icenetwork.com

Evolution won the silver medal at the Spring Cup back in 2003. (Paul Harvath)

(02/13/2009) - COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Four U.S. synchronized skating teams will make their 2009 international debuts, Feb. 14-15 at the 2009 Spring Cup in Milan, Italy. Evolution, silver medalists at this event in 2003, and California Gold will compete in the senior category. The Skyliners and Team Braemar, fresh off its second-place finish at the 2009 World Junior Team Qualifying Competition, will represent the United States in the junior division.

Competition begins Saturday, Feb. 14, with the junior and senior short programs. The free skates follow on Sunday, Feb. 15.

The senior competition consists of 15 teams from 10 countries: Austria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States. In the junior division, there are nine teams from seven nations: Canada, Finland, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States.

Senior

Evolution placed fifth at last year's U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships. At its 2008 international assignment, the French Cup, the team placed eighth. Evolution will skate its short program to "The Power of a Dream" by Celine Dion and its free skate to "Le Fabuleux Destin J'Ame'lie Poulim" by Yann Thiersen.

The 2008 U.S. fourth-place finishers, California Gold, will make its first appearance at the Spring Cup. Last year, the team came in seventh at the Cup of Berlin. California Gold's short program music is selections from the Beetlejuice motion picture soundtrack by Danny Elfman, and its free skate is set to selections from the Iron Man soundtrack by Ramin Djawadi.

Junior

The Skyliners took seventh in juniors at the 2008 U.S. Synchronized Championships. The team made its international debut at the 2008 Zagreb Snowflakes Trophy, where it won the gold medal. The Skyliners will skate their short program to selections from Les Miserables and their free skate to selections from the August Rush motion picture soundtrack.

Team Braemar placed fifth as juniors at the 2008 U.S. Synchronized Championships and was seventh at the 2008 Prague Cup. It will represent the United States next month at the World Synchronized Skating Challenge Cup for Juniors in Neuchatel, Switzerland. "Invincible" by Carola is the team's short program music, while it will perform its free skate to selections from the Quest for Camelot motion picture soundtrack.

U.S. ENTRIES AT 2009 SPRING CUP

Senior
• Evolution (Detroit SC/Bloomfield Hills, Mich.)
• California Gold (All Year FSC/Culver City, Calif.)

Junior
• Skyliners (SC of New York/New York, N.Y.)
• Team Braemar (Braemar-City of Lakes FSC/Minneapolis, Minn.)

U.S. Figure Skating U.S. Figure Skating is the national governing body for the sport of figure skating in the United States as recognized by the United States Olympic Committee and the International Skating Union. U.S. Figure Skating is comprised of approximately 1,425 member clubs and Basic Skills programs representing nearly 184,000 members. U.S. Figure Skating is charged with the development of the sport on all levels within the United States, including athletes, officials, sanctioning of events and exhibitions, and establishing the rules and guidelines by which the sport is governed.