Reliable Rachael and Reputation

[Mathman]

Just curious - if you were judging who would you have scored higher - Rachael or Kanako?

Overall, after Kanako skated I felt exactly the way you said you did on the other thread. I thought that Rachael won the free skate (which she did), and that she p-r-o-b-a-b-l-y (?) won by a large enough margin (4 points) to be first overall at that point. But I expected Carolina to do enough to win the event, with Rachael second and kanako third.

Specifically about the program components...

What Mathman said is fair, but it does not explain how Kanako inexplicably scored higher than Rachael on some of the components.
Interpretation
P/E
Choreography

I would have given Rachael higher scores than Kanako on Choreography and Interpretation. I thought that Rachael did try to skate to her music, while Kanako's LP (unlike her one-of-a-kind SP) was rather generic.

As for Performance/Execution, I always have a hard time understanding what the "execution" part refers to. Performance, I thought they both did well.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Reputation comes in two parts: Good and Bad.

The consensus of the judges is that Rachael does not have a good reputation, and will always place less than gold. It's the Reliability that keeps her in the International Top 10.

Much of Figure Skating is still judged by the 6.0 system of opinion except for a wee amount of quantifiable Tech.

We could list the skaters who will never win regardless of their reliable Tech. Falls, for example are deadly for some and a wrist slap for those with good reputations.

The CoP, imo, is judged not on what is seen, but on what one has acquired in Reputation. Entertainment is the unscored elemnt in figure skating, and it carries the most significance in scoring.

 

[NMURA]

Anyway, I think Flatt was robbed at SA. I can understand why the judges don't like her though. Flatt is not committed to skating enough. Many people believe her academic career takes the priority over skating. This could be her last season of competitive skating. If the USFSA and the judges consider that way, they can't place much expectations on her. I suspect the scoring on Flatt could be different if she had declared to aim Sochi before the season.

 

[janetfan]

Reputation comes in two parts: Good and Bad.

The consensus of the judges is that Rachael does not have a good reputation, and will always place less than gold. It's the Reliability that keeps her in the International Top 10.

Much of Figure Skating is still judged by the 6.0 system of opinion except for a wee amount of quantifiable Tech.

We could list the skaters who will never win regardless of their reliable Tech. Falls, for example are deadly for some and a wrist slap for those with good reputations.

The CoP, imo, is judged not on what is seen, but on what one has acquired in Reputation. Entertainment is the unscored elemnt in figure skating, and it carries the most significance in scoring.

Interesting thoughts - but isn't limiting reputation to "good and bad" a little like seeing everything as "black and white"?
Could you expand it to good, average and bad?

I think Rachael would atleast fall into the average category as pointed out by mathman in his previous post.

The "entertainment factor" seems undeniable - but fans and judges have different ideas about what is entertaining.

Some think Kanako is entertaining and others find her so cute it annoys them.
Should there be a mark for entertainment? Like skating skills isn't it part of all of the components and even the elements? "Alissa has very entertaining spins" or "I love watching Yuna's spread eagle into a 2A+3T jump." Some fans live for quads.

But the entertainment mark/factor goes beyond the skating. Some fans like programs more if they like the music the skater has chosen - and less if they don't like the music.
"I like Mao's skating but did not feel entertained by her LP last season because the MUSIC was too heavy." Fans and judges may have felt that way as we saw Yuna win the LP at Worlds last season despite making more mistakes than normal.

Costumes play a part as well in the entertainment factor. Some fans like Johnny's costumes as much as his skating. Button commented that perhaps the judges feel differently.
I read more comments about Miki's costumes last season than about her skating.

It's all part of the "pageant" or entertainment factor since skating became marketable as a TV sport. When the figures were deemed too boring for broadcasts they were reduced and then eliminated. Did the ISU also recognize that if skaters no longer had to spend 3 hours a day practicing their figures more and bigger jumps would follow? I am sure that had to be part of it. Many fans think jumps are the most entertaining part of skating.

The entertainment factor is important in all sports that want to be presented on TV. Baseball changed it rules when ratings when down, the NBA added the 3 point shot to open up the floor and the NFL made hitting a quarterback too hard a crime punishable by hefty fines and suspension because NFL football loses too much of it's entertainemnt value when half or more of the leagues starting quarterbacks are sitting out due to injuries.

