2023 Skate America Pairs Short Program

[SmileHappy34]

DDid PLazas and Fernandez pull out. Are they hurt. E only show the top 6 . They did showw P / f after h/ k skate. They were decent.

 

[labgoat]

I thought that was more New Mexico and Arizona?

The cacti is referring to the prickly and hard to love quality of the skaters at times.
Prime example today P/F. -

 

[moonvine]

If you are there @moonvine, we want to know if that was your pink unicorn?

Yes. It was me!

 

[labgoat]

This pairs short went well even if it had some scary moments. Its 3.30 am here so I'll skip the men and head to bed.

Glad you came to watch . Have a good sleep!

 

[SmileHappy34]

Sorry they reshow the scores.. They are still in it. My bad. Enjoying it.

 

[cheerknithanson]

Alright. 20 minutes until the men's event start. I need to listen to music now that I wish skaters would skate to before events start up again.

Wet - On Your Side (Lyrics)

Wet - On Your Side (Lyrics)Lyrics :Like the sun carries the moonWhen the wind blows I shelter youLike two rivers running in a lineLike I told you, I'm on you...

www.youtube.com

Like this

 

[labgoat]

DDid PLazas and Fernandez pull out. Are they hurt. E only show the top 6 . They did showw P / f after h/ k skate. They were decent.

No sadly they had a very flawed skate marred by a huge fall on the throw and other errors.

 

[Weathergal]

Yes. It was me!

I WONDERED if that was you! Have fun!

 

[labgoat]

See you over in mens SP...

 

[lileychristie]

I hate those free trials where you have to calendar when to cancel before they charge your card given when registering. Free Proton VPN came highly recommended last season and it has proven to be the best. Just don’t forget to turn it off when done!

Yeah, I usually put a reminder in my calendar to cancel free trials, but I just completely forgot last year as I had so much going on
Found out about Proton some months ago from this forum indeed and I have properly cancelled ExpressVPN since then

And I'm really happy that Proton Free is also available in Google TV! As I want to run the VPN straight on my TV, I have limited options (which was why I trialled ExpressVPN in the first place lol).

Anyway that was a fun Pairs SP. To make a confession Pairs is actually my least favorite category, but I think it's growing on me now

 

[moonvine]

If I tried to throw that unicorn onto the ice from my seat, I would hit someone three rows in front of me! The arm strength!

To me, the Germans had the most power and attack despite the botched SBS jumps. Now I am off to look for a nice beverage to calm my nerves before the men.

The disabled area at this comp is practically on the ice. I love it Mean lady said to me “how do you bring all that (bad word) into the rink? I said “very easily, and furthermore I paid for my ticket just like you did.” She moved seats, huffed away and started texting someone.

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

Nope, I totally disagree with Hocke/Kunkel scoring. Something is up with that. They do not have
as good a twist as Liu/ Nagy. Because Liu/ Nagy are a new team, it seems as if the judges didn't want to give them much. And why exactly are Lia & Trennt being held down in points for such a clean skate? L&T were 6th at Worlds. Hocke/ Kunkel were 9th and didn't skate well at Worlds. Is this because L&T are considered #2 in Canada, and H/K are considered #1 in Germany? That's not a good reason. Skaters should be judged on the performances they put out. It just looks like a set-up to me. The judges were apparently ready to give H/K huge scores, while holding down L&T and Lui/ Nagy with overly conservative marks. H/K have been together the longest, but that doesn't make them better than the rest of this field.

Also, pure nerves under pressure for V-L/ Digby. They looked so good in practices here, it's a shame. Same for Max & Valentina. These type of chances don't come along that often. They needed to skate clean, and they're capable of doing that, but it didn't happen. Thus, as Johnny said, "The judges won't trust you if you aren't consistent." And they won't tend to give you the scores you deserve on your good elements. Sad, but true.

Caldara/ Maglio had pretty costumes, but no spark and no personality whatsoever. Happy for Isabelle & Ryan overcoming a bit of pressure to skate well. They aren’t top contenders here, but they did themselves proud.

