Men's Short Program.. Tuesday 16th, 7:15PM EST

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Sorry folks I really donh't like Lysacek. He's awkward and sloppy, but the judges love him and always inflate his scores no matter where or when. It doesn't matter who his coach or choreographer is it's the WAY he moves; and it isn't graceful or pretty.

I really dislike defending Lysacek so much because he is not a fave of mine, but re: the above.

For a man his height, I disagree that he is awkward and sloppy. He manages to use those long limbs to a startling advantage. I only think judges began to look at him more, was when a faux rivalry came up tween he and Johnny. The rivalry was not really about them. It was about he-man v. androgneny-man. It seems that when one is not happy with results, they find the judges at fault for inflating personal favorites 'scores. While I disagree with you on the way he moves which is not graceful or pretty, you have my ok on your opinions to which I disagree. Getting the real lowdown raises suspsicions and can they prove them? I'm guilty of suspecting why Cinquanta stopped the investigation of the other half of the SLC scandal. I'm sure he knows who was the other party, but why keep it a secret?

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

RE: MiCHAL BREZINA

Im impressed but Im not wowed yet. Like Simon and Chris pointed out, he needs to get out more from his shelf, bring out a personality on the ice. He has the goods but there is smth missing, still.

i agree, but a new coach is super important before he goes the way of Contini. I think Orser would be fine for him.

 

[silverlake22]

RE: MiCHAL BREZINA



i agree, but a new coach is super important before he goes the way of Contini. I think Orser would be fine for him.

Why does Brezina need a new coach? He's progressing rapidly with his current coaches!

Tomas needs a new coach, big time, especially because he said he'll continue to skate after this season. I really don't know what his deal is, I mean he's so talented, so fit, has sound technique and then you put him in front of an audience and *poof* where did Tomas go? Maybe he's very nervous or a big perfectionist/puts a lot of pressure on himself. Feel so bad for him, and Joubert, who also might want a new coach considering his current one is apparently giving him ultimatums...

 

[MK's Winter]

Johnny - Wow, great skate! Def underscored. My husband refered to him as the "Happy Gilmore" of Figure Skating lol. I think he has a shot at a bronze, if he lands his quad and skates clean. GO JOHNNY!!!!!

Evan - Not a fan but awesome skate, very determined and glad for him.

Plushy- Nice quads but he looks like a szchophrenic off his medication having a seizure artistry wise.

Dai- Would have put him above Evan and Plush, skated his heart out and skated BEAUTIFULLY!

Jeremy and Brian - one word. Heartbroken

 

[seniorita]

so this is the infamous nbc fluff before the sp of Plush?
Of course he is the stupid one to accept to do the interview. He doesnt get that his english are naive and non flexible and would be taken wrong. Not much else to say about the laughs of commentators, glad I can watch eurosport.

 

[janetfan]

so this is the infamous nbc fluff before the sp of Plush?
Of course he is the stupid one to accept to do the interview. He doesnt get that his english are naive and non flexible and would be taken wrong. Not much else to say about the laughs of commentators, glad I can watch eurosport.

The fluff last night was mild compared to what they just ran tonight.
"The cold war is back and this arrogant, trash talking Russian must be stopped."

They called him a one trick pony and said Evan has everything.

Lucky for Dai, he was not even mentioned.

If Dai skates great tomorrow I hope the judges reward him with fair marks. I thought he won the SP.

 

[seniorita]

The fluff last night was mild compared to what they just ran tonight.
"The cold war is back and this arrogant, trash talking Russian must be stopped."

They called him a one trick pony and said Evan has everything.

Lucky for Dai, he was not even mentioned.

If Dai skates great tomorrow I hope the judges reward him with fair marks. I thought he won the SP.

Oh in Europe they talk about all skaters, it is more fun! Only focusing on Plush there? sounds boring. Goodnight Janetfan.

 

[chuckm]

The major difference between Plushenko and Lysacek is that Plushy has a sense of humor. Lysacek does not.

Im rooting for both Plushy and Evan to win medals. Anyhow, Plushenko, Lysacek, Lambiel and maybe Weir won't be at Worlds.

 

[Bennett]

Regarding Champion mentality, Look-at-me-I-love-me-You-love-me Mentality helps a lot in presenting charisma. Dai and Weir definitely have it, but skaters like Nob and Koz are rather shy.

 

[mycelticblessing]

I am dead tired from last night. There is a lot I should otherwise say, but I have selected this quote because I think you have said something important, soogar. There is such a thing, I believe, as a "championship mentality". You have to be determined, a fighter, able to surmount your nervousness even under the worst kind of pressure, able to make your body resist the tightening up that can sabotage you, able to surmount insecurity, pain, everything that emotionally stands in your way. It has been said, with reason, that some skaters are great skaters, while other skaters are great competitors. One must be a great competitor to win when the pressure is on; being a great skater is often not enough.

:agree: Well said, I think that is why, despite all the criticism most of us have about Plushy's non-jump elements, he still can win the SP and very likely the entire competition without any controversy. Very few skaters can have a good skate with that kind of pressure. It usually become even more obvious in the FS, since that's when everyone gets more nervous.

another note, I think that some of the judging has been fair, and some has not. That is the usual thing. I loved watching Borodulin skate. He went through it at such a difficult pace. It was a fun performance to watch and I look for more good things from him in the future. I also look forward to seeing what Oda has to offer in the years to come, and Kozuka, and I am happy to see that Johnny Weir has his triple axel back; long live the triple axel! When a triple axel is big, and confident, and beautiful, it makes my heart soar.

