Extractions: AP BOSTON (AP) He's back! Todd Eldredge? Well him, too. But Thursday night belonged to Michael Weiss, who was staging his own kind of comeback in the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. With all the talk about Eldredge's return from a two-year hiatus, two-time defending champion Weiss might have felt like a forgotten man. He's been idle since November, where he struggled to finish sixth at the Cup of Russia. A toe injury and back woes sidelined Weiss not that anyone would have known it from his performance in the men's short program. "Just getting a solid program under my belt, because I have had such an injury-prone year, to finally go out there and be able to skate with 100 percent confidence, it's something I haven't felt this year," Weiss said. "It was great for me to go out there and feel like I'm back again." Back with a vengeance.
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FIGURE SKATING: Countdown To Turin Begins You want to go out there and skate your best because it will set you up for In addition to weiss, the reigning US silver medalist, expect the other top http://www.freep.com/sports/othersports/skate13e_20050113.htm
Extractions: FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER PORTLAND, Ore. Three years ago, it was difficult to comprehend, easy to ignore. When Michelle Kwan and Tim Goebel captured Olympic bronze medals in ladies and men's figure skating at the 2002 Salt Lake Games, thoughts of Turin, Italy, weren't exactly spinning in their head. BLADE CHAMPIONS What: U.S. Figure Skating Championships. When: Through Sunday. Where : Portland, Ore.; Rose Garden Arena and Memorial Coliseum. TV: Today 11 p.m.-1 a.m. (ESPN2). Friday 2:30-4:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. (ESPN2). Saturday 4-6 p.m. and 8-11 p.m. (ABC, Channel 7 in Detroit). Jan. 23 1:30-3:30 p.m. (ABC, taped). Schedule: Today junior pairs free skate, junior free dance, senior men short program, senior ladies short program. Friday junior men free skate, senior free dance, senior pairs free skate. Saturday senior men free skate, senior ladies free skate. Sunday Chevy Skating Spectacular (exhibition). Time has changed that. Just 13 months remain until the 2006 Winter Olympics, and there's a sense among competitors and coaches at this week's U.S. Figure Skating Championships that the countdown to Turin has begun.
