- Joined
- Aug 21, 2012
Sotnikova has always had big jumps, and even she has had trouble adjusting to longer legs and a filled-out body. When a skater has tiny jumps to begin with, I can foresee falls and double-footed jumps. Yes, Julia's 3t is bigger than her other jumps, but she can't do more than two combinations with 3t, and the first jump has to get off the ice.
As it is, looking at the protocol, Julia gets -GOE on many of her jumps, and even on the ones with +GOE, she mostly gets 0s and 1s, because the jumps are small and/or the flowout and ice coverage just isn't there.
She definitely needs to improve her jumps--if not in preparation for growth spurts and body changes, then for better scores. Right now, she's impressive due to her flexibility, age, and interpretation (which is usually present), but once she moves past the teen-starlet stage, she'll need more to anchor her spot.
Am I the only one who thinks that, even after her growth spurts and weight gain, Julia will still be relatively lean and long-legged? She's so light that I can't imagine her going through the same issues as Tukta or Sotnikova, both of whom are broader and taller.