SAN JOSE, Calif. – Jeremy Abbott’s 64-year-old stepfather was taken to a hospital Sunday after collapsing during the men’s free skate at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.
Allen Scott blacked out and had convulsions while Abbott was in the middle of his title-winning performance, the skater said. Though people were calling for paramedics, Abbott said he never noticed the commotion and had no idea something was wrong until someone pulled him aside after the medals ceremony, handed him a phone and told him to call his mother.
“When my mom first told me, I was pretty upset. Then when I got to talk to him and heard he was OK, it made me feel much better,” said Abbott, who won his third U.S. title. “His heart rate is down. His blood pressure is really high, but he’s coherent. He’s OK and my whole family is with him.”
Abbott said he initially wanted to leave the arena and go to the hospital, but his mother told him to stay put and do the exhibition Sunday night. His mother promised to update him if there were any changes in his stepfather’s condition, Abbott said.
Scott, who lives in Colorado Springs, Colo., has no history of health problems, Abbott said.
“At the (2010) worlds, he did take a nice tumble and tore his quadriceps ligament and we had a nice trip to the hospital at those world championships,” Abbott said. “I’m thinking maybe he should stop travelling.”
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WORLD TEAMS: Ashley Wagner’s first national title earned her a trip to Nice, France.
As expected, Wagner and runner-up Alissa Czisny were named to the world team Sunday. Agnes Zawadzki and Caroline Zhang, third and fourth at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, and former U.S. champ Mirai Nagasu were named alternates. Worlds are March 26 to April 1 in Nice, France.
Wagner and Czisny will have the job of trying to reclaim a third spot for the U.S. women for the all-important 2013 world championships, which also serve as the qualifier for the Sochi Olympics in 2014.
“It’s crucial,” Wagner said. “It’s time the U.S. makes a claim in women’s figure skating, and I think we have the talent here, we have the skaters.”
There were no surprises with this world team, with the top three dance teams selected along with the top two in both men and pairs.
The top three skaters in men’s, pairs and dance also made Four Continents. But Agnes Zawadzki and Caroline Zhang, not Czisny, will join Wagner at the Feb. 7-12 event in Colorado Springs, Colo.
The skaters selected for the junior world team were: Christina Gao, Gracie Gold and Vanessa Lam; Jason Brown, Timothy Dolensky and Joshua Farris; pairs teams Haven Denney-Brandon Frazier, Britney Simpson-Matthew Blackmer and Kylie Duarte-Colin Grafton; and dance teams Alexandra Aldridge-Daniel Eaton, Lauri Bonacorsi-Travis Mager and Lorraine McNamara-Quinn Carpenter.
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INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY: There won’t be anyone left at the Detroit Skating Club in March.
The three singles skaters who train at DSC — Jeremy Abbott, Adam Rippon and Alissa Czisny — and dance team Madison Hubbell and Zach Donohue all were selected to the U.S. team for the world championships Sunday. Canadian ice dancers Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje; French ice dancers Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat; Italian women’s champion Valentina Marchei; and Georgia Glastris of Greece also train at DSC, and they’ll all be going to the world championships, too.
“It’s a huge, huge honour and it’s really cool to be going with so many of your training mates,” Abbott said. “All of us train together every day and we’re all pretty close. It’s really cool to be going in such a big group, almost as a family. I think it’s going to make these championships really special, really comfortable.”
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ALL IN THE FAMILY: Caydee Denney isn’t the only national champ in her family.
Denney’s younger sister, Haven, won the junior pairs title with Brandon Frazier earlier in the week. Caydee Denney won her first pairs title with John Coughlin on Sunday. She also was the 2010 U.S. champ with previous partner Jeremy Barrett.
