@fs.delight

My Top Programs of 21/22: #⑥ Sofya Titova’s “Pirates of the Caribbean” FS ⛸ Sofya Titova @sofya_titova_official 🩰 Dmitrii Mikhailov @mikhailov_d.s 🎶 “Guilty of...Being Jack Sparrow” by Hans Zimmer 🎶 “Dinner Is Served” by Hans Zimmer 🎶 “Mermaids” by Hans Zimmer 🎶 “He’s A Pirate” by Hans Zimmer 🎥 Russian Cup Stage 1 Juniors in Syzran, Russia (9/26/21) 📸 Ira Sharova @iraandfox I’m physically incapable of watching this free skate without smiling from the first note to the last. This is a perfect program for Sofya, and a perfect program for a skater her age. (Even as she grows up, can we have a rule of no serious programs for Sofya? They just seem like a wasted opportunity for someone capable of bringing so much joy to the sport.) The music selections here are on point and smartly mixed. There are countless elements perfectly timed with this music. And the sword fight step sequence is just awesome, with Sofya’s playful personality on full display. Thank you, Sofya and Dmitrii, for reminding us that skating can and should be fun. The countdown so far: ⑬ Kaiya Ruiter’s “Opportunity” SP ⑫ Alysa Liu’s “Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto” FS ⑪ Young You’s “Les Misérables” FS ⑩ Sofya Akatyeva’s “Clouds, the Mind...” SP ⑨ Veronika Zhilina’s “Harley Quinn” SP ⑧ Young You’s “Whirling Winds” SP ⑦ Anna Shcherbakova’s “The Songs of...Affairs” SPs ⑥ Sofya Titova’s “Pirates of the Caribbean” FS #sofyatitova #figureskating

My Top Programs of 21/22: #⑨ Veronika Zhilina’s “Harley Quinn” SP ⛸ Veronika Zhilina @_veronikazhilina_ 🩰 Maria Stavitskaya @stavitskaya_mary 🎶 “You Don’t Own Me” by Grace 🎶 “Seven Nation Army” by the White Stripes 🎥 JGP Košice in Košice, Slovakia (9/2/21) 📸 @zloy_roc I’d be a fan of this program regardless, but I think to fully appreciate it, you have to know the skater. Nika has always been such a shy girl. So to see her not only come out of her shell, but to shatter it like she does here, is thrilling. I was nervous judges might be put off by the music, sound effects, costume, or brazen gestures, but they seemed to sop it up, just as many fans did. I think a big part of that had to do with how much fun Nika was having as she showed off this surprisingly fierce, flirtatious, and playful side of her personality. It’s infectious. The countdown so far: ⑬ Kaiya Ruiter’s “Opportunity” SP ⑫ Alysa Liu’s “Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto” FS ⑪ Young You’s “Les Misérables” FS ⑩ Sofya Akatyeva’s “Clouds, the Mind...” SP ⑨ Veronika Zhilina’s “Harley Quinn” SP #veronikazhilina #figureskating

Nikita Sarnovskiy has now learned every non-axel quad in six weeks. Four of five of them he learned in the past week alone. 😱 I don’t follow mens closely enough to know whether this has been done before. I’m guessing the answer is no. Either way, this is incredibly impressive. 👏🏼 @nikitasarnovskiy #nikitasarnovskiy @angelsofplushenko #angelsofplushenko

The 4T Section of the Quad Club has a new prospective entrant: Sofya Titova! On 3/12/22, existing QT Club and Quad Club prospective member Sofya was documented landing a 4T+2T in training. Sofya is already a prospective entrant of the Quad Club's 4S Section. She is 13 years and 1 month old, coached by Evgeni Plushenko at Angels of Plushenko, and representing Russia. Congrats, Tito! For more information on the Quad Club, check out FSdelight.com. To be the first to hear new member and entrant announcements, be sure to follow me here on Instagram. 😊 @sofya_titova_official #sofyatitova @angelsofplushenko #angelsofplushenko #quadclub

The Quad Club has a new prospective member: Sofya Titova! On 10/28/21, Sofya landed a 4Sq+2T at the Russian Cup Stage 3 in Sochi. She is 12 years and 9 months old, coached by Evgeni Plushenko at Angels of Plushenko, and skates on behalf of Russia. Congrats, Tito! For more information on the Quad Club, check out FSdelight.com. To be the first to hear new member announcements, be sure to follow me here on Instagram. 😊 @sofya_titova_official #sofyatitova @plushenkoofficial #angelsofplushenko #quadclub

Welcome to the Trixel Club, Sofya Titova! 🎉 On 9/26/21, Sofya became the 24th member of the Trixel Club by landing a clean 3A+2T at the Russian Cup Stage 1 Juniors in Syzran. Prior to this, on 2/7/21, Sofya had become a prospective member of the Trixel Club when she was documented landing a 3A in training. She is currently 12 years and 7 months old, coached by Evgeni Plushenko at Angels of Plushenko, and representing Russia. For more information on the Trixel Club, check out FSdelight.com. To be the first to hear new member announcements like this one, be sure to follow me here on Instagram. 😊 @sofya_titova_official #sofyatitova @angelsofplushenko #angelsofplushenko #trixelclub

Nika's electric SP performance today hopefully lays to rest the misguided notion that this girl is only about jumps. ⚡️ And for all the folks who predicted this program would be trashed by international judges, might be time to reconsider. ❤️💙 @_veronikazhilina_ #veronikazhilina @angelsofplushenko #angelsofplushenko

Baby Nika when asked when asked her favorite skater. 😂🥰 I've posted this to my stories before, but it never gets old. @_veronikazhilina_ #veronikazhilina Credit: @talented_skaters

My Top Ladies Programs of the 20/21 Season: Honorable Mentions There are a handful of ladies programs that didn't quite make my forthcoming ranked list, but that I enjoyed immensely and still want to recognize. These include... Elizaveta Nugumanova's "Die Fledermaus" SP Elizaveta Tuktamysheva's "Spartacus" SP Eva-Lotta Kiibus's "Rachmaninoff 2" FS Rika Kihira's "The Fire Within" SP Sofya Titova's "Sing, Sing, Sing" SP Veronika Zhilina's "Samson and Delilah" FS @liza_nugumanova_ #elizavetanugumanova @liza_tuktik #elizavetatuktamysheva @lottaskating #evalottakiibus @rikaskate0721 #rikakihira @sofya_titova_official #sofyatitova @_veronikazhilina_ #veronikazhilina #figureskating