MEN'S LP and the CHAMPIONSHIP

[DaveT]

Does anyone know where to find the protocols from Nationals???

 

[Tonichelle]

you know Evan hit a great quad triple combo in that warm up... it's so frustrating that that goes out the window in the actual competition.

 

[Medusa]

you know Evan hit a great quad triple combo in that warm up... it's so frustrating that that goes out the window in the actual competition.

Just ask Joubert - the practises before the long program at Europeans he landed Quad after Quad, Salchow or Toeloop - didn't matter. Then in the program he looked as if he was skating with the weight of the World on his shoulders.

 

[Blades of Passion]

you know Evan hit a great quad triple combo in that warm up... it's so frustrating that that goes out the window in the actual competition.

You don't know if it was underrotated or not. It likely was. If you watch his good Quads in the past closely, they barely make the 1/4 turn short mark. The best one he ever did was at Nationals 2007, when he was emotionally the most driven he's ever been (he really, really wanted to be National Champion). Evan just doesn't have that drive anymore; I don't think he'll be getting the Quad back. His technique isn't strong enough, he doesn't get enough height.

 

[1795]

Good team - I believe this is a fair decision IMHO. .... :thumbsup:

hi-5!

 

[Spun Silver]

I hate USFS!!!

 

[jennylovskt]

Congratulations to all three medalists!

A brand new gold medalist, a delightful surprise for the silver, and a fighter for the bronze. Wow! I like Jeremy and Brandon! They are the people to watch. But to be honest, Jeremy's goofy in the K & C was a little too much for me. I'd like to filter that part and just remember his skating.

Absolutely heartbreaking to see Johnny's LP. I was hoping that USFS could make an exception to place Johnny on the world team, even though I like Brandon very much. They didn't. Oh, well, USFS has it's good reason. Johnny is such a beautiful, rare skater! He is just not tough enough.

 

[Tinymavy15]

It kills me that Evan was third by like half a point after he landed that too-beautiful-for -words quad combo in warm up. I wonder if he and Frank Caroll will start taking out the quad. Good move taking it out in the SP. I think thinking that if had done a tidy 3/3 off the top, he would have won. Not only for the points gained by that element, but he would have been more relaxed for the rest of the program.

Have to mention though, he looked amazing. Outfit was perfect. SEXY

 

[Buttercup]

In these situations, as Scott said, the guy responsible for the 3 spots may get to go, particularly if he is injured at nationals. If Johnny had filed for a bye, he would probably have gotten it. Johnny was visibly thin and in unfortunate health.

Fact is, Evan's axel is in trouble & he does not have a quad. Both Ryan and Brandon have good axels and a quad. Evan did only just OK on the GP this year and did not go to worlds last year. Evan is a victim of the new strictness of rules on jump technique, just as some of the US girls are. It is not an easy problem to fix.

I would have sent Johnny, who's had better results than Evan internationally this season, and who is, as you noted, the guy who got the US that third spot for LA. Evan has had more problems with URs and I can't see this magically changing at Worlds. But maybe he'll surprise us.

Brian JOUBERT - Personal Best Total Score 240.85

You do understand the difference between international competition and Nationals, right? The only active skaters who have a PB higher than Joubert are Oda and Dai. Jeremy's is 237.72, which is really good and which he may improve yet.

They have announced the world team:
Jeremy, Brandon, and Evan. Johnny is the first alternate and Ryan the second.

I'm really looking forward to seeing Brandon - I missed seeing him when TEB got pre-empted for snooker. Best of luck to him at his first Worlds.

 

[dorispulaski]

you know Evan hit a great quad triple combo in that warm up... it's so frustrating that that goes out the window in the actual competition.

Yes, it is. But it isn't an uncommon thing. The rush of the adrenalin of the actual competition changes everything a lot, and I suspect it's difficult to simulate in training. I wonder whether anyone has ever experimented with injecting/taking adrenalin as a practice technique?

 

[Tonichelle]

I know the 'biology' of it all... but it's still frustrating...

kinda like Kurt said in 94 - "I felt so GOOD out there!" yeah, Evan looked SO GOOD out there, and then the music started...

 

[museksk8r]

But to be honest, Jeremy's goofy in the K & C was a little too much for me. I'd like to filter that part and just remember his skating.

