2015-16 Grand Prix Final Ladies Free Skate

[iamchrislao]

And you believe hook, line and sinker in the "artistry" of the winners? Lol at the pcs scores! It's never been about mao not getting on the podium as it is about proper scoring. Oh well.

It's not a fantasy skating competition. Play Sims or something..

 

[iamchrislao]

I love you honey! You get me!

Oh Honey.....You'd be shocked at how many times I've heard those words from the Parents of my Students. "This is LAST time I get up at the crack of dawn to drive my daughter to the middle of nowhere to come home with NOTHING!!! That's It!!! I Quit!!. Moa will be back....I have a good feeling that you will be watching to witness her next triumph. Don't lose heart....My Favorite Patrick is in Last as Last place can get right now.....Think about my other fav Leonova and smile.

 

[hurrah]

Mao looked the same way during the season when she re-worked her flip. Did she even go to Worlds that season? It will take a season or even two for Mao to become confident with her jumps, but knowing her, she'll get there, and when she does, she'll be a lady with a triple-axel and both flip and lutz, with beautiful skating and spins, which will make her truly unbeatable.

Has another lady skater ever mastered a new jump at the age of 25? She is a genius!!!

 

[chloepoco]

B][/B]I’m seriously starting to believe that her coach bribes the tech panel..why else won’t her jumps get called UR? :

That's not even a funny thing to say as a joke. How disrespectful can you be?

 

[FIREBIRD]

That's not even a funny thing to say as a joke. How disrespectful can you be?

That wasn't even a joke, nor was it my intention to make it one. I was being sarcastic
Edit: And I stand behind what I said. Her TES score was mega inflated.

 

[Figure 8's]

Why was Gracie not invited when she finished ahead of Mao?

 

[Figure 8's]

Skaters that take time off and than come back rarely come back as good as they were before. Sasha, Chan to name two. I think it is hard to get their bodies back in the training mode.

 

[ice coverage]

Why was Gracie not invited when she finished ahead of Mao?

AFAIK, the invitations are at the LOC's discretion.

Happens all the time that certain skaters who placed lower are invited to the gala and some skaters who placed higher are not.

Gracie is a big girl and a good sport, and I'm sure that she is not complaining.

 

[randomfan]

As for the scores, I do not want to compare them with pre-Sochi times - this is new era now. Last season Liza had 218 combined while her realized tech content was much weaker besides 3A. And her skating skills, choreo, and feeling of the music are not near those of Medvedeva. What combo did she have, 3t-3t? Can you compare it with multiple backloaded combos that Zhenya offers? Thinking like this I see no big issues with 222 here.

Nobody got higher than 211 last season. Liza's best was 210. And yes, her skating skills, choreo, and feeling of the music is not as good as Evgenia, but that still doesn't mean that Evgenia should be getting scores that high in comparison. Liza's 68 in PCS was just ridiculous, but rather than stopping the absurd PCS judging the judges are making it even worse. So it's odd to compare Evgenia's inflated scores with the also-inflated scores of someone else. But I guess everyone has their own opinions.

Edit: Oh you were talking about her SBs combined. Never mind about last season's total then.

 

[OS]

Okay, so the tarot generator did it once again! I hate the tarot generator!

Wow it is soo true it is eery...:handw:

Jaaaaaaaaccckkkk... I am drowning in a sea of PCS... gulp gulp gulp...

 

[largeman]

Skaters that take time off and than come back rarely come back as good as they were before. Sasha, Chan to name two. I think it is hard to get their bodies back in the training mode.

That is true and that is what Midori Ito, speaking from personal experience, told Mao when they discussed Mao's desire to return to competition. Mao, being Mao, was never going to be dissuaded of course.

I'd like to think Mao's case is different from all these other examples. Despite her decorated career, she had not peaked as a total package and hadn't demonstrated her full potential as a complete skater (until maybe her very last competitions before taking a year off). She is still improving in every aspect of her game. Since she came back, we have seen her deliver 3As that are better than ever before, on a consistent basis. We've seen her correcting her lutz edge. We've seen more maturity in her expression and a refinement not found in other ladies in the current field. She is not resting on her laurels and only capitalizing on what she already does well, but on a continuing journey of self improvement. So of course she is going to stumble along the way, like she did in the 2010-2012 seasons.

