Which ladies -USA -deserve Sochi? | Page 8 | Golden Skate

Which ladies -USA -deserve Sochi?

drivingmissdaisy

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 17, 2010
I laughed at your post. :) But there does seem to be a contingent of of folks who seem to think Ashley is doomed based on this one performance. While that group includes her harshest critics, it also seems to include fans who believe this is some sort of indicator of terrible things.

I think people want to read to much into the most recent performance rather than a skater's body of work over a period. A lot of people think Mirai's problems are behind her because she changed coaches and had a good performance in her last event. Well, she has skated well in the GP in recent years but done poorly at Nationals. That is where the test will be for her. OTOH Ashley's skates at the GPF would have won Nationals last year so it is still a strong result and she is no doubt in the mix for bronze. She and the other Olympians are aiming to peak in Sochi so it wouldn't surprise me if we see her in much better form there.
 

mskater93

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 22, 2005
Ashley, Samantha, and Polina are the ones that DESERVE Sochi - they are the only ladies we can trust to deliver decent performances consistently right now, but I feel that Ashley is the only one out of this group that will definitely get to go.

Gracie will likely get to go but I don't have faith that she will necessarily deliver there and as for the 3rd spot, I feel like USFS wants to give it to Zawadzki, Gao, or Nagasu although none of them have been that strong or consistent this season. Cesario or Edmunds, maybe even Hicks, could get the 3rd spot but likely only if the three I just mentioned all make a muck of it at Nationals. Cesario was lowballed at Nats last season and my guess is it happens again because they feel like she is not enough of a "star" to be on the Olympics, which is silly because she's a great competitor, always delivers creditable performances, and has no real weakness to her skating. And then Edmunds is a star in the making and is also pretty consistent.
Did you see Polina at the JGPF? She was a mess in the SP and didn't make the podium. Don't think she's on the "deserve" list either, she's just as inconsistent and I don't see how she's a "star" - there's much lacking in her presentation still.
 

concorde

Medalist
Joined
Jul 29, 2013
I take offense to the title of this thread. I think any of the mentioned ladies "deserve" a spot on the Olympic Team. They (and their families) have devoted a lot of time (YEARS) and money to get them to this point. So yes - they all deserve a spot but the US only has 3 spots.

The question should be which ladies have "earned" one a spot?

Sorry but to me there is a HUGE difference between "deserved" and "earned."
 

desertskates

Medalist
Joined
Nov 19, 2013
Well, Ashley and Gracie are the obvious top 2. And, umm, hmmmm...
Kiira Korpi's training in the US, can we adopt her and give her the 3rd spot? :laugh:
 

desertskates

Medalist
Joined
Nov 19, 2013
I thought Kiira returned home with an injury.

That could be. I believe I read she may have been ready late in the season, but I could be mistaken or that may have changed. Either way, I'm sad she won't be at the games :(
 

jaylee

Medalist
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Cesario was lowballed at Nats last season and my guess is it happens again because they feel like she is not enough of a "star" to be on the Olympics, which is silly because she's a great competitor, always delivers creditable performances, and has no real weakness to her skating.

Cesario has plenty of weaknesses in her skating, starting with skating skills and transitions. She has good presence, is fairly consistent, good command of the ice, and excellent programs (though somewhat similarly themed), but she's definitely a more television-friendly skater in that she's pretty to watch but doesn't have exceptional speed and edges. I like her, but I don't see the fact that she is not enough of a "star" as holding her back.
 

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 27, 2009
Cesario has plenty of weaknesses in her skating, starting with skating skills and transitions. She has good presence, is fairly consistent, good command of the ice, and excellent programs (though somewhat similarly themed), but she's definitely a more television-friendly skater in that she's pretty to watch but doesn't have exceptional speed and edges. I like her, but I don't see the fact that she is not enough of a "star" as holding her back.

Many people who saw her live reported that Sammi has great presence but that she does not have a lot of speed, especially when she about to jump. I look forward to comparing the ladies for myself at nationals.
 

