Can Lipnitskaya close the gap on Mao & Kim in time for the Olympics? | Page 13 | Golden Skate

Can Lipnitskaya close the gap on Mao & Kim in time for the Olympics?

Sk8n Mama

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 23, 2004
Bottom line: that kiddo will be waiting in the wings if Kim or Asada aren't clean. That LP of hers is an Olympic winning number and I'm not sure YuNa's is. That said, I adore YuNa, and still think she has the extra musicality and grace that the others do not, and is the class of the field. I see Lipnitskaia on the podium & the Russian darling of the Olympics.
 

FSGMT

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 10, 2012
Bottom line: that kiddo will be waiting in the wings if Kim or Asada aren't clean. That LP of hers is an Olympic winning number and I'm not sure YuNa's is. That said, I adore YuNa, and still think she has the extra musicality and grace that the others do not, and is the class of the field. I see Lipnitskaia on the podium & the Russian darling of the Olympics.
This is what amazes me: even if I know that Yu-Na will probably win in Sochi (and if she skates well, she deserves it for me), I can easily imagine Julia skating clean, because her FS is so... perfect for big wins, it simply has everything, :clap: to her team! However, I think that if Julia skates perfectly clean in both programs and Yu-Na/Mao make mistakes (we don't have to forget < and "e", that can easily affect the scores) the result could be not so obious, after all... :popcorn:
 

Sam-Skwantch

“I solemnly swear I’m up to no good”
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
Country
United-States
Bottom line: that kiddo will be waiting in the wings if Kim or Asada aren't clean. That LP of hers is an Olympic winning number and I'm not sure YuNa's is. That said, I adore YuNa, and still think she has the extra musicality and grace that the others do not, and is the class of the field. I see Lipnitskaia on the podium & the Russian darling of the Olympics.
What's amazing is where Julia's chances are now in relation to just a few months ago when she was still not guaranteed to even make the team. It made her stronger and pushed her to develop further. Now if she wins silver no one would be surprised.
 

Manuel Pablo Arnao

Figure Skating Fan & Real Estate Agent in LA!
On the Ice
Joined
Jan 15, 2014
She is a strong competitor for the bronze and the silver or gold if Yu Na, Mao or Carolina make a mistake.

I'm afraid she will be overscored because she is skating in her home country- I have a feeling it has the makings of a big controversy if the results are close and she is overscored and ends up winning a medal she did not deserve (a la Cup Of Russia 2013 at the cost of Carolina).

Truth is, she has great jumps and spins although her jumps are small and don't get any height or distance- I think it should be reflected in her first mark on the GOE. What truly worries me is her second mark. She started the season in the low 60's and is now in the high 60's for the long program which is unprecedented and shocking. The fact that she almost tied Carolina in the long program should be a red flag to the unfair judging that may take place in Sochi- it needs to be addressed immediately. Even judge's are speaking out about it:

http://www.insideskating.net/2014/0...-carolina-kostner-was-undermarked-in-budapest
 

RABID

Final Flight
Joined
Mar 17, 2013
Bottom line: that kiddo will be waiting in the wings if Kim or Asada aren't clean. That LP of hers is an Olympic winning number and I'm not sure YuNa's is. That said, I adore YuNa, and still think she has the extra musicality and grace that the others do not, and is the class of the field. I see Lipnitskaia on the podium & the Russian darling of the Olympics.

And that could very well be the difference. However YuNa does have an eye-catching SP that, if skated well, could make whatever Julia does with her FP moot. We've seen it before where YuNa has won competitions by racking up so many points in the SP that it makes everyone else skate outside their comfort zones come the FS. Could Julia just ignore that and just skate her program knowing it might not be enough to win gold (especially if YuNa skates after her)? Will she have the maturity to just be the best she can be ? It's a double-edged sword sometimes performing in your home country when the expectations are so high.
 

Sasha'sSpins

Medalist
Joined
Apr 2, 2009
Country
United-States
She is a strong competitor for the bronze and the silver or gold if Yu Na, Mao or Carolina make a mistake.

I'm afraid she will be overscored because she is skating in her home country- I have a feeling it has the makings of a big controversy if the results are close and she is overscored and ends up winning a medal she did not deserve (a la Cup Of Russia 2013 at the cost of Carolina).

