Great rivalries in last 25 years

[pangtongfan]

The Calgary Olympics and era leading up to that had so many amazing rivalries. Since then the great rivalries have not produced at as rapid a rate, but there still have been a few. What are some rivalries since then you have enjoyed or found significant. Here would be mine:

Pairs:

Brasseur & Eisler vs Miskutienok & Dmitriev 1990-1994
Shishkova & Naumov vs Kovarikova & Novotny 1991-1995
Eltsova & Bushkov vs Woetzel & Steuer 1993-1998
Shen & Zhao vs Totmianina & Marinin 2002-2006
Savchenko & Szolkowy vs Volosozhar & Trankov 2011-2014



Men:

Petrenko vs Browning 1989-1997
Stojko vs Urmanov 1994-1997
Yagudin vs Plushenko 1998-2002
Lambiel vs Joubert 2004-2008



Dance:

Klimova & Ponomarenko vs Duchensays 1990-1992
Usova & Zhulin vs Gritschuk & Platov 1992-1994
Anissina & Peizerat vs 3 or 4 challenging pack (Bourne & Kraatz, Krylova & Ovsiannikov, Fusar Poli & Margalio, Lobacheva & Averubhk) 1998-2002
Belbin & Agosto vs Denkova & Stayviski 2004-2007
Delobel & Schoenfelder vs Belbin & Agosto 2005-2010
Davis & White vs Virtue Moir 2009-present


Ladies:

Yamaguchi vs Ito 1990-1995
Harding vs Yamaguchi 1989-1992
Kerrigan vs Harding 1990-1994
Yamaguchi vs Sato 1995-2002
Lipinski vs Kwan 1997-1998
Slutskaya vs Lipinski 1996-1997
Kwan vs Slutskaya 2000-2005
Hughes vs Butyrskaya 2000-2002
Kim vs Asada 2005-present
Asada vs Ando 2005-2011
Butyrskaya vs Slutskaya 1996-2002

Some overhyped non existent rivalries:

Kwan vs Cohen- what rivalry. Kwan always won

Stojko vs Eldrege- what rivalry. Stojko only lost 1 time from 1992-2000 and it was when he bombed the short program. Kulik and Urmanov were Stojko's rivals, and Eldredge was a rival to Kulik and Urmanov, but Stojko was always certain to beat Eldredge.

Sale & Pelletier vs Berezhnaya & Sikharulidze- What rivalry. Sale & Pelletier always won. Jamie could even miss all her jumps and they still came out ahead.

Gritschuk & Platov vs Krylova & Ovsiannikov- again what rivalry. K&O dont even have one head to head win.

 

[Olympia]

What fun to think about this topic. Two interesting statistics: the Kim-Asada rivalry has lasted by your count eight years, and Browning-Petrenko even longer, nine years. That's a lot of continuity! Were you surprised by the longevity of those two pairings?

I was expecting to see Kwan as part of one of the longer rivalries, because her actual senior career was so long. But she outlasted Lipinski, and Slutskaya didn't peak until 2000.

I love that Browning is still skating at a peak of performance ability, though of course his jumps have diminished. He still puts so much into his skating and still innovates artistically. He's still like a human magnet on the ice: you can't take your eyes off him.

Thanks for all your work!

 

[aftertherain]

Kwan vs Cohen- what rivalry. Kwan always won

Well, Sasha did place higher than Michelle at the 2004 and 2005 World Championships.

 

[pangtongfan]

Well, Sasha did place higher than Michelle at the 2004 and 2005 World Championships.

Point noted, but that just means she has the same number of wins over Michelle Kwan as Maria Butyrskaya and Sarah Hughes. It also shows she could never get any wins over Michelle until she was at the height of a major hip injury, well past her prime, limited to no more than 5 triples in one program ever again, and saddled with a new judging system at the end of her career, and even then she had trouble beating her consistently.

 

[pangtongfan]

What fun to think about this topic. Two interesting statistics: the Kim-Asada rivalry has lasted by your count eight years, and Browning-Petrenko even longer, nine years. That's a lot of continuity! Were you surprised by the longevity of those two pairings?

I was expecting to see Kwan as part of one of the longer rivalries, because her actual senior career was so long. But she outlasted Lipinski, and Slutskaya didn't peak until 2000.

I love that Browning is still skating at a peak of performance ability, though of course his jumps have diminished. He still puts so much into his skating and still innovates artistically. He's still like a human magnet on the ice: you can't take your eyes off him.

Thanks for all your work!

You are most welcome and it was a pleasure to make.

I am a bit surprised at the longevity of the Kim vs Asada rivalry. I would have figured after sometime before or after 2010 one would fall off and see the rivarly diminish but it still endears, although the peak of the rivalry was really 2006-2010 more than now so I was probably generous in my length. I still consider Mao a potential threat to Kim even today though.

In another sense Slutskaya and Kwan have been major rivals in a sense since 1994 and 1996 when they shared major junior and senior podiums together. However I never felt like Irina was really a threat to Michelle until she beat her at the 2000 Grand Prix final.

