The feelings/rant/etc. thread. | Golden Skate

The feelings/rant/etc. thread.

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 27, 2009
:laugh:

Seriously, the amount of threads of one-off reactions/rants/whatever is cracking me up. But I thought maybe to no clog up GS serves, we could maybe just have one thread to express any rants, issues, knee-jerk reactions, whatever could go here.
 

CanadianSkaterGuy

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 25, 2013
Hah, good luck with that. But a good idea. :laugh:

My rant: the anonymous judging needs to stop. We need to know which judge gives which GOE and which PCS marks, down to every element. Each judge must have a track record on what scores they give and be held accountable when they have scores that skew or grossly deviate from others. Also, the top PCS/GOE score and lowest PCS/GOE scores must be eliminated. Too often this will be used to lowball skaters deserving higher scores and inflate skaters that skate average but end up getting higher scores. And there need to be consequences for this bs. Judges essentially must be feared into judging properly and impartially.

The Russian PCS scores have been absolutely ridiculous. Like Cup of Russia inflation on steroids. I still think their actual placements are fairly correct (save for Plushenko over Reynolds/Machida), but this blatant push for higher marks with nobody else getting higher marks according to Olympics inflation is awful. They might as well hand them their medals now. http://keepingscore.blogs.time.com/2014/02/09/sochi-olympics-figure-skating-russia/
 

yelyoh

Medalist
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Country
United-States
Yup ITA. I would not be surprised to see Russians atop the podium in all but dance. I'm not saying it will happen but I wouldn't be shocked if it did. I predicted Julia would get gold over Yuna and still feel that way unless Yuna is flawless or Julia much less than flawless meaning falls. I don't think any other woman stands a chance against Julia except Mao who would have to land those triple axels. And as much as I admire Plush I think his PCS are downright ridiculous. His transitions equal to Jason's? Am I having an attack of petit mal when Plushenko skates and missing something?
 

Memelah711

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 12, 2014
My rants:

Alexei Mishin, having your skater stop skating mid-program to wave and blow kisses to the audience is not good choreography. Maybe it's a okay for a five year old little girl in Basic Skills competition, but it has no place in an Olympic program.

Evgeni and Yulia's presentation scores were crazy high. Ashley's PCS in the short should've been higher than they were.

I don't like how the team event medals were given out the next day!! I infinitely prefer the skaters getting their medals the night of the competition. I don't understand why the snowboarders can get their medals the same night, but our skaters can't. It makes no sense to go through the trouble of setting up the podiums, flowers, flags, lights, and gathering the officials at the venue after the competition, but not give out the medals then and there. Makes no sense whatsoever :confused:

My feelings/wonderings/etc:

I realize that the COP was made with anonymous judging in order to prevent cheating from the judges. Never made sense to me. I always felt the anonymity would make it easier to cheat. However, I do like the fact that each skater is given a protocol of everything and judged not based so much on how many jumps/spins/lifts, but the quality of those elements as well. Any judging system is going to be flawed, I often go back and forth on whether i prefer 6.0 or COP. I do wish anonymous judging would stop.

I hope the Team Event is here to stay! Personally, I thought it was a lot of fun to watch!

I wonder what Maxim Kovtun must be feeling now that Team Russia has a gold medal. I also wonder what Mirai's ubers and/or Ashley haters are thinking now.
 

CanadianSkaterGuy

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 25, 2013
Anonymity preventing cheating. That's like having more guns to avoid violence. Oh wait... :rolleye:

I think Mirai's ubers should be thinking Ashley Wagner saved Mirai from a 7th place finish in the team SP (if we used her 4CC skate) when she would have been flayed like Abbott (not that it ultimately mattered with the US winning bronze by 8 points). Ashley wasn't great, but did her job.
 

jenmactx

Spectator
Joined
Dec 8, 2005
I have watched figure skating for many years and have had favorites from Michelle Kwan (all time fav) to Oksana Bauil. I think I have some knowledge of figure skating and have predicted the winner in many instances. This being said, I can easily see Julia winning the gold. There is a special quality to her skate that sets her apart from the other ladies. I love Yuna, but I am not sure this will be her moment.

What I really can't get is how grown people can beat up on a fifteen year old that has done nothing wrong but skate her heart out! I for one hope she takes the gold just to silence this group. Very disappointed!!!

By the way, even the great skates you all mention are in love with Julia. Is this coming from Yuna/Mao camp.
 

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 27, 2009
I'll post the rants I posted on my Facebook page:

Okay, I'm just going to say it because it's eating at me and just need to get it off my back. I'm really disappointed to see comments from the Asian American community on social media hoping that Ashley Wagner will "fail/fall/bite it" etc.

You can disagree with the selection process; you can say you don't care for Ashley Wagner. But hoping they fail? What good does that do? It doesn't help Mirai get on the team nor does it advance the cause of increasing diversity in figure skating.

