Michael Weiss | Page 4 | Golden Skate

Michael Weiss

euterpe

Medalist
Joined
Sep 4, 2003
I certainly don’t hate Michael Weiss. I do appreciate his contribution to the US Men’s team, and his efforts have paid off in the past 3 years by allowing the US to keep its 3 Men’s spots at Worlds.

But I have to admit I have been turned off by several of the comments he has publicly made.

It annoyed me after 2002 Nationals, where the US judges had gifted Mike with 3rd place and an Olympic berth, when Mike boasted about how strong the US team was—when he was the weakest one on it!

And of course there was the Hummer chest-thumping at World 2003. That made me cringe!

Mike has been more circumspect lately in his statements to the press, and that is good. But his recent interview showed that the old Mike is still in there somewhere. He basically denied he had said anything negative about his teammates after the SP at 2003 Nationals, instead, he blamed it on the media. But I HEARD what he said, from his own mouth, and it was that the 3 skaters who’d been placed above him in the SP (Goebel, Weir, Savoie) had done so with skills that you’d see at the Junior level. At the time, Mike’s own (new) coach, Don Laws, reprimanded him and said that the three men deserved to be placed ahead of Mike because they had skated better than Mike did. So it’s somewhat disingenuous now for Mike to point a finger at the media and absolve himself of any wrong.

I firmly believe that Mike has the right to keep competing, and if he can deliver performances good enough to keep ahead of the younger men, then he fully deserves to be on the US World team. But I also hope that the US judges will place Mike based on his performances, and not on past successes.
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
eurterpe - I quote myself here:

For some reason, some fans hold a lot of contempt for Michael for what is perceived arrogance; others and myself included just consider his performances and not his personality. I agree sometimes a performer (not necessarily a skater) who is perceived as having a personality defect by some, can get in the way of his popularity.

My point is that I find the personal lives of skaters as just that and I have definite opinions of how skaters skate. For me there is a difference. Sometimes the personal lives of skaters are interesting but I would not hold that against their skating ability.

All I am saying is that I am finding excessive HATRED for Michael in this thread based on his behaviour. As a former skater I have no choice but to come to the defence of a colleague. Sasha Cohen made a verbal statement that she has already beaten Vikka Volchkova in a haughty (arrogant) way. I thought that was in bad taste for a skater to put down another skater. However, I am still a fan of Sasha Cohen. I happen to like her style and her behaviour off ice is just that.

If Michael's off ice behaviour bothers you than so be it. the off ice behaviour of many skaters I find questionable. Are there any other skaters you might list as having bad behaviour?

Jaana - I will be looking forward to Ilia's skating in the upcoming TV shows. He has been able to blend the East and the West quite nicely. He does not have to rely on an imitation of Elvis Presley as so many eastern skaters do.

For other fans of Klimkin and Lambiel. Maybe they will land their quads in the upcoming season. I hope so but for me it is not necessary. I like their styles which are so different.

Joe
 

berthes ghost

Final Flight
Joined
Jul 30, 2003
Well, I could see how it would depend, or at least be a thin line easy to cross.

Tara, Sarah and Tonya.

3 ladies whom I was a fan of when they were eligable. But....now that none of them are even skating, yet all 3 seem to be regularly in the press giving their personal opinions on skating and their careers, well, I think I've lost a lot of respect for all 3, with variing degrees of course. :laugh: (just so I don't get flamed, I do realize that what Tara and Sarah have done with thier post Oly careers is not at all the same as what Tonya has done with hers) I still admire them for the good parts of their eligable careers, but gosh, talk about knowing too much. Now there's 3 people I wish would "just go away". :(
 

euterpe

Medalist
Joined
Sep 4, 2003
I do not hate Michael Weiss.

There have been times when I have not liked his public behavior.

So many times, I wished he would just shut up and skate.

I am often disappointed with his skating, because I've always had the feeling he really could do a lot better.

