JANUARY 11, 05:27 ET
Cohen in Strong Short Program

LOS ANGELES (AP) Like a game of ``Can you top
this?'' Michelle Kwan threw down the challenge
and Sasha Cohen nearly met it. So did Sarah
Hughes and Angela Nikodinov in one of the
strongest short programs in recent memory at
the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. Kwan
may be first, but the other three aren't
backing down.  ``I think it just confirms the
pre-eminent place of (U.S.) ladies figure
skating in the world,'' John Nicks, Cohen's
coach, said after Thursday's event. ``We're
the strongest, we have the most depth and
whoever makes it, the United States is going
to have a wonderful Olympic team.''  The free
skate, worth two-thirds of the final score, is
Saturday. The top three skaters make the
Olympic team.  After a season of discontent
marked by struggles on the ice and a tabloid-
like dissection of her split with longtime
coach Frank Carroll, Kwan was supposed to be
THE story this week. She's doing everything
she can to recapture her old magic, even
dusting off her short program from 1998, to
Rachmaninoff's Concerto No. 3.  But the other
women aren't about to gracefully give way. If
Kwan wants her sixth U.S. title, she's going
to have to fight for it.  Cohen, Hughes and
Nikodinov each put out programs that would be
good enough to win most other years. One judge
even had Cohen first, and another went for
Nikodinov.  ``Everybody really skated with
their hearts,'' said Robin Wagner, Hughes'
coach. ``And in this particular competition,
when we're trying to get on the Olympic team,
that's an extraordinary feat.''  Though Kwan
was lovely and didn't make any mistakes, her
program wasn't as spectacular as in 1998 in
Philadelphia. Her footwork was slower and not
as sharp, and she looked much like she did in
her free skate at Nagano — clean, but
cautious.  Not until her spiral sequence did
she truly come alive. When she did, though, it
gave a glimpse of how powerful she can be,
with the audience on its feet even before her
music finished.  ``I've been practicing a lot
and been practicing very well,'' Kwan said.
``If I had not been skating so well in
practices, then you sort of have to cross your
fingers.''  She earned 5.7s and 5.8s for
required elements, and all but two 5.9s for
artistry. It wasn't Philadelphia, though, and
it left room — and a shot — for someone else.
First came Hughes, who was almost ethereal
skating to ``Ave Maria.'' Wagner was so moved
she was crying as the program finished.  ``I
was trying to stay really cool, but it was so
nice to see,'' Wagner said. ``It was so
beautiful and she looked so gentle, but so
sure of herself on the ice.''  Hughes made
only one mistake, changing the edge on the
takeoff of her triple lutz. That makes it a
``flutz,'' and it knocked her marks for
required elements down to 5.5s to 5.8s.  Her
artistic marks were higher, but not good
enough in this field. The audience booed, but
Hughes just shrugged her shoulders.  Next up
was Nikodinov. Skating with a broken heart
after the sudden death of her coach and
mentor, Elena Tcherkasskaia, some wondered
whether Nikodinov would have the strength to
truly compete.  She did. With gusto.  Her
triple lutz was big and sure, one of the best
of the competition, and she had great speed.
Her only real problem was a swingy landing on
her triple flip.  As she left the ice,
Nikodinov turned to the crowd again, waving
and putting her hand on her chest as if to
say, ``Thank you.''  ``Everything takes time
and you can't expect one day to wake up and
expect everything to be fine,'' Nikodinov
said. ``I just have to be strong.''  Finally,
there was Cohen, the wild card of the bunch. A
surprise second to Kwan at the 2000 nationals,
she missed last year with a back injury and no
one knew quite what to expect this week.  From
the moment ``Sentimental Waltz'' began, Cohen
electrified the arena, showing the kind of
brilliance that usually belongs to Kwan.
Wearing a simple white dress, she looked like
a swan with her innate grace and elegance.
She can hold the most unusual positions, like
her Charlotte spiral, where she bends to touch
one toe while her other leg is extended high.
And her spins are beautiful, like something
out of a ballet.  But Kwan has more star
power, and that ended up being the difference.
``I trained really hard for this, so I'm
really pleased with my performance,'' Cohen
said. ``I don't think I really could have done
much better.''