Ice Dancing - Free Dance (Mon. Feb 22 - 16:45)

[1795]

One thing tonight proved to me: Del/Sch should have been awarded the bronze four years ago instead of the Ukranians.

didn't we all think that. haha.

congrats to the medalists. that was an intense battle throughout all 3 parts of the competition.

although with a bias, the best (not necessarily technical) performance to me was, of course, delobel and schoenfelder.
make fun of how fat she is, how slow they are, how simle their footwork is, how they struggled through lifts - that was such a great perforance and to have the olympic stage to present their story.

my absolute favorite FD of the season.

thank you isabelle and olivier for everything.

i simply could not go through that FD without crying.

 

[mylastduchess]

By the way my Satellite t.v. went kaput just right before the final flight so I'm preparing to kill someone at Bell

 

[*Sniper*]

I just finished watching it "live" on three hour delay without checking the scores beforehand.
What a great night of ice dancing!

A few things though.
Some of the costumes really need to be burned.
As disappointed as I was for B/A, I was flabbergasted by Agosto's Sideshow Bob hair and Elvis outfit.
?????!!!! What in the world???

Also how can Virtue and Moir not be a real life couple?
COME ON!!!

Congrats to all the medalists, and may the excellent skating continue with the ladies!

 

[DesertRoad]

Also how can Virtue and Moir not be a real life couple?

I'm rather thankful they're not. Romance is frought with peril. Though of course, there are rewards But the rewards are exclusively divvied up between the couple themselves, while the failures could ruin an otherwise exquisite skating partnership and ruin things for the rest of us. Or, as the saying goes, you don't **** where you eat.

As for why they're not a couple, I believe they met while she was 8 and he was 10. That's a bit late for the Westermarck effect to kick in, but maybe it did and they relate more as siblings.

 

[CzarinaAnya]

So, someone tell me if I'm wrong.

They got all threes for all of their lifts. I think that's a first.

They got four tens, so they're the first team to score more than one in a competition.

They're the first ice dance team to win gold at their first Olympics since 1976, the Games the sport debuted at.

Youngest/first Canadians/first N. Americans....

They are just something else. YAY Tessa & Scott!

I buzz with excitement over Charlie & Meryl's silver. -jumps up and down-

Tanith & Ben, guys you deserve so much credit, and a medal.

 

[formersk8ter]

And now Shabalin and Scali are complaining about the result... give me a break.

http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/vancouver/figure_skating/news?slug=ro-icedance022210&prov=yhoo

Frankly, Shabalin should thank his lucky stars he was even on the podium.

 

[skatingbc]

And now Shabalin and Scali are complaining about the result... give me a break.

http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/vancouver/figure_skating/news?slug=ro-icedance022210&prov=yhoo

Frankly, Shabalin should thank his lucky stars he was even on the podium.

From the above link:

“I don’t agree with the system. They [Virtue and Moir] are not real dancers. They are very technical and don’t really ‘dance’ on the ice.”

PML

 

[magicalwords]

“I don’t agree with the system. They [Virtue and Moir] are not real dancers. They are very technical and don’t really ‘dance’ on the ice.”

Anyway, late congratulations to V/M, D/W, and D/S as well.
I'm very thankful of all the skaters who've performed the best they can, pouring all their heart out to give the skate of their lives.

Now, only ladies remain.

 

[Buttercup]

And now Shabalin and Scali are complaining about the result... give me a break.

http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/vancouver/figure_skating/news?slug=ro-icedance022210&prov=yhoo

Frankly, Shabalin should thank his lucky stars he was even on the podium.

Shabalin and Domnina, the European champions, won’t be in Sochi, Russia, in four years time either, and clearly felt their final chance had been taken from them.

“We skated the best performance and we have a bronze medal,” Shabalin said. “What can you do? We did everything we could.”

How is that a complaint? He states that they did what they could (which is probably true) and that it wasn't enough (which is also true). Everything else is interpretation. People should stop trying to turn everything into a controversy.

While I strongly disagree with Scali's opinion about V/M and dislike both the timing and his manner of expressing himself, IMO he is correct in noting that some teams are essentially doing acrobatic speed skating rather than ice dance. Also, he and Fede have an awesome FD which will hopefully get them on the podium next month. I'm sure he'll be the one benefiting from a supportive crowd then - so really, why he would bring this up is beyond me.

 

[screech]

“I don’t agree with the system. They [Virtue and Moir] are not real dancers. They are very technical and don’t really ‘dance’ on the ice.”

Seriously? They actually dance! Most other teams just move from element to element. V/M practically float from element to element with grace!

“When you compete in your home country the crowd goes crazy and it can help the skaters,”

Yes, the audience was insane, but they weren't the ones out on the ice. A rowdy and supportive crowd can also be a huge hinderance and add extra pressure, making it harder for a skater to do well.

