He has not said.
The withdrawal was marked for the day after the GPF was cancelled, so it was not as though he cancelled in anticipation of GPF. His social media has indicated he is training (although the timing of his posts is always vague), so injury does not *appear* to be the reason.
My guess: he accomplished what he wanted to accomplish by qualifying for GPF, the risks of traveling to a Challenger he doesn't "need" are not worthwhile when he can stay in Canada and train for US Nats.
Just a guess.
I agree with this. He's had a great season and there are no benefits in going to Golden Spin as far as ranking points or his standing with the Fed. He's already in the best shape of his life and there is no point in risking the travel at this point.He has not said.
The withdrawal was marked for the day after the GPF was cancelled, so it was not as though he cancelled in anticipation of GPF. His social media has indicated he is training (although the timing of his posts is always vague), so injury does not *appear* to be the reason.
My guess: he accomplished what he wanted to accomplish by qualifying for GPF, the risks of traveling to a Challenger he doesn't "need" are not worthwhile when he can stay in Canada and train for US Nats.
Just a guess.
The current trend is to open the Canada/US border, not restrict it further. Canadian residents can now cross to the US at a land border for up to 72 hours without a test on either end.I'm also guessing that Canada may again close their borders if this variant gets more widespread - in which case he would be stuck in the US without his coaches. This way he makes one trip to the US for Nationals and if he can't get back into Canada it isn't such a big deal. Now Worlds is a different story and I'm hoping he not only qualifies but that Worlds doesn't get cancelled.
While some of you mention that Brown and Cha withdrew... Orzel and Phan, as well as Orser were there... So... I don't think it's a "training in Canada" or "team" decision... but rather a personal decision
It could be a personal decision, but it could also be a team decision since Jason and Jun have high chances of being at the Olympics, while Orzel and Phan don't (so they don't wanna risk a positive test so close to the Olympics). In Jason's case it could have been USFSF advising him and not the team.While some of you mention that Brown and Cha withdrew... Orzel and Phan, as well as Orser were there... So... I don't think it's a "training in Canada" or "team" decision... but rather a personal decision
An athlete's personal decision is usually in consultation with the coaching staff. What I implied is simply that skaters from the same skating club, sharing some of the same coaching staff still decided to go to Zagreb, because it suited them personally. What I meant was in opposition to those mentioning travel risks or restrictions, especially for Canada,etc. If other athletes from the same club are going, it was then not a decision imposed by a team or a club or a country, but a personal decision. I repeat, a personal decision for an athlete will obviously include discussion with their main coach. Not sure how I can explain this better.It could be a personal decision, but it could also be a team decision since Jason and Jun have high chances of being at the Olympics, while Orzel and Phan don't (so they don't wanna risk a positive test so close to the Olympics). In Jason's case it could have been USFSF advising him and not the team.
Gold and a season's best score for him at GS was very possible since his injury gets more healed in time and he tends to score more the more he competes. IMO it could've been good for him to go in case Ilia or Jimmy score more than him at Nationals (not very likely IMO, but who knows). I would also see him very established with a top 5 score of over 270 at at least one comp before Nationals. But he's in a good place and a clear 3rd man despite him scoring lower than what could've been with more clean performances so far this season.
“It was a tough decision,” Brown explained, noting that after the Final was cancelled, he did consider going to Croatia. “The more we thought about it – we were like, ‘We are four weeks out from the U.S. Championships. We made it this far safely.’ So we kind of made the decision that I was going to stay back.”