Walley & Flip: A Figure Skating Podcast

Walley and Flip are back to recap the final stretch of the pre-grand prix figure skating season from the Olympic Qualifier (aka Chinese Nebelhorn), to the actual Nebelhorn, and the Ondrej Nepela Memorial. With the Grand Prix series just around the corner, we’re breaking down the highs, lows, and head-scratchers from the final major Challenger events.We talk Amber Glenn’s fired-up Olympic campaign, Jia Shin’s quiet brilliance, and Isabeau Levito bringing back that sparkle. But not everyone impressed- Adelia Petrosian and Peter Gummenik fell short of sky-high Russian expectations, and we’re not holding back. The Italian men’s fight for just two Olympic spots is heating up, while the Italian women are leveling up fast.And of course, we crash out on the drama: Ice Dance travesties at the olympic qualifier, Rika Kihira switches to ice dance, USFS sabotaging their own skaters, programs that already need to be reworked, and Saki Miyake left without an NHK host spot?!00:00 Introductions02:30 Beijing Olympic Qualifier/Chinese Nebelhorn (Adelia Petrosian, Anastasia Gubanova, Loena Hendrickx, Peter Gummenik, Donovan Carrillo)15:45 Beijing Olympic Qualifier Ice Dance Judging Controversy (Wang/Liu vs. Majorov/Reitan)18:25 Rika Kihira switches to ice dance20:30 USFS (hopefully unintentionally) sabotaging Audrey Shin and Balazs Nagy23:15 Yuna Aoki over Saki Miyake for the NHK host spot25:00 Nebelhorn Recap (Amber Glenn, Jia Shin, Isabeau Levito, Stephen Gogolev, Andrew Torgashev, Lukas Britschgi, Miura/Kihara vs. Hase/Volodin, Fear/Gibson, Carreira/Ponomarenko)37:30 Ondrej Nepela Recap (Lara Naki Gutmann, Anna Pezzetta, Kevin Aymoz, Matteo Rizzo, Daniel Grassl, Nikolaj Memola, Smart/Dieck, Taschlers, Green/Parsons, Tomi Guarino Sabate)49:00 Alysa Liu Short Program change

In this episode of Walley and Flip, we dive into the latest happenings in figure skating, starting with Flip’s dramatic Reddit cleanup and a few words on Ilia Malinin. The Lombardia Trophy takes center ice, with a packed men and women's field. The Ilia vs. Yuma rivalry heats up early in the season, while Nikolaj Memola cements himself as the Italian Stallion with crowd-pleasing charisma. Shun Sato, Kao Miura, and Adam Siao Him Fa round out a strong men's showing.Over in the women's event, Ami Nakai’s face card never declines, Lara Naki Gutmann emerges as the shark in the water with her fierce “Jaws” program, and the discussion of impending heartbreak continues for Japanese women as we harp on the limited Olympic spots, highlighting the intensity of the competition among elite talent like Rion Sumiyoshi, Rino Matsuike, and more.Pairs and Ice Dance get a quick recap, we also break down the Italian federation’s Olympic selection criteria, and preview what has felt like the mythical Beijing Qualifier event looming on the horizon.Timestamps:00:00 Ilia Malinin and Flip needs to delete her reddit04:44 Lombardia Trophy Men's Recap (Yuma Kagiyama, Nikolaj Memola, Shun Sato, Kao Miura, Maxim Naumov, Adam Siao Him Fa)13:19 Italian federation Olympic selection criteria14:59 Lombardia Trophy Pairs Recap15:46 Lombardia Trophy Women's Recap (Rion Sumiyoshi, Ami Nakai, Sarah Everhardt, Alysa Liu, Rino Matsuike, Alysa Liu, Lara Naki Gutmann)35:15 Lombardia Trophy Ice Dance Recap35:50 Bejing Olympic Qualifier Preview

This week on Walley and Flip, we break down what felt like the first legitimate competition of the season. We gush over Mone Chiba’s magical performance, send our prayers to Kao Miura and Wakaba Higuchi, and officially begin construction of a shrine for Saki Miyake- because who casually medals at their first international senior event at 22? Historic.We also briefly check in on the Bolero Cup, where Lilah and Lewis debuted their Spice Girls rhythm dance and very Scottish free dance.00:00 Opening and Flip was stung by a jellyfish01:45 Kinoshita Cup Women (Mone Chiba, Kaori Sakamoto, Saki Miyake, Bradie Tennell, Hana Yoshida, Wakaba Higuchi, Maddie Schizas, Rinka Watanabe)20:50 Kinoshita Cup Men (Jun Hwan Cha, Kao Miura, Jimmy Ma, Kazuki Tomono, Tomoki Hiwatashi)25:05 Kinoshita Cup Pairs (Miura/Kihara, Metelkina/Berulava)26:28 Kinoshita Cup and Bolero Cup Dance (Fear/Gibson, Lauriault/Le Gauc, Zingas/Kolesnik, Neset/Markelov)32:08 Lombardia Preview!!

