Figure Skating Chat!- Page 2

[Hanna from Hamburg]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 3:57pm

touchme -- I'm afraid of the same thing. I don't think Michelle has healed enough to be able to compete with these children who are breaking through. With the new code/scoring system, unless she has all 8 triples in her long program, she's probably going to come in 4th or 5th.

It's sad, because in some ways I think the new scoring system is good. But mainly, I think it's taken a lot of the artistry out of the sport. It's all about the number of revolutions, the connection of elements, the placement of the elements within the program to maximize the total points. Michelle even said at the worlds last year, she had to think too much about the number of revolutions in combination spins to really let go and just "perform." Granted, she should have competed more under the new code so that she could feel more at ease, but I still prefer a totally "free" performance.

We'll see -- I really wish that it could finally be Michelle's year to win a gold at Olympics. She's been too good an ambassador for the sport and long-time favorite to have missed out on that one piece of hardware.

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 4:18pm

I don't doubt she'll have all the triples and land them. My problem for Michelle is that she (1) doesn't have a triple triple combination, (2) hasn't had time with the new system to work out kinks, and (3) doesn't have the difficulty in her spiral sequence yet.

Perhaps she can make up those marks with her unparalleled artistry, and her knack for encouraging the "high-ending" of marks.

[JLSatUD]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 5:44pm

well, even if Michelle's programs and injury laden year keep her from performing or performing well at Nationals, I'd think that the US olympic people would send her unless she said she couldn't do it. They sent Nancy the year she couldn't perform in Nationals, and I believe that although the standings at Nationals are pretty much what they use for olympic team placement, the USOC has the "right" to pick whoever they want to represent us.

I'm glad that Tanith's law was passed ... in 98 and 02 we could have done better in dance at the olympics if we had that law. I saw Nationals live in 98 when they were in Philly, and a bunch of our ice dance teams that were in the top 5 were ineligible because of nationality problems. Quite a bummer cause some of them were really good.

[Jane2]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 5:58pm

Hey I was wondering how you all feel about Brian Boitano. In his day, he was the epitome of grace and the perfection of the technical aspects of skating. As time went on, other skaters came along with much more intricate and fancy routines, along with quads and other difficult jump sequences. But Brian kept on enduring, with his simple style and grace. Do you think he still has it? Enough to compete (I know he still competes) but is in lockstep with the rest of the gang? The last post about Michelle Kwan reminded me of this point. Is she in somewhat the same category as Boitano? BTW, I greatly admire both of them, so this is not a slam against either skater.

[JLSatUD]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 6:01pm

It's hard to tell, because the skating world is changing so quickly. Hard to believe that not that long ago, a double axle was the defining line between a "technical" or "not so technical" skater. I think that with the change in the judging, the winners are going to start being the people with the major spins nad jumps and they'll just ignore the "pretty" parts. Of course I fear this will also mean more injuries to younger people because I don't see how bodies could handle that for years and years. I think part of the reason the people who are "professionals" (like Brian) can still skate w/out major injuries is that they weren't doing quads at 15 so their bodies aren't completly broken yet.

[Jane2]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 6:06pm

I'm probably in the minority saying this, but I'd hate to see the sport come to depend mostly on jumps and spins. To me, a skater doesn't have it all unless they have a certain style and grace to go along with the technicals. I like to see interesting choreography between the jumps.

[JLSatUD]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 6:12pm

I agree. I think guys skating has gone downhill recently becuase it's just back crossover, back crossover, back crossover, (insert jump or spin here) and repeat til end of music. Yawn!

[zaneyb3000]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 7:20pm

I actually like the new scoring system. I think it has brought new innovation and challenges into the sport and prevents skaters from being rewarded for reputation, which always made me mad. It is at Michelle's disadvantage, though... which is very unfortunate. The system brings some legitmacy to the sport... which it needed after the 2002 Pairs scandal and tons of other instances.

I dislike Plushenko. There is nothing really... special, at least to me, about his skating. He jumps high, spins fast, doesn't fall, and flails his arms alot. And he scowls. Jeffery Buttle is, as someone said earlier, an artist. I was mesmorized the first time I saw his long program. Now THAT is art. He is really special.

[EVIE]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 8:13pm

I love figure skating. Irina is on FIRE! I agree, that she lacks a certain grace though. Cohen's grace on the other hand, is...I can't even describe it. It's etherial almost. She just needs to land her jumps. Mao Asada (I think that's the little Japanese 15 year old) is going to continue to give the more experienced ladies a run for their money! I adore her. As far as the men go, I'm so disappointed Yagudin has gone professional! To me, he was the best out there. His footwork is unbeatable!

[JLSatUD]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 8:17pm

I used to like Michael Weiss because he kind of broke the mold of traditional "froo froo" mens skating. But I feel like he is stuck in the land of "almost" there, still, after all these years.

