Dunedin synchronised skating team Cutting Edge celebrates after winning the national championship in Auckland. Photo: Supplied Talk about an appropriate nickname. A Dunedin synchronised ice skating team has some champion performers — and they have the title to prove it. The team, Cutting Edge, skated to victory at the New Zealand championships in Auckland this week. Proud coach Megan Kliegl said the team skated a "flawless" programme that resulted in a personal best score of 59.08, including a technical element score of 30.13. A distant second was Auckland-based team Silver Ice with an overall score of 47.56. Kliegl said the minimum technical score required to represent New Zealand was 20.25, meaning the Dunedin team would comfortably qualify to become a national representative. Cutting Edge’s programme consisted of seven elements. In synchronised skating, each element has a scale of difficulty, the hardest being level 4. Cutting Edge, performing to a piece from The Greatest Showman, attempted a level 3 intersection, no-hold element and moves element, which were all awarded by the judges, Kliegl said. The Dunedin skaters were looking at competing at the Steel City Trophy in Sheffield, England, in March. They have been skating together for about seven years. The captain is Jazelle McCormick, who balances skating with health sciences studies and has played a key role in keeping the team focused during the pandemic years. "She has boldly navigated the issues Covid presented for this team, and kept members engaged, fit and game-ready," Kliegl said. "Jazelle is a remarkable kid — they all are." Amelie Henderson is vice-captain, and the other skaters are Lilah Langi-Scott, Rebekah Sime, Paige Symister, Tallulah Wilson Brown, Djuna Elkan, Katie Sewell, Shawna Henderson, Emily Miller-Coote, Emily Dickie, Zara Anthony-Whigham and Rachael Jannink. The youngest in the team is Langi-Scott (11), who also won a gold medal at the national championships in solo skating, in the basic novice under-12 grade. Langi-Scott also recently competed in the New Zealand speed skating championships, winning the juvenile girls grade with personal bests across all four distances and being named most promising skater. Earlier this year, former Cutting Edge skater Anya Gipp moved to Australia to have an opportunity to compete at the world championships, and Kliegl hopes other skaters in the Dunedin team get similar opportunities.