The idea that the most important factor in skating is "blades on ice" seems false to me. If that were true would ISU ever have eliminated the figures.? Janet's freeskating was more entertaining and far more marketable than Trixie's figures to TV audiences and fans filling up the arenas.

The most important factor in skating and what drives ISU is money. Good entertainment equals more money. The CoP is successful in newer markets where fans never followed the sport in the past. In the traditional markets it has lost some of it's lustre.

Kanako is a rising star with more entertainment value to ISU than Rachael. It is not surprising the judges gave her the Gold. They would have given it to her at NHK as well if she did not fall down so many times.

 

[Mathman]

But the entertainment mark/factor goes beyond the skating. Some fans like programs more if they like the music the skater has chosen - and less if they don't like the music...

Costumes play a part as well in the entertainment factor. Some fans like Johnny's costumes as much as his skating. Button commented that perhaps the judges feel differently.
I read more comments about Miki's costumes last season than about her skating.

It's all part of the "pageant" or entertainment factor since skating became marketable as a TV sport. When the figures were deemed too boring for broadcasts they were reduced and then eliminated...

The entertainment factor is important in all sports that want to be presented on TV. Baseball changed it rules when ratings when down, the NBA added the 3 point shot to open up the floor and the NFL made hitting a quarterback too hard a crime punishable by hefty fines and suspension because NFL football loses too much of it's entertainemnt value when half or more of the leagues starting quarterbacks are sitting out due to injuries.

The idea that the most important factor in skating is "blades on ice" seems false to me. If that were true would ISU ever have eliminated the figures?...

And yet...I don't think this tells the whole story. Money is cool (it is certainly better than no money ), but by the same token we don't want to sell our souls for thirty pieces of silver. On COI the most popular acts were the hula-hoop girl (Irina Gregorian ) and the acrobats. Gary Beacon put on a great show when he stood on his head on the ice. Yagudin got big applause when he entered the arena by climbing down a rope. Dan Hollander's comedy is always entertaining. Earlier, it was Frick and Frack who were kings of the ice.

As for other sports, yes the NFL makes periodic rule changes to keep their sport entertaiing. But does football ireally attract more viewers because of the amazing choreography of a wide reciever's dance in the end zone. (I have to concede, however, that cheerleaders liven up the show.)

I do think that figure skating is blades-on-ice. If it were about jumping, costumes, etc., why do it on ice? You can jump in a pretty costume on dry land.

It is quite true that the ISU eleiminated figures in order to make the sport more appealing on television. That fact that they did it, however, does not necessarilty mean that the decision was the right one or that every future decision must continue in the same direction.

 

[ever]

I am suddenly curious if judges are really competent for scoring PCS.
I think when some controversial cases pop up,
the charges are always in connection with judges not skaters.
Then, why judges are so controvesial?

 

[dorispulaski]

If she wanted better PCS, she needed to skate without mistakes. .

Ah, but that's the point of PCS, at least so we are told when Patrick Chan falls 3 times in the SP--
so that cannot be the whole story.

As to Yu-Na and IMG, correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought Yu-Na had her own management company these days-whyever would she be with IMG?

And as to her popularity, All That Skate in LA was AFAIR, was well attended, especially for a skating show in the US in these post skating heydays.

However, I can't say I'm impressed by the "broke world records" thing-all the PCS scores in all the disciplines were ridiculously jacked up in the Olympic year. There were World Records everywhere you looked. Of course, Yu-Na had them, but Virtue and Moir had some. Shen and Zhao had some. So for that matter, did Evan Lysacek? There, I'm not sure about Evan, but in any case, Cinquanta seems to think that "world records" is a big COP selling point, because you can have them. However, IMO, a judged sport is a judged sport, so it isn't like "world record" has any real meaning, as it would, say, in the 100 yard dash.

 

[janetfan]

And yet...I don't think this tells the whole story. Money is cool (it is certainly better than no money ), but by the same token we don't want to sell our souls for thirty pieces of silver. On COI the most popular acts were the hula-hoop girl (Irina Gregorian ) and the acrobats. Gary Beacon put on a great show when he stood on his head on the ice. Yagudin got big applause when he entered the arena by climbing down a rope. Dan Hollander's comedy is always entertaining. Earlier, it was Frick and Frack who were kings of the ice.

As for other sports, yes the NFL makes periodic rule changes to keep their sport entertaiing. But does football ireally attract more viewers because of the amazing choreography of a wide reciever's dance in the end zone. (I have to concede, however, that cheerleaders liven up the show.)

