Figure Skating

[HartofDixie]

51 minutes ago, PoshSprinkles said:

I can't see them letting Chen do both programs and risk injury when he has a shot for a medal. I predict he will do the SP to give us the points to get into the long program and they'll have Adam do his long program as one of the switches. 

I agree they’ll split the men but unsure if the 2nd substitute will be ladies or dance. All 3 teams are capable of placing 2nd/3rd so do they go with the Shibs or H/D?

[ChicksDigScars]

This conversation is also going on in the Olympic Figure Skating thread. What I said there was: 

The U.S. should have an interesting problem picking the team representatives. You can only "split" the duties in two of the four disciplines, right? Well, the pairs is easy. We only have one pair there, so the Knerims do both.  Then what?

Ice Dance will SUCK for someone. H/D just won Nationals, but the Shibs medaled at the Grand Prix Final and the last two World's.  Plus, both the Shibs and Chock and Bates missed out on the team event in Sochi because Meryl and Charlie did both. With all three teams basically being even, what do you do?  I'd like to see them go by pure scoring. The Shib's short dance has been the consistent higher scoring SD this year, so have them do the short. Chock and Bates have had the higher scoring Free Dance in the GP Final and Nationals.  Have them skate the Free Dance.  Sorry, H/D.  

That means that a man or woman has to do both. Ugh. I'd like to see Adam do the short and Nathan do the long, but that would mean that they can't split the ladies between Mirai and Bradie. Mirai deserves the shot at a medal. Damn. Tough choice. Nathan for both and split the women? 

[healthnut]

I don't know if I really like the substitute rule, I feel like countries should be able to substitute as many as they want. Now that I think about it, it probably doesn't make sense to use two dance teams since they are all scored so similar. They are better off using the substitutions for the men and ladies.

I'm still confused about the Russian team. I'm fine with them competing individually but I don't think they should be allowed to compete in the team comp.

Edited January 19, 2018 by healthnut

[Moxie Cat]

Wow, who is this Russian Aliev guy? He beat Kolyada to come in 2nd at Europeans. Was he in the GP? I don't remember the name.

Yay for Javi. Always happy to see any non-Russian on the top of the podium these days.

[ChicksDigScars]

6 hours ago, legaleagle53 said:

To those who are dismayed at the dominance of Russia at Europeans, remember that the Olympics will be a different story, since it's still unclear which, if any, of the Russian skaters will be allowed to compete or in what capacity.  The IOC has made it very clear that Russian athletes will be permitted to compete on a specific invitation-only basis, and even then, they're not permitted to imply in any way that they represent Russia.

Two more medals for RUS in the men's. Granted, there are no real contenders except for Javier at European's, but I was kinda rooting for the Latvian to get a medal. 

In the short dance, P/D are in first, of course, but I was happy to see Stepanova and Bukin (2nd) as the higher scoring RUS dance team. I prefer them to Bobrova and Soloviev (4th). 

[displayname]

1 hour ago, Moxie Cat said:

Wow, who is this Russian Aliev guy? He beat Kolyada to come in 2nd at Europeans. Was he in the GP? I don't remember the name.

 

He was. I think he was injured. Had bronze in Russian Nats. 2017 World Junior Silver Medalist, and I finally have a solid example of quads trumping all -- if this is how he skated then, then Vincent Zhou probably shouldn't have won.

Dimitriy Aliev is a beautiful skater. I hope he 1) goes to these Olys and places well; 2) medals in the next one, with more consistent quads (and of course becoming even better with his musicality/artistry in the process). 

1 hour ago, ChicksDigScars said:

Two more medals for RUS in the men's.

But the silver at least was well deserved! And they put Samarin very low, even though he was their silver National medalist.

Edited January 19, 2018 by fan94

[annzeepark914]

3 hours ago, ChicksDigScars said:

The Shib's short dance has been the consistent higher scoring SD this year, so have them do the short. Chock and Bates have had the higher scoring Free Dance in the GP Final and Nationals.  Have them skate the Free Dance.  Sorry, H/D.  

