SPOKANE, WASH. -- An ice dancer whom Canada lost four years ago to the United States may end up as a world champion, judging from what people are seeing this week at Skate America.

Tanith Belbin, born in Kingston, Ont., and Chicago native Benjamin Agosto are the talk of Skate America, even though they finished only 13th at the world figure skating championships seven months ago in Nagano, Japan. It was only less than a year ago, they were celebrating a victory as world junior dance champions. They are now ranked second in the United States behind Naomi Lang and Peter Tchernyshev.

They burst out of the blocks by finishing third in the compulsory dance on Thursday, just ahead of world bronze medalists Galit Chait and Sergei Sakhnovsky of Israel, a leap almost unprecedented in the ethereal discipline often riddled by judging controversies. They may have a new scoring system to thank.

Coach Igor Sphilband, who has seen his share of disappointments in the sport, said he is heartened by the apparent new open-mindedness of judges, although he feels Belbin and Agosto performed best in the compulsory dance, an Austrian waltz.

"One step at a time," he said. "I think it is a positive to see a 13th-place couple in the world can beat the third-place, which never happened before. It also showed which group Tanith and Ben really belong to. There is not such a huge gap between them or top 10 teams, or top three."

Belbin and Agosto promise to make ice dancing interesting this year. Last year, they were very good. This year, their auras fill the rink. In practices this week at the Spokane Arena, they have been sensational. Their programs are difficult, fast-paced and stunning.

Belbin, who reminds many people of Canadian dance champion Shae-Lynn Bourne, has always been the flower of the young team, her charm radiating everywhere. Like Bourne, she started out as a pairs skater, then switched to dance. But because it was difficult to find male dance partners in Canada, Belbin had to look in the United States.

This season, Agosto has blossomed. He has an open, friendly countenance that oozes confidence. During practice yesterday, Agosto took one step onto the ice and was met with enthusiastic applause from a rather large crowd of spectators. At first blush, it was the costume that drew all the admiration. It was a heavily beaded white pant suit that placed him squarely in the kingdom of Elvis Presley imitators. But once he started to move with Belbin, it was clear that the work was astonishingly good, too.

Why Elvis, hardly the stuff of prim and proper dancing decorum? It's the 25th anniversary of Presley's death. Sphilband could see physical similarities between Agosto and Presley. The world championships this season will be in the United States (Washington), where Elvis is king.

However, the choice to string together a medley of Jailhouse Rock, Heartbreak Hotel, Teddy Bear and Hound Dog was challenging, Sphilband said. "The music is very fast," he said. "We wanted to take a further step this year, because last year was pretty successful."

Sphilband said they've drilled more technical difficulty into their routines, and he believes their Elvis free dance is the most difficult program at Skate America. Their work in the original dance is also overwhelming, most notably a line of parallel footwork with twizzles and turns and footwork without pause.

And their personas and body language have also bloomed. "They're maturing," Sphilband said. "They are very hard-working kids. They are very dedicated. They are a very unique team. Physically, they look good. They are very striking."

They have another plus. Belbin's mother, Michele, is a costume designer. She took care of the details of the Elvis look. Sphilband had one idea: Agosto's costume had to be white, like the stack of white costumes Presley wore in his Las Vegas days.

But Agosto needed some convincing about skating in white pants. It took a while to persuade him otherwise. For a while, he skated in a black costume, but it just didn't work, Sphilband said.

Sphilband also became convinced that a comic Elvis routine was a good move after former world dancing champion Courtney Jones suggested Belbin and Agosto try comedy. "They are unique," Jones told Sphilband. "You don't see many dancers who can pull off comedy. But they can."

Perfect, Sphilband thought. "You really can't be serious playing Elvis," he said. "With all the humour in the personality and the era and the style, you have to have a sense of humour about it."

Sphilband has also heard that world champions Irina Lobacheva and Ilia Averbukh of Russia are considering an Elvis free dance. Sphilband apparently doesn't feel his team would suffer by comparison.

Belbin and Agosto will officially unveil their Elvis routine this afternoon. Spokane may never be the same. Neither may ice dancing.