Men's LP

Artur Gachinski's LP:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvDqL96SCLM

For some reason, I think Gachinski is the combination of 70% Plushenko + 30% Abt. He did great with a little transitions (Gosh, I've been brain-washed by this board!). I like him better than Amodio. I don't mind he gets a little high PCS. Well done for a young skater in his senior debut! Congratulations to Gachinski!

Smiles for Brian! Did anyone see how he injured his hand? Was he slightly ahead of his music at the end?

I've just come back home from the Megasport rink. It was amazing competition.
I want to admitt that only 3 skaters made the whole stadium to stand up.
They are:
Patrick Chan. Everybody understood that it is a Champion and that he is far above the rest!!!
Brian Joubert. No matter how he skated people will always love him!
And of course Artur Gachinski. Russians are so happy now. Each of his jumps made ​​us perk up and up and scream louder and louder.

Kozuka was great, but...not many emotions.

Shlepa said:

I've just come back home from the Megasport rink. It was amazing competition.
I want to admitt that only 3 skaters made the whole stadium to stand up.
They are:
Patrick Chan. Everybody understood that it is a Champion and that he is far above the rest!!!
Brian Joubert. No matter how he skated people will always love him!
And of course Artur Gachinski. Russians are so happy now. Each of his jumps made ​​us perk up and up and scream louder and louder.

Kozuka was great, but...not many emotions.

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That's a little sad that Kozuka didn't get a standing ovation.

If Plushenko were doing commentary here is how it would go:

"Artur deserve medal; he is man & he does quad like good mens figure skating"

"Nobunari Oda should win Platinum medal; is no such thing as too much jumping in mens figure skating"

"Takahashi deserve boot problem; he did not do quad in short program of mens figure skating"

"American federation send wrong men to World Championship; only one does quad"

Shlepa said:

I've just come back home from the Megasport rink. It was amazing competition.
I want to admitt that only 3 skaters made the whole stadium to stand up.
They are:
Patrick Chan. Everybody understood that it is a Champion and that he is far above the rest!!!
Brian Joubert. No matter how he skated people will always love him!
And of course Artur Gachinski. Russians are so happy now. Each of his jumps made ​​us perk up and up and scream louder and louder.

Kozuka was great, but...not many emotions.

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Thanks glad to hear the great atmosphere!! Enjoy rest of competition!!

If Plushenko was in this competition, he would do very well. Commentary is not his forte.

BackStage Barbie said:

If Plushenko were doing commentary here is how it would go:

"Artur deserve medal; he is man & he does quad like good mens figure skating"

"Nobunari Oda should win Platinum medal; is no such thing as too much jumping in mens figure skating"

"Takahashi deserve boot problem; he did not do quad in short program of mens figure skating"

"American federation send wrong men to World Championship; only one does quad"

Click to expand...

I'm behind in watching and just saw Brezina's performance and marks in lp -- sorry to his fans, but what a huge lie! Brezina did not perform better than Fernandez, Joubert, Dornbush or Miner. Sad that neither of the Czech's performed well, but if Brezina's marks aren't clear evidence of the political scoring in this sport (as if there isn't more than enough evidence of that), I'll sadly jump off the Golden Gate bridge.

Art&Sport said:

I'm behind in watching and just saw Brezina's performance and marks in lp -- sorry to his fans, but what a huge lie! Brezina did not perform better than Fernandez, Joubert, Dornbush or Miner. Sad that neither of the Czech's performed well, but if Brezina's marks aren't clear evidence of the political scoring in this sport (as if there isn't more than enough evidence of that), I'll sadly jump off the Golden Gate bridge.

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Could you please elaborate who is politicking for Brezina? I am just curious.

chloepoco said:

That's a little sad that Kozuka didn't get a standing ovation.

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After Gachinski skated, everyone left was a threat to his medal. Any home field would have acted the same way..

If Plushenko were in this competition, he'd get silver because his SP score would be a lot higher than Kozuka had. Whichever way, Russia would only get one podium finish.

chloepoco said:

That's a little sad that Kozuka didn't get a standing ovation.

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In all fairness, Eurosport British commentators can not stop raving about great atmosphere in the auditorium.

Art&Sport said:

I'm behind in watching and just saw Brezina's performance and marks in lp -- sorry to his fans, but what a huge lie! Brezina did not perform better than Fernandez, Joubert, Dornbush or Miner. Sad that neither of the Czech's performed well, but if Brezina's marks aren't clear evidence of the political scoring in this sport (as if there isn't more than enough evidence of that), I'll sadly jump off the Golden Gate bridge.

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Art&Sport, I too think Brezina was scored quite generously for what he did but I think it's more like the judges got a bit excited in the GOE and PCS departments after his barnburner of an opening--his opening few jumping passes were amazing and I would think that definitely influenced the judges' perception of him. Plus I can't imagine the Czech figure skating federation having much politicking force in the figure skating world--surely they would've politicked Tomas Verner a world medal by now, given how talented he is.

BackStage Barbie said:

If Plushenko were doing commentary here is how it would go:

"Artur deserve medal; he is man & he does quad like good mens figure skating"

"Nobunari Oda should win Platinum medal; is no such thing as too much jumping in mens figure skating"

"Takahashi deserve boot problem; he did not do quad in short program of mens figure skating"

"American federation send wrong men to World Championship; only one does quad"

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This cracked me up. I can actually hear Plushy saying this stuff.

