2020-21 Russian Ladies' Figure Skating

[nussnacker]

I'm a little late, but wow, Zhilina's lutz is amazing! I love Sasha and Anna, but I think this is the best 4Lz yet. I'd give Sasha best 4S and 4F. 4T is difficult because several girls have beautiful 4Ts, including Sasha and Kamila.

I wonder if Akatieva will try to follow this up. Her 3A and 4T are already amazing combined with her skating skills and interpretation, but She'll probably want to keep up with Zhilina on jumps. She has plenty of room on her triples, so I could see her doing the harder quads.

Tbh, even last year Veronika had so much room literally on every single jump. So I have no doubt she’ll get all quads eventually. She’s just naturally talented in jumps it seems like.
I love Sofia, she’s already a full package at such young age, but I don’t have the same feeling with her. Although, I have to say, I didn’t think she’ll get 3A either. Her 2A didn’t look exceptionally big, but her 3A is just amazing all around. So who knows!

 

[silveruskate]

No? They place it "sideways".

I knew I should have spelled it out absolutely, there's always one. The point is that the back of the blade is normally behind the front of the blade. Almost no skater picks in with the front of the blade directly due north on a 3T, do they? At least be a little charitable. Side-ways is never just side-ways unless the skater picks in exactly sideways...there is always a north/south (backwards/forwards) component.

If you're looking at it like a compass then I would say having the front of your blade behind the back of the blade is the most egregious and obvious sign of a forward take-off. You're literally picking-in with your foot orientated forward to some degree and therefore in my opinion taking off forwards.

 

[silveruskate]

On top of this we'd also have to define takeoff as "foot placement" which means we could do 720degrees prerotation on the ice and then do a single revolution in the air and have it as a triple jump if we just said the takeoff was initial foot placement

But that foot is the last to leave the ice. It is literally the definition of take-off and point at which take-off occurs. Makes no sense in my opinion for the orientation of that foot not to matter.

 

[Skatesocs]

I knew I should have spelled it out absolutely, there's always one. The point is that the back of the blade is normally behind the front of the blade. Almost no skater picks in with the front of the blade directly due north on a 3T, do they? At least be a little charitable. Side-ways is never just side-ways unless the skater picks in exactly sideways...there is always a north/south (backwards/forwards) component.

If you're looking at it like a compass then I would say having the front of your blade behind the back of the blade is the most egregious and obvious sign of a forward take-off. You're literally picking-in with your foot orientated forward to some degree and therefore in my opinion taking off forwards.

I don't really understand what you said here, to be honest.

 

[Bluediamonds09]

Anyone have video of Stanislava Konstantinova’s skating her new programs?

 

[silveruskate]

I don't really understand what you said here, to be honest.

We can chat about it in private if you want but otherwise no worries, take care.

(The point is that like North isn't the only point in a compass facing North, North-east/North-west exist. Same way with when you say take-off sideways. You can take-off with your blade sideways and forward-facing or sideways and backward-facing.)

 

[Scott512]

Probably. But interesting and there is logic in it.

Logic? How?

Maybe we should just look at it that Alina was busy with all her activities and University.. Alina has been loyal to TT EG and Sambo 70 and that loyalty needs to be returned to her. none of this nonsense about not sending her an invitation to the 50th anniversary Sambo-70.

 

[Skatesocs]

The point is that like North isn't the only point in a compass facing North, North-east/North-west exist. Same way with when you say take-off sideways. You can take-off with your blade sideways and forward-facing or sideways and backward-facing.

I don't really think you understood what kolyadafan and I were discussing there. We are aware of there being less than perfect technique for toeloops. The point he was trying to make is that the rule is worded in a way that can lead to the TP interpreting it as "a toe loop with a 180 pivot on the pick at take off" as deserving a downgrade.

Beyond this, if you're just describing how the skating foot turns vs the picking foot so on and so forth, I don't think I have anything to say there. The reason I brought up sideways picking literally is because a toe loop has a natural 90 pivot. Nothing to do with toe axels.

 

[Amei]

Oh but there was! But what makes things a bit messy is that some people discuss what is done in practice and others what is done in competition. A HUGE difference.

E.g. last year's season began with a lot of people saying that Sasha with her 5 quads was unbeatable. As it turns out, she never managed to perform a 5 quad program.

Another example is Anastasia Gulyakova, who has been landing 3A's in practice for three years now, but we have never seen it in competition.

I meant more along the lines of who was "first" to land such and such.

I think Sasha and 5 quads was more of a "Sasha vs the world" than a battle between fan bases.
Which is what it is devolving into. Only it seems the Sasha and Anna are being used as proxies in another type of "fan war".

Going into last season, Sasha seemed like she would be unbeatable (on paper at least).
IIRC she was terriffic at Japan Open (although not 5 quads).
But then she really struggled with consistency on her quads.
And Anna added a 2nd quad. And Aliona had a triple axel.
And the "convential wisdom" got turned on its head.

