Michelle Kwan vs. Irina Slutskaya | Golden Skate

Michelle Kwan vs. Irina Slutskaya

F

Fossi

Final Flight
Joined
Aug 23, 2003
Next season I think it's going to be Michelle Kwan vs. Irina Slutskaya for the World title. There has been so much talk of Sasha Cohen and Shizuka and Miki Ando. I just think some people are forgetting that Michelle isn't done yet, and Irina is just about to make another comeback.
I think we're going to see MK and IS battling for gold. I wish it would be Sarah :love: , but I think this will happen eventually.
 
The latest issue of Spotlight on Skating magazine just came in the mail today. I don't know who will win Worlds, but I have to say that Irina and Michelle are fighting it out for Miss Photogenic. Wow, the photography is super in this issue.

Irina is on the cover, and the big feature story is about her career and her exciting comeback last year. About the future, she is guarded. "I have seen both sides (winning and losing) of the sport. Now I try to catch all the moments, all of the good and bad moments, because I understand life in figure skating is not really long. Each competition, each moment, I am just holding and enjoying."

There is another long article titled "What's Next for Skating's Divas?" referring to Michelle, Sasha and Shizuka. Michelle says, "My season used to be so predictable, two international competitions, maybe the Grand Prix Final, a few Pro-Ams, Nationals, Worlds. I've learned that I don't have to do that any more; it doesn't have to be so structured."

Arutunian says, "Cross your fingers she will be there in '06...I will talk to her about starting to compete next season. I wish to make her compete in the Grand Prix Series. I would never dictate, we would have a conversation. It will depend on how she feels."

So I guess we'll have to wait and see.

OT, Irina says that on the COI tour, she, Michelle and Elena Sokolova often hang out, but they don't go shopping together because Irina can outshop them all and leave them in the dust, LOL.

Mathman
 
lol

Fossi said:
Next season I think it's going to be Michelle Kwan vs. Irina Slutskaya for the World title. There has been so much talk of Sasha Cohen and Shizuka and Miki Ando. I just think some people are forgetting that Michelle isn't done yet, and Irina is just about to make another comeback.
I think we're going to see MK and IS battling for gold. I wish it would be Sarah :love: , but I think this will happen eventually.
Click to expand...


LOL!! thanks for giving me a good laugh! We will all be lucky if we even get to see a healthy Irina skate next season, her disease is chronic ,degenerative and serious , i hope she can rise above it but wouldnt count on it! Her skating is too sloppy and unrefined to get anywhere under CoP......contrary to popular opinion tripletriples have never been Irina's forte...(when is the last time she landed one? oh ya right...2000 gpf over 4 years ago!)

I have great respect for MK rising to the challenge and deciding to compete next season, ****BUT**** the facts are her best skating years are 100% OVER. If she wanted to go out a champion....She should have went out on a high and retired afer 2003 Worlds. Unless she starts landing tripletriples (dont hold your breath!) AND improves her uninteresting and lackluster spins, the future of ladies skating and the 2006 Olympic Gold Medal belongs to either Carolina Kostner, Sasha Cohen, or about 5 amazing Japanese ladies. and THAT IS IT skating fans!!! :sheesh:

Also the conspiracy theorist in me believe we have seen the END of dominance of USA in Ladies skating(actually any discipline). Without the multi-million dollar contracts from USA networks filling ISU corporate fatcats wallets,....well, lets just say that alot of competetions will suddenly become alot more "competetive" for skaters from other countries, Japan + China in particular!

Michelle and Irina are skaters from the old aeon; they are great skaters but their time has simply run out. It sure will be fun to see what happens next year though I must say!
 
As a MK fan. I don't put too much hope in it though. Last I heard she has yet back to the rink.

At age of 23 coming to 24, with all titles she has won, all the endorsement and money she has earned, and all the temptation in life out there. I totally understand it is really difficult to find motivation to keep the strict trainning schedule around the rink day in and day out. That's why I respect her even more when she continue competing afer the huge disapoint at 2002 after doing it for so long and kept at top level so long.
 
Taan said:
LOL!! thanks for giving me a good laugh! We will all be lucky if we even get to see a healthy Irina skate next season, her disease is chronic ,degenerative and serious , i hope she can rise above it but wouldnt count on it! Her skating is too sloppy and unrefined to get anywhere under CoP......contrary to popular opinion tripletriples have never been Irina's forte...(when is the last time she landed one? oh ya right...2000 gpf over 4 years ago!)
Click to expand...
Before her sickness, Irina was much more refined. She had difficult and well executed spins and high quality jumps. If she got back to her form, she would do well under CoP because her jumps are of such a high quality and she is capable of L3 Step Sequences, Spiral steps, and spins.

Taan said:
I have great respect for MK rising to the challenge and deciding to compete next season, ****BUT**** the facts are her best skating years are 100% OVER. If she wanted to go out a champion....She should have went out on a high and retired afer 2003 Worlds. Unless she starts landing tripletriples (dont hold your breath!) AND improves her uninteresting and lackluster spins, the future of ladies skating and the 2006 Olympic Gold Medal belongs to either Carolina Kostner, Sasha Cohen, or about 5 amazing Japanese ladies. and THAT IS IT skating fans!!! :sheesh:
Click to expand...
If you've bothered to study CoP, you would know that as of now, a 3/3 is not pivitol as the reward can be made up in many other places. The emphasis will be on quality. Skaters should focus on having high quality jumps and elements. Kwan's spins are performed well and can easily do L2 spins and steps (L3 for spiral sequences). Any skater now can take the advantages of the CoP. I don't see why you are counting out Irina and MK. Based on what they can do, they would really perform well under CoP. We have yet though, seen what they will do.

TV
 
I never count a true champion out and both Irina and Michelle are true champions. Just thinking of what Irina overcame to skate last year tells me that she has the heart and determination to overcome major obstacles.

As for the 5 Japanese ladies, one or two might be serious contenders. The others can jump. That's it.
 
LOL!! thanks for giving me a good laugh! We will all be lucky if we even get to see a healthy Irina skate next season, her disease is chronic ,degenerative and serious
Click to expand...

I don't find anything funny about that...

Irina is planning a full comeback this season... I hope she doesn't recieve laughter her first full season back...
 
Tonichelle said:
I don't find anything funny about that...

Irina is planning a full comeback this season... I hope she doesn't recieve laughter her first full season back...
Click to expand...

Toni, I too do not find anything funny (humorous) here, but "comebacks" in figure skating are pretty tough, even the Terminator (Elvis Stojko) gave it a shot - but wisely changed his mind. All the best to Irina, but we will just have to wait and see.
 
All I will say is ... anyone who counts Irina and Michelle out this early is seriously mistaken. They are magnificent champions, who know how to compete.

Also, mzheng ... I know you posted on MKF about Michelle not being back at the rink yet, but that you thought she was in Connecticut. I assumed that would be to work with Morozov. IMO it is still quite early to be training hard. Michelle just finished COI 3 weeks ago, so I actually expected her to take a personal break for a little bit before jumping back into serious training. Even Sasha, who ended her COI tour a month before MK, is only just now getting back to the rink.
Do you think Michelle is not serious about getting back to training? Maybe I'm reading this wrong, but you seem a bit unsure about her plans to go on.
 
I think perhaps Michelle is working on her programs. How are Michelle's best days behind her?

I'm telling you if Michelle and Irina get past this year they will be battling for gold at the Olympics. Yeah I thought it was pretty far fetch. Just a dream I had.
 
I love Irina's spirit, but consider what she said. Irina is being realistic. She knows she is not the Irina of 2002, but she does truly love to skate, and she wants to compete, even if she isn't sure she can still be at the top. She so enjoyed her 2004 Worlds, even if she didn't finish in the top 6. Just being able to return was worth it to her.

The truth is Irina DOES have a chronic illness, and she will be on medication for the forseeable future. All medication has side effects, and steroids cause water retention and swelling. Irina's stamina is not what it used to be, and that is partially due to the underlying illness. If Irina can make it back to the World podium, more power to her. But I don't see her as being the dominating skater she was before her illness.
 
What's interesting about next season is that it is basically a comeback story for everyone involved.

Even little Carolina Kostner, brillant one moment and horrible the very next, has to put her money where her fans mouths are and skate 3 clean quality programs in a row already.

Shizuka has to prove that her one and only world medal was no fluke. Lots of pressure there. A great win at Dortmund, built on a foundation of inconsistancy and poor showings.

Sasha has to skate well already. 5 long years of being a potential champion is starting to really wear on the nerves. I don't care if she has the potential to be the next Pope, skate a clean LP already.

MK is definately slipping. If I have to sit thru the 7th season in a row of "I know that I have to up the ante" and then not do it, I'll just scream. Up it or shut-up it already.

The entire Russian team seems to be in crisis mode these days. Wild cards, all of them. Who knows who will show up next season, brave challengers or ghosts of their former selves.

Fumie seriously needs to dig herself out of a hole. Her SP and LP from Dortmund were great, and very undermarked IMHO, but she just couldn't rebound from her disasterous QR. I love her, but I haven't watch someone skate with my heart in my mouth this way since Maria retired. She needs to toughen up and get consistant.

