When will Johnny be taken seriously? | Golden Skate

When will Johnny be taken seriously?

sk8er1964

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
When will Johnny be taken seriously by the USFSA and the media?

Many of the advertisements for the US Nats contain pics of MK and Sasha, and Michael Weiss, and B&A - but not Johnny. Last time I checked, he was the US mens national champion.

Here's an article on Yahoo about the Detroit cheesefest that mentions that Timmy won the silver medal at NHK - but no mention that Johnny won the gold. http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20041117/ap_on_sp_ot/fig_marshalls_skating_1

How long will it take him to exorcise the demons of 2003, at least in the eyes of the media? At least Terry Gannon seems to have stopped referencing the "disasterous 2003 nationals".

I'm not a really big "fan" type - I like them all. But this is kind of making me :mad: because they should at least acknowledge his accomplishments. End of rant. :eek:
 

ChiSk8Fan

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 7, 2004
Taken seriously

I think that when a skater wins a medal at the World Championships or Olympics, the media is more likely to "take them seriously". I think that his fellow skaters probably all take Johnny Weir seriously. To be taken seriously, a skater must also show that they will be consistent in their excellence performance after performance after performance after performance, a la Michelle Kwan, Alexei Yagudin, Evgeny Plushenko and numerous others past and present.
 

BravesSkateFan

Medalist
Joined
Aug 7, 2003
WARNING....don't read this if you don't want to be spoiled on Johnnys GP finishes


Well the truth is that he's only one 3 major Senior Competitions (04 Nats and the 2 GPs from this year). He's just not racked up the credentials that Michelle, Sasha, Michael and Tim have. People outside of skating recognize Olympians over other athletes and all the 4 mentioned have been to an Olympics and have won a Worlds medal. The only thing major Johnny has won is nationals.
 

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
Not to tick anyone off. But I am not going to nationals excited to see Johnny. Sure I'll sit through his skating, but the more I watch the more I'm just turned off by it. It's just not my favorite style. I'm going to see the guys TV never shows and Mike, Tim, Matt, and Ryan... I'm not saying that that's the feeling of most, but the USFSA KNOWS for a FACT that Sasha, Michelle, and Tim are big time popular... google their names and tons of sites pop up! Not only that but Tim has an Olympic Medal, other than that I don't think he'd be considered a headliner considering US Figure Skating people still have this idea that male skaters don't/can't sell tickets... it's all about them ladies... :sheesh:
 

jesslily

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 4, 2004
Johnny has been taken seriously gradually since last year nationals. He won and got GP assignments. He even got a couple of B assignments before last year nationals.
Sure the media can not talk about him as same high as Goabel and Weiss who have been up there for a while, especially Goabel has Olympic Brownz medal.
From yesterday NHK I watched, ABC only did one man skater feature, it's Johnny Weir's, showing him doing the shopping in Japan.
Not all people would like him, but at least some do. It seems Japanese audience liked him very much.
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
BravesSkateFan said:
WARNING....don't read this if you don't want to be spoiled on Johnnys GP finishes


Well the truth is that he's only one 3 major Senior Competitions (04 Nats and the 2 GPs from this year). He's just not racked up the credentials that Michelle, Sasha, Michael and Tim have. People outside of skating recognize Olympians over other athletes and all the 4 mentioned have been to an Olympics and have won a Worlds medal. The only thing major Johnny has won is nationals.
He was not assigned any GP series last year, although he won Finlandia. the previous season, he was injured throughout, and his 2003 Nats will unfortunately, be remembered forever. He started skating at 12. He is also the 2001 Jr Champ.

The skaters you mentioned certainly have been in more competitions than Johnny, and should indeed have more credentials to show for them.

I think his 5th in Dortmund got him some interests. Certainly with the competitors. He went from the second group of six skaters to the first group of six and then placed 5th without the quad.

What the media thinks of him is their business and certainly it reflects on the casual fans. Like him or not, he goes into US Nats as the favorite.

What is much more interesting in Johnny's case is the quad. Will he attempt it in COR? If he does, and it fails....... I think that will push him back to the second group of 6 at Worlds. If it works....... he will be podium bound. JMO.

Joe
 

Linny

Final Flight
Joined
Aug 13, 2003
Sectionals

He had to qualify for Nationals last year through Sectionals. I live in his area and was lucky enough to see it televised on a local station.

Don't be in too much of a hurry to have the media recognize him as the next best thang. The pressure will be particularly hard on him.

Linny
 

Jaana

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
Country
Finland
I think that Weir should have already tried out his quad in competitions this season. In my opinon it would be a mistake to leave it too late or to count on a clean freeskate without a quad to win in the Olympics or Worlds. Especially as Weir is competing against Plushenko who has both the presentation and the technical side.

Marjaana
 

Petlover

On the Ice
Joined
Oct 28, 2004
Consistency is the key!

