2017-19 Splits & Partner Changes

[hanca]

Now it's you who seems to be jumping to conclusions. Let's take this one sentence in the interview - "First she told me to stay in the Cz with her for one more year, but then in the next sentence, she told me she wanted to study medicine." I don't think it implies he was unwilling to wait a year at all. He wouldn't have presented the two halves as contradictory otherwise. I'm inclined to think that Anna has been gradually realizing these last months that her studies are her first priority, whereas Martin has already made up his mind to concentrate on skating in the first place. But let's wait for the other side's statement, if any comes.



Depends on how you define 'elite' (no, I've never heard of Zonderland I'm afraid). I know of Virtanen. He's 'elite' in the sense of getting to Europeans (and Worlds? I don't recall at the moment), but not in the sense of making a big name for himself, getting into Worlds top 12, getting on the GP circuit and winning 'big' medals. So, assuming Anna's idea of 'elite' was the former, and Martin's the latter, I can see why they would be incompatible all of a sudden. I don't blame Anna for choosing her career at all, eventhough I really don't see an issue with enrolling in the uni some 4 years later (though yes, it would not be for free anymore), but what a loss for Czech FS. Once Brezina retires, there's noone to take his place, and D/B's.

And yup, I am. :handw:

She said she wants to study medicine. Not that she definitely will. Medicine is a very selective school and many students don’t get in.

 

[Alchamei]

I agree that it would make more sense to stay together for another year, until they find out what uni Anna will go to, but that would mean that Martin would have to compromise. Going abroad during school holidays (e.g. whole July and August) and stay in Prague during school time. From what he is saying in interviews, it doesn’t seem he was prepared to compromise. He wanted to split the time at least half and half (Prague and abroad) which would not work for Anna’s final year at grammar school.

He also says that his decision to go abroad is supported by his brother and by Tomas Verner. Well, it didn’t worked that well for his brother to move abroad for skating.

And did you read the interview with Martin? He wanted to compromise! He said that there was still a chance he and Anna would make it out, but their coach told Anna's parents he had a problem with them (which might not be the case AT ALL) and didn't tell them Martin's other reasons. In fact, her parents annouced the split even before he knew it! Also, I disagree with a large part of your previous post. You also have three attempts for your maturita and the second one takes place in September, so she could still go to the medical school even if she didn't succeed on her first try! Also, getting to medical school is difficult, there is a big chance you won't be accepted. What will she do then? She should be more open to the fact it might not work out and that she might study something else ar go abroad. HOWEVER, I have to say, this might not be Anna's, or not Martin's fault as much, as the fault of her parents and Horklová. Her parents might be rather controling and if they are not open to the possibility of training abroad, then no wonder she'll say if doesn't want to.

Also, the training conditions in CR are REAL bad. No wonder Martin wants to get out.

EDIT: Can you please all stop saying how Martin is selfish? I thought so as well at first, but then I heard how his coach and Anna's parents turned on him and now I prefectly understand him.

 

[Alchamei]

Depends on how you define 'elite' (no, I've never heard of Zonderland I'm afraid). I know of Virtanen. He's 'elite' in the sense of getting to Europeans (and Worlds? I don't recall at the moment), but not in the sense of making a big name for himself, getting into Worlds top 12, getting on the GP circuit and winning 'big' medals. So, assuming Anna's idea of 'elite' was the former, and Martin's the latter, I can see why they would be incompatible all of a sudden. I don't blame Anna for choosing her career at all, eventhough I really don't see an issue with enrolling in the uni some 4 years later (though yes, it would not be for free anymore), but what a loss for Czech FS. Once Brezina retires, there's noone to take his place, and D/B's.

And yup, I am. :handw:

Zonderland is an artistic gymnast. He became famous as the 'flying Dutchman' when he did his crazy routine in London 2012. https://youtu.be/I0TM2sOnvyI?t=18m49s

He won Olympic Gold with that routine. Additionally, he competeted in three Olympics and is a two time World Champion.

Unbeliable he managed to study medicine during his training. But he is a proof that's possible.

 

[luckyguy]

no, I've never heard of Zonderland I'm afraid

So, here is Epke Zonderland.

 

[surimi]

HOWEVER, I have to say, this might not be Anna's, or not Martin's fault as much, as the fault of her parents and Horklová. Her parents might be rather controling and if they are not open to the possibility of training abroad, then no wonder she'll say if doesn't want to.

... or there might be a money issue for her family. I'd really like to read Anna's side's PoV.

Unbeliable he managed to study medicine during his training. But he is a proof that's possible.

It's certainly combineable, but it's a gamble.

