Thoughts on Competitors

While there are other countries and skaters competing, there are a few names that really stick out as being "the ones to podium." In the ladies it is Joannie Rochette, Kimmie Meissner, Fumie Suguri, etc... In the Men, it's a big one between Jeffrey Buttle and Evan Lysacek. (And dance is big too!)

Between Jeffrey and Evan, which seems more likely to take the men's event? (Go Jeffrey! XD)

Will there be a surprise in the ladies or in the dance competitons?

You named yourself after a James Blunt song? :yes:

I'm really excited about the Dance! The Medals could go in any order, it's tres unpredictable. :agree:

(Lol, yes I did...I was looking for a name and was listening to it...so...XD)

They're all pretty good, no? I'm really looking forward to Dubreil/Lauzon and Davis/White in the Dance.

I think the title will be betwen Joannie & Kimmie. But it will be interesting to see if the Alissa that went to The Cup of Russia shows up or will we see the Alissa from US Nationals.

In dance it will be interesting to see what the judges think of Belbin/ Agosto's new FD in comparison to Dubreuil/Lauzon (who I think should win this if they don't have a major error). B/A's new program is still, well, very new for them and I think that makes them the underdogs here.

It will also be interesting to see how Davis/ White stack up against Virtue/ Moir. The two teams are quite evenly matched technically, I think, but my personal favs are V/M. Their Valse Tristese is my favorite FD of the season, and that includes all the teams that are likely to be top five in the world. Their performance at Canadians was absolutely magical, and they totally made me forget about elements, it was just a beautiful, seamless, whole. D/W, on the other hand, had some interesting moves, but their FD doesn't work as well for me as a whole. Totally just personal preference speaking here, though.

In pairs I think it's Shen/Zhao's to lose. I haven't seen P/T all season, so I have not idea what to expect from them. I'll be excited to see how both the new young Canadian and American champs do in this international field.

In mens it's too bad Oda and Takahashi aren't on the competitors list. Without them, I'd say the frontrunners are Buttle and Lysacek, with Lysacek as favorite for gold. I adore Buttle and would love to see him win here, and I think he has a far more complex program, however, if Lysacek lands the technical jumps he did at U.S. nationals, I think he's going to be the winner.

In ladies, I think Meissner will have the edge, with Rochette and Suguri after her. It could get very interesting, however, if Meissner turns in a performance like she had at U.S. nationals and either Rochette or Suguri do really well. Czisny could be a total spoiler.

Virtue/Moir seem to be a hot team right now for this competition. I've not had the opportunity to see them this season, but I'm excited about it after hearing so much. I have also heard Gregory/Petuchkov have decided not to attend, so that's interesting.

The pairs event seems almost wrapped up already too, unless there's a surprise somewhere in there.

The men and ladies seem the most, "Who's going to win?"

The ladies is anyone's game, really; however. It's going to be exciting! XD

With a bit of personal preference in the men, I enjoy Buttle over Lysacek. I agree that Buttle has a more complex program, but at the same time the technical elements could sink that ship. That bothers me immensily; the "face-lift" on Carmen just feels like a bunch of jumps thrown in. The artistry suffers a bit there, and based on both elements, Buttle seems like the stronger competitor with his new "Ararat."

goodbyemylover said:

I have also heard Gregory/Petuchkov have decided not to attend, so that's interesting.

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Really? Guess they didn't want to risk being beaten by D&W and V&M before Worlds.

I hope that's not the reason. I would suppose they don't want to get beaten by these teams at worlds, either.

I generally hope that skaters don't withdraw from events because they are afraid of the competition. Sounds like a loser's strategy to me, so I hope it's just speculation.

I haven't actually heard why Gregory/Petuchkov have decided to withdraw. They're not a bad dance team at all, so I wonder at the reason. I also hope it isn't because they're afraid; it doesn't seem like them. ._.

Maybe they just felt they needed a little more training.

flying camel said:

Maybe they just felt they needed a little more training.

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from my perspective, I see a competition as working on a program to be tweeked afterwards for preparation to a greater competition. G&P are a married couple and probably have many things to do with married life, and in-laws. I forgive them.

Joe

It will be interesting to see how the Canadians do against in particular the Americans since both are bringing their strongest skaters. Do you think there will be an unfair advantage for the Americans as its in the US? I just hope at the end of the competition we see it was judged well, especially in Dance where its been harder to judge.

La Rhumba said:

Really? Guess they didn't want to risk being beaten by D&W and V&M before Worlds.

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that's defintely not the reason. They love competition. They wouldn't want to continue to improve if they didn't want to stay competitive.

figuristka said:

It will be interesting to see how the Canadians do against in particular the Americans since both are bringing their strongest skaters. Do you think there will be an unfair advantage for the Americans as its in the US? I just hope at the end of the competition we see it was judged well, especially in Dance where its been harder to judge.

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Actually, the United States isn't bringing the entire "powerhouse" team this time around. A few names are missing, like Johnny Weir and Gregory/Petuchkov. Sasha Cohen's absence, while many people deny it, will also play a role. However, the Canadians ARE bringing their biggest names; in tow are rejuvinated Jeffrey Buttle, revamped Joannie Rochette, a newly crowned pairs team, and a team without need of introduction, Dubreil/Lauzon. Most of the disciplines have new champions in America, which might affect how they participate. (There's a lot more pressure!)

I also don't think there'll be any unfairness in judging. If the foreign skaters skate well, they'll be rewarded accordingly. (God willing and a fair wind.)

Indeed, they already are by the looks of things so far.