I think they got the placements for the top few correct. I would have had Lysacek behind Takahashi, although at this point, the two might as well be tied. I loved Borodulin's performance too! I have never seen him skate this season, so it was really a pleasant surprise to see someone skate so well in the SP. I have never seen anyone skate to 'Kalinka' so well before. He captured the energy of the music perfectly and I love his costume too. It looked like Cowboy Kalinka.

 

[kyla2]

Dick Button sustained a head injury several years ago. I know he isn't the Dick Button of old, but I would miss him terribly if he wasn't there. He has a hard time sometimes with his sentences but I always know what he means.

Evan Lysacek skated lights out and did a beautiful job. He is a very hardworker and deserves a medal. Plushenko is also amazing, especially after the long layoff. Let's give them their dues. Jeremy Abbott just had a bad night. He is pound for pound the best skater in the world IMO. Johnny did a great job and I think he was underscored. I love his skating. Just brilliant. I hope they all skate their very best tomorrow night.

 

[DesertRoad]

I recently pirated an HD feed of the SPs, and it really struck me how great Amodio Florent's SP was. I haven't seen too much of the guy before, in fact, I barely remember him. But this SP performance was just perfect, full of intricate footwork, nuanced musicality and expression. There isn't an element there that Florent wasn't exceptional at. He really should've had had a TSS of over 80. It was a breakthrough, once in a lifetime performance. I think the audience recognized that in their reaction, so why can't the judges?

 

[Spun Silver]

I agree that he was gorgeous and undermarked, but once in a lifetime? C'mon, the kid is 18 or 19! We'll see many more beautiful skates from him, even better than this one!

 

[DesertRoad]

I agree that he was gorgeous and undermarked, but once in a lifetime? C'mon, the kid is 18 or 19! We'll see many more beautiful skates from him, even better than this one!

I should've said skate of his life, so far. Of course, once again, I haven't seen that much of Amodio. Maybe he's had skates that great before.

 

[yangjie]

michel was alsoundermarked,although i know this is because of his spins.

 

[janetfan]

Oh in Europe they talk about all skaters, it is more fun! Only focusing on Plush there? sounds boring. Goodnight Janetfan.

Poor America. It was so boring watching Lindsey Vonn win the OGM in women's downhill and her teammate Julie Mancuso take the Silver.
It was also boring watching Apollo qualify again in short track and to see Shani Davis win Gold in the speed skating 1000 meters tonight. Now I watch our snowboarders win more medals.

Different strokes seniorita

 

[Mathman]

I should've said skate of his life, so far. Of course, once again, I haven't seen that much of Amodio. Maybe he's had skates that great before.

Amodio also skated a great short program at Skate America, finishing second to Lysacek (4th overall.)

 

[bibi24]

Anywhere we can watch the replay of SP's ??

YouTube seems to be deleting everything based on IOC copyright claims....

 

[Justafan]

Are there any videos anywhere of today's Men's practice?

 

[rain]

Hi there. I just got back from Vancouver where I attended the men's short program and thought some of you might be interested in some of my impressions.

First off, the crowd was really supportive of all the skaters, which was great to see. Of course Patrick Chan and Vaughn Chipeur got the loudest applause, but all of the contenders had significant cheering sections — and not just from their home countries. There were a lot of partial standing ovations for those who performed really well, and a lot of commiseration with the few who imploded.

Overall, it was a really well-skated event. It was almost five hours long in total and the quality in all the flights was pretty good. The first skater of note was Amodio from France. He had a really great night and stood out amongst the early skaters. Then, of course, Plushenko in the second flight had a great program. His jumps were letter perfect but I noticed he surprisingly did not carry great speed through the footwork sequences. His spins, as always were good, not fantastic.

I know enough about skating that I explained a lot of stuff to the woman sitting beside me who wasn't that knowledgeable. She did not know the judging system and I explained that the skaters accumulate points, rather than having a perfect score they're aiming for. I told her during the first flight that the top guys would likely hit around 90 — which turned out to be extremely prophetic. It was very helpful in the arena to have two large screens that, while the skater performed, displayed what their personal best score for the short program for this season was. It gave the crowd a good general idea right off the bat whether the scores were good or bad. Also, after Plushenko skated, there was an obvious score to shoot for. I would venture to guess that many in the arena were like the woman sitting beside me in how much they understand about the scoring system etc., but there was little dissatisfaction with the scores or placements, which I also thought were pretty accurate.

The skater I thought most gifted in the scoring was Lambiel, who had two pretty major jump errors, yet still finds himself in the thick of things. He was very entertaining, but the judges were generous. All three of the Japanese skaters were impressive, with Takahashi the one who really performed his program out to the audience the best. I can understand now why Kozuka doesn't get the highest scores — he really didn't reach out to the audience during his program and when you're reaching into the top tier that makes a difference.

Joubert looked shell-shocked by his skate. Verner had a similar meltdown, and Abbott looked pretty devastated. These three were a shock.

I had all my fingers and toes crossed for Chan, and while he didn't totally self-destruct, in such a well-skated event you could tell by his face he wasn't happy with his skate. He looked relaxed beforehand, but was only doing double axels in the warm-up, which made me wonder. He was very gracious to the crowd, who were all behind him, in spite of his disappointment.

My favourite skate of the night was actually Lysacek. He put his whole heart out there on the ice with this one and the audience could feel it. I thought after his skate he might be in first, despite no quad.

I felt bad for Brezina. He was the last to skate, and after Abbott finished a lot of the crowd got up and left. Those that were left loved him. His jumps were gorgeous and he skated beautifully. This was the one skater's marks booed by the crowd. Everyone thought he had scored higher. My general impression was that he had as well, though I think his footwork may have been easier than some of the top guys — I have not looked at the protocols so can't say for sure.