AuntieDiane6 February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 Quote But aren't the individual events going to be at the same time? Exactly. Besides, don't all those puff pieces show the skaters getting up at 4 am and having their moms drive them to the rink at 5 am, skating for 4 hours, then going to high school only to return home and milk the cows and plow the fields? If you want it, then just DO IT and stop being an ENTITLED SNOWFLAKE. Quote So ALL skating will be live US primetime? Yes. The US is basically bankrolling the Olympics with NBC's $2 BILLION payment to broadcast several Olympics. They had a lot of criticism with Sochi, acting like it was "live" when it wasn't, so they asked for the change. NBC has a huge investment and I think they'll be in the hole with this Olympics. Host Mike Tirico is a snooze-fest and when the first skaters last night kept falling as they skated to elevator music, I think NBC lost a lot of viewers. On a more positive note, Terry, Johnny and Tara did a good job. I tweeted them several times with my one-woman campaign to keep them from their mindless chatter especially Terry's FACTOID that he always wants to insert the SECOND the music slows. "Her mother is an ironworker in Gdansk and her father is a tap dancer!" 12 Link to comment
absnow54 February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 I just assume that dance and ladies were the stronger fields for US. I haven't really followed skating for a few years though. Just surprised they finished ahead of Russia even with all the ice issues. The US ladies program has really gone down hill in the last decade. Nathan Chen was supposed to pad the US team scores (like how White/Davis carried the team in Sochi). US should place 3rd in ice dancing, and has a shot at third for ladies if Bradie stays consistent and Mirai lands the triple axel. 5 Link to comment
Minneapple February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 1 hour ago, halopub said: This reminds me of how elite swimmers were compelled to swim finals in the morning and prelims at night in Beijing. Many had trouble adjusting but Michael Phelps shrugged it off. That's because Dick Ebersol consulted with Phelps before altering the schedule. He got Phelps on board, got the IOC on board and then the swimming and gymnastics federations approved the move. For Beijing NBC even convinced the IOC to move the Games from September (when China had wanted them) to August because football. Anyway, bad start for the US. I enjoyed Johnny and Tara's sparkly outfits. But Tara...please dial back the makeup. Link to comment
Jeddah February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 I thought the crowd was really enthusiastic for everyone! The Sochi crowds were so subdued, so I liked hearing people cheer. The “Awwww” when the Knierims kissed cracked me up. 9 Link to comment
displayname February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 51 minutes ago, Jeddah said: subdued "subdued" 3 Link to comment
herbz February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 55 minutes ago, Jeddah said: I thought the crowd was really enthusiastic for everyone! The Sochi crowds were so subdued, so I liked hearing people cheer. The “Awwww” when the Knierims kissed cracked me up. The crowd were amazing. I found it really sweet how awestruck they were by the death spiral, of all things in a Pairs program, every single time. 5 Link to comment
Vera February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 4 hours ago, ChicksDigScars said: I watched the live stream of the Parade of Nations: Hide contents and it's obvious that many athletes have skipped it due to the extreme cold temps. There's no way that there were 500 athletes marching out there for Team USA. But shout out to the three from Bermuda....wearing BERMUDA SHORTS. (I'm sorry, is this a spoiler?) I get the symbolism, but they called for a low of minus 23 in Korea today! Skating topic: the only figure skaters I saw marching were Tessa and Scott, since they're Team Canada's flag bearers. My guess is that the rest skipped it, due to the team event, and that most of the people marching today were cross country skiiers, luge and bobsledders. They're used to the extreme temps. 4 Spoiler Beychenko was the flag bearer for Israel. Everyone from Team Canada marched and most of Team USA based on social media posts. All Korean skaters did as well, I think as did Hurtado/Khaliavin Link to comment
HartofDixie February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 https://www.buzzfeed.com/sashacohen/olympian-sasha-cohen-on-what-athletes-are-thinking-right-now Link to comment
iMonrey February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 Quote The Russian TEAM was banned. Therefore, any events which require the joining of individual athletes to form a team should be prohibited. The individuals can compete in the individual events, but if they are all supposed to be independent, I think it's odd that they can join together and compete as a team. So much word to this. The fact that they are skating as an "Olympic Athletes from Russia" team as opposed to "Team Russia" is a distinction without a difference. I would assume their designation as OAR is meant to imply they are not affiliated with any country and therefore should not be able to form a team. If they win it's going to count as a win for Team Russia no matter what you want to call them. Oy, Nathan Chen. I can't say I'm altogether surprised, though - does anyone else worry he might have peaked about a year ago? He hasn't had two clean programs all season long. Usually he gets such a high score for the short program it holds him up in the standings even if he makes mistakes in the long. He cannot afford a short like that in the individual competition. Quote But they've known for at least a year that they were going to be skating that early (so we North Americans can watch skating LIVE in prime time). You would think that the coaches would start doing practices and run-throughs at the crack of dawn to get the skaters used to it. Have they actually known for a whole year? All the event schedules were decided that far back? 2 Link to comment
