Which THREE U.S. Ladies do you want to see at the Olympics next year? | Page 13 | Golden Skate

Which THREE U.S. Ladies do you want to see at the Olympics next year?

R.D.

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
LOL at anyone thinking there is a chance Gold or Wagner wont be on the team. You can quote me now and save the link if you think there is a prayer you will be able to bring it up at U.S Nationals next year, but either Gold or Wagner will need to fall atleast 3 times (actual falls, not 3 falls worth of mistakes like I often refer to with Chan) to not make the team, no matter how well the rest all skate. It is a done deal period. Even in the unlikely event one was so bad at Nationals they finished out of the top 3 the USFSA would name that skater to the team anyway and just bump the 3rd place finisher.

And in the event of injury? Or illness?
 

R.D.

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
If serious enough they will just WD from Nationals, petition for a bye to the team, and be given it.

:think: Well...the last two times that happened the skater(s) ended up WDing anyway. They ended up being too injured to compete after all.
 

ForeverFish

Medalist
Joined
Aug 21, 2012
LOL at anyone thinking there is a chance Gold or Wagner wont be on the team. You can quote me now and save the link if you think there is a prayer you will be able to bring it up at U.S Nationals next year, but either Gold or Wagner will need to fall atleast 3 times (actual falls, not 3 falls worth of mistakes like I often refer to with Chan) to not make the team, no matter how well the rest all skate. It is a done deal period. Even in the unlikely event one was so bad at Nationals they finished out of the top 3 the USFSA would name that skater to the team anyway and just bump the 3rd place finisher.

They're smart girls. If either of them fell THREE TIMES at Nationals, they would probably volunteer themselves off of the Olympic team for the greater good of everyone involved.
 

chuckm

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Country
United-States
Ashley fell twice at 2013 Nationals and didn't volunteer herself off the top of the podium. Mao didn't hand her gold medal to Suzuki at NHK. Nor did Pdiddy concede the win to Denis Ten. Sorry, but skaters aren't all that altruistic. :sarcasm:
 

bigsisjiejie

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 22, 2009
I'll go for Wagner, Gold, and Nagasu, as long as they are all uninjured and are skating well next season. Much as I hate to admit it, I still prefer watching Nagasu on a bad day vs Zawadski, Zhang, Flatt, etc. on their good days. Gao is a nice skater but skates too intellectual for my taste, she's just missing the "it" factor and therefore has limited upside....also limited downside. Czisny is done for health reasons alone--I don't think we'll see her back except for a few halting tries at competitions in the fall. Unless something miraculous happens, I don't think the Hicks, Miller, Wang, etc. contingent are going to be able to pull it up to where they need to be...try for 2018 ladies, when you will all still be young yet more seasoned.
 

Finnstep

Final Flight
Joined
Apr 5, 2013
It depends on the purpose of that third spot. Why did US want that third spot? Was it because they want third US lady to be an Olympic medalist? Or did they want to give younger skaters a chance to experience Olympics?

I think Ashley and Gracie would be going as long as they don't have a meltdown at Nationals next year. And any lady from Top 10 this year can be third US lady, and I'm fine with that unless really inconsistent skater ends up being a third lady.
 

dorispulaski

Wicked Yankee Girl
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Country
United-States
the best things about having a third spot is that 1. It reduces the pressure on the top 2 skaters a little bit; in an Olympics year, anything that reduces the pressure at any point is a good thing. Olympics follows all too soon after US Nationals. 2. It gives one more skater an Olympic berth that could set that skater up for the next quad
 

ForeverFish

Medalist
Joined
Aug 21, 2012
Ashley fell twice at 2013 Nationals and didn't volunteer herself off the top of the podium. Mao didn't hand her gold medal to Suzuki at NHK. Nor did Pdiddy concede the win to Denis Ten. Sorry, but skaters aren't all that altruistic. :sarcasm:

I was exaggerating, obviously. :rolleye:

Let's just hope that they all skate well at Nationals next year. I'd much rather watch that than a splatfest.
 

Eddie Lee

On the Ice
Joined
Jan 19, 2007
LOL at anyone thinking there is a chance Gold or Wagner wont be on the team. You can quote me now and save the link if you think there is a prayer you will be able to bring it up at U.S Nationals next year, but either Gold or Wagner will need to fall atleast 3 times (actual falls, not 3 falls worth of mistakes like I often refer to with Chan) to not make the team, no matter how well the rest all skate. It is a done deal period. Even in the unlikely event one was so bad at Nationals they finished out of the top 3 the USFSA would name that skater to the team anyway and just bump the 3rd place finisher.

