GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — Ashley Wagner won her third U.S. title, bouncing back better than ever from last year’s miserable performance.
Knowing she needed to up the difficulty of her jumps to compete with the world’s best, Wagner added two new combinations to her long program, and she landed both of them Saturday for a total of seven triples. Her 148.98 points for the free skate and 221.02 overall were U.S. Championships records, beating defending champ Gracie Gold by a whopping 15.48.
When Wagner nailed her final triple lutz, she threw an arm in the air in celebration as her skate hit the ice.
Wagner was the two-time defending champion coming into last year’s nationals. She fell twice in her free skate to finish a distant fourth, making the Olympic team only because of her past success.
Comment count on this article reflects comments made on Breitbart.com and Facebook. Visit Breitbart's Facebook Page.