FWIW, there are lots of developing Asian American skaters in U.S. Figure Skating; it's just that most people only know about the senior skater that got bumped.

Karen Chen got named to the junior worlds team despite WD from Nationals after finishing a dismal fifth in the SP (she was injured; cutting into training time). You know why? Because of her past record (winning both her junior grand prix events in the fall).

So the criteria of naming people to international events based on past record does not only apply to white people.

I'll be cheering for Ashley Wagner even if that means I will somehow be seen as not supporting my Asian American roots.

For context, it came from seeing some numerous Facebook posts from acquaintances, who have been painting Ashley being selected over Mirai as an issue of race. Those same acquaintances have posted posts accusing Ashley being entitled basically of the reaction of her SP sores. That generated a gang-up of "I hope she fails" comments from others Asian American. That lead to this rant:

I've also seen comments from some folks accusing Ashley as being "entitled" because of her reaction to her SP score at the team event.

Let me give you some facts: After 2011, when she basically had the worst U.S. nationals of her life, she made some drastic changes. She moved cross country to switch coaches to one of the best, John Nicks. But to do that meant living 3,000 miles from her family and working at a Lucky Jeans store to pay the bills until she started getting endorsements AFTER she started being successful on both the national/international level.

Does that sound entitled to you?

As to her reaction at the SP yesterday, that was a raw reaction after the scores came up. Did people really expect her to be like "Oh, that's okay, I'm just happy I am here!" No, she thought she did better than how she was scored.

As someone that has watched numerous kiss and cry moments in many years of watching skating, I can assure you that Ashley Wagner is NOT the only skater to express disgust/disappointment/etc. at scores. If you think Ashley Wagner is ungracious/entitled for her reaction to her scores, then you should apply that same label to a whole lot of other skaters.
 

s_parks

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 25, 2013
I can't believe people are still saying hateful things about Ashley. Even if it wasn't perfect, she delivered and did not endanger the team medal. And some are bitter about Ashley's supposed bad attitude when she received her sp score. Please! I personally thought it was a tad low and apparently, so did the bbc commentators. She's allowed to have human emotions, good grief.
Okay, end rant.
 

TonyaHardlyEver

Rinkside
Joined
Feb 6, 2013
I have watched figure skating for many years and have had favorites from Michelle Kwan (all time fav) to Oksana Bauil. I think I have some knowledge of figure skating and have predicted the winner in many instances. This being said, I can easily see Julia winning the gold. There is a special quality to her skate that sets her apart from the other ladies. I love Yuna, but I am not sure this will be her moment.

What I really can't get is how grown people can beat up on a fifteen year old that has done nothing wrong but skate her heart out! I for one hope she takes the gold just to silence this group. Very disappointed!!!

By the way, even the great skates you all mention are in love with Julia. Is this coming from Yuna/Mao camp.

It is a competition and a sport. We aren't bullying her. Just pointing out that her novice level double axel should not be rewarded +G.O.E. not to mention her inflated PCS.

Michelle Kwan wasn't an angel nor did she have good sportsmanship. Remember 2002 when she booed he marks. Oksana was gifted her gold medal btw.
 

TonyaHardlyEver

Rinkside
Joined
Feb 6, 2013
I'll post the rants I posted on my Facebook page:



For context, it came from seeing some numerous Facebook posts from acquaintances, who have been painting Ashley being selected over Mirai as an issue of race. Those same acquaintances have posted posts accusing Ashley being entitled basically of the reaction of her SP sores. That generated a gang-up of "I hope she fails" comments from others Asian American. That lead to this rant:

America's Darling Michelle Kwan booed her marks at the 2002 Olympics but nothing was said about it. It is a sport.
 

s_parks

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 25, 2013
I have watched figure skating for many years and have had favorites from Michelle Kwan (all time fav) to Oksana Bauil. I think I have some knowledge of figure skating and have predicted the winner in many instances. This being said, I can easily see Julia winning the gold. There is a special quality to her skate that sets her apart from the other ladies. I love Yuna, but I am not sure this will be her moment.

What I really can't get is how grown people can beat up on a fifteen year old that has done nothing wrong but skate her heart out! I for one hope she takes the gold just to silence this group. Very disappointed!!!

By the way, even the great skates you all mention are in love with Julia. Is this coming from Yuna/Mao camp.

I respect your opinion, and can see where you're coming from, but I personally disagree. I do not like Julia's skating(personal taste of course) or how she was scored, but by no means does this translate to hate or dislike of Julia herself, at least not in my case. Don't think everybody that doesn't absolutely adore her and thinks she deserved those marks dislikes her and are attacking her personally. Clearly she is very talented for a fifteen year old and has wonderful qualities; I am just dismayed with the judges and her score with respect to how she skated. This is a sport and as promising and consistent as she is, the low quality of her jumps are undeserving of such high GOEs.
 

