How do they do it in gymnastics, in the case of a country that cannot field a full team but has one or two indivual athletes who are competitive, if not necessarily medal contenders?
Regardless of what the head twits think, skating is not a team sport. (synchro excepted, of course)
Isn't sychro supposed to be a test event in 2014?
Good question. They probably have a qualifying round. Is there a "Yuna Kim" type gymnast that comes from say Mongolia and he/she is the only gymnast from their country - who just happens to be good enough to be in the finals in either the individual apparatus or all around?
I guess if they are not part of a team they get their chance with others and if their marks are high enough they qualify for the medal round.
There is the team competition and final, the individual apparatus competitiion and final, and for the cream of the crop, the All- arround competition.
The obvious way to create more competitions (of the kind that can create stars) is for new singles formats that aren't as punishing physically as single skating has become.
Solo dance is an obvious choice (and I note that USFSA is starting to take that seriously).
I'd also like to see a competition with less jumps (but with jumps) that was still demanding technically that more mature skaters with better overall technique but without the biggest jumps (anymore) could excell in.
If they do it they should either use other skaters or else do it after the individual events are done. No one will want to wear themselves out & risk losing an individual medal.
Regardless of what the head twits think, skating is not a team sport. (synchro excepted, of course)
Isn't sychro supposed to be a test event in 2014?
To me, the difference is that skaters skate their routines and are completely exhausted; in gymnastics, even stars like Nastia Liukin or Shawn Johnson do their 1-3 minute routine, then wait for an hour and have the energy to go again.
There are many fans world wide, and a few in America, that do not consider Figure Skating a little girl's sport. There are other disciplines and the athletes are capable of doing what athletes do. If it's too tough for the Ladies, they should not compete in this extra event.If they do it they should either use other skaters or else do it after the individual events are done. No one will want to wear themselves out & risk losing an individual medal.
I have never wondered about that. If it's a Sport, one does not have to worry about doing an event. If one does, one should not do the event.I have often wondered about that. Why is skating so much more taxing than other sports?
I have often wondered about that. Why is skating so much more taxing than other sports?
Boxers fight a three-minute round, rest for one minute, then have to go ouit and do it again -- ten times in a row. Skaters consider themselves ill used if they have to compete twice in a month.
I, too, have often wondered about this. So far the best I can come up with is 1. it's the culture that's grown up around the sport -- "the season is too long, we have too much to do, etc." and it has become an axiom; and/or 2. some skaters diet continuously, restricting calories so they are extremely slim.
I have often wondered about that. Why is skating so much more taxing than other sports?
Boxers fight a three-minute round, rest for one minute, then have to go ouit and do it again -- ten times in a row. Skaters consider themselves ill used if they have to compete twice in a month.
Well in boxing, you only fight a couple fights a year. Why is it that football players can only play one game a week? In my opinion, skating a four minute long program is one of the most tiring experiences in sports. Not to mention the training, which is some of the most intensive training out there.
I agree with you that the training is very intensive.
But do you honestly believe 4 minutes of skating is as tiring as running a marathon? What about Nordic events? Or long distance swimming events. What about a cyclist doing one of the mountain stages at the Tour de France? Or a time trial race? A skater in top shape can skate their 4 minute program several times within an hour's time frame. I am not saying it is easy - but an active midfielder in a soccer/football game can cover over 10 miles in a game, much of it heavy sprinting.
There is a concentration factor to consider. Former chess champion Bobby Fischer was known to sweat off 5-7 pounds in a long, tough chess match. Most of the time he was sitting down. (Maybe he should have changed his brand of deordorant )
Maybe some of the skaters here can give us their take on this. But Frank Carrol is known to have his skaters do their programs straight through several times each day as they get close to a competition.
That doesn't sound as tough to me as fighting a 10 round boxing match or many other things I can think of.
I once heard Peggy Fleming talk about performing and training and she said that a skater in peak condition can skate their SP and LP several times a day, every day for a week and it would be no problem at all for them.
What she said can be very difficult is to skate at an event every 4-6 weeks over a 6-8 month period.
That is an interesting perspective. In Peggy's day the skaters were required to prepare for only two or three competitions a year. Now the model is precisely "an event every 4-6 weeks over a 6-8 month period." No wonder so many skaters blow off the Grand Prix, Four Continents, etc., in an Olympic year.
There is a concentration factor to consider. Former chess champion Bobby Fischer was known to sweat off 5-7 pounds in a long, tough chess match.