 

[hanca]

And did you read the interview with Martin? He wanted to compromise! He said that there was still a chance he and Anna would make it out, but their coach told Anna's parents he had a problem with them (which might not be the case AT ALL) and didn't tell them Martin's other reasons. In fact, her parents annouced the split even before he knew it! Also, I disagree with a large part of your previous post. You also have three attempts for your maturita and the second one takes place in September, so she could still go to the medical school even if she didn't succeed on her first try! Also, getting to medical school is difficult, there is a big chance you won't be accepted. What will she do then? She should be more open to the fact it might not work out and that she might study something else ar go abroad. HOWEVER, I have to say, this might not be Anna's, or not Martin's fault as much, as the fault of her parents and Horklová. Her parents might be rather controling and if they are not open to the possibility of training abroad, then no wonder she'll say if doesn't want to.

Also, the training conditions in CR are REAL bad. No wonder Martin wants to get out.

EDIT: Can you please all stop saying how Martin is selfish? I thought so as well at first, but then I heard how his coach and Anna's parents turned on him and now I prefectly understand him.

Yes, I read his interview. He didn’t want to compromise. He hoped that Anna will see it his way. There was nothing about him being willing to compromise in the interview. He said that there was still a chance they would figure it out, but he did not say that he would have been willing to stay for another year in Prague. That’s a big difference.

He is blaming the coach for saying something to Anna’s parents, but the bottom line is he suddenly did not get on with the coach, with Anna’s parents, but it is everyone elses fault and not his? Poor misunderstood Martin!

Three attempts at maturita! Yes, I can see how the medical schools are going to fight to get Anna if she fails her maturita. But don’t worry, she will pass it in September on second attempt! It is hard to get in even for those who passed on their first attempt. Anyone passing on second attempt has no chance to get in.

And sorry you don’t like hearing it, but yes, in my view, Martin is selfish. Selfish and self centred. Good luck to him. He will need it.

 

[Alchamei]

Yes, I read his interview. He didn’t want to compromise. He hoped that Anna will see it his way. There was nothing about him being willing to compromise in the interview. He said that there was still a chance they would figure it out, but he did not say that he would have been willing to stay for another year in Prague. That’s a big difference.

He is blaming the coach for saying something to Anna’s parents, but the bottom line is he suddenly did not get on with the coach, with Anna’s parents, but it is everyone elses fault and not his? Poor misunderstood Martin!

Three attempts at maturita! Yes, I can see how the medical schools are going to fight to get Anna if she fails her maturita. But don’t worry, she will pass it in September on second attempt! It is hard to get in even for those who passed on their first attempt. Anyone passing on second attempt has no chance to get in.

And sorry you don’t like hearing it, but yes, in my view, Martin is selfish. Selfish and self centred. Good luck to him. He will need it.

I think you and I understand all the info in a different ways so I can only say we can agree to disagree. I still wouldn't speak that harshly about Martin, no way.

 

[coldblueeyes]

I'm surprised this suddenly turned into a blame!someone campaign? Wasn't Martin also someone that commited a lot for the partnership to work? Like moving towns, living with another family, because this was his only chance at international success (also, people are overplaying Anna's singles career success, but that's neither here nor there). He also waited almost an entire season for Anna to get better so they could skate, and the both of them said they're fine with the split.

I can totally see the relationship between Martin and Anna's parents becoming an issue, and it doesn't need to be strictly anyone's fault. I think it's good that they decided at the right time to split and find different partners so they could continue skating. I wanted to see them evolving, but I'm also not blind to the fact that they stagnated in the past two seasons a bit - which is not a slight against Horklova, as she's the coach for Hornakova/Jakubka and I love them, but for Anna and Martin to work out I think they needed to dedicate themselves full time for the partnership - and as far as I remember Martin was seldom the one with that problem.

 

[CaroLiza_fan]

I'm surprised this suddenly turned into a blame!someone campaign?

Sorry about that. We're just very upset and are trying to make sense of it all.

I'll try to wind my neck in a bit with proportioning blame on the "grown-ups" (well, somebody objected to me referring to them as the "adults", so I've had to find an alternative phrase).

CaroLiza_fan

 

[NanaPat]

Is any new partner approaching?
A few girls have made an offer, we are negotiating. I have some possibilies. I'll wait if any other partner appears, I'm not decided yet.

The overtones of "girls have made an offer, we are negotiating" don't sit well with me. It sounds like he's auctioning himself off to the highest bidder. Maybe it doesn't sound that way in the original.

There isn't a much of a choise in CR, could the partner be from abroad?
Probably. I think about everything, but looks more like abroad. But I still want to compete with her for CR.