Fixing the lutz undoubtedly takes a toll on the stability of her flip. Perfecting the 3A undoubtedly takes up much strength and physical capacity as well. I'm not disagreeing that at 25, she might be past her prime in terms of physical condition and endurance. But I think with the right training method and conditioning, and with her determination, she is on track to showing us brilliance that we haven't yet seen from her.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

And you believe hook, line and sinker in the "artistry" of the winners? Lol at the pcs scores! It's never been about mao not getting on the podium as it is about proper scoring. Oh well.

Do you actually feel Mao did well enough to make the podium? Or were her popped jumps podium worthy?

Look at the protocols - maybe you missed something in there from the rest of the performances. Mao is a legend but she isn't a god - Medvedeva totally outskated her and every other skater here and Mao made huge errors. The scores were cray but the placements were fine.

 

[AngelENTL]

Wow it is soo true it is eery...:handw:

Jaaaaaaaaccckkkk... I am drowning in a sea of PCS... gulp gulp gulp...

Radionova's long program is PAINFUL for me to watch b/c of the atrocious music cuts and dialogue. So, so, so tacky. Ugh, it pains me just to think of it now! I reserved judgment earlier in the season, thinking that my first impression might've been severe just b/c it was unexpected and a little different. But now I can confidently wonder if I've ever heard worse audio for a long program. It's that bad.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

It really is awful music/music cuts. It's so sad because it detracts from how talented she is.

 

[Fozzie Bear]

I really don't like how backloaded Medvedeva's LP is. Five jumping passes in a row right after the halfway point.

 

[Layback11]

Okay, this was a depressing GPF for me (aside from Lena and Shoma, of course) and I have to say a few words.

I am well aware that some of my favorites either delivered awful performances here or did their best but were subjectively placed under other skaters. This is really sad for me, and I was so hoping this would be an epic final, what with all my favorites there. But no matter how badly they skated here, they are all still my favorites. I love them all just as much as I did two days ago and that is not going to change. I will remain optimistic of better things to come, and acknowledge that this is just a skating competition, no matter how big of a deal it was to the ISU, nobody died, and the world has not come to an end. I am saddened that they weren't able to do their best here, but I still believe in them. I know how talented they all are, and a bad competition doesn't change that. And I'm happy for the people who did skate their best, even if I would have preferred a different podium. A GPF medal is a wonderful accomplishment, and I'm thrilled for the people who worked so hard to get there, both junior and senior. I hope each competitor learns from this event and improves upon their performances here, no matter how good or bad they were. Because in the end, it's not all about winning-it's about their love of skating and what they can take away from each event and their career as a whole.

Hopefully others can see it in a positive light as well.

 

[Franklin99]

I really don't like how backloaded Medvedeva's LP is. Five jumping passes in a row right after the halfway point.

Yeah, like I said of her SP, too much jumping back to back takes away from a beautiful program. I hope her coach(es) realizes that she will soon be going through a growth spurt, and may not be able to continue backloading her jumps.

 

[Shayuki]

I really don't like how backloaded Medvedeva's LP is. Five jumping passes in a row right after the halfway point.

That's optimal with this system, though.

Maybe they should make it 1.1 at 1/3rd and 1.2 at 2/3rd or maybe 1.05 and 1.15, then there might be some more interesting variations. Right now 1-3 at start, 4-6 after half all in a row is optimal.

Still, it's a sport and an athlete should not be criticized for maximizing their point gains. They should be commended instead.

 

[randomfan]

I really don't like how backloaded Medvedeva's LP is. Five jumping passes in a row right after the halfway point.

I don't like it either, but Yulia's Schindler's List was constructed in a similar way and I loved that program, so I'm used to it.

What I absolutely can't stand is the order of elements in the SP. The music is very nice and the choreography is pretty good. But all three jumping passes being crammed into the second half right before the final spin is seriously annoying. Kanako's SP in 2012-2013 had her start with the step sequence, and then proceed to the 2A. Then, her program seemed to have much better flow even when putting both the 3-3 and the solo triple in the second half. I know Evgenia does her way for more points, but it just distracts me from trying to enjoy her performance.

But what bugs me more than that is that she does no elements for the first 30 seconds of the program. They should make a rule that requires the skater to do an element no later than the 20-second mark or something.

 

[MaxSwagg]

Mao's been through worse so she can handle anything.