Men's sp

[dorispulaski]

Well, he really wasn't on at Liberty. This is the best I think I have seen Curran skate an SP. Certainly I wouldn't have picked to edit Phantom the way they did-it made the music very choppy and it didn't improve his performance. The 3A was particularly good and landed on the beat (perhaps accidentally...) though.

I can see having Brezina ahead of him, but frankly, Rippon's program did not impress me and I would have had him ahead of Rippon.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Adam looked like shades of Stephane. He lands his 3A on the heel which I believe means he overotates it. hence the Fall, which I imagine is not considered seriously. I like his program. Is that Morozov's choreo?

Brezina has the fastest feet in figure skating. Damn that single jump.

Curran - Oyve. He was right on. Looking forward to his LP. Stamina?

Shocked at Amodio. What a shame. He could begin by getting rid of that horrible drag he is wearing.

Can anyone tell me about Ross Miner. I haven't seen it but his score was up there so I believe he skated well. So much for skating order.

 

[chuckm]

Curran finished 3rd in a tough group of men. I'd say he did a darned good job with Phantom. He may not have had top PCS scores, but he DID have the highest TES.

And he is a brilliant scholar as well, BTW. He has been offered advanced admission to MIT.

 

[lisou]

Florent is amazing and I believe he's only 16....I guess he wanted it to badly... But he'll learn from it. He reminds me of a young Lambiel but with a triple axel.

Florent is 18 years old, those are his last JWC.

 

[bekalc]

Florent is 18 years old, those are his last JWC.

Yeah I fixed it.

 

[dorispulaski]

I didn't see Ross Miner skate. I know he did a 2A rather than a 3A (he did the triple at nationals) and completed his 3/3 and separate triple all right. He skated 5th, and if you look, his PCS are quite low, and I'm sure weren't helped by the fact that this is, I think, his international debut skate. I know he didn't get to skate on the JGP this fall. He was an alternate who never had a chance. He was US novice champion, and he is this year's junior champion, which is why Armin isn't here, nor Dornbush, nor the other American boy, Alexander (Johnson?), all of whom did skate and skate well on the JGP.

He skates to a Western movies medley in the SP.

9th is very good for him considering how early he skated. However, he is 18, so does he get another shot at junior worlds?

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Well, he really wasn't on at Liberty. This is the best I think I have seen Curran skate an SP. Certainly I wouldn't have picked to edit Phantom the way they did-it made the music very choppy and it didn't improve his performance. The 3A was particularly good and landed on the beat (perhaps accidentally...) though.

I can see having Brezina ahead of him, but frankly, Rippon's program did not impress me and I would have had him ahead of Rippon.

There really isn't anything that Adam does that others can't do. So much is dependent on how he does it. He is not a bravura skater so his 'selling it' has to draw you in. Not easy. I thought the choreo was fine but his lack of pizzaz didn't enhance it.

Curran was also good at US Nats. He also needs a bit of pizzazz.

Grigorieve and Brezina both have the pizzazz that gets the attention. The rest is pure CoP.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Prediction for the LP

If and only if they all skate their best:

For me, it is Brezina, Oy and Gregoriev.

 

[chuckm]

Ross Miner just turned 18 in January, so he has another year of Junior eligibility. If he does the JGP next fall and makes the JGPF, he will have lots of ISU ranking points and will most likely end up in the final two SP groups for JW 2010.

 

[efreedman]

SP Choreography, etc.

Adam looked like shades of Stephane. He lands his 3A on the heel which I believe means he overotates it. hence the Fall, which I imagine is not considered seriously. I like his program. Is that Morozov's choreo?

Can anyone tell me about Ross Miner. I haven't seen it but his score was up there so I believe he skated well. So much for skating order.

Yes, that is Morozov's choreography with what I think are a few new tweaks. My guess is that after Junior Worlds, reworking the 3A technique is his and Orser's first priority.

Couldn't get up (literally and figuratively) at 3 AM to watch Ross, who is a great kid. I was pleased that he skated well.

 

[chuckm]

Here are the Personal Best JUNIOR scores of the top 7 at JW:

130.55 RIPPON - JW 2008
128.96 BREZINA - JGP Merano 2008
125.01 REYNOLDS - JW 2008
123.79 YANG - JGP BLR 2008
119.71 TEN - JGP BLR 2008
113.04 OI - JGP BLR 2008
112.48 GRIGORIEV - JGP GBR 2008

 

[Buttercup]

Wasn't Joubert like 15 back then? He moved up to seniors very quickly, never looked back to the juniors and won the Bronze at Euros at the age of 17.