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

Wait Tara, Johnny, and Terry are even on CBC?! I thought it was weird enough - not to mention frustrating - that they were on ISU feed. I heard Chris or Simon at the beginning. This is really odd. Just when you thought watching figure skating couldn't get any more ridiculous.

You have the option of watching the pairs sp on Peacock with no commentary, or going with the NBC feed.

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

American or world football?

LOL! Any football or soccer training coach who can help with leg strength and snap. It looks like Chels was advised to lean slightly on her landings in order to get her free leg clear of the ice. But I don't know how that will work overall. Disappointed with the scoring so far, but what else is new re figure skating.

 

[rain]

Nope, I totally disagree with Hocke/Kunkel scoring. Something is up with that. They do not have
as good a twist as Liu/ Nagy. Because Liu/ Nagy are a new team, it seems as if the judges didn't want to give them much. And why exactly are Lia & Trennt being held down in points for such a clean skate? L&T were 6th at Worlds. Hocke/ Kunkel were 9th and didn't skate well at Worlds. Is this because L&T are considered #2 in Canada, and H/K are considered #1 in Germany? That's not a good reason. Skaters should be judged on the performances they put out. It just looks like a set-up to me. The judges were apparently ready to give H/K huge scores, while holding down L&T and Lui/ Nagy with overly conservative marks. H/K have been together the longest, but that doesn't make them better than the rest of this field.

What the hell was that!!!???? I totally agree with you. No way should H/K be in first with the blunder on the jump. They are not that much better than the field. They are certainly not an entire element better. The judges gave them sky high GOEs, which was just baffling. No question they should be behind P/M, and by a good margin.

 

[RatedPG]

I kind of agreed with the judging and I’m Canadian and was rooting for Lia and Trent. The Germans skated with more freedom.

Anyways, it will come down to the free skate. We know the three top teams that will be on the podium. The question is, what position?

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

I kind of agreed with the judging and I’m Canadian and was rooting for Lia and Trent. The Germans skated with more freedom.

Anyways, it will come down to the free skate. We know the three top teams that will be on the podium. The question is, what position?

Eh, no. H/K are not that special. They haven't reached a point where they are such a proven top team that they deserve to be in first with a fall, while a team like Lia & Trennt, skating cleanly with confidence, are kept behind by percentage points. I disagree.

In any case, IMO, the two teams here with the most style are Vaipan-Law/ Digby, and Liu/ Nagy. V-L/D improved a lot from last season, and they looked good in practices. Unfortunately, skaters have to overcome nerves under pressure. V-L/ D paid heavily for a fall, while H/K were over-rewarded with a fall. H-K have a nice, well-executed twist, but it's not in the same spectacular ballpark with L/N's twist. So why did H/K receive such similar high GOE on their twist, as L/N?

If you ask me, a lot of it is about politics and perception. H/K broke through on the GP last year to win medals. That's what the judges are looking at. Plus, figure skating politics abound. The judges were all ready to give H/K super high scores, and that started right away with the twist and some other elements. Then the fall, which the judges had to take off points for, but they clearly still wanted to place H/K above a clean P/M.

P/M were newly partnered last season, which is why they weren't on the GP, but they came together as a promising team fairly quickly. Placing 6th at Worlds ahead of H/K should make more of a difference, but it appears to be ignored here at SA by the judges. Honestly, I have more hopes for and interest in German team, Hase/ Volodin, than I do for Hocke/ Kunkel.

 

[RatedPG]

Eh, no. H/K are not that special. They haven't reached a point where they are such a proven top team that they deserve to be in first with a fall, while a team like Lia & Trennt, skating cleanly with confidence, are kept behind by percentage points. I disagree.

In any case, IMO, the two teams here with the most style are Vaipan-Law/ Digby, and Liu/ Nagy. V-L/D improved a lot from last season, and they looked good in practices. Unfortunately, skaters have to overcome nerves under pressure. V-L/ D paid heavily for a fall, while H/K were over-rewarded with a fall. H-K have a nice, well-executed twist, but it's not in the same spectacular ballpark with L/N's twist. So why did H/K receive such similar high GOE on their twist, as L/N?

