2026 Olympics Team Event: Men's Free Skate

[yfan1]

My thoughts exactly. And Ilia didn't even try the 4A, he did a 3A. Ilia did one more clean quad, but the mistake on the second 4Lz (which made it worth less than a 3Lz) had him lose a combination so he had a triple undone compared to Sato. So in the end he was less then 4 points ahead of Sato technically.
Those 4 points were easily made up in PCS for Sato imo, as he had a flawless clean program. But that didn't happen, Malinin scored higher in PCS which is mind boggling to me.

Yeah, pretty much. OTOH, Japan is bound to have known Shun going ahead of Ilia was never happening.

Still I'm happy for Shun. He can be proud of what he accomplished here.

 

[Jammers]

I thought this result was fair.
I really wanted Japan to win. The fact Karen Chen, Amber and Alyssa have an Olympic gold medal while Kaori doesn’t, really upsets me though.

But, Ilia’s second half jumps and energy was way better than Shun. Shun was all jumps (which he executed so well). But, the skating skills, the step sequence and those slow spins made the difference.

Not sure why you put Alysa or even Amber in the same category as Karen Chen. Amber and Alysa have won GPF's and Alysa is the defending World champion while Karen didn't ever really do anything of note internationally but have a couple of good finishes at Worlds.

 

[Seven Sisters]

I don't think I've ever seen a figure skater sobbing his (or her) eyes out at a competition after not winning (& I've been watching competitions since the '70s). That was strange.

I trust that you’ve yet to watch Kevin Aymoz compete. I invite you to check him out, he is amazing!

Just one example, but the first one who comes to mind.

 

[Jammers]

Alysa has two Team Golds now. Beijing and today's.

No she doesn't.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

Yep, I feel like Malinin is still kind of coasting on his rep as the "quad god" such that even when he doesn't do the quad axel, somehow he is still expected to outscore his competitors based on technical content. I also just hate how the US hypes up its own skaters so much. It's like, do they not remember what happened to Nathan Chen at the 2018 Olympics after being hyped as the quad king? As an American, I feel that our media unwittingly puts so much pressure on our own skaters and seems to forget that other countries also have amazing skaters that may potentially win over our skaters.

That’s a pretty hot take when the guy just did four different types of quads… and two triple axels mind you.

Not exactly resting. And maybe you missed him landing a free skate with SEVEN quads just two months ago?

The U.S. Fed isnt landing these quads for these guys. These guys are landing quads and measuring up.

LOL I guess that is the problem with setting a standard because then when you fail to do 7-quad skates and the quad axel, and only attempt 5 quads - you’re now just coasting.

 

[16Olympics]

Alysa has two Team Golds now. Beijing and today's.

She wasn't in the team event. She wasn't even in Beijing while it went on. She skated in the individual and came in 6th.

 

[reneerose]

No she doesn't.

Sorry I got that wrong. I will delete my post.

 

[16Olympics]

I trust that you’ve yet to watch Kevin Aymoz compete. I invite you to check him out, he is amazing!

Just one example, but the first one who comes to mind.

haha. Yeah, Kevin is a cryer whether he does well or not. Love him.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

haha. Yeah, Kevin is a cryer whether he does well or not. Love him.

Hah I was gonna bring him up in my original response too - Kevin is a garden sprinkler of emotions and we are here for it.

 

[Arigato]

I'm very aware of what goes on the kiss & cry. But this guy could not stop sobbing.

Then you never heard Nobunari Oda. He sobbed no matter what happened.

 

[RatedPG]

Not sure why you put Alysa or even Amber in the same category as Karen Chen. Amber and Alysa have won GPF's and Alysa is the defending World champion while Karen didn't ever really do anything of note internationally but have a couple of good finishes at Worlds.

You are right.

Alysa and Amber and even Isabeau are better than Karen

However, all are put in the same category compared to my queen Kaori

 

[Arigato]

That’s a pretty hot take when the guy just did four different types of quads… and two triple axels mind you.

Not exactly resting. And maybe you missed him landing a free skate with SEVEN quads just two months ago?

The thing is, I don't think it's just about quads anymore. Once Shaidorov started with the funky combos, Ilia took notice. Then it snowballed. Now everyone is trying to do funky combos! If you can hit them, great. If you don't, you lose a ton of points.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

The thing is, I don't think it's just about quads anymore. Once Shaidorov started with the funky combos, Ilia took notice. Then it snowballed. Now everyone is trying to do funky combos! If you can hit them, great. If you don't, you lose a ton of points.

Yeah it’s definitely high risk high reward. Malinin could have added a triple toe to his first quad lutz and his score would have been 10 points higher without the REP deduction.

Without Malinin committing that error people wouldn’t even blink about Shun coming within striking distance of beating Malinin.

Had Shun

OK, am I the only one who think that Japan should have won this??

