Does Johnny Weir have a competitive spirit?

[Mathman]

That's an interesting perspective, Temperboy. Personally, I think Russia will be able to develop its young pairs and dance teams and continue to be a force in those disciplines. Not so sure about men's and especially ladies'.

BTW, welcome to Golden Skate! Your threads and posts are very much on point here.

Mathman

[Dee4707]

From his most recent interviews and Q&A sessions, he seems to have undergone a big change insofar as the way he sees himself as a skater

I think Marina has been good for Johnny. I think she would be a no nonsense type person as well as Tatianna.

Dee

[Joesitz]

And let's not forget Pricilla Hill. She nurtured him from day 1 and still at it. He got all his triples by Priscilla, and with his natural flow on the ice, he became a very unique skater. He did well in US Nationals against the old guard long before he went to TT for choreography. Like Sasha his jumps didn't get any better or were there quads, but she did give both of them beautiful routines.

Joe

[JonnyCoop]

Weir has not yet earned the right to be compared to Bowman and Harding. Harding won a world silver, and won her lone U.S title beating that years World champion and next years Olympic champion Kristi Yamaguchi. Bowman won two World medals, back to back years. Harding and Bowman each have a 4th place finish from the Olympics. Weir will be hard pressed to match the careers of Bowman and Harding it looks like so he should not be compared to them.

If Weir manages to win 2 world medals in back to back years like Bowman did, or manages to defeat that years World Champion to win U.S Nationals in addition to a World silver it will be a big surprise.

AT NO POINT DID I COMPARE, ON THIS THREAD, THE RELATIVE COMPETITIVE RECORDS OF WEIR VS. EITHER HARDING OR BOWMAN, BECAUSE THAT HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THE POINT THAT I WAS TRYING TO MAKE. ALL I BASICALLY SAID WAS, LIKE BOWMAN AND HARDING, WEIR IS A NATURAL TALENT. I THINK THE FACT THAT HE DID NOT START SKATING UNTIL HE WAS 12, WHICH IS PRETTY LATE IN LIFE FOR AN ELITE SKATER, AND HAS BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH WHAT HE HAS, PRETTY MUCH BACKS UP MY ASSERTION THAT HE IS A NATURAL TALENT. SO WAS BOWMAN, SO WAS HARDING. RELATIVE COMPETITIVE RECORDS OF THE 3 ARE AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT SUBJECT.

[jesslily]

I think Johnny used to have the competitive spirit. That's before 2004. For the past two years, he has not been very excited about the competitions. It seems like he already know how far he can reach for his career.

[76olympics]

I do like Johnny's skating (though he isn't my all-time favorite), but I don't think competition has been his priority in the last year. He seems to be doing things inspired by self-expression ( the high heels pic, interviews, etc) that skaters do after their amateur days are done. I think he will need to crank down this type of stuff considerably and focus on skating to get the results that I think he could get with his talent.

Maybe, he doesn't want to do this. That is his decision to make. But, I don't think that stuff is the right avenue to take if he is focused on good amateur results. I respect his commitment to his fans . I think he comes across well in his Q and As on his site. Some of his choices do indicate that he still has some growing up to do. ( I am dashing for cover behind the nearest tree! )