Recap

Everyone was there for the live competition except the judges


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Team Ladybirds Junior NON-ISU (Credits: Team Laybirds' Head Coach Cristina Pastorelli - 2021)

A week after the second stage of the first "Gran Premio Italia", Aosta Ice rink hosted the Fourth National Competition.

The fourth Italian national event took place in Aosta. The competition was opened to all synchro skating categories.

This event that followed strict guidelines to comply with the government’s Covid restrictions was another opportunity for the teams to showcase their programs to a live panel of specialists this season. Due to a Covid case found among the judges the week before the competition, the judge's panel was not present at the ice rink. Instead, they judged the event online. 

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No public was allowed in the ice rink. All participants had to wear a mask all the time, go through a temperature check, and fill out a health screening form. The skaters were given the choice to compete with their masks or leave them in dedicated spots near the barrier.

To ensure there were no crowded spots, the organizers gave a few minutes more between the teams to avoid contact between athletes and staff. During the medal ceremony, only one athlete per team was allowed on the podium. 

All teams did the official training before the competition. When the skaters weren't on ice or preparing in the dressing rooms, they had to wait in outside space of Aosta's Ice rink so that possible contacts may be reduced to a minimum.

Junior
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Team Crazy Splinters (Credits: Team Crazy Splinters - 2020)

Only one team competed in the Junior division to qualify for the Italian Junior Championships: Team Crazy Splinters from Rome.

The team performed the short program on a medley from the Musical "A Chorus Line," while the free program was Bollywood-themed, with a lovely mix of different coloured costumes.

Team Crazy Splinters got a total of 78.16 points, achieving their new season-best.

Advanced Novice
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Team Ladybirds Advanced Novice (Credits: Ladybirds' Head Coach Cristina Pastorelli - 2021)

This division had two participating teams, Team Ladybirds from Milan and Team Hot Shivers from Sesto San Giovanni (Mi).

Team Hot Shivers maintained their program from last year, a medley from "Mary Poppins Returns". Skating with a bit of "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious-ness," they won the segment with 70.24 points.

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Team Ladybirds skated their new program to a powerful mix of two music, "La Cumparsita" and "My sexy tango". They got the silver medal with 45.59 points.

Both teams had falls, but the skaters showed great determination into completing their program to the best of their skills.

Basic Novice
Seven teams competed in this category: Team Hot Shivers from Sesto San Giovanni (Mi), Team Ladybirds from Milan, Team Ice Sparkles from Aosta, Team Ice On Fire from Trento, Team Ice Breakers from San Donato Milanese (Mi), Team Mini Ice Angels from Alta Badia and Team Shining Blades from Milan.

Some teams chose to keep their program from last year and tried to improve them, while others preferred to present new ones.

For Team Mini Ice Angels, this competition was the first live debut of the season. All skaters were happy to finally be able to show their programs in a live competition.


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Team Mini Ice Angels Basic Novice (Credits: Team Mini Ice Angels - 2021)

The victory went to Team Hot Shivers, who skated on the soundtrack of the film "Tangled" and won the gold with 47.01 points. 

Team Ice Sparkles took the silver medal skating to "Steps from the highlands" by Erich Kunzel (32.27 points).

Team Ladybirds transformed themselves in "Wood Witches" by playing with potions and invisibility. This energetic young team ranked third with 31.42 points. 

Presenting a "Mary Poppins" themed free skate, Team Shining Blades finished fourth with 30.53 points.

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Team Mini Ice Angels claimed fifth place with 27.96 points skating a solid program.

Team Ice On Fire skated to a mix of the "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" and ended in sixth place with 27.44 points.

Team Ice Breakers presented a French-themed program called "Under Paris Skies" and collected 25.15 points.


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Team Ladybirds Basic Novice (Credits: Ladybirds' Head Coach Cristina Pastorelli - 2021)

Junior NON-ISU
Two teams competed in the Junior Non-ISU division: Team Ladybirds from Milan and Team Ice on Fire from Trento.

Team Ladybirds skated their ethereal program on the "Forrest Gump" soundtrack, earning the gold medal with 43.35 points. Despite an issue with the music at the start of the program, the athletes managed to keep their concentration high through the performance.

Team Ice on Fire skated to the theme "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and collected a total of 36.95 points, getting the silver medal. Sadly falls were affecting the program, but the team still tried to deliver the best performance possible.

Mixed Age
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Team Ladybirds Mixed Age (Credits: Team Ladybirds - 2021)

Three teams competed in the Mixed Age division.

Team Shining Blades earned 48.81 points and the gold medal. They skated a dramatic-themed program to the song "Dance for me Wallis" by Abel Korzeniowski. 

Team Frost Fairies took home the silver by skating an emotional program to "Trooping With Crows" by Abel Korzeniowski, from the movie "Romeo and Juliet," with 45.23 points.

Team Ladybirds took the bronze title with 36.07 points after a medley's performance from the motion picture "Who Framed Roger Rabbit". Jessica Rabbit inspired the program: "I'm not bad, I'm just drawn that way".

Juvenile
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Team Ladybirds Juvenile (Credits: Team Ladybirds' Head Coach Cristina Pastorelli - 2021)

In the Juvenile division, three teams competed.

Team Ice Sparkles from Aosta skated to the song "Try everything" from the Disney movie Zootopia and earned a total of 30.38 points, taking home the gold.

Team Ladybirds from Milan presented a cheerful program inspired by the carnival Samba! They earned the silver medal with a score of 20.13 points.

Team Ice on Fire from Trento presented a program to the songs "Fate And Destiny" by Patrick Doyle and "Touch the Sky" by Julie Fowlis. Those come from "Brave" soundtrack. They got the bronze medal with 17.02 points.

Results - TOP 3

4th Gara Nazionale 2021
Aosta (ITA)
MAR 14, 2021 - MAR 14, 2021

Novice A
TEAM Score
1Hot Shivers Novice (ITA)70.24
2Ladybirds (ITA)45.59

Mixed Age
TEAM Score
1Shining Blades (ITA)48.81
2Frost Fairies (ITA)45.23
3Ladybirds (ITA)36.07

Junior B
TEAM Score
1Ladybirds (ITA)43.35
2Ice on Fire (ITA)36.95