Who is likely to win pairs Silver in Torino?

**Vash01** · 09-11-2004, 07:28 PM

Assuming S&Z are a lock for the 2006 Olympic gold, who is likely to win the pairs silver?

**BronzeisGolden** · 09-11-2004, 08:41 PM

Well, this years Worlds proved S&Z aren't unquestioned favorites for Olympic Gold. However, I do hope they win. IMHO, they are by far and away the best team on the ice right now. I'd say T&M will still be their biggest challengers by 2006. The other two Chinese teams should also be threats.

**RIskatingfan** · 09-11-2004, 09:12 PM

What a weird poll. How can you assume S/Z are a lock for gold?

They just won silver this past season.

IMO S/Z and T/M are co-favorites to win the gold in 2006 and if nothing too strange happens in the meanwhile (and in Turin), gold and silver will be for them.

**Vash01** · 09-12-2004, 02:57 AM

Originally Posted by RIskatingfan

What a weird poll. How can you assume S/Z are a lock for gold?

They just won silver this past season.

IMO S/Z and T/M are co-favorites to win the gold in 2006 and if nothing too strange happens in the meanwhile (and in Turin), gold and silver will be for them.

I don't think this is a weird poll at all. Had I included S&Z on the list and asked who would win gold in 2006, EVERYONE would have picked S&Z and that would have been a meaningless poll. In its current form there is a spread over 4 pairs (not equal, obviously) but it tells us which pair is PERCEIVED to be the biggest challenger to S&Z.

Vash

**Germanice** · 09-15-2004, 06:50 AM

Right, last season Xue and Hongbo "only" won Silver, but just because the way HOW!!! they won it

I cannot think of any other pair being on that Gold spot in Turino. But of course, everything is possible! - As for Silver, I've voted for Pang & Tong.

Anke

**Joesitz** · 09-15-2004, 08:34 AM

I don't think it is a question of who will win gold or silver. IMO, S&Z are locked in for gold unless they have an inadvertent accident as what happened in Dortmund. They have no co-favorites, imo. Sometime the gods give another team a bit of luck that has nothing to do with true skating.

We should all know by now that gold doesn't mean best.

I don't think any team is locked in for the silver.

Joe

**RIskatingfan** · 09-15-2004, 10:02 AM

Originally Posted by Joesitz

S&Z are locked in for gold unless they have an inadvertent accident as what happened in Dortmund

An inadvertent accident in Dortmund? What happened in Dortmund that can be called an accident? I remember that Zhao fell on the SBS triple toes on the SP, but surely you can't be referring to this, since falls are not "accidents", they're part of the sport and the competition and they're what skaters train to avoid at competitions by training and practicing hard every day. Falls aren't accidents, they're mistakes. And mistakes are penalized.

**mike79** · 09-15-2004, 11:09 PM

I think O&S will be right there by that point.

**Vash01** · 09-16-2004, 02:41 AM

Originally Posted by Joesitz

I don't think it is a question of who will win gold or silver. IMO, S&Z are locked in for gold unless they have an inadvertent accident as what happened in Dortmund. They have no co-favorites, imo. Sometime the gods give another team a bit of luck that has nothing to do with true skating.

We should all know by now that gold doesn't mean best.

I don't think any team is locked in for the silver.

Joe

It was not an accident; it was a major mistake in the SP by S&Z. T&M skated both SP and LP well and they deserved to win the gold in 2004. Certainly S&Z's fall helped them win but that does not mean it has nothing to do with true skating. It has everything to do with how the two pairs skated.

In Dortmund, T&M's gold medal meant that they were the best pair in that competition.

Vash

**Joesitz** · 09-16-2004, 06:49 AM

Sorry about the use of the word 'accident'.

I presume we expect major mistakes to happen all the time for S&Z or we hope so, and other teams will not make them.

so no one is locked in. The point really is if S&Z do not make major mistakes they are still not locked in . Would we say the same thing about Plushy if he does not make a major mistake?

Maybe the term 'lock' should never have been introduced as it was in the first post, or ever used in discussion, for that matter. It's a slippery sport.

Joe

**diver chick** · 09-16-2004, 08:00 AM

In my opinion there is no such thing as a 'lock' for a medal.

Granted at the moment S&Z are probably the favourites - if....
....they can get this quad throw of theirs under control without affecting the quality of the rest of the performances
.....they don't get injured in training between now and then
....p&t or t&m or any one of a number of other pairs teams don't make a huge leap or improvement over the next couple of seasons - and for the russians it probably won't require much of an improvement.
....they don't come up with disastrous programs like FP&M in SLC granted that is less likely to happen in pairs because of the clear technical element.
....they perform to their ability during both SP and FP in Turino.

**Ptichka** · 09-16-2004, 05:14 PM

Originally Posted by diver chick

In my opinion there is no such thing as a 'lock' for a medal.

True, but...

....they can get this quad throw of theirs under control without affecting the quality of the rest of the performances

IMHO they don't need the quad to win.

.....they don't get injured in training between now and then

naturally

....p&t or t&m or any one of a number of other pairs teams don't make a huge leap or improvement over the next couple of seasons - and for the russians it probably won't require much of an improvement.

I just don't see P&T (either one of them) or T&M making that kind of a leap. And I don't hink O&S will be there yet.

....they don't come up with disastrous programs like FP&M in SLC granted that is less likely to happen in pairs because of the clear technical element.

I don't see them doing that. One thing I like about S&Z is that they stay fairly humble relative to their success (may be it's a culture thing, I don't know). FP&M got too cocky thinking it was a good program; TT told them it wasn't a good idea, but they just wouldn't listen. Besides, I consider FP&M's World Gold a fluke; their placement in SLC was at least not higher than their skills. S&Z are a different story.

....they perform to their ability during both SP and FP in Turino

Naturally.

**Vash01** · 09-17-2004, 11:42 AM

Originally Posted by Vash01

I don't think this is a weird poll at all. Had I included S&Z on the list and asked who would win gold in 2006, EVERYONE would have picked S&Z and that would have been a meaningless poll. In its current form there is a spread over 4 pairs (not equal, obviously) but it tells us which pair is PERCEIVED to be the biggest challenger to S&Z.

Vash

For those objecting to the word 'lock' please reread the above post. It is an ASSUMPTION (not a PREDICTION) made to get some kind of balance in this poll. Sure S&Z are HUGE favorites to win, but the gap between them and T&M -all things considered- is not as wide as majority of fans tend to believe. T&M are still improving, and so are Pang & Tong and Z&Z who IMO have a bright future). T&M have better basic stroking skills, extensions, and S&Z's spins and unison are still weak, and they have never had great posture, so S&Z are really not perfect. However, S&Z will be given the benefit of doubt if all skate clean, or if S&Z have a relatively minor mistake. On the poll they would have received close to 100% of the votes, that is why I had to keep them out of the poll (I did not want to post something like "if they did not skate"). The purpose of this poll is different.

Vash