This week on Walley and Flip, we attempt to tiptoe around our real thoughts on ice dance at French Masters (and the rest of the ice dance season)... but let’s be honest, they still come out. We've got opinions, and they don’t stay buried for long.Then it’s pairs time. Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps bring the drama at the John Nicks Challenge - can backflips turn into backflops? What would John Nicks say? We also begin to preview US pairs race, with a few rising teams making their case for that third olympic spot.Quick, sharp, and a little snarky - just the way we like it.00:00 Introductions00:46 French Masters Ice Dance (Guillaume Cizeron and Laurence Fournier-Beaudry, Evgenia Lopareva & Geoffrey Brissaud) + other ice dance nuggets14:42 French Masters Men's Recap (Kevin Aymoz, Adam Siao Him Fa, Francois Pitot, Luc Economides)20:09 Lea Serna vs. Lorine Schild for the olympic spot22:42 John Nicks Pairs Challenge (Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps)27:00 The US Pairs race (Spencer Howe & Emily Chan, Ryan Bedard & Chelsea Liu, Audrey Shin & Balazs Nagy)31:00 Closing

This week on Walley and Flip: A Figure Skating Podcast, we open up about our skating fan origin stories.Then we dive into the land of maple syrup and miraculous recoveries: the Canadian comebacks are coming in hot. We try to make sense of Gabrielle Daleman and Keegan Messing's return, and the chances of them making the Olympic team.We break down what little we know (and wildly speculate) about USFS Champs Camp and Summer Sizzler...where were the Shibtuanis?We also brace ourselves for this season’s 90s-themed Rhythm Dance- a theme that sounds fun until you remember some people think Macarena counts as choreography inspiration.And we debut a new game: “Whose Warhorse Is It Anyway?” - where one of us shouts out a classic overused (not necessarily negative) piece of music and the other has to yell out the first skater who comes to mind. No thinking, just instinct.---00:00 Opening and how we became fans of figure skating07:00 Canada comebacks (Gabrielle Daleman, Keegan Messing)13:25 Japanese women tangent15:50 Canada comebacks (cont'd)16:46 USFS champs camp and summer sizzler (+ shibutanis)23:30 Rhythm Dance 90's theme26:15 Program announcement highlights39:20 "Whose Warhorse is it Anyway?"

Walley and Flip have made their glorious return for the 2025-2026 season. Join the fabulous ladies as they share their thoughts on Sunset Boulevard, cranberry bogs, highlights from the Cranberry Cup, program announcements they are most excited for, potential upsets, skating conspiracy theories, and more!00:00 - Introductions02:15 - Cranberry Cup (cranberry bogs)03:30 - Cranberry Cup highlights (Sofia Samodelkina, Isabeau Levito, Jia Shin, Sonja Hilmer, Aleksandr Selevko, Roman Sadovsky, Stephen Gogolev, Sophie Jolene Von Felten, and MORE!)20:30 - Programs Flip is most excited for 22:00 - Yuma vs. Ilia24:30 - Programs Walley is most excited for26:20 - Upcoming competitions and closings

It's an off-season opener like no other! Sisters Walley and Flip are back and skating straight into the chaos, kicking things off with their takes on the headline of the moment: the Shibutanis' stunning return to competition after a 7-year retirement. But that's just the warm-up.The main event? A no-holds-barred breakdown of the Ice Academy of Montreal—figure skating's powerhouse factory. From its humble beginnings to its world-dominating rise, we unpack IAM’s coaching magic, the politics that swirl behind the scenes, their recent controversies, and where they might be heading next. Is their reign untouchable, or is the ice getting thin?0:00 Introduction and Shibutani's Return04:23 Marie France, Patrice, and Romain09:15 Gabi Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron/ + Laurence Fournier Beaudry09:54 Humble Beginnings/IAM's olympic history, Tessa and Scott15:25 Political Pull and Strategy16:30 Choreography22:25 Coaching Staff and Expansion23:44 Scott Moir and Opening of the London Campus25:40 IAM Culture and Controversies36:14 90's Rhythm Dance Theme38:40 Skate America Breaking News