Hanahope February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 4 hours ago, absnow54 said: The US ladies program has really gone down hill in the last decade. I read an article about how the ladies have really fallen behind other countries because US judges put more emphasis on perfection of lower skilled elements, and significantly marked down attempts at higher-skilled elements. So while other countries' skaters keep working on their triples, americans focus on perfectly executed doubles. Part of me always wondered if this was part of the Tonya back-lash, that skaters/judges wanted to get far away from athletic jumping because of bad connotations. Link to comment
Cherrio February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 18 minutes ago, iMonrey said: Oy, Nathan Chen. I can't say I'm altogether surprised, though - does anyone else worry he might have peaked about a year ago? At Nationals he seemed so checked out of it. I know no one can live without their phone, but he just wins and he sits there like he is on Vicodin diddling his phone. He was not there at all in the moment, no show of excitement, no nothing. So, yes he could of peaked, but I doubt he is aware of much except his phone. It also bothered me when he was introduced to Dick Button, again nothing. I thought he was disrespectful, maybe not intentionally, but still. 2 Link to comment
anniebird February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 12 minutes ago, Cherrio said: At Nationals he seemed so checked out of it. I know no one can live without their phone, but he just wins and he sits there like he is on Vicodin diddling his phone. He was not there at all in the moment, no show of excitement, no nothing. So, yes he could of peaked, but I doubt he is aware of much except his phone. It also bothered me when he was introduced to Dick Button, again nothing. I thought he was disrespectful, maybe not intentionally, but still. He always has a very flat affect -- I guess that's just the way he is. Link to comment
basiltherat February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 This Russians-without-a-nation thing is pure crap. Whether its called USSR, Russian, Unified or OAR, when the athletes go home, all their medals are going to Putin anyway! 12 Link to comment
displayname February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 IDK why, but when Yuna was lighting the cauldron, there was a catch in my throat. Just a phenomenal athlete, and an excellent idol. 8 Link to comment
blackwing February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 I'm really enjoying the commentary of Tara and Johnny and the other guy. I seem to remember Tara and Johnny being so over the top before, but now they are fairly subdued and knowledgeable and informative. I know fairly little about figure skating, all the jumps look the same to me, so I appreciate it when they point out the elements in the top skaters that sets them apart. As for the other guy, he's still miles above the dreaded John Tesh. Regarding OAR, I'm very curious as to how these athletes will behave if they win gold. Will they be respectful and attentive or will they look like they don't care? What happens if they pull out a Russian flag secreted in their pockets? And a further note on the OAR team... somewhere Ashley Wagner is going "why didn't I think of that"? It's like running in the general election as an independent after getting defeated in the Democratic or Republican primary. She believes herself to be a medal contender, it's just that she's #4 in her country and they only get 3 spots So why couldn't she decide to be an Independent Olympic Athlete? Her scores and performance in the past make her qualified. Why couldn't she get together with that guy from Spain and a pairs and dance team and form an Independent team to compete for a team medal? I know the answer, it's that this is not how things are done. So I still am puzzled as to how and why this OAR came to be. It's because the IOC wanted the headlines of "BANNING RUSSIA" but then not really, because all these Russians can still compete together and sit together in their own box. Link to comment
Daisy February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 is Johnny + Tara online? because #sad if true Link to comment
Jillibean February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 7 hours ago, Dots And Stripes said: I caught a few minutes of Olympic Ice. Charlie White was disappointing. He was repetitive and it felt like he was trying to put on a persona that didn’t fit. I thought he was fine, consistent with his previous commentating for Ice Network. He definitely needs to learn to vary his phrases and words a bit. He was way better than Krista Voda, who sounded like she was completely bewildered by everything going on. I get that this isn't her area, but study up! Don't play the "everyone will think it's cute and funny that I own that I basically have no idea what I'm talking about" card. It's not really cute or funny. I appreciated Charlie pointing out how few fans there were in the stands for the event and how that can affect performance, as it's