- Joined
- Jun 6, 2014
I hope that she gets back in shape - even that layback spin looked labored to me. She does have some time - if she still looks as labored by August, it will likely be a bad season
State of U.S. Ladies' skating 2016-17
- Thread starter R.D.
- Start date
I don't get what is wrong with this girl. There is no excuse to repeat the mistakes of last season by not working hard to get in shape before the season again. For someone who was always known as a hard worker who never slacked off and was always motivated it seems like last year at Worlds killed whatever was left of her fighting spirit. She seems aimless and needs someone like Alex to get her back on the program to get back in shape which i don't think Marina knows how to do for a single skater.
Well, there is an excuse - since she didnt go to worlds, she could have taken a break somewhere between nationals and now, to then start training for next season without major interruptions.
- Joined
- Feb 17, 2010
This is a good point. If she started serious training tomorrow, that would be several months earlier than she began last season.
yup, so while i am a bit concerned as there is a LOT of work for her, i prefer to believe right now that she just took a break after nationals. i dont remember if she wasnt an alt for worlds at all, or was like 3rd alternate... at any case her chances to go were near 0, and it would be a smart move to take a break then, use it to move and to settle at the new place, to rest, and then start training early (also earlier than most skaters, as they actually had to train hard up to worlds and then also WTT for many of them.
At what international event in 2014 did Mirai finish "just off the podium"?
- Joined
- Jul 9, 2014
This is why I don't think Marina is a good choice for Gracie. My Ballet Teacher made it very clear to us that the only way to fail as a competitive dancer is "Not" to train. It doesn't matter that Gracie has been skating for most of her life, if you stop training, all of your high level skills will be the first to go. The thrill of Gracie, at least to me, was that I knew how much work it took to land the big jumps that she was landing. Like dancers, with their turns, skaters can't "assume" that they will always have their jumps. I think Gracie is beginning to discover that she is not special, and if she doesn't spend time "On The Ice" she will sink even lower in the rankings.
It's kind of like "The Tortoise And The Hare". Win or lose, Gracie has been the best Jumper in the US for the last 5 seasons. I think she's probably as shocked as we are that she is struggling with her jumps. I really hope she figures this out as I would hate to see her dissolve before our eyes...I feel like Gracie needs her first coach back. IMO, Marina has far too many responsibilities to give Gracie the training and emotional support that I feel she needs right now. We'll just have to wait and see how things go from here.
- Joined
- Jan 27, 2013
I am totally against using 4CC as a skate off for any reason. Good results at 4CC do not translate to good results at worlds. Case in point, Patrick won last year and bombed at worlds. Conversely both Kaetlyn and Gabby had meltdowns at 4CC and are now world medalist. I think it's too close to worlds. It's good for front runners to get out their nerves before worlds, which is why some those that crash at 4CC will rebound at worlds. Conversely, it puts a lot of pressure on those that win to repeat their results.
It's odd that European is only three weeks prior, but seems like a better indicator of how they're going to do at worlds.
Meltdowns...really frida80? Agreed that Kaetlyn had a sub-par performance based on her seasons results in finishing 4th, but Gabby finished with her 1st ever ISU senior medal (silver) achieving her best ever international score (to that point in time) in the process, can hardly be considered as a meltdown.
If anything 4CC's served as a last chance to go home refine/re-jig programs as necessary before heading to Worlds. IMO, there was much learning and individual takeaways for many skaters including, Kaetlyn and Gabby.
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- Joined
- Mar 23, 2014
It will be interesting to see if we learn anything new from Gracie or her new team in the next few weeks. If we're all gossiping about Gracie's lack of form, there's no doubt that some skating "insiders" are as well, and the skating world is a small place. It'll reach Gracie and co's ears (which probably isn't a bad thing). Could see a bit of damage control.
None. I was referring to her finishing of the podium in Vancover.
Meltdowns...really frida80? Agreed that Kaetlyn had a sub-par performance based on her seasons results in finishing 4th, but Gabby finished with her 1st ever ISU senior medal (silver) achieving her best ever international score (to that point in time) in the process, can hardly be considered as a meltdown.
If anything 4CC's served as a last chance to go home refine/re-jig programs as necessary before heading to Worlds. IMO, there was much learning and individual takeaways for many skaters including, Kaetlyn and Gabby.
Well Gabby had messed up her long in the past, so maybe hers wasn't bombing like Kaetlyn. Honestly I think it was a good thing for the both of them! I'm a firm believer that losses makes skaters better competitors. Which is why even though it's painful to see skaters mess up at 4CC, it's good to get those nerves off so they can focus on worlds. And now Gabby is super confident going into next year!
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2012
Speaking of the 2010 Games, here is a photo and cute caption from this year's Governing Council:
And speaking of 2017 Governing Council, Sean Rabbitt posted an album that starts with a group photo of the Athletes Advisory Committee.
