Way to go Zhanger!
Work hard, enjoy skating, and no injuries!!
Way to go Zhanger!
Work hard, enjoy skating, and no injuries!!
Am I the only one thinks that Ando might just win at the Olympics?Originally Posted by Red Dog
I agree. But Kim has it the worst since she's her country's only dominant skater. Actually, I'll turn the tides around and say I like that they'll have immense pressure because it means that the final results may NOT be what people might be expecting. Of course, one or both could rise to the challenge, but more often than not nowadays, the favorites falter and an underdog sneaks in for the win.
The concern now should be the Olympic SP. Kim and/or Asada could rush out to an insurmountable leadand it wouldn't matter how they skated the FS, the competition would be over at that point.
Yuna will be under enormous pressure and Mao will be too. Rochette is from the host country, She might put too much pressure on herself.
Miki has nothing to lose. She knows if Yuna and Mao are perfect, she has no chance of beating them so she might have less pressure.
no, count me
the most important thing for her right now is to keep healthy.
I won't be terribly surprised, as there has been a precedent for this before--2007 Worlds, anyone?
Imagine the reaction from the ubers if this happens though...I have a feeling that teh Internets might explode from the combined weight of the trolling videos and comments that will proliferate if Miki does leapfrog over Mao and Yu-Na for gold.
There's something in what you just said. I never thought of Ando playing spoiler but if anyone is capable of beating both Kim and Asada (and has done it before) it is her. That leaves Rochette off the podium, though...oops
If YuNa shows up (healthy), she'll be on that podium SOMEWHERE, I'm sure of it. The ultimate shocker would be if SHE fails to medal, which I seriously would be shocked if that happened.
I think Ando could win the Olympics too. I wouldn't be surprised if it happens.
But I want one of Kim/Mao to win. I'd like to see a dominant skater pull it off and both girls are just soo amazing. I actually think one of them will pull it off too.
One thing I will say about is this too, I think that one thing that will help in the case of Mao and Yu-na is both girls have had so much pressure in the past to deal with....
Don't...............Want......................To.. ..................Think.....................About. ..............................It :banging:
There will be foaming at the mouth even if Miki wins, because she's Japanese. I actually think if an European lady or a Canadian wins, the trolls would be more likely to shut up. Heck, if Joannie wins with Yu-Na bombing, the Yu-Na bots might be happy at least it didn't go to Mao, and the winner being from Yu-Na's 'adopted' country might lessen the pain a bit.
I'd say that Ando could take it from the top two if she weren't so darned inconsistent herself. Plus, her track record at the Olympics hasn't been too great. A shame, really, because personality-wise, she's one of my favourite ladies currently competing.
No one is looking at the not expected factor.
Kerringan - Baiul
Slutskaya - Hughes
Slutskaya - Hughes
Asada/Kim - Zhang???
As far as spirals, jumps and spins go, Caroline can do anything the Twin Goddesses can do, minus Mao's triple axel. ( And I read somewhere she was working on that. ) What Caroline lacks is refinement. She needs deeper edges, smoother take-off's, better foot-work. Basically, God ( as well as the devil ) is in the details. When she smoothes out her rough edges, raises her PSC scores, she will be competitive with anyone.
Caroline is a rough diamond. Somebody needs to polish her up.
I can't see her anywhere less than second. Once she hits that 3/3 in the SP the gold is almost hers. mao is not perfect, the gold is hers. Also Yu-na doesn't seem to have much of a problem with nerves, while mao always looks as if she is under a lot of pressure and sometimes looks scared to even begin her program.
This brings to mind Caroline's layback spin in the long at the WTT, which earned her the maximum amount of +GOE (3) from all the judges. I don't think any skater has managed this for a single element, and this is the second time Caroline has accomplished this, as the first was at SA in 2007. So, I'll say that what Caroline does well, she does extremely well. A problem with Caroline (and others have mentioned this, too) is that she does not always maximize the levels of her non-jumping elements due to negligence and what not. She can easily earn the maximum levels if not for these slip-ups. For example, at the WTT, she earned a Level 2 spin in the long and Level 2 footwork in the short. Her footwork is always graded a Level 3 in the long, and her FSS is usually a 4, so we know she can do better.
And I think it's utter rubbish that reputation doesn't play a huge role in PCS. How else to explain Rochette and Kostner's sky-high PCS for heavily flawed programs? It can happen nationally with Alissa, so I don't see why it can't happen internationally. Kostner's PCS in the LP at the latest Worlds was an absolute travesty, and don't give me that spiel about Kostner's basics being so wonderful, because in that particular LP, they were not.
Caroline could probably stick around for a few years, do about as well as she has been without significantly improving her basics, and she'd see a rise in her PCS due to the reputation factor. Or then again, she might not, as we never know why and when the judges will play favourites.
Huge difference in these scenarios. Zhang has not once skated in a senior World Championships prior to an Olympic season. Hughes had skated in 3 of them (1999, 2000, 2001) prior to Salt Lake City, was the reigning World bronze medalist, and had beaten the Olympic favorites Slutskaya and Kwan both at the 2001 Skate Canada going in the Games. Baiul was reigning World Champion in 1994. They were both serious medal threats heading into their respective Olympics. Caroline doesn't have the resume, reputation, or favoritism at this point in her career to challenge for Olympic gold.
Last edited by museksk8r; 04-19-2009 at 12:11 PM.
Following that logic it seems as though Rochette would win.
Laura Lepisto debuted at the GP circuit the same year Zhang/Wagner did and she always gets way higher PCS than both. Even before her Euro win.And I think it's utter rubbish that reputation doesn't play a huge role in PCS. How else to explain Rochette and Kostner's sky-high PCS for heavily flawed programs?
The reason for it, is the judges love Lepisto's skating even though she doesn't have the big jumps. Lepisto has amazing speed, ice coverage, edges, etc and Lepisto doesn't even have the jumps.
There is a marked difference between Zhang's basic skating and the basic skating of the top ladies. Rochette/Kostner included (although Kostners PCS at worlds were ridiculous high)...
And it YES matters. So yes Zhang either has to improve for her PCS to go up, or she has to hope for retirements for her Pcs to go up.
I'm not saying reputation doesn't factor into things it took Rochette awhile to get noticed by the judges mainly due to her own inconsistency. But Rochette always had great skating skills. It was only a matter for her of some consistent performances.
And I will say this if Nagasu could learn how to rotate her jumps and skate somewhat decently, there's no doubt that Nagasu with 7 triples would quickly be getting excellent PCS rival a lot of the top girls because of that Mirai skates with speed! has Ice coverage etc, great edges etc. These things matter. I don't know if Mirai will ever do so though. sigh.
Last edited by bekalc; 04-19-2009 at 12:32 PM.
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