S
SkateFan4Life
Guest
Yesterday's news included a rather curious piece of footage showing a press conference in Torino in which, among other things, Sasha Cohen was asked to give her thoughts on the withdrawal of her Olympic teammate, Michelle Kwan, from the women's figure skating competition.
Cohen stared at the reporters with an annoyed expression for a few seconds before she responded. She said (to paraphrase), "I think this just brings a human element to the competition."
Without being critical, I would have thought that Sasha could have said something like, "I'm sorry to hear the news about Michelle's withdrawal, and I wish her the best. I hope she recovers quickly and returns to the ice soon."
Instead, she did not offer any personal wishes for Michelle's health, no expression of sympathy, and no acknowledgement of the fact that Michelle will be missed at the Olympics.
Of course, it's possible that Sasha did make such comments, but they were not aired. However, given her penchant for being totally self-absorbed (almost narcissist), I guess it would be too much for her to show any compassion for anyone else.
Perhaps Cohen was irked that the NBC television cameras did not pan on HER during the opening ceremonies as they did in Salt Lake. The cameras panned on Michelle throughout the ceremony - marching into the stadium, watching the program, but not Sasha. And, of course, Sasha did not have the opportunity to pass her cell phone to the President of Italy.
Perhaps Cohen was irked that, again, Michelle will be the star of the ladies competition - at least as far as her absence is concerned.
Perhaps Cohen was irked with the realization that the press will probably focus on Emily Hughes, 2002 Olympic gold medalist Sarah's younger sister, who will replace Michelle. Unlike Sasha, Emily seems to be open, friendly, cheerful, and articulate.
Cohen stared at the reporters with an annoyed expression for a few seconds before she responded. She said (to paraphrase), "I think this just brings a human element to the competition."
Without being critical, I would have thought that Sasha could have said something like, "I'm sorry to hear the news about Michelle's withdrawal, and I wish her the best. I hope she recovers quickly and returns to the ice soon."
Instead, she did not offer any personal wishes for Michelle's health, no expression of sympathy, and no acknowledgement of the fact that Michelle will be missed at the Olympics.
Of course, it's possible that Sasha did make such comments, but they were not aired. However, given her penchant for being totally self-absorbed (almost narcissist), I guess it would be too much for her to show any compassion for anyone else.
Perhaps Cohen was irked that the NBC television cameras did not pan on HER during the opening ceremonies as they did in Salt Lake. The cameras panned on Michelle throughout the ceremony - marching into the stadium, watching the program, but not Sasha. And, of course, Sasha did not have the opportunity to pass her cell phone to the President of Italy.
Perhaps Cohen was irked that, again, Michelle will be the star of the ladies competition - at least as far as her absence is concerned.
Perhaps Cohen was irked with the realization that the press will probably focus on Emily Hughes, 2002 Olympic gold medalist Sarah's younger sister, who will replace Michelle. Unlike Sasha, Emily seems to be open, friendly, cheerful, and articulate.