Ladies LP Sun Nov. 15th 2:00 PM-4:00 PM

[Tinymavy15]

I just thought this was a very interesting quote from yu-na as in Brennan's USA Today piece.

"Personally, I used to not think about pressure too much," she said. "But this season, especially because this season is the Olympic season, I feel pressure because many people are anticipating and expecting a high score … After the world-record short program, I was under big pressure."

Sure, all skaters, especially stars like yuna feel pressure whenever they take the ice, but knowing she had such a huge lead and that there really wasn't anybody who could threaten her anyway..where is the pressure from that? The pressure to make the freeskate a record as well? Is this where we have gone?

 

[bekalc]

The pressure to make the freeskate a record as well? Is this where we have gone?

Yes that's how Yu-na apparently felt. Korean papers and stuff were making a big deal about the huge scores and it was can she top this? I think in someways this bad skate will be good for Yu-na because well expectations have maybe lowered a bit.

 

[Daniel5555]

Tinymavy15

Sure, all skaters, especially stars like yuna feel pressure whenever they take the ice, but knowing she had such a huge lead and that there really wasn't anybody who could threaten her anyway..where is the pressure from that? The pressure to make the freeskate a record as well? Is this where we have gone?

Media and some arrogant fans, as I said before, plus a lot of other factors. The pressure comes from this, not from if someone can beat her.

But she said that she had no expectations to break her record, that's why she was so OK afterwards. So it's not really a deal with scores, rather it's about the people's reaction. She herself is not very concerned about scores and maybe even standings. I think she was prepared to lose the event in KnC zone.

But there were really a lot of factors that got her, it was a very complicated situation.

yu-na had such a huge lead afer the short (deservedly so) that there was almost no way she was going to lose gold. I have a inclination that will happen at the olympics, maybe to not such asn exent but I doubt that even Yu-na can skate lights out under pressure like that.

Hmm... May i ask what you mean - that Yuna will win but with problems or that she will lose because of those problems? I'm not concerned , I'm just curious and this phrase sounds ambiguous to me.

 

[Ginask8s]

Yeah. I mean everyone has bad skates once in awhile. Rachael Flatt had a poor skate at Cup of China (and she's supposedly really consistent) Alexei Yagudin had a horrible skate at 2002 European Championships. But he won anyways (many think unfairly!) and responded by saying: The Olympics is my destiny. So its just a matter of her learning from this and figuring out what's wrong. I'm worried about the 3flip though.

She was obscessing on the flip in her short practice. She missed it in the run and stopped skating , kind of gently stamped her foot and resumed. She then replaced the next jumping pass with another flip which she completed. I thought the flip was her money jump?

 

[silverlake22]

I find it kind of funny how people and the press are making such a big deal over Yu Na's "bad" long program ...I mean, Carolina Kostner, Alissa Czisny, Kimmie Meissner a couple years ago, Mao Asada recently, and half the European ladies, have all delivered skates like that more than once and no one seems to make anything of it. I mean Alissa I guess they talk about how she's so nervous all the time, I wonder if she maybe has GAD, but I mean aren't aall the skaters nervouse? And I mean Carolina seriously bombs half the time and then is amazing the other half of the time and no one looks any deeper into it than her being tall....

 

[Tonichelle]

the first time Kimmie had a horrible skate people talked... when she failed to make the world team people talked... it WAS a big deal...

 

[silverlake22]

the first time Kimmie had a horrible skate people talked... when she failed to make the world team people talked... it WAS a big deal...

I guess it was. But honestly, it must be a little embarassing for the skater when someone's like, "why can't you jump as well as you used to?" You would think that if the skater knew why, she'd try to fix it. I mean no one has any idea what happened to Kimmie to cause her jumping issues. The thing is, once Kimmie kinda started having trouble, she didn't bounce back to her former greatness. Maybe this is the fear with Yu Na, though I have no doubt she will bounce back.

Also, Mao needs a new coach, new costumes (not a vampire one?), and new music. Heavy music/programs do not suit Mao well, plus this season's music is just like background noise set to her triple axels....Once she fixes that I think she could challenge Yu Na.

 

[evangeline]

I find it kind of funny how people and the press are making such a big deal over Yu Na's "bad" long program ...I mean, Carolina Kostner, Alissa Czisny, Kimmie Meissner a couple years ago, Mao Asada recently, and half the European ladies, have all delivered skates like that more than once and no one seems to make anything of it. I mean Alissa I guess they talk about how she's so nervous all the time, I wonder if she maybe has GAD, but I mean aren't aall the skaters nervouse? And I mean Carolina seriously bombs half the time and then is amazing the other half of the time and no one looks any deeper into it than her being tall....

What? Somehow, you must have missed the 581059167190 theads bemoaning Mao Asada's apparent demise in the main forum alone (not to mention the Jenny Kirk articles, the Japan Times "What should Mao Asada do" poll, the speculation about JSF intervention, etc), as well as the old Alissa Czisny pity parties we used to have around here (e.g. look in archives after 2009 4CC and Worlds). Come on....Yu-Na is hardly alone in having her bad skates scrutinized.

