Poll: Best all-around female skater?

[miki88]

Mao liked to do the fan spiral which is pretty difficult position to maintain at great speed. Her arabesque spiral in her original nocturne SP did have pretty good coverage and speed.

then which skater is so perfect and without any flaws whatsoever?

Michelle Kwan I think Kim would agree on that one.

 

[kiara_bleu]

Mao liked to do the fan spiral which is pretty difficult position to maintain at great speed. Her arabesque spiral in her original nocturne SP did have pretty good coverage and speed.



Michelle Kwan I think Kim would agree on that one.

I was also thinking only Michelle Kwan comes to mind But I think that is a disservice to skaters like Mao and Carolina who despite their inconsistencies are among the best well-rounded skaters as well. They had their issues but...I don't know how to phrase this or clearly say what I mean... Mao and Caro seems to be more natural skaters. Mao especially, watching her skate is like watching fish in water. That's where she is meant to be. And Caro has beautiful jumps she just struggled mentally. Under rotations or not, landed or not, it boggles my mind that Mao is still out there doing triple axels more than a decade later. Kwan and Kim at their peak can sell a program like nobody's business...

 

[sarama]

I think right now the ladies field is lackluster at best. In this quad there has been some (IMHO slight) increase in technical difficulty, but the overall quality of the elements and of the whole programs has got worse. So I find it very difficult to pick a really good all-around skater. For example Evgenia really lacks some polish and effortlessness, Mao is amazing but she has never been consistent and of course has chronic URs issues, Ashley has bad spins, URs and questionable skating skills (not to mention an interpretation that relies mostly on facial expression)... In a world where she isn't costantly injured and doesn't make silly mistakes, Osmond would be a pretty good all-around skater (unforunately we don't live in that world), so for now I'll wait for some girls to step up and make me change my mind, or for some promising juniors to bloom into great senior ladies. Speaking of juniors I think Marin Honda is a pretty good all-around skater, so let's hope she doesn't disappear in the next few years!

 

[Li'Kitsu]

Do you see her doing a crossover in the middle of that spiral that literally go from one end of the rink to the farthest end?

I guess the point of this was to say that Yuna also has more speed during her spiral because she enters the element with more speed than Mao does to begin with - and then yes, more speed is easier with more crossovers and/or less transitions.

(I don't mean to argue that Yuna isn't an overall skater, she is. But I also have to admit after years of Mao vs. Yuna, if people even come for Mao's spirals, it really rubs me the wrong way)

 

[drivingmissdaisy]

In this quad there has been some (IMHO slight) increase in technical difficulty, but the overall quality of the elements and of the whole programs has got worse.

In the last quad we had a world champion who didn't do a lutz, another who didn't do a loop, and Miki Ando who did not do a 3/3 or even a 2A-3T in the LP. This quad the world champions have either landed a 3A or two 3/3's in the LP. So I'd say the difficulty is far higher, but I agree the programs generally have been underwhelming.

 

[4everchan]

guys, no need to turn this thread in a mao vs yuna fan war...

 

[Mathman]

Hence (I hate that word )...

Why do you hate the word "hence"?

Best right now: Evgenia Medvedeva
Best career among current skaters: Mao Asada
Best of the best: Michelle Kwan
Better than any current skater: Yuna Kim
Hoping for strong rebound: Julia Lipnitskaia

 

[mrrice]

From Mathman,

Why do you hate the word "hence"?

Because my Ex used to say it to me all the time. Things like...."You are late again!" "HENCE, Dinner is cold and I drank all the wine, Goodnight!" :disapp:

 

[Ophelia]

Ashley Wagner - She is the only skater in the past 10 years whose programs I watch over and over and don't tire of them. She has consistently improved and increased her level of difficulty year after year. She has a 3-3 combo and a 3-.5-3 combo (most others do 1 3-3 and a 2A-3T or a 3-2-2 combo). Her connection to her music is always spot on. She performs for 95% of every program even when she makes a mistake on a jump. Most other skaters give a little face at the beginning and the end of the program (or none at all) and nothing in the middle.

There have been so many other great skaters in the recent past but they don't have the ability to grab me from beginning to end and wow me with technical difficulty as well.

Wowing you personally is not the criteria for "best all around skater".

My vote goes to Yuna Kim for best all-around. She has no glaring weaknesses, and if some posters try to argue that less-than-optimal flexibility and spirals are glaring weaknesses, then no other skater even comes close to "best all around".

Evegnia is strong across the board, but she still lacks polish and isn't yet a mature, refined skater. Perhaps in a few seasons she'll win this title.

Any skater with excessive technical issues (e.g. URs), is disqualified for me.

 

[temadd]

This is an opinion poll.

" informal poll- best all around female?

This is your opinion and tell us why- please back up your choices even if it's a three way tie."


And in my opinion she is the best all round. Sorry if you disagree. No need to be condescending.

 

[Ophelia]

This is an opinion poll.

" informal poll- best all around female?

This is your opinion and tell us why- please back up your choices even if it's a three way tie."


And in my opinion she is the best all round. Sorry if you disagree.

Your argument is "I personally like her", which is the answer for "why X is my favorite skater", not "who is best all-around", which requires more objective and less subjective arguments. I don't disagree with your opinion, bc that's yours, I disagree with your logic.