I do think that figure skating is blades-on-ice. If it were about jumping, costumes, etc., why do it on ice? You can jump in a pretty costume on dry land.

It is quite true that the ISU eleiminated figures in order to make the sport more appealing on television. That fact that they did it, however, does not necessarilty mean that the decision was the right one or that every future decision must continue in the same direction.

I think the ISU has money as it's top priority and everything else follows but at less important levels.

I don't see how that is any different than most other sports, particularly those that depend on TV broadcasting money and full arenas to survive.

I don't want skating to go away - but this idea that skating is pure or that ISU is free of corruption seems false.

In the case of Kanako beating Rachael at SA - I don't see that as having anything to do with federations and nationalism. If Kanako was American and Rachael Japanese I think the decision would have been the same. I still think politics could have been at play but for different reasons.

Kanako is a more entertaining skater - particularly to the casual fans. NBC certainly decided Kanako was more entertaining than Rachael - and all of the others when they used her SP at the beginning of the broadcast.

Scoring and rules for sports change and evolve. This season ISU has raised the value for the big jumps. At the same time they have seemed to make the SS as important as the big jumps.

There is still alot of politicing from the federations just as there are the ISU bigshots who can impose their own set of values. None of it is possible without enough money.

Sure I agree skating needs ice but it also needs stars. Most sports need stars.
As to the importance of blades on ice and edges - would you say Evan showed he is better than the rest of the Men? I think Evan's OGM had about 10% to do with skating skills and edges and 90% was about other factors.

Please don't try and convince me of the purity and soul of ISU
They sold out to TV money decades ago.

 

[wallylutz]

Sure I agree skating needs ice but it also needs stars. Most sports need stars.
As to the importance of blades on ice and edges - would you say Evan showed he is better than the rest of the Men? I think Evan's OGM had about 10% to do with skating skills and edges and 90% was about other factors.

Rachel is decidedly not a star then, using your definition. Her look is pretty average and she does not have the personality to make her marketable either. But that doesn't mean ladies skating has not had a star since Michelle and Sasha, it just happens those stars are not American, nothing more.

Evan's OGM has more than 90% to do with how he skated - in fact, a mere double loop attached to any of Plusenko's combos would have changed the history. Sorry to hear you have such low faith in this sport.

 

[janetfan]

Rachel is decidedly not a star then, using your definition. Her look is pretty average and she does not have the personality to make her marketable either. But that doesn't mean ladies skating has not had a star since Michelle and Sasha, it just happens those stars are not American, nothing more.

Evan's OGM has more than 90% to do with how he skated - in fact, a mere double loop attached to any of Plusenko's combos would have changed the history. Sorry to hear you have such low faith in this sport.

I think the same way about baseball, basketball, soccer, etc.

My remarks about Evan were specific to his SS - which seems to be a topic that has been discussed alot since Skate Canada.
I may not know as much about skating as you do - but too many members here would agree more than a few of the Men in Vancouver had better SS than Evan.

My remark about 90% did not mean I thought the decision was purely political.

I meant Evan had the right music, fancy costumes, and a famous coach and very influential choreographer in his camp. He undoubtably had the full weight of a very big federation behind him.

Certainly Evan skated well enough to be in contention and maybe made fewer mistakes than the others.
But as to his SS winning him the OGM - no, I don't think so. There were many other factors involved, some skating and jumping and the other factors I mentioned.

I wonder how smart it was for Patrick to say in an interview that "Lori really talks up my skating to the judges."

Yea, we know this goes on but I have to wonder if Lori told him to keep that quiet in the future.

ETA: I think Rachael could become a star - but also think the system, the pcs do not work in her favor.
I agree with mathman's earlier remarks that Rachael has to rely on outjumping her opponents and hope they falter to win.

I am not the one making the rules and was not a judge at SA ........

 

[wonderlen3000]

Kanako beat Rachael barely, just 2 points or so and its not like her PCS is a landslide. If we are talking about Kanako getting PCS in 58-59+, then we have a problem. Kanoka skated with more speed and her jumps are huge, and because of that it might seen a little bit rush and sloopy. But do we really want to see any slow poke skating and putting us to Zzzzzzzz??
Many forgot Rachael dinge herself by blotching the Lutz combination. 2Lutz get mandatory -3GOE and more costly then singling the 2A. And both get < on their jumps. Rachael on 2 triple and Kanako on her 3loop and 2Lo, but she did pop a jump so Rachael has advantage with the new 70% rule. But Kanako close up the gap by getting good GOE on some of her jump and her spins. Overall the whole competition was very close. Ultimately it come down to what you did in the SP.
But I can understand why some might dissagree bc Rachael has been on senior a lot longer than Kanako.
But isnt the same thing happened when Kim and Asada pop into senior back in 07, beating all the ladies in both TES and PCS mark (Kanako is no where near Kim/Asada level, but she is defnitely the best junior that move to senior the past years when you compare her with some one like Makarova or Leonova).