Truth is, she has great jumps and spins although her jumps are small and don't get any height or distance- I think it should be reflected in her first mark on the GOE. What truly worries me is her second mark. She started the season in the low 60's and is now in the high 60's for the long program which is unprecedented and shocking. The fact that she almost tied Carolina in the long program should be a red flag to the unfair judging that may take place in Sochi- it needs to be addressed immediately. Even judge's are speaking out about it:

http://www.insideskating.net/2014/0...-carolina-kostner-was-undermarked-in-budapest

Figure skating referee and former ISU official Sonia Bianchetti says Carolina Kostner was undermarked in Budapest

You said 'judges' plural, were speaking out about it rather than 'a' judge is speaking out about it which is what the article is about. I am sure there are judges with her point of view but frankly Bianchetti is an Italian like Kostner. I would prefer to hear from unbiased judges on the matter. I'm guessing Russian judges would probably have their own spin on their compatriots and Kostner as well.

And for the record I disagree with Bianchetti. I think Julia and Adelina did great and their final placements are correct. Kostner has been under par all year and I think of the three 2013 Worlds medallists, she, Yuna, and Mao, Kostner is the most vulnerable. She's been beaten at every GP and now Euros, likely with different judging panels each time. I just don't believe that there's this worldwide conspiracy that includes non-Russian judges determined to place Julia and/or Adelina at the top of the Olympic podium anymore than there was when Brian Boitano won in Calgary, Sarah Hughes won at Salt Lake City or Evan in Vancouver, all on North American soil. Sometimes homegrown skaters just rise to the occasion (kind of like the 1980 U.S. Men's Hockey team) and they simply bring it in from of the home crowd or near neighbors (in the case of Americans winning at the Canadian-hosted Olympic Games). I get the feeling that that is exactly what is going to happen with Julia and/or Adelina. I think that like Hughes and her back to back triple-triples in Salt Lake City, jumps are going to win the day - and Kostner has been looking very vulnerable on that end. She also simply doesn't have the same firepower technically that Sotnikova and Lipnitskaya have.
 

HalfTriple

Match Penalty
Joined
Jun 8, 2010
Julia is not a 'junior' skater, nor does she skate like one. Her skating is much more mature especially compared to a Polina Edmunds or even her teammate Elena Radionova. If Julia skates both of her programs clean at Sochi, she'll be just as deserving of an Olympic medal as Kim, Asada, Kostner, or Sotnikova. The only problem is that there will only be 3 medals available and there are at least 6 young women who would all be deserving should they all hit.

I disagree. If Julia is not skating like junior, none, including Li, or Polina, in the senior circle is juniorish. Julia's skating is mature in terms of presentation and expressiveness, not her skating. You may not like it, but there is no reason why Polina or the Japanese skater who took silver in 4cc, when they are clean, so to speak, can't rank better than Julia while Julia's skating is ratified as adequate as senior.
 

Sasha'sSpins

Medalist
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Country
United-States
I disagree. If Julia is not skating like junior, none, including Li, or Polina, in the senior circle is juniorish. Julia's skating is mature in terms of presentation and expressiveness, not her skating. You may not like it, but there is no reason why Polina or the Japanese skater who took silver in 4cc, when they are clean, so to speak, can't rank better than Julia while Julia's skating is ratified as adequate as senior.

Sorry. Completely disagree on Polina. She still looks awkward and coltish out there as does Elena. Julia looks much more polished, much more refined and it is clear that one international panel of judges after another agrees with me. We'll just have to disagree on Lipnitskaya - but you'd better get ready, because she's more than likely going to be on the podium at Sochi.

I never once mentioned Zijun Li in my previous post, and I certainly don't consider her as a skater who looks junior out there as Polina Edmunds and Elena Radionova do. Quite the the contrary. Like Julia, she presents a much more mature, much more refined style.
 

Isabel_O'Reilly

Final Flight
Joined
Nov 30, 2013
Sorry. Completely disagree on Polina. She still looks awkward and coltish out there as does Elena. Julia looks much more polished, much more refined and it is clear that one international panel of judges after another agrees with me. We'll just have to disagree on Lipnitskaya - but you'd better get ready, because she's more than likely going to be on the podium at Sochi.

I never once mentioned Zijun Li in my previous post, and I certainly don't consider her as a skater who looks junior out there as Polina Edmunds and Elena Radionova do. Quite the the contrary. Like Julia, she presents a much more mature, much more refined style.

:clap: :party: :hb:
 

miki88

Medalist
Joined
Dec 28, 2009
I clearly understand why someone would like Mao. What I don't understand is how anyone can hate on a 15 yr old who shows nothing but determination. She also has a lot of potential to grow and push this sport. What's not to like?

