Figure Skating

[herbz]

54 minutes ago, Vera said:

I don't think the Shibs can afford to make even the smallest mistake. C/B's FD has been outscoring theirs all season. At the TE. B/S were less than a point behind in the SD and they had the PCS in the FD. I don't get that. I understand H/D being close to them in scores, but C/B and B/S?

They are still my pick for the podium, but it's going to be really close and if they give the judges a reason to dump them here, they will.

 

C/B winning the free dance over the other two teams is silly as well IMO, years and years of senior competition and they still haven't figured out how to sustain an edge.

Totally agree, the Shibs need to be foot perfect. Then again, they were foot perfect in the 2016 Worlds SD, and they were hosed for an incredibly sloppy skate from P/C. They give the judges an inch and that's it.

Edited February 17, 2018 by herbz

[MostlyC]

What is the Shibs’ Coldplay trilogy?  I know they danced to Fix You and Paradise. What’s the third one?

I’m not a fan of Huble/Donahue (pardon if I misspelled).  For the Americans, I’m rooting for the Shibs, and for Chock/Bates. 

I’m also rooting for the French team.  I’m over the beautiful Canadian team.

If Adam is milking this for all its worth, I get it.  In a year or so, many people outside the skating world won’t remember his name.  Might as well enjoy the sun while it shines; and it might be a way for him to make some money to pay for all the perfectly sculpted eyebrows.  And I can’t imagine his trainer is cheap.

[tanyak]

Adam was interviewed in the studio a few moments ago. I couldn't watch the whole thing because Mr. Tanyak and Mr. Tanyak Jr. were rushing me so we could go get breakfast. He was definitely still Adam, but not as over the top and nonsensical. That leads me to think competition was getting to him or he was definitely trolling "Andi." From what I saw, he was quite delightful with Carolyn Manno.

[Vera]

35 minutes ago, herbz said:

C/B winning the free dance over the other two teams is silly as well IMO, years and years of senior competition and they still haven't figured out how to sustain an edge.

 

 

C/B couldn't find an edge if you gave them a flashlight. Chock's posture also annoys me (as does Bobrova's). 

Weapo's form has improved over the years, but their twizzles! I'm not sure going to Morozov helped them any. 

When it comes to skating skills as a team, I think it's V/M, Shibs, H/D, P/C, W/P, C/L, C/B, B/S, in that order. 

23 minutes ago, MostlyC said:

What is the Shibs’ Coldplay trilogy?  I know they danced to Fix You and Paradise. What’s the third one?

 

The music isn't the trilogy, the theme is. Or something. In betweent Fix You and Paradise, they danced to Spiegel im Spiegel. 

I want to say that going for a trilogy didn't do them any favors, but P/C have been doing the same style for four seasons and it hasn't affected them any. C/L have also been doing the same set to different music for a few seasons now, but they haven't been on the podium, so it doesn't have quite the same effect.

Edited February 17, 2018 by Vera

[herbz]

9 minutes ago, Vera said:

C/B couldn't find an edge if you gave them a flashlight. Chock's posture also annoys me (as does Bobrova's). 

Weapo's form has improved over the years, but their twizzles! I'm not sure going to Morozov helped them any. 

When it comes to skating skills as a team, I think it's V/M, Shibs, H/D, P/C, W/P, C/L, C/B, B/S, in that order. 

The music isn't the trilogy, the theme is. Or something. In betweent Fix You and Paradise, they danced to Spiegel im Spiegel. 

I want to say that going for a trilogy didn't do them any favors, but P/C have been doing the same style for four seasons and it hasn't affected them any. C/L have also been doing the same set to different music for a few seasons now, but they haven't been on the podium, so it doesn't have quite the same effect.

 

With you on all counts. P/C annoy me because they get away with technically incorrect skating in a way that no other team does because of #art and somehow their lack of versatility gets hailed as innovation, but saving us from World Champions Chock and Bates was just about the best thing they ever did.

Edited February 17, 2018 by herbz

[caracas1914]

10 hours ago, Poohbear617 said:

Don't act like Tom Brady and be a bad sport by not shaking their hands. 

 

Well Tom didn’t just leave without  congratulating others but I digress....

As much as Nathan’s LP was technically with the quads lights out (6!!) there was a very noticeable imbalance in his program.   So comparing it to the top three who medaled Nathan has a lot to improve on presentation and composition. Ditto Vincent.

