Michelle Kwan

[kalle]

What do you think about her future chances to compete again?
I think she would very much give competetive skating another season if she could get injury free and back in shape.
What kind of program would you like to see her do and what about jumps,can she win with 5-6 jumping passes and no triple/triple?I know Arakawa did it at Olympics but all her other elements were very good.
Her 2005/2006 Totenantz short program looked COP friendly even though we never saw it with all the elements due to her injury..Could it be a program to use again?What about her "older" glorious 6.0 programs,could any of them worked well under COP?
I am always going to be sentimental with Kwan but she is such a great skater and I would really like to see her give us a last chance to enjoy her joy and emotion

[gio]

She is my all time fav skater, but she belongs to other times, other generations! She's the skater of the 90s! IMO, also for Michelle it will be difficult to win against the various Asadas and Kims who can do the 3axels and two 3/3s by program. Michelle's health isn't that good. I don't wanna watch a Michelle meltdown, I'll be very sad. Rather, I hope that she can do great pro-skating.

[nymkfan51]

While I certainly wouldn't say it's likely Michelle will compete again, I would never count her out either.
If the surgery was successful and she recovers completely, there is no reason, IMO, that she couldn't come back for a least one more season ... assuming she wants to. Watching the other ladies this season, I don't see the big tricks being landed all that often, and very few programs without mistakes in them. With the quality of Michelle's skating, there is no reason she couldn't compete with the best of them.
More than that though, I have it in my mind that she probably hates the idea of her career ending the way it did, and given the opportunity, she would rather go out on her own terms. That's just my opinion though.
I would agree that it's probably highly unlikely that she would last till 2010 and another Olympics ... but hey, with MK all things are possible!!!

[Kwanford Wife]

Its hard to say because Michelle Kwan is simply an awesome skater & the Greatest of All Time ... and if healthy, I think she could compete against anybody. Having said that, I think we Kwaniacs need to come to terms with the fact that it might not matter if she can compete vs. if she wants to compete. She appears to have moved on to bigger & better things... Plus, what's the incentive for her to continue? 2010 is lifetime away and there isn't any award, goal or medal she doesn't already have... At some point it's Been There, Done That

She's got new challenges, responsibilities and opportunities. That's just life.

Having said above however, believe you me - if she changes her mind & decides to give it one last go, I'd be in that arena so fast, they'd think I was the Zamboni driver...

[gio]

2010 is lifetime away and there isn't any award, goal or medal she doesn't already have... At some point it's Been There, Done That

Yes, also because I think that even without the Olympic gold medal, IMO she's one of the best skaters of all times!

[SeaniBu]

Yes, also because I think that even without the Olympic gold medal, IMO she's one of the best skaters of all times!

I think in some ways she is still out there, via influence on the now up and coming skaters. There is a piece of her in every competition just like Sonia, Peggy, Dorothy, Yuka, Midori, etc...I can't help but think of my fave as influenced by MK, I am positive her legacy will live long past the the time she left the comp rink.

"Long live the Kween." - it all makes sense.

[Joesitz]

I do think she had been, and probably still is as a legend, the greatest of all female skaters. She was never 'ballet like', never 'little girl' like, never tech crazy like. She just figure skated and she did it better than all the others.

However, I am still perplexed about that whole pre-season 2002 Olympics and I just can not reconcile myselft to letting it go unaswered, and I don't care to hear anymore speculations.

She is a lovely, personable, class act kind of gal and whatever she does I am sure it will be in the best of taste and successful. She is Jackie Kennedy like.

I have not seen her replacement.

Joe

[SeaniBu]

She is a lovely, personable, class act kind of gal and whatever she does I am sure it will be in the best of taste and successful. She is Jackie Kennedy like.

Joe

I was telling myself, "don't post again Sean, just agree, give others their say." But I couldn't help it. I think that is a GREAT comparison Joe.

And the whole post for that matter too.

[Kwanford Wife]

I do think she had been, and probably still is as a legend, the greatest of all female skaters. She was never 'ballet like', never 'little girl' like, never tech crazy like. She just figure skated and she did it better than all the others.

However, I am still perplexed about that whole pre-season 2002 Olympics and I just can not reconcile myselft to letting it go unaswered, and I don't care to hear anymore speculations.

She is a lovely, personable, class act kind of gal and whatever she does I am sure it will be in the best of taste and successful. She is Jackie Kennedy like.

I have not seen her replacement.

Joe

Great post Joe... Michelle, like your post, is simply awesome (and I too am waiting for the final story on the '02 season)

[kittyjake5]

I for one would love to see the Kween back for one more season, but alas I have reconciled myself to the fact that it is probably not going to happen. For me it is an end of an era. If circumstances were different and MK had competed in Turin I feel she would have called it a day and retired after that. It would have been a great way to end her career. I feel that she has moved on with her life. I would be happy just to see her skate whether it be in competitions, exhibitions or just stroking across the ice. She will be missed.

[nymkfan51]

Thank you for that post Joe!!!

And just to add ... I have definitely come to grips with the likelihood of what the future holds, but I won't give up totally until she says "it's over."

[Piel]

Joe you said it perfectly !

[Skate Sandee]

However, I am still perplexed about that whole pre-season 2002 Olympics and I just can not reconcile myselft to letting it go unaswered, and I don't care to hear anymore speculations.

Joe

And what honestly perplexes me is why the story that was provided by both MK and Frank Carroll isn't believed as the whole truth and nothin but the truth. I fear you and the other conspiracy theorists may be forever stymied with no resolution, simply because there is no unanswered question. As Freud once said, "Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar".

[heyang]

I would like to see her at US Nationals at least once more for a real farewell. Doesn't even matter if she wins, but that 10th title at Nationals would be another for the record books.

Also, I'd really like to see her perform the 2 routines that had been created for the Olympics and they were rumored to be COP friendly.

However, I wish her well whatever she does. She's already got Legend status IMO.

As for her being competitive against the younger girls, you forget that things like the 3A don't have a high % of success in competition for the ladies. Only a handful even attempt it. Lastly, Michele has landed 3-3's in competition and may have left them out due to her injuries. So, I would say that she has a shot at being competitive if she's healthy and I don't think she'd compete again unless she is.

[jennylovskt]

She is my all time fav skater, but she belongs to other times, other generations! She's the skater of the 90s! IMO, also for Michelle it will be difficult to win against the various Asadas and Kims who can do the 3axels and two 3/3s by program. Michelle's health isn't that good. I don't wanna watch a Michelle meltdown, I'll be very sad. Rather, I hope that she can do great pro-skating.

Totally agree!