It was a weekend of firsts for most at the 2016 U.S. Figure Skating Championships in St. Paul, Minn. While Gracie Gold took home gold for the second time, Maia and Alex Shibutani and Tarah Kayne and Danny O'Shea each won their first national title in ice dance and pairs, respectively, on Saturday. To close out the competition on Sunday, Adam Rippon emerged victorious from the men's field as the 2016 U.S. figure skating champion, his first national title in a career that has been mostly unfulfilled potential to this point.
Adam Rippon is our 2016 U.S. CHAMPION! #USChamps16 pic.twitter.com/x3ybzvbElZ
— U.S. Figure Skating (@USFigureSkating) January 24, 2016
Rippon's win will likely reignite the debate over artistry versus technical skill in figure skating scoring, as Rachel Cohen of the Associated Press noted.
Rippon fell on his only quadruple jump attempt on Sunday, while Max Aaron, the first runner-up landed two and third-place finisher, 16-year-old Nathan Chen, completed four in extremely impressive fashion.
Rippon's program though, was artistically expressive and choreographed to an extent well beyond what Aaron or Chen could muster. He finished with 270.75 points. Aaron, who led after the short program, had 269.55.
