new romeo +juliet lp incredible transitions!!!!!!!!!!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-38mn4CpcI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-38mn4CpcI
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Pang & Tong: Will this be their year?
- Thread starter Taan
- Start date
I say
My opinion is their timing was off to dominate. This time around, its like ladies was in 2006: It went from 1 girl dominating to 4 very strong girls. We lost 1 pairs team, but its down to 3 extremely strong pairs teams. I think they once they all say bye is when we will see the newest generation, and one of them will dominate....I'm hoping Castile/Okolski.
My opinion is their timing was off to dominate. This time around, its like ladies was in 2006: It went from 1 girl dominating to 4 very strong girls. We lost 1 pairs team, but its down to 3 extremely strong pairs teams. I think they once they all say bye is when we will see the newest generation, and one of them will dominate....I'm hoping Castile/Okolski.
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2005
They have always been like the forgotten contender. They were always in the shadow of the older Shen/Zhou, but later on they became in the shadow of the younger Zhang/Zhang too. They were never considered the top Chinese pair, despite the fact they won a World title. Shen/Zhou were until 2005, then in 2006 it was Zhang/Zhang considered the top over both Pang/Tong and Shen/Zhou when they returned, then back to Shen/Zhou again in 2007.
They have never beaten the 2 greatest pairs of their generation - Totmianina/Marinin or Shen/Zhou even once. They have never beaten a clean Zhang/Zhang or Petrova/Tikhonov, except for at the 2006 Worlds with Petrova/Tikhonov, every other time that pair had to make mistakes to lose to them. They have also never beaten a clean Savchenko/Szokoly as far as I know.
At the Olympics they skated cleanly and lost to 2 pairs who had major mistakes - Zhang/Zhang and Shen/Zhou. That is very embarassing for a top team to skate cleanly, and lose to pairs who have multiple major mistakes like that.
I like them but they have this underdog/overlooked aura about them, despite their success. I cant see a team like that dominating.
They have never beaten the 2 greatest pairs of their generation - Totmianina/Marinin or Shen/Zhou even once. They have never beaten a clean Zhang/Zhang or Petrova/Tikhonov, except for at the 2006 Worlds with Petrova/Tikhonov, every other time that pair had to make mistakes to lose to them. They have also never beaten a clean Savchenko/Szokoly as far as I know.
At the Olympics they skated cleanly and lost to 2 pairs who had major mistakes - Zhang/Zhang and Shen/Zhou. That is very embarassing for a top team to skate cleanly, and lose to pairs who have multiple major mistakes like that.
I like them but they have this underdog/overlooked aura about them, despite their success. I cant see a team like that dominating.
I think they have a chance, if they keep improving,
I agree thatthey used to have an "underdog" look about them, but they gained a lot of polish recently. I was really impressed with their practice clip. Their skating became very lyrical, and if they stay away from injuries, they can be pretty consistant when it matters. Technically-wise, I loved their footwork, throws and twists. If they add a bit of polish to their lifts, spins and death spirals, they could become a really impressive and well-rounded pair.
(And I could use a new favorite; after S/Z and Siudeks have retired... )
I agree thatthey used to have an "underdog" look about them, but they gained a lot of polish recently. I was really impressed with their practice clip. Their skating became very lyrical, and if they stay away from injuries, they can be pretty consistant when it matters. Technically-wise, I loved their footwork, throws and twists. If they add a bit of polish to their lifts, spins and death spirals, they could become a really impressive and well-rounded pair.
(And I could use a new favorite; after S/Z and Siudeks have retired...
)
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It does seem like timing has been a little off with this team - and perhaps a little 'bad luck'...many people thought they should have been on the podium in Torino (I flip flop on this one, but more often end up with 'yes') - then, they did win worlds but it had that 'after olympics feel' where it seemed easy to say, ah, but the top teams weren't there (i didn't say this, of course!).
Then, last year - Shen/Zhao were just spectacular - and it was more than just skating - it was that emotional thing too of coming back from injury, of all of those hard years of work etc., and Pang/Tong did obviously take a back seat to that. Meanwhile, the Germans - despite the chaos of their coaching situation - did very well last year...
So now, what to expect? I think Pang/Tong have really improved as a team in recent years. I feel terrible saying this, but Tong strikes me as soooooo much better a skater/dance/performer than Pang that their unmatched quality distracted me for so long. Now, I see more improvement with her and they really struck me as a team last year. And their practice video does have a lot of potential, so I think they will be in the top three, and will really be battling it out with the Germans, which could prove very exciting.
I know Zhang/Zhang have the technical goods but for a reason I can't quite articulate, I think the german's will be more of a threat to pang/tong than the Zhangs (maybe it's just that the german's have such lovely line, and the way the finish moves is lovely). Of course - now that I said that, I'm sure to eat my words!
Then, last year - Shen/Zhao were just spectacular - and it was more than just skating - it was that emotional thing too of coming back from injury, of all of those hard years of work etc., and Pang/Tong did obviously take a back seat to that. Meanwhile, the Germans - despite the chaos of their coaching situation - did very well last year...
So now, what to expect? I think Pang/Tong have really improved as a team in recent years. I feel terrible saying this, but Tong strikes me as soooooo much better a skater/dance/performer than Pang that their unmatched quality distracted me for so long. Now, I see more improvement with her and they really struck me as a team last year. And their practice video does have a lot of potential, so I think they will be in the top three, and will really be battling it out with the Germans, which could prove very exciting.
I know Zhang/Zhang have the technical goods but for a reason I can't quite articulate, I think the german's will be more of a threat to pang/tong than the Zhangs (maybe it's just that the german's have such lovely line, and the way the finish moves is lovely). Of course - now that I said that, I'm sure to eat my words!