CanadianSkaterGuy

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 25, 2013
I can't believe people are still saying hateful things about Ashley. Even if it wasn't perfect, she delivered and did not endanger the team medal. And some are bitter about Ashley's supposed bad attitude when she received her sp score. Please! I personally thought it was a tad low and apparently, so did the bbc commentators. She's allowed to have human emotions, good grief.
Okay, end rant.

While it wasn't particularly lady-like, I love how her "That's bull****" is spreading like wildfire, and she didn't even care that there were cameras. It totally defines her as a fierce, bad-*** skater instead of the typical prim and prop nod-your-head skaters. :rock:

It would be epic if she dedicated her team bronze to LGBT people and then if she was stripped of it said, "Whatever, it's just a medal. Everyone knows I was part of the team, and that we came 3rd." :biggrin: Or if she realised she didn't have a chance at a medal in individual and decided to make some statement not even caring if she was disqualified.
 

TonyaHardlyEver

Rinkside
Joined
Feb 6, 2013
While it wasn't particularly lady-like, I love how her "That's bull****" is spreading like wildfire, and she didn't even care that there were cameras. It totally defines her as a fierce, bad-*** skater instead of the typical prim and prop nod-your-head skaters. :rock:

It would be epic if she dedicated her team bronze to LGBT people and then if she was stripped of it said, "Whatever, it's just a medal. Everyone knows I was part of the team, and that we came 3rd." :biggrin: Or if she realised she didn't have a chance at a medal in individual and decided to make some statement not even caring if she was disqualified.
Ashley is just what this sport needs! I like her attitude. Let's not forget Kwan booing her marks after the SP Olympics 2002. Nothing was ever said about that!! Or Sasha mouthing "Fu*ck Yeah!" when she skated a clean SP in 2006. These are athletes were are talking about! To think that they are Ice Princesses is ridiculous and so old school.
 

vegarin

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 19, 2013
Clearly she is very talented for a fifteen year old and has wonderful qualities; I am just dismayed with the judges and her score with respect to how she skated. This is a sport and as promising and consistent as she is, the low quality of her jumps are undeserving of such high GOEs.

I agree with that, too. She skated her heart out, sure, and she's a great talent, no doubt, and no one's bullying her. But it's still fair to say that her GOE pretty much doubled during a month for similarly performed program, and for those who follow FS more regularly, that doesn't happen. Or shouldn't. Or so I think. But it remains my opinion.
 

cornell08

Final Flight
Joined
May 10, 2009
1) Julia does not look 15. #sorrynotsorry

2) Did anyone else notice the lack of enthusiasm with regards to the rest of the US figure skating team (the ones who weren't chosen to compete in team competition) on the Team's bronze? There were some well wishes, but muted, or none at all when the skaters have and continue to tweet alot. I wonder if that is awkward at all....I would think so.

3) I like Rachael as a person, and I think she's a good role model for student athletes. But she always refers to her own experiences/accomplishments whenever she praises other US figure skating athletes. Like, we get it. You were there too. :sarcasm:
 

Angryyew

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 16, 2014
Hah, good luck with that. But a good idea. :laugh:

My rant: the anonymous judging needs to stop. We need to know which judge gives which GOE and which PCS marks, down to every element. Each judge must have a track record on what scores they give and be held accountable when they have scores that skew or grossly deviate from others. Also, the top PCS/GOE score and lowest PCS/GOE scores must be eliminated. Too often this will be used to lowball skaters deserving higher scores and inflate skaters that skate average but end up getting higher scores. And there need to be consequences for this bs. Judges essentially must be feared into judging properly and impartially.

http://keepingscore.blogs.time.com/2014/02/09/sochi-olympics-figure-skating-russia/

What was the initial argument for anonymous judging anyway? Was it supposed to be so judges didn't feel intimidated by other judges? Given that COP was initially introduced in response to the judge collusion accusations, making it even more difficult to hold individual judges accountable seems bizarre. Though, this Olympics, even more so than judges, the objectivity of the technical callers seems in question.
 

Robeye

Final Flight
Joined
Feb 16, 2010
What was the initial argument for anonymous judging anyway? Was it supposed to be so judges didn't feel intimidated by other judges? Given that COP was initially introduced in response to the judge collusion accusations, making it even more difficult to hold individual judges accountable seems bizarre. Though, this Olympics, even more so than judges, the objectivity of the technical callers seems in question.
The screwball logic was that the feds themselves would not know how their judges voted, and therefore the judges could not possibly be influenced. :laugh:
 

Ven

Match Penalty
Joined
Mar 17, 2013
1) Julia does not look 15. #sorrynotsorry

I love how all fellow white westerners complain that the Chinese female gymnasts lie about their age, the government covers up for them, etc.

Not a word about Julia though. Talk about racism. :laugh:
 

Ven

Match Penalty
Joined
Mar 17, 2013
The anonymous judging was not created to eliminate cheating, it was created to eliminate the public's ability to discover cheating when it happens.
 
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