The prettiest ladies skater

VIETgrlTerifa said:

So many skaters are beautiful.

I have to say that this picture of Maia Shibutani knocked my socks off this weekend:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BPRHCoMhr6i/?taken-by=maiashibutani

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khughes said:

Well, that was one point she made. Another, was her discomfort that the golfers in the feature were only showcased for their looks, despite their achievements and talents. She also said that she felt better coverage for female golfers could actually help the game for women.

Members on this site know, better than most, exactly how much athleticism, tenacity and mental strength it takes to be a top figure skater. But lets face it, many, many people out there thinks figure skating barely qualifies as a sport at all - it's just about girls who look like wedding cake figurines. Are we doing the sport any good by reducing it to something that aligns with those assumptions?

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VIETgrlTerifa said:

I get your point and I agree that our beloved sport could do a lot more in promoting the athleticism side of these great athletes. USFS Magazine recently did a spread where the skaters got to show off how muscled and tone they were. I think they should show more fluff pieces about all the off-ice conditioning and strength training they do like I've seen in many other sports. I remember this Nike commercial featuring Bodie Miller and it opened my eyes on how strong and fit he was even though that was obvious. However, we shouldn't take for granted that people fully understand the athleticism that goes into any sport.

That said, I don't feel comfortable with any portrayal of feminine qualities equaling weak or inferior. I think this sport should not shy away from portraying any skater who feels its his or her authentic self to show off qualities that we think of as more "feminine". I think one can also highlight the amount of work and athleticism it actually takes to pay attention to those qualities (stretch, line, detail, doing choreography, transitions, etc.). I think the real message should be that feminine and masculine and everything in-between or outside such categories can all be positive and strong.

I think we just need to be careful to also be inclusive and not have a situation like Tonya Harding who in many ways was sick of trying to fit into this preconceived image that the image became everything that she felt people were giving her crap about during her lulls even if there was some real skating and technique related critiques that were in there. The problem was that they got lost in her already shaky and insecure image of herself and background that she ended up going the other way and stopped listening to everything except what she wanted to hear. I think Rohene Ward talked about being pressured to be less than his authentic self as well. I do think skating, like ballet and other forms of dance, do have certain aesthetics and ideals we want to push but I think we should also allow people to work on being their best selves as well. It's a hard balance but I think it's a challenge the sport needs to embrace because to me it is a very special sport.

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VIETgrlTerifa said:

I get your point and I agree that our beloved sport could do a lot more in promoting the athleticism side of these great athletes. USFS Magazine recently did a spread where the skaters got to show off how muscled and tone they were. I think they should show more fluff pieces about all the off-ice conditioning and strength training they do like I've seen in many other sports. I remember this Nike commercial featuring Bodie Miller and it opened my eyes on how strong and fit he was even though that was obvious. However, we shouldn't take for granted that people fully understand the athleticism that goes into any sport.

That said, I don't feel comfortable with any portrayal of feminine qualities equaling weak or inferior. I think this sport should not shy away from portraying any skater who feels its his or her authentic self to show off qualities that we think of as more "feminine". I think one can also highlight the amount of work and athleticism it actually takes to pay attention to those qualities (stretch, line, detail, doing choreography, transitions, etc.). I think the real message should be that feminine and masculine and everything in-between or outside such categories can all be positive and strong.

I think we just need to be careful to also be inclusive and not have a situation like Tonya Harding who in many ways was sick of trying to fit into this preconceived image that the image became everything that she felt people were giving her crap about during her lulls even if there was some real skating and technique related critiques that were in there. The problem was that they got lost in her already shaky and insecure image of herself and background that she ended up going the other way and stopped listening to everything except what she wanted to hear. I think Rohene Ward talked about being pressured to be less than his authentic self as well. I do think skating, like ballet and other forms of dance, do have certain aesthetics and ideals we want to push but I think we should also allow people to work on being their best selves as well. It's a hard balance but I think it's a challenge the sport needs to embrace because to me it is a very special sport.

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gravy said:

Your Norwegian is shining through. :agree:

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