 

Agree that all those who said that the “coulda , woulda, shoulda,” on Nathan forgets that his dismal SP led to attempting the 6 quads in the LP and no pressure of even medaling..still I don’t expect anyone to have such a huge scoring technical lead on everyone else for a long, long time.   It could lead to bigger things for him but we have to wait and see because he completely collapse on the mental pressure in the SP, as in totally.

Worlds may give us a better indication how Nathan delivers on the international level now that he is expected to, with all the added pressure.

 

Warning: I’m not a Patrick Chan fan, but yes, admittedly, no denying he has great composition and line, However,  just as in his other two Olympics, he faltered in certain small things (doubling a triple, touching ice on a couple of other jumps) so it wasn’t so much that he didn’t have the technical goods to remain competitive, but that he also couldn’t skate under the pressure the LP program he did devise.  

Didn’t think his program flowed as it could have , and that was surprising considering he wasn’t realistically  in medal contention.  

So I roll my eyes a little on how he and others have started the whole shtick on how he exited skating “under his terms”.   Rippon was the one who actually did that, not Patrick.

Orser having both the Gold and Bronze medalist, oh my, that and coaching Yuna to her Gold Medal and who would have thunk his legacy as a coach would dwarf his performance career.

Edited February 17, 2018 by caracas1914

[alexa]

10 hours ago, magdalene said:

I don't agree with that, the two Japanese guys and Javier Fernandez were better than Nathan artistically IMO.  I don't believe quads should count for everything in ice skating.

I am glad Javier got a medal. He has the sweetest smile.

But Nathan won the free skate. He even beat Hanyu. So he would have had an easy chance to win had he had a good short program as well. Technically he beat the top 3 by a lot and also had decent component scores. 

[Growsonwalls]

I think if Nathan was 3rd/4th/5th in the short program he wouldn't have gone for six quads and the triple axel (an iffy jump for him). He probably would have skated more conservatively. He skated that Hail Mary free skate because the SP couldn't have gone worse and he had nothing to lose.

[magdalene]

6 minutes ago, alexa said:

But Nathan won the free skate. He even beat Hanyu. So he would have had an easy chance to win had he had a good short program as well. Technically he beat the top 3 by a lot and also had decent component scores. 

I don't even remember any of his program besides those flashy quads.  Where was the artistic component that should be a big part of a medal winning program?To me he showed no personality on the ice.  And his short program was bad. That is a fact.

He just did not deserve a medal and the three guys who did win medals deserved those medals for their complete performances over those two days, which included keeping it together and not falling apart.

[irisheyes]

58 minutes ago, tanyak said:

Adam was interviewed in the studio a few moments ago. I couldn't watch the whole thing because Mr. Tanyak and Mr. Tanyak Jr. were rushing me so we could go get breakfast. He was definitely still Adam, but not as over the top and nonsensical. That leads me to think competition was getting to him or he was definitely trolling "Andi." From what I saw, he was quite delightful with Carolyn Manno.

I agree. I think that it was very telling that he said his short program was his public persona while his long program is more his private person. He was funny and charming in the interview while not saying stuff that was just silly. I’m so glad his Olympics went just the way he had dreamt. Hopefully, he can pass some of his artistry to Nathan and Vincent, because when they get that, they’ll be fantastic. 

[ChicksDigScars]

12 hours ago, MostlyC said:

Hallelujah need to join the ranks of Moulin Rouge in the overplayed department.  

(and this comes from someone who loves the song).

ETA: Jinx @ChicksDigScars

 

We just need to add them to the Carmen List. Nessun Dorma needs to take a nice break, too. 

 

Dear Figure Skaters. For the next Olympic Cycle, please refrain from the following:

Carmen*

Nessun Dorma

Moulin Rouge

Hallelujah (even though I have the kd lang version on my iPod)

 

*Carmen is on a two to three Olympic cycle hiatus for massive overuse dating back to the 1980's. 

 

And just out of principle, no more Candyman. Once was enough.

 

Thank you.

[Jeddah]

6 minutes ago, ChicksDigScars said:

 

We just need to add them to the Carmen List. Nessun Dorma needs to take a nice break, too. 

 

Dear Figure Skaters. For the next Olympic Cycle, please refrain from the following:

Carmen*

Nessun Dorma

Moulin Rouge

Hallelujah (even though I have the kd lang version on my iPod)

 

*Carmen is on a two to three Olympic cycle hiatus for massive overuse dating back to the 1980's. 

