Piper Gilles' Citizenship Drive in Time for Sochi

Skater Boy said:

What does this baby with no name from Britain have to do with the price of tea in China let alone figure skating??? Jeesh. Are we trying to suggest Katie and Willie's kid is the next Robin Cousins????

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If you read the thread earlier, you'll see it was the case of thread drift. I was explaining the play of the G&P story and compared it to the coverage of the Royal Baby.


By the way, he does have a name! http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2013/07/24/royal-baby-name-announced/2581511/

Oh, interesting analysis - comparing a team that may not even make the third spot on their national team to a future king and the most well known monarchy in the world. lol

Sorry for thread drift in another direction, but on the topic of Poirier's status post-injury:

FWIW, Gilles/Poirier are not listed among the performers in their club's show on Wed Aug 7 -- athough G/P are giving an autograph session.

I feel pretty sure that G/P have performed in this show in years past ...

Not a surprise G/P aren't in the club show---Paul is recovering from a broken ankle.

Yes, I mentioned Poirier's injury in my post above. And the reason I made note of Gilles/Poirier's absence from the show is the possible(??) implication that his injury might(??) have been more severe than Kaitlyn Weaver's was.

IIRC, Poirier's injury occurred very early in May. So the show is about three months post-injury.

Weaver injured her ankle on Dec 14 and had surgery on Dec 18.
Three months later, on Mar 14, Weaver/Poje placed sixth in the SD at London Worlds -- with a personal best score.

According to Sun Valley's website, G/P still are scheduled to perform in an ice show there later in August. Hope Poirier will be ready to skate then.

golden411 said:

Yes, I mentioned Poirier's injury in my post above. And the reason I made note of Gilles/Poirier's absence from the show is the possible(??) implication that his injury might(??) have been more severe than Kaitlyn Weaver's.

IIRC, Poirier's injury occurred very early in May. So the show is about three months post-injury.

Weaver injured her ankle on Dec 14 and had surgery on Dec 18.
Three months later, on Mar 14, Weaver/Poje placed sixth in the SD at London Worlds -- with a personal best score.

http://www.goldenskate.com/forum/sh...amp-Other-Ills&p=747453&viewfull=1#post747453​

According to Sun Valley's website, G/P still are scheduled to perform in an ice show there later in August. Hope Poirier will be ready to skate then.

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That's a very good point. I hope that Paul is on the same recovery schedule as Kaitlyn, and the reason they did not appear is just that a show is not worth the risk to them, particularly as I suspect they do not get paid for a club show. The Sun Valley gig is a better test, since performers get paid for it. But I fear you are right, and Paul is not completely recovered, or they would have done the show.

If I'm not mistaken, this annual Scarboro show is where teams debut their new programs, and program readiness may be another factor behind the team's decision not to skate.

Poirier is back on the ice.

That's good to hear!

dorispulaski said:

.... The Sun Valley gig is a better test, since performers get paid for it. ....

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Update:

golden411 said:

Poirier is back on the ice.

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dorispulaski said:

That's good to hear!

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Indeed!!! :yes: :yay:

Problem is, most of the other ice dance teams have been working on their programs since the beginning of summer. P/G have a lot of lost time to make up, and Paul may not be able to train at full strength since he is still recovering from his injury. Piper may have been practicing in the meantime, but given the gap in ability between herself and Paul, her practicing alone isn't much help.

pangtongfan said:

I have a feeling they will be beaten out for 3rd place at Canadians, and citizenship will be a moot point.

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Like when W/P got 3rd place in 2010...

pangtongfan said:

My early forecast is she doesnt get citizenship in time (although I also predict a 4th or 5th place at Canadians, so I see them 2 steps from making the team, not just 1).

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Yes, I tend to agree with you. I think there will be multiple teams vying for that 3rd spot. IMO, P/I were very much underscored in the SD at Canadians last year. If they managed to stay on their feet, they may very well have captured the bronze position. Then there are the current bronze medalists: O/W. I'm not overly impressed with this team, but they did deserve their bronze medal. They were able to cut through the middle of the pack last year by skating clean with programs that suited them well, while others faltered. And we have the former bronze medalists still competing: R/H. They had a lovely program 2 seasons ago and should have been bronze medalists that year. Last year was a disaster for them. I expect they have it more together this season, especially with G/P having been injured so long. I expect they had more attention in the off-season. Interestingly, R/H placed higher at their first appearance at Worlds than G/P did at their Worlds debut last season. And then there are the others, dark horses, who could find themselves having a cinderella year like O/W did last year: I personally think last year's Junior champs are better than O/W; former Junior champs P/S (although I heard he's been injured most of the off season); and so on.

What G/P needed to do most since Worlds was work on their basic skating - lines, edges, unison, matching skating skills, dancing together skills. Those things take a lot of work and time. It requires both partners to work on this. Unfortunately, with him having been injured, this is likely not the priority now. It's about getting programs done, choreography learned, and enough together to be competitive. They are having to catch up with fellow competitors who have a number of months ahead of them. It does not bode well for them earning the 3rd spot. And I suspect any "benefit of the doubt" from Skate Canada and judges will likely be gone after last season's results, when they were healthy.

My prediction? I expect that P/I will be ready for a great year. They have a great training environment, lovely skating skills, and great coaches who did wonders for W/P confidence a few years ago. W/P are great role models for them. If they deliver, I think that 3rd spot will be theirs. If they don't deliver, I think R/H will be ready this season as well. They also were well-received a Worlds. If they have a good start to the season, quality programs - music, choreography, packaging, then they will be strong contenders for that 3rd spot as well. It should be a very interesting year in Canada in Senior Dance....

Speaking of that, I think it's time to start a "Canadian Ice Dance - 2013/2014 Edition" thread. It's going to be an exciting year in Senior, and I'm really curious to see how all the new, and some returning, Junior teams are going to fare. I hope to find some time over the next couple of weeks to look at all the video streaming from various competitions.

‏@PiperGilles

Most countries have such a term. Whatever. The US got Tanith Belbin and she medalled so hey why not Piper for Canada. What's good for the goose is good for the gander and it isn't like Gilles and Poirer will win a medal at the Olympics. But they not only need her to become a Canadian citizen but they need to make the Oly team. Virtue and Moir and Weaver and Poje are locks on olympic opoortunities. So there is one precious spot left.

Skater Boy said:

Most countries have such a term. Whatever. The US got Tanith Belbin and she medalled so hey why not Piper for Canada. What's good for the goose is good for the gander and it isn't like Gilles and Poirer will win a medal at the Olympics. But they not only need her to become a Canadian citizen but they need to make the Oly team. Virtue and Moir and Weaver and Poje are locks on olympic opoortunities. So there is one precious spot left.

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You're missing the point of why I posted the tweet and the link.
Isn't the article the first time that Gilles has said that her ONLY recourse for acquiring Canadian citizenship is special dispensation? (Yes, we all know that such dispensation would not be unique -- but it is rare.)

When Gilles previously has discussed her pursuit of Canadian citizenship, AFAIK she believed (and/or led us to believe) that her family ties in Canada and her mother's Canadian citizenship gave her a direct and certain path to citizenship for herself. Only now is she saying otherwise, IIRC.

If Piper's mom is Canadian, she should automatically be entitled to Canadian citizenship by birth

96skiluvr said:

If Piper's mom is Canadian, she should automatically be entitled to Canadian citizenship by birth

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Well my understanding is she, Piper's mom was not born in Canada and neither was Piper so there is the problem.

Mom is; apparently Piper isn't - the law changed a couple year's ago, according to some of the first posts on this thread.