 

Whoa, Nellie!  I just had a vision of two furious faces if that decision is made and H/D are left out of the team event.

[ChicksDigScars]

Oh yes. The Hubble entitled sneering bitch face will be a sight to behold! Make it happen!!! 

[ombelico]

Is anyone else as annoyed by Ryan Bradley's commentary as I am? His voice has this plodding, deliberative cadence that is just so grating. Really though, all the commentators need to learn to shut up during the performance! We know it's a mistake if they fall or pop a jump. 

[AuntieDiane6]

Quote

Is anyone else as annoyed by Ryan Bradley's commentary as I am? His voice has this plodding, deliberative cadence that is just so grating. Really though, all the commentators need to learn to shut up during the performance! We know it's a mistake if they fall or pop a jump. 

I like Ryan's kindergarten teacher voice!  It's a nice change to know he will comment strictly on the performance with no snark or fake enthusiasm.  I agree about the commentators talking too much, especially TERRY GANNON who pipes up with his inane comments just when the music slows down.  "His mother shovels snow and his father watched the 1968 Olympics from his sick bed!" And Tanith.. no words. Please.   #ShutUpChattyTanny    

[Jaded]

15 minutes ago, AuntieDiane6 said:

And Tanith.. no words. Please.   #ShutUpChattyTanny    

Thank you! 

I complained about her commentating earlier in this thread and nobody agreed. I thought it may have been an unpopular opinion. I had never heard her commentate before that I can remember and she about drove me crazy after Tara/Johnny left for the Golden Globes.

[MaryMitch]

They both talk too much. I like informative comments, but constant talking detracts from the performance.

[annzeepark914]

Yup.  Too much talking by commentators these days.  It is a sporting event, after all, so we need to have some comments made re: mistakes made during each skater's programs.  But anything else needs to be relegated to the warm ups, skater's taking the ice, leaving the ice, waiting for scores, etc. I think the world of Terry Gannon (what other NCAA top athlete made an effort to learn about figure skating & highly respects skaters?) but he too needs to refrain from too much yakking.

Big article in today's Washington Post re: a documentary, "Icarus", about the Russian doping scandal, & the production crew's protection of the whistle blower (two other Russians were killed).  When I read/hear this stuff, I always wonder why it's so important for the Russians to win.  

[Mumbles]

Quote

like Ryan's kindergarten teacher voice!  It's a nice change to know he will comment strictly on the performance with no snark or fake enthusiasm.  

Yeah and I kind of agreed with him when he said that Russian pair skating to a weird medley of Christina Aguilera tunes just randomly selected three songs out of a hat.

Stolbova and Klimov’s coach is my spirit animal, rocking that fur coat (I would use fake fur tho.) I have a soft spot for old school Soviet system lady skating coaches. You get a feeling they’ve seen some stuff.

[displayname]

The top 3 ladies' scores from EC are a joke, but I'm glad Zagi won over Med.

 

Med is a great competitor, for sure, though.

If Zagi wins OWG and the WC, she'll have a grand slam her first year as senior.

Edited January 20, 2018 by fan94

[LilJen]

On ‎1‎/‎10‎/‎2018 at 0:40 PM, carrier76 said:

When you get the occasional arm variation, it is like a nice bonus surprise. Especially if it looks elegant. Not when it looks like a saggy salute, SOTSKOVA.

I call Sotskova's version "the rooster." Looks like a rooster's comb.

On ‎1‎/‎13‎/‎2018 at 4:06 PM, Dots And Stripes said:

Wasn't Patrick always known for falling a lot? I'm sure it's gotten worse with age, but I always think of him as one who used the scoring system to maximize points even when he couldn't execute cleanly.

What is the figure skating obsession with Moulin Rouge? It's too much. That said, I'm still rooting for Tessa and Scott to win Olympic gold even if their music choice is irritating. 