 

And just out of principle, no more Candyman. Once was enough.

 

Thank you.

Les Miserables an Phantom of the Opera too!

[ChicksDigScars]

I still love D/W's Phantom, though. There's just something about Charlie's blond curls flying around to that music....I'm sorry. I need a moment. 

 

I have a bad feeling about the Shibs. They got their bronze in the team, so I have a feeling that they're going to be jettisoned in favor of Hubble and Donahue to give Montreal the podium sweep (now I need a moment to barf). Is it because they are too nice? Not enough tantrums, drama and bitch faces?  They get screwed a little too often. 

 

Even worse than having them fucked over for H/D, would be giving the bronze to the Russians. UGHHHH. I would have been okay with Stepanova and Bukin. I actually LIKE them. But, they aren't there.

[BitterApple]

56 minutes ago, magdalene said:

I don't even remember any of his program besides those flashy quads.  Where was the artistic component that should be a big part of a medal winning program?To me he showed no personality on the ice.  And his short program was bad. That is a fact.

He just did not deserve a medal and the three guys who did win medals deserved those medals for their complete performances over those two days, which included keeping it together and not falling apart.

I agree, I know Nathan is just a reserved guy by nature and he can't help that, but something about his skating is so clinical. It's like those kids who practice cello five hours a day and technically, they're amazing but they have no real feel or passion for their art. It's a very robotic approach which isn't as appealing (at least for me, anyways) as a skater who throws himself emotionally into his performance.

[HartofDixie]

39 minutes ago, ChicksDigScars said:

 

We just need to add them to the Carmen List. Nessun Dorma needs to take a nice break, too. 

 

Dear Figure Skaters. For the next Olympic Cycle, please refrain from the following:

Carmen*

Nessun Dorma

Moulin Rouge

Hallelujah (even though I have the kd lang version on my iPod)

 

*Carmen is on a two to three Olympic cycle hiatus for massive overuse dating back to the 1980's. 

 

And just out of principle, no more Candyman. Once was enough.

 

Thank you.

Great video on choosing music and they used Carmen as their example!

 

[Jeddah]

15 minutes ago, ChicksDigScars said:

I still love D/W's Phantom, though. There's just something about Charlie's blond curls flying around to that music....I'm sorry. I need a moment. 

I didn’t say Scherazade just because of Davis and White!

[blackwing]

46 minutes ago, ChicksDigScars said:

 

We just need to add them to the Carmen List. Nessun Dorma needs to take a nice break, too. 

 

Dear Figure Skaters. For the next Olympic Cycle, please refrain from the following:

Carmen*

Nessun Dorma

Moulin Rouge

Hallelujah (even though I have the kd lang version on my iPod)

 

*Carmen is on a two to three Olympic cycle hiatus for massive overuse dating back to the 1980's. 

 

And just out of principle, no more Candyman. Once was enough.

 

Thank you.

CBC just had an article on the most overused music.  In addition to Carmen, they listed Sean Lake, Romeo and Juliet, Moonlight Sonata, Scheherazade, Phantom of the Opera, and Tosca by Puccini.  Surprised no mention of Nessun Dorma.   

I guess Moulin Rouge and Hallelelujah are fairly recent epidemics?

[irisheyes]

14 minutes ago, blackwing said:

CBC just had an article on the most overused music.  In addition to Carmen, they listed Sean Lake, Romeo and Juliet, Moonlight Sonata, Scheherazade, Phantom of the Opera, and Tosca by Puccini.  Surprised no mention of Nessun Dorma.   

I guess Moulin Rouge and Hallelelujah are fairly recent epidemics?

Probably since they started using lyrics. 

[herbz]

I don't mind warhorse music if you're going to do something a bit out of the ordinary with your movement to it. Case in point: Virtue and Moir's Carmen. A different interpretation of the story, modern dance movements, sleek black costumes instead of the usual red flamenco dress. Something new. That program proved seriously divisive, which I'd take over boring. But if you're gonna do Swan Lake in a tutu with quasi-ballet choreography for the 34754th time, keep it. There are a million other classical pieces to use instead! 

Next year I bet Moulin Rouge will be switched out for Greatest Showman, I can practically see US Nationals already.

Edited February 17, 2018 by herbz

[iMonrey]

How is Vincent Zhou's last name pronounced? Isn't it "zjow?" It bugged me that Terry Gannon kept saying "Vincent Joe."

