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After silver in Torino, Belbin and Agosto set sights on Olympic gold in 2010
By Associated Press - October 22, 2009
(AP Photo/Matt Rourke) (Matt Rourke, AP / October 22, 2009)

ASTON, Pa. (AP) — Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto are hoping to upgrade that silver medal from the 2006 Olympics in Vancouver.

The ice dancers appeared along with a number of other skaters and coaches Thursday as part of what was dubbed a Destination Vancouver Kick-Off Celebration at the IceWorks Skating Complex.

"We know firsthand how the experience changes you, what it means and how indescribable it is," Belbin said. "We know what it takes to get there and everything that goes along with it."

Including the sacrifices.

Belbin and Agosto are the most successful ice dancers the U.S. has produced. In addition to their silver from the Turin Games, they won the silver medal at the world championships in March and are five-time U.S. champions.

But after a rare finish off the podium at the 2008 worlds, the two decided they needed to make a change. They left their longtime coaches and the lives they'd built in Detroit and came to suburban Philadelphia to train with Olympic gold medalists Natalia Linichuk and Gennadi Karponosov.

The team had a setback last fall when Agosto suffered a back injury that forced them to withdraw from the U.S. championships. But they returned in time for worlds, where they finished second to training partners Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin of Russia.

"I had a really serious back injury, but today it feels phenomenal," Agosto said. "It's the strongest I've ever felt in my entire skating career."

And now they've got their sights set on Vancouver.

They officially kick off the Olympic season next week, when they compete at the Cup of China, their first Grand Prix assignment.

"After Torino in 2006, looking ahead to 2010 seemed like an eternity," Agosto said. "But the time has really flown by and it has been an incredible experience as we try to do it again."

Other skaters who attended the press conference included: Federica Faiella and Massimo Scali, Italian ice dance champions and current European silver medalists; and Kim Navarro and Brent Bommentre, who were third at the last two U.S. championships.

"It would be an honor to compete in the Olympics," Bommentre said. "That's what were working toward every day."

 

Belbin and Agosto just miss the gold
By Diane Pucin - latimes.com - March 28, 2009

The Americans give an electrifying performance in ice dancing but finish behind Russians Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin.

Dressed for the ball, Tanith Belbin wore elegant red and Ben Agosto was in white jacket, black pants and red tie Friday night at Staples Center.

The music for their free dance was Puccini's "Tosca," and after they flew across the ice drawing loud applause for synchronized turns and lifts that seemed geometrically impossible, Belbin grabbed Agosto around the neck, tears in her eyes.

They received their scores: 100.27 in the original dance, their best of the season, and a combined total of 205.08 after compulsories and original dance.

And then they waited. They waited to see if they would become the first Americans since ice dancing was introduced to the world championships in 1952 to win a gold medal.

They instead took silver. Russians Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin won the gold with a total of 206.30 after their free dance done to the music of "Spartacus."   [ read more ]
 

Ice-dancing competition at World Championships has no clear favorite.
Los Angeles Times March 24, 2009  By Helene Elliott

"Everybody wants to win but I really feel like the steps have been taken to only one position," Belbin said Monday. "We're not fighting for a podium position. We're fighting for gold."

The injury withdrawal of French title-holders guarantees a new champion will be crowned, with several contending pairs showing the ability to win the gold medal.

Only this is certain about the ice dance competition at the World Figure Skating Championships, which begin today at Staples Center with the compulsory dance: the injury-induced withdrawal of 2008 winners Isobel Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder of France guarantees a new champion will be crowned.

But it's not safe to assume last year's runners-up, Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada, will move up. Virtue had surgery on both shins six months ago, and the duo lost the Four Continents title to U.S. champions Meryl Davis and Charlie White, who could be in the mix here. Turin Olympic silver medalists Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto can't be counted out either, despite a fourth-place finish last year. [ Read more ]

Ice Dancers pass the fitness test
Los Angeles Times March 19, 2009  By Helene Elliott

Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto are certified by judges, meaning next week's world championships in Los Angeles could be up for grabs.

The news was almost buried in a press release, but ice dancer Tanith Belbin was ready to shout it to the world. [ Read more ]

Skating with the stars
Boston.com February 26, 2009 04:50 PM
Olympic Silver medalist ice dancers Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto will meet with fans for a Q&A and autograph session – and a cheap skate lesson – tomorrow at the Simoni Memorial Skating Arena in Cambridge. The event goes from 3 to 5 p.m. and is open to anyone who ponies up $4 for admission and $4 for skates (if you want to hit the ice with the pros). The skaters will also teach a dance class at 6 p.m. tomorrow at Arthur Murray Dance Studio downtown. The duo, which is training for the 2010 Olympics, will also return on April 5 for a performance at the Garden with Smucker's Stars On Ice. Sounds yummy.

Quebec native Belbin was named one of ESPN’s Hottest Female Athletes, btw

Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto hope to compete in World Championships.
LATimes.com - Helene Elliott February 28, 2009
Ice dancers Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto, the Turin Olympic silver medalists and five-time U.S. champions, have cleared the first hurdle standing between them and a confirmed berth at the World Figure Skating Championships in Los Angeles.
Belbin and Agosto had to withdraw from this year's U.S. championships because he had a back injury. They petitioned for a place on the World team and were granted that wish with the provision that they prove their fitness before the competition, which begins March 22. more..

Chatting With Belbin & Agosto
Bostonmamas.com - Christine Koh
I've recently had the honor and pleasure of conducting some really lovely interviews, and last week I sat down for a one-on-two chat with 2006 Olympic silver medalists Tanith Belbin & Ben Agosto before they led a skating clinic at the Simoni Arena in Cambridge. Read on for my interview.

Olympic silver medallists Belbin on comeback trail
By Barry Wilner, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
A little more than three years ago, Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto weren't simply ice dancing with the stars, they were the stars.

Not a lot has gone as planned since Belbin, a native of Kingston, Ont., now skating for the U.S., and Agosto became the first Americans to medal in Olympic ice dancing in 30 years, skating off with silver medals in Turin. And with the Vancouver Games rapidly approaching, they could use a return to normality in their careers. [ Read more ]

Belbin and Agosto ready for testing
LATimes.com - Kevin P. Casey / Associated Press
Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto, the best U.S. figure skating ice-dance team over the last five years, will make their second, and final, appearance before a panel of judges Thursday at their home rink in Aston, Pa., outside Philadelphia to show that Agosto has fully recovered from a back injury that kept the team out of U.S. Nationals and unable to qualify for the March 22-29 World Figure Skating Championships at Staples Center.  [ Read more ]

Ice dancers must pass inspection
BY JO-ANN BARNAS FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER March 12, 2009
Ice dancers Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto, who trained at the Arctic Figure Skating Club in Canton, are expected to be cleared to compete at the World Figure Skating Championships providing they show their readiness in front of a monitoring panel today at their home club in Aston, Pa. more...

Belbin, Agosto say they are ready for worlds
Couple counts Agosto's injury as "blessing in disguise"
(03/12/2009) - Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto accentuated the positive during their pre-worlds media teleconference Wednesday.

Not only has Agosto recovered from a back injury, allowing the five-time U.S. ice dance champions to compete at the 2009 ISU World Figure Skating Championships in Los Angeles in 10 days, but they might just be better than ever, they said.

That wasn't the case at the Grand Prix Final in December, where Agosto's back pain forced the couple to withdraw after the original dance.  [ Read more ]