On the lighter side, maybe Rachel should hire a PR group to talk about her more. We all knwo skating is part sport and part entertainment (right in your face and ears) lol.

 

[Mathman]

Please don't try and convince me of the purity and soul of ISU

They sold out to TV money decades ago.

Well, I think I will try, even so.

I don't think that money is 100% of what top-level competitive figure skating is about. OK, maybe 80%. But I still think there is something left of the amateur and Olympic ideal of "higher, faster, stronger."

There is nothing wrong with presenting figure skating in an entertaining way. But we want to make sure that it is entertaining skating rather than some other form of entertainment. If we like beauty pageants, we can watch Miss Universe. If we like show girls and fireworks we can go to Las Vegas. And if we want skating and theatrics together we can go to Stars on Ice.

But instead, we happen to like skating competitions, where superbly talented and well trained athletes demonstrate their skill with a blade.

On a separate note, if you just look at the activities of ISU President Cinquanta alone, then yes it is quite easy to come to the conclusoion that money is the ISU's only concern. That's because bringing home the bacon is the job of the CEO. It's like a college president. He or she can delegate the acedemic program to the provost, the sports program to the athletic dirsector, the groundskeeping to the custodial staff. The only thing the President has to do him/herself is hit up rich alumni for cash and lobby before the state legislature for a bigger peice of the tax pie.

I think similarly that there are a lot of people in the figure skating establishment who are indeed interested in the integrity of the sport, independant of $$$. (Then again, I believed in the Tooth Fairy until I had my wisdom teeth removed at age twenty and learned the bitter truth the hard way. )

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

I think you bring up a good and fresh point.
If Abbott and Flatt were IMG's athletes, would their PCS have been 'a little' higher than current scores?
Anyway, I think that power federation '+' IMG = firm infra for PCS.
(reputation + power federation + IMG = perfect triangle )

We don't know of any conspiracy theories going around since 2002 Olys which in fact, the conspiracy was confirmed. Who did Legougne(sp) conspire with?

What we have now is simply nationalistic favorities from Feds and fans. If there is enough diverse judges in a competition, we should be clear of conspiracies. However Judges are human and that's an unproveable factor.

 

[FlattFan]

Kanako beat Rachael barely, just 2 points or so and its not like her PCS is a landslide. If we are talking about Kanako getting PCS in 58-59+, then we have a problem. Kanoka skated with more speed and her jumps are huge, and because of that it might seen a little bit rush and sloopy. But do we really want to see any slow poke skating and putting us to Zzzzzzzz??
Many forgot Rachael dinge herself by blotching the Lutz combination. 2Lutz get mandatory -3GOE and more costly then singling the 2A. And both get < on their jumps. Rachael on 2 triple and Kanako on her 3loop and 2Lo, but she did pop a jump so Rachael has advantage with the new 70% rule. But Kanako close up the gap by getting good GOE on some of her jump and her spins. Overall the whole competition was very close. Ultimately it come down to what you did in the SP.
But I can understand why some might dissagree bc Rachael has been on senior a lot longer than Kanako.
But isnt the same thing happened when Kim and Asada pop into senior back in 07, beating all the ladies in both TES and PCS mark (Kanako is no where near Kim/Asada level, but she is defnitely the best junior that move to senior the past years when you compare her with some one like Makarova or Leonova).

On the lighter side, maybe Rachel should hire a PR group to talk about her more. We all knwo skating is part sport and part entertainment (right in your face and ears) lol.

It's not about how high Kanako's PCS was or how low Rachael's PCS was. It's about how they were relative to each others'. Kanako should not get higher PCS if PCS reflects her performance that night.
You cannot compare PCS from one event to the next and declare Kanako's PCS is low, therefore, it's ok.