Quote

I’m watching older skates because I miss Uncle Dickie, and he really knew when to Shut The Heck Up and let the artistry & music take you away.  

I hate to say it but Dick had a tendency to ramble, especially the older he got. He'd babble on and on about a particular element and struggled to verbalize his thoughts. By the time he got it out the skater would have completed 2 or 3 more elements he completely missed. It got very frustrating. 

Tara and Johnny have their faults but they are at least very concise and are able to describe exactly why a jump or other element works or doesn't work. 

[Growsonwalls]

It's incredibly hard to pronounce Mandarin names because the inflection is different but Terry Gannon isn't far off. It's pronounced like this:

[Vera]

This season:

R&J- Too many (from different composers though)

Exogenesis (Muse)- 18

Carmen- 15

El Tango de Roxanne- 13

Come What May- 5 (these were the two most popular from MR, others chose different music from the film for a total 27 skaters skating to the Soundtrack this season!)

POTO- 13

Les Miserables- 13

Hallelelujah- 11

Swan Lake- 10

Ghost (The Musical)- 9

Schindler's List- 7

The Nutcracker- 7

Clair De Lune- 7

Libertango- 6

Moonlight Sonata- 6

Nessun Dorma- 5

Group 2 of the SD is going to have 3 'Despacito', two of them back to back.

 

15 minutes ago, Jeddah said:

I didn’t say Scherazade just because of Davis and White!

It was always going to be that or Swan Lake for them, I think. They'd already done POTO, Giselle, NdDP & S&D. V/M had done Carmen the previous season. Though, I've always wanted to see what their 'La Strada' would have looked like.

 

17 minutes ago, blackwing said:

I guess Moulin Rouge and Hallelelujah are fairly recent epidemics?

1

Yup. This season I think.

[herbz]

Tara especially got a lot of stuff wrong about how the elements are scored and factored in the last two days though, which was pretty annoying.

Edited February 17, 2018 by herbz

[Vera]

5 minutes ago, herbz said:

I don't mind warhorse music if you're going to do something a bit out of the ordinary with your movement to it. Case in point: Virtue and Moir's Carmen. 

 

Yup. I always thought K&O had a really good Carmen as well. 

[stealinghome]

2 hours ago, Growsonwalls said:

I think if Nathan was 3rd/4th/5th in the short program he wouldn't have gone for six quads and the triple axel (an iffy jump for him). He probably would have skated more conservatively. He skated that Hail Mary free skate because the SP couldn't have gone worse and he had nothing to lose.

He basically said that in the post-skate interview—something to the effect that his attitude was “I’ve already fallen a bunch so why not at least try?”

[meep.meep]

Nathan's non Hail Mary long program is 5 quads.  More than anyone else.

Apparently Adam Rippon has been going around referring to Nathan and Vincent as his children - they've been calling him Dad.  I think they are all fine.  Adam did his job - he did well enough in the team event to win them a medal.

So happy that Fernandez won a medal.   A really beautiful skater.

[Snow Apple]

We do love a good comeback story. If Nathan had a good short and a good long and got a medal, well that's it. Good for him. Congratulations. Expected nothing less. 

But what he did is being talked about and I think it will be good for his career more then if he simply medaled. I hope he can handle the pressure because if it was bad before..........

Edited February 17, 2018 by Snow Apple

[Tanichka]

1 hour ago, blackwing said:

I guess Moulin Rouge and Hallelelujah are fairly recent epidemics?

They can lose both as far as I'm concerned.  The vocals in an area are really noisy.  I had to turn the music down on a couple just because it sounded like the neighborhood cats carrying on..

3 hours ago, caracas1914 said:

Didn’t think his program flowed as it could have , and that was surprising considering he wasn’t realistically  in medal contention.  

So I roll my eyes a little on how he and others have started the whole shtick on how he exited skating “under his terms”.  

As a Canadian, I hope Patrick Chan retires.  Just a bit tired of the choke & the falling all over the ice.  Hope that's not too harsh, because I HAVE seen some good performances, but not recently.

Edited February 17, 2018 by Tanichka
clarification

[mtlchick]

1 hour ago, herbz said:

Next year I bet Moulin Rouge will be switched out for Greatest Showman, I can practically see US Nationals already.

