As a preview to the (Senior) ice dancing event, starting today at the Grand Prix Final in Barcelona, Inside Skating offers you some glimpses of yesterday’s practice: the dancers took the ice of the CCIB arena, proudly showing off their skating skills – and their wonderful costumes for the free programs. Actually, some of them, as Elena Ilinykh and Ruslan Zhiganshin, completely changed their suits for the free dance: Elena’s wearing now a white, sparkling dress, looking like a princess; while Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje decided to skate at the Grand Prix Final with the suits worn at NHK Trophy, two weeks ago; and so did Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier – she wore in the practice the dress used at Trophee Eric Bompard, not the blue one from Skate Canada. These being said, I invite you to enjoy our photos – and, of course, the emotions they carry with them.
by Florentina Tone

Maia Shibutani and Alex Shibutani are skating to Strauss in their free dance (Rosen aus dem Süden, The Blue Danube)