There's an element that the 2016 Worlds judges recognized but the OP didn't: Magic. The three actual medalists all had large dollops of magic in their performances that night. The current judges, having been skaters and possibly judges before IJS, know that the power of the performance, which is sometimes indefinable, is essential to this sport.
Ashley's FS, by the power of her music, her charisma, and her interpretation, transcended and made unimportant the small, nearly invisible errors,. She didn't let the error on the flip, which was the only one visible to most, deter or stop her. That was also part of her magic. The audiences (live and tv/video) had just seen Gracie crumble as soon as she made an error, although admittedly it was a big awkward one; they'd also seen the fear in Gracie's eyes. In Ashley's devotion to her performance, to her music and to her character, they saw her determination to give her best in that moment, in every second of the skate, and not let imperfection deter her from delivering a brilliant skate for the ages. She created a moment.
Evgenia's FS was also filled with magic of nearly the opposite kind. Her very high scores, in part, reflected the power that she created and sustained by her mental strength, her technical goods, and her nearly unbelievable consistency. To see a 16-year-old accomplish that was remarkable. But it was also the skate itself: the power of her jumping, footwork etc. served the program, so that she also created a moment. She projected an emotional commitment to her performance that transcended quibbles about tanos or other tech quibbles.
Anna's magic was in how she created and showed herself to be the skater she always believed herself to be. She skates like a woman and shows the power of mature moves, even if, for me, the interpretation wasn't totally there yet. She showed the impact of beautiful technique and big, engaging music powered with something extra ... singleness of purpose, a desire to prove herself, something extra I can't name.
The only magic the OP acknowledged was the magic of elevating Satoko because she's your favorite. In my opinion, that isn't enough for judging "a sport, after all," that has always been, in equal measure, an art.
Ashley's FS, by the power of her music, her charisma, and her interpretation, transcended and made unimportant the small, nearly invisible errors,. She didn't let the error on the flip, which was the only one visible to most, deter or stop her. That was also part of her magic. The audiences (live and tv/video) had just seen Gracie crumble as soon as she made an error, although admittedly it was a big awkward one; they'd also seen the fear in Gracie's eyes. In Ashley's devotion to her performance, to her music and to her character, they saw her determination to give her best in that moment, in every second of the skate, and not let imperfection deter her from delivering a brilliant skate for the ages. She created a moment.
Evgenia's FS was also filled with magic of nearly the opposite kind. Her very high scores, in part, reflected the power that she created and sustained by her mental strength, her technical goods, and her nearly unbelievable consistency. To see a 16-year-old accomplish that was remarkable. But it was also the skate itself: the power of her jumping, footwork etc. served the program, so that she also created a moment. She projected an emotional commitment to her performance that transcended quibbles about tanos or other tech quibbles.
Anna's magic was in how she created and showed herself to be the skater she always believed herself to be. She skates like a woman and shows the power of mature moves, even if, for me, the interpretation wasn't totally there yet. She showed the impact of beautiful technique and big, engaging music powered with something extra ... singleness of purpose, a desire to prove herself, something extra I can't name.
The only magic the OP acknowledged was the magic of elevating Satoko because she's your favorite. In my opinion, that isn't enough for judging "a sport, after all," that has always been, in equal measure, an art.
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