No more Euros and 4CC before Olys!! | Golden Skate

No more Euros and 4CC before Olys!!

PolymerBob

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 17, 2007
So here is the proposal ....

Urgent Proposal No. 1
FRANCE
Rule 128
Cancel the European and Four Continents ISU Championships in an Olympic year.

Replace them by the World ISU Championships at the same time (i.e. just before the Olympic Games).
Reason: Olympics after Olympics, the statistics show very clearly that since 1994 the number of Olympic medalists present at the World ISU championships just after the Games is continuously decreasing.
After both the 1998 Olympics in Nagano and the 2006 Olympics in Turin the four Olympic winners of the 4 gold medals did not compete in the ISU World Championships (in Minneapolis in 1998 and in Calgary in 2006).
Out of the twelve Olympic medalists since 1998, at least half of them did not participate in the World Championships a month later. Therefore, revenge becomes impossible.

The Olympic Winter Games should logically be the summit of the Olympic season and the ISU World Championships, if held just before the Games, would become the theater of a much greater enthusiasm due to the increase in top level participation.

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What does "Therefore, revenge becomes impossible." mean??
 

hikki

Final Flight
Joined
Dec 18, 2007
Country
Japan
That'd be sad. Back in '94 season the Euros was so exciting with Bonaly beating the reigning champ Baiul, the comebacks in the Ice Dance (and Pairs? I don't remember if M&M and G&G skated there), etc. Memory lane...

But then again there weren't as many competitions. This proposal must be good for skaters.
 

PolymerBob

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 17, 2007
My understanding is that the European Championship is older than the ISU. It has a very long history. I'm not sure anyone can just cross it out with the stroke of a pen.

I also seem to remember a promise Mr. Cinquanta made about this year's Worlds. He said ( if I recall correctly ) that all the stars from the Olympics would be at Worlds.
 

Buttercup

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 25, 2008
It'sa federation proposal, not an ISU proposal. Its chances of passing the congress are thus greatly reduced.

I also seem to remember a promise Mr. Cinquanta made about this year's Worlds. He said ( if I recall correctly ) that all the stars from the Olympics would be at Worlds.
You had the gold and silver medalists in ladies and dance, the silver and bronze medalists from pairs, and the bronze medalist from the men's event. Most of the medalists who did not show up in Turin were officially retired or expected to retire (or injured). That's probably pretty more or less what Speedy had in mind.

ETA: why anyone would think that skaters would be more likely to show up for Worlds right before the Olympics rather than right after is beyond me. It'll be a huge burden for skaters who don't train nearby and will probably end up being like 4CC in an Olympic year.
 
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Joined
Jun 21, 2003
As Buttercup points out, these proposals from individual membwrs (France in this case) usually have little chance of passing. Unlike the "proposals" from the ISU's own technical committee, which almost always pass.

I think "revenge is impossible" means that if you get beat at the Olympics and are seeking revenge at Worlds the next month, you can't get it becaise the Olympic medalists usually don't come to Worlds after the Olympics anyway. So why bother to hold Worlds? The French point seems to be, if you can't get revenge on your enemy, what's the point of having a competition? :)
 
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brownfox

On the Ice
Joined
May 5, 2010
My understanding is that the European Championship is older than the ISU. It has a very long history. I'm not sure anyone can just cross it out with the stroke of a pen.

I also seem to remember a promise Mr. Cinquanta made about this year's Worlds. He said ( if I recall correctly ) that all the stars from the Olympics would be at Worlds.

And majority of them didn't participate. Speedy is really powerful.
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
There is merit to having the Worlds before the Olys, and getting revenge at the Olys. The problem is eliminating the Euros and 4CCs. They always appeared before the Olys so why not before the Worlds? How can that affect the Natiionals?
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
Interesting that this is an "urgent proposal," considering that it is about what might happen in 2014.
 

miki88

Medalist
Joined
Dec 28, 2009
I am curious~~ why is the French federation so concerned about this that they title it "urgent proposal"? :) I feel a Worlds before the Olympics might put too much pressure on the skaters to attend. It's more prestigious than 4CC after all. However, I do think they should keep Worlds during Olympic year, because even if the top skaters don't attend, it's always a good place for upcoming stars to make an impression with the judges.
 

jennyszy

Rinkside
Joined
Feb 16, 2010
4CC isn t comparable to euros... the euros have a history, and all european skaters take part in it every year inless injured...
4CC is always later on the agenda and if my memory isn't too bad, it is not the prority for top skaters ANY competive year... some go and some don't... it besomes a problem when the top skaters don t attend in the host country!!

worlds after the olympics should ^be kept as it does prepare the post olympic season, i agree with miki88.
 

colleen o'neill

Medalist
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
/\ I wonder too.. I don't really mind the skipping of Euros and 4CC from the Standpoint of sparing the skaters from a gruelling season...but would that mean adjustments to the Oly qualification requirements..??
 

gkelly

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
I don't really mind the skipping of Euros and 4CC from the Standpoint of sparing the skaters from a gruelling season...but would that mean adjustments to the Oly qualification requirements..??

Not necessarily. As far as the ISU is concerned the current year's Euros and 4Cs results play no part in Olympic qualification requirements. The number of slots per country have been assigned based on the previous year's Worlds results and a second-chance qualifying competition in the fall.

In the past some national Olympic committees have used Euros results to decide whether to bother sending a skater to the Olympics or leaving a spot unfilled, or to decide which of two or three skaters to send if that country has more spots available at Euros than for the Olympics.

If they're still going to wait until January to decide whether to send a skater to Olympics or not, they could use the January Worlds instead.
 

rtureck

Final Flight
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
I prefer to have 4CC, and euro before olys, at least for the second tier skaters to participate
 

princess9

On the Ice
Joined
May 1, 2010
I feel, imo, they should keep the euros before olympics, have worlds before Oly and keep the 4cc after all is done, at end of season so up and comers and non olympians can be assigned there for experience.
 

colleen o'neill

Medalist
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
:eek:/\ Except European skaters are excluded from 4CC..so what about their up and comers..and depending on how you look at it, Euro skaters would have the benefit of one more competition under their belts..or non-Euro skaters would have the benefit of a break... before World's & Oly's.

It's a conundrum that won't be resolved until there are enough skaters to hold Euro's and say, an Americas, and Asian championships . (What makes 4CC a poor counterpart for Euro's is the insane distances the competitors have to travel. ) Or drop Euro's and 4CC. , but that seems to be going over like a lead balloon .
 
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Mafke

Medalist
Joined
Mar 22, 2004
This is just so stupid it defies description.

If the ISU hasn't learned by now that the olympics are not the way to build a year-in year-out fan base, then they never will. Just pathetic.
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
I am curious~~ why is the French federation so concerned about this that they title it "urgent proposal"? :) I feel a Worlds before the Olympics might put too much pressure on the skaters to attend. It's more prestigious than 4CC after all. However, I do think they should keep Worlds during Olympic year, because even if the top skaters don't attend, it's always a good place for upcoming stars to make an impression with the judges.
Good Heavans! We don't want to put pressure on the Artistry of our skaters. They are not like all fans of sport. They are much too fragil. The proposal is for sportsminded fans who want to see la revenge. It will make more money when there is a sports angle to it. Not unliked the "Battle of the Whomevers".

I still think the Euros and 4CC could be squeezed in before the Worlds Why they are taking up the proposal now when it could wait two years, I dunno.
 
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