La La Land has a few contenders.  I couldn't get "City of Stars" out of my head for days.  But Adam Rippon would jump on the chance to perform to "This Is Me" from Showman. 

 

In other news, Sally Field wants Adam to meet her son.  Yes, really.  

Edited February 17, 2018 by mtlchick

[SophiaD]

I saw a charming interview of Vincent a few days ago on Olympic Ice and the commentator was asking him why he wasn't a medal favorite, and he basically rolled his eyes.  He also said that he and Nathan were the kids, and Adam was their father.  It was super-sweet.  

I think all of the US men should be very pleased - Adam and Vincent finished top ten (and Vincent was SIXTH which is great!) and Nathan battled his nerves and jumped 12 places in the standings.  That's wonderful.  It bodes well for the future of the US men and for Worlds this year, if everyone stays healthy.

That said, these Olympics really belonged to Team Japan.  Uno is my new non-American favorite skater.  

[Shades of Red]

Speaking for the "older" crew in here, remember how amazing Toller Cranston was?  How he was robbed due to the skaters having to do figures in those days?  I am thrilled that figures no longer factor into scoring as I think figure skating is the better for it.  I do however believe along with so many of you that men's programs have turned into a jumping contest so I don't really watch it anymore.  There has to be a balance that needs to be achieved between the artistic and the athletic.

Someone was mentioning that Adam Rippon might be looking for an announcing position, but I'm fairly certain he sings doesn't he?  I think I watched a gala performance where he comes out and sings before skating.  My understanding was he was seriously looking into a singing career.  Not to say he couldn't do both, but I think he has a backup plan in place when he stops competitive skating.

On a funny little note, every time I hear Sympathy for the Devil on the radio, I now have a skating visual to go with it.  I have this for a few songs that have been used over the years, but this one seems to be the strongest yet.  I hope I'm not the only one this happens to.

[basiltherat]

Seconding the love for Toller Cranston.  He is my all-time favorite!  School figures also killed the chances for Janet Lynn, who was skating at about the same time.  Problem is, there have always been artistry vs. athleticism battles in figure skating --- Elaine Zayak vs. Rosalynn Sumners, Tara vs. Michelle in the women's.    

[Jeddah]

I’m catching up on last night’s Olympic Ice, and I agree with Charlie White about quads moving the sport forward. I hope it continues. The top guys last night showed that quads aren’t ruining the sport. Shoma fell, there were a few popped jumps, but it’s not like the quads turned this into a splat-fest. There were so many beautiful programs last night, and it wasn’t just a jumping contest.

[Jaded]

Are the Olympic Ice episodes with Kristi Yamaguchi, Charlie White, and Ben Agosto only available online? I've been DVR'ing the episodes with Tanith and Scott that have been on before NBCSN's primetime coverage.

[leopardprint]

2 hours ago, Vera said:

This season:

R&J- Too many (from different composers though)

Exogenesis (Muse)- 18

Carmen- 15

El Tango de Roxanne- 13

Come What May- 5 (these were the two most popular from MR, others chose different music from the film for a total 27 skaters skating to the Soundtrack this season!)

POTO- 13

Les Miserables- 13

Hallelelujah- 11

Swan Lake- 10

Ghost (The Musical)- 9

Schindler's List- 7

The Nutcracker- 7

Clair De Lune- 7

Libertango- 6

Moonlight Sonata- 6

Nessun Dorma- 5

Group 2 of the SD is going to have 3 'Despacito', two of them back to back.

 

It was always going to be that or Swan Lake for them, I think. They'd already done POTO, Giselle, NdDP & S&D. V/M had done Carmen the previous season. Though, I've always wanted to see what their 'La Strada' would have looked like.

 

Yup. This season I think.

Is there a limited amount of elite choreographers that the skaters all go to? Could that explain why there is so much repetition with the music? 

12 minutes ago, Jaded said:

Are the Olympic Ice episodes with Kristi Yamaguchi, Charlie White, and Ben Agosto only available online? I've been DVR'ing the episodes with Tanith and Scott that have been on before NBCSN's primetime coverage.

They might be located in some random spot on their On Demand because they are not under figure skating on the app. 

The Olympic Ice Post Shows can be found on the Apple TV/FireTV NBCSN app under Replays/More. 

On the iOS apps, if you go to replay then the filter then move the slider to “digital”, the post show appears but do not filter for figure skating. 

NBCSN needs to hire new UI designers.

