Rise (And Shine) Back To The Top

Joannie Rochette admits she isn't a morning person.
Being on the ice before noon? Not exactly her cup of tea.
But there it was, loud and clear on the schedule for the BMO Canadian figure skating championships in Vancouver.
Women's free skate. 8:45 a.m. Pacific Coliseum.
“This was a tough test this week," Rochette admitted Sunday after putting on lock on her fourth straight Canadian women's crown. "Sunday morning, 8:45. I’m not a morning person, I hate mornings.
"But I was still able to come here with a smile this morning. My coach (Manon Perron) was impressed with that. But it’s good practice. You have to be ready to do your job any time, any hour of the day.”
Rochette did it much better than the rest on Sunday and, because of that, became the only defending champion in the senior events to walk out of the building with that standing still intact. New champs emerged in the other three events. That hasn't happened at Canadians since 1995.
Needless to say, Rochette was happy she was able to prevent the complete sweep (that last occurred in 1989). And with six family members in the house, all of whom made the long trip across the country from Ile-Dupas, Que., it was an emotional occasion for the 22-year-old queen of Canadian skating.
“It’s nationals, it’s in front of your friends," she said. "It’s great that (my family) came and supported me and I wanted to skate up to my potential in front of them.”
Perfectionist that she is, Rochette would be the first to tell you that didn't quite happen. She felt her free programs during the Grand Prix season were stronger, and believes there's plenty of room for improvement before the world championships in Sweden in March.
“I really liked what Jeff (Buttle) said. It’s better to come second with a good performance than to come first with a bad one," said Rochette. "Even though this wasn’t my best, I still felt it was a good program. That’s all that matters.”
Rochette's grip on the national title was a little bit tenuous after the short program — her lead over Vancouver's Mira Leung was a mere 1.08 points. But when Leung had a sub-par performance, it pretty much lifted all the heat off Rochette.
The final totals: Rochette, 175.76; Leung, 162.10.
"“I am very disappointed, and I really hate that I made those mistakes," said Leung afterward. Especially the second flip, I felt like I was too close to the boards ... It was horrible."
Cynthia Phaneuf, meanwhile, was all smiles after returning to the podium at Canadians for the first time since 2005. With a 158.10 total, she just held of Lesley Hawker of Barrie, Ont. (155.61), who turned in the day's second-best free skate in nearly winning her third straight bronze after placing seventh in the short.
"I was very happy to be back on ice," said Phaneuf, 19, the 2004 Canadian champ from Contrecoeur, Que. "This year, I was a lot more stronger. I wasn't as nervous as I was last year.
"It was more fun to skate in this competition than last year."
It's fun — and good — to be the queen, too. For the fourth straight year, that's the petite champion from the little village east of Montreal.
"Oh yes, it feels really good," Rochette said about retaining her crown.
No small feat. Not in Vancouver, not this year.