[OddExoticCreature]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 9:00pm

when I was a kid I did figure skating and I LOVED Nancy Kerrigan, I thought she was so cool and I empathized with her because she's wasn't stereotypically pretty and her brothers called her "Ug" short for ugly so I wanted her to win the Olympics so badly (.....I was quite the sensitive kid) and all my friends made fun of me for it. Weird.

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 9:02pm

Something about Irina always has irked me. I think it may be the sense of being desperate that I always see from her. THAT, coupled with the lack of an artist's connection to her music just make her lesser than people like Michelle and Sasha.

[Jane2]

Posted: 12/29/05 at 11:08pm

My 2 cents-Plushenko to me is the skater's skater. No one comes near. I think he's got it all-outrageously perfect jumps, the style and grace from studying ballet, and of course his speed. Can you tell I'm a fan? And knowing the story of his life only makes me admire what he's accomplished even more. The one male skater that I dislike is Timothy Goebel.

I agree with what was said about Irina. I do admire her for rebounding so well after being so sick, though. Watching the 15 year old skate reminds me of the year Michelle started-she had the goods, but her skating showed her youth. Now look at her!

[zaneyb3000]

Posted: 12/30/05 at 2:10am

I'm really excited to see Mao mature into her skating. You're right, she does have the goods and has good poise and ease on the ice, but she lacks the... pazzow! But Pazzow! comes with time, it's something she'll find in the future and soon!

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 12/30/05 at 9:28am

I LOVE Tim Gay-boy, I mean Goebel.

He is beautiful. Yes, he has little to no artistry and his jumps are hit and miss, but when he's on, he's pretty fun to watch. Remember when he landed three quads in one program? WTF?! Why doesn't he do that anymore? What changed about his jumping that he can't seem to land even one now?!

And why are Canadians so amazing at figure skating?

[Jane2]

Posted: 12/30/05 at 9:45am

But have you noticed Tim Gayble's posture? He gives Quasimoto a run for his money!

[EVIE]

Posted: 12/30/05 at 4:34pm

Was Tim injured? He was a crazy quad jumper in the past. Never really graceful, but boy could that boy jump!

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 12/30/05 at 4:54pm

Yeah, a little more than a year ago, Timothy was injured for an entire season. He came back this last season and opened strong. But, he is still adjusting to the new scoring system which penalizes those people who were jumpers. Now, with a triple-triple getting as many pts as a quad, who would do a quad in a program?

[Hanna from Hamburg]

Posted: 12/30/05 at 5:35pm

Unfortunately, when it's all about quads, triple-triples, quad-triple-triples, quad-quad-quads, etc. you're going to have amazing skaters that just disappear. Look at the amount of hip and back injuries!!! It's a sad state. It would be nice if they just said, "okay -- 8 jumps MAX -- fill out the routine" and make them do spiral, step sequences, combination spins, CHOREOGRAPHY to make an interesting program. I understand that this is a sport, but it's becoming like tennis. How many weeks can you pound your body to death and still compete? The Williams sisters were unstoppable until their bodies started breaking down. The same thing happened with Michelle. She was almost impossible to beat until triple-triple was required. She trained herself for it and her little body broke down. There needs to be some sense of reality in all of this mess.

[CJR]

Posted: 12/30/05 at 6:06pm

I used to *be* a figure skater..... trained for the olympics at one point....

But yet I can't stand watching it. Go figure.

[cturtle]

Posted: 12/31/05 at 11:22am

i heard that michelle WILL be competing at nationals in st louis in a couple of weeks. good for her!

[Glebb]

Posted: 12/31/05 at 11:55am

Where's Tinkerbell and where is K?

[cturtle]

Posted: 12/31/05 at 12:11pm

tinkerbell is competing at nationals as far as i know, even though he slashed and burned at skate canada. who is K?

[Glebb]

Posted: 12/31/05 at 12:14pm

KMF_NYC.

[LaurenB]

Posted: 12/31/05 at 9:03pm

The skater that I enjoy watching is Johnny Weir. However, I do find it a bit strange watching him skate to The Swan, and especially when he dances on his toe picks, as if he were on pointe.

The other thing I find irritating is the (lack of) coverage and commentary, and followup regarding the competitors or what is happening in the sport. They are reporting on the Tanith gal trying to get her US citizenship, and how the mother of her competitor wrote to Hilary Clinton to try and stop it. Just a few years ago, the married ice dancers (Punsalan and Swallow) did the same thing, trying to prevent the Russian guy (Rene Rocca and Gorsha Sur) from getting his citizenship. Why didn't Christine Brennan include that in her report as background? "FYI folks, this is not the first time this has happened."

However bad I sometimes think the coverage is though, it's not as atrocious as NBC covering gymnastics, but that's a whole other topic.

I love watching skating, despite how aggravating the coverage can be.

Other peeves:

- Ugly costumes

- Plushenko and his gloves. Take em off!

- Kid-gloves commentary. What we need is a John McEnroe of skating. Tell us like it is. Tell us what the skater needs to work on, what's wrong with their training, the good and bad of coaching, psychological games skaters play, etc.