2015 US Nationals Senior Ladies FS Jan 24

[LiamForeman]

1. Ashley- so glad she had this moment. I love her self-assuredness. She's respectful when talking about her competitors, so what's the problem? All she said was that she works hard, believes in her ability, and is a force to be reckoned with. Only in stuffy FS will fans take that as being unlikeable. *eyeroll*

2. Gracie- This program did nothing for me. Blah. Her flip used to be money in the bank, it looks like she's just curling it now and not getting UP.

3. Chen- Very impressive. I've been hearing about her for years, it's nice to see the hype from four years ago has panned out. Her basics are wonderful, I have a feeling that will stand her in good stead when she grows some more.

4. Polina- This program by Rudy was one of my favorites this season. But the packaging was all wrong. Then again, it is kind of refreshing to see a 16 y/o develop at her own pace. She's got the ganglies and braces, so even with a better dress and hair she'd still not look ready for the top of the podium. I hope she doesn't get much taller. Her standing next to Chen is hilarious.

 

[satine]

Mao, Yuna, Michelle

I was just going to list these same three examples!

 

[Freddie]

I am so tired of having the USFSA shove the blonde ice princess down our throats. I will take a little bit of Tonya happily! It is this ice princess mold that is stifling both Gracie and Polina. Be yourself, Ashley! It is so refreshing!!!!

 

[Barb]

I was just going to list these same three examples!

They have enough ego, especially Michelle But they know how behave in front of cameras.

 

[Mathman]

Funny, but it is precisely because she is so deliciously uncensored that I love her. And I'm sure I'm not the only one. I find her refreshingly REAL, after so many skaters who seem as equally well-drilled in PR as they are in skating skills

For female athletes, being deliciously uncensored and refreshingly real is the new PC. :yes:

 

[LiamForeman]

I was just going to list these same three examples!

However, these three were basically child stars and everything came relatively easy. It is a totally different mindset to be like Ashley and face that maybe you won't ever reach your goals, that your time passed before it even happened. I admire Ashley so much because it looked like she was going to be another Kwiatkowski, with her blah programs and technical issues. Instead, she moves across the country and trains in a new environment. If Ashley has a lot of self-assuredness, it's because it's coming from an adult who willed herself into realizing her goals and is still improving. I didn't see any frostiness b/w Her and Gracie. I like attitude. It gets boring listening to the same PR crap just so you will be 'liked' by fans. You can tell how well Kerrigan got away with PR princess training. I think Kerrigan in the end would have been much better liked had she been herself, because when she was portrayed as Disney royalty who only said sweet things, once she started being herself it was such a disconnect that people felt duped. They liked the skater Nancy Kerrigan until they realized they were just liking a PR concoction. I'm sure Ashley would rather have fans that like her for being Ashley and not some fakey fake Disney princess.

 

[Meoima]

Just watched now. 148 for FS :shocked:
I can see 200 for FS at mens

An the inflation award goes to...

 

[Poodlepal]

Ashley sounds like she's been reading too many self-help, "you can do it" type of books. "Taylor Swift's BFF" sounds like she's not suffering in the self-esteem department, either.

Truthfully, you can't win. How many books have there been by female athletes who seem to have it all, yet they're really dying inside because they literally don't win every race/competition/game? How many get eating disorders/cutting disorders/other problems in their quest to have a perfect body and perfect athletic career? Ashley's supposed narcissism may be annoying to listen to, but it may be healthier for her in the long run.

 

[satine]

However, these three were basically child stars and everything came relatively easy. It is a totally different mindset to be like Ashley and face that maybe you won't ever reach your goals, that your time passed before it even happened. I admire Ashley so much because it looked like she was going to be another Kwiatkowski, with her blah programs and technical issues. Instead, she moves across the country and trains in a new environment. If Ashley has a lot of self-assuredness, it's because it's coming from an adult who willed herself into realizing her goals and is still improving. I didn't see any frostiness b/w Her and Gracie. I like attitude. It gets boring listening to the same PR crap just so you will be 'liked' by fans. You can tell how well Kerrigan got away with PR princess training. I think Kerrigan in the end would have been much better liked had she been herself, because when she was portrayed as Disney royalty who only said sweet things, once she started being herself it was such a disconnect that people felt duped. They liked the skater Nancy Kerrigan until they realized they were just liking a PR concoction. I'm sure Ashley would rather have fans that like her for being Ashley and not some fakey fake Disney princess.

For the record, I like Ashley very much & I appreciate how she carries herself:yes:

 

[ranjake]

Ithink Ashley is grateful when she does well. I don't think anyone really thought she had this in her, and I don't think it's wrong for her to think if she performs this way, she can be competitive. She recently said she wasn't giving people a reason to believe that she could be competitive; and so she did what she could to change that. I think Gracie is more naturally gifted, and she did well skating after Ashley's ovation, but I still see nerves creep in. Gracie's LP is unexciting to me anyway, not really her best showcase, but I know that's just my take.