Your description is not quite right. Pang & Tong did not have the consistency of S/Z, TT/MM, Z/Z and Pet/T. They haven't done lots of clean programs. So I don't know how you can draw the conclusion they were unable to beat clean Z/Z and Pet/T. If my recollection is correct, they lost only once to S&S at 2005/2006 Grand Prix Final with a horrible performance. BTW, their LP at 2006 Olys was not as clean as you described. Tong singled a 2A, Pang's 3T was downgraded.
At 2007 worlds, many of their non-jump elements such as sbs spin, combo spin/lifts were graded to a lower level, that's why they only beat S&S by 2 points in LP.
Technically speaking, P&T's biggest weakness is their sbs jumps. Tey did four close-to-clean programs for their last two competitions(4cc and worlds), which is certainly an encouraging sign.
No, I don't believe they will be able to dominate, but the top three are more or less on the same playing field these days. Here's my impression of the top three:
From the practice video, the transitions of Pang&Tong's new program are much more sophisticated than any of their past programs, and the difficulty is sort of on the same level of S&S'. Pang & Tong are obviously focusing on utilizing dancing elements for those connecting steps, which suits their style really well. Looks like they will also use some innovative lifts from some of the entrances I saw on the tape. So it's going to be a step forward for them next season. Their biggest weakness is still sbs jumps and inconsistency.
S&S are always an exciting team to watch. Their transitions are very original and difficult. They tend to use 'acrobatic', 'big trick' types of transitions in their programs, which contrasts with Pang & Tong's lyrical style. It's going to be exciting to watch those two teams battle out if both skate clean. However, they also have the problem with consistency, especially sbs jumps.
Z&Z has the most difficult sbs jumps, however, they were unable to nail any 2A+3T last season, will this season be different? we shall see. They are definitely capable of incorporating more complex transitions in their programs.
The other top pairs I'm looking forward to seeing are D&D from Canada and V&M from Ukraine. Both team can make a leap in the following season, but I'm not holding my breath on their ability to nail clean programs.
The new Russian team K&S are overrated, IMHO. Many of their elements are sloppy, and the choreography of their last season's LP was extremely simple.
Whom else should I expect more from next season?? Yeah, C&O and NNN&T from U.S. I love C&O, but am not confident whether they'll be able to develop a consistent sbs triple. NNN&T are exciting to watch, but they also have consistency problem, plus they don't skate as one.
It looks to me pair skaters can go on and on and on... New teams are hard to break through... Think about it, since 2004/2005, only S&S have developed into a top-tier team.
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- Joined
- Jul 11, 2003
I like this Pair very much but I do not understand what you mean by dominate?
Joe
Joe
I guess dominate] means 'win everything' next season just as S/Z did in the past season.
- Joined
- Dec 28, 2006
I hope that S/S will really be the dominant pair. they have more diffircult throws and levels on some of thier elements, but the hugeness of the chinese pairs makes thier POE scores go through the roof. From what I have seen of Pang and Tong's Romeo and Juliet porgram it is very good and could be a classic.
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2003
all the pairs in contention for dominance have to do is Perform in a passionate style of victory over oppression; fling the girl in the highest throws and lifts, get into a real battle with pair spins, and add a little sbs 3T on the side. can't lose
Joe
Joe
I don't know where the link went! I could have sworn it was in this thread...at FSU there is a thread on Pang and Tong's new Romeo and Juliet program in the Skip - there is a link there, but everytime I use it, it says the video is private. Maybe you will have luck just going to Youtube and searching Pang/Tong...sorry I couldn't help more.
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2003
It's the sweet Roti version - not the challenging Prokofiev version.
pang and tong 6.0 simply sensational!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgeLH5nrq9s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnFI1dCRzNM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgeLH5nrq9s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnFI1dCRzNM
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2005
Although that was a wonderful performance the 6.0 should be put in context. That was the final year of the 6.0 and the judges were scoring on a very inflated scale. People finishing in 6th or 7th were reaching 5.9. Winkler/Lohse who barely won a surprise (home cooked maybe) farewell bronze in the dance even got a 6.0.
They were only the bronze medalists keep in mind. It is very rare for a bronze medalist to receive any 6.0s, but that year at Worlds there was something like 43 total 6.0s, with 10 different teams/skaters receiving them.
They were only the bronze medalists keep in mind. It is very rare for a bronze medalist to receive any 6.0s, but that year at Worlds there was something like 43 total 6.0s, with 10 different teams/skaters receiving them.
I think it's very improtant to P/T S/S Z/Z this season. Shen/Zhao won't compete at least until 2009. So P/T S/S Z/Z, thoese three pairs, which one could win the judge's heart? We gonna see. But right now, I prefer P/T and Z/Z, Z/Z has the best technique, P/T has the wonderful expression, especially Tong. And S/S really will give a challenge to chinese pairs, but not this coming season, maybe next season, I think.
PS: I really hope that P/T could work with David Wilson someday and Z/Z could skate Nikolai Morozov's programs.
PS: I really hope that P/T could work with David Wilson someday and Z/Z could skate Nikolai Morozov's programs.
I disagree. I think S&S have better edge quality and technique and speed than the Chinese pairs; however, the Chinese pairs have bigger and more explosive elements. Their throws and triple twist are huge. S&S's throws aren't bad - they are quite high and they have the throw triple flip. Just not quite as impressive as the Chinese pairs.
I do agree about Tong. He has wonderful musicality.
I do agree about Tong. He has wonderful musicality.
- Joined
- Nov 7, 2006
I think that this next season is going to be dominated by Pang and Tong and Savchenko and Szolkowy and possibly the Zhangs if they can keep things consistent.
We'll see what the new season holds but its going to be a good season I have a feeling.
We'll see what the new season holds but its going to be a good season I have a feeling.