Every once in a while, he delivers a really terrific performance, and I am pleased and delighted.

I wish he would fire his wife and get a real choreographer, and stop doing embarrassing programs such as his FS this year.

Although he has never quite reached Todd Eldredge's level of attainment, Mike has been an asset to the US figure skating team.

In short, Michael Weiss is a mixed bag---but then, so are a lot of other skaters.
;)
 

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
to go with Joe's "what one person percieves as arrogance another does not" statement I'll draw from my own feelings.

I've always found Evgeni Plushenko as a little cocky. Not knocking him, just stating that the way I see him holding himself it makes me get that feeling. Likewise Sasha Cohen gives me the same feeling.

However they both have bazillions of fans on message boards and those who have met them have said they are so the opposite. I still get that feeling of arrogance from them, but just because I feel a certain way doesn't make it so. Then again I'm not a huge fan of either, so I look for reasons I guess LOL.

With Michael Weiss people try to find dozens of reasons not to like him, even complaining that bringing his kids to competitions is "wrong". Yes he brings them, once in a while, into the Kiss and Cry... and yes it's made mention of in a lot of interviews and fluff pieces. But being a dad is part of who he is. I'd hate to think that that'd be a reason to dislike someone as a person or an athlete. It's almost saying dads that don't give a crap for their kids are better athletes than the ones that do. hmmmmmmmm :rolleye:

Yeah, Mike's said some dumb things... so have Tim, Alexei, Johnny, and countless others... but yeah I can see why MIKE should be the one getting all the flack for it.
 

hockeyfan228

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
dr.frog said:
BTW, it's also untrue that Weiss has never won a competition phase at Worlds. He won his qualifying round in DC.
I should have been clear: at the point at which he rented his hummer limo, he had never won a competition phase.

I didn't get to DC until Tuesday evening, and I didn't see the Men's qualis. I've been told by several people who were there that Weiss did not deserve first in his group, the weaker one, and that had he been in the other group, he would have been lucky to have been in fifth. However, I didn't witness this myself.
 

PrincessLeppard

~ Evgeni's Sex Bomb ~
Final Flight
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
I'm fairly certain Mikey made the comment about them skating "like juniors" and however he chooses to spin it now is fine. I will, when I get back next week, try to find the actual quote. I'm thinking it was on TV, therefore, not likely "misquoted." But...benefit of the doubt for now. But, really, why even bring up the junior worlds thing if you weren't trying to make a snide remark?

Here's the quote. Hard to believe this could a "misquote," but you are free to make your own judgment.


Goebel, Kwan lead after short programs
By Vicki Michaelis, USA TODAY

DALLAS —

"I thought that would have been good enough to be in second," Weiss said after his short program, in which he double-footed a quad, then outright flopped on a triple axel. "Some of the programs people are doing are things we did in juniors."

Laura :)
 
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chuckm

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Country
United-States
hockeyfan228: "I've been told by several people who were there that Weiss did not deserve first in his group, the weaker one, and that had he been in the other group, he would have been lucky to have been in fifth. However, I didn't witness this myself."

That is not true. Here are the top finishers, in order, in both groups, followed by their eventual finish:

Group A
Plushenko-1
Goebel-2
Lambiel-15
Li-4
Sandhu-8
Buttle-14
Van Der Perren-19
Chiper-17
Murvanidze-21
Smalun-23

Group B
Weiss-5
Honda-3
Jahnke-12
Klimkin-9
Zhang-10
Davydov-7
Dinev-13
Timchenko-11
Joubert-6
Skorniakov-20

The top skaters in Group A were Plushenko, Goebel and Li; in Group B, they were Honda, Joubert and Weiss. Six of the Group A skaters eventually finished out of the top 10, and five finished 15th or lower. By comparison, six Group B skaters finished in the top 10, and only one finished below 15th.

