Is Plushenko the best male skater who ever lived?

I'm not sure what criteria (*forgive me, the pter has problems with letter "U" nless I hammer. I will fix annoying typos when I see them-the day before Olympics, the ac adapter stopped charging battery-so forgive me.) I will soldier on like the Paralympic heroes I admire.)

And this is an admiration thread and also a question. I did not read the other Plush thread but given what he was able to do in team SP, at 31 after so many surgeries, I have to ask you all if based on body of work, medal count, nationally and internationally, longevity, is he the greatest male skater in history? Surely he has surpassed Kwan in total medals because he has gold and two OLY silvers, and also benefit of Europeans. Dick Button also has some of those. I don't know much about Skaters from the olden days. Scott Hamilton's skate is vaguely in my memory and the Brians pt international skaters on the map. I guess we can say Evgeny was costume challenged, does not have the best edges, maybe too flashy compared to the man who beat him in 2002. What was his name? seriously, this sport make cripples out of 22 year olds. I haven't google Plushy's medal count. I seem to think he does not have as many world titles as others. Our Russian members (or Seniorita) has likely memorized his record. BTW ARE YOU IN SOCHI yet Seniorita? I hope you start a thread in Olympic folder to tell us everything. Call it Everything Sochi. PLease!!!!! Practice to comp. to food, to police presence. Anyone else there from GS?

I know some do not like his style and say he skates on flat blades, has easy transitions, is arrogant, etc. He has many detractors. I liked his SP-Team event enough to rewatch it. Only Akiko approaches his age and is skating as well with Charisma. Sadly Dai and Jeremy are past their prime. It was a bit slow, and I can't say I was closely watching as I had puter and Tv going, plus Charter wasn't accepting my password, but seeing it twice, I am so happy to see he did the quad triple. Second place means his jumps had to be mostly ratified.I have not looked up the protocols and I know the score was really inflated. Would he have surpassed Patrick whose skating skills are so vastly superior in Vancouver or elsewhere? Will Plush end up with bronze whether he earns it or not? We will see. But based on the team event, the judges are saying, I think, they will only let Hanyu beat him.

Shall we wait til the mens event is done, or is Evgeny already the most decorated male skater in ____? There are other skaters that beat him on ice and always will. But he has won with his jumps, consistency. This is his 5th Olympics, right? Nagano to Sochi. I don't think any male has done this. Personally, I felt he was scored very generously in Vancover. Also in Salt Lake, I think he was also scored more generously than Timmy. I just did not think Plush was going to do this well.

I wish Yagudin had gone the surgical route. I'll bet many find him the best Russian skater-all around, and I preferred his skating and his style. But Plush exceeded my , admittedly low expectations. Mentally, this man is maybe the toughest cpompetitor ever. Please weigh in and tell s where he falls amidst Btton, Salchow and historical greats. I really hope he can keep it up. It does not seem possible he cold still do 4/3 at 31. I am happy for Russia, despite the inflation.

Those who know much more than me technically, is he the best skater ever, or the best competitor who has skated for a powerful and at times corrupted federation?

Nope. Best male jumper. But not best male figure skater, if you take all factors outside of jumping (of which there are many) into consideration. He'd probably be in my top 5 of all time though, thanks to his consistency, longevity, and accolades.

I'd say he is the best competitor ever. He brings his best to competition more often than anyone else I can think of in history. He has finished off the podium only TWICE in any competition he has finished since 1997-98, and has only WD three times. Scroll down to results here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plushenko

drivingmissdaisy said:

I'd say he is the best competitor ever. He brings his best to competition more often than anyone else I can think of in history. He has finished off the podium only TWICE in any competition he has finished since 1997-98, and has only WD three times. Scroll down to results here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plushenko

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Yes, I would also agree that he's the best competitor.

what's your definition of best, though? he's definitely the most consistent. for a sport that is notoriously rough for older skaters, the fact that he's been at the top of his game for about twelve years is an achievement in itself. most skaters win a gold and almost can't get away fast enough

CanadianSkaterGuy said:

Nope. Best male jumper. But not best male figure skater, if you take all factors outside of jumping (of which there are many) into consideration. He'd probably be in my top 5 of all time though, thanks to his consistency, longevity, and accolades.

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Yep, that's how I feel too. His longevity is amazing, since he was 1st alternate to the Olympic team in 1998!! (I still think the Russian men were robbed in 1998 with only two spots).

Best ever jumper, sure. But his spins are no great shakes, and with the IJS his skating is sorely lacking in CH, TR. I find it difficult to watch him skate.
We've been spoiled with Chan, Abbott, Daisuke, and now Hanyu.

