Sochi 2014: Ladies Team Event- Long Program (Live)

Well, that was interesting. How the judges stomached rewarding that bizarre program by Plushenko I will never know. This calls for a shot of something hard and bitter! We'll be seeing the Olympic debuts of Kaetlyn Osmond, Gracie Gold and Valentina Marchei- how will they fare? Two have proven to be prone to meltdowns, so we shall see. 

Here's the starting order for the ladies!

1.) CAN Kaetlyn Osmond- 3F-2T, 2A-3T, 3Lz (fall), 3S, 2F, 3T-2T-2T, 2A. Not her best program. It's a pretty generic 'Cleopatra' routine, and not inspiring at all. She should go back to Carmen. Total= 110.73 (TES 54.53 PCS 57.20)

2.) USA Gracie Gold- 3Lz-3T (hangs on), 2A-3T, 3L, 3F, 3Lz, 3S-2T-2T, 2A. Toddler and Tiara Gracie showed up and showed out on the ice. Seven triples, and clean. Still not the best music fit, but she made it work and it paid off. Total= 129.38 (TES 67.49 PCS 61.89)

3.) JPN Akiko Suzuki- 3F-2T-2L, 2A-2T, 3Lz, 3F, 3L (UR? hangs on), 3S-2T, 3S. FANTASTIC. A little tense today, but still sublime. Total= 112.33 (TES 49.32 PCS 63.01)

4.) ITA Valentina Marchei- 2A-2T, 3Lz, 3F, 2A, 3S, 3Lz-2T, 3S-2T-2T. Vale had a moment, not just on camera but also at her first Olympics! And all that whilst skating like a full-grown woman. Shame about that triple toe, but good job! Should be a good tune up for the ladies event. Total= 112.51 (TES 54.00 PCS 58.51) 

5.) RUS Julia Lipnitskaya- 3Lz-3T (e), 2A-3T-2T, 3F, 2A, 3L, 3S, 3Lz-2T (e). Another clean skate from Julia. A few bobbles here and there, but nothing major. Total= 141.51 (TES 71.69 PCS 69.82)

Source: ESPN

Thoughts?

Frank Caroll clearly has done it again, with Gracie skating superbly. Shame about Akiko's errors, but my God is Julia on a roll! However...the score (esp her PCS) a little too high? Also, if I don't see edge-calls in that protocol... Hmm.  

Somewhere out there, I hope that Kim is adding fuel to that engine, Mao landing those triple axels, and Carolina lighting a whole room full of candles to rival the Olympic flame. 

***

EDIT: 

Click HERE for the protocol! 

Just wanted to point out a few things:
-Julia got one 'e' call on her second lutz. Pretty sure there should be two, as the first lutz was also a flutz. Also, her 2a-2t-2t got +2s across the board, when Gracie Gold's only got +1 with a 2a with great height and distance. A tad generous there. 
-The judges gave Julia high 8s in components, including Interpretation, Choreography and Performance, while they gave Akiko and Valentina, who were superior in the said points, mid-7s. 

I have nothing more to say. The candles are lit.