something most of the posters here noticed and commented on but that I didn't hear brought up elsewhere in the commentary. I wish they had talked more about the actual points and how Nathan's performance could impact them. That sort of thing interests me. Quote The USA team "cheering" on the other skaters looked so morose. I remember in Sochi they were so animated and enthusiastic (I miss Jason Brown) about cheering for each other - you really felt like they were supportive of each other. Are they all jet lagged or something? I'm going to speculate that they were as thrown by Nathan's outing as anyone else. From what Johnny and Tara were saying, it seems like a lot of these skaters treat the team competition as a run-through for the individual events. Yeah, it's great if they medal but I don't get the vibe it'll make or break their Olympics. In that sense, I can understand why they wouldn't want to adjust their training routines for a 10 a.m. start. I was as well. The Russian pair was in an entirely different league than the Americans, and I thought all the men sucked equally. I would've put the OAR ahead of the US. I guess the difference is that Nathan did actually land a quad before he botched his next two jumping passes, while the Russian skater didn't land any of his jumps. The Russian pair were clearly far and away the best, but discrepancies like that is probably why the team competition is scored so that no one can get a huge lead. Not much of an event if there is no numerical way for anyone else to win after day one. I do think they should change the rules so the free skate is scored differently, as it's very difficult to have movement in the rankings when there's so little variety in the points awarded. Instead of the floor being 6, it could be 2, for instance, with the winner getting 10, the second place finisher getting 8, etc. The Knierims really saved the day last night. I give them a ton of credit--after Nathan's performance, the pressure on them ramped up considerably. They skated a beautiful, clean (except for the trip) performance and did the job they needed to do for the team. I agree that for them, the team is likely their main event. But they both seem genuinely so excited to just be at the Olympics after everything they have been through. I was happy for them to have such a great skate on Olympic ice (such as it is), and happy for the team that their night turned around in a fairly unexpected way. 9 Link to comment
iMonrey February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 Quote I seem to remember Tara and Johnny being so over the top before, but now they are fairly subdued and knowledgeable and informative. I know fairly little about figure skating, all the jumps look the same to me, so I appreciate it when they point out the elements in the top skaters that sets them apart. There's still something I don't quite understand about the scoring. According to their commentary, there is a technical panel and a judging panel. The technical panel determines what the element is and the judging panel scores how well it is performed. Um, what? I mean, aside from determining whether a jump is technically a single, double, triple or quad, why do they need a technical panel to determine the elements? Don't they know in advance what elements the skater has planned? Is there some confusion over whether an element is a spin or a step sequence? Surely the judges are qualified enough to recognize what elements are. I hope so anyway. Link to comment
absnow54 February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 (edited) According to their commentary, there is a technical panel and a judging panel. The technical panel determines what the element is and the judging panel scores how well it is performed. Um, what? I mean, aside from determining whether a jump is technically a single, double, triple or quad, why do they need a technical panel to determine the elements? Don't they know in advance what elements the skater has planned? Is there some confusion over whether an element is a spin or a step sequence? Surely the judges are qualified enough to recognize what elements are. I believe the Technical Panel gets a list of elements the skater is going to perform. They then evaluate whether the component was completed correctly, for example, was it under rotated, did the skater use the right edge, was the jump popped... and decide how many technical points the skater deserves for that element. While the performing component judges are scoring artistry. Edited February 9, 2018 by absnow54 Link to comment
displayname February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 (edited) The Technical Panel determines 1) what element was executed; 2) If it was executed correctly. So, a technical panel would determine if a skater did a Lutz or a Flip. They would also determine if they did a Lutz or a Flutz. Moreover, they would also keep track of spin and step-sequence levels. They would also hand under-rotations and downgrade calls on jumps. The base value of these elements is codified in the CoP. The judges assign PCS and, based on what the technical panel tells them, determine the GOE of the elements. Edited February 9, 2018 by fan94 1 Link to comment
iMonrey February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 But if there is a "panel" how do they reach consensus on an element if they happen to disagree? Majority rules? I've always heard them say there's a technical caller in previous competitions (or something like that) - as in, one person who makes the call on the elements. The Olympics have a whole panel? Link to comment
