Comments on Skate America | Golden Skate

Comments on Skate America

S

SkateFan4Life

Guest
Guys, I saw a portion of the broadcast today, and for what it's worth, here's my assessment:

Angela Nikodinov - It was wonderful to see Angela win the gold medal, and to see her land several beautiful, long jumps. She looked strong and confident, and though she tired at the end of her program - doubling a planned triple and singling a planned double axel - her overall presentation was first rate. Good for you, Angela! I hope you have a successful season and make the US World team.

Sasha Cohen - Bad news! Sasha withdrew from the competition due to her recurring back injury - the one that kept her out of competition the entire 2001 season. Here's hoping that Sasha rebounds quickly. She is still scheduled to compete at the next Grand Prix event, so perhaps this time around the injury isn't quite so severe.

Michael Weiss - OK, I'm not exactly a Michael Weiss fan, so I'll try to not be overly critical. However (!), the guy still cannot land triple axels, and he fluffed his two quad attempts. Granted, he was skating with one new boot and one old boot, but his technique still isn't what it needs to be, IMHO. He wore a rather unusual shirt - it was flesh-colored, and looked as though it was filled with tatoos. Later, he said he was happy with his performance. I guess that consistent medicracy is acceptable in his camp. He managed to win the bronze medal. Oh well, just my two cents.

Brian Joubert - How in the world did he WIN this competition with that sloppy, sloppy long program? Ugh! Fall outs on all of his quads, several misses in his triples, etc. Just a low-quality performance for Joubert. He skated to "1492", the same music that Elvis Stokjo used so successfully a number of years ago, and his costume was supposed to be a ship - with "sails", "rope", and other stuff thrown in. It looked kind of wierd and more than a little bit uncomfortable. In the kiss 'n cry area, Brian looked a little sheepish at his victory. He is such a terrific skater and competitor, but this wasn't his best performance, not by a long shot. If he skates like that at Worlds, he won't be close to the podium - unless the rest of the field crashes and burns as well.

Ryan Jahne - This guy is so, so elegant, and he skates with fire and passion, but he, too, has problems with his triple axel. He missed both of them but landed all of his other triples with confidence. The last half of his program was very strong, filled with triples, spins, and great choreography, and Ryan won his first-ever Grand Prix, the silver. Good for him! But please land those triple axels in the future!

Peggy Fleming - Is Peggy ill? She looked unwell, and she did not sound like her usual, articulate self during this competition. I hope she's OK.

Crash of Tatiana Totmianina and Maxim Marinin - A clip was shown of a terrible crash suffered by the reigning World champions as they competed at Skate America. Tatiana was in the air, being lifted by her partner, when he stumbled and she fell, head first, onto the ice. Tatiana lied motionless, in a fetal position, and she was transported to a local medical center. Susan Wynn interviewed the hospital spokesperson who said that Tatiana was being admitted and that she was in good condition. Thank heavens. Peggy Fleming said, "This was the worst fall I've ever seen in a skating competition." All the best to Tatiana for a swift, complete recovery.

Sarah Hughes - It was reported that 2002 Olympic gold medalist Sarah Hughes, who finished her freshman year at Yale, is now skating with Stars on Ice. Sounds as though her college education is on hold for the time being
 

RealtorGal

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
SkateFan4Life said:
Michael Weiss - He wore a rather unusual shirt - it was flesh-colored, and looked as though it was filled with tatoos.

Yes, he said that it was intended to look like tatoos to match the feel of his program. He has his name on the front, his wife's name on one side, and the names of his children on the other. Once he explained it, it made perfect sense to me.

Later, he said he was happy with his performance. I guess that consistent medicracy is acceptable in his camp.

He explained that considering his major catastrophe with his skate boot this week (it exploded) and the fact that he's skated about 5 times with one new boot and never skated with one new boot and one old boot, he was happy with his performance. We know that skaters take months to adjust to new boots (remember Tim's troubles and Michelle's?)--so I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. He was not cocky or offering an excuse--just telling the truth.