Clear the ice and cue the dramatic lighting — the First Annual Walley and Flip Awards are here, and no, the ISU definitely did not approve this message.This week, your favorite sister duo is handing out the hardware in categories you won’t find on any official ballot. From the 🥇 Greatest Underdog Story to the 😬 Skater Treated Most Unfairly Award, get ready for awards you didn't know the skating world needed.While we don’t do a deep dive into World Team Trophy, expect some choice highlights and plenty of WTT side commentary. Think of this episode as the skating version of a group chat rant—if that group chat had microphones and a name.Come and celebrate the 2024-2025 season, because if the ISU won't give out the awards that matter (AKA Skater Most Likely to Abort a Jump)....we will!(also- trust me, you don't want to know the number of awards we edited out of this episode....)00:00 Introduction to the Walley and Flip Awards02:20 Greatest Underdog Story05:08 Most Entertaining Program07:05 Best Choreographed Program08:35 Best Skating Skills Showcased this Season09:34 Greatest Potential12:25 Most Likely to Abort a Jump13:35 Best Coach16:20 Best Skating Friendship18:30 Biggest WTF Moment20:57 Skater Treated Most Unfairly22:30 (TANGENT) Alysa vs Amber Components at World Team Trophy24:00 (TANGENT) Choreography discourse: Kaori and choreographic history (Marie France, Benoit, etc.)....Shae Lynn choreography (Yuma Kagiyama, Ilia Malinin, Sarah Everahrdt)28:39 Moment of the Year

This week on Walley & Flip, your favorite skating-obsessed sisters are diving blade-first into the history of the World Team Trophy — how it started, what makes it unique, what we can be excited about for this year’s showdown, and why some skaters "hate this event" (Scott, we're looking at you!)Then, we get down and icy as we discuss Stars on Ice and what happened to the golden age of ice shows? We talk about the rise and fall, the missed opportunities, and where we go from here. History, hot takes, and a little heartbreak — it’s all in this episode of Walley & Flip.00:00 - Introduction and off-season cadence1:13 - World Team Trophy (history, predictions, team captains)15:20 - Stars on Ice/Ice Shows21:50 - World Championships 2027 Announcement, Grand Prix schedule adjustment

Walley & Flip dive into the men and pairs competition at the 2025 World Figure Skating Championships. From bloody murder screaming in the stands to standing ovations galore, the energy was wild.The sisters discuss the disappointing pairs competition that left them scratching their heads, while also unpacking some of the disturbing pairs program choices that had the crowd questioning what they just witnessed. But let’s not forget about our beloved men—the guys delivered some unforgettable performances that had the sisters cheering and debating in equal measure. There’s no shortage of skating skills discourse, as the sisters dissect who nailed it and who came up short.00:00 - 01:03 Opening01:04 - 1:54 Alysa Liu Tales01:55 - 16:50 Pairs Recap (Stellato/Deschamps, Efimova/Mitrofanov, Kam/O'shea, Miura/Kihara, Hase/Volodin, Metelkina/Berulava, Conti, Macii)16:51 - 34:33 Mens recap (Ilia Malinin, Mikhail Shaidorov, Yuma Kagiyama, Adam Siao Him Fa, Deniss Vasiljevs, Jason Brown, Kevin Aymoz, Roman Sadovsky, Lukas Britschgi, Junhwan Cha, Nikolaj Memola)

