New Article on the Image of Skating

stevlin said:

I think the Canadian Fed. is encouraging Vaughn Chipeur to be macho, to become another Elvis S. I like Vaughn very much and think he will become a better skater, but he should focus on his skating and forget about promoting "Manliness".

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I agree that Vaughn is exactly the kind of "macho" skater that SC wants to promote to "masculinize" the sport. If you gave him a hard hat and steel-toe boots along with his LP costume, he would blend right in at a construction site.

For me, the point of this article, and many other activities by Skate Canada, is that the organization works hard to promote its skaters -- both in the media and at competitions, and of course within the ISU. At the recent worlds in L.A. Skate Canada had a full-court press going on in the media room and I'm sure behind the scenes as well. Everything, from Chan's remarks about quads and Joubert to having former champions like Browning and Manley offering their assessments right in the mixed zone, was organized. Skate Canada is out there working hard and gaining every possible advantage for its athletes. Whether this so-called campaign to end frou-frou is meaningful I don't know, but the organization is in there pitching.

By the by, I don't think the movement against overly decorated costumes is just aimed at men. Certainly Virtue and Moir dressed to emphasize their athleticism.

nylynnr said:

For me, the point of this article, and many other activities by Skate Canada, is that the organization works hard to promote its skaters -- both in the media and at competitions, and of course within the ISU. At the recent worlds in L.A. Skate Canada had a full-court press going on in the media room and I'm sure behind the scenes as well. Everything, from Chan's remarks about quads and Joubert to having former champions like Browning and Manley offering their assessments right in the mixed zone, was organized. Skate Canada is out there working hard and gaining every possible advantage for its athletes. Whether this so-called campaign to end frou-frou is meaningful I don't know, but the organization is in there pitching.

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ITA. I really appreciate how they are trying to get skating back in the limelight!

What a strange article. There must have been a "slow news day " at the Wall Street Journal magazine. I will take this article with a grain of salt...

Ladskater said:

What a strange article. There must have been a "slow news day " at the Wall Street Journal magazine. I will take this article with a grain of salt...

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There are no slow news days at WSJ, what with the U.S. banking system as we know it falling apart; the EEC following suit; and the U.S. auto industry going bust.

The paper has a long-standing tradition of putting an "off-beat," often amusing article, center of A-1, beneath the fold, and Skate Canada's sequin alert qualified. WSJ has about the best staff of reporters on earth so you can bet the info. -- as soft and vague as it was -- is correct.

FYI, WSJ has also just started a sports page and prior to worlds did an lengthy feature strictly on Pang and Tong's Tango free. The upshot is skating publicists in-the-know have a new place to pitch stories.

It's Not About The Costumes

O.k you all, it's not about the costumes. It's about the Canadian federation trying to get viewership. The costumes are a "red herring." It's about what has happened to the sport itself. No one is going to watch a sport they can't make sense out of, especially as to who is "winning" and who is "losing" the competition. The loaded and incoherent programs are no longer works of art. Often they are skated erratically with falls all over the place, and still awarded great points for "trying." The audience doesn't get it, so there goes the viewership. It's a no brainer. Gay men have been a part of figure skating for decades, everyone knows that, and no one cares. That's a non-issue for the skating public. Although there is a rivalry between Mao and Yu Na, there is no comparison to the rivalry of Michelle and irina, or Michelle and Sasha. When Christine Brennan put out a cover story in USA Today entitled "MIchelle Kwan is Figure Skating," she knew what she was talking about.

kyla2 said:

....No one is going to watch a sport they can't make sense out of, especially as to who is "winning" and who is "losing" the competition. The loaded and incoherent programs are no longer works of art. Often they are skated erratically with falls all over the place, and still awarded great points for "trying." The audience doesn't get it, so there goes the viewership. It's a no brainer.

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Except for the "No one", I agree. I would say only, "most are not going to watch".

I saw in an earlier article that Cinquanta, when confronted with the state of figure skating, pointed out that it is very popular in Asia now. That seemed to be enough for him. I have gotten the feeling, for a long time, that Cinquanta cares most about the money paid to the ISU for TV rights, and if it is not coming from some countries, but still comes from others, that it's fine with him. Canadian skating fans do have reason to be concerned about their country's audience interest, however. Recently I read an article which said that the amount of figure skating shown on Canadian TV will have to be cut. That made me very sad, although I am not Canadian.

Mathman made a wonderful post one time, for which I intended to thank him, but, I am sorry to say, I did not get around to it. (Flu excuse--I felt up to reading the writing, but I did not feel up to writing for reading lol.) He said, basically, that no matter how much people argued about CoP, the bottom line is that you cannot *force* the home audience to like it, or force them to watch figure skating under the CoP rules.

Yes, argument is futile, when it comes to wooing a home audience. Choosing what one finds pleasurable is one of the freedoms people cherish most, because, even if they find some other freedoms slipping away from them, no one can *make* them like anything, without using hypnotism or torture-conditioning on them. That is the point. People are going to like what they darned well please; and the first rule of business is to know your demographic, i.e., the natures and preferences of your customers.

Many people, because they know they have to work around what Cinquanta decides, are looking for reasons other than the new International Judging System, why figure skating popularity has declined in their country, looking for something, anything, upon which they themselves can have an effect; hence, this article.

*Yes*, I should like the public to know and appreciate just how hard and how physically risky figure skating is, but--

*No*, I should not like to see some kind of de-gayification of the sport. I think that idea is insulting to gay athletes, and will not have the effect desired on the home audience. In fact, the home audience might dwindle still further, in my opinion, if that course were to be pursued.

Dodhiyel said:

Canadian skating fans do have reason to be concerned about their country's audience interest, however. Recently I read an article which said that the amount of figure skating shown on Canadian TV will have to be cut. That made me very sad, although I am not Canadian.

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That is not due to the audience numbers though. CBC (the broadcaster that has been showing skating in Canada) is publicly owned and therefore suffering greatly due to the ecomnomy. They are also cutting coverage for other amateur sports. In fact, skating pulls in more viewers than football on that channel which is pretty impressive.

Dodhiyel said:

*Yes*, I should like the public to know and appreciate just how hard and how physically risky figure skating is, but--

*No*, I should not like to see some kind of de-gayification of the sport. I think that idea is insulting to gay athletes, and will not have the effect desired on the home audience. In fact, the home audience might dwindle still further, in my opinion, if that course were to be pursued.

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They are not trying to "de-gay" skating. There is a perception out there that most male skaters are gay - which is not true. There are some of course and that is great. Like it or not because of this perception many fathers will not put their boys in figure skating but rather in hockey. Maybe Skate Canada wants to increase the number of boys in figure skating as well as increasing viewership.

I have yet to read an article where Skate Canada claims they are trying to "de-gay" anything or said anything derogetory of negative towards gay skaters. On the contrary, Michael Slipchuck noted that skating is one sport in which you can be openly gay and be hugely successful.

I also don't believe that getting rid of feathers and sequins is a sexuality issue. Some of the skating costumes are so horrid I am embarrased! I am all for "streamling" the look! :thumbsup: