Reasons for Michelle Kwan to Retire

Re: Reasons for Michelle Kwan to Retire

kwansong999

of course ratings will go down... however it won't get to the point where things like nationals and worlds and the olympics plus other random shows/competitions won't be aired....
ratings may go down but they won't disappear.... they will be around the same level as they were before michelle....
and to be honest, it's not completely michelle's doing that there is so much viewership - more has to do with the nancy/tonya thing.... THOSE people didn't leave when the scandal was over... they stuck around... just as people who came into being fans because of michelle will probably find a reason to keep watching/attending competitions... whether they be local or televised...!
for skating, I think that over the years things have really gotten out of proportion to the norm and to what can realistically be expected over time.... thus, viewership has continued to drop anyways, regardless of michelle's continuance in eligible competition.... I've never seen such empty audiences as I have the last 5 years.... I personally believe the nancy/tonya thing started the whole thing off (and I think most would agree on that) and that over the last 10 years, that gigantic boom in interest has naturally waned........ because of the scandal, the people were interested, and so they basically saturated the market and topped out.....
so even with michelle around the viewership has dropped....
that's my point...

realistic51

I'm not saying that a true skating fan always must attend local or regional events.... I'm simply saying that a true fan doesn't always need to rely on thousands of televised events a year.... sure having many events televised is great. I don't have a lot of time to galavant around and find local competitions.... however, a decrease in televised events won't make me stop caring about skating or watching it when I get the chance.

", and too much "crap" going on with the ISU to stay interested in skating if and when Michelle decides to leave. "

So you are saying you ARE a fair-weather fan.... the ISU has been controversial throughout michelle's tenure. if the ISU has made you fed up, then you are saying you are withdrawing your being a skating fan and have moved on to being a michelle fan alone. a SAKTING fan will ride the tide and see the struggles through no matter what they may be. if you can no longer do that, then you aren't a skating fan and you should call yourself a michelle fan, which there is nothing wrong with. Not every michelle fan has to be a skating fan. thus you do agree with me that a true fan cares about the skating and not simply the skater (even though it's easier to connect with the person and not the sport).

Response to engrsktr

Don't you feel frustrated when you watch what is supposed to be an athletic competition to become totally befuddled by the results? If American Football was played on a field without yard lines and the calls were made based on the eyeballs of mystery judges, do you think the NFL would be loosing fans? Methinks they would.

So Michelle should carry the burden of keeping skating as a premeir sport. The ISU should certainly bear some of the responsibility.

Regarding Nancy/Tonya: before the knee whack occurred, the media was already hyping the upcoming "show down". There was quite a bit of interest. Perhaps it was just the time and place, or perhaps the white princess versus the jumping bean just caught people's imagination. I'm not entirely certain that the knee whack was what caused all the watchers... although it certainly resulted in a lot of press that was totally unrelated to skating. The true litmis test: if the article does not include the word "lutz", it probably is just a tabloid piece.

And the furor might not have died down because skating isn't that interesting for many people - it was just replaced by the newest excitement for that type of reader. Micheal Jackson probably far outsold Tonya or Nancy, even on their worst day.

Linny

Re: Reasons for Michelle Kwan to Retire

What can one say about a "True" fan of anything? Am I a fan of the movies? Only if there is a film I want to see. Am I fan of baseball? You bet and I am a true fan of the Mets; Am I fan of Figure Skating? You bet and I am a true fan of MK, SC, AY, IKl, SL and of course Kurt Browning forever (even in his declining years.)

I just hope Alexei gets better and back into competition. He's been around as lonk as MK whom I hope also stays in competition. The both can retire to whatever whenever they want, imo.

Joe

Re: Response to engrsktr

well Linny, you said it exactly the right way -

"If American Football was played on a field without yard lines and the calls were made based on the eyeballs of mystery judges, do you think the NFL would be loosing fans? Methinks they would."

definitely the NFL would lose fans.... but there would be weekend start-up football games continuing to exist everywhere across the country. there would still be high school and college football games.... and those that like FOOTBALL, and not necessarily the NFL, would stick around because they like the GAME.
the sport of skating will always be around and appreciated by those who are true fans, regardless of media coverage, ISU judges, etc....
skating isn't all about television and ratings and numbers of shows.... sure it makes it more accessible, but it doesn't make or break it although it would be easy to think that it does if you are one that has come lately to the sport while it has experienced this upswing in popularity.
there are some of you who do not like that skating my drift back into relative obscurity as it relates to media coverage...even going so far as to stop being a fan.... and that's ok.... because true fans will be around forever, and it is these people that keep the sport going while it is abandoned by the rest.

Re: Response to engrsktr

Do you think football, baseball, hockey fans would put with their games being tape delayed for another date? How would the viewership of all sports events be affected if the fans could get the results of a competition/game a week before it airs on TV? Its bad enough now that we have to wait a week or two or three to see a competition on TV. There could come a time where we don't get TV coverage of events at all (the biggies would still be there - Nat's, Worlds, etc). The ratings have been dropping for a while now, the attendance at events is down, its just a matter of time before events aren't aired at all.

And I don't think its all about Michelle. There are a lot of factors to look at - judging, oversaturation (in the mid '90's), tape delaying competitions.

Trust me, other sports fans would not put up with the crap that skating fans have to endure.

