Does anyone know if the USFSA will be sending any athletes to the Winter Universiade?
Does anyone know if the USFSA will be sending any athletes to the Winter Universiade?
Thanks for posting such nice thoughts about Alissa. Welcome.Originally Posted by PullingForSasha
I am SO HAPPY for Alissa tonight. After being a SashaFan, and worrying about falls, and also a KimmieFan, an then worrying about her falls, and I was always an AlissaFan, and worrying about HER falls....... I was starting to think I was a JINX!!! Michelle totally spoiled me. I never had to worry about her. Seriously, I don’t believe in that stuff, but still......I had to wonder. Why do I pull for Alissa that much? Besides her general wonderfulness, she answered TWO of my emails. The last one was, of all nights, this last Christmas eve, and because the holidays are a bit of a tough time for me, that just totally touched my heart. Just a couple sentences, but still! Alissa, you are a class act!
A little late to the party here, but here's my 2 cents. A very respectable competition for the ladies, especially after watching Europeans.
Hopefully Allissa can skate with a little more freedom and ease for the rest of the season, to take a very, very good performance to a great one, and maybe a medal.
Rachel's not my cup of tea, but she deserved 2nd, and hopefully she'll be even stronger for Worlds - I think she'll be up in the top 10, she should be able to beat Kostner, Korpii and probably Murakami.
Mirai needs some help finding the joy and spark in performing, in addition to a few technical issues, I hope Frank can do that for her.
The US is lucky to have Yuka Sato coaching here - she and Jason have done a great job.
4CC should be an interesting, meaningful competition this year - can't wait!
Did anyone mention Greensboro? They were (it was?) amazing! Sold-out Coliseum, a knowledgeable audience, and such warmth. It was wonderful to see PEOPLE and not empty seats in the stands! It's as if they'd been thirsting for skating for years.
Yay, Greensboro! Right up there with Spokane!
You don't think Czisny (or even Nagasu) is just as good as or better than Kirk, REALLY?
I knew Alissa would win after seeing her warm up. She looked like an elegant lady, compared to the rest and after seeing her at the GPF knew she could skate clean. Holding onto that triple loop like that sealed the deal. It was a beautiful skate, and the championship is well deserved.
Mirai reverted back to her old head games. Once she heard Alissa's score she told herself she couldn't win and gave up before she even started. Somehow she forgot all about making the world team. Very sloppy and uninspired performance. I was surprised she only got the one downgrade, quite frankly, her jumps seemed a lot tighter than last year. I think Frank is going to give her the silent treatment for a while now.
Rachael skated to win, but really she had no chance. Good performance from her, she deserved a strong second. It would have been nice to see her really go for the 3/3 though.
Why should the USFSA go with Yasmin. I don't think she's necessarily a better skater than Hicks. Yasmin hasn't exactly shown she can compete with top two Russian babies this season. And I'm not sure Hicks can compete, but I think Hicks with her 3flip/3toe can do better than Yasmin did. Its sad one of Siraj, Hicks, or Lam couldn't go, but I think Hicks more than earned her spot. She has a 3flip/3toe and is much more competitive technically the the other three.
I think it's good that you see such high potential for Alissa,but let's remember that Yuna Kim is no push-over either. There is probably no lady right now who could beat Kim, Alissa included.
Just watched the tape from last night. It went just as I'd hoped, with Alissa winning in what was hands down the best program she's ever done. I have alwys loved her gentle, flowing style so much and it killed me to see her stumble at times in the past. Going to Yuka and Jason has clearly been a great move and as a psychologist, even from my couch, I can see the increased confidence she now possesses. When she won in '09, I worried about how she'd do at Worlds but after this, as well as how well she did at GPF, I'm not worried at all for Japan and think she will get a medal. Hopefully Rachael skates as well as she's capable too, so we can finally get back the 3rd slot for next season.
Quote Originally Posted by Joesitz View Post
Although the top 6 skaters are not the Kwan/Cohen/Kirk of yesteryear.
Everyone keeps talking about these Russian babies. Yes they are impressive but have any of them gone through their growth spurts yet? Lets see them at 16, 17 be as good as they are now. At 13 ,14 these girls are all jumping beans so i wouldn't get all excited.
There you go.
I'm amazed that any fan could possibly have that much confidence in her.
Czisny and confidence never really went together, but I think I actually saw a different skater out there last night. Of course, it helped that she skated first out of the three title contenders (who knows if it would have gone the same had she skated last, for instance), but from the moment they called her name I saw a focused skater, trying to get into her zone. Not scared at all.
Also remember that now she carries the burden of reigning National champ. If there's any time that her newfound "confidence" will be tested...it will be at Worlds...and if she sticks around for next season, at 2012 Nationals.
Not gonna get my hopes up for Czisny at all. It'll be just as tough watching her at Worlds as it was in 2009. At least she actually deserves to go this time, so that's some consolation.
Last edited by R.D.; 01-30-2011 at 12:58 PM.
This was one of the best competitions I've seen in a while (Nationals wise, anyway.) My thoughts.
#6-Ashley. Good long program, but her inconsistency in the short is ruining her career. What a shame.
#5 and #4-Christina and Agnes. They have such potential, but a lot of people did at their age and fizzled out. Agnes needs a stylist. My mother thought she looked "tough, like Nicole Bobek." Since Nicole served time in my county's prison, that is not a good thing. Still, I like that she's her own person.
#3- Mirai. What can I say? That long program was lacking in any charm and originality. She needs to do lighter, or at least more famous music. Carmen last year was adorable. That heavy, serious Geisha music didn't do her justice. Her overall skating wasn't bad, though, just not perfect.
#2 Rachael. Her short program--much improved. She needs to skate to music with a tune, and she's getting a little niche for herself for making goofy faces during her footwork, which is good. Not perfect, but not bad, either. She could have an outside chance of a medal, and should get at least a high enough placement to get the 3 spots back. (Barring a meltdown, of course).
#1 Alissa. You go girl! If she skates clean, and the judging is fair, she should be in serious contention for a medal. She's already beaten everyone except YuNa at least once this year(all 5 at the GPF, plus Mao at one of the GP's, iirc.) She can do it if she stays calm. A gold? Maybe not, but a bronze or even silver is in reach.
The three of them were the podium at Nationals for at least 3 years. You didn't know that?
KIRK executed 3 Toes when ladies didn't.
MK stopped doing 3 Toes (even in Nagano)
Cohen stopped doing her practice 1 Quad in competitive skating.
Hughes was very lucky that one comp she won.
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