Ladies - Free Program

I just got to watch Joannie's performance and it certainly was breathtaking! too much for that little mistake on the loop, but that was really great! the dress is beautiful, the program was beautiful, very strong and powerful. I am so impressed, high hopes for her again this season!

Ladies - Free Skate

Without having seen the competition, I couldn't help but notice how close are the top three ladies' scores. I'm looking forward to seeing this competition.

Thank you Rosaleen for your wonderful commentary on this competition. I really appreciate your efforts.

Dizzy

I still don't get how Joannie got so much higher tehcnical marks than Fumie...how many triples did they do?

Rochette did 6 (she singled her loop), Fumie did five, plus she singled one of her two double Axels.

I love Fumie but last night Joannie skated very well. Fumie's music had too much vocal which I wondered why she wasn't marked down for that. Joannie's freeskate is much better than her short. I like the program very much and I think that she can really do allot with it. I'm really proud that she got herself back to the top after her short. She has got to stop popping jumps! Much better to go for the rotation and hope you don't fall.

Found this very interesting to watch live in the arena. Noticed some things about skaters I had not before.

First, I've never been terribly impressed with Yoshi Onda, but watching live, she had the most beautiful glide over the ice of all the skaters. I suspect she's been working on her stroking, and it really shows. Her blades are silent and smooth.

I don't know how Suguri's music translated onto TV, but hearing it live it was so. incredibly. annoying. If I was a judge I think I would have docked her a point just for that. How she skates to it every day, I have no idea. Her performance, on the other hand, was great. She seemed the most relaxed of all the skaters and really knows how to reach out to the crowd.

Yu-na Kim was also really impressive - she reaches the top rows of the audience. Some unfortunate misses on her jumps, but her LP will be lovely.

Rochette was really impressive. She has beautiful soft landings on her jumps, and very impressive speed. She owned the arena from the moment she stepped on the ice. Her program is fantastic. Not a boring moment anywhere and it maintains the theme throughout. She deserved the superior technical marks — her combinations were more difficult and she did a jump sequence as well. No falls and bailed on only a triple loop.

Czisny is a gorgeous skater and her lines are even more impressive in person. Clearly the best spinner and I rather wish she'd capitalize on this fact a bit more in her program. Ditto on the spirals.

rain said:

First, I've never been terribly impressed with Yoshi Onda, but watching live, she had the most beautiful glide over the ice of all the skaters. I suspect she's been working on her stroking, and it really shows. Her blades are silent and smooth.

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While she was waiting to start her program, she did some basic stroking, and I remember being in shock, her technique was so good. Her stroking is like night and day compared to a couple of years ago.

hockeyfan228 said:

While she was waiting to start her program, she did some basic stroking, and I remember being in shock, her technique was so good. Her stroking is like night and day compared to a couple of years ago.

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Absolutely. I recall one of the things I didn't like about her skating was her basic stroking — she had a lot of back-pumping and looked like she was trying really, really hard to get speed. At this competition she