Starr Andrews rallies for Skate Canada runner-up with career-best performance

By OlympicTalkOct 29, 2022, 9:29 PM EDT

Starr Andrews put up the top free skate of her international career, moving from fifth place to take runner-up at Skate Canada, matching the best full-fledged Grand Prix finish for an American woman in six years.

Andrews, 21, landed six triple jumps in the free skate in Mississauga, Ontario, to finish 6.33 points behind winner Rinka Watanabe of Japan.

It’s Andrews’ best result in seven career senior Grand Prix starts, displacing a fifth place from 2019. It’s one of, if not the best Grand Prix result for a Black singles skater. France’s Surya Bonaly won several events that became Grand Prixs before the Grand Prix Series began in 1995, then placed third in two Grand Prix Series events late in her career.

“It is a huge deal for me,” Andrews said, according to the International Skating Union. “I am one of the few people of color in the sport, and to bring home a medal is even more special.”

Andrews made a splash at 9 years old when a video of her skating to “Whip My Hair” went viral. She had another moment at the 2018 U.S. Championships, earning a standing ovation to her free skate to her own cover of “One Moment in Time” and finishing sixth overall.

SKATE CANADA: Results | Broadcast Schedule

Starr Andrews’ reaction to her score at @SkateCanada is priceless. 💜

📺: #SCI22 on @peacock pic.twitter.com/IGhT2YCIX4

— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) October 29, 2022

Andrews made it back-to-back Grand Prix runner-up finishes for U.S. women after Isabeau Levito‘s senior Grand Prix debut at Skate America last week. Andrews’ total ranks her third among U.S. women on the early season behind Levito and Amber Glenn, who was third at Skate America.

The U.S. is in the midst of its longest women’s victory drought in a full-fledged Grand Prix — figure skating’s top international circuit — not counting Mariah Bell‘s win at a 2020 Skate America that was largely a domestic field due to COVID-19. Ashley Wagner claimed the last international Grand Prix title for an American woman in 2016.

Andrews will likely qualify for December’s six-skater Grand Prix Final with a podium finish in her later Grand Prix in Japan in three weeks.

The U.S. has three women’s spots for March’s world championships, to be doled out after January’s national championships. None of the three Olympians from last season are competing, with Alysa Liu and Bell both retired.

Watanabe landed a triple Axel in her free skate, improving from sixth place after the short and totaling 197.59 points. Watanabe, a 20-year-old who was sixth at last season’s Japan Nationals, won her senior Grand Prix debut.

Later Saturday, world champion Shoma Uno improved from second after the short program to win the men’s event. He had five quadruple jumps — one under-rotated and three others with negative grades of execution — en route to 273.15 total points. Uno beat fellow Japanese skater Kao Miura by 7.86. Miura dropped from first after the short to second overall for a second consecutive week.

American Ilia Malinin, who won Skate America over Miura last week, has the world’s best total score this season of 280.37. Malinin and Uno could face off for the first time this season at December’s Grand Prix Final, which takes the top six per discipline over the six-event Grand Prix Series.

World silver medalists Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara earned the biggest title for a Japanese pairs’ team in history, distancing Americans Emily Chan and Spencer Howe by 25.54 points. Miura and Kihara’s total score — 212.02 — ranks them first in the world this season, 10.63 points ahead of world champions Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier of the U.S.

Canadians Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier, the 2021 World bronze medalists, earned their third consecutive Skate Canada ice dance title. Their total score — 215.70 — ranks them first in the world this season. It’s 12.9 points better than 2022 World bronze medalists Madison Chock and Evan Bates‘ total to win Skate America last week.

The figure skating season continues with Grand Prix France next week, featuring world silver medalist Loena Hendrickx of Belgium, live on Peacock.

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Taylor Fritz becomes crowd enemy at French Open

Associated PressJun 1, 2023, 7:25 PM EDT

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The French Open crowd was not happy with American player Taylor Fritz after he beat one of their own — indeed, their last man in the bracket — so they booed and whistle relentlessly. Fritz’s response? He told them to shush. Over and over again.

Fritz, a 25-year-old from California who is seeded No. 9 at Roland Garros, got into a back-and-forth with the fans at Court Suzanne Lenglen after his 2-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 comeback victory over 78th-ranked Arthur Rinderknech in the second round on Thursday night.

Rinderknech attempted a lob that landed long on the last point, and Fritz, who had been running toward the baseline to chase the ball, immediately looked up into the stands and pressed his right index finger to his lips to say, essentially, “Hush!”