 

[chloepoco]

I find it kind of funny how people and the press are making such a big deal over Yu Na's "bad" long program ...I mean, Carolina Kostner, Alissa Czisny, Kimmie Meissner a couple years ago, Mao Asada recently, and half the European ladies, have all delivered skates like that more than once and no one seems to make anything of it. I mean Alissa I guess they talk about how she's so nervous all the time, I wonder if she maybe has GAD, but I mean aren't aall the skaters nervouse? And I mean Carolina seriously bombs half the time and then is amazing the other half of the time and no one looks any deeper into it than her being tall....

You're kidding, right?

 

[Blades of Passion]

The Ladies LP is still not yet up on IceNetwork.

I'm going to throw a shoe at someone.

 

[schiele]

The Ladies LP is still not yet up on IceNetwork.

I'm going to throw a shoe at someone.

That's cos it's not going to be, Blades of Glory laugh:). NBC broadcasted it live so they cannot show it on IN. I was also left with youtube to watch the ladies LP afterwards.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

I thought when Rachael took that step she was going to execute the same Camel in both directions which would have been amazing although non scoreable. But she went into a sitsspin in the other direction, which makes me think that could be her best direction for a sitsspin. If that were so, all she did was two separate spins which could be legally evaluated. No? Is there a limit on the number of spins one can show in a program like there is for jump passes?

 

[museksk8r]

Oh please. Yu-na is only missing one triple in her program. The other double axel she does is a reward for doing her double axel/3toe and then the other one is a requirement.

Um, I'm a loving fan of Yu-Na too, but let's be honest, the extra 2Axel is a replacement for the missing 3loop. To say it's a reward for doing a 2Axel+3toe combination seems like you're reaching to me. Ando also attempts 2Axel+3toe combination, but she does attempt the 3loop, not a 3rd 2Axel attempt.

 

[Medusa]

Is there a limit on the number of spins one can show in a program like there is for jump passes?

Yes. Only three spins.

But why were both of those spins not counted, not just the 4th spin? Was her third spin invalid because it was counted as a third Camel spin? And the fourth spin because it didn't have enough revolutions?

 

[mskater93]

I thought when Rachael took that step she was going to execute the same Camel in both directions which would have been amazing although non scoreable. But she went into a sitsspin in the other direction, which makes me think that could be her best direction for a sitsspin. If that were so, all she did was two separate spins which could be legally evaluated. No? Is there a limit on the number of spins one can show in a program like there is for jump passes?

No -
you only get three spin boxes, all must be of a different nature, one must be a flying entry and one must be a CCoSp (which was what she intended by the spin but stepped too far away once she completed the CW camel and therefore ended up doing 2 separate spins). Since the CSp did not fullfull the CCoSp, it was an invalid element and the additional spin (CoSp - sit to upright) was also invalid.

 

[Olympia]

Mathman, thanks for the pointers on double-quoting. I've saved your post and hope to give it a try. I'm amazed that I figured out to quote at all!

How is it surprising that we are picking apart YuNa's bad skate? For one thing, we're the ultimate back-seat drivers and Monday morning quarterbacks (except we start on Sunday afternoon in most time zones). We think we're the ones propping 'em up on the ice...perfectly natural impulse in ardent fans!

For another reason, we love skating and want its best practitioners to give us a performance for the ages. Most of us, whoever we're the biggest fans of, have a deep-down wish to be witnesses to a golden age of skating. We don't want to watch a succession of "B-plus" skaters, even if they give our country a sweep of the gold medals. We want to see the immortals who will be talked about when our grandchildren are adults. This coming winter, we want to say about someone (or some pair), "We are so lucky to be here tonight!"--which is what Peggy Fleming said in 1984 after Torvill and Dean's free dance. And the person most likely to give us that experience right now is YuNa. So we hope that she'll fix her shoulder position, or her nerves, or whatever it is that held her back this Sunday.

And besides, a lot of us would just love to see what Brian Orser would look like as the happiest guy in the world on Olympics long program night! In Canada! Wouldn't that be poetic justice....

 

[silverlake22]

I wasn't really kidding. I just feel like the skaters must be super embarrassed when people start asking them why they weren't as good as they were last season. When other skaters had multiple meltdowns in a season, people started to talk, but Yu Na has had ONE semi-meltdown, I think people should wait a few more competitions and see how she does there before they panic and decide something's wrong.

 

[museksk8r]

I'm not in a panic for Yu-Na . . . I think she will be fine and rebound from Skate America's LP performance, but it does bring alarm that she is having trouble with the 3flip (2 LP performances now) when she already doesn't have the 3loop in her arsenal. With those 2 jumps MIA, it sure does put a lot of pressure to hit everything else in the performance or else risk finishing behind a solid Ando or Rochette. Again, this is just IF she doesn't get it back together speaking; I happen to think she will regain the solidity on the 3flip. Again, with her spectacular SP track record, she already has a HUGE advantage over the rest of the field. I think she will have to have a major mistake like falling on the combination jump or the 3flip in the SP for others to have a chance at dethroning her.

 

[Tinymavy15]

You are right she does have A huge advantage over the rest of the ladies. She can skate a perfect short unlike mao and many of the others. Once she has that it really does not matterif she does not have her flip she her lead will be that big. Sure, she might not male another WR without it, but I didn't ginkgo that was the goal here.

 

[R.D.]

why are people so panicked? This was only ONE
competition...if she has a similar performance at the GPF I can understand, but come on...she's still a shoo-in for the OGM