I don't see ppl having that strong of an emotion against her. Personally, I admire her determination but not her skating style.
 

nagoya

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 30, 2014
What program do you think she bombed? And if you mean from the 2012-2013 season in general: It was the first year that she was age-eligible for the senior Grand Prix while not being age-eligible for Senior ISU Championships (Euros, Worlds) and I'm sure that the only goal that was important to her was making the Grand Prix Final. She skated at the Finlandia Trophy where she took Gold, 8 points ahead of the silver medalist and 25 points ahead of the bronze. She skated in her first GP event and finished with a silver medal just behind World Champion and Olympic Medalist Mao Asada, while finishing ahead of many other top-level skaters. Not bad for someone who was so nervous she couldn't feel her legs.

Let's look at her second event: Around this time not only was she beginning to go through puberty/having a growth spurt but she injured her ankle in training before the start of the competition. She thought of withdrawing but decided to compete anyway when she was feeling better. In the short program she placed first but because of her injury she had a difficult program and came in third instead. Nevertheless she qualified for the Final with a silver and a bronze.

While training she lost her balance on a spin, (probably due to adjusting to her growth) split her chin and sustained a concussion. She had two weeks before she could get back on the ice and train so she had to withdraw from the Final. Theoretically if she was not injured and had competed at the Final she would have placed 4th with her previous level of skating. Ankle fully healed she could have skated slightly better and finished 3rd. With no more international senior events she was age-eligible for, that was the end of her season (Junior Worlds: While she would have made history winning it for the second year, it would not have been very meaningful in terms of her senior career. How on earth can you consider that bombing?

Hey I know that Lipnitskaia is good but I was just implying that she is not super consistent remember this?http://youtu.be/r99vlgdi3l8
 

Sam-Skwantch

“I solemnly swear I’m up to no good”
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
Country
United-States
What if I hyperlinked Mao's Japan nationals skate? Would that prove anything?
 

nagoya

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 30, 2014
If both Lipnitskaia and Asada is not perfect this will be the result
LIPNITSKAIA- cup of russia 2013 http://youtu.be/r99vlgdi3l8 Free skate = 118.56
ASADA - Skate America 2013 http://youtu.be/VS90gggO56Q FREE SKATE = 131.37

These are FACTS! with proven Videos , even if Lipnitskaia will not much do error than this video she will still not get close to 131.37 most probably on the mid 120's
Yes Lipnitskaia is very good for her age but she is still human and in need of more polishing to level with yuna and mao .
what is wrong with this thread? do you guys forget how many world championship medals that yuna and mao have won? with yuna having the world record and mao having the record of most grand prix titles?
Lipnitskaia is still young, give her some time eventually she will be on top, not just now. Her best result will probably bronze if she beat costner and suzuki, well, she beat them before so I can see no reason why she cant beat them now in her own turf
 

nagoya

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 30, 2014
What if I hyperlinked Mao's Japan nationals skate? Would that prove anything?

it won't...but if you hyperlink all her grand prix championship gold medal performances and world championship gold medal performances and her vancouver 3Xtriple axel performances definitely it will prove alot
 

Crystallize

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 11, 2012
Umm...it's not that big of a deal. Yeah, Julia is young. BUT, if she skates lights out, I wouldn't be surprised if she took gold. Anything is possible. :biggrin: Julia didn't emote all that well when I started watching her skate and I'm not so sure if there has been a marked improvement, but her long program this season is stellar and suits her well. I would see nothing wrong if she were to top the podium. At least not if she deserves it. This isn't a reputation contest, it's a sport. That's the way it should be anyway. She will be skating on home ice, so that's something to consider. You can never be too sure what will happen. I'm hoping for the best.
 

nagoya

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 30, 2014
Why are you so mad about Julia? It's not like she's the only skater who has ever had inconsistencies. :unsure:

I am not mad at her , I am a fan of her out of this earth wonderful jaw dropping spins ,. she is a very good jumper also. I am just saying that she is still not in the level with Yuna and Mao and even kostner (not including jumps)
 

MsLiinaLii

Final Flight
Joined
Mar 8, 2013
Hey I know that Lipnitskaia is good but I was just implying that she is not super consistent remember this?http://youtu.be/r99vlgdi3l8
She is super consistent comparing to most of the skaters. And,as disappointed i was at that moment, it was needed for her to have a bad skate. It is almost imposible to be perfect all the time, and she realised what she needs to work on. But about consistency - this season it is great apart from CoR LP. She hit her SP 5 times out of 6, and i would even say 6 our of 6 because at Nationals she did not fall, she had a step out. For the LP, 5 our of 6 (minor step out at Finlandia Trophy, but for LP I don't count it, and disaster at CoR). Well, I cannot think of anyone this season with that track record
 
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