If you ask me, a lot of it is about politics and perception. H/K broke through on the GP last year to win medals. That's what the judges are looking at. Plus, figure skating politics abound. The judges were all ready to give H/K super high scores, and that started right away with the twist and some other elements. Then the fall, which the judges had to take off points for, but they clearly still wanted to place H/K above a clean P/M.

P/M were newly partnered last season, which is why they weren't on the GP, but they came together as a promising team fairly quickly. Placing 6th at Worlds ahead of H/K should make more of a difference, but it appears to be ignored here at SA by the judges. Honestly, I have more hopes for and interest in German team, Hase/ Volodin, than I do for Hocke/ Kunkel.

The German team did have the hardest and best throw element.

I did like the British and American teams too. Those programs grabbed my attention and I thought they should have been rewarded with higher PCS scores.

I prefer Hase/Volodin too over this German team.

I’m rooting for P/M tmrw!! And I have a feeling you will too if it comes down to Canadians or Germans for the win
The Americans though, are great too. May the best team win!!

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

The German team did have the hardest and best throw element.

I did like the British and American teams too. Those programs grabbed my attention and I thought they should have been rewarded with higher PCS scores.

I prefer Hase/Volodin too over this German team.

I’m rooting for P/M tmrw!! And I have a feeling you will too if it comes down to Canadians or Germans for the win
The Americans though, are great too. May the best team win!!

Well of course I am rooting for Lia & Trennt. It's always nice to see Americans win in America. (Plus, it would help my predictions too )

H/K can be commended for working hard to improve, but for me, they need to skate clean if they are going to be over-rewarded. Sure, H/K have been together a bit longer than most teams in this field, aside from Martins/ Bedard, who grew up together. And Valentina & Max, who have been together for awhile. Still, for the short time Lia/ Trennt have been together, they are skating with great confidence and ease. Much better, in fact, than H/K skated together when they first partnered.

If Hase/ Volodin were here and skated well, it would be a toss-up for me. Whoever skated better would be my pick. If Chan/ Howe were here, of course I would want them to win. And, it will certainly be nice to see L/N medal, if they can skate well in the fp.

 

[4everchan]

I kind of agreed with the judging and I’m Canadian and was rooting for Lia and Trent. The Germans skated with more freedom.

Anyways, it will come down to the free skate. We know the three top teams that will be on the podium. The question is, what position?

WOW... we really agree these days LOL

A Canadian here too... okay with the Germans being ahead

The Germans had the best throw, the best lift and the best twist (maybe Liu and Nagy's was better but not by much). Their SBS spins were also more in synch.

So if you consider these four elements, it can make up for the fall in the TES and it did.

They did skate with more ease as well in general. However, if I am willing to give them the TES advantage despite the fall, I don't like them that much in terms of overall composition and performance to grant them a large gap in PCS. I would keep the rankings as they are but perhaps tweak the numbers a bit

In the end, the top 2 are pretty much even. It will really depend on the LP...

I give the edge on Lia and Trennt based on SBS jumps.
I give the edge on the Germans on lifts.
Throws may make or break.

To me Liu-Nagy are still not as refined though some of their elements are great. Their learning curve is steady and I wouldn't be surprised if they get closer and closer as the season progresses... but not just right now.

For those asking about why no Chan and Howe : lots of factors can explain this including positioning them as USA #1, GP seeding, the USFED to give assignements to other teams, young teams who wouldn't have received spots like M/B and L/N. P/F were guaranteed 2 spots, just like Kam O'Shea... so the USFED played the political game very well to maximize the number of spots they could get for their pairs.

But in the end, Chan and Howe have pulled out from GP China... so the best bet for the USA for a GP final berth now is Kam and O'Shea, not impossible but if we just go by the entries of their two events, it may be difficult for them to score enough points to do so. They still could do it, considering that the two seeded teams at NHK have only one event left now and could prevent other teams in contention from getting much needed points. We will see how things unfold but it's wide open and I would say that Germans (two teams ) and the Italians, as well as a couple Canadian teams have the edge.