 

[rocketry]

It's not about how high Kanako's PCS was or how low Rachael's PCS was. It's about how they were relative to each others'. Kanako should not get higher PCS if PCS reflects her performance that night.
You cannot compare PCS from one event to the next and declare Kanako's PCS is low, therefore, it's ok.

Rachael lost to Kanako on PCS by a hair at NHK Trophy when the gulf between their performances technically was much greater. Akiko also beat a pretty much pristine Miki on PCS with a lot more errors than Kanako had at Skate America. It could just be that the judges are going to prefer one program over the other no matter how well the other executes their technical elements. I guess you could attribute it to reputation, but stylistically they are very different and both have their strengths and weaknesses. When thinking in terms of PCS, I just think Rachael's are harder to identify.

 

[Nadine]

I read the first two pages the other day, but this thread since then has seemed to take on a life of its own! I will definitely read the rest as soon as I get the chance, interesting thoughts everyone. ^)

But I wanted to say that it's a bit of a downer when you get back from a competition after seeing it live, and this from one that has never really liked watching skating live in the past, but Skate America has changed me a bit in this regard. Maybe it's because I was in the VIP section, not the Gold section like I was at the Olympics. When you are in the very first row you literally see everything up close & personal, and competitive skating is nothing like professional skating, two totally different birds. The former is do or die, all the skaters going all out in their quest to medal/win, whereas the latter is more of the skaters taking it easy, doing simple jumps, skating to what they like, but sometimes you get true art (ala Sasha Cohen & Oksana Baiul). Anyhow, just some thoughts...

Back to Rachael, after seeing her live I don't want to see her through a television screen anymore, lol. Seriously, now that I know how phenomenal she is in person it's a huge downer to watch her via t.v. I mean I always knew she was great from the first time I saw her at 2007 U.S. Nationals, but she's even 10times greater than that in person. There's this electricity, this spark/aura that radiates from her in person, and OMG when she lands one clean jump after another it's like a wildfire, you can actually feel the crowd getting more & more & more excited! It brought us ALL to our feet instantaneously, like we were a part of her journey, like we were the ones that had skated a clean 7 triple FS, it made us all O-N-E. There's nothing like it, even when we get together here on GS to watch IN live, it's not the same as actually being together there at the stadium, in the audience, clapping, laughing, joyous! And hearing the comments from the crowd, like "she deserved it, she deserved it!" in regards to Rachael possibly winning. ^)

***Note: skating a clean program is underrated, I personally think a skater deserves a *bonus* for doing such, because not only is it very very RARE, but also there's nothing like it, to see a skater skate a clean program in person is awe inspiring, jaw dropping, simply magnificent!!!!!***

And lest I forget to mention Rachael is so full of spunk & personality & joy when she's skating! She really gets into the character of the program, the Betty Boop "0" face she does exactly at the moment the shot rings out & she looks the audience dead in the eye with surprise, and then immediately segues into the rest of the choreography is pure magic. You just can't take your eyes off her, and everything flows from one element to the next without interruption/breaks/falls/et al, the jumps just add to the excitement until before you know it you're standing & applauding like madly, lol!

Btw, she skates fast (like all the rest of the skaters). I honestly didn't see a big difference between them all except for maybe Elene G (she's like a speed demon, but even then only about 20% faster than the rest, no huge difference whatsoever). And Rachael's jumps are definitely NOT small, no way, in fact it's the same as speed, you really can't see a huge difference in person, only by millimeters. Elene G.'s are 100%, then some of the European girls are about 90%-95%, and Rachael & everybody else 85%. No biggie, none of them have Tara Lipinski or Kristi Yamaguchi's small teeny tiny jumps that relied on rotation alone to get across the ice. Rather, for the most part, American girls have average height jumps (Tonya Harding was the last American lady to have monster jumps). But that's beginning to change with Agnes Z. Still, I would rather see somebody with average-sized jumps (*not* small) land all her jumps in a 7-triple performance than someone with bigger jumps fall or make mistakes, et al land a 5-triple jump performance. Like I said before, skating clean is underrated, especially when you see it live, in person, there's nothing like it!!!!!

And that's all I have to say about that.

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO RACHAEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! arty:

 

[janetfan]

It's not about how high Kanako's PCS was or how low Rachael's PCS was. It's about how they were relative to each others'. Kanako should not get higher PCS if PCS reflects her performance that night.
.

You are describing the dilema faced by judges in the 6.0 system which had to determine by comparison how to place the skaters. Ordinals based on a comparitive impression is what determined a skaters fate.