He's one of the best, most consistent jumpers of all time. I don't think he's the best figure skater of all time, though. His footwork can be superb, his style is unique, and he acknowledges the crowd, but his spins are slow, his lines can be off, and his edging can be flat.

his jump technique should be studied. Someone who can do quad spanning a decade is doing something right.
Most skaters 10 years his junior are falling left and right on quad, and he's still landing them. That is insane!!!

I agree with assessment of him as the best jumper ever, but not best all around skater.

I was blown away by the height and ice coverage of his jumps when we saw him live from the second row at a COI tour in 2006. And he may have feline DNA because he seems to always land on his feet. I don't know of any other skater who can look so tilted or messed up in the air and still pull out a clean landing almost every time. His Vancouver free skate definitely showed off that ability. But nothing else about his skating has ever impressed me, not live or on television.

But nothing else about his skating has ever impressed me, not live or on television.

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i've always been curious about what effect, if any, watching someone skate on tv or watching them live has on one's opinion of their quality. i was always pretty dismissive of alissa czisny's skating until i saw her live and i thought she was great. the opposite is true of lycasek - i always thought he was great until i saw him live and i was bored to tears. i've always wondered if it was just the specific performance i managed to catch or something else

FlattFan said:

his jump technique should be studied. Someone who can do quad spanning a decade is doing something right.
Most skaters 10 years his junior are falling left and right on quad, and he's still landing them. That is insane!!!

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He's thirty one....meaning he's been landing quads for about 17 years.


He is most certainly the greatest skater of the modern era. I don't know that you can necessarily compare eras. It's like arguing whether Senna or Brabham was a better F1 driver. Senna didn't have to build his own car - two totally different eras of F1. Likewise, I don't know that you can compare Plushy to those skaters like Dick Button, because skating was a totally different beast.

Plushenko does have a history of great jumping but more than that his consistency in competition so the argument for best competitor ever is a valid one but skater? Not even close. We're talking all time here and there is more than one man at this competition alone who is a better skater.

No. Not even the best at this Olympics.

FlattFan said:

his jump technique should be studied. Someone who can do quad spanning a decade is doing something right.
Most skaters 10 years his junior are falling left and right on quad, and he's still landing them. That is insane!!!

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That, definitely.

I don't think one can ever choose a "best" in a sport like skating, because such a thing is pretty much immeasurable. But certainly Plushenko is the best in many aspects of skating. FlattFan has pointed out one important aspect in the purity of his jumps. Additionally, he is indeed one of the best competitors in skating history, as he proved last night. The guy does not seem to crumble ever, and his consistency is beyond legendary. He's also one of the best performers, in terms of projecting a persona as he skates and connecting with the audience. I am so glad he's here and is in contention.

jenaj said:

No. Not even the best at this Olympics.

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Still, it remains to be seen if all those better skaters at this Olympics can ultimately match Plushenko's achievements.

Or, when all is said and done, will Plushenko stand alone?

His jumps were probably the best ever some years ago. (even though it's difficult to compare them to Yagudin's). Now, I prefer Hanyu and Chan's jumps, they have more speed, more difficult entries and the jumps are more in harmony with the rest of the choreography. At the PCS, he wasn't the best, he can't be compared to Lambiel or Takahashi.
Anyway, it's almost impossible to say who is the best figure skater ever, there's no criteria. Plushenko is an amazing skater, one of the best ever, but you can't say it's the best.

Silvia451 said:

His jumps were probably the best ever some years ago. (even though it's difficult to compare them to Yagudin's).

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Yes, it is difficult to compare them to Alexei.

Evgeni brings a lot of drama to skating. Is that good skating???

I think his athletic ability is amazing. However I don't think he was the same skater he was in Vancouver or even before. I don't feel he's a complete skater though. If he and Patrick Chan or Hanyu all skated clean - he would come in third. I don't feel his presentation has matured at all. The camping to the crowd, the posturing, the blowing kisses last night just turned me off. I think Yagudin had the athletic ability AND the presentation. His choreography was far more mature.

noskates said:

I think his athletic ability is amazing. However I don't think he was the same skater he was in Vancouver or even before. I don't feel he's a complete skater though. If he and Patrick Chan or Hanyu all skated clean - he would come in third. I don't feel his presentation has matured at all. The camping to the crowd, the posturing, the blowing kisses last night just turned me off. I think Yagudin had the athletic ability AND the presentation. His choreography was far more mature.

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presentation?? http://www.kingonice.com/evgeni6-0.htm Alexei dosen't come to close to Plush

I don't know who is the best skater. But Cinquanta said Plushy is the best skater in past II. WW era.

One statment stood out as Like Abbott and Takahashi plushenko is also past his prime by a lot but has an insanely amazing ability to almost always do what he did in his prime even if at a lower level of quality. So that's where the most remarkable strength lies! I doubt it's even teachable or trainable and plushenko does have qualities that make him a total marvel! Be so past a prime but compete as though you never left the prime.