I hate Moulin Rouge, and I, too, do not understand the obsession with it. The singing is AWFUL (Roxanne sung by someone who's been gargling on rocks? sure. . . .). I guess skaters like their stories about prostitutes/compromised/fallen women finding good men: Miss Saigon, Moulin Rouge, Madame Butterfly.

[MaryMitch]

2 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

Big article in today's Washington Post re: a documentary, "Icarus", about the Russian doping scandal, & the production crew's protection of the whistle blower (two other Russians were killed).  When I read/hear this stuff, I always wonder why it's so important for the Russians to win.  

"Icarus" is currently available on Netflix.

[ChicksDigScars]

It’s all over Twitter complaining about the audiences at Euros not cheering for non-Russian skaters to the point of rudeness. Oh, you mean Sochi 2.0?

 

The Skating While Russian bonus went across all four disciplines. They swept the pairs and won two of three medals in the other three disciplines. Today, Cappillini and Lanotte got booted to fourth in favor of the two Russian teams getting the silver and bronze. Anna’s twizzles didn’t help matters, though. 

 

And what was Kostner wearing? Is that the Kermit the Frog look?  

Edited January 21, 2018 by ChicksDigScars

[ChicksDigScars]

Yeah, the green is what made me pause. And white would be beautiful. 

 

Stepanova and Bukin are going to be contenders. Tanith and Ben liked their short dance better than the much higher scored Papadakis and Cizeron. The height and long legs on Stepanova reminds me of Tatiana Navka.  I’m thinking that the Americans teams need to take the race for the bronze REALLY seriously. 

 

Okay, so which ever team draws the later spot in the free dance, wins the gold? (V/M vs. P/C)

Edited January 21, 2018 by ChicksDigScars

[displayname]

38 minutes ago, ChicksDigScars said:

Okay, so which ever team draws the later spot in the free dance, wins the gold? (V/M vs. P/C)

I think it's more complicated than that.

[Cherpumple]

20 hours ago, ombelico said:

Is anyone else as annoyed by Ryan Bradley's commentary as I am?

Yes, he was really irritating. The worst for me was during the pairs event and Tanith explained that one of the team's program was the story of two ballet dancers, starting from rehearsal at the barre and ending in their performance on stage. It was just a quick FYI type of comment, which I actually appreciated because I thought it was an interesting idea and because I'm usually too dense to understand the "story" being told on my own (it all looks like random arm waving to me). Anyway, Ryan kept going on and on about how he didn't "get it" and I was like, um, are you slow? It's a very straight-forward concept. You may not like the idea or think they did a good job showing it, but how can you not "get it"? Tanith seemed just as confused about his reaction as I did.

Karolina's celery stalk outfit was indeed a surprise, but I actually liked that she was making a bold statement. All the other costumes are starting to blend together for me. And it looked very fresh and spring-like, which fit the music.

[Mindthinkr]

I just found out about this thread and am tickled pink! I'm so excited to watch the Olympics and finally be able to discuss some of my thoughts on it, as well as learning some interesting tidbits from all of you. Was just reading about the substitution thing up thread. In a way it's nice that it gives opportunities for some others to make it to the Olympics but in another way I've always liked that you had to be good enough and have the stamina to compete in all of the programs. 

[MaryMitch]

On 1/19/2018 at 11:38 AM, ChicksDigScars said:

This conversation is also going on in the Olympic Figure Skating thread. What I said there was:  *snip*

Where is the Olympic Figure Skating thread?

 

5 hours ago, Cherpumple said:

Karolina's celery stalk outfit was indeed a surprise, but I actually liked that she was making a bold statement. All the other costumes are starting to blend together for me. And it looked very fresh and spring-like, which fit the music.

I liked the outfit in theory, but it was just so... green. I'm not sure what color would have been better, though. White would be gorgeous, but it would be hard to see her against the white ice and boards.

[meep.meep]

It was better than grey with sparkly grey jewels.

Tanith, whose commentary is head and shoulders above The Annointed Pair, managed to avoid referring to anyone's "year of age" until the last possible moment.  Why can't someone just be 15 or 15 years old or even 30 anymore?  Do they think they are Dickens?