 

[temadd]

Your argument is "I personally like her", which is the answer for "why X is my favorite skater", not "who is best all-around", which requires more objective and less subjective arguments. I don't disagree with your opinion, bc that's yours, I disagree with your logic.

I submitted facts, sorry you don't agree.

 

[4everchan]

muhhahahahahahahaha cold dinner is fine, drinking al the wine.... lol you crack me up mrrice, hence i will go get some wine at the store

From Mathman,

Why do you hate the word "hence"?

Because my Ex used to say it to me all the time. Things like...."You are late again!" "HENCE, Dinner is cold and I drank all the wine, Goodnight!" :disapp:

 

[Mathman]

...hence i will go get some wine at the store

I assume that would be the 2013 vintage Riesling Icewine.

 

[sarama]

In the last quad we had a world champion who didn't do a lutz, another who didn't do a loop, and Miki Ando who did not do a 3/3 or even a 2A-3T in the LP. This quad the world champions have either landed a 3A or two 3/3's in the LP. So I'd say the difficulty is far higher, but I agree the programs generally have been underwhelming.

I think the average difficulty level is significantly higher (let's say top 15 at worlds), but Liza's 3A, and Evgenia's 2 3-3s are not an epic technical improvement like what we have seen in both men and pairs fields lately. And while, the men have also improved in terms of overall quality, the girls have regressed. That's why I'm not too enthusiastic about the ladies right now: Poor girls I'm sure they try their best, but right now I find it the least inspiring discipline, while I used to love it the most!

 

[mrrice]

muhhahahahahahahaha cold dinner is fine, drinking al the wine.... lol you crack me up mrrice, hence i will go get some wine at the store

YAAAAASSSSSS! That was great!

 

[4everchan]

actually, not a huge fan of icewine, i prefer late harvest (a more common thing in BC) and on top of that, Patrick's isn't available in Quebec... not yet at least... maybe it's not produced in big quantity enough or maybe it's just because Quebec has this very strict liquor monopoly.... hence I will get something else

I assume that would be the 2013 vintage Riesling Icewine.

 

[Blades of Passion]

Now, using the logos on the ice as a reference point, we can see Yuna covers twice as much ice both in length and width as Mao. Twice.

Yu-Na's spiral did not have twice as much ice coverage. You seem to be counting all of the crossovers between the two spirals as ice coverage of the spiral itself.

When you watch on TV, speed doesn't transfer as well as positions because the camera keeps focusing on you and move with you. You can't really feel how fast or how much ice someone is covering. It makes me very sad when people casually say Yuna's spirals weren't great because they were great.

I've seen Yu-Na and Mao live plenty of times. Yu-Na's spiral is definitely not what I would call great.

What you're saying about Video vs Live isn't really true to begin with. I have no problem seeing those qualities on Video, assuming it's not ridiculously cutting all over the place. Watching in-person is actually a detriment sometimes. If you are sitting at one end of the rink and a skater does a move at the other end of the rink, then sometimes it will be less impressive. In fact, look at how often people at a competition look up at the Jumbotron during a performance, instead of watching "live". Not to mention how skaters generally play more to the judges' side of the rink, so good luck sitting on the other side of the rink...

-----

I don't understand the point of the thread. Until someone knocks her off the podium, Medvedeva is the clear winner of this contest. She's great at everything, hence the World Title.

Medvedeva doesn't have a good axel, her lutz edge should be getting calls, her sit spins aren't the best, and she can work more on holding moves out and being with the music. The point of the thread seems to be looking at the qualities each skater has and what the best overall package is.

Ashley Wagner and Anna Pogorilaya had the best skates of their life in both short and long programs at Worlds.

I don't think Ashley's LP there was the best of her life. 2012 Worlds, 2014 Worlds, and 2015 Nationals were all better for her in my opinion. She simply had the favor of the judges this time around, thanks to the perfect situation of skating last at Worlds in the USA when there was space open on the podium and when she was "in contention" thanks to a great SP performance.

Of course, Medvedeva skated better than Ashley ever has. Could Ashley theoretically do better than that, though? I think so, but we'll probably never see such a thing.

 

[kiara_bleu]

I don't think Ashley's LP there was the best of her life. 2012 Worlds, 2014 Worlds, and 2015 Nationals were all better for her in my opinion. She simply had the favor of the judges this time around, thanks to the perfect situation of skating last at Worlds in the USA when there was space open on the podium and when she was "in contention" thanks to a great SP performance.

Of course, Medvedeva skated better than Ashley ever has. Could Ashley theoretically do better than that, though? I think so, but we'll probably never see such a thing.

You are right, Ashley took advantage of a "perfect storm" but I guess that's part of what makes it a memorable performance for me is that given the context of what was at stake and getting that elusive medal for the U.S. she was able to give two great performances.

I think we already know who Ashley is as skater and how she did at Worlds is more or less what she is capable of. Medvedeva is really good right now but we still don't know how far she can go yet.

 

[Bartek]

Wowing you personally is not the criteria for "best all around skater".

My vote goes to Yuna Kim for best all-around. She has no glaring weaknesses, and if some posters try to argue that less-than-optimal flexibility and spirals are glaring weaknesses, then no other skater even comes close to "best all around".

Evegnia is strong across the board, but she still lacks polish and isn't yet a mature, refined skater. Perhaps in a few seasons she'll win this title.

Any skater with excessive technical issues (e.g. URs), is disqualified for me.

You could easily argue that not having a triple loop is a glaring technical issue.