Edited February 17, 2018 by leopardprint

[SeanC]

1 minute ago, leopardprint said:

Is there a limited amount of elite choreographers that the skaters all go to? Could that explain why there is so much repetition with the music? 

If it was an issue of limited choreographers you would expect the reverse, as they would presumably try to come up with distinctive songs for everybody.  People just independently arrive at certain prominent pieces of music.

[halopub]

7 hours ago, specialj67 said:

And watching NBC’s morning show just now, they showed Nathan Chen’s parents off to the side while Nathan’s being interviewed—what sorcery is happening there?! They do not look like people old enough to have an 18 year old kid! 

Thanks for the tip. It was nice to see Nathan a bit more animated and talking a little bit about his decision to attempt the six. Those were his older siblings, though. I'm guessing the person behind them, whose face and fist pumping was a bit obscured, was his mom.

I'm okay with his coach not being emotive - but maybe going forward Nathan can speak with a professional about managing pressure and also internalize the mantras of trusted folks for "game time." I love how Chloe Kim's dad, for example, tells her to kill it in competition by saying to be a dragon on the half pipe.

Edited to add: Jaded, I haven't been staying up to watch the late night post shows live - but maybe you could set your DVR to begin recording after the late night news? As leopardprint, pointed out, the app has terrible navigation but I did find the shows online by going to the show page on NBColympics.com. Also, I just checked and the episodes are not available on my cable's free-on-demand service - only the pre-show is.  

Edited February 17, 2018 by halopub
added info

[annzeepark914]

I've got one more tune to add to the list:  Rach II.  I'm sick of hearing it (altho' I loved it when Michelle K and M/D skated to it--those were two unforgettable LPs IMO).  Ok...one more: Daisuke's Rach II LP was gorgeous too.  But now when I hear it, it just seems to pound on and on for-evahhh.

[SeanC]

3 hours ago, herbz said:

Next year I bet Moulin Rouge will be switched out for Greatest Showman, I can practically see US Nationals already.

"Rewrite the Stars" is a definite pairs/ice dance song.

[herbz]

24 minutes ago, SeanC said:

"Rewrite the Stars" is a definite pairs/ice dance song.

Chock and Bates are all over it. 

[Jeddah]

1 hour ago, annzeepark914 said:

I've got one more tune to add to the list:  Rach II.  I'm sick of hearing it (altho' I loved it when Michelle K and M/D skated to it--those were two unforgettable LPs IMO).  Ok...one more: Daisuke's Rach II LP was gorgeous too.  But now when I hear it, it just seems to pound on and on for-evahhh.

I didn’t even think of any of those programs. I think of Mao Asada’s gorgeous skate from last Olympics when I hear it!

[methadonna]

3 hours ago, blackwing said:

CBC just had an article on the most overused music.  In addition to Carmen, they listed Sean Lake, Romeo and Juliet, Moonlight Sonata, Scheherazade, Phantom of the Opera, and Tosca by Puccini.  Surprised no mention of Nessun Dorma.   

I guess Moulin Rouge and Hallelelujah are fairly recent epidemics?

So, that’s why they started letting lyrics in? With that much Puccini overuse, listing the Phantom overuse was already at risk of becoming both redundant and indistinguishable? ;-) *

 

*Yeah, yeah, I know, I wrong Puccini operas (although extra credit to anyone who ever used Brigadoon to complete it. But negative points because...fucking Brigadoon).  

 

Well, maybe after the big Live For TV Theaterical Performance (or whatever they’re calling it this year) of Jesus Christ Superstar on Easter, JCS will be the new quad’s Moulin Rouge, while all the Carmen and Turandot types all simultaneously try to switch it up and move on to Mendelssohn and Strauss and, like, same thing. 

[TVbitch]

I only have NBC coverage. Did they  even show Zhou's free skate? Also, hate that they no longer show the podium ceremony. WTF?! Give the skaters their due. 

[MaKaM]

3 hours ago, Tanichka said:

As a Canadian, I hope Patrick Chan retires.  Just a bit tired of the choke & the falling all over the ice.  Hope that's not too harsh, because I HAVE seen some good performances, but not recently.

And yet, he is the best Canada has at the moment. Keegan is a good import (and really Alaskans are the pompom on America's Hat (aka Canada ;-) so not much of an import) but it is a steep dropoff there. It is like the US and the Knerims. God, who isn't sick of them missing those side-by-side jumps? But even if the retired immediately, it isn't like there were a dozen skaters being kept back by them. They are it. Same with Chan. Canada will fall like a rock in the men's rankings (if they had them) when he retires because even with the falling, he generally gets it done.