Bronze medalist Shabalin, who along with partner Oksana Domnina finished third in Monday’s free dance, also questioned the result,

They were almost 14 points behind V/M. Obviously they're the only ones seeing the controversy.

Of course, maybe both men just think that V/M being this generations Torvill & Dean / G&G isn't good enough to beat a clumsy, slow skate.

 

[piano18]

Scali said this about many of Igor Shpilband's North American skaters in the past, i remember an article about him talking about all the N. American teams are ever known for is technique and precision and elements but no passion, no artistry, no real feeling.

btw where exactly did Shabalin "question" the result??

 

[formersk8ter]

How is that a complaint? He states that they did what they could (which is probably true) and that it wasn't enough (which is also true). Everything else is interpretation. People should stop trying to turn everything into a controversy.

Um, that's not what he said. He said "we skated the best performance." "People" (I assume you mean me) aren't turning everything into a controversy. Shabalin's statement is waaaaayyyyy off and definitely sour grapes, over a contest that he wasn't even close to winning.

 

[CzarinaAnya]

^ When he said, "they're not real dancers. " Sounds like he doesn't think V&M deserved it.

 

[Tigger]

although with a bias, the best (not necessarily technical) performance to me was, of course, delobel and schoenfelder. make fun of how fat she is, how slow they are, how simle their footwork is, how they struggled through lifts - that was such a great perforance and to have the olympic stage to present their story.

Fat!?! Who called Isabel fat? I wish I could be that "fat"!! I thought she looked great considering how little time they had to prepare for the Olympics.

What a pity they didn't go to Euros, as they could have gotten a few more miles and also feedback on their programs, still...It was a valiant effort by her and Olivier. I'll miss them.

 

[Ryan O]

Also how can Virtue and Moir not be a real life couple?
COME ON!!!

They were asked about it in an interview I saw earlier tonight and they said they have never been a couple up until now, but they aren't ruling out the possibility entirely for the future.

 

[Cadiva]

And now Shabalin and Scali are complaining about the result... give me a break.

http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/vancouver/figure_skating/news?slug=ro-icedance022210&prov=yhoo

Frankly, Shabalin should thank his lucky stars he was even on the podium.

There isn't actually a quote from Shabalin being critical so until I see something, I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt.

Unless you mean this?

“We skated the best performance and we have a bronze medal,” Shabalin said. “What can you do? We did everything we could.”

which I interpret as saying they skated their best performance and he's happy with the bronze. It's all down to how you choose to interpret what's been said.

But this from Scali is directly critical, there's no doubt over interpretation here -

“When you compete in your home country the crowd goes crazy and it can help the skaters,” said Scali, who placed fifth with his partner Federica Faiella. “I hope that it does not affect the judges. “I don’t agree with the system. They [Virtue and Moir] are not real dancers. They are very technical and don’t really ‘dance’ on the ice.”

Can I just say - what a crock of sh!t. If V&M don't dance then I'd love to know what the hell they are doing cos if they did it on a theatre stage there'd be people jumping up and screaming and clapping!

 

[*Sniper*]

Um, that's not what he said. He said "we skated the best performance." "People" (I assume you mean me) aren't turning everything into a controversy. Shabalin's statement is waaaaayyyyy off and definitely sour grapes, over a contest that he wasn't even close to winning.

I don't know how good Maxim's English is or if that statement was made through a translator, but we've seen one too many times how one misplaced word changes the meaning of the entire sentence.

Yes, he could've been implying that they were the best couple on the night, but I think just as easily he would've meant to say that they skated their best but it wasn't enough.

It seems way too premature to call it "sour grapes" until we get to hear more.

 

[Lucky Star]

Um, that's not what he said. He said "we skated the best performance." "People" (I assume you mean me) aren't turning everything into a controversy. Shabalin's statement is waaaaayyyyy off and definitely sour grapes, over a contest that he wasn't even close to winning.

Oh, come on! Maxim is a really nice person and all he said (in russian) "It was our best performance, we did all that we could". That's ALL! He didn't say anything about Virtue/Moir, he didn't even see how they skate (Oksana said in the interview that they didn't see V/M and D/W performances and didn't know the marks)!
But oh well, I know, he is just "evill russian"...

 

[*Sniper*]

They were asked about it in an interview I saw earlier tonight and they said they have never been a couple up until now, but they aren't ruling out the possibility entirely for the future.

HAHAHA that's great.
So funny. Not ruling it out?
Ah, kids~

They have such insane chemistry on the ice that it would be a shame if they didn't give it a try at least for a while. LOL
Such gorgeous looking couple, too.

 

[*Sniper*]

Oh, come on! Maxim is a really nice person and all he said (in russian) "It was our best performance, we did all that we could". That's ALL! He didn't say anything about Virtue/Moir, he didn't even see how they skate (Oksana said in the interview that they didn't see V/M and D/W performances and didn't know the marks)!
But oh well, I know, he is just "evill russian"...

Thank you for the clarification!
Some journalists seem very eager not to let the judging controversy die.