.@Taylor_Fritz97 fights off Rinderknech and the French crowd to earn a 2-6 6-4 6-3 6-4 win!

Faces Cerundolo next for a spot in the Fourth Round. #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/156koAad5w

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) June 1, 2023

He held that pose for a bit as he headed back toward the net for a postmatch handshake, then spread his arms wide, wind-milled them a bit as if to egg on the rowdiness, and yelled: “Come on! I want to hear it!”

During the customary winner’s on-court interview that followed, more jeers rained down on Fritz, and 2013 Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli kept pausing her attempts to ask a question into her microphone.

So Fritz again said, “Shhhhh!” and put his finger toward his mouth, while Bartoli unsuccessfully tried to get the spectators to lower their decibel level.

More boos. More whistles.

And the awkwardness continued as both Bartoli and a stadium announcer kept saying, “S’il vous plaît” — “Please!” — to no avail, while Fritz stood there with his arms crossed.

A few U.S. supporters with signs and flags drew Fritz’s attention from the front row, and he looked over and said to them, “I love you guys.”

But the interview was still on hold.

Bartoli tried asking a question in English, which only served to draw more boos.

So Fritz told her he couldn’t hear her. Bartoli moved closer and finally got out a query — but it didn’t seem to matter what her words were.

Fritz, who has been featured on the Netflix docuseries about tennis called “Break Point,” had his hands on his hips and a message on his mind — one reminiscent of Daniil Medvedev’s contretemps with fans at the 2019 U.S. Open.

“I came out and the crowd was so great honestly. Like, the crowd was just so great,” Fritz said, as folks tried to drown out his voice. “They cheered so well for me, I wanted to make sure that I won. Thanks, guys.”

And with that, he exited the stage.

FRENCH OPEN DRAWS: Women | Men | Broadcast Schedule

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"The crowd was just so great that I had to let it fire me up. They cheered so well for me, I wanted to make sure I won. Thanks guys." 😂@Taylor_Fritz97 | #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/NieIPfo59e

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) June 1, 2023

French Open: Coco Gauff to face younger opponent for first time at a Grand Slam

By OlympicTalkJun 1, 2023, 5:26 PM EDT

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Coco Gauff‘s first 49 Grand Slam main draw singles matches were all against older opponents. Her 50th will be against a younger one.

The sixth-seeded Gauff reached the French Open third round by beating 61st-ranked Austrian Julia Grabher 6-2, 6-3 on Thursday. Gauff, 19, next plays 16-year-old Russian Mirra Andreeva in the round of 32 on Saturday.

“I don’t see age as a factor,” said Gauff, who has practiced with Andreeva. “When you step on the court, you just see your opponent, and you don’t really think about the personal side of things. You just see forehand, backhand, serve, and all the same.”

Gauff made her major debut at age 15 in 2019 by beating Venus Williams at Wimbledon. In her 15 majors, Gauff has usually been the youngest male or female singles player, including most recently at 2022 Wimbledon. She is still the lone teenager in the WTA top 49.

But that may soon change. Youngsters from the Czech Republic and Russia are on the rise. Such as Andreeva, who, at No. 143 in the world and climbing, is the highest-ranked player under the age of 18. And she doesn’t turn 17 until next April. Andreeva dropped just six games in her first two matches, fewest of any woman.

FRENCH OPEN DRAWS: Women | Men | Broadcast Schedule

But Gauff is still in a class of her own among her generation, having at last year’s French Open become the youngest major finalist since Maria Sharapova won Wimbledon at 17. She somehow flew somewhat under the radar into Paris this year with a 4-4 record this spring and in between full-time coaches.

She has now won back-to-back matches for the first time since March, rallying past 71st-ranked Spaniard Rebeka Masarova in the first round and then dispatching an error-prone Grabher, a runner-up at a low-level clay event last week.

The other three seeds in Gauff’s section have all lost, so she would not play a seed until the quarterfinals. And that would be No. 1 Iga Swiatek, who has won all 12 sets they’ve played, including in last year’s French Open final.

“I lost that final, and like for like a week or two, I really thought it was the worst thing ever,” Gauff said. “There’s no point in me revisiting last year. It’s in the past. It was a great tournament, but I’m looking forward for more this week.”

While the men’s draw has been upended by 14-time champion Rafael Nadal‘s pre-event withdrawal and No. 2 seed Daniil Medvedev‘s loss in the first round, the top women have taken care of business.

The top four seeds — Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, American Jessica Pegula and Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan — all reached the third round without dropping a set.

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