displayname February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISU_Judging_System#Technical_panel Link to comment
Tippi February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 I am really nervous for Nathan. One problem is that he simply does not have the triple axel. I am thinking in all the competitions I have seen him in this season, I only recall one clean triple axel, and that was his first competition of the season. Hanyu, Uno, Jin all have great triple axels. If they all hit, and some surprises like Bychenko hit, Nathan could be out of the final flight. What is the problem with this jump and why hasn't it improved? It is his Nemesis, which is ironic considering his short program music. I'm also wondering about Raf's prepping of Nathan. Nathan was gangbusters at 2017 Nationals, then struggled mightily at Worlds. Supposedly his skates gave out? What is Raf's role in getting his athletes ready? I am afraid of a Worlds redux here. The Knerim's did great. The Russian pair was faboo. Johnny and Tara are okay so far. Too many commercials! 3 Link to comment
Libby96 February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 Does anyone know when Olympic Ice is airing? Is it on one of NBC's networks, or is it only an online thing? Will it be daily during the Olympics? Link to comment
TVbitch February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 Is Hanyu there? Is he not doing the team event or did I miss it somehow? (I love him) Poor Nathan. I mean the press, the commercials, the Super Bowl ads, all that build up about him being the STAR for USA in these Olympics. That's heavy. I hope he pulls it together. It pained me to see so many of them falling all over the ice. I totally TOTALLY adore Charlie White, but having just caught up with Four Continents, um, he is just not a natural for doing commentary. 2 Link to comment
absnow54 February 9, 2018 Share February 9, 2018 8 minutes ago, Libby96 said: Does anyone know when Olympic Ice is airing? Is it on one of NBC's networks, or is it only an online thing? Will it be daily during the Olympics? I thought I read somewhere that it would air on NBCsn but I don't see it on the schedule. 1 Link to comment
displayname February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 1 hour ago, Tippi said: What is the problem with this jump and why hasn't it improved? Raf changed his technique, and he doesn't trust it enough. I think. 1 Link to comment
crimsongrl February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 1 hour ago, Libby96 said: Does anyone know when Olympic Ice is airing? Is it on one of NBC's networks, or is it only an online thing? Will it be daily during the Olympics? I've got it airing on NBC Sports Network starting Saturday between 5-8 pm ET every night. I have a feeling they'll spread it out over the night so I'll be DVR'ing. 1 Link to comment
MaKaM February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 4 minutes ago, crimsongrl said: I've got it airing on NBC Sports Network starting Saturday between 5-8 pm ET every night. I have a feeling they'll spread it out over the night so I'll be DVR'ing. The Directv Olympic app is showing it from 7-8 on NBCSN. 1 Link to comment
crimsongrl February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 5 minutes ago, MaKaM said: The Directv Olympic app is showing it from 7-8 on NBCSN. I hope it really comes on at 7, but I have to record the full 3 hour block of hockey or whatever sport is on before OI. Link to comment
specialj67 February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 22 minutes ago, fan94 said: Raf changed his technique, and he doesn't trust it enough. I think. Perhaps it was Johnny or Tara talking about it during nationals—my memory is fuzzy and I’m not a skater, so I apologize if I get anything wrong. I think Nathan changed to a skid take-off, which is different from how he was doing it previously (?), and he’s still getting used to it. One of them, Johnny or Tara, said that it takes time to learn to trust the skid (?), but once the skater does, it’s a more reliable way of doing the jump. Nathan’s iffy-ness with that jump reminds me of Stephane Lambiel. Link to comment
Shaynaa February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 Nathan was marching with Team USA. I think. I was in the next room and heard NBC talking about him. Link to comment
ChicksDigScars February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 Yeah, I was mistaken. The live feed that I saw this morning wasn't as up close and personal. The Knerims were marching too. She was on his shoulders. So cute. Link to comment
Dots And Stripes February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 The NBC Sports ap has a live stream of the practice rink. Currently it's just a Zamboni resurfacing the ice. Has anyone one else seen this? Link to comment
redpencil February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 (edited) Quote At Nationals he seemed so checked out of it. I know no one can live without their phone, but he just wins and he sits there like he is on Vicodin diddling his phone. He was not there at all in the moment, no show of excitement, no nothing. So, yes he could of peaked, but I doubt he is aware of much except his phone. It also bothered me when he was introduced to Dick Button, again nothing. I thought he was disrespectful, maybe not intentionally, but still. I think Nationals was a little weird in that he was basically guaranteed an Olympics spot no matter what he did, while everyone else knew it mattered and actually had something at stake (though I think he still wanted to win). He had also been sick. But still, I do not get this impression of him at all. Not even a little (and I didn't see anything remotely disrespectful when he met Dick Button). I think he's just not as outwardly expressive as some people, and is generally just a calm person (I sympathize, as I am the same way and have been criticized for things in the past that were absolutely not true). I also haven't noticed him on the phone. So, shrug. Edited February 10, 2018 by redpencil 11 Link to comment