So my proposed drinking game for the Olympics is take a sip when the commentaters refer to a competitor's years of age.  We will be sloshed by the end of the first event.

[cpcathy]

I can't believe three dance couples skated to the same music by Muse. Three! Next time that happens names should be drawn out of a hat and whoever loses has to change their music!

[specialj67]

I really enjoyed Dmitri Aliev’s performance at the EC—confirmed having re-watched it in NBC. I click with his style much more than Kolyada’s. I can appreciate that when Kolyada completes a jump well, he has a nice quality to his skating, but the skating in between those elements and music choices this season leaves me very meh.

Re: Tarasova/Morozov’s LP this season: if even Johnny Weir thinks Candyman with yellow and black polka dotted costumes is a misfire, you know that’s bad.

[Silver Raven]

6 hours ago, MaryMitch said:

Where is the Olympic Figure Skating thread?

Here:

[Jeddah]

Watching Europeans, I really wish Four Continents was a bigger deal. I know logistically it’s harder to travel that far, so skaters don’t always want to go. But Europeans is a big deal, and I wish North America and Asia (and Australia and Africa too) had something that really was comparable.

Zagitova has momentum! This will be exciting.

I like James/ Cipres, and losing out on a medal by .01 has to hurt. They were sloppy, so I understand the results, but I still felt bad for them.

I really like Zabiiako/Engert’s ballet program, but I was very amused by Ryan Bradley’s confusion.

 

19 hours ago, specialj67 said:

 

Re: Tarasova/Morozov’s LP this season: if even Johnny Weir thinks Candyman with yellow and black polka dotted costumes is a misfire, you know that’s bad.

I thought the same thing about Tanith criticizing Carolina’s unitard! Tanith had some awful costumes in her day!

ETA: In my original post I thought the four continents were the Pacific Rim continents. I’ve changed it now to include Africa. Apparently, the Americas are grouped together.

Edited January 22, 2018 by Jeddah

[annzeepark914]

4 hours ago, meep.meep said:

Tanith, whose commentary is head and shoulders above The Annointed Pair,

Heh heh...The Annointed Pair.  Thanks for the chuckle!  Wish we could exchange those two charmers for Ben & Tanith, & even Ryan (I really like him but he needs a bit of coaching on his verbal presentation skills!!)

I can't believe Winter Olympics are back (almost).  It seems like not too long ago I was watching Olympic figure skating on NBCSN every morning.  Let's hope that Johnny has been told to tone it down with his outfits this time around.

[specialj67]

43 minutes ago, Jeddah said:

Watching Europeans, I really wish Four Continents was a bigger deal. I know logistically it’s harder to travel that far, so skaters don’t always want to go. But Europeans is a big deal, and I wish North America and Asia (and I guess Australia and South America too) had something that really was comparable.

Zagitova has momentum! This will be exciting.

I like James/ Cipres, and losing out on a medal by .01 has to hurt. They were sloppy, so I understand the results, but I still felt bad for them.

I really like Zabiiako/Engert’s ballet program, but I was very amused by Ryan Bradley’s confusion.

 

I thought the same thing about Tanith criticizing Carolina’s unitard! Tanith had some awful costumes in her day!

4CC seems especially also-ran in Olympic years compared to EC for the U.S. and Canada because of the timing. It seems like the powerhouse countries only take it seriously the season before the next Winter Olympics.

[HartofDixie]

26 minutes ago, specialj67 said:

4CC seems especially also-ran in Olympic years compared to EC for the U.S. and Canada because of the timing. It seems like the powerhouse countries only take it seriously the season before the next Winter Olympics.

They should have had 4CC the same time as Euros. The majority of the athletes at 4CC are not competing at the Olympics.

Im hoping Starr does well so she can get a GP assignment.

[Libby96]

I was kind of rooting for Carolina, mainly because I didn't want another Russian sweep.  I am kind of surprised she hung on to third place with that rough free skate.  But maybe I was distracted by her skating in a sparkly green sock.

It's not easy being green.

