Will silence be golden?

Much of the buzz surrounding the women's competition at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships has centered on whether Kimmie Meissner can successfully defend her crown against a wave of young talent. One of the few people who haven't joined the speculation, it seems, is Meissner herself.

The 18-year-old U.S. champion declined to conduct interviews before this week's event. Wednesday, after her first practice session at Xcel Energy Center, she again refused to answer questions. Her silence -- and the impressive run-throughs of several challengers -- only served to increase the chatter about whether Meissner's reign will end after Saturday's free skate.

Meissner sprung a surprise when she won the 2006 world championship. Since then, her spotty performances have taken some shine off her star while the next generation has grown brighter. Coach Pam Gregory did the talking for her pupil Tuesday, saying Meissner is ready for a rebound.

"She's feeling really good," Gregory said. "She's been practicing really hard, she's in good shape and she's excited.

"She's skating very well right now. She did have a sprained ankle, but she's feeling strong right now. I think she's a lot more prepared for this event."

Many obstacles to overcome

Gregory said Meissner was staying mum because she wanted to "keep her focus." The right ankle injury was revealed only recently. Gregory told the Baltimore Sun last week that it happened in November just before Trophee Eric Bompard, where Meissner finished second, and that it had hampered her training.

Meissner won her season debut at Skate America. But the Grand Prix circuit ended unhappily for her -- she fell three times in the free skate at the Grand Prix Final and finished last of six skaters. That intensified the speculation over whether she could defend her title this week against competitors such as Caroline Zhang, who was fourth at the Grand Prix Final, and Mirai Nagasu, who won three Junior Grand Prix events, including the Final.

Gregory said Meissner has eliminated two of her issues: her health and her unfamiliarity with her long program. "I think she's a lot more prepared for this event," the coach said. "She's had a nice length of time [with the program]. I know she's comfortable with it."

Contenders take the ice

Wednesday, Meissner fell on one of the jumps during her free skate rehearsal but otherwise looked confident and strong. Zhang, 14, who also has had many jumps downgraded by judges this season, tumbled a few times during her short program run-through and concentrated on drilling her opening triple flip-triple toe loop combination.

Nagasu performed solid versions of both programs in practices Tuesday and Wednesday. The 14-year-old will skate today's short program to "I Got Rhythm" -- in which, she said, she aspires to have "Gene Kelly feet" -- and portrays a doll in her charming free skate to "Coppelia."

"As a first-year senior, the most important thing for me to do is to have fun," Nagasu said. "It's a little bit harder skating a 4-minute, 10-second program. But I had a full month to prepare myself. I think I'm pretty much ready for it."

Rachael Flatt, 15, and Ashley Wagner, 16, also looked assured and well-prepared in their practice sessions. Their youth sets up potential complications with choosing the three women who will represent the United States at the upcoming world championships in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Typically, the three national medalists would go. But of the younger contenders, only Wagner meets the age requirement of turning 15 years old by July 1, 2007. That leaves the door open wide for Meissner to claim a spot when the worlds team is announced late Saturday.

She finished fourth at the 2007 worlds, a year after her victory there. Meissner also remains the U.S. champion, of course, until someone unseats her -- and as much as the youngsters hope to do that, they also know it will not be easy.