Brian Joubert - How in the world did he WIN this competition with that sloppy, sloppy long program?

I agree. Mike deserved the win.

[Peggy Fleming - Is Peggy ill? She looked unwell, and she did not sound like her usual, articulate self during this competition. I hope she's OK.

I was wondering the EXACT same thing! She looked awful!
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
Peggy looked tense and drawn at Campbell's, too.

Dick was in fine fettle, however. :laugh:

I didn't like how Dick and Terry talked on and on during Ota's performance about how bad Phaneuf had skated.

Weiss skated well, but I thought Lysacek was brilliant and should have won. Oh, well, he has his Jen to console him. (There should be a "lucky dog" smiley to put here. :) )

MM.
 

dr.frog

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 3, 2003
RealtorGal said:
I agree. Mike deserved the win.

Why? He landed fewer clean triples than Ryan (5 vs 6), didn't do a triple axel either, and the landings of the jumps he did do weren't as secure as Ryan's . And Ryan had a better-constructed program with more connecting elements and more difficult spins and step sequences, too.
 

RealtorGal

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
dr.frog said:
Why? He landed fewer clean triples than Ryan (5 vs 6), didn't do a triple axel either, and the landings of the jumps he did do weren't as secure as Ryan's . And Ryan had a better-constructed program with more connecting elements and more difficult spins and step sequences, too.

Yeah, but he didn't fall on his butt. TWICE. :p
 

show 42

Arm Chair Skate Fan
Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Exactly..........I love Ryan's fluid skating, but I thought falls were to be deducted? It appeared that even Ryan was surprised by his placement over Michael.....42
 

hockeyfan228

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
show 42 said:
Exactly..........I love Ryan's fluid skating, but I thought falls were to be deducted?
If you look at the detailed protocols at:

http://www.isufs.org/results/gpusa04/GPUSA04_Men_FS_Scores.pdf
(This requires Adobe Reader to view.)

you'll see that Jahnke received -3.0 deduction for each of the 3A attempts and an additional -1 for each fall. (Deductions for time, falls, illegal elements, costume/prop violations, and music violations are listed at the bottom of the element scores.)

However, apart from the 3R, where Jahnke received a base score, he received +GOE on each of the remaining 11 elements, and several points (2.9) higher than Weiss in Component scores, after the 2x factor was applied. His straighline footwork was graded L2, and two of his four spins were as well.

Weiss, on the other hand, received -GOE on his 4T (-1.80 avg), 3R, 3F/2T combination, and the downgraded 3A attempt. All of his spins and footwork were graded L1.
 

mzheng

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 16, 2005
Besides the GOE deduction on the falling jumps, Ryan got another 2 points deduction in total scores. Seems even with deductions on both falling Ryan still has more contents in his program than Weiss thus he deservedly beat Weiss in LP.
 

Ladskater

~ Figure Skating Is My Passion ~
Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 28, 2003
Mathman said:
Peggy looked tense and drawn at Campbell's, too.

Dick was in fine fettle, however. :laugh:

I didn't like how Dick and Terry talked on and on during Ota's performance about how bad Phaneuf had skated.

Weiss skated well, but I thought Lysacek was brilliant and should have won. Oh, well, he has his Jen to console him. (There should be a "lucky dog" smiley to put here. :) )

MM.


Mathman:

I was appalled by the commentary during the ladies. I especially took exception to Gagnon's (Terry) comments about Cynthia Phaneuf and how "Canadians at home watching might be hoping Angela does not skate well." That is simply untrue! I have seen Cynthia skate better and knew her first placement was a result of the new scoring system. She herself was surprised. It was not the most inspiring skate, but she did stay on her feet.

I thought Angela skated okay. She "ran out of gas" at the end, which sort of took away from her program. It was good enough to win though. I don't like her spiral position at all.