[ChicksDigScars]

21 hours ago, fan94 said:

I think it's more complicated than that.

Ummm...wow?

What I’m saying is that they are the top two, and no one else is close. You have definite opinions on which is the better team.  As much as it pains me, I prefer Virtue and Moir. If you are judging fairly, and haven’t pre-ordained the winner, it just seems that the team drawing the later skate has the advantage. I know that this scoring system was supposed to alleviate the “making room for the later skaters,” and giving early skaters lower scores, but it seems that there’s still a scoring advantage to skating AFTER your main rival, if you both skate well. 

Edited January 22, 2018 by ChicksDigScars

[displayname]

1 hour ago, ChicksDigScars said:

Ummm...wow?

And what I'm saying is that it's not simple as "who skates later". P/C have this in the bag, unless the politicking from Canada reaches an all-time high.

 

And P/C also have this in the bag because of politcking. They're both great teams, so it's really not as simple as "who skates later".

Edited January 22, 2018 by fan94

[Cherpumple]

9 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

Let's hope that Johnny has been told to tone it down with his outfits this time around.

Noooo! I love Johnny's outrageous outfits, almost as much as I love seeing all those Russian grand dames in their giant fur coats and Dynasty-era coiffures. They just make things much more fun. And after suffering through the snooze-fest that was the BBC coverage of Sochi, I'm glad to see commentators with a little panache.

[ChicksDigScars]

What I didn't like about Tara and Johnny this time, seemed to be a lot more snideness.  Tara, particularly, made a comment that just sounded BAD, when Ross Miner was skating. Something to the effect of, "Well, SOMEONE is on tonight," and it sounded VERY snooty.  

[HartofDixie]

Four Continents: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1718/fc2018/index.htm

Tue.     Jan. 23     9-11 LIVE     Four Continents (Short Dance)     Olympic Channel
Tue.     Jan. 23     midnight-2aLIVE     Four Continents (Pairs Short)     Olympic Channel
Wed.     Jan. 24     5:30a-7:30aLIVE     Four Continents (Ladies Short)     Olympic Channel
Wed.     Jan. 24     noon-2     Four Continents (Short Dance)     NBCSN
Wed.     Jan. 24     2-4     Four Continents (Ladies Short)     NBCSN
Wed.     Jan. 24     midnight-2aLIVE     Four Continents (Free Dance)     Olympic Channel
Thurs     Jan. 25     5:30a-7:30aLIVE     Four Continents (Mens Short)     Olympic Channel
Thurs     Jan. 25     noon-2     Four Continents (Free Dance)     NBCSN
Thurs     Jan. 25     2-4     Four Continents (Mens Short)     NBCSN
Thurs     Jan. 25     midnight-2aLIVE     Four Continents (Pairs Long)     OlympicC hannel
Fri.     Jan. 26     5:30a-7:30aLIVE     Four Continents (Ladies Long)     OlympicC hannel
Fri.     Jan. 26     noon-2     Four Continents (Pairs Long)     NBCSN
Fri.     Jan. 26     2-4     Four Continents (Ladies Long)     NBCSN
Fri.     Jan. 26     1:30a-3:30aLIVE     Four Continents (Mens Long)     Olympic Channel
Sat.     Jan. 27     11p-1a     Four Continents (Mens Long)     NBCSN
Sat.     Jan. 27     2:30-4:30     Four Continents (Recap)     NBC

[HartofDixie]

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-olympics-2018-russia-doping-skaters/two-russian-figure-skaters-barred-from-south-korea-olympics-idUSKBN1FC1BJ

[displayname]

“The unfounded and absurd decision once again demonstrates the IOC’s inability to eschew external influences on its decision-making,”

 

So how many LOLs should I type, seeing that this is coming from the RSF?

[ML89]

Tanith makes good technical points, but sometimes she will go on and on beyond all reason - I vividly remember her droning through the Shibs' fantastic twizzle sequence in "Fix You." She's even with everyone else on that point. I did enjoy Ben. 