Re: Response to engrsktr

that's interesting that you say other sports fans wouldn't put up with what we skating fans have to put up with....
I think baseball fans would disagree.....
at least we didn't have to go through a strike where there was no skating at all....
even though baseball went through that, there are still so many fans.... sure disenchantment happens from time to time, but it doesn't mean the end of a sport......
skating has been televised since the 60's.... talk about low viewership....! There will always be a place for skating on television.... it may not be a venue for every random competition, but all the majors will be there for a long long time to come...
and the only reason football, baseball, and hockey are always shown "realtime" is because they are simply more popular than skating.... its just a fact that will always be true.. sure skating has had its more popular moments... but on the whole and on a consistent basis, these sports will always be given more attention, thus fans will not have to wait a week to see the games... supply and demand....
I personally don't have a problem waiting a week to see a skating event.... it's not like there will be another major competition the following week.... skating isn't a traditional sport like those you mention.... they play week after week... every other day, etc... there is a little more room to work with in skating since events aren't scheduled that close to each other.

Re: Response to engrsktr

Engrsktr, I see what you mean. But I don't think that the answer is to be so "pure" in our love for the sport that we thumb our noses at the millions of dollars that television revenue brings in, or that we start hoping that COI and SOI will fold for lack of attendance. There will, as you say, always be die hard fans whose passion for skating is independant of who is the latest star. But there are plenty of more casual fans who <em>do</em> like this skater or that, and are willing to shell out the bucks to see him or her perform.

This money trickles down into support for local clubs and local competitions, into schoarships for up-and-comers whose parents might not be rich enough to pay thousands of dollars for coaching, etc., and into recreational aspects of the sport such as synchronized skating and adult skating. Kids see their favorite stars skating on TV and want to take up the sport. This provides employment for coaches, costume designers, choreogaphers, music specialists, manufacturers of skating equipment, and many others who devote their professional lives to skating.

Just think: with no skating on television Terry Gannon would have to do golf!

Money is indeed the root of all evil. The only thing worse is no money.

Mathman

Re: Response to engrsktr

Very good points regarding money trickling down, Mathman.

BTW, baseball attendance is down. It took a drastic downturn during the 1st strike. It was starting to rise again, but faltered during the last talks. A lot of people have turned away from MLB due to the strikes and the high cost. It can easily cost over $100 for a family of 4 to attend a game. Not sure what the status is, but there are baseball franchises losing money, too. By ratings, baseball is no longer America's favorite past time - that honor goes to football.

Re: Response to engrsktr

I agree that the money trickles down to the lower levels (to some degree)... and I am not arguing that it doesn't benefit skating to have big stars....
I am just stating that the true fan base of skating will not turn away when a big star retires... sure there are fans that stick around only because of a certain skater... but there are many other skaters that have fans....
I just think that it's a little short sighted and a little over dramatic to think that just because michelle retires it will spell the end of figure skating as we know it.... I think it's untrue... it will be sad for a lot of people but it won't be the end all....
there are others who stick around for people like sasha and sarah and other skaters who aren't even that popular right now....
by they way, I was never a baseball fan.... football it is!

Re: Response to engrsktr

My opinion is ( for what it is worth ), the Tonya-Nancy knee-whacking did increase the viewership of skating. At that point, it was not just a skating thing, it was a criminal thing and was getting a lot more news coverage. I think people wanted to see how the “thug” did against the “ice princess”. People might have thought Wow, who would’ve thought a cat fight in figure skating. :lol:
I think this also answers all the numerous and various competitions we had for a while. As a matter of fact, as much as I love skating, it was really to the point of the ridiculous for a while. Probably people who discovered skating at this time, found something else they liked about it. Maybe Michelle. Viewership and televised competitions already seem to be falling so I don’t think we can say that completely depends on Michelle. These things do go in cycles. As a matter of fact, it maybe that, as far as number of competitions on TV and those things, it may be returning to normal.

Some people find a particular skater they follow, some people are die-hard fans no matter who is skating. Like SkateSandee, I have my eye on Jenny Kirk for the future. Sasha is a wonderful skater but she just really doesn’t “speak” to me like Michelle. It doesn’t always have to be the best or most consistent skater either. I loved Paul Wylie’s skating throughout his career. It didn’t matter how many times he fell. He was still the most beautiful skater to me. (I’m rambling again. )

Many of us don’t live in areas where there is or can’t afford to go to live competitions. What we see on TV is all we get. So that certainly is not a measure on whether someone is a true fan. I have been watching skating since I was a teenager, over 20 years and I have never been to a live competition or SOI or COI. I’m a little jealous of those who have been.

I think Michelle should retire when she wants to. If she retired tomorrow she has given years of wonderful memories of her skating. If she retires in ten years, that’s 10 more years of wonderful memories.

Re: Reasons for Michelle Kwan to Retire

Jules, :rollin: :rollin: :rollin: :rollin: :rollin: "after seeing other girls' vast collections of silver medals, she quits out of pity..." This has to be my favorite one so far!!

I get this image of various skaters sitting outside an ice rink in Vera Wang knock-offs begging: "Please MK, I want a gold medal!!" (Oliver twist- style!!)

engrtkr, ok we obviously will just have to agree to disagree. Viva la difference of opinion!!

<img src="http://home.attbi.com/~luenatic/skatingpic/mk_SpreadEagle2.gif" style="border:0;"/>