Should Weir skip the GP this year?

[psycho]

The way people talk, it's as if he was doing show after show, after show, all GP season. He did one show. At Christmas.

You know who did many shows during the GP season and especially before worlds? Evan Lysacek. And he's a world champion. That worked out for him! So maybe we should stop blaming "shows" for a random illness he aquired, and accept that sometimes **** happens and it's not always someone's fault.

PS: Skipping GP is a ridiculous idea. He'll do the GP, get some competitive mileage on his programs, and be ready for nationals, just like all the other skaters out there.

[greengal5874]

As much of a fan of Johnny's that I am, I feel he needs to be training, conditioning, cross-training, etc. more. As said above, Evan did more shows, but Evan became world champ. But Evan also has a personal trainer, nutritionist, and definitely trains enough.
Anyhow, I think that Johnny is capable of anything, and I wish him luck. He definitely needs to do the Grand Prix- that's a given! I think he is one of those skaters that could be REALLY great (more so than the past) if he got ultra committed.....(not that he isn't, but I do think he could step it up a notch)

[Tinymavy15]

You know who did many shows during the GP season and especially before worlds? Evan Lysacek. And he's a world champion. That worked out for him!

The difference is that Evan's shows are mainly (if not all) in the U.S. That is a big difference from traveling to from the East coast to east asia back and forth.

[Tonichelle]

Johnny also doesn't just do skating shows... he ends up going to fasion deals and half a dozen other things, as per his journal and other reports... I'm not so narrowminded that that doesn't also take up a great deal of his time. It might be a stress reliever or whatnot, but it definitely takes him away from training...

and the other points of his eating habits and the fact that he'd complained about fatigue in the past is another reason he got sick. There are ways to prevent the common cold... granted skaters do get sick (sometimes at the worst possible moment) but you should still take precaution.

[gocaroline]

johnny a real rare talent. I feel he just needs to keep focus on his physical condition and training to achieve his best. Doing GP will get him the feedback from the judges and some competitive mileages. So totally skipping GP doesn't sound like a good plan IMO. Besides, I really hope to see his new program early in the season

[pippa]

I really doubt that Johnny spends any more time on extracurricular activities than any other skater - he has weekends off from training, just like all of them, and I'm sure they all enjoy personal activities during that time. Johnny is just more open with his fans about his personal life than most skaters are, through his journals and now Twitter, so we hear about the shopping/fashion shows/dinners out he spends time on more than we do about others.

As for his doing shows overseas rather than in the US, that isn't so much Johnny's choice as a necessity. He has never been invited to perform in the only US skating tour, Stars on Ice, like other current US skaters such as Lysacek, Belbin & Agosto, Davis & White, McLaughlin & Brubaker, Meissner, Flatt, Zhang and Rippon have. At the most, he can maybe book one or two single skating appearances each off-season in the US, and otherwise he has to depend on Korea, Japan and Eastern Europe to earn money to support his skating.

[dancingqueen]

Johnny also doesn't just do skating shows... he ends up going to fasion deals and half a dozen other things, as per his journal and other reports... I'm not so narrowminded that that doesn't also take up a great deal of his time. It might be a stress reliever or whatnot, but it definitely takes him away from training...

Seems like he is training everyday now except for weekend, so I don’t think he is away from his training now.

and the other points of his eating habits and the fact that he'd complained about fatigue in the past is another reason he got sick. There are ways to prevent the common cold... granted skaters do get sick (sometimes at the worst possible moment) but you should still take precaution.

For his food life and his general health care, I agree about that.
There are many solutions to avoid to get cold for general people, but for those skaters, who are busy with trips from events to events, besides Johnny, Daisuke Takahashi ( in 2007 GPF, was it cold? ), Jeremy Abbott ( 4CC and also Nationals ? 2009), staying in a cold ice rink, I suppose skaters are more easy to get health issues.
I wonder that Evan never got cold or any health issue since he’s had nutritionists ? I’m also hoping Johnny will get a good nutritionist.

[psycho]

Johnny also doesn't just do skating shows... he ends up going to fasion deals and half a dozen other things, as per his journal and other reports... I'm not so narrowminded that that doesn't also take up a great deal of his time. It might be a stress reliever or whatnot, but it definitely takes him away from training...

Examples of these "half a dozen" other things? He did one fasion show in February, when his season was as good as over. What other things took up "a great deal of his time" and took him away from his training, I'd love to know.

There are ways to prevent the common cold... granted skaters do get sick (sometimes at the worst possible moment) but you should still take precaution.

What makes you think he doesn't take precaution? Is there footage of him running butt-naked through the snow somewhere that I missed?

The difference is that Evan's shows are mainly (if not all) in the U.S. That is a big difference from traveling to from the East coast to east asia back and forth.

