2012 Skate America Ladies SP

[Skater Boy]

Bravo next world champion Ashley Wagner; but what the heck was Leonova thinking. She shouldn't skate if she isn't ready - she is the world silver medallist who really needs an overhaul. She should have had a new look and stonger skating skills and consistency ready knowing the baby ballerinas were entering the "workforce". good grief. Nice skate by Adelina but she needs to be more confident and skate with power and confidence. Poor Rachel - you really have to decide - school or competitive skating. Could this be the farewell tour of Ms. Flatt - because she did seem a bit "flat" with her skating.

[Mao88]

LADIES SHORT PROGRAM - VIDEOS & RESULT

1. Ashley WAGNER (USA) - 60.61 Short Program
2. Adelina SOTNIKOVA (RUS) - 58.93 Short Program
3. Christina GAO (USA) - 56.63 Short Program
4. Mae Berenice MEITE (FRA) - 54.41 Short Program, 2nd Copy
5. Valentina MARCHEI (ITA) - 54.01 Short Program
6. Viktoria HELGESSON (SWE) - 50.29 Short Program
7. Haruka IMAI (JPN) - 49.90 Short Program
8. Sarah HECKEN (GER) - 48.11 Short Program
9. Alena LEONOVA (RUS) - 46.72 Short Program
10. Rachael FLATT (USA) - 43.72 Short Program

[lulu]

Thank you so much for the videos! I would love to see Leonova & Flatt jump up in the rankings after the long program.

[burntBREAD]

Haruka Imai's SP: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auISbiFWWZw

I wish her jumps were more consistent...

[lavender]

Yu na is skating this season right? If so, maybe she can snatch another world title.

[R.D.]

Unfortunately Flatt seems to be on her way out, at least competitively. I feel her body is there, but her heart isn't. She merely shrugged off a score that is REALLY low for her, especially given that she didn't have any falls. There are shows out there if she wants to continue skating. Kinda sad, actually, she looked to be a level below the field and it almost seemed like she had little to no business being there.

Gao has improved quite a bit, which was somewhat of a surprise to me. I think that was the best SP she could have skated, and she held nothing back. She should be proud. However, there is still the freeskate left and that will tell the whole story. With her in school, expectations are again set low.

And as for Wagner, the impact of her SP is reduced much more than I expected when watching on the computer screen. But she still did reasonably well, a good start and there's plenty of room for her to build up from that.

[janetfan]

And as for Wagner, the impact of her SP is reduced much more than I expected when watching on the computer screen. But she still did reasonably well, a good start and there's plenty of room for her to build up from that.

If this event had been skated in Russia I suspect Ashley and Adelina's scores would have been reversed.

I didn't see the protocols but Ashley had a two-footed landing - wondering how much was deducted?
I was not overly impressed with Ashley's SP and thought aside from the singled flip - Adelina's skating was better.

[ImaginaryPogue]

In fairness, the audio in that clip isn't synced (unless you watched it on icenetwork).

[alexeifan]

I was only impressed with Rachael and Gao. Both made massive improvements in movement, and I loved Rachael's spread in eagle, just gorgeous! Thought Ashley and Adelina made no improvement in their movement/choreography. I don't think Yuna or Mao should have much to worry about, especially in regards to these new Russian up in comers.

[kwanatic]

If this event had been skated in Russia I suspect Ashley and Adelina's scores would have been reversed.

I didn't see the protocols but Ashley had a two-footed landing - wondering how much was deducted?
I was not overly impressed with Ashley's SP and thought aside from the singled flip - Adelina's skating was better.

She lost 0.93 on that jump. Three -2s, four -1s and one 0. I think b/c she fully rotated the jump she didn't lose as much as she would have if she hadn't. Also, it didn't disrupt the flow of the program either.

I'm certain had Adelina not messed up her flip, she'd have earned a score of 62+ and the fact that without a flip she's right on Ashley's heels speaks volumes as well. Adelina hasn't skated a clean FS in quite a while but if she can put out a good effort, I wouldn't be surprised if the judges put her first. The good news for Ashley is that she happens to be a really great FS skater.

[skfan]

Haruka Imai's SP: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auISbiFWWZw

I wish her jumps were more consistent...

thank you for the link to haruka's SP. thanks, everybody, for all the links

i also wish that haruka's jumps were more consistent, but i really appreciate the improvements she's made in her skating posture, skating skills, the attention she's paid to how she holds her fingers. those details matter to an old fuddy duddy like me. i also think this year's programs suit her very well, better than last year's, and i'd really like to see them at their best.

she skated the LP well at Nebelhorn already, but i'm greedy and want to see more excellent performances from her

[skfan]

She lost 0.93 on that jump. Three -2s, four -1s and one 0. I think b/c she fully rotated the jump she didn't lose as much as she would have if she hadn't. Also, it didn't disrupt the flow of the program either.

I'm certain had Adelina not messed up her flip, she'd have earned a score of 62+ and the fact that without a flip she's right on Ashley's heels speaks volumes as well. Adelina hasn't skated a clean FS in quite a while but if she can put out a good effort, I wouldn't be surprised if the judges put her first. The good news for Ashley is that she happens to be a really great FS skater.

you really think this is going to happen after last year czisny vs kostner LP face-off? i'm glad for your unwavering faith in universal justice, *tongue in cheek, not meant to be condescending* but i seem to recall this is skate AMERICA, LOL, where the arena announcer said, the current leading score is ____, do ya think ashley wagner is gonna beat that before they announced her score... *rolls eyes*


that said i hope both ashley and adelina bring their best, haruka, ms. gao with the still hunched posture, rachael, marchei, all the ladies do. then let the judges do what they do, at least the skaters will feel pretty good about their performances.

ETA - i ate crow in the pairs LP thread, but i'll add it here too--in the LP the announcer did that 'the current score to beat thing' before J/C's score... maybe it's a COP tradition we can all look forward to. i was wrong to assume it was a ploy to drum up cheers for the american champ wagner.

[jenaj]

I think Rachael was under-scored. By her score, I was expecting a disaster and it wasn't. I like her new look. It's what some of us have been advocating for a long time--dark colors, long sleeves, white boots.

[Mao88]

LADIES SHORT PROGRAM - VIDEOS & RESULT

1. Ashley WAGNER (USA) - 60.61 Short Program, 2nd Copy
2. Adelina SOTNIKOVA (RUS) - 58.93 Short Program, 2nd Copy
3. Christina GAO (USA) - 56.63 Short Program, 2nd Copy
4. Mae Berenice MEITE (FRA) - 54.41 Short Program, 2nd Copy, 3rd Copy
5. Valentina MARCHEI (ITA) - 54.01 Short Program
6. Viktoria HELGESSON (SWE) - 50.29 Short Program
7. Haruka IMAI (JPN) - 49.90 Short Program, 2nd Copy
8. Sarah HECKEN (GER) - 48.11 Short Program
9. Alena LEONOVA (RUS) - 46.72 Short Program
10. Rachael FLATT (USA) - 43.72 Short Program

[Tonichelle]

In fairness, the audio in that clip isn't synced (unless you watched it on icenetwork).

I was going to ask about that. good to know...

I didn't like the footwork sequence, but that may be because the audio issue on the youtube vid made it not go with the music.

I'm in the minority (surprised? you shouldn't be lol) but I think this is a great program for Ashley. It's powerful! which is a great look on her.