I Jeremy so much! He owns his weirdness, meaning he has admitted to having a very weird sense of humor that not a lot of people get. He's different, and I really like that. He is a very interesting character and a wonderful blend of artist and athlete . . . I'm such a big fan!

 

[museksk8r]

I don't think Jeremy will beat Brandon's FS, but because of his lead I think he'll win overall.

Hmm..155.49, a little high, no?

I don't think so. Jeremy is faster than Brandon and Abbott's complex transitions into and out of his elements make them much harder than Mroz's program. Granted, Mroz had that BEAUTIFUL 4toe and he is definitely to be commended for an incredible technical performance, but I think Abbott really did have the overall best performance, athletically and artistically. It's so difficult to do what he does in blending all the elements into and out of the choreography like that with no set up time. Jeremy also showed more musicality/better interpretation than any of the other competitors, IMO. I'm not surprised at all that he scored 80.00 for PCS. He's in Stephane Lambiel territory there, and rightfully so.

 

[dizzydi7]

The one thing that came out of the Men's National Championship is the emergence of two new talented skaters. Although Jeremy showed his threat at the Grand Prix final, as National Champion he has definitely made his mark. Brandon was just awesome and has an incredible future ahead.

What a breath of fresh air to have these fine young men to watch in the future. It's no longer all about Evan and Johnny.:agree:

Dizzy

 

[Buzzz]

I watched the US men & ladies competition on tv and was surprised at how out of touch I am with the skating scene. There were so many new faces, new names etc to familiarize myself too. The skaters were all so refreashing and enjoyable to watch. Hope to follow theirs careers and to see them all do well.

 

[Tinymavy15]

I know that Joubert and Oda and the rest of those guys have bigger personal bests than the americans ,but events are not won ny personal bests. Last year eveybody thought Takahasi would win, he didn't eveb medal. What was Mroz's PB before worlds? I bet nowhere near Johnny's. It is all about who skates well that night.

 

[Medusa]

I find it interesting that the judges gave Evan the PCS he got on the Grand Prix this season, and not what they usually gave him. 73 something is really low for Nationals in any country, and especially for the reigning champ and everybody's darling.

Mroz got 13 points more PCS than at Skate Canada though - but he was also way better than at Skate Canada.

 

[Tonichelle]

Evan's not everybody's darling, and I think he got a bit of backlash from the judges... I mean they practically gift wrap his second title and then he doesn't go to worlds... making their controversial decision that much more problematic...

I'm not saying his withdrawl from worlds wasn't right for him, but the USFSA played it too close last year. They weren't doing that this year.

 

[mskater93]

He doubled his 3axel, doubled a 3Loop and fell on another jump. He did complete a 3/2 combo. His score is coming up.....

He actually SINGLED the 3A (first jump) and fell on the 3F

 

[Dodhiyel]

Congratulations, Jeremy and Brandon!! Well done!!!

I am proud to have both of you representing the U.S. at Worlds.

I have a problem with the third spot.

Some years back, under 6.0, the top objective was "to skate clean" (adverbs are unpopular in the skating world ). One season, Michelle Kwan fell twice at U.S. Nationals. In spite of this, she was awarded the gold; the judgement of USFS seemed justified when she won Worlds for them later that season. This taught me that USFS will pick whomever it wishes to pick, for reasons of their own. With CoP it is less evident, but the principle is still the same, I think.

Evan Lysacek, as some particularly brave posters have dared to observe, has been having problems with a deteriorating skill-set for a while now. During the competition, Sandra Bezic said of his FS, "Everything's a fight; nothing is flowing naturally for him". Yes. Scott Hamilton observed that it was Johnny who won that third entry slot for the U.S. at the coming Worlds. Johnny is *currently* suffering from the aftereffects of severely depleting illiness, and the accompanying lost training time. Please take the time to read his January 6 journal entry at:

http://www.figureskatersonline.com/johnnyweir/journal.html

It is most enlightening.

I confess that I am a Johnny Weir fan; however, I genuinely believe that he is a better risk for USFS at Worlds than Evan is. Back when CoP first came in, USFS made the mistake of keeping 6.0 in its Nationals. Now, with the new special technology, everything the blades do can be studied by the judges. Quality of execution becomes a genuine issue, not just an idle expression. I do not think Evan's skating scores will bear up well in international competition under such exacting scrutiny, so I think that USFS has made a mistake.