IMO, the key to Johnny's future is consistency. So far this year, he has been consistently clean and awesome, and if his improvement continues, he will have the quad consistently in competition by next year. I think he will continue to be consistently fabulous, but only time will tell.

In the meantime, his incredible artistry in his skating is there for us all to enjoy!
Marcia
 

Zanzibar

Final Flight
Joined
Oct 22, 2003
When will Weir be taken more seriously by the sports media?

When he lands a quad.

Otherwise, even if by some stroke of luck, CofP, and drama he wins the next World or Olympics, he'll be known as the guy who won WITHOUT a quad, and hence, took the technical aspect of the sport backwards.

That said, I love his skating. But would still prefer to see Plushenko or Brian win.
 

Grgranny

Da' Spellin' Homegirl
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
IMHO, Johnny was right not to try the quad. After all, look at his medals. Wouldn't have received them had he tried the quad and fell.
 

euterpe

Medalist
Joined
Sep 4, 2003
WARNING: SPOILER

Johnny popped two jumps at LeBomp in Paris. He got zero points for both jumps. If he had tried the quad and failed, he would have gotten at least 3-5 points, which would have been enough for him to win the FS as well as the SP.
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
Zanzibar said:
Otherwise, even if by some stroke of luck, CofP, and drama he wins the next World or Olympics, he'll be known as the guy who won WITHOUT a quad, and hence, took the technical aspect of the sport backwards.

That said, I love his skating. But would still prefer to see Plushenko or Brian win.

So what if the technical aspect of the sport goes backwards? I don't believe that will happen if your hypothetical remark become true. Someone in the next competition will do a quad and win, but not because of the quad alone. The sport has now become quite emphatic on what a skater must do to earn points. the more points, the higher one places. It's that simple.

I don't care if Plush or Brian are the only two for gold. I would take Stephane over both of them, but I can understand if they win. In Plush's case it is because he is a more rounded skater than Brian. In Brian's case it is because Plush falters. In Stephane's case it is because his surgery was successful and he skates so well, imo, that he is the most rounded skater in the Men's competition. But who knows what will happen. Plush is and should be the favorite going into Worlds and Olys. I'm thinking Johnny in the top six.

Joe
 

sk8m8

Final Flight
Joined
Jul 28, 2003
IMHO, I think that the more people that see Johnny live the more "importance" he'll gain. Right now he is getting fantastic marks in comps without a quad. This is due to only one reason I can see...his edging it so much better than anyone else out there competing this season. After seeing him skate at Nats in Atlanta I FINALLY saw what all the fuss was about. He has the kind of carriage that all great skaters have. Dorothy Hamel and Yuka Sato are the only two skaters I know who I can compare to Weir. He also has those "soft knees" like Torville and Dean's skating.

I think, though, that Johnny's not a "bravura skater." In short, he's an ice skater's ice skater with his great oppositional edging and all the "little things" that he includes and look so polished and easy during his performance. It's easy to pick up on when you are watching live, however maybe not so much on TV. PS..look for JW to at least medal this year, quad or no. Just a prediction.... :agree:
 

MasterB

Final Flight
Joined
Jul 18, 2004
Not me!

When we see men skating we want to see men skate like men (Yagudin, Browning, Boitano, Weiss, Tim, Plushenko). Johny's Weir is just to weird for me right now. He needs to tone down those costumes and butch up a little.

Yeah I said it, so what!
 

sk8m8

Final Flight
Joined
Jul 28, 2003
Let's not give power to someone who doesn't deserve it. I say we ignore "he who shall remain nameless" and move back to the fantastic skater, Jonny Weir. All I know, if you teach me how to skate that way you can call me whatever you like, 'cause, I'd still be phenomenal! :rofl:
 

ChiSk8Fan

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 7, 2004
Grgranny said:
Master B, Sorry, but I think your rude.

I know I am new to posting here, but I noticed a reference to spelling in your signature Grgranny. Should it not be spelled, "you're" rude? :cool:

I think MasterB was being a bit blunt in the comments about Johnny Weir, but I must admit that his costumes are very flowing compared to many of the other male skaters, and he does seem to have a certain amount of balletic-type arm movements usually performed by women who dance ballet, and he does accentuate certain moves with delicate hand and finger placement one might see from a prima ballerina. I suspect this is the influence of his coach, who I remember as being a balletic, delicate, lady-like skater in the late 1970's.

It's a matter of taste, but John Curry had similar affectations and positions and was considered one of the best classical stylists is skating history.

To each his own, I guess, but I find Johnny to be developing his talent in fine style and with growing success. I believe his best skating is yet to come, and he could end up being considered one of the best ever if all goes well for him.

Edited to add..... By the way, in Latin, "Weir" means "man". This is, at least, the "butchest" name you can have!
 
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