I agree with you completely on Browning.

 

[FlattFan]

Most of these are not true rivalries.

Kim and Asada are true rivals. They are both incredible skaters and at their best, are unmatched.
Plushenko and Yagudin are true rivals. Also, at their best, you know they would go 1-2.
DW and VM are true rivals. At their best, they would go 1-2, and you wouldn't know who will win until they both finish.

Brasseur & Eisler vs Miskutienok & Dmitriev 1990-1994 were never rivals. M/D were inconsistent as hell, but at their best, they were the best in the world. I think they are way better than the rest of them, even now. They have the best programs. They have the best skating skills. B&E aren't in the same league.

 

[blue_idealist]

I'm not going to put any exact years, but here are mine:

DANCE

Virtue and Moir vs. Davis and White
Grishuk and Platov vs. Usova and Zhulin
Klimova and Ponomarenko vs. the Duschesnays

PAIRS

Savchenko and Szolkowy vs. Volosozhar and Trankov
Duhamel and Radford vs. Moore-Towers and Moscovitch (in Canada only)
Sale and Pelletier vs. Berezhnaya and Sikharulidze
Gordeeva and Grinkov vs. Mishkutenok and Dmitriev

MEN

Patrick Chan vs. Daisuke Takahashi (this was more intense a couple of years ago, when Dai actually beat Patrick regularly)
Evan Lysacek vs. Johnny Weir (USA only)
Brian Joubert vs. Florent Amodio (France only)
Daisuke Takahashi vs. Yuzuru Hanyu
Evgeny Plushenko vs. Alexei Yagudin
Elvis Stojko vs. Kurt Browning (in Canada and the world)
Kurt Browning vs. Viktor Petrenko

LADIES

Mao Asada vs. Yu-Na Kim
Ashley Wagner vs. Gracie Gold (even though this has just kind of started)
Adelina Sotnikova vs. Elisaveta Tuktamysheva (and throw a few other Russian girls in for good measure)
Mirai Nagasu vs. Rachael Flatt (USA only)
Michelle Kwan vs. Irina Slutskaya
Michelle Kwan vs. Tara Lipinski
Michelle Kwan vs. Lu Chen

I guess Plushenko vs. Lysacek could be considered an overhyped rivalry, since there was so much talk about them being rivals after the 2010 Olympics, but 2010 was really the first time Lysacek beat Plushenko.

I know Fusar-Poli and Margaglio and Anissina and Peizerat were rivals on paper, but in my mind, the former doesn't even begin to approach the latter in talent.

I consider B/S vs. S/P a real rivalry because B/S did beat S/P at the 2002 Olympics, at first anyway lol, and even though S/P won most head-to-head matches, it was not easy for them to beat B/S.

 

[Moment]

I think Yuna-Mao rivalry ended in 2009. After that the supposed rivalry has always been more about media hype than what had actually happened on ice.

 

[ciocio]

Yagudin vs Plushenko 1998-2002

Best rivalry ever Yagudin vs Plushenko 2000-2002!!!!! :yay:1998,1999 weren't that great, Plushy was too young. hwell:

 

[iluvtodd]

I think Elvis vs. Todd was a true rivalry, and I wouldn't minimize/be dismissive of it. I do like that they respected each other, and will never forget their handshake @ the SLC OLympics just before Elvis skated.

 

[minze]

I think Yuna-Mao rivalry ended in 2009. After that the supposed rivalry has always been more about media hype than what had actually happened on ice.

2010 worlds

 

[pangtongfan]

I think Elvis vs. Todd was a true rivalry, and I wouldn't minimize/be dismissive of it. I do like that they respected each other, and will never forget their handshake @ the SLC OLympics just before Elvis skated.

Like I said 1 win for Todd in 9 seasons at one point. No rivalry. Butyrskaya stastically was a bigger rival to Michelle Kwan than Todd was to Elvis.

 

[KKonas]

Most of these are not true rivalries.


Brasseur & Eisler vs Miskutienok & Dmitriev 1990-1994 were never rivals. M/D were inconsistent as hell, but at their best, they were the best in the world. I think they are way better than the rest of them, even now. They have the best programs. They have the best skating skills. B&E aren't in the same league.

Absolutely agree. Dmitriev was notorious for not going near an ice rink in the off season, so he was always rusty at the beginning of the season and Mishkutenok had to deal with weight gain during the off season, but their basic talents were far superior to B&E. IMO Dmitriev, when trained, was the best male pair skater in the world.

 

[Mathman]

The Usova & Zhulin vs Gritschuk & Platov rivalry had everything. And I mean everything. :yes:

 

[Layfan]

Best rivalry ever Yagudin vs Plushenko 2000-2002!!!!!1998,1999 weren't that great, Plushy was too young. hwell:

I agree, that rivalry was just epic and definitely lives up if not surpasses Brian/Brian The drama of their being from the same country and having once had the same coach was matched by the drama of their talent. They were their fiercest competitors inside and outside of Russia, doesn't get better than that.