Nice to see Christina Gao among the faces:
:agree:
mirainagasu
2010 Olympians all grown up! #governingcouncil2017 #athlete
https://www.instagram.com/p/BT0pkAHBnmK/?taken-by=mirainagasu (posted May 8; Mirai with Rachael, Amanda E, and Mark L)
https://www.instagram.com/p/BT0pkAHBnmK/?taken-by=mirainagasu (posted May 8; Mirai with Rachael, Amanda E, and Mark L)
And speaking of 2017 Governing Council, Sean Rabbitt posted an album that starts with a group photo of the Athletes Advisory Committee.
Nice to see Christina Gao among the faces:
:agree:
I kinda don't trust interviews from Gracie simply because if she says anything along the lines of "I'm currently not feeling it" or any admittance that she's not putting every ounce of her being into the OG, there will be no mercy for her in the eyes of the judges/USFSA (maybe?) so no matter what she's going to say it's all part of the plan regardless of whether it's true or not. At least this is what I gather after nationals where she went in sounding so darn convincing that she was ready to go and seeing Alex was the flick of the switch she needed and then having Frank back that up (but admitting it could have been "too late") only to find out via other sources that she wasn't doing clean run-throughs in practice or double run-throughs or whatever (from the Linda Fratianne TSL interview).
I mean if you read the article where after announcing her move to Marina she says that "every day is a step towards the Olympics" and then heard there was a new video of her on tour, you'd be shocked that both are from the same girl. I totally get that due to her season ending early her off season has been longer, but I am in agreement with the people pointing out that people are paying to see her skate and perform and she doesn't look ready for that right now. I really wanna see her rock it next season, just come out being a bad @$$ who is trained and ready to go, regardless of whether she medals at the GPs or anything, just get ready, compete well, and see how it plays out without killing oneself over every mistake/placement.
Tl;dr I'd like her skating to do the talking.
What relevance would that have to 2014? Or to 2018? Really, the next Olympic picks will be greatly influenced by the 2017 GP season, not by some need by USFS to justify a 2014 selection that casual fans would have understood, had they bothered to become familiar with the process and/or Mirai's unreliable international results since 2010.
Ah . . . but at least as reliable as the current U.S. gold & bronze medalist. (Not to mention everyone who finished behind Mirai at Nationals).
So there is that in her favor this season.
Correct; I think she has an excellent chance of making the 2018 team. And good for her!
However, the once being dissed is the current U.S. silver medalist.
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I said that as a reference to Mirai's placement. I probably should've refered to Gracie, since she also placed fourth. No need to read anything else to that reference. This isn't about if Mirai should go the the Olympics but if USFSA will stick their necks out again for Ashley if she fails to place in the top three. I say no, because the fallout wasn't worth it.
To me this has nothing to do with Mirai, rather if making this one time decision was worth Ashley seventh place finish. I say no. Which is why regardless of how Ashley performs in the GP, she definitely needs to place at nationals.
Let's not hash Ashley vs. Mirai again. There is no point in comparing them at all. Ashley was clearly better, there is no doubt about that.
I get that skating fans don't care how Olympic sponsors, USFS, and the network were affected, so I won't bother giving the business perspective anymore. Just know that if Ashley doesn't place, they are unlikely to repeat the same actions in 2014.
She's not being dissed. I love her. But I can discuss Sochi objectively. She's an outstanding skater, but if the same thing happens a again they are unlikely to give her the spot.
"Let's not hash ... again": then why did you?
As for the "worth" of one-time decisions: Using that rationale, it was even worse to send Polina, who finished only ninth. But then, who else at 2014 Nationals could have finished better than ninth, let alone Ashley's seventh?
I'm not rehashing anything. This isn't about Mirai at all. It's about sending the pewter medalist to the Olympics and the controversy it caused. Ashley performed well in my eyes. I completely agree with the logic of the decision because Ashley's prior results indicated she'd be a better choice. However, that's not what I'm discussing at all.
What I'm saying if I was a company that sponsored the USOC and the USFS I would urge them not to make a controversial decision like this again. Polina was the silver medalist, there was no controversy in sending her to the Olympics. In the eyes of the world she earned her place. Putting Ashley on the team created a firestorm of criticism, which hurt a lot of parties during a critical time. They do not want that again.
This is not about Ashley but the national controversy that followed the decision. I read half of USFS cash come from corporate sponsors. The last thing they wanted during the Olympics was to defend their brand, when all they wanted was increased market interest.
Once again a top ten finish doesn't matter to the public. All that matters to a voracious american public is that they didn't win and they didn't almost win. With Polina, it means she' was invisible. With Ashley, it led to a mob of haters that would demand she retire. She mentioned them after she won nationals in 2015, and was motivated to fight and prove them wrong. But Gracie became the brand new it girl in skating with her 4th place finish. So placement at the games had a major effect on how they were perceived and treated post games.
