2007 Nebelhorn Trophy Preview

Obertsdorf, Germany

Nebelhorn Trophy is considered by many to be the most prestigious of the ‘Senior B’ international assignments. Often the International Skating Union (ISU) will use Nebelhorn to test new ideas. In 2003, Nebelhorn Trophy was the site for the unveiling for the new ‘code of points’ judging system.

On paper, Italy’s Anna Cappellini and Luca LaNotte look to be the team to beat. Cappellini and LaNotte finished 8th in their first European Championships and 13th at the 2007 World Championships. The team has the highest personal best score (166.47) of the teams competing.

In Obertsdorf, Germany’s Christina and William Beier will return to the competitive scene after missing the entire 2006/2007 season due to injury. The siblings, who are originally from the Philippines, are coached by Martin Skotnicky and have been training hard for the past two months in preparation for this event.

The US sends two teams to Nebelhorn Trophy; Jennifer Wester and Daniil Barantsev and Lynn Kriengkrairut and Logan Giulietti-Schmitt. Wester and Barantsev have been skating together since 2003, but were unable to compete internationally for the US until Barantsev received a clearance from the Russian Federation. Nebelhorn is Wester’s first international event, but marks the return to the international competitive scene for Barantsev, who won the World Junior Championships in 2000 and 2001. Wester and Barantsev are coached by Pasquale Camerlengo and Anjelika Krylova and train in Detroit, Michigan.

Kriengkrairut and Giulietti-Schmitt won the bronze medal at the 2007 US National Championships (junior level), earning the opportunity to represent Team USA at the World Junior Championships, where they finished 11th. Kriengkrairut and Giulietti-Schmitt teamed up in July 2007 and train in Ann Arbor, Michigan, under coaches Yasa Netchaeva and Iouri Tchesnitchenko.