Photo Credit Melanie Heaney/U.S. Figure Skating
By Darci Miller
When ice dancers Emily Bratti and Ian Somerville arrived in Columbus, Ohio, for the 2024 Prevagen U.S. Figure Skating Championships, they thought their fate may have already been decided.
Though they were pleased with their season overall – they set a new personal best score at NHK Trophy in Osaka, Japan – they’d had a disappointing skate at their first Grand Prix, the Cup of China. And when U.S. Figure Skating selected the team for the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2024, set to be held the week after the U.S. Championships, Bratti and Somerville weren’t on it.
“We were not even alternates for that – we weren’t even on the list – and that was pretty disappointing going into nationals because it felt like kind of a ranking was already set based on the competitions before,” Bratti said. “It’s hard to compare competitions because everything can vary, so it didn’t feel too great going into nationals. We felt a little bit left off of that. We knew we could still beat everyone on the list because we have before and we think that we are good enough to, but it was a weird feeling.”
The pair, who teamed up in July of 2021 and was coming off two consecutive fifth-place finishes at the U.S. Championships, managed to shake of the malaise of feeling left behind as they continued training.
“It didn’t light a fire under me. It didn’t do the opposite, either,” Somerville said with a laugh. “I just think, no matter what the circumstances are, I feel equally driven in training to better ourselves and our programs because I know there’s more work we could do on our programs. It wasn’t already maxed out. So that was most of what we were focusing on, just the fine-tuned details that would make our program better, because that’s the only thing that really would make a difference.”
Their goal for the U.S. Championships was to be on the podium – definitely achievable, but a tall task in a competitive ice dance field. Madison Chock and Evan Bates were assumed to be a lock at the top of the podium (and did go on to win their fifth U.S. title), but behind them, Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker withdrew. Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko and Caroline Green and Michael Parsons have taken their turns on the podium dating back to 2020, but after a decade of locked-in top threes, there’s much more movement on the ice dance podium.
Bratti and Somerville were ready to seize the moment.
“It definitely feels like a cool … maybe a responsibility, because those teams were so good,” Somerville said. “I think we just want to try to get as close to that quality of skating. It’s stressful a tiny bit because we want to get to that point where you are the next role model for the younger athletes, and it’s at a point where anyone can take that role.”
“There are so many close teams right now – probably eight or so have been internationally getting pretty much the same scores the whole season,” Bratti added. “It can be hard to put yourself out of it and not just always be lumped in with the same kind of competitors. But I think our goal is to try to not be someone else, but to be the next team that hopefully can be ahead of the game.”
They admit that they were feeling the pressure in Columbus. They finished fourth in the rhythm dance, setting themselves up for a podium finish with a strong free dance if they could capitalize.
But before competition began, Bratti and Somerville had had an official practice in Columbus in which they ran through their free dance. There were a lot of fans in attendance, and they received a standing ovation.
“I think we actually might’ve gotten a better reaction to our program at the practice than at the actual competition,” Bratti said with a laugh. “And then afterwards, (coach) Tanith (White) told us that the coaches went into the hall and were crying afterwards because they were really happy and kind of knew that we would do well and they were proud of us. And that really felt good. She told us that before we competed, and I think that also really made us feel like something special was going to happen. Feeling really supported by your coaches and knowing they believe in you too really does help a lot.”
“They definitely gave us a lot of confidence for both, but for the free dance, it felt like there was a real possibility to grab the attention of the judges and audience,” Somerville added.
Grab attention they did. Bratti and Somerville placed third in the free dance to move up to third overall, securing their first medal at a U.S. Championships – and their first berth at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships in Montreal March 18-24.
“Honestly, the lead-up to nationals was not easy at all,” Bratti said. “There was just a lot of things to overcome, and to finally realize that you did it despite all of that was such an incredible feeling, and I was crying, which now I’m kind of embarrassed about when I watch the video,” she added with a laugh. “It was a big moment.”
Despite finishing third at the U.S. Championships, Bratti and Somerville say they still didn’t expect to be on the World Championship team and that it came as a surprise. Because it’s their first trip, and because they’re the third of three U.S. teams competing, the pressure is off. They’re confident knowing they can receive strong marks from the judges and are excited to test themselves against the best in the world.
“Our biggest goal would probably just be to show our really good skating and not hold back at all, because there really is nothing to lose,” Somerville said. “And just show the joy and energy and excitement of our programs, and show the maturity of the free dance and how far we’ve come as artists. Just make some sort of impact, whether big or small.”
“And to show that we belong there and that we should be belonging there in the future, too,” Bratti added. “Our goal eventually is to be one of the best teams in the world, or the best team in the world, and part of the lead-up is, you have to do as much as possible to prove yourself each opportunity you get, because there’s not that many in ice dance. So it’s just a really cool opportunity.”
Emily Bratti and Ian Somerville make their World Championships debut this week. Stream the event live on Peacock and for live results and full event recaps, visit the U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone.
