Jamie Silverstein and Justin Pekarek.
Julia Soldatova.
Jamie Silverstein and Justin Pekarek.
Julia Soldatova.
I don't think anyone could do the difficult entances to jumps the way Matt Savoie did. His 2006 Nationals long program to the Mission was a masterpiece and so close to flawless. I was sad to see him retire. I also would have liked to have seen NNN grow into a mature singles skater. Too bad her hip injury was so severe, I had always hoped she would come back.
Shawn Sawyer, Lesley Hawker, Ryan Bradley, Kimberly Navarro & Brent Bommentre
I know they made it nationally, but I think they should have done better on the world level.. for Lesley it was really Canada's lack of spots for women that did her in (and a boring but then-consistent Mira Leung)
Oh, goodness, yes, Silverstein and Pekarek. They were amazingly expressive. I think Silverstein was something like 16 when they first showed up in seniors, and Justin wasn't much older.
Tiffany Stiegler was another one who had a huge impact when she first showed up. She began as a preteen skating with her brother Johnnie and later had another partner when he quit skating. Then for a while she tried ice dance. She was a terrific performer with charisma to spare, and I was sorry that things never worked out for her.
Last edited by Olympia; 04-04-2010 at 10:21 PM.
Nikodinov for sure, as well as Chouinard, Shawn Sawyer, Alexander Abt, Lucinda Ruh, Emmanuel Sandhu.
That's all for now.
I do not consider Cohen in this group, as she was highly successful internationally.
Oh My....Great post though!
US
1. Andrea Gardiner
2. Nikodinov
3. Matt Savoie
4. Nicole Bobek (you know she could have accomplish more...)
International
1. Anna Rechino (the talent this girl had.....)
2. Krisztina Czako
3. Diana Poth
4. Stanick Jeannette (Best footwork Male Skater to this day, and most unique entry spinner ever, who would think to do a 3-turn / walley jump / backward slide/ into a Sit Spin!! Talk about +3 GOE!)
5. Mikkeline Kierkgard
Last edited by TtonyV7; 04-04-2010 at 11:39 PM.
Originally Posted by blue_idealist
Oh, yes! Plus the US ice dancers on the world level - Roca & Sur, Punsalan & Swallow, Naomi & Peter, Melissa & Denis (undermarked on the World level, anyone?)
Of the ice dancers you mention, I especially love Roca and Sur, and I'm glad we got to see them in Stars on Ice for such a good long time. They had a wonderful flow, and their moves always seemed to come out of the music rather than being done for effect.
Exactly the skater who came to my mind.
My wife and I saw her at Junior Worlds in 2000, and she became our favorite skater at that entire event. To our frustration, we never got to see her in competition again. Her skates at international performances were never included in the television coverage we received at home. She did not skate at Europeans 2002 (which we attended) because of injury. She switched from singles to pairs (and from Denmark to Germany) and was entered into the 2004 Nebelhorn Trophy, which we attended, but she and her partner dropped out at the last minute because of illness or injury. (There was a consolation prize--they were replaced by Savchenko and Szolkowy in their first international competition together.) She then retired from competitive skating a year later, just a couple of months before we attended the German national championships. She did appear as a skating double for Claire Danes in the movie "It's All About Love"; this is the only other place in which we've seen her skate.
Does she still skate in shows, or has she moved on to other things?
Christopher Bowman. I think he would have been one of the greats of all time if he could have kept his demons at bay.
Oh wow... Please forgive those skaters with discriptives v. names as my memory just isn't what it used to be...
Angela, of course. I almost cried when she didn't make the 2002 team
Jenny Kirk
NNN
Matt Savoie
US Ice Dance as a group pre Belbin & Agosto. Undermarked, under valued and in some cases - flat out cheated
Viktoria - do they get anymore beautiful on ice than her?
Yunika Ota - Probably the greatest skater that never made it. I love this skater - she took my breath away
The French girl with the famous Olympic meltdown. Sometimes the worst thing to happen is a last flight placement
Arguable Additions
Tim Goeble - yes, he did medal at the Olympics and Worlds, but it seemed a bit unfair how his career ended.
Nicole Bobek - mixing spoiled princess w/ bad luck is never a good thing
Tonya Harding - even if she brought it on herself
Emily Hughes - I miss her fiery, TA DA! skating
Fumie - Again, never really appreciated for her actual skating & determination. More for her ability to rise to the occasion
Miki Ando - I know. She's a former World champ. But her talent level is so much greater than those around her, but she never had the za za zu to make a case for herself with the judges.
I didn't include Be Be or Alissa because - well, because I just never felt they wanted the top spot as much as I wanted it for them... Don't get me wrong: I'm a huge fan of Be Be, but still.
Top on my list is Naomi Nari Nam. She had just a year of glory. What a pity. I still can't forget MK's face after NNN finished her breakthrough Nationals LP. Everyone thought it marked the start of an amazing rivalry. It's a pity she never recovered from her injury in time. She had such clean, crisp jumping technique. Simply gorgeous.
Naomi Nari Nam, Ludmila Nelidina, Rudy Galindo, Alexander Abt.
Naomi Nari Nam, Matt Savoie, Angela Nikodinov, and Lisa Ervin are on my list.
TOMAS VERNER
still hoping he can win a World medal before he retires
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