Chan, Stojko & other Canadians discuss the men's event | Page 10 | Golden Skate

Chan, Stojko & other Canadians discuss the men's event

colleen o'neill

Medalist
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
:) I was just going by reports of the state of the jump before his unfortunate injury . Everyone knows he's had to work at it and everyone should know he has. Irregardless, my point was really that many people are truly spiteful about him as many are about Plushenko , and other skaters at times...ready to pounce on every inadvertant word of their chosen skater to hate, ready to read the utmost meanness ,conceit , disrespect into every comment and extrapolate that into evidence of the person's worthlessness as a skater and even as a human being.

This is far uglier than anything any of them has ever said
 

tralfamadorian

Rinkside
Joined
Aug 4, 2003
What the Hell is wrong w/you? Out of all the things I've seen posted over the last 48hrs, this is the most disgusting and sickening thing I've read.

I get not liking a skater for whatever reasons, but saying someone needs to be destroyed? That is beyond twisted and sickening.

This *is* only a sport for crying out loud. It's not life or death or having to deal w/a loved one's terminal diaginosis. It's only skating after all.

I mean...Really? What is wrong w/you?

I think the poster was just trying to imitate the tone of the NA coverage on Plush and apply the same attitude to an NA skater to make a point.

See this for comparison from the men's short program thread:

The fluff last night was mild compared to what they just ran tonight.
"The cold war is back and this arrogant, trash talking Russian must be stopped." :eek:

They called him a one trick pony and said Evan has everything.

Lucky for Dai, he was not even mentioned. :rolleye:

If Dai skates great tomorrow I hope the judges reward him with fair marks. I thought he won the SP.
 

zowie

Rinkside
Joined
Nov 5, 2006
I'm beginning to feel that way too. Has he even admitted yet that he was overmarked and that Johnny Weir was undermarked? He also didn't need to trash Johnny's decision to put flowers on his head in the kiss and cry.

Don't blame chan because the judges did not like johnny this year.
 

zowie

Rinkside
Joined
Nov 5, 2006
:) I was just going by reports of the state of the jump before his unfortunate injury . Everyone knows he's had to work at it and everyone should know he has. Irregardless, my point was really that many people are truly spiteful about him as many are about Plushenko , and other skaters at times...ready to pounce on every inadvertant word of their chosen skater to hate, ready to read the utmost meanness ,conceit , disrespect into every comment and extrapolate that into evidence of the person's worthlessness as a skater and even as a human being.

This is far uglier than anything any of them has ever said


I would agree with you. The behavior on this forum has become very pitbull like.
 

gfskater

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 4, 2009
I can't believe a 16 year old would use profanity. Gosh darn it, this golly jeepers gee wiz world is going to heck!

You were being sarcastic, right? 'cause growing up, all my friends started swearing at about eleven.

I thought the golly jeepers gee wiz would give that away!

I was pretty good at profanity at 11 and an expert at 16. Not sure who would have got the gold for profanity amoung my friends.

Patrick skated at UD this past summer. It was amazing to see a skater like that among us mere mortals. People forget that all these guys are the top skaters in the world and if you put yourself, friends, or children next to them in the rink you feel like you have training wheels on.

One thing I noticed is that when Patrick skates, he hardly pushes. He moves around the rink with edge power.

As for his demeanor, he was kind to everyone, got out of other skaters way, and respected everyone. At the end of his off-ice training he would help Kat put away her equipment (she has a lot) I never saw another skater help Kat put her equipment away! He is a true gentleman and very mature.
 
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oxade21

Match Penalty
Joined
Mar 24, 2004
I agree with those people (Stojko, Cohen, Witt, Sikharulidze, Tarasova, Tchaykovskaya, Urmanov etc.) who stated that judging system needs to be changed. Otherwise this sport is majorly F#$%ed!!!!!
Plushenko was blatantly robbed! That's all I have to say.
 

bekalc

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 1, 2006
That's a bit disingenuous, considering he was only in two international competitions this season. And even then, he's actually landed two clean 3axels. And two more if you count Canadian nationals, and I don't know why you won't, except to make Chan look worse.

Perhaps but theres also last year as well to take into account. And I don't think Canadian Nationals counts because he's the only top male skater there, so he'll win there no matter what which takes the pressure off.

Alexei Yagudin once said a jump is consistent when you can land it consistently in competition. There are skaters who can be very consistent with a particular jump in practice but then have issues with the jump in competition. Yu-na Kim is like this with the loop. So until Patrick is consistently landing the 3axel under pressure, its not a consistent jump for him. It does sound though like its getting better in practice (good for him!)