It's totally open to me, with any one of about 10 ladies being able to take it. It should be very exciting. :)
 
berthes ghost said:
Sasha has to skate well already. 5 long years of being a potential champion is starting to really wear on the nerves. I don't care if she has the potential to be the next Pope, skate a clean LP already.

MK is definately slipping. If I have to sit thru the 7th season in a row of "I know that I have to up the ante" and then not do it, I'll just scream. Up it or shut-up it already.
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Re Sasha: LOL, yes skating clean once at Marshall's isn't gonna cut it-Sasha needs to do it at Nationals and Worlds, so what if she wins 3 GP events? She's not going to be happy till she's national and world champ, so she better use the fall as practice and be ready mentally and physically to go when it counts, no more excuses about being burnt out

Re MK: Michelle's my absolute fave, but I definitely agree with you. She needs to decide what she wants *right now* or it's going to be too late. Though she improved her spins and her jump height since going to RA, her programs are a reflection of her lack of total committment to skating. Hopefully she'll actually make a real effort to meet the demands of COP if in fact she does compete next season. For some reason I have a feeling she's going to retire; but I hope not.
ITA about MK's favorite saying--yep, saying you need to up the ante doesn't mean a damn thing unless you actually do it.
 
I have great respect for MK rising to the challenge and deciding to compete next season, ****BUT**** the facts are her best skating years are 100% OVER. If she wanted to go out a champion....She should have went out on a high and retired afer 2003 Worlds.
Click to expand...

It always interests me as to why people think champions have to or need to retire. Barry Bonds didn't after his record breaking year last year. Pitchers don't after they pitch the perfect game.........athletes retire when their bodies give out or they no longer have the desire to compete..........gosh, I guess it must be the same for figure skaters.......sorry some of you are tired of Michelle and Irina....you can be tired, but don't count anyone out.......42
 
Everyone said Elena Liashenko was over, too. But last season was her best ever: she won two gold medals and a silver in the GP, and finished 4th at the GPF; then won silver at Europeans. She didn't do well at 2004 Worlds only because she'd had surgery for a cyst only a few weeks beforehand.

Kwan turns 24 next month, not exactly ancient. She is the reigning US Champion and bronze World medalist. She doesn't look done yet to me.
 
show 42 said:
It always interests me as to why people think champions have to or need to retire. Barry Bonds didn't after his record breaking year last year. Pitchers don't after they pitch the perfect game.........athletes retire when their bodies give out or they no longer have the desire to compete..........gosh, I guess it must be the same for figure skaters.......sorry some of you are tired of Michelle and Irina....you can be tired, but don't count anyone out.......42
Click to expand...
This is a totally different story. I believe that the reason why skaters usually go out on a high, are because they need to maximize their earning potential as pros. Most ball players are already pro. In the case of MK, things have changed and she'll make just as much money staying in as turning pro. For some people it's perhaps a hold over from the old days. Right now, turning pro may as well be retiring, with the few pro oportunties that are televised. Pro skating has never earned anyones respect anyways. Skating is full of weird rules that don't make any sense, starting with "you're only as good as your last skate". Others probably just want to see thier idol going out with a bang rather than a whimper.
 
I have to admit that I don't want to hear about ante or combos anymore. I don't want to hear about the dreaded quad from skaters who have never completed one in a competition. I wish they just say you see them when you see them. If you don't it's because I can't do them.
 
Berthes.........I'm not sure I understood your response to my post. I wasn't referring to dollar amount earned, and I don't think it matters if an athlete is a pro or amateur, unless one is only thinking about money. I was referring to her ability to skate competitions and being able to keep up with what the other skaters are doing.....It was mentioned in another post that she was past her skating prime and should have retired in 2003 and gone out as a champion........that to me is a state of mind........42
 
:laugh: Sorry I wasn't more clear. Let me try again:

1. Despite what is happening now in skating, most of the sentiments still expressed are holdover from the old days. One skated amature with no pay, then turned pro where your ability to make money was dependant on you ending up on top.
2. Baseball players who are followed, famous and make it to TV, are pros. In skating, eligable skaters are more followed/famous than pros. It's toally apples and oranges. If a player plays a few years after his prime, he can still make big bucks, a certain incentive to continue. If a skater stays eligable after a big win, their eanring potential actualy goes down. That's why most skaters turn pro after an Oly win, etc.. To me, the baseball player staying pro after his peak is more like Kat Witt still skating as a pro. Done for the love of it, plus a few extra bucks for old age.
 
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