Just for fun here's some NBC fromage about the rivalry "Coaching them was like having two wives." - Mishin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oB2zNSu8K0I

I always thought it was amazing that Kwan lasted long enough to have multiple true rivals. Though short-lived and early, I'd considering adding Chen Lu to the list of Kwan rivals. Chen Lu was perhaps the rival that made Michelle shine the brightest. How brilliant did Michelle have to be to defeat the beautiful performance Chen Lu gave at 1996 worlds?

 

[Olympia]

Absolutely agree. Dmitriev was notorious for not going near an ice rink in the off season, so he was always rusty at the beginning of the season and Mishkutenok had to deal with weight gain during the off season, but their basic talents were far superior to B&E. IMO Dmitriev, when trained, was the best male pair skater in the world.

On that subject, I once read an article (by that time I think Dmitriev was partnered with Kazakova) that the true partnership was between Dmitriev and Tamara Moskvina, the pair's coach. The implication was that Moskvina saw in him a quality of skater who could participate more actively in the development of the pair. I got that feeling as well, that Dmitriev was one of the engines of the pair's success in a way that neither of his partners (good though they were) ever was. As for being the best male pair skater in the world at that time (well, I'd venture to say except for Sergei Grinkov), Dmitriev had a feeling for the music and for skating itself that Eissler couldn't match on even the best day of his skating career, though I did love the energy and commitment that Brasseur/Eissler brought to skating. Dmitriev and whoever he skated with were on a different level entirely.

Mathman, I'm chuckling at your comment about the rivalry between Grishchuk/Platov and Usova/Zhulin. Oh, man, that brings back memories!

 

[Blades of Passion]

Some overhyped non existent rivalries:

Kwan vs Cohen- what rivalry. Kwan always won

Stojko vs Eldrege- what rivalry. Stojko only lost 1 time from 1992-2000 and it was when he bombed the short program. Kulik and Urmanov were Stojko's rivals, and Eldredge was a rival to Kulik and Urmanov, but Stojko was always certain to beat Eldredge.

Sale & Pelletier vs Berezhnaya & Sikharulidze- What rivalry. Sale & Pelletier always won. Jamie could even miss all her jumps and they still came out ahead.

Gritschuk & Platov vs Krylova & Ovsiannikov- again what rivalry. K&O dont even have one head to head win.

You don't understand the definition of a rivalry, do you? You clearly have no competitive experience whatsoever, with anything in life, to say such things about people who are at the top of their discipline. Your facts aren't even correct. Cohen DID beat Kwan, 3 times during the 2004 and 2005 seasons (plus the SP at 2004 Nationals). The Stojko vs Eldredge thing is even more ridiculous, given how clear it was that Eldredge would almost always be placed ahead IF he skated his best. And how can Eldredge be a rival to Kulik, and Kulik be a rival to Stojko, if Eldredge also isn't a rival to Stojko? LOGIC?!?!?! This is like the simplest of SAT questions and you just failed it.

 

[FlattFan]

SAT stopped including logic in their questions since the 90s.

Cohen is a hot boo boo mess her entire life. One or two times that due to pure luck, she landed all her jumps, she was competitive with an aging and battered Kwan, but that's not what a rivalry is about.

As for 2006, I can't believe she actually went into the Games as a co-favorite for the gold

jumps are significantly weaker than the other two girls
spins are weaker than the other girls
steps are weaker
spirals are about the same or weaker
skating skills are weaker

Basically a tier below any of the top skaters. If judged by today standard, she would be 3-4 points behind Arakawa and 1-2 points behind **** going into the LP and about 15 points lower in the LP.

I refuse to believe this chick is a rival to anyone but Kimmie Meisnner.

 

[Layfan]

SAT stopped including logic in their questions since the 90s.

Cohen is a hot boo boo mess her entire life. One or two times that due to pure luck, she landed all her jumps, she was competitive with an aging and battered Kwan, but that's not what a rivalry is about.

As for 2006, I can't believe she actually went into the Games as a co-favorite for the gold

jumps are significantly weaker than the other two girls
spins are weaker than the other girls
steps are weaker
spirals are about the same or weaker
skating skills are weaker

Basically a tier below any of the top skaters. If judged by today standard, she would be 3-4 points behind Arakawa and 1-2 points behind **** going into the LP and about 15 points lower in the LP.

I refuse to believe this chick is a rival to anyone but Kimmie Meisnner.

Oh, for the days when our "aging and battered" and "hot boo boo messes" of skaters regularly won Olympic and World medals for the USA.

 

[FlattFan]

Dmitriev and whoever he skated with were on a different level entirely.

I, too, think he's the best male pair skater ever.
I prefer him with Mishkutenok

This performance is unmatched by any current pair skaters. So sad they don't pair skate like this anymore. The closest ones in recent memory to M/D are T/T. MT/M of Canada also remind me of M/D at time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9j0jrUADG0