Skating fast through the music without much IN becomes more obvious when all of the components are considered as one and compared - and not when they are assigned individual scores for IN, CH, SS, PE and TR.

Who did you LIKE better - Rachael or Kanako :think:
One gets a first place ordinal and the other a second place ordinal.

But the CoP tells us that Kanako has better IN and CH than Rachael. I don't think that was the case at all at SA.

It appears that the effects of Kanako's faster skating and flashier P/E persuaded the judges that her other components were also a bit better.

It feels like a very flawed system to me. Being faster and having a thousand megawatt smile does not mean your CH and IN are superior. :disapp:

It is about all of them combined that one can try and reach a comparitive judgement and with it a placement.

I happen to love Kanako but not sure if I would have scored her over Rachael on PRESENTATION in the LP's at SA.


Scoring the presentation is subjective and not really easy under any system.

But I agree with you a more accurate test is comparing Rachael and Kanako for how they skated the LP that night.

 

[FlattFan]

Under the ordinal system, Rachael would have won SA in 2009, she was second in the SP, won the LP.
She would have won in NHK, 3rd in the SP, won the LP.
She would have won SA this year, 4th in the SP, won the LP, had Kanako helping her out by defeating Carolina Kostner who was 1st.

I've always said Rachael would be more successful under 6.0 than under CoP. Who's done a 7 triple LP at the Olympics and not come away with a medal? Oh wait, Midori Ito. :scowl:

 

[Nigel]

Anyway, I think Flatt was robbed at SA. I can understand why the judges don't like her though. Flatt is not committed to skating enough. Many people believe her academic career takes the priority over skating. This could be her last season of competitive skating. If the USFSA and the judges consider that way, they can't place much expectations on her. I suspect the scoring on Flatt could be different if she had declared to aim Sochi before the season.

Flatt has consistently said in her interviews, IIRC, over the last several years that she takes skating "one day at a time, one season at a time." IMHO, that is what every athlete should do. That way, the focus is on upcoming events/games/competitions, and you are not thinking about the "big prize", ie World Cup, the top standing in tennis or golf, the Super Bowl, World Series, Olympics.... during your competitive season. Perhaps she has set goals with her coaches for the next 4 yr cycle, but chooses not to share that type of information publically. Nothing wrong with that.


Originally Posted by FlattFan
It's not about how high Kanako's PCS was or how low Rachael's PCS was. It's about how they were relative to each others'. Kanako should not get higher PCS if PCS reflects her performance that night.
.
You are describing the dilema faced by judges in the 6.0 system which had to determine by comparison how to place the skaters. Ordinals based on a comparitive impression is what determined a skaters fate.

Skating fast through the music without much IN becomes more obvious when all of the components are considered as one and compared - and not when they are assigned individual scores for IN, CH, SS, PE and TR.

Who did you LIKE better - Rachael or Kanako
One gets a first place ordinal and the other a second place ordinal.

But the CoP tells us that Kanako has better IN and CH than Rachael. I don't think that was the case at all at SA.

It appears that the effects of Kanako's faster skating and flashier P/E persuaded the judges that her other components were also a bit better.

It feels like a very flawed system to me. Being faster and having a thousand megawatt smile does not mean your CH and IN are superior.

It is about all of them combined that one can try and reach a comparitive judgement and with it a placement.

I happen to love Kanako but not sure if I would have scored her over Rachael on PRESENTATION in the LP's at SA.


Scoring the presentation is subjective and not really easy under any system.

But I agree with you a more accurate test is comparing Rachael and Kanako for how they skated the LP that night.



I think one of the components of scoring is speed, and skaters like Carolina and Kanako are very fast skaters. But speed is just ONE component of the scoring. I suspect that a number of judges world wide see a fast skater, and that influences their judging on the remainder of the PCS. Is that an acurrate assement of the other components of the PCS. Not necessarily. That is why the PCS has been broken down into separate entities. But, I think there are very few judges worldwide are willing to give a wide range of PCS scores to a skater. JMO....:disapp:

 

[Jammers]

What Rachael lacks is the IT factor that other skaters possess. She doesn't excite people when she skates. Perfect example is at the Nationals. Even though she won most everyone in the arena thought Mirai had won. Mirai had charisma and personality which came through. Rachael just doesn't have that quality. If only we could transfer some of Rachael's competitive nerves and toughness into Mirai then we would have an american lady that could win Worlds.