Walley and Flip recap and react to the ice dance and women's events of the 2025 World Figure Skating Championships. Walley and Flip don't hold back, sharing their thoughts on how the ice dance event turned into a bit of a mess, with more than a few surprising twists and turns. They reflect on the skaters who pushed the envelope and those who played it safe—and why it didn't always pay off.They also spotlight the women’s event, where injustices and powerful victories created unforgettable drama. From controversial calls to inspiring triumphs, Walley and Flip break down what made the competition truly memorable.00:00 - 01:30 Introductions01:31 -05:30 Women's podium recap (Alysa Liu, Kaori Sakamoto, Mone Chiba)05:31 - 12:14 Remaining women's results and highlights (Amber Glenn, Isabeau Levito, Wakaba Higuchi, Chaeyeon Kim, Kimmy Repond, Lara Naki Gutmann, Anastasia Gubanova)12:15 - 24:14 Ice Dance reactions (Smart/Dieck, Chock/Bates, Gilles/Poirier, Guignard/Fabbri, Lewis/Fear, Turkila/Versluis, Reed/Ambrulevičius, Davis/Smolkin, Taschlers, Mrazeks)24:15 - 25:54 We revisit the women's competition (Alysa Liu vs. Kaori Sakamoto)25:55 - 27:30 The "leader's chair"27:31 - 33:38 We revisit the current landscape of ice dance and present our closing thoughts

Join Walley & Flip for a quick figure skating pairs preview in their final episode before the World Championships—right before they hit the road to Boston! With so many teams capable of making it to the top of the podium, get ready for some fun discussion and a whole lot of confusion as they try (and fail) to agree on anything. Don’t expect to learn anything this episode!00:00 - 01:54 Introductions and a new figure skating baby01:55 - 03:05 Pairs Overview03:06 - 11:44 Top 6 worlds predictions 11:45 - 13:00 the US Pairs Teams (Ellie Kam and Danny O'Shea, Alisa Efimova, Misha Mitrofanov)13:01 - 15:20 Top 6 worlds predictions (continued)15:21 - 17:00 Final thoughts and closingInstagram: WalleyflippodcastEmail: Walleyflippodcast@yahoo.com

Join Walley and Flip as they dive into the chaos that will be the men's competition at the World Figure Skating Championships. So many men, so little time! They’ll lose their minds over the madness of it all—from too many notable skaters being at risk of not making the free skate, to the guy with a pizza and a dream trying to make it big.00:00 - 02:22 Introductions and nerves/pressure for worlds02:23 - 03:26 Tara Prasad03:38 - 04:52 Listener Feedback04:53 - 06:41 Setting the scene or the men's competition06:42 - 09:50 Selevbros09:51 - 13:55 The Japanese men (Yuma Kagiyama, Shun Sato, and Tatsuya Tsuboi)13:56 - 19:30 The American men (Ilia Malinin, Andrew Torgashev, Jason Brown + Deniss Vasiļjevs mention)19:31 - 23:35 The Italian Men (Daniel Grassl and Nikolaj Memola)23:37 - 25:15 The French men (Adam Siao Him Fa and Kevin Aymoz)25:16 - 25:54 Jun-hwan Cha25:55 - 27:06 Mikhail Shaidorov (+ Ilia components/PCS talk)27:07 - 27:25 Lukas Britschgi27:30 - 36:54 Our top 10 men's predictions and closing notes

Join Walley & Flip as they breakdown the top women who will be competing in Boston at the Figure Skating World Championships and predict the top 10 placements.00:00 - 03:40: Introductions and ticket drama03:41 - 05:09 Guillaume and Laurence instagram training clips05:10 - 06:13 Cat ear mishap06:14 - 10:31 Olympic spots on the line10:32 - 21:23 Breakdown of the top women competing at World Championships21:24 - 30:32 Top 10 predictions and closing

Join Walley & Flip as discuss the top 10 ice dance teams of the 2024-2025 season based on their current season's best score. Then, listen to them completely ignore reality (on Flip's end) with predictions for the top 10 at World Championships.Expect scientific analysis of Olivia Smart: Desert princess, the tragedy of sound of silence, and Paul's open back.00:00-02:13 Introductions and Announcements02:14-22:02 Breakdown of the top 10 Ice Dance teams ranked by seasons best22:03-25:00 Breakdown of other notable Ice Dance teams25:01 -33:33 Walley & Flip's predictions for top 10 at worlds

Join sisters and self-certified figure skating experts Walley & Flip as they spin out on all things figure skating. On this week's episode:00:00 - 01:36 Opening theme and introductions01:24 - 09:30 Guillaume Cizeron and Laurence Fournier Beaudry announcement and implications for next season/high level current ice dance landscape09:31 - 13:40 Jason Brown and Isabeau Levito cleared to compete at World Championships13:41 - 17:50 Legacy on Ice17:51 - 18:37 Ilia Malinin18:38 - 22:30 JR Worlds (the junior women landscape)22:40 4CC HighlightsWalley & Flip (@walleyflippodcast) • Instagram photos and videos