Yes, but the number of them (and he still had to travel West coast to East coast etc.) far outweighs anything Johnny has done.

I wonder that Evan never got cold or any health issue since he’s had nutritionists ? I’m also hoping Johnny will get a good nutritionist.

Evan complained of a cold at US nationals. Mroz, Abbott had colds at 4CC and Abbott at Nationals. Tomas Verner and Chan had a cold at GPF. Do I need to make a list of how many people got sick there, do I?

I am not saying a good nutritionist will hurt, but he won't protect you from a cold either...

[efreedman]

I get that he has financial pressure, but if he cut out the luxuries at least for this season he could afford it all and have some left over and not be so drained come nationals. It's really hard for me to see a skater (or any athlete/celeb) cry poor mouth when they're in designer everything (and said designers aren't sponsoring them).
.

Just a few comments. Much of the designer wear that Johnny sports is from many prior seasons ago, or have been gifted to him by fans. In fact, when I was in Korea at FOI, I witnessed a number of his fans walking in with gifts for him in designer shopping bags. I think that Johnny has limited his shopping tremendously compared with prior periods (i.e., prior during 2006).

[pippa]

Just a few comments. Much of the designer wear that Johnny sports is from many prior seasons ago, or have been gifted to him by fans. In fact, when I was in Korea at FOI, I witnessed a number of his fans walking in with gifts for him in designer shopping bags. I think that Johnny has limited his shopping tremendously compared with prior periods (i.e., prior during 2006).

That is true - for example, Johnny always wears a white Chanel watch that is quite expensive, but many people don't know it was a gift to him from a Japanese fan. There's no question that since Champions on Ice went out of business three seasons ago, Johnny has not had the spending money that he had back when he had that tour as a steady income.

[Snowgirl]

Johnny absolutely should do GP series and GP final if he makes it not only because he needs judges' opinion, prize money and ISU points, not only because in case he misses it it will be a year between his last competition and Nats, but because there is a rule that prior international season results will be taken in consideration for Oly team selection, and n this case he will have zero result. No way should he miss GP.

[dancingqueen]

Is there footage of him running butt-naked through the snow somewhere that I missed?

Evan complained of a cold at US nationals. Mroz, Abbott had colds at 4CC and Abbott at Nationals. Tomas Verner and Chan had a cold at GPF. Do I need to make a list of how many people got sick there, do I?

I am not saying a good nutritionist will hurt, but he won't protect you from a cold either...

Sounds like many skaters were having cold. Thank you for the info about it. I didn’t know about Evan also had a cold and was complaining about it at Nationals.

About Johnny and GP , I agree with everyone who said he should do it. Definitely.

[seniorita]

No, first cause selfishly I missed him this season and probably he will retire after the next one and I want to see him as much as possible and second I didnt find him missing worlds as the end of the world( i think he should have gone instead of mroz), he had a good season until usa nationals, and these things like getting sick happen even if he hadnt had the korea benefit thing, as for all his other activities most skaters do shows etc, I guess fs is an expensive sport..
maybe if he doesnt choose two gp + gpf, all on the other side of the earth?

Originally Posted by psycho
Is there footage of him running butt-naked through the snow somewhere that I missed?

this is a new costume of his?please forward the video..spread the knowledge

[Jaana]

I don´t think that Weir should skip GP, because there he will get important feedback about his programmes. I think though that he has kind of peaked too early for his GP competitions. Worlds or in 2010 the Olympics is the best time to peak. Of course he also has to skate well at the Nationals, because he will face tough competition there.

If Weir should skip something, in my opinion that would be participating in shows that need wide travelling, at least in those that are a few weeks before the Nationals.

[nylynnr]

If JW skips the GP, it's over. Re: the number of shows he does, v. other U.S. men -- the issue with the Christmas show was one of timing. JW had been in Asia, gotten ill, flown back home, recovered, then flew back to Asia again. In retrospect, he should not have done so; however, hindsight is always 20/20. I would lay money that no matter what type of Christmas show Kim Yu Na is doing in '09, JW will not be there, and if he is, well . . . he'd better be first or second at nats to guarantee the Olympic spot.

My question is this. All of us spend much time discussing skaters' schedules, how they do too much, don't peak at the right time, etc. However, in other sports, i.e., tennis, athletes are expected to perform day in and day out, every other day at a Grand Slam and every day during a regular tournament. In other sports athletes perform once a week during the season (NFL) or 2-3 times (NHL, MBL). In the arts, ABT performers go twice a week during the season. In figure skating, it's a big deal for athletes to do a summer event, two GPs, the GPF, nationals, 4cs/Euros and worlds over an 8-9 month period. Why is it such an issue in skating? Any medical people out there? I once asked a top skater this question; the response was, those other athletes/dancers are getting paid a lot of money, which of course is part of it. Any other thoughts?