annzeepark914 February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 I have Olympic Ice on NBCSN but it's on at different times depending on the night. Some nights it's on at 7 PM; other nights it's on at 5 PM. I love OI and will be keeping a beady eye on the diff schedules I've found!! 1 Link to comment
Dots And Stripes February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 Tessa and Scott are at the practice rink now. The live stream is available on the NBC Sports ap. Link to comment
Souris February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 Ugh, my Spectrum DVR doesn't list Olympic Ice as a separate program from general Olympics programming so I can't schedule it to record. ? 1 Link to comment
Jaded February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 Figure Skating Training (Practice Rink) Feb. 9 http://stream.nbcolympics.com/figure-skating-training-men-dance-feb-9 Olympic Ice Post-Show: Team event part 1 http://stream.nbcolympics.com/figure-skating-olympic-ice-team-event-pairs-mens 2 Link to comment
HartofDixie February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 3 hours ago, Shaynaa said: Nathan was marching with Team USA. I think. I was in the next room and heard NBC talking about him. The Shib Sibs were the only US skaters to skip the opening ceremonies. Link to comment
DawnDavenport February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 2 hours ago, Dots And Stripes said: Tessa and Scott are at the practice rink now. The live stream is available on the NBC Sports ap. Great! How many minutes of face pawing and longing looks were viewers subjected to? Did they practice the "eat me out" lift or have they changed it? 9 Link to comment
displayname February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 53 minutes ago, DawnDavenport said: Great! How many minutes of face pawing and longing looks were viewers subjected to? Did they practice the "eat me out" lift or have they changed it? Better that than the "contemporary" (goodness I've come to hate that style on SYTYCD) stylings of P/C. 3 Link to comment
Vera February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 (edited) Skaters for the Team Event SD Bobrova/Soloviev will be skating last. This is where everyone will be able to find the panel of judges, starting orders, results and protocols for the Team Event. 3 hours ago, DawnDavenport said: have they changed it? ETA: Team Event Ladies SP start order is also up Bradie is skating third. Osmond and Medvedeva last. Edited February 10, 2018 by Vera 1 Link to comment
Cherrio February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 10 hours ago, redpencil said: I also haven't noticed him on the phone. So, shrug. He was shown sitting in the skaters lounge texting or doing whatever on his phone as it was announced he won. He was phone-a-tose. But as always we all have different thoughts and opinions and I found him very odd. Link to comment
mehtotheworld February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 Seriously, that V/M lift modification is so much better. I don’t really care about family friendly (bring on the heat!), but the old version always looked awkward as hell. Is it that unusual to see skaters texting while in the skaters’ lounge at nationals? I feel like I’ve seen a bunch of them do that. 2 Link to comment
Harry24 February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 23 hours ago, absnow54 said: US should place 3rd in ice dancing, and has a shot at third for ladies if Bradie stays consistent and Mirai lands the triple axel. With Papadakis/Cizeron not doing the team event, I think the US is favored to get 2nd place in dance. 16 hours ago, TVbitch said: I totally TOTALLY adore Charlie White, but having just caught up with Four Continents, um, he is just not a natural for doing commentary. I really like CW too, but I think Ben Agosto is much better, livelier, more articulate. I don't know if he's doing any of the O's broadcasts or not. 5 Link to comment
annzeepark914 February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 Something tells me Olympic Ice is not going to be anything like the original OI back in '06 Torino (which was always laid back and hilarious). 6 Link to comment
Cherrio February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 50 minutes ago, mehtotheworld said: Is it that unusual to see skaters texting while in the skaters’ lounge at nationals? I feel like I’ve seen a bunch of them do that. No, its not unusual at times, but at other times as in what I described I happen to think it is. You have a huge crowd cheering for you and your win and there is no reaction, no acknowledgement. No more to say on this. Link to comment
herbz February 10, 2018 Share February 10, 2018 (edited) Tanith and Ben are the best US dance commentators. I hope they're getting some coverage. V/M are not going down without a fight. They've obviously focused a lot on transitions in the last few weeks and are looking sharp as a tack in the practice I can't seem to upload. https://waltzgoes.tumblr.com/post/170710985495/fd-practice-210-here-you-go-saucylittlesmile Can't seem to post the original link, but it works from here. Edited February 10, 2018 by herbz Link to comment
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