Sasha Cohen's AMA on Reddit

ForeverFish · Aug 14, 2013

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1kcr4l/i_am_sasha_cohen_2x_olympian_3x_world_figure/

Unfortunately, it ended about an hour ago, but it's quite interesting to read some of her responses.

RABID · Aug 14, 2013

Was a waste of time for Sasha. It seemed to me all the comments were snarky, trollish or juvenile. Now if Sasha came HERE she would not be wasting her time and I think she would really enjoy herself.

leafygreens · Aug 14, 2013

Did not know this:

[-]Lorenzo_Canyon

Is the bottom of the skate like, razor thin? If so, have you ever been cut by it? Ive always wondered that about ice skates.

[–]sashacohenusa

Yes, someone landed a double axel on my leg, and I had 21 stitches

[–]okiedokie17

Do you have fond memories of your 2006 free skate because it won you a medal, or not so well because of how it began? It was a beautiful program with amazing music.

[–]sashacohenusa

Romeo and Juliet was the program that I did for my long at the Olympics and it really was a labor of love. Even though it wasn't the magical Olympic program that I wanted, I found some strength deep inside that I didn't have and that taught me a lot.

I realize that it has really served me well in my life's transition and helped me to fight back when things aren't going perfectly.

Interesting.

[–]I_CAPE_RUNTS

what is your workout/nutrition routine when you aren't training?

[–]sashacohenusa

A very specific and healthy diet...lean protein, vegetables, minimal food intake and heavy exercise. Running, Yoga, Soul Cycle, and heavy core workouts.

[–]FriendlyDespot

How can I lose weight by doing none of these?

LOL. But this is her routine when she is not training? Sounds a bit strict.

[–]daherold

What other sports besides figure skating do you like to watch and/or play?

[–]sashacohenusa

I like to play soccer. I like to play my own made up form of rugby. What I love most is to dance.

[–]AnchezSanchez

I also like to play my own made up form of rugby. Sadly I play for an actual rugby team, and they don't quite appreciate it.......

[–]sashacohenusa

I am competing my core requirements, I'm likely to declare a major in political science. Columbia has a great liberal arts program that gives me a good foundation.

What happened to philosophy? She declared that to be her probable major in another recent interview.

I'm not sure what she meant by her favorite skating move, "spins...the wide spin." What is a wide spin?

She also confirms that Snoxx are not meant to be worn in skates (thanks Skittl) but I find that odd that she's never tried skating in them.

There are some really interesting questions that got buried and she didn't answer.

Mathman · Aug 14, 2013

AnchezSanchez

I also like to play my own made up form of rugby. Sadly I play for an actual rugby team, and they don't quite appreciate it.......

ice coverage · Aug 15, 2013

RABID said:
Was a waste of time for Sasha. It seemed to me all the comments were snarky, trollish or juvenile. Now if Sasha came HERE she would not be wasting her time and I think she would really enjoy herself.

leafygreens said:
What happened to philosophy? She declared that to be her probable major in another recent interview.

.... There are some really interesting questions that got buried and she didn't answer.

For better or worse, the platform is called Ask Me Anything, and redditors do exactly that.

Many of the comments were not "snarky, trollish, or juvenile" -- although many others were, and Cohen understandably did not respond to them.
When picking and choosing what she did answer, Cohen clearly did not want to limit herself to discussing skating.
Only she knows whether it was a waste of time of her. At the very least, it was a marketing opportunity to bring attention to two sources of income for her: Snoxx and her offerings on Thuzio.

As for philosophy, she brought it up in a separate reply:

Q. If you were not a figure skater, what career path would you have gone on?
A. Very interesting question! I always imagined myself as a trauma surgeon or a litigator, or maybe even a philosopher.

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/commen...2x_olympian_3x_world_figure/cbnmm9o?context=3

Olympia · Aug 16, 2013

leafygreens said:
I'm not sure what she meant by her favorite skating move, "spins...the wide spin." What is a wide spin?

She also confirms that Snoxx are not meant to be worn in skates (thanks Skittl) but I find that odd that she's never tried skating in them.

There are some really interesting questions that got buried and she didn't answer.

Was this audio? I think she may mean the Y-spin. Isn't that the name of the spin where she holds one leg up to her nose?

I think a lot of the exchanges you supplied here are very interesting and not snarky. I love the guy's rugby comment. I'm also interested that Sasha plans to major in political science. Neither that nor philosophy are wimpy majors; they're intellectually very demanding. That says something very impressive about Sasha.

My favorite comment was her response about 2006: that the LP wasn't the skate she would have wished for, but it taught her something about herself because she was able to reach into herself and find the strength not to fall apart. I remember watching her with my heart in my mouth and thinking after that second stumble that it was all over. When it wasn't, and she finished with no further mishaps, I was moved to tears. She really showed her mettle that night.

Tonichelle · Aug 16, 2013

Olympia said:
Was this audio? I think she may mean the Y-spin. Isn't that the name of the spin where she holds one leg up to her nose?

No, that's the I-spin.. the Y-spin makes a Y shape.

I-Spin Y-Spin

aftertherain · Aug 16, 2013

Tonichelle said:
No, that's the I-spin.. the Y-spin makes a Y shape.

I-Spin Y-Spin

And this is a hybrid of the two. :biggrin:

Olympia · Aug 16, 2013

Tonichelle said:
No, that's the I-spin.. the Y-spin makes a Y shape.

I-Spin Y-Spin

Oh, thanks, Toni. I spin corrected. Whatever it's called, Sasha certainly did one of the best ones, didn't she?

Dee4707 · Aug 17, 2013

Olympia said:
Oh, thanks, Toni. I spin corrected. Whatever it's called, Sasha certainly did one of the best ones, didn't she?

I'm not Toni, but the answer is "YES."

ice coverage · Aug 17, 2013

Olympia said:
Was this audio? I think she may mean the Y-spin. Isn't that the name of the spin where she holds one leg up to her nose?

BTW, the format of reddit is text only, AFAIK (in other words, no audio) -- and what appeared on the screen for redditors to see as Cohen's answer was "wide" spin.

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/commen...2x_olympian_3x_world_figure/cbnmawu?context=3

I suppose that it's theoretically possible that Cohen was dictating her answers to someone else who actually was at the keyboard on her behalf ... and that the typist misheard Cohen's oral answer.
But as a college student, Cohen presumably is/was perfectly capable of typing her own answers -- and my guess is that she did.

Olympia · Aug 17, 2013

So in other words, we're back to not knowing what she means about a wide spin. Hmmm. Now I'm even more curious. Maybe someone will be able to clarify.

Whatever kind of spin it is, doubtless Sasha does a beautiful version of it.

Sasha Cohen's AMA on Reddit

ForeverFish

RABID

leafygreens

Mathman

ice coverage

avatar credit: @miyan5605

Olympia

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll

aftertherain

Olympia

Dee4707

Ice Is Slippery - Alexie Yagudin

ice coverage

avatar credit: @miyan5605

Olympia

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