2023 Four Continents Men's Free Skate

[cheerknithanson]

Why are flowers still a gift at the medal ceremony. I feel like they're unnecessary tbh.

 

[Jontor]

Just echoing everyone else: I get that Kao wins overall, and deserved, but wins the LP?

Nah. And every time I see Kao skate, he is adorable *after* the skate. If he brought that *to* the skate, he'd be even better.

Congrats to the podium, and particularly to Keegan, so thrilled for him.

Kao was superior to Keegan technically. Keegan did double combos, Kao had triples.

 

[4everchan]

I did some low level judging back in the day and judged Ravi when he was a teenager going through a growth spurt. He looked like a crane fly on the ice, tall and skinny, all gangly long legs and arms, but he coped. If anyone can relate to and coach a tall young male skater with wonky technique it's Ravi.

exactly why I was so thrilled when I heard he had moved to Ravi. I thought : yes ! Perfect match !

 

[moonvine]

Age-old problem that there is not enough of a distinction between outstanding PCS and very good PCS. I'm happy for Kao but Keegan's performance was golden.

Something broken is an occasion to fix it though. Not just say “oh well.”

 

[Diana Delafield]

I read that as "shave your legs" and was massively confused!

This is a reference no-one outside of Australia will get:

"What are your legs?!"

"Steel springs!"

Never been to Australia, but "Gallipoli".

 

[4everchan]

not a single program completely clean, there's at least one unclear edge there.

I don;'t think Keegan has ever gotten a clear flip edge... he's tried a bunch of different entries to it... at least, this time, it was just a !

I wonder if his salchow is better..

 

[OS]

Kao getting that level of PCS for a junior jump drill program that merely uses beauty and the beast as backdrop music while making no reference to the music source with any distinctive choreography whatsoever, is pretty uhmm unfathomable, but hey what do i know... I guess he's Japan's future big hope so got scored accordingly. Brilliant tech, but 2nd highest PCS in the FS?? Judges splatt... The gap between him and Keegan should be much wider.

 

[cohkaix]

Congrats to Kao. And Keegan got the performance which will be memorable for everyone!!

 

[Diana Delafield]

kicked the board with his blade

Is that ice surface a smidge smaller than regulation size? So many skaters in all the events seem to be shaving the boards. Hardest fall I ever took was one where I slid high speed into the boards. For a year afterwards I did cramped little programs that seldom strayed from centre ice

 

[4everchan]

Is that ice surface a smidge smaller than regulation size? So many skaters in all the events seem to be shaving the boards. Hardest fall I ever took was one where I slid high speed into the boards. For a year afterwards I did cramped little programs that seldom strayed from centre ice

No idea about the size of the rink....

 

[16Olympics]

Congrats to the medalists. It was electric in the last group except for Jimmy, poor guy.

Kao-nerves of steel. Shun really laid it on coming from 6th to 3rd. Keegan gave everyone a memorable night. Good for him. I'm sad for Jun. But, his program is lovely.

 

[rain]

super tall... 183 cms

his technique has improved a lot... sometimes... it still gets wonky... but Ravi is taking him somewhere else and it's wonderful to see his progress... he was at TCC before... it wasn't working out... but the real damage was probably done by his first coach... (navarro) ... awful technique when he started.. and he was landing all quads (but axel) but all of them were weird... I have been following since juniors and well... i am super biased but very happy for him...

Ravi is really doing wonders with him. He's come a long way already from basically a non-factor to going to worlds. Seems like a good coaching fit. I'm excited to see how he'll progress from here.

Canada seems to breed tall men's skaters. Their height just means they need to be even more precise in their jumps, as any degree off axis is exacerbated by every extra centimetre.

 

[auser]

... I slept through my girls' triumphant skates and now that I'm up my darling is just out of the podium... My fragile mental health can't handle this

 

[readernick]

Kao was superior to Keegan technically. Keegan did double combos, Kao had triples.

No one is complaining about the TES difference. Kao’s jumps are incredible. The issue is the PCS. Kao has good skating skills. Keegan’s ( and Shun’s ) are better but he deserves high SS marks. However, the other components? Nope. That program is a jump drill. There should be 10 or more points between them in PCS.

I like Kao but thumbs down to the judges. I get sick of the was robbed junk. But, in this case, Keegan wasn’t robbed but Kao was overscored.

 

[Diana Delafield]

So is Keegan going to Worlds? Or is this his last competitive skate ever?!

Going to Worlds as Canadian champion, but I suppose no one can ever count out injuries, illness, etc. But definitely planned for it anyway.

 

[sworddance21]

Maybe a dumb question - are Kao and Rika Miura related?

 

[Diana Delafield]

Keegan fitting himself to the Japanese

Channeling his own Japanese ancestry?

 

[Sai Bon]

Maybe a dumb question - are Kao and Rika Miura related?

I doubt it, Miura is a common name in Japan.

 

[TallyT]

Something broken is an occasion to fix it though. Not just say “oh well.”

But no one wants to fix it when their own benefit from the cracks, only when someone else does. So nothing changes... not even the reasons why it's not really broken in the former, just the latter.

I would have liked Keegan to win, though...

 

[Diana Delafield]

This final group was a joy to watch!!

Group of six gathered for those who argue that small, compact bodies have an advantage in skating, including Keegan. (And needless to say, there are plenty of exceptions to that but that's an argument for another space.)