Sorry to burst your bubble, kendal, fs is a political sport. The scoring alone is evidence of that. The fact CoP was instituted in the first place is evidence of that. The fact the judges are anonymous is evidence of that -- they cloak their politics in anonymity, but it often shows up clearly in the scoring. If Brezina had been able to stay on his feet, and not obviously show that he was losing energy and stamina at the end, then I could live with his marks (which I'll have to anyway, but not w/o speaking out). He's been a judges' favorite, and the fact Verner did not perform well and dropped in the standings apparently meant the judges were bound to keep Brezina in a high position. Gachinski in a high position too, also shows Politics is alive and well in the sport of figure skating ... nothing new. Brezina is an excellent jumper with good skating skills, but he sorely lacks artistry and presentation skills at this point in his career, IMO.

Art&Sport said:

Sorry to burst your bubble, kendal, fs is a political sport. The scoring alone is evidence of that. The fact CoP was instituted in the first place is evidence of that. The fact the judges are anonymous is evidence of that -- they cloak their politics in anonymity, but it often shows up clearly in the scoring. If Brezina had been able to stay on his feet, and not obviously show that he was losing energy and stamina at the end, then I could live with his marks (which I'll have to anyway, but not w/o speaking out). He's been a judges' favorite, and the fact Verner did not perform well and dropped in the standings apparently meant the judges were bound to keep Brezina in a high position. Gachinski in a high position too, also shows Politics is alive and well in the sport of figure skating ... nothing new. Brezina is an excellent jumper with good skating skills, but he sorely lacks artistry and presentation skills at this point in his career, IMO.

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You still did not answer my question. Are you implying that there is some kind of Chech lobby there? You may know something I don't know as I never realized that their federation is so powerful to politic.

Thanks for your input, evangeline. Verner IMO should have received a bronze medal at Worlds in 2007 (I believe it was, I have to check) when he had a fantastic lp. Verner is extremely talented, but he hasn't managed to pull it altogether consistently. Luck, hard work, talent, and unfortunately politics are all factors. Tomas, no matter how talented, has often not been consistent. He hasn't been as favored by the judges either, as has Brezina, and Oda for that matter. Perhaps the judges prefer blazing jumping ability vs artistry and complete skating (even consistency doesn't matter sometimes, as in the case of Brezina's lp here).

Ha ha, kendal, as if it takes a powerful Czech lobby alone for politics in scoring. I don't need to name names, all I need to do is point to Brezina's performance and his marks. Politics is rampant, and what the skaters do on the ice matters as well, but not as much generally as where the judges want to slot skaters. That's why it's important to skate one's best, and then the placements of course are out of the athletes' hands. You actually seem to know more about federation lobbying and politicking than I do.

Artur & Frontloading

Bluebonnet said:

Artur Gachinski's LP:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvDqL96SCLM

For some reason, I think Gachinski is the combination of 70% Plushenko + 30% Abt. He did great with a little transitions (Gosh, I've been brain-washed by this board!). I like him better than Amodio. I don't mind he gets a little high PCS. Well done for a young skater in his senior debut! Congratulations to Gachinski!

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Thanks Bluebonnet. Anyone have thoughts on why Artur also frontloads his jumps ala Plushenko?

ie. Artur's quad, 2x 3A, + triple triple combination are all at beginning of the program..... though not as telegraphed as Plushy's....

Maybe it could be beneficial for Artur to shake up his team a bit. Retain Mishin as a jumping coach, then go overseas for help with choregraphy, spins, etc. Help him expand before it's too late....

Art&Sport said:

Ha ha, kendal, as if it takes a powerful Czech lobby alone for politics in scoring. I don't need to name names, all I need to do is point to Brezina's performance and his marks. Politics is rampant, and what the skaters do on the ice matters as well, but not as much generally as where the judges want to slot skaters. That's why it's important to skate one's best, and then the placements of course are out of the athletes' hands. You actually seem to know more about federation lobbying and politicking than I do.

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You are the one talking about politicking. you are very vague in your accusations and living in your own psychotic bubble. LOL.

Finally got my composure back - it was a competition to remember for more than one reasons.

I kinda blame myself for not including it in my little wish list yesterday that Nobu not to break the Zayak rule. As I wished, he did not do too many combos, just did a wrong combo instead...sigh...

Other wishes came true mostly; Takahiko came back from the 6th extremely strong, Patrick gave us a nearly perfect performance, Brian pulled it together just like he did at the Euros, at least Tomas had a go at 4T, and Daisuke, against all odds, gave me one of the most passionate choreo step sequences of the season on the international stage.

Delighted with Michal's 4th finish at the end of the rather difficult season; after learning what happened at the qualifiers, I did not believe he had his physical strength back yet. Two kinds of the quad landed to boot. He came in the 4th last year, even without a triple-triple combo in the long. What a difference a year can make when you're young!

Also delighted with Artur's performance; it took me a whole season to warm to his long (I always liked his short in a quirky way) but it was a performance well deserved to be rewarded with the score it received. And that boy has a nerve of steel! How old is he? 17? Only one representing Russia in the WC held on home soil? Bravo.

I am of course deeply saddened by what happened to Daisuke. It did not have to happen today. But it did and that's life. I was however impressed by the mental strength he's got now. Too many years have I spent worrying about my most beloved headcase; now I can just say I trust him - no matter what happens, he'll not be beaten by it. And the best thing that has come out of this disaster is that he is now openly talking about continuing to compete. I am not sure whether he'll win any more World or Olympic medals, but a joy of seeing him skating competition programmes will overweigh any disappointments in placements.

Ross Miner! The big hole in my heart that was created when Jeremy missed the spot, has been partially filled by his performance today.

I so wanted Daisuke to steal my heart (again) today, but Brian took it instead by his gutsy performance. In the battle of costumes, Daisuke won though.

And finally, this is what I want to say to Takahiko - thank you for the performance. I'll treasure it for a long time.