I wonder if he's thought through the implications of both training abroad and representing the Czech republic with a non-Czech partner. That was what Castelli did (for the US) with Tran and it didn't work out that well for them. When Tran finally got a US green card, he still didn't seem to realize that he would have to actually live in the US to gain citizenship, or realize how long citizenship would take.

Of course, the Czech republic has its own laws, and citizenship may not be a problem for his new partner.

Martin and his new partner could also decide to skate together knowing that the Olympics would never be a possibility for them. However, that could present difficulties that they don't anticipate, as well as the possibility that one partner could have a change of heart.

 

[SnowWhite]

The overtones of "girls have made an offer, we are negotiating" don't sit well with me. It sounds like he's auctioning himself off to the highest bidder. Maybe it doesn't sound that way in the original.



I wonder if he's thought through the implications of both training abroad and representing the Czech republic with a non-Czech partner. That was what Castelli did (for the US) with Tran and it didn't work out that well for them. When Tran finally got a US green card, he still didn't seem to realize that he would have to actually live in the US to gain citizenship, or realize how long citizenship would take.

Of course, the Czech republic has its own laws, and citizenship may not be a problem for his new partner.

Martin and his new partner could also decide to skate together knowing that the Olympics would never be a possibility for them. However, that could present difficulties that they don't anticipate, as well as the possibility that one partner could have a change of heart.

Mansour/Ceska did not have a problem getting Cortney citizenship for the Olympics. She was from Saskatchewan and they trained in Michigan. I don't think she had any family ties to Czechia. They got together in time for the 2013-14 season, so they had a bit more time to figure out citizenship, but it still suggests it could work for Martin.

 

[Ice Dance]

Mansour/Ceska did not have a problem getting Cortney citizenship for the Olympics.

As of last season, no one seemed certain of whether she would gain citizenship or not.

 

[SnowWhite]

As of last season, no one seemed certain of whether she would gain citizenship or not.

But still, she did get it even though she didn't train in Czechia. So obviously it's a different situation than with the US.

 

[Ice Dance]

But still, she did get it even though she didn't train in Czechia. So obviously it's a different situation than with the US.

She did get it and, yes, a different situation. I would think all countries have their own unique citizenship laws. (And you really can't be certain of the future because laws are political and can change over the course of time). But she didn't get it early. It is wise for athletes to go into an international partnership with their eyes open. Just because the path looks easy from a distance doesn't mean that it is. A great many athletes obtained Israeli citizenship, but it didn't do Tkachenko any good.

 

[NanaPat]

Old news about citizenship from 2006:

Neither the Germans nor the Canadians will compete at the Olympics. Wakamatsu, a native of Japan, decided not to take out Canadian citizenship because she would have had to give up her Japanese citizenship, while Ukrainian-born Savchenko will not get her German citizenship in time.

From: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/canadians-lead-in-tokyo/article18254402/

Wakamatsu skated pairs for Canada with Jean-Sébastien Fecteau. They skated for one more season after the 2006 Olympics.

 

[lavoix]

It sounds to me like Anna just wanted to prioritise her studies, with figure skating on the side from time to time.

Girlfriend needed to understand that she is a junior world champion, they could have made it big. I don't see why she didn't consider doing a different study program. Something tells me she will regret this later in life.

 

[Jana]

Mansour/Ceska did not have a problem getting Cortney citizenship for the Olympics. She was from Saskatchewan and they trained in Michigan. I don't think she had any family ties to Czechia. They got together in time for the 2013-14 season, so they had a bit more time to figure out citizenship, but it still suggests it could work for Martin.

They had a problem. It took quite a lot of time and she got it in last minute. But both Czech ice dancers are international pairs training in US/Canada and I think both partners (girls) are Canadiens and both got it.

 

[Jana]

She said she wants to study medicine. Not that she definitely will. Medicine is a very selective school and many students don’t get in.

In interviews in past, she already said that she wants to study and she thinks about medicine or dentist studies. She has very good results at school. Martin wasn't a very good student. So it is nothing new that she wants to study or study medicine.

... or there might be a money issue for her family. I'd really like to read Anna's side's PoV.

Yes, I want to read it from Anna's side too. Now it looks like that Anna (or her parents) is the problem because she wants to study.

 

[Giselle]

I'm not super shocked Duskova/Bidar split.

IIRC it was hinted already the year they won junior worlds that it was likely they would split up at some point.

 

[SnowWhite]

They had a problem. It took quite a lot of time and she got it in last minute. But both Czech ice dancers are international pairs training in US/Canada and I think both partners (girls) are Canadiens and both got it.

Yeah, I shouldn't have said 'no problem'. But in some countries it's essentially impossible if you aren't living there, which doesn't seem to be the case for Czechia.