[ChicksDigScars]

Disappointed that it's Bukin, but they're the younger, up and coming dance team from RUS, so they'll be around for awhile. 

 

And yeah....LOL to the Russian Federation's predictable response. 

Edited January 24, 2018 by ChicksDigScars

[HartofDixie]

Pleasantly surprised to see Cain/LeDuc in the lead after the short program.

[Tippi]

I happened to catch Stepanova & Bukin's FD at Europeans (first time I had ever paid any attention to them) and really liked it and their skating and style.  I thought at the time they could be strong contenders for the Olympic bronze medal.  Was he involved somehow in doping? 

Go Cain/LeDuc!

[Moxie Cat]

Just finished watching the U.S. Nationals Gala. Oh my, Bradie Tennell. Maybe I didn't notice during the free skate, but she does not exactly have charisma as a performer, does she? Maybe it will come. Mirai and Karen have tons of it.

Also had to laugh when Tanith or Scott said that Med never screws up (I clearly recall her falling at least once) and that Bradie would challenge her and the Russians. Very optimistic bunch, there.

Yes, there was definitely much louder applause for Ross than Vincent, and honestly it made me feel bad for Vincent because the whole snafu wasn't his fault. I was not a fan of his last year, but he has really grown as a skater....he has a lovely, light style.

Edited January 25, 2018 by Moxie Cat

[ChicksDigScars]

Bradie reminds me of Kimmie Meissner. Neither had much in the charisma department.

Hawayek and Baker won the 4CC Dance title.  Yeah, they were the biggest guns in the field, so......

 

http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1718/fc2018/index.htm

[MaryMitch]

3 minutes ago, ChicksDigScars said:

Bradie reminds me of Kimmie Meissner. Neither had much in the charisma department.

Hawayek and Baker won the 4CC Dance title.  Yeah, they were the biggest guns in the field, so......

 

http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1718/fc2018/index.htm

Thanks for the link - I watched the ladies short program yesterday and noticed that Elizabet Tursynbaeva's technical score dropped from somewhere in the 30s to 27.17, and the announcers never mentioned why. The scoring details you link to show that her triple triple was downgraded and she got negative GOEs on the element.

That brings up a question: the judges' individual GOEs on this were three -3s and six -2s, yet the jump's overall GOE was a -1.60. And just spot checking a few other GOEs ... well, they apparently don't average the individual GOEs to get the final GOE. Does anyone know how they calculate it?

( the score detail is here: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1718/fc2018/fc2018_Ladies_SP_Scores.pdf; her scores are on page 6 )

[displayname]

1 hour ago, MaryMitch said:

That brings up a question: the judges' individual GOEs on this were three -3s and six -2s, yet the jump's overall GOE was a -1.60. And just spot checking a few other GOEs ... well, they apparently don't average the individual GOEs to get the final GOE. Does anyone know how they calculate it?

 

Chuck out one highest and one lowest, average the remaining 7, and multiply by 0.7 for triples (effectively just adding the remaining 7 and dividing by 10 here).

[ChicksDigScars]

4CC is a strange event.  Everyone except Japan sent the JV squad, which explains the Japanese medal sweep in the Ladies and the U.S. pairs (!!!) getting the gold and silver in that event. 

What was interesting, was watching a North Korean pair team get a bronze medal.  

[HartofDixie]

17 minutes ago, ChicksDigScars said:

4CC is a strange event.  Everyone except Japan sent the JV squad, which explains the Japanese medal sweep in the Ladies and the U.S. pairs (!!!) getting the gold and silver in that event. 

What was interesting, was watching a North Korean pair team get a bronze medal.  

It was a short trip for Japanese team.  Japan even medaled in dance!  US/Canada never sends their Olympic team to 4CC and I doubt Ashley would have made the podium.

[Moxie Cat]

Yeah, Jason Brown! The free skate must have gone well. I am looking forward to seeing the 4CC recap on NBC today.

Odd that Japan would send the A team. You would think they wouldn't want to risk injury to any of their skaters (especially Shoma Uno) this close to the Olympics.