I can't agree that Weiss, given his performance in the QR, would have finished behind Sandhu and Buttle. Weiss's QR marks were quite consistent:

5.3 5.4 5.6 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.8
5.5 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.8 5.8 5.8 5.8

Compare Weiss's marks with these:

5.4 5.4 5.4 5.5 5.5 5.6 5.6 5.6 5.6 5.7 Lambiel
5.5 5.6 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.7

5.5 5.5 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.8 5.8 Li
5.3 5.3 5.3 5.4 5.6 5.6 5.6 5.6 5.6 5.6

4.5 4.8 4.9 5.0 5.0 5.2 5.2 5.4 5.5 5.5 Sandhu
5.0 5.2 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.5 5.5 5.5 5.7

4.9 4.9 4.9 5.1 5.2 5.2 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.4 Buttle
5.1 5.1 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.3 5.3 5.4 5.6 5.7

Obviously Weiss had a good skate in the QR at 2003 Worlds, and he would have finished no lower than third in the other group.
 

PrincessLeppard

~ Evgeni's Sex Bomb ~
Final Flight
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Chuck, thanks for posting those scores. However, there were two different sets of judges, so who knows how the judges from group A would've scored Weiss? He didn't have a lot of "oomph" in his worlds QR, whereas Lambiel and Li did. We'll never know....

Laura :)
 

Linny

Final Flight
Joined
Aug 13, 2003
Not hate, just disdain

Nope, can't really "hate" someone I know and even then it's not the same kind of hate as, say, hating poverty or starvation or disease.

However, unless I have the good fortune to attend a competition, there are very few skates shown on TV. For Mike's performances to take up this valuable time is, well, less than satisfactory for me as a TV viewer.

And it makes me wish he'd retire.

Linny
 

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
blaming bad judgement on the media's part as a reason for someone to leave just to make you happy is kinda weird, don't you think?

email ABC/ESPN/etc and complain
 

RIskatingfan

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 28, 2003
hockeyfan228 said:
I should have been clear: at the point at which he rented his hummer limo, he had never won a competition phase.

I didn't get to DC until Tuesday evening, and I didn't see the Men's qualis. I've been told by several people who were there that Weiss did not deserve first in his group, the weaker one, and that had he been in the other group, he would have been lucky to have been in fifth. However, I didn't witness this myself.
:rolleye: If he doesn't win oh bad, BAD Weiss. If he wins, oh but that was because the bad, BAD judging, Weiss didn't deserve it :rolleye: He sure can't win any way.

He's probably no better nor worse than the rest of the skaters, but he seems to be the sacrificial lamb and there isn't anything he says or does that can't be twisted in a bad way. Tonichelle, I totally agree with what you said here.
With Michael Weiss people try to find dozens of reasons not to like him, even complaining that bringing his kids to competitions is "wrong".
Chiper took his daughter to the K&C with him either in Euros or Worlds, I'm not sure where. People GUSHED about that and how cute it was. I would love to see what they would be saying if it had been Weiss...
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
RIskatingfan said:
:rolleye:
Chiper took his daughter to the K&C with him either in Euros or Worlds, I'm not sure where. People GUSHED about that and how cute it was. I would love to see what they would be saying if it had been Weiss...

If Weiss brought his children into the K&C, we would have six pages of bashing him for doing that. I don't think he will do it anyway, and I don't have any bad feelings for Chiper who did.

Joe
 

Antilles

Medalist
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
I think Mike's kids might rub people the wrong way because of the Olympic team photo. IIRC correctly, in the photo of the athletes, Mike brought his children in, taking the focus away from other athletes who had worked just as hard as he did to earn his spot.

The side of his personality that we see on tv drives me nuts, but I don't think he should retire over that. I just don't watch fluff pieces or interviews with him. His skating is fine.
 

ladybug

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
I remember Jumpin Joe took his son Blade into the Kiss and Cry all the time at Pro competitions. That was in 99 and 2000 I believe. I don't remembe anyone being upset about that, myself included.