Is the "who landed what first" a big deal - not really, and both Trusova and Shcherbakova have some ISU-ratified quad "firsts" to their names; I think a good number of people got annoyed last season because figure skating media acted as if Trusova is a one-woman trailblazer and the only doing quads, Lipinski made a remark at the GPF about never seeing 1 skater single handedly advance the sport technically as Trusova has. Yes, Shcherbakova doesn't do the volume of quads that Trusova does, she has focused more on her other elements, stabilizing the quads she has and gaining the triple axel. At the end of the day of the 2 quad skaters in ladies skating last year - Shcherbakova was far more successful, she won every FS segment, won nationals and placed over Trusova each time they competed against each other.

 

[Amei]

Anyone have video of Stanislava Konstantinova’s skating her new programs?

I've not seen any full videos I've seen some clips on Instagram, she won 1 of those "closed" St. Petersburg competitions.

 

[Fried]

Is the "who landed what first" a big deal - not really, and both Trusova and Shcherbakova have some ISU-ratified quad "firsts" to their names; I think a good number of people got annoyed last season because figure skating media acted as if Trusova is a one-woman trailblazer and the only doing quads, Lipinski made a remark at the GPF about never seeing 1 skater single handedly advance the sport technically as Trusova has. Yes, Shcherbakova doesn't do the volume of quads that Trusova does, she has focused more on her other elements, stabilizing the quads she has and gaining the triple axel. At the end of the day of the 2 quad skaters in ladies skating last year - Shcherbakova was far more successful, she won every FS segment, won nationals and placed over Trusova each time they competed against each other.

Hm. What was the dispute about? About medals or about historic first-time jumps? Firstly, you are comparing apples with oranges here to come up with a result that is acceptable to you, and secondly, it raises the question of why it is not completely irrelevant too, who won which medal? After all, that's an even less big deal. There are tons of medals every year.

And what are you fantasizing about Anna's triple axel?

 

[Skatesocs]

Lipinski made a remark at the GPF about never seeing 1 skater single handedly advance the sport technically as Trusova has.

Really?

She never watched Midori Ito?

She had actual skating skills to go along with that.

 

[NadezhdaNadya]

Is the "who landed what first" a big deal - not really, and both Trusova and Shcherbakova have some ISU-ratified quad "firsts" to their names; I think a good number of people got annoyed last season because figure skating media acted as if Trusova is a one-woman trailblazer and the only doing quads, Lipinski made a remark at the GPF about never seeing 1 skater single handedly advance the sport technically as Trusova has. Yes, Shcherbakova doesn't do the volume of quads that Trusova does, she has focused more on her other elements, stabilizing the quads she has and gaining the triple axel. At the end of the day of the 2 quad skaters in ladies skating last year - Shcherbakova was far more successful, she won every FS segment, won nationals and placed over Trusova each time they competed against each other.

Trusova has landed so far 4T, 4S, 4F and 4Lz. Her 4T and 4S are not excessively pre-rotated (not perfect technique either), unlike Anna's quads. All of Anna's quads so far have been excessively pre-rotated.

 

[kolyadafan2002]

Really?

She never watched Midori Ito?

She had actual skating skills to go along with that.

If we're talking about all skaters we could throw dick button into the mix. First 2A, first triple, first flying sit spin.

If female specific why not Deniss beilman , who also has a spin to her name and first women to do 3Lz.

Skating is changed collectively by hundreds or even thousands of skaters - some may be unheard of. I don't feel like any one skater can get all the credit.

Not taking away from Trusova and her amazing drive and determination. Just taking a step back here.

 

[Amei]

And what are you fantasizing about Anna's triple axel?

I'm not fantasizing anything about Shcherbakova's triple axel, she said in the Nike Live event that she did this week she was working on it.

 

[brakes]

And what are you fantasizing about Anna's triple axel?

Careful, Frieddy. In March 2017 I wouldn't even dare to fantasize about Anna's quads - I adored her, but never thought she could be top skater in technical department. One month later I had to pick up my jaw from the floor.

 

[Fried]

I'm not fantasizing anything about Shcherbakova's triple axel, she said in the Nike Live event that she did this week she was working on it.

Well, you were actually talking about last season, didn't you? And you also phrased it as an "opposite to". And who has risked the 3A in the competition so far? Anna or Sasha? It is really hair-raising to see TT fans twist and turn in all directions to make apostate look bad and obedient look good.

 

[Skatesocs]

Just taking a step back here.

Well as @Mathman would say... Terror World.

 

[Fried]

Careful, Frieddy. In March 2017 I wouldn't even dare to fantasize about Anna's quads - I adored her, but never thought she could be top skater in technical department. One month later I had to pick up my jaw from the floor.

 

[Fried]

Not taking away from Trusova and her amazing drive and determination. Just taking a step back here.

None of those who describe Sasha's achievements as "no big deal" today would take even half a step back if Sasha were still skating under Tutberidze.