State of U.S. Ladies' skating 2016-17 | Page 11 | Golden Skate

State of U.S. Ladies' skating 2016-17

I think the TBD spot at Skate America was mostly Wang vs Bell to begin with (lesser extent than Pierce and Miller). I've always had a soft spot for Wang after they didn't name her to Jr Worlds (along with Miller) two years in a row (going with Siraj and the junior nationals competitor when Wang and Miller got to JGPF). She has beautiful jumps and spins but hasn't had great programs since her junior days. I'm surprised she's going for Flips in the SP and FS considering she prefers the outside edge, often lipping.
 

I did NOT see that coming!! So how long has Mariah been with Rafael? Is HE the reason she looks so good this season? Who choreographed Mariah's new LP? I thought that program had Rohene Ward's name all over it. So, now she'll be hanging around with Adam, Ashley, and Nathan. That's not bad company.
 
I did NOT see that coming!! So how long has Mariah been with Rafael? Is HE the reason she looks so good this season? Who choreographed Mariah's new LP? I thought that program had Rohene Ward's name all over it. So, now she'll be hanging around with Adam, Ashley, and Nathan. That's not bad company.

Mariah performed in an exhibition I attended in Monument on 8/6, a week after Glacier Falls, so it is very unlikely Raf was responsible for how good she looked at Glacier Falls. Both of her programs were choreographed by Rohene.
 
Mariah performed in an exhibition I attended in Monument on 8/6, a week after Glacier Falls, so it is very unlikely Raf was responsible for how good she looked at Glacier Falls. Both of her programs were choreographed by Rohene.

That's what I thought. Rohene has really done some spectacular choreography and he remains one of my favorites. Will it be weird for Rohene to remain her choreographer after she moves to Raf? How will that work?
 

Holy moly, I am surprised by that one. Mariah AND Romain have moved to Rafael. Well, we knew Raf's stock had gone up after Worlds!
I hope it was amicable, and given what I've heard from Kori about her philosophy of skating, I think probably it is. Also, I can see Mariah still getting choreographed by Rohene. Kori believes in an open system.

I'm not quite so shocked by Hannah's move. It's hard to say exactly why, I just didn't quite see her with Raf; and I immediately can imagine her doing well with Tammy.
 
The timing of Mariah's move seems odd. Why have Rohene do your programs and then make the change?

She's also such an emotional young woman. She seemed to spend much of last season crying on Kori's shoulder. And not just a few tears but bucketfuls. She's moving from a major touchy feely coach to one who's the master of the death stare.

Maybe she'll soften him up.

:rolleye:
 
I did NOT see that coming!! So how long has Mariah been with Rafael? Is HE the reason she looks so good this season? Who choreographed Mariah's new LP? I thought that program had Rohene Ward's name all over it. So, now she'll be hanging around with Adam, Ashley, and Nathan. That's not bad company.

Doubtful. Kori and Rohene were with her off ice at GF. And this is all very sudden. She was on Monument Ice within a few days ago. So who knows what is going on.
 

Wow, didn't see that coming. One of Raf's "things"/specialties seems to be helping with consistency, so I hope he can help her out with that. (It's much-needed.)

Ditto Vivian Le, who also recently switched to him. (Considering the field at her first JGP, she's going to need it. :eeking:)
 
I guess I'm not too surprised Hannah left Rafael. She was visibly frustrated throughout the GP series about the lack of immediate improvement in her scores/performances so on the outside it looks like she's leaving Arutunian simply because she wasn't getting a quick fix and immediate results like she was hoping for. I hope I'm wrong though because many skaters with her issues fall into the trap of coach hopping and basically fall off the map and never reach their goals and it would be sad to see another go that way.

Tammy is a pretty great coach too but unlike Rafael seems less hard and demanding so perhaps Hannah needs a motherly type coach then a stern fatherly one. We'll just have to wait and see
 
The timing of Mariah's move seems odd. Why have Rohene do your programs and then make the change?

She's also such an emotional young woman. She seemed to spend much of last season crying on Kori's shoulder. And not just a few tears but bucketfuls. She's moving from a major touchy feely coach to one who's the master of the death stare.

Maybe she'll soften him up.

:rolleye:

Or maybe she thinks she needs toughening up?
 
I have to admit, I'm a little skeptical about Mariah and Raf. I loved her programs from Glacier Falls and wish her a lot of success this season. However, she does definitely seem like a person that works better with a softer personality. But, as it's been mentioned, she does need help with consistency and maybe will toughen up a bit. We shall see! I wish them the best together!
 
One thing I will toss out is that Mariah has not ever seemed comfortable with the level of attention she is getting. Right now she is the top lady next to Jason Brown... it could be stressful to be constantly compared to, and to an extent expected to be on par with Jason. By going to Raf... she won't be as much of a name. She might have more anonymity with Raf and that might be more comfortable for her.

And heck... maybe Romain and her just wanted to live in the sun for a bit and were tired of snow and cold. They are young, let them live and enjoy life, people make changes.
 
Jason Brown is not a lady, he just has long hair :scratch2::laugh:

LMAO.... ok she trains next to Jason... that was what i meant, his is they top guy there... she is the top lady...but you are right... it did sound bad. Think next to as in physically next to, not after, id say along side but now i am worried that still sounds wrong...
 
Disappointed with Hannah Miller's move away from Raf, unless she thought it was suddenly getting a little crowded in his camp. Raf knows what he's doing, and given time, he could have improved the quality of her jumps. I just don't have much faith in Tammy Gambill as a top-tier coach. She seems good at getting skaters to the cusp of that top tier...but then they all continually disappoint. Ricky Dornbush. Caroline Zhang. Currently, Karen Chen and Tyler Pierce. Not sure if all this inconsistency from Tammy's group is because of unreliable jump technique or headcases. Tyler's switch back to Tammy appeared to benefit her in the short term at Nationals, but then her Junior Worlds performances were more typical.

Happy about Mariah Bell's switch to Raf. Kori and Rohene have developed her skating beautifully, but maybe it's time she needs someone tougher and more expert in jump technique.
 
What does everyone think about the new icenetwork post-Champs Camp article? Found it interesting that:
* Ashley hasn't yet decided on SP music (apart from it being "fun"), and the program is being choreographed by Jeffrey Buttle this week (has he been her choreographer before?)
* Gracie is changing her LP layout to choreographed sequence, 2x, 3z-3t, 3L, (halfway point) 2x-1/2l-3s, 3f, 3f-2t, 3z, step sequence, spin, spin. There are those of you who thought her strategy of keeping the flip in her programs last year was bad, but she apparently is doubling down.

Edited to fix error in jump layout, thanks andromache and Layback11.
 
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