Ladies LP

[Andalusia]

Only one judge gave -1 and one judge +1. Everyone else 0 GOE for that combo. If I'm not mistaken, she's the second lady so far this season whose 3-3 was ratified.

Thanks for the detailed protocols, turtle.

Overall, she wasn't hit as hard as I thought she'd be. The GOEs don't jive with what I saw - I thought her technique on all the jumps save maybe the sal and 3T looked horrid. I never thought I'd say this, but are the judges holding Caroline Zhang up?

 

[jyshin]

joannie's freeskate is now up! http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=OCPcANjqaH4

Thanks a million :thumbsup:

Love, Love, Love her Rodrigo program from top to bottom, and from the beginning to the end. I hope this program gives her a break through just like what the Concierto De La Aranjuez did for the composer.

BTW, the color of her dress reminded me so much of Lake Louise, which I miss dearly... Ahaaaa

 

[fiercemao]

Thanks for the detailed protocols, turtle.

Overall, she wasn't hit as hard as I thought she'd be. The GOEs don't jive with what I saw - I thought her technique on all the jumps save maybe the sal and 3T looked horrid. I never thought I'd say this, but are the judges holding Caroline Zhang up?

I don't think so. She got absolutely KILLED in PCS for lack of speed, only 45 pts, 7 pts behind Alissa.

 

[sorcerer]

Not so far. But -- just a hunch -- I wouldn't be surprised if Emily Hughes withdraws from Eric Bompard, which could open up a spot.
If Alissa did go to the France event, she would be with Bebe and Caroline again.

Does the USFSA have power to force Emily to give up her assignment to Alissa?
I think the possibilities of Korpi and Sebestyen withdrawing from their second GPs are larger. They are injured, aren't they?
If they don't recover, their spots should be given to Czisny and Suzuki, IMO.

 

[Andalusia]

I don't think so. She got absolutely KILLED in PCS for lack of speed, only 45 pts, 7 pts behind Alissa.

She'd be wise to read Joannie's latest journal entry if she wants to improve her PCS.

I just rewatched CZ's, Alissa's and Joannie's programs. CZ's choreography actually has a little substance to it, but man, her technique on the 3F...how could it have deteriorated so much from last season? She twists her body so much on entry it's unbelievable. Both her programs could be so lovely if she'd only deliver. Alissa, as I mentioned earlier, was bee-yoo-ti-full. So much artistry, and she'd have racked up more points if she hadn't skimped on some jump/s (as I heard mentioned by her coach in the kiss and cry). Joannie looked gorgeous and calm...but I'm still not getting the program. I'm sick of that music, and the overall quality and execution of her non-jump elements are average at best. And I don't think I've ever seen her land that sal sequence cleanly.

Still, kudos to Joannie - she was the clear and rightful winner.

 

[Tonichelle]

I don't think MM is implying the USFSA will force Emily to withdraw... she might be more interested in pursuing her college career than her skating one (and I for one applaud both Hughes girls for having education come first)

 

[ChrisH]

Well, Caroline really was good at Golden West. The judges there may have given her the benefit of the doubt on possibly a couple of under-rotations, but that's it. Her 3F was the same as last year. Her technical elements were much better overall. Her presentation was much better. That was less than two months ago. I'm sure that there's a good explanation for what happened here. What has really taken a hard blow, IMO, was the sense that she is mentally invincibile.

 

[Blades of Passion]

I prefer Joannie's LP from last year quite a bit more.

Also, she should train the 3T-3T. She has been able to do that combo before and it's worth more points than the 3T + 3S sequence. It can also be used in the SP and would be better for her than the 3F-3T considering how completely unreliable she is with that element.

I'd also suggest that she switch the placement of the 2A + 2A sequence in her LP with the 3Lo. She's never able to pull off that element either and I think it's because she always tries it so late in her programs.

 

[screech]

I'm so disappointed by tech caller and judges.
IIRC, Fumie flutzes, right? I'm so surprised that she didn't get 'e' mark, not even '!' and she received +1 GoE for her lutz. I wonder what's going on with their mind.

I mentioned that in an earlier post - the CBC commentator didn't mention the flutz but it was blatantly obvious to me watching. I haven't been able to get the protocols to work for me (my computer won't let it load - keeps saying 'problem loading page') but I was hoping to see her getting dinged. That is disappointing. And here I thought the callers were improving on their edge calls!

 

[Bennett]

If Rochette's score from today is any indication, she might present a serious challenge to Mao and Yuna.:yes:

ITA. Although Mao and Yuna would perhaps win if they are clean, they barely have had two clean skates. While Miki has jumps as big as Rochette and has consistent 3-3 and a potential 4S, Rochette is so much better in all the other elements, including spins, steps, and spirals, and skating skills, and Rochette's presentations were so extremely good in both programs. She was so mature and so expressive and has all the beautiful positions and lines. I was so impressed.


Fumie: I agree with some other people that she flutzed. I am watching only YOUTUBE yet, so I can't be sure. But I thought she flutzed in SP and I also thought that I saw her flutz in her LP.

It is bizarre that other elements than jumps, such as spins, steps, spirals, and overall skating skills, are now holding her back. Since she is known for her extremely dedicated working ethics, I did not expect her failing in these. She failed her layback position in both programs and was slow in other spins as well. She was also slow in her skating and steps and there were many moments where she almost stopped. Although she was never good at spirals, I still think that she could have deeper edges and be more expressive during her spirals.
That said, I am so extremely glad that she came back with decent skates after a couple of seasons of struggles. I do not think that she did her 100% yet at all and I hope that she gets better and better towards the end of the season. If she's her 100%, I think that she could beat Yukari and make the world team.

 

[Andalusia]

Well, Caroline really was good at Golden West. The judges there may have given her the benefit of the doubt on possibly a couple of under-rotations, but that's it. Her 3F was the same as last year. Her technical elements were much better overall. Her presentation was much better. That was less than two months ago. I'm sure that there's a good explanation for what happened here. What has really taken a hard blow, IMO, was the sense that she is mentally invincibile.

Her 3F is not the same as last season, at least to my eyes. Now, she reaches back and jams her toe pick in even harder than before. And I don't recall her twisting her body that much on takeoff, either. Her flip was nearly normal-looking by the end of last season. As I said, she might be resorting to old habits because of the growth spurt or some other reason.

Still, it would be foolish to write her obituary based on her performance at the first competition of the season. She certainly didn't look too miffed at how she performed in the LP - it's rare that we've seen her so smiley and thanking so many people (Karen Kwan!) in the kiss and cry.

 

[bekalc]

ITA. Although Mao and Yuna would perhaps win if they are clean, they barely have had two clean skates. While Miki has jumps as big as Rochette and has consistent 3-3 and a potential 4S, Rochette is so much better in all the other elements, including spins, steps, and spirals, and skating skills, and Rochette presentations were so extremely good in both programs.

Rochette is not nearly as consistent as Mao and Yu-na are though..... Mao and Yu-na have throughout their careers shown to be much better under pressure.

 

[PolymerBob]

Well, Caroline really was good at Golden West. The judges there may have given her the benefit of the doubt on possibly a couple of under-rotations, but that's it. Her 3F was the same as last year. Her technical elements were much better overall. Her presentation was much better. That was less than two months ago. I'm sure that there's a good explanation for what happened here. What has really taken a hard blow, IMO, was the sense that she is mentally invincibile.

I have read that Caroline brought the house down at Golden West. Are there any videos? I would like to see her performance to make a comparison.

 

[Blades of Passion]

Fumie: I agree with some other people that she flutzed. I am watching only YOUTUBE yet, so I can't be sure. But I thought she flutzed in SP and I also thought that I saw her flutz in her LP.

It is bizarre that other elements than jumps, such as spins, steps, spirals, and overall skating skills, are now holding her back. Since she is known for extremely dedicated working ethics, I did not expect her failing in these. She failed her layback position in both programs.

Fumie has always flutzed, had a relatively weak spiral, and been very inconsistent with the complex spins.

I do wonder where her speed went, though.

 

[museksk8r]

Oh my, Joannie's LP moved me to tears, her best ever, IMO. That was stunning, beautiful! She was credited with landing 7 triples, but she also maintained the feeling, passion, and freedom of the music with brilliant choreography, skating skills, transitions, and interpretation. I am truly impressed with all the progress she has made and I really hope she keeps this momentum going all the way to the Olympics and through the rest of her career. Absolutely brilliant!

 

[museksk8r]

And I don't think I've ever seen her land that sal sequence cleanly.

She did it perfectly in her 2008 Worlds LP and received positive grades of execution!

 

[Wrlmy]

She did it perfectly in her 2008 Worlds LP and received positive grades of execution!

Right. But her 2a-2a has got to go. That sequence has given her trouble for years.

 

[museksk8r]

Right. But her 2a-2a has got to go. That sequence has given her trouble for years.

I wish she'd do a 2Axel+2loop instead or a 2Axel+3toe.

Her layout could be:

3Lutz+2toe+2loop
3flip
3loop
*3Lutz
*3Salchow+2loop
*2Axel+3toe
*3Salchow

 

[ChrisH]

Her 3F is not the same as last season, at least to my eyes. Now, she reaches back and jams her toe pick in even harder than before. And I don't recall her twisting her body that much on takeoff, either. Her flip was nearly normal-looking by the end of last season. As I said, she might be resorting to old habits because of the growth spurt or some other reason.

ITA. I was just saying that her 3F at Golden West was the same as last year or at least I didn't notice any difference there. And I should notice differences given how many times I've watched her takeoff in slow-motion to determine how much total rotation she's getting in the air. Here she did twist her body more, even more than in the SP. And the flow between her jumps in the 3F+3T was not good here either. She usually gets positive GOE on that combo. I'll wait to hear what she says before giving any credence to the growth spurt theory, though. Caroline spends too much time on the ice every day for me to believe she isn't easily adjusting to her growth.

It's good to see that she got credit for her 3S. Was she close on rotations on the landing and was her takeoff technique okay? (When she did the 3S, I thought it was another one of 3Lo's and so I didn't really focus on it.)

 

[bekalc]

Caroline spends too much time on the ice every day for me to believe she isn't easily adjusting to her growth.

What's likely killing Zhang is poor technique on the jumps.