All in all, I was disappointed with the commentary. Comparing skaters from each country and how they execute moves - eg: "She does not do that lay back or spiral as well as Sasha" is just not cool in my opinion. Very poor taste on Dick and Peggy's part. As for Terry, he should go.
 

dr.frog

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 3, 2003
RealtorGal said:
Yeah, but he didn't fall on his butt. TWICE. :p

OK, if all that matters for winning is not falling on one's butt, I could probably manage to stay vertical while skating around for 4.5 minutes. Never mind that I wouldn't have any *content*.....
 

iluvtodd

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 5, 2004
Country
United-States
I'm thrilled for Angela, and hope this will be a confidence builder for her. I really enjoyed Alissa Czisny. I love Yukina Ota's artistry, and hope she will be able to land her jumps more consistenly.

I was very happy that Ryan made such a good recovery despite those falls. With all due respect to Brian Joubert, whose skating I really like over all, I feel he should ditch his "1492" program (or at least the "techno-pop" parts with the imitative footwork). I just want Brian to develop his own style. I'll quote Dick Button here with his frequent comment - "It just didn't sing." OK, I'll also confess that I am very partial to "1492" as skated by Hartshorn & Sweiding, Elvis, & Todd, and I don't care to listen to that beautiful soundtrack getting mangled with those horrendous "techno-pop" parts that are not part of the soundtrack.
:cry: Don't even get me started on his costume. :rofl:
 

Kasey

Medalist
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
Those who are commenting on the telecast: Keep in mind, you didn't see the short programs, for the placements. Brian had a HUGE lead over Jahnke and Weiss after the short. That is how he won this.

The people I was sitting with were divided between Weiss and Jahnke placements after the free. Some felt that the falls on the Triple Axels by Jahnke were more upsetting to the program than Weiss' errors. I liked both, and am a new Janke fan after this competition. But I think Mike has a good solid program this year that will just get better.

Kasey
 

Doggygirl

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 18, 2003
Thoughts following the broadcast..

I guess it's not surprising at this stage of the season that pretty much everybody had some jump troubles. Hopefully this aspect will improve shortly in the season.

Alissa - I'm so glad we got to see her skate!! I really enjoyed her performance. Her spins were beautiful to watch. I think her spirals are nice. If she can hold the positions just a little longer, she will be up there with some of the best in the spiral department. To me anyway, spirals have sure become more noticeable since COP came into play. And lots of the top ranked skaters don't do them too well IMO.

Miki - Liked her costume a lot. She should share her designer with Shiz. While I think she shows improvement in the overall presentation department from last year, she still has a long way to go. Her routine left me flat - it seemed the total focus was on the jumps without much in between. Either there wasn't much in between, or if there was good stuff there, I don't think she "showed it off." When she has any jump troubles at all, it just seems that there is not much left to watch and enjoy.

Cynthia - I'm glad we got to see her too! She really seems to "feel" her music. It didn't seem to be her day in the jump department, but she still was a true pleasure to watch.

Ota - I LOVE watching her skate. It wasn't her day either, but she has such great style in her presentation. That being said, I wish they would have televised Poykio's LP instead of Ota's. It would have been nice to see the first place LP. In the old 6.0 system, it would have been VERY unlikely that a skater in the second group would have had the winning LP. So maybe ABC didn't have their cameras set up and going at the time she actually skated??

Angela - YEAH!! What a nice "comeback" type performance for her. I know she's had her share of personal troubles, etc. over the last few years. She looks so darn SAD all the time. Even her smile when she realized she won looked sort of bittersweet to me. I hope she is happier on the inside than she looks on the outside sometimes.

MEN

Serov - I really like his style too. Glad I got to see him. Maybe it was just nice to watch a man skate in a Non-Completely-Horrid-Costume. (I liked his)

Weiss - I'm sure his rock-n-roll music choice might not appeal to every judge. But he sure looks better skating to that (more comfortable and into his music) than he seemed to some of the more traditional things he's skated to. Did I hear there is a new jump that Michael developed? It's called the "Weiss Quad." That's where you spin around 4 times in the air and land on 2 feet.

Ryan - He really is a gorgeous skater. His biggest WOW move for me was the spread eagle into the Tano Lutz.