[SeanC]

4 hours ago, Tanichka said:

As a Canadian, I hope Patrick Chan retires.  Just a bit tired of the choke & the falling all over the ice.  Hope that's not too harsh, because I HAVE seen some good performances, but not recently.

Chan has long made it known that this is his last year.  He only came back for the 2018 Olympics, and in particular the team competition.

[roamyn]

2 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

I've got one more tune to add to the list:  Rach II.  I'm sick of hearing it (altho' I loved it when Michelle K and M/D skated to it--those were two unforgettable LPs IMO).  Ok...one more: Daisuke's Rach II LP was gorgeous too.  But now when I hear it, it just seems to pound on and on for-evahhh.

And I have one more:  Bolero can never be used again.  There is only one Bolero in skating...Tolliver & Dean.

[SeanC]

26 minutes ago, MaKaM said:

And yet, he is the best Canada has at the moment. Keegan is a good import (and really Alaskans are the pompom on America's Hat (aka Canada ;-) so not much of an import) but it is a steep dropoff there. It is like the US and the Knerims. God, who isn't sick of them missing those side-by-side jumps? But even if the retired immediately, it isn't like there were a dozen skaters being kept back by them. They are it. Same with Chan. Canada will fall like a rock in the men's rankings (if they had them) when he retires because even with the falling, he generally gets it done.

Pretty much.

Given the way individual figure skating works these days, if there's going to be a major Canadian men's contender in Beijing, it's some current junior leaguer who'll only start dazzling us with his brilliance by 2020 or so.

[Indy]

1 hour ago, TVbitch said:

I only have NBC coverage. Did they  even show Zhou's free skate? Also, hate that they no longer show the podium ceremony. WTF?! Give the skaters their due. 

They didn’t on the regular prime time coverage. I was surprised they didn’t, and disappointed - I would have liked to see it (without having to go online or on demand at least) 

[herbz]

37 minutes ago, SeanC said:

Pretty much.

Given the way individual figure skating works these days, if there's going to be a major Canadian men's contender in Beijing, it's some current junior leaguer who'll only start dazzling us with his brilliance by 2020 or so.

They have 13 year old Stephen Gogolev, who clearly has tremendous potential, but I worry for him. He's already doing quads and I fear burnout.

[redpencil]

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I think if Nathan was 3rd/4th/5th in the short program he wouldn't have gone for six quads and the triple axel (an iffy jump for him). He probably would have skated more conservatively. He skated that Hail Mary free skate because the SP couldn't have gone worse and he had nothing to lose.

Pretty sure you are required to do a triple axel, but otherwise I agree. No way to know how he would have done if he had been in contention after the SP (certainly would only have gone for 5 quads), but definitely would have been under way more pressure. I'm so happy that he was able to have that moment, though (and won the FS by A LOT!). I was breathing a sigh of relief when he landed the first jumping pass--I'm sure he was feeling the same way. I really hope he can figure out how to handle the pressure a bit better and medals at Worlds. I wonder how many will sit it out?

I think he definitely sacrificed a bit of his performance, but I don't mind, since he just needed a good skate for his own well-being. I also think some of the sentiment that he does nothing at all in between jumps is way overstated. I saw someone somewhere else (not here) say that Nathan should get 0 PCS (and I don't think they were using that much hyperbole). That's ridiculous. Same with Vincent (so happy for him, too!), though I think Nathan is clearly better than him in that respect. But they're also still sooo young. They both improved a lot even since last year, and I don't have any reason to think they can't still improve in that respect. I also feel like Nathan could use a slightly different type of program for the FS. The SP (when done well, sigh) is the right kind of feel for him--cool and modern.

Great job by the American men to all be top 10! Amazing! I'm hoping for a similarly good showing for the women. I have no expectations that any of them will medal, but a collectively good finish would be nice to see.

Quote

I only have NBC coverage. Did they  even show Zhou's free skate? Also, hate that they no longer show the podium ceremony. WTF?! Give the skaters their due. 

To be fair, at that point all they get is a stuffed animal. All the medal ceremonies happen nightly at a central location (the Olympic Channel has been showing them live in the middle of the night).

Edited February 18, 2018 by redpencil