Ladybug
 

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
Rudy has shown his neice and nephew(? I think there's one of each, right? :laugh: ) often at different moments of a figure skating show or competition, I don't see what's wrong with it at all.
 

RealtorGal

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
ladybug said:
I remember Jumpin Joe took his son Blade into the Kiss and Cry all the time at Pro competitions. That was in 99 and 2000 I believe. I don't remembe anyone being upset about that, myself included.

Ladybug

Good point! :) Of course not. It's only when Mike does something do his detractors get irritated. It's fodder for criticism. Mike appears to be a loving, caring parent. Actually, to all those who hate him, Mike appears to be a loving, caring person with occasional bursts of hubris. Big deal. Get a life. Let it go.
 

berthes ghost

Final Flight
Joined
Jul 30, 2003
Ah, a many faceted subject.

Re: Kidgate: It always bugs me when adults seem to push their kids in the limelight repeatedly, from Cody Lee Gifford to Melissa Rivers. Yuck. Maybe some people are hypocritical and are ok with Katia, Joe, and Dan shoving their kids in the spotlight, but bugged only by Mike. Me, they all bother me. Since when did the ISU institute "Bring your daugher to work day"? Get a babysitter. What next, cats, dogs and friendly neighbors in the K&C? Soon skaters will be selling tickets to the K&C faster than Clinton could say "How would you like to spend a night in Lincoln's bedroom?".

Just because I'm a Mike fan doesn't mean that I love everything about him. Same goes for everyother skater.

Although I do think that Mike has become the offical poster boy for acceptable web bashing, I have other beefs as well. It drives me crazy that often on the web, whenever one criticises even the smallest thing about a skater, even one of your own favorties, someone else will just automatically dismiss your feelings as simply the ravings of a jealous fan of a rival skater. Blech.
 

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
I don't see anything wrong with hollywood actors taking their kids out on teh red carpet for movie premiers and I see nothing wrong with skaters bringing their kids to a competition or show to watch them skate... :)
 

soogar

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 18, 2003
The only skater whom I have a "problem" with in terms of overexposing the private life is Katia Gordeeva (I don't know her so thus it's a "problem"). When she needed money she was perfectly willing to authorize a biography on her and Sergei and a children's book for Daria. However now that she is not hurting for money she isn't willing to talk about her marriage to Ilya Kulik or her new kid. Maybe Ilya wants privacy but I think that they could have given the fans something such as an interview with a pictorial. According to Lund's book, they turned down a spread in People.

I don't necessary mind when a skater chooses to keep everything private (ie Todd E.) butg once they open the door on their private life to the public and profit off of it, I think it's kind of hypocritical to close the door and demand privacy.

In terms of kid showing, lots of mothers bring their babies to the job to show them to co-workers while they are on maternity leave (proud fathers do this as well). I don't think that it's odd for a figure skater to want to show their kid off. Just because their job is in a public domain doesn't mean that they have to hide their kid away. I think it's nice to see skaters and their families. Skating is the one sport where fans have quite a bit of access to top skaters. You can go to the rink and watch them and later on in their career you might even take a lesson from one of them.

Mikey grew on me this year (Henry VIII did it for me) and I think he softened up a lot. His struggles are endearing me to him and maybe he will have a breakout year at the Olympics. I think he has the goods to win a medal and at this moment, I am more impressed with Mikey than I am Johnny. Mikey tries the quad which is more than what Johnny has done. Also for all the folks jumping on the Johnny bandwagon, we need to wait until the next season to see where Johnny is on the quad. I personallly felt that fifth place for his program was quite a bit of a gift as he didn't even bother trying the hard jump and in the old system, trying the jump automatically gave you a higher base score. Johnny might do well in COP , but there are a number of guys (including Mike) whose elements and overall skating are just as good or better than Johnny's and include the quad jump (and can land it cleanly, ie Tim, Plushy, Brian, Stefan etc).
 
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