Amodio turns 19 in May. He is, from a dancing and artistic standpoint, much more talented than Joubert in my opinion - they share the great basics and a certain confidence in their performances.

What I was trying to say is that I'm not sure it's always a good idea to base our expectation on skaters' career in juniors. Some transition successfully, some don't, and some make a much bigger splash as seniors than they ever did in the junior ranks - especially people like Joubert or Stephane who moved to seniors at a very young age.

Obviously I can't compare Brian and Florent, having only seen one of them skate. Maybe if Florent skates well enough in the LP I'll get to see highlights during the ice resurface .

I would be very happy if Brezina skates well enough to win. When he's on he's fantastic to watch.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Ross Miner just turned 18 in January, so he has another year of Junior eligibility. If he does the JGP next fall and makes the JGPF, he will have lots of ISU ranking points and will most likely end up in the final two SP groups for JW 2010.

That's if the USFS doesn't have to give out booby prizes to senior skaters of the correct age because they didn't qualify for Worlds 2010.

 

[Medusa]

I would be very happy if Brezina skates well enough to win. When he's on he's fantastic to watch.

(Amodio's JGPF and French Nationals performances are on youtube... They are great to watch)

I actually like Rippon a lot, about as much as I like Brezina. Brezina seems to be the more versatile skater, a truly unique talent with outstanding musicality, special jumping ability and incredible basics. What I love about Rippon is his obvious joy while skating, he looks as if he is enjoying himself out there, he has several moves that are simply beautiful (layback spin, that great entrance into the Lutz)...

But since Brezina is from Europe I am obviously cheering for him.

Wow, Brezina got +3s for his Triple Axel. Way to go, boy!!!

 

[Alicja]

(Amodio's JGPF and French Nationals performances are on youtube... They are great to watch)

I actually like Rippon a lot, about as much as I like Brezina. Brezina seems to be the more versatile skater, a truly unique talent with outstanding musicality, special jumping ability and incredible basics. What I love about Rippon is his obvious joy while skating, he looks as if he is enjoying himself out there, he has several moves that are simply beautiful (layback spin, that great entrance into the Lutz)...

But since Brezina is from Europe I am obviously cheering for him.

Wait, you like Adam Rippon and Michal Brezina equally but you're cheering for Brezina since he's from Europe... Did I get that right??? It's hilarious...

 

[Medusa]

Wait, you like Adam Rippon and Michal Brezina equally but you're cheering for Brezina since he's from Europe... Did I get that right??? It's hilarious...

Well, first of all, I love men's skating so much, I want everyone to have a brilliant outing - the most brilliant one wins then. Both Rippon and Brezina are amazing.

But someone has to win - and in this case I want Brezina to win, because he is from Europe, as am I. It's rather simple. Some US-Americans on this board tend to cheer for their guys too.

 

[Alicja]

Well, first of all, I love men's skating so much, I want everyone to have a brilliant outing - the most brilliant one wins then. Both Rippon and Brezina are amazing.

But someone has to win - and in this case I want Brezina to win, because he is from Europe, as am I. It's rather simple. Some US-Americans on this board tend to cheer for their guys too.

Hey, my comment wasn't meant to be offensive, I just thought it was funny you cheered for Brezina only because he's from Europe... I always thought the biggest problem of the european union was that citizen didn't really identify as EU-citizens, from their perspective you must be an exemplary citizen...

 

[Buttercup]

(Amodio's JGPF and French Nationals performances are on youtube... They are great to watch)

I actually like Rippon a lot, about as much as I like Brezina... But since Brezina is from Europe I am obviously cheering for him.

I'm still hoping to see Amodio's LP during the resurface. Eurosport looks to be picking up the broadcast just a couple of skaters after him (18:15 CET, and the soccer ebfore is not live!). I don't like watching a skater or a program for the first time on Youtube unless there's no other option.

I like Brezina enough to hope he wins regardless of who's from where. But I'll admit my default is to prefer the Europeans unless there's a non-European skater/team in the field whom I like.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

If I were an Empresario, I would hire Michal over Adam. However, I think Orser can bring back the 3A for Adam. Being an American I still prefer Michal.

 

[efreedman]

If I were an Empresario, I would hire Michal over Adam. However, I think Orser can bring back the 3A for Adam. Being an American I still prefer Michal.

No, would you think? By the way, I think you meant Impresario; along the lines of Sol Hurok. I'm not sure if I agree and I think that Brian Boitano and Paul Wylie might disagree with you.