Vancouver was the greatest ladies competition in history all around, and seeing the best lady skater of all time Yu Na Kim win by skating the best ladies performances of all time, was the perfect exclamation point.
Vancouver was the greatest ladies competition in history all around, and seeing the best lady skater of all time Yu Na Kim win by skating the best ladies performances of all time, was the perfect exclamation point.
I was on the edge of my seat in 1998. Same in 2002. And even 2006, to a lesser extent.Originally Posted by Olympia
But 2010? Nah, it felt like any other event I watch.
I remember the adrenaline, the heart-pounding I used to feel whenever US Nationals or Worlds was happening live. I lived for that. The last year that happened? 2005.
The closest I've ever come to feeling that again was in the moments just before Cohen's SP at 2010 Nationals...didn't know what we were going to get from her.
I do miss that feeling...but then again, those years were my years of peak interest, which has fallen since - remains high enough that I still post, but I no longer go out of my way.
Was it a great competition? Yes.
Was it suspenseful? No. Kim had it in the bag post-SP and you KNEW it. Besides, probably the most predictable ladies outcome at an Olympics.
Okay, but how much of that has to do with the presence of a strong American contender (in those years you mention) vs a foregone conclusion?
Agree to disagree. In the post-figures era, I don't think a lady that won the SP won the title, and we'd already seen Kim meltdown at Skate America and she'd only broken 130 once. If Kim had a skate closer to her GPF/SA LP and Asada matched Four continents (or Rochette matched nationals) we'd be talking about a different result. I knew she'd won after she'd skated, but everyone did. It was that kind of astonishing skate.
How much of what exactly?
Both played a factor.
Drama or not I prefer top notch skating. Considering the gold medalist in 2010 would have crushed the gold medalist in 2002 and 2006 (and beaten the gold medalist in 1998), the silver medalist in 2010 would have crushed the silver medalist in 2002 and 2006, and the bronze medalist in 2010 would have crushed the bronze medalist from 2002, 2006, and 1998, I dont see how anyone could prefer the 2002 and 2006 Olympic ladies competition to 2010, but to each their own.
I had the pleasure to met her at Skate Canada. she was not competing, but I recognized her. she was very beautiful without heavy make ups. but about all she was very nice ! She signed my program, and she signed at a corner and the autograph was small and neat. I can tell that she is humble and modest in nature. I wish her all the best!
Still, it would have been even more exciting under 6.0 judging, where the top three skaters cannot rely on a cushion from the short program. Although Kim skated great in the LP, she didn't have to in order to win.
I get what you mean.
From a technical standpoint, yeah, 2010 was the best competition ever. Yu-Na's performances, Mao's three 3As, and nearly all of the skaters in the top 6 turned in amazing clean performances. But from a competition standpoint, 2010 was pretty much a wrap after Yu-Na skated...actually before she even finished I knew she'd won (after the 2a-3t I was like, "Yep, that's it. She won." Lol!). Yu-Na was flawless that night. In previous competitions when Yu-Na would pop a jump or even fall she'd still score through the roof and win, so after getting through that entire program without a mistake I knew even if Mao hit all of her jumps and skated flawlessly there would be no way for her to come close to catching Yu-Na. Essentially, the competition was over. Amazing competition but anticlimactic in results IMO...
Now 1998, 2002 and 2006 were drama-filled which is why I found them more exciting. Michelle and Tara going head to head in 1998 and both turned in amazing performances; Michelle and Irina going head to head in 2002 with Sarah being the underdog spoiler; and in 2006 you had nearly a three way tie at the top going into the FS and another underdog winner with Shiz beating out Sasha and Irina. More drama and less predictable results made those Olympic competitions more entertaining and exciting to watch than Vancouver for me.
True, thank goodness she did. 6.0 or COP it's still astonishing what she did. Of course, I knew she would win if she skated well ... but I was still on the edge of my seat to see if she would and just crossing my fingers that she wouldn't have some shocking implosion. I still felt like I needed a drink to get me through her LP
1998 and 2002 were more emotional for me because, well, Michelle Kwan was there and other US ladies I was attached to and because the competition was closer. But in 2010 the excitment came from the expecation that you were going to see one of the greatest Olympic performances ever - and that happened. It was almost superhuman.
Last edited by Layfan; 01-10-2013 at 11:09 AM.
I'm not sure why this is the topic on an Alissa Csizny thread, but I will weigh in. Vancouver was not a great competition for me--at least not with the ladies. It was a foregone conclusion that Yu Na would win. She had won everything else that season, by large margins after skating a strong short program. After her short program at the Olys, it was over. She put an exclamation point on it by skating well in the long, but it was no surprise that she won. Vancouver also was COP skating at its lowest point, with cookie cutter spiral sequences and catch-foots, galore. I was much more on the edge of my seat in 2002--now that was a competition. 2006 was in Italy, so I knew who won before it was broadcast--likewise 1998 (in Japan). I think the best skating was at 1998, where Michelle and Tara both skated two clean programs.True, thank goodness she did. 6.0 or COP it's still astonishing what she did. Of course, I knew she would win if she skated well ... but I was still on the edge of my seat to see if she would and just crossing my fingers that she wouldn't have some shocking implosion. I still felt like I needed a drink to get me through her LP
1998 and 2002 were more emotional for me because, well, Michelle Kwan was there and other US ladies I was attached to and because the competition was closer. But in 2010 the excitment came from the expecation that you were going to see one of the greatest Olympic performances ever - and that happened. It was almost superhuman.
I agree with jenaj. The way the SP was handled in the 6.0 era produced more exciting LP showdowns. At least among the top three it was, I don't care what you did yesterday. I don't care what you are going to do tomorrow. Right here, right now!
I also found Vancouver anticlimactic. There's no disputing the result but I wish the judges had Mao closer to YuNa after the SP because they both skated those short programs fantastically.
I can see your point regarding 1998 and 2002 however 2006 was just plain weak. I cant even watched the ladies long programs from that event on tape, it was so awful. 1998 the field lacked depth outside the top 2, Tara and Michelle were literally 5 falls better than the rest, which for didnt appeal, but I can understand how some loved it with the close battle of Tara and Michelle and both skating great (in all time Olympics they would probably be silver and bronze behind 2010 Kim), and the underdog comeback story of Chen. 2002 I can definitely see how some found it exciting as well.
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