Evan's program left me sort of flat. It might just be my own preferences for music - leaning to the more dramatic. "Singing in the Rain" just didn't do it for me. At least he didn't have a costume designed to look like an umbrella.

Joubert - Did not like the "techno" inserts as others have said. He is so handsome and talented. I wish he would get with coaches / choreographers who bring out a style that is HIM. To me, he looks like a deer in the headlights trying to be Yags.

I like COP. I'm glad to see skaters be awarded for what they DO rather than placed just based on how the jumps go that day. (over rewarded on a good jump day / under-rewarded on a bad jump day for everything else)

Can't wait for the season to keep going!

DG
 
S

SkateFan4Life

Guest
Doggygirl said:
Evan's program left me sort of flat. It might just be my own preferences for music - leaning to the more dramatic. "Singing in the Rain" just didn't do it for me. At least he didn't have a costume designed to look like an umbrella.

DG

Terry Gannon stated that Evan was skating with a stress fracture on one of his shins. UGH!! :sheesh: Evan was advised by his physician to take time off to recover, but he said (to paraphrase), "No way. I have a lot of skating to do." Duh -- a stress fracture can escalate into a full-blown broken bone. Evan needs to take care of this injury.

I also loved Ryan Jahne's 'Tano Triple. Way to go! We don't see that performed too often, and that is such a tremendous extension of the triple lutz.
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
I don't know if they showed the SP for the Men on TV. If they did you could very agree with me that the most musical skater out there was Roman Serov. I had him in lst place after the Short. He reminds me of Sasha Abt. I am looking forward to seeing him skate in the future.

Joe
 

qoo

Rinkside
Joined
Aug 16, 2003
I thought Cynthia's TCS scores are way overmarked.
Below is a comparison of two events she attended this year. Somehow I must think that geographic location where the events took place affected scores a great deal. I would like to see how she will be judged outside North America.. but Alas... her only other entry is Skate Canada......

Nebelhorn-Trophy 81.86 40.56 43.30 5.39 5.21 5.46 5.46 5.54
Skate America 94.20 43.08 51.12 6.35 6.15 6.50 6.30 6.65
 

Grgranny

Da' Spellin' Homegirl
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
From what I gather, Sunday on ABC must be a rerun of pairs and dance. I hope so, since I goofed up so badly on taping it. And also, those that don't get ESPN's can get it too. :rock:
 

hrmsk8ngnutt

Final Flight
Joined
Jul 29, 2003
Grgranny said:
From what I gather, Sunday on ABC must be a rerun of pairs and dance. I hope so, since I goofed up so badly on taping it. And also, those that don't get ESPN's can get it too. :rock:
I don't know if you have cable, but ESPN2 is going to rebroadcast pairs (short and free) and dance (OD) on Wednesday 10/27 at 9:30 PM ET / 6:30 PM PT. ABC will show the Free Dance on Sunday 10/31. Here are some links:

http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/tvlistings/index?date=20041027 (Wed. Schedule)
http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/tvlistings/schedule?date=20041031&network=30 (Sunday Schedule - ABC Sports)

Remember to double-check your local listings. I hope you can tape it.

Herm (sk8ngnutt)
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
qoo said:
I thought Cynthia's TCS scores are way overmarked.
Below is a comparison of two events she attended this year. Somehow I must think that geographic location where the events took place affected scores a great deal. I would like to see how she will be judged outside North America.. but Alas... her only other entry is Skate Canada......

Nebelhorn-Trophy 81.86 40.56 43.30 5.39 5.21 5.46 5.46 5.54
Skate America 94.20 43.08 51.12 6.35 6.15 6.50 6.30 6.65
I agree that these 6's were way too high for the Skate America performance. I didn't see the Nebelhorn event, so I can't comment there.

I don't know whether or not Canadian skaters generally get a "home court advantage" when skating in the U.S. It has seemed to me that Canadian judges are often the harshest when grading U.S. skaters (as most recently for instance at Campbells.)

Mathman
 
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