switches to a back inside edge while spinning is very effective and very special. Overall Sarah is becoming more and more a well-rounded skater.

 

After the 99 Worlds:

What I think about Sarah's future:
I feel, looking at how Sarah skates now, that her future is very promising and bright. Sarah already has maturity beyond her years, yet is still a regular teen. Sarah has all her jumps down and they are consistent and are above the normal difficulty of a Senior Ladies Program. Sarah is dedicated and loves the sport, as you can see when she skates. Watching her before her competitions, I always see her very focused. During Sarah's programs, you know she is focused but yet she makes it look easy. She is able to not let a fall ruin the whole program. Sarah has a great perspective on the sport and that is one of the most important values in skating.

What I think about Sarah's Jumping Ability:
Sarah's jumping ability is superb and the way the jumps look are beautiful. Sarah's jumps look delicate they go high up in the air smoothly and come back out with speed. She is very consistent and has all her triples which not many 13 or 14 year-olds do. Sarah's jumps do not look "muscled into". They look very easy and makes me forget really how difficult a triple is.

What I think about Sarah's Artistry:
In figure skating, artistry is a key part. Sarah's style is her own unique style, its very delicate and light. I think the fact that she is tall, and long limbed adds to that effect. Her interpretation to music is good for her age. But think about it, she's only 14! Her artistry will only get better. Sarah improves fast. I saw a dramatic difference between her Nationals and Worlds performance. Her ability to move to music changed a lot and at Worlds, it surprised me how fast she advanced. In a couple of years, she'll most likely be one of the better skaters. I think she will develop into another "perfect package".

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