After the overwhelming excitement that the short program
brought, stepping out onto fresh ice with the whole crowd dressed in red,
white, and blue, we honestly didn’t know how it could get any better than that.
Yet somehow, the night of the long program, this same thrill occurred again, as
if we were all experiencing it for the very first time. I’m not sure that
anything will ever be able to top the feeling of stepping out onto the ice and
being completely overtaken by the roaring of the crowd and the blur of our
country’s colors filling the air. |
| DREAMmates Ashley and Ashleigh. Photo by Sarah Arnold |
As we prepared to compete, we completely transformed from
ballerinas the previous night, into flirty, fierce, and fabulous flappers. At
last it was time to perform and leave absolutely everything that we had out on
the ice for our final time this season. The crowd was on their feet and roaring
once again. Hearing them announce, “Representing the United States of America,
Team USA 2” is one of the most powerful and touching things a skater will ever
hear. The crowd was so unbelievably supportive, that as we stood in our warm-up
block, it was almost impossible to hear the one skater screaming at the top of
her lungs for us to begin. At this, we all pulled together and counted
“5-6-7-8” as one, so that we could begin as a unit. Once we had done this, I
could feel that it was going to be a great skate because it seemed that all 16
hearts were beating as one. We hit our opening pose and I was so completely in
the moment that from there, our skate almost became a blur. The thing that I
remember most clearly from our program was coming around in my 135 in the moves
in the field element and just pausing for those few seconds to soak everything
in and fully enjoy the moment. When we hit the ending pose, I knew it didn’t
matter what the score was, but instead that we had brought America to their feet
and made them proud with two of our best skates of the season.
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| Team USA 2 overjoyed with their final long program skate of the season. |
 | |
| Ashley Mulhern and Audrey McQuade, Team USA World Team Members |
It was amazing to watch the final 8 teams compete their long
programs and to be able to cheer on our fellow Team USA teammates, the
Haydenettes, as they skated a wonderful long program performance, earning them
their fourth World Bronze Medal. We couldn’t have been more proud of them or to
be able to call them our teammates.
 |
| Ashley Mulhern and number 1 Fan, sister Madison Mulhern. |
Just walking around the arena during the ice cuts was an
unbelievable experience in itself. People from all over the country had come to
watch us compete and we had made them proud to be from the USA. I could not
believe that young skaters were asking me to sign their programs and take
pictures with them, when just 3 years ago I was sitting in their seats,
watching Team USA compete at the World Championships in Colorado, USA. This was
such an honor for me and goes to show that dreams truly do come true. I was
also incredibly lucky to have many of my family members there to support me as
well. In addition to those from the US, I have made many friends from
all over the world while competing on Team USA over the past 6 years. I was
completely overjoyed to reunite with them and share this amazing experience in my home country.
 |
The 2013 ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships ended
with an amazing competitors party at the Top of the Hub, overlooking all of
Boston. It was amazing to see all of the competitors, from 15 different
countries, come together to celebrate a common accomplishment, after competing
against each other all weekend.
As a team, we did not set a goal of a certain place we
wanted to get, but rather the goal of “leaving our mark” on the world, and I
think that it is safe to say that we did just that! I am extremely proud of all
that my teammates and I have accomplished this year was very happy to end on
such a wonderful note!
Congratulations to Team Unique (FIN 1), Nexxice (CAN 1), and
the Haydenettes (USA 1) on their medals and to all teams for such an extraordinary
weekend! Thank you to all of the incredible fans for their support and for
making this weekend truly unforgettable!
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| Miami University Team USA 2 |
Love & Honor,
Ashley Mulhern
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