You could be right. However, if a favored one has a disastrous Grand Prix Season, fails to make the Final, or if in making the Finals falls 2 times in the Grand Prix Final LP & follows with a disastrous Nationals, would your guarantee still stand?
 

pangtongfan

Match Penalty
Joined
Jun 16, 2010
You could be right. However, if a favored one has a disastrous Grand Prix Season, fails to make the Final, or if in making the Finals falls 2 times in the Grand Prix Final LP & follows with a disastrous Nationals, would your guarantee still stand?

That is true. If one of Wagner or Gold has a really bad pre Nationals season, then while they would probably still get the spot if they skate well at Nationals, they would be far less likely to be protected against a better performance if they dont. So I guess I should just add the part as long as both have a respectable fall season. I think the USFSA expects both girls to make the final, and actually that could be challenge as there will be some very good non seeded skaters. I dont think not making the final would take either out of the top 2 heavily favored roles they are in now though, unless in a hugely unlikely event some other American did (and Nagasu, Gao, Zawadzki making the GP final would be a huge shock), as long as they still skate and score reasonably well, and if they dont make it is because one of the tough unseeded skaters had a great fall season.
 

ForeverFish

Medalist
Joined
Aug 21, 2012
You could be right. However, if a favored one has a disastrous Grand Prix Season, fails to make the Final, or if in making the Finals falls 2 times in the Grand Prix Final LP & follows with a disastrous Nationals, would your guarantee still stand?

Gold should have learned enough this season to medal at both of her GP events in the fall. A medal at the GPF may be out of reach with Mao, Yuna, and Carolina in the game, but she needs to show that she has the POTENTIAL to match the world's best.

Wagner shouldn't have any issues at the GP. She tends to peak earlier in the season--I'm hoping that she can ride the wave of success through Nationals, the Olympics, and Worlds.
 

pangtongfan

Match Penalty
Joined
Jun 16, 2010
I have a feeling Wagner will work her butt off this summer. I think there is a sense of relief that she retained her U.S title, helped the U.S regain 3 spots, and established herself as somewhat of a top international skater. She probably is feeling really good about making the Olympic team now, and having proven herself to the USFSA, so now she can go in more relaxed and attack bigger and better things which would be making the improvements she needs to move up. At Worlds she seemed more concerned about not blowing that 3rd spot and doing her job as U.S womens leader, than really gunning for a medal.
 

silverlake22

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 12, 2009
I have a feeling Wagner will work her butt off this summer. I think there is a sense of relief that she retained her U.S title, helped the U.S regain 3 spots, and established herself as somewhat of a top international skater. She probably is feeling really good about making the Olympic team now, and having proven herself to the USFSA, so now she can go in more relaxed and attack bigger and better things which would be making the improvements she needs to move up. At Worlds she seemed more concerned about not blowing that 3rd spot and doing her job as U.S womens leader, than really gunning for a medal.

I agree. Ashley is feisty and a fire, this season she seemed to get a little cautious midway through but I can't say I blame her, she admits to being overbooked, and that on top of being the reigning US champ and 4th in the World and therefore the "one to beat" is reason enough for one to become a bit cautious, but then she had that nasty hip-pointer injury at the GPF and then Salmonella right before Nationals. I bet she was just happy to make it through Nationals and get a spot on the World team after all that honestly. She did go for the 2a-3t at Worlds and it looked like she was trying to go for the 3-3. Kanako beat her at Worlds, Gracie and Zijun beat her in the FS, Mao, Yuna, and Carolina are all back in good form and delivering the big tricks - in other worlds, she knows what the current situation is and that she needs to up her game to even maintain her status in the World right now and hope for a World or Olympic medal, so I fully expect we'll see her trying the 3-3s and 2a-3ts next season. The beginning of the season things were different, Yuna and Carolina weren't there, Mao was competing with watered-down content too, the Russian girls were all struggling to some degree or another, and the other Americans were hot and cold - so I don't blame her for going conservative on the GP. But things have changed and she seems to have the drive and we've seen in practice she's definitely capable of the hard tricks so I do think we'll see them.