Sochi_2014

On the Ice
Joined
Dec 4, 2013
Did you see Polina at the JGPF? She was a mess in the SP and didn't make the podium. Don't think she's on the "deserve" list either, she's just as inconsistent and I don't see how she's a "star" - there's much lacking in her presentation still.

Actually Polina is very consistent. She had a balance check on the opening lutz in her SP, so she decided to leave out the combination there, and add it to the loop later in the program. Unfortunately she fell on the loop so the fact that she didn't have a combination really pushed her down in the SP, along with the fact that she had a fall. One skate does not make you inconsistent. And actually, she had the 2nd highest score in the freeskate, just 2 points shy of the leader, but due to the fact that she was so far behind after the SP, she was only able to push up to 4th place. In fact, she was less than 2 points shy of the podium.

Now I'm not saying that she will be on the Olympic team, because her chances are VERY slim. However, what I am saying is that she is not inconsistent due to one sour SP. Also, no one starts out a "star". You must work your way up. But I think in the future she will be a star. Her presentation is quite good for a youngster. She had the 3rd highest PCS scores in the LP at the Junior Grand Prix Final. Remember, these 6 girls at the JGPF were the top 6 junior ladies of the season, so I think her presentation is quite good for a junior.
 

chuckm

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Country
United-States
Slow skaters don't get good PCS scores internationally. Samantha is promising, but she's not quite there yet. I hope she skates well at Nationals and gets sent to the GP again next season. She's currently #33 on ISU World Standings, but if she doesn't make it to Sochi or Worlds, she might get selected for 4CC. A top 5 finish at 4CC could boost her close to the top 24. And she's currently #17 on the Season's Best Total Score list.
 

jaylee

Medalist
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Actually Polina is very consistent. She had a balance check on the opening lutz in her SP, so she decided to leave out the combination there, and add it to the loop later in the program. Unfortunately she fell on the loop so the fact that she didn't have a combination really pushed her down in the SP, along with the fact that she had a fall. One skate does not make you inconsistent. And actually, she had the 2nd highest score in the freeskate, just 2 points shy of the leader, but due to the fact that she was so far behind after the SP, she was only able to push up to 4th place. In fact, she was less than 2 points shy of the podium.

Now I'm not saying that she will be on the Olympic team, because her chances are VERY slim. However, what I am saying is that she is not inconsistent due to one sour SP. Also, no one starts out a "star". You must work your way up. But I think in the future she will be a star. Her presentation is quite good for a youngster. She had the 3rd highest PCS scores in the LP at the Junior Grand Prix Final. Remember, these 6 girls at the JGPF were the top 6 junior ladies of the season, so I think her presentation is quite good for a junior.

I agree with all your points. I love Polina's skating, both her SP and her FS programs are great, and though she faltered in the SP at the JGPF, she skated wonderfully in the FS. She's not a star yet, but I think she has the makings of one. That JGPF was one of the most competitive ever, with so many talented juniors, strong in both presentation and technical elements.
 

silverlake22

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 12, 2009
Junior SPs you can't add a combination to the solo triples anyways, so missing your planned combo is a huge point loss even though it's just 1 mistake. Polina is consistent, her score in the SP at GPF was so low because she had to do a 3lo (not one of her best jumps) and she missed her lutz combo. In her senior SP she does a 3f instead of 3lo, and 3f is a better jump for her so should she miss the lutz she's more likely to be able to add a combo to the 3f (plus in seniors she'll actually be allowed to do this). Usually Polina has clean FS programs with very high content, recently, the biggest mistakes she makes in the FS is like 1 fall, which isn't a huge deal as she attempts 7 triples (repeating 3lz and 3f) and 2 2a, which hardly anyone else in the US does. When she does the SP with 3f, she's usually clean too, with a possible < on the 3t which again, isn't hugely costly. IMO, she's more consistent than most of the other US ladies. I can only think of 2 skaters comparable in their consistency and those are Ashley and Sam. Maybe Christina last season was comparable, but this season that hasn't been the case.
 

chuckm

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Country
United-States
Polina's FS at the JGPF was flawless, but she was a bit underscored in PCS because she skated so early. Still, she finished 2nd overall in the FS. You can add 3+ points to the 113.50 points for the extra choreographic step sequence.
 
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