Flashback to 1984 Winter Olympics

SkateFan4Life said:

I remember the rather snobby attitude shown towards Elaine by some of the bigwigs in the US Figure Skating Association. Elaine's father owned and operated a bar in Paramus, New Jersey, and some of these folks seemed put off by the idea of the US champion's father working in a bar. :scratch:

Sorry, guys, but we can't all be born with a silver spoon in our mouth.

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Rather like the squawk that arose when Michael Weiss's father appeared shirtless in Playgirl, I should imagine.... Well, bear in mind, the "old guard" is still rather "country club"; I imagine they've only got about 10, 15 more years of this type of attitude still left....

JonnyCoop said:

Rather like the squawk that arose when Michael Weiss's father appeared shirtless in Playgirl, I should imagine.... Well, bear in mind, the "old guard" is still rather "country club"; I imagine they've only got about 10, 15 more years of this type of attitude still left....

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I have to disagree with you about the "old guard". These people don't go away easily - at least their attitudes don't go away easily. Maybe, just maybe, when they all retire and the next generation of leaders takes control of the USFSA, the mindset will be less snobby and "we've always done things this way".

On the other hand, I do like tradition, when it's in good taste, makes sense, and in tune with the times. I sure don't want to see the USFSA embrace the culture of slobbery, bad manners, and "reality junk" that seems to permeate the news and media these days. For instance, figure skaters are expected to behave like ladies and gentlemen - not like robots or princesses - but as young adults with the good sense and class to conduct themselves with a bit of dignity. I would absolutely hate it if the next generation of figure skaters started to use profanity on live television broadcasts, talked trash about their competitors, and showed no sportsmanship.

I'm sure I'll receive a few heated private messages for my opinions! It won't be the first time....

SkateFan4Life said:

I would absolutely hate it if the next generation of figure skaters started to use profanity on live television broadcasts, talked trash about their competitors, and showed no sportsmanship.

I'm sure I'll receive a few heated private messages for my opinions! It won't be the first time....

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I dont want to see profanity, but a little bit of trash talking, and sniping between rivals wouldnt hurt IMO.

slutskayafan21 said:

I dont want to see profanity, but a little bit of trash talking, and sniping between rivals wouldnt hurt IMO.

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I strongly disagree with you. Perhaps you're joking, but I suspect you aren't. In any case, I am one longtime figure skating fan who appreciates the fact that our sport is one of (perhaps few) in which good sportsmanship and dignity have some genuine merit. Would you seriously want to see the women act like Tonya Harding and use such poor judgement that they get themselves involved with criminal attacks?

Please don't misunderstand me. I do NOT advocate phoniness, snobbery, or any holier-than-thou attitudes. That kind of behavior turns me off, too.

Some middle ground is perfectly all right. I, too, do not wish to hear any trash talking because not only is it just downright rude, it tends to make me less of a fan of the person making the comments. I think some of the Russians over the last 10 years have been less than diplomatic when discussing their US rivals, which rather makes me in a way nostalgic for the old Soviet days when they weren't allowed to say much, so they could just show up, win, and SHUT up. On the other hand, this "Oh, my heavens, what is happening? He's practicing triple axels and his shirt isn't tucked in!!!" mentality goes WAY too far the other way.....

I my opinion, most of the skaters are class acts, while a few probably tend to speak too freely while the microphone is on. I do not remember any particular Russian skater who "trash talked" his or her competitors, but I suppose that's possible. Again, I'm not advocating a moratorium on free speech, just a sense of good sportsmanship. 'nuff said!

SkateFan4Life said:

I strongly disagree with you. Perhaps you're joking, but I suspect you aren't. In any case, I am one longtime figure skating fan who appreciates the fact that our sport is one of (perhaps few) in which good sportsmanship and dignity have some genuine merit. Would you seriously want to see the women act like Tonya Harding and use such poor judgement that they get themselves involved with criminal attacks?

Please don't misunderstand me. I do NOT advocate phoniness, snobbery, or any holier-than-thou attitudes. That kind of behavior turns me off, too.

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Actually I was not joking. I personaly feel a bit of animosity, and healthy trash talking and verbal sniping between chief rivals is good for entertainment and competitive buildup. It is a sport after all. I dont want to see another Tonya Harding, but that is another level altogether. I dont like it too extreme, but I do like to see a bit of teeth, so to speak.

Well, we have to agree to disagree on this point. I strongly do NOT want to see any kind of trash talking garbage in the sport of figure skating. IMHO, that kind of behavior just drags the sport into the mud, along with some other sports that I won't waste my time watching.

SkateFan4Life said:

Well, we have to agree to disagree on this point. I strongly do NOT want to see any kind of trash talking garbage in the sport of figure skating. IMHO, that kind of behavior just drags the sport into the mud, along with some other sports that I won't waste my time watching.

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If this is so, I do have to ask you if some of the current participients behaviour disturbs you somewhat? After all many of the recent participients in international skating utilized thrash talking, and made disparaging and disrespectful remarks about their rivals, although mainly in the spirit of competition. Do you not think that Plushenko and Yagudin trash talked each other from 98-2002? How about the top ice dance teams from 97-2002, think Bourne Kraatz vs Gritschuk/Platov, Gritschuk/Platov vs Kyrlova/
Ovsiannikov, Anissina/Peizerat vs Fusar Poli-Margalio, as some examples. I could also add the Kwan and Lipinski "camps", not so much the skaters themselves, but their so-called "teams", in the 97-98 seasons?

OK, I see that I have to state this v-e-r-y clearly. I do NOT like trash talking, plain and simple, under any circumstances. To me, it's low-class, shows poor sportsmanship, and incredibly immature. And that's how I view it. Anyone of you can disagree with me, of course, and as I wrote, we have to agree to disagree on this point. I'm not going to change your opinion on the subject, and rest assured, you're not going to change my opinion!