 

[drivingmissdaisy]

Nagasu - You know, I get the feeling I'm more emotionally detached watching skating then the average skatefan. It takes a LOT to make me feel much of anything. Yet, for the first time I really felt for Nagasu here. Even more so than last year, because she'd already been to the Olympics after all - I saw a LOT of skaters skate very close to the walls here in Greensboro but she's the only one that actually caught the end and fell. An awkward fall, too...busted her knee, looked to be in serious pain and it took her out of the performance. She was doing so well up to that point and then a freak accident like that happens. Can't catch a break, just bad luck again for yet ANOTHER year. But I know she'll be the stronger for it in the end - she fought through the rest of the skate and she needn't feel sorry for herself. There's always next year.

I'm glad she was able to finish, but I don't agree she was "doing so well" up to that point. She tried five jumps before she fell and < two of them, including a double toe.

 

[thoakun]

I don't get the criticism of Ashley's swagger. Unlike the trio Mao-Yuna-Carol who are naturally gifted, Ashley's best asset is her self-assurance. Sometimes it can verge on swagger, depending on the context and your own interpretation, but without it she wouldn't have a performance of her life like yesterday or she wouldn't have snatched the bronze at GPF when the Russian stars stumbled. I don't remember her being disrespectful to any competitor, although she's obviously the type of skater who go to the rink to be the best skater she can be, not to make friends. I'm not an Ashley fan but I think it must be great to be her fan, since she's not the one who crackles under pressure or rest on the laurels and she doesn't mind being a PR princess to appease everyone.

 

[kimganos]

For female athletes, being deliciously uncensored and refreshingly real is the new PC. :yes:

:dance:

 

[KKonas]

I have interviewed Ashley numerous times and have seen her confidence grow the past several years after having lost opportunities to make the World Team earlier in her senior career. Since she moved to So. Cal, I have seen a difference in her attitude and determination, which was very evident this weekend. She was on fire and determined not to lose. It was great to see her skate so well and win back her crown.

 

[yyyskate]

For female athletes, being deliciously uncensored and refreshingly real is the new PC. :yes:

:yes: and MM

 

[Violet Bliss]

"Ego" in its original Fruedian definition, as well as in religious and spiritual teachings, is about a part of self, mostly conscious and rational or constructed with beliefs, the self that one is aware of. These days, it often means self esteem. As such, no one can be successful without a strong ego. But these days it's also a common synonym for "pride" or "arrogance" when it's "hefty" as is used in recent posts. But by any definition, "ego" is an inner part of self whereas "arrogance" is perceived from observation of one's words and behavior.

Some people are careful with their words and behavior to exhibit humility, a popularly exalted trait taken to be the opposite of "hefty ego". It's culturally correct and good for one's image and PR. But by any definition, no champions can be without an ego, a hefty one if it means self esteem and believing in one's own ability and deservedness. The difference between Ashley and those model champions is not so much about their egos but how they express themselves. Ashley simply offers more of a revelation of her real thoughts and feelings, or ego, by being much less filtered. Personally, I appreciate such opportunity to study a champion's mindset.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

No, she shouldn't. Not if the 3 Russians skate their best. Gracie Gold is frankly better than these performances as well, if she can put two clean programs together.

Ashley should be capable of winning the World Championship if she skated clean SP+LP, as compared to the rest of the field this year, but she is very underserved by her programs. She has maturity over the rest of the field but the actual choreography and artistry isn't there. It could be but it isn't.

The artistry is definitely there although I'm in the camp of her program could have more content and less forlorn looks. It's astonishing that you of all people have this issue with her skate because normally you complain about programs being packed with transitional content and go off on an anti-IJS rant.

Also this can definitely beat at least one or two of the 3 Russians. IMO she's better at IN and PE than all 3. Her skating skills are lacking but I like her choreo moreso than Tukt's (which only "turns on" mid program) or Pogo's Firebird which is rushed and which she skates rather dispassionately. Wagner's is the only program this year that makes me feel emotional about her skating and deserves PCS on par with the 3 Russians (since her SS and TR are lacking). Technically speaking she is improving although international panels will be stricter.

But what she's doing is working for her. It's not like Tukt/Rad/Pogo are so artistically virtuous that it would be a travesty if a clean Wagner manages to defeat them.

 

[katymay]

I have interviewed Ashley numerous times and have seen her confidence grow the past several years after having lost opportunities to make the World Team earlier in her senior career. Since she moved to So. Cal, I have seen a difference in her attitude and determination, which was very evident this weekend. She was on fire and determined not to lose. It was great to see her skate so well and win back her crown.

I think Ashley is probably the hardest working kid in figure skating, so I was happy to see her put it all together. Just my opinion, but I think that for both Ashley and Gracie, their best skating is behind them. I think the next Olympic champion will be Karen Chen-she is the whole package-speed, power, jumps and flexibility. She is better than the Russians, except for Eliza perhaps. I was blown away by her program-she doesn't have a "weak' spot, except perhaps a tendency to rush, which I suspect will be gone by next year when she moves up.

 

[TwinnerA]

Gracie does not need a new coach. Sheesh. I don't care if everyone ends up disagreeing with me. You're all wrong.

I agree. She just changed coaches a year and a half ago and it ain't going to happen. As for POTO, I used to love that music before I heard it used 6,000 by skaters!

 

[Vicky458]

Does anyone know if Adam did both Ashley's SP and LP choreography?