As for everyone hating on Patrick. Well the fact is that most of us don't get to interact with Patrick personally. What we know of Patrick is what we see of him in interviews. And Patrick has made the choice to rag on a lot of his competitors, for whatever reason. That leaves a negative impression. And I'm sorry comments like anyone can do a quad IS disengenious for someone who has never landed a quad in competition. If its sooo easy than Patrick should do it. Now if someone like Plushenko or Yagudin were to say "anyone can land a a quad" so the quad should be worth less, considered unimportant. It would be one thing. But for someone who has not mastered an element (and if he mastered it, it would be in his programs) to say anyone can do that element is wrong.

Patrick may very well be a really likeable guy in real life. I have no trouble believing this but unfortuanely thats not how he has chosen to portray himself in the media.
 

gfskater

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 4, 2009
If Patrick Chan is a true gentleman and very mature you have no idea whatsoever what maturity or being a gentlemen means. It's quite sad.

You may be right. When I was 19 I was playing beer pong in the dorm rooms, bar hopping, and partying till 3AM! I was not a role model for maturity. I am over 40 now and have matured for the most part.

I met Patrick Chan this summer over a three week period. He was one of the most mature, potile, and respectful 19 year old kids I have ever met.
 

gfskater

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 4, 2009
As for everyone hating on Patrick. Well the fact is that most of us don't get to interact with Patrick personally. What we know of Patrick is what we see of him in interviews. And Patrick has made the choice to rag on a lot of his competitors, for whatever reason.


Patrick may very well be a really likeable guy in real life. I have no trouble believing this but unfortuanely thats not how he has chosen to portray himself in the media.

I guess that is where I am at a disadvantage. I have not seen a lot of interviews with Patrick raggin on his competitors. Can you point some out interviews where he is doing this? Not someone telling us that he said these things but him actually saying it? For example did someone ask him "Can anyone else besides Evgeni do a quad?" Perhaps he responded "Yes there are a lot of people can do quads" Or do you really think he meant that my 13 year old daughter can do a quad?

If you can show me an interview with a direct quote in context of Patrick "ragging on his competitors" I will concede that personally he is mature but professionally he is imature. I have some colleagues at work like that. Outside of work they are great but in the office the are dogs.

I just find it hard to believe that the person I met, who got out of the way for my 13 year old daughter on the ice so many times, is immature and rags on his competitors.
 

stickle

Rinkside
Joined
Mar 21, 2007
I guess that is where I am at a disadvantage. I have not seen a lot of interviews with Patrick raggin on his competitors. Can you point some out interviews where he is doing this? Not someone telling us that he said these things but him actually saying it? For example did someone ask him "Can anyone else besides Evgeni do a quad?" Perhaps he responded "Yes there are a lot of people can do quads" Or do you really think he meant that my 13 year old daughter can do a quad?

If you can show me an interview with a direct quote in context of Patrick "ragging on his competitors" I will concede that personally he is mature but professionally he is imature. I have some colleagues at work like that. Outside of work they are great but in the office the are dogs.

I just find it hard to believe that the person I met, who got out of the way for my 13 year old daughter on the ice so many times, is immature and rags on his competitors.

Thank you for bringing a bit of first-hand sensibility to this discussion which has gone completely off the rails. I have heard very similar reports about Patrick, that he is very charming and gracious and extremely polite and respectful and amazingly mature for a 19 year old. Unfortunately, some haters have taken a couple of silly responses he made to inane questions from reporters and have created some netherworld personality for him.

And this nonsense about him being overmarked for his Olympic performance because of some perceived hometown bias is very annoying too. The kid has been getting top marks from international panels of judges in competitions all over the world where he was far from his hometown. He's a great skater who has other strengths besides quad jumps and he gets fairly marked on the quality of those accomplishments completely within the rules of the competition and the scoring mechanism of the arena he and everyone else is skating in. Period.
 

BigJohn

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 22, 2008
I agree with those people (Stojko, Cohen, Witt, Sikharulidze, Tarasova, Tchaykovskaya, Urmanov etc.) who stated that judging system needs to be changed. Otherwise this sport is majorly F#$%ed!!!!!
Plushenko was blatantly robbed! That's all I have to say.

No. You cannot win a decathlon if you are only good at one of the ten events, like the pole vault. The winner is the guy who gathers the most points in all 10 events.

Plushenko is good at the quad, but a lot of other elements in his program were below par: other jumps, footwork, transitions... His marks were very generous and he should feel good about his silver because it's pretty much a gift.
 

silverlake22

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 12, 2009
Thank you for bringing a bit of first-hand sensibility to this discussion which has gone completely off the rails. I have heard very similar reports about Patrick, that he is very charming and gracious and extremely polite and respectful and amazingly mature for a 19 year old. Unfortunately, some haters have taken a couple of silly responses he made to inane questions from reporters and have created some netherworld personality for him.

And this nonsense about him being overmarked for his Olympic performance because of some perceived hometown bias is very annoying too. The kid has been getting top marks from international panels of judges in competitions all over the world where he was far from his hometown. He's a great skater who has other strengths besides quad jumps and he gets fairly marked on the quality of those accomplishments completely within the rules of the competition and the scoring mechanism of the arena he and everyone else is skating in. Period.

Hooray :clap: I agree. I have only heard good things about Chan, apparently he's hardworking, sweet, and polite. I believe it too, he seems genuine in all his interviews. He deserves good scores and yeah maybe they were a little high here in the FS but who hasn't been overmarked once or twice in their skating career? It's not like Chan won a medal here with the mistakes he made. All these people suggesting he's a brat and a baby, I don't know why you think that.
 

Alatariel

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 15, 2010
You may be right. When I was 19 I was playing beer pong in the dorm rooms, bar hopping, and partying till 3AM! I was not a role model for maturity. I am over 40 now and have matured for the most part.

I met Patrick Chan this summer over a three week period. He was one of the most mature, potile, and respectful 19 year old kids I have ever met.

He sure wasn't mature, polite or respectful when he blabbed last year, or this year in regards to his fellow skaters. And the Johnny Weir dig, completely gratuitous one too was simply mind-boggling.
 

amateur

Final Flight
Joined
Nov 5, 2006
^^^^^^^ Yeesh, Alatariel, give it a rest, will you? I'm not sure what you think you know about maturity and class, given the way you carry on in here.

Nobody's perfect, and EVERY young person has things to learn. And even people who are full of class have lapses in judgement...
 
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stickle

Rinkside
Joined
Mar 21, 2007
He sure wasn't mature, polite or respectful when he blabbed last year, or this year in regards to his fellow skaters. And the Johnny Weir dig, completely gratuitous one too was simply mind-boggling.

I guess some minds are easily boggled. :sheesh:
 

silverlake22

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 12, 2009
When a news clip comes out talking about how Patrick Chan was found drinking underage (if he's in Canada then he isn't underage but w/e), smoking pot, or sleeping around then I'll believe he's tool, but until that happens (which it won't because he's a good kid), I'm going to continue thinking of Patrick as a great athlete and good role model for teenagers :agree:
 

Sk8n Mama

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 23, 2004
i know I'll regret sticking my nose in here and perhaps help to perpetuate this stuff...(sigh) Oh, well.

Apparently, Patrick's 3A had become really quite consistent and he had been training a quad with some success before his injury.. He tried to come back from his injury in time for Skate Canada, which was obviously too soon. He still was not 100 % at Canadians.( Though they tried to put a good face on it ) He lost his coach because he opted for hi-tech training to speed recovery of the Axel. His programs are so filled with point garnering detail , that he might not need as many jumps on a given day as many other competitors might. This can be true for other CoP style athletes as well. So ,in light of his injury, his camp decided not to push for the quad this season, though he still trains it. He hasn't written off the possibility of ever using it. More important in his training, is to restore the 3A to a high consistency. ( He hasn't said no-one should ever do the quad, or that skaters who do the quad are not good skaters. He's said ..somewhat inartfully ..that it's not enough to rely on it alone. )

I wish he would learn a little diplomacy, sooner rather than later, but trust he will, however long it takes. So I can't really get my knickers in a twist when he goofs.

Likewise, I can't summon the outrage of some others when Plushy engages in his "it's not man skating" routine..Even when I see translations of what he says for Russian consumption, which has been a little stronger than what he's said in NA media.. I wouldn't expect anything else, particularly when he's back in the game. ( I'm not so sanguine about the politicking of federations ..)
But ,back to Plushy..like Patrick training the quad, I notice he did try to alter his program a bit for CoP ( too little , too late) : all the while , saying skating is regressing. Evan, whatever his past offenses, put up a sign in his room saying "Mind your own business.", wily old veteran that he is. (Patrick, take note .) Johnny, having learned to couch barbs in graciousness, praises his competitors while pointing out he needs no lectures from flowing gold locks or tanned faces. Brian has made so many excuses , hardly anyone credits anything he says anymore , the poor guy.
I'd rather judge them by their skating. If I cared so much about speechifyin', I'd go to a debate.

I can't say I feel the same about Elvis, though. He's downright venomous. I can't buy that he's being objective. I feel he's wanting to protect his own image. No skater can control the direction a sport takes as it progresses, once they've retired ( Trixi Schuba ), but he won't let go. Do I buy that he really wants to shower Johnny with kudos ? Not on your Nellie. He's trying to prove his own fairness , so we'll buy it when he says it's not personal. Methinks he doth protest too much. He never wanted the sport to be even as balanced as it was when he was in it and I think he resents anything that he feels may make him appear in a negative light. He's not defending Plushenko.. he's using Plushy to prop up his own image.

The press is prone to hyperbole and premature annointings and Elvis has recieved much of this in his career. Recently some sillies ( Rod Black among them, I believe ) have speculated that Patrick holds the potential to become our greatest champion ever. I guess the great Elvis doesn't take that personally, either.

So to those who look to Elvis to rationalize an extreme position..consider the source.

It really is starting to get creepy how you post exactly what I'm thinking! ;)
 
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