Great competition overall, I didn't follow pairs/dance as I never do, but some interesting hints in women and men for the individual competitons

So, Gogolev had a combined score of 264.92 which is a seasons best. Will that count for the SB list?

Lots of people think Japan should have won overall. 69 points to 68 points

Let’s see if Japan will invest more in ice dance (both financially by the Fed and emotionally by the fans) after coming runner up by such a slim margin twice.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

You are right.

Alysa and Amber and even Isabeau are better than Karen

However, all are put in the same category compared to my queen Kaori

Okay they’re all queens in their own right. Even Karen artistically even if her
technique held her back from rotating jumps sufficiently.

But you wanna go there… Kaori has never even landed nor attempted an ultra-C in competition. And while kudos to her for winning Worlds 3 times, and having excellent powerful jumping, and showed up when it mattered… she also won those championships with no Russians in the field (not her fault, but that’s just the tea). She’s worked hard but she’s also been fortunate too.

Sentimental fave so I want her to win Olympic gold but to even suggest Alyssa (who has landed a quad lutz and triple axel in the same program while Sakamoto still struggles to not flutz) or Amber - who is landing the 3A in her mid 20s don’t deserve to be in the convo or aren’t in the same league as Kaori - well that’s not the mood IMO.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

Then you never heard Nobunari Oda. He sobbed no matter what happened.

Sato reminded me a lot of classic Oda today - very very pristine jumps with nice held deep landings and neatly done skating. Not emotionally the most range during a very focused skate but emotional in the KNC.

 

[4everchan]

Okay they’re all queens in their own right. Even Karen artistically even if her
technique held her back from rotating jumps sufficiently.

But you wanna go there… Kaori has never even landed nor attempted an ultra-C in competition. And while kudos to her for winning Worlds 3 times, and having excellent powerful jumping, and showed up when it mattered… she also won those championships with no Russians in the field (not her fault, but that’s just the tea). She’s worked hard but she’s also been fortunate too.

Sentimental fave so I want her to win Olympic gold but to even suggest Alyssa (who has landed a quad lutz and triple axel in the same program while Sakamoto still struggles to not flutz) or Amber - who is landing the 3A in her mid 20s don’t deserve to be in the convo or aren’t in the same league as Kaori - well that’s not the mood IMO.

Yass... so many queens

I don't think anyone cares much about what jumps Kaori hasn't tried in competition or not. It's definitely not her jumps that define her. People care about her glide, her incredible flow and beautiful skating. Not even sure why there is a need to bring up what jumps Alysa did as a much younger age or skaters not competing at this event.

Anyways.... I think some people are reading too much about what @RatedPG wrote here... I am not in their head but I read it as a simple
" Gosh, it would be nice for Kaori to be an Olympic champion, she's just as deserving as the other women who are now Olympic champions"

And I echo the sentiment. I want that gold for her !

 

[amanda b]

I can't watch Malinin. Yes the jumps can be hugely impressive - but his general skating and composition are just 'Meh' for me. Whereas the Japanese men have such superior skating skills- they just glide and dance and shimmy across the ice wiht technical difficulty thrown in for good measure. PCS scores for Malinin are a travesty - and have always been (I recall thinking the same about Nathan Chen, could never understand why PCS was so high).

 

[freedomlover]

Shun's coach is the best. I'm so glad Shun has a lovely coach like that because he's too hard on himself, too serious, and too introverted. ( The final quality being the real reason he rarely gets his flowers in PCS). Anyway, this skate really did set him up as a very strong contender for an individual medal. If he can get his steps and spins together for the free, he could break 300 across the two programs. He might make both Yuma and Ilya sweat. I hope he realizes that before he skates the SP.

Even if he goes clean and gets his levels, he is beating neither Yuma nor Shun- that much has been made clear this season- because yes, old nachos, but he should have won at NHK.

 

[Janice4th]

You are right.

Alysa and Amber and even Isabeau are better than Karen

However, all are put in the same category compared to my queen Kaori

I’d put Kaori above them, but not Mone and Ami.

 

[Karoltyna]

Okay they’re all queens in their own right. Even Karen artistically even if her
technique held her back from rotating jumps sufficiently.

But you wanna go there… Kaori has never even landed nor attempted an ultra-C in competition. And while kudos to her for winning Worlds 3 times, and having excellent powerful jumping, and showed up when it mattered… she also won those championships with no Russians in the field (not her fault, but that’s just the tea). She’s worked hard but she’s also been fortunate too.

Sentimental fave so I want her to win Olympic gold but to even suggest Alyssa (who has landed a quad lutz and triple axel in the same program while Sakamoto still struggles to not flutz) or Amber - who is landing the 3A in her mid 20s don’t deserve to be in the convo or aren’t in the same league as Kaori - well that’s not the mood IMO.

Could we please stop with this "ultra C" slang? Or comparing adult women with impecable skating and artistry to teenage jumping beans who didn't get the chance to develop as skaters?