I remember Miki got the same kind of flack in 2010-2011 because she wasn't doing the hardest content, but out of fairness to her, at the GPF when she was last and couldn't see how others were going to skate, and at Japanese Nats and 4CC where she needed harder content to win, she did the 2a-3t and she ended up winning (the FS at the GPF only, but the other two events overall). At Worlds I think she was trying for the 2a-3t in her FS but it didn't happen, but even after that she admitted that she thought she would medal after she skated but didn't think it was necessarily going to be gold, and she lucked out a little and got gold anyway but it was a bit lucky.

Like Miki, Ashley is a fighter and is confidence in her ability to consistently land jumps. She'll work hard and train the hard tricks and put them out there when she needs them. I think now she's getting the memo she needs them so I think we will see her trying.
 

Eddie Lee

On the Ice
Joined
Jan 19, 2007
Like Miki, Ashley is a fighter and is confidence in her ability to consistently land jumps. She'll work hard and train the hard tricks and put them out there when she needs them. I think now she's getting the memo she needs them so I think we will see her trying.

Both are fighters (ambitious, determined), but there is a major difference. Miki was a jumping prodigy, the only lady on record who landed a ratified quad salchow--as a junior--at Junior World's no less! I don't believe she ever duplicated this as a senior. She was always admired for her beautiful jumps, and as her skating matured she developed a beautiful style and artistry. I remember Ashley well--when she placed third to Marai's first & to Caroline's second as juniors at 2007 Spokane Nationals. She was aggressive and fearless in her skating. That trio swept the medals a few weeks later at Junior World's only Caroline took the gold, Marai second, and again, Ashley in third. Flash forward 6 years, and Ashley garnered Gold at Nationals and her Jr. World's colleagues were competitors but didn't medal--a testament to Ashley's consistent drive!

As to Ashley's 3/3 combo and 2x/3....I yearn for her success with them. It seems as they've been in process during most of this past season with a brave attempt (unsuccesful) of the 2x/3t at the recent World's. I believe that she has to be comfortably successful with both, early in the upcoming season if she has any hopes of hitting them at Nationals, even more so at Olympics. She has developed a beautiful artistry over the years AND if she can achieve those tough combos, she should be a serious medal contender at Olympics.
 

skateluvr

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 23, 2011
Ashley is an artist, not a great jumper, but she seems to follow the kwan rules for success. I love her skating. She lacks speed when you put her next to caro, yuna, akiko, gracie. I wish she could improve in that area as it is so valued. I remember when Irina was the fastest lady flying into her jumps.

Ashley reminds me a bit of Kwan, with more detailed, nuanced choreo of course and I wish there were a place for skaters like Janet Lynn. Speed is only great if you are creating elegance in my book.
 

pangtongfan

Match Penalty
Joined
Jun 16, 2010
Ashley is still not the artist Kwan was, nor has the garnered the love and respect from the judges achieved through many years of success that Kwan has, so she cant follow Kwan's formula for success. She has to push the envelope technically more than did this year. Anyway she is competing in a whole new system, against a way stronger technical field of women than Kwan ever had to compete against.
 

Reginald

Match Penalty
Joined
Jan 28, 2011
I'll go for Wagner, Gold, and Nagasu, as long as they are all uninjured and are skating well next season. Much as I hate to admit it, I still prefer watching Nagasu on a bad day vs Zawadski, Zhang, Flatt, etc. on their good days. Gao is a nice skater but skates too intellectual for my taste, she's just missing the "it" factor and therefore has limited upside....also limited downside. Czisny is done for health reasons alone--I don't think we'll see her back except for a few halting tries at competitions in the fall. Unless something miraculous happens, I don't think the Hicks, Miller, Wang, etc. contingent are going to be able to pull it up to where they need to be...try for 2018 ladies, when you will all still be young yet more seasoned.

Yeah, I don't think that Miller and Wang have the scoring potential to place in the top three. But I could be wrong.
 

R.D.

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Wagner and Kwan are very different skaters...but perhaps some of the differences are beginning to get muddier...

For example, being able to get away with lesser tech content and still do reasonably well. Being risk-averse.

I would have said Wagner is a much more athletic type of skater, and I guess she still is to some degree, but she really seems to be trying her hardest to get away from that (to my disappointment but we won't go there)

Still, when it comes down to it, even keeping in mind different eras they really are in different classes. MK was virtually ALWAYS a gold medal contender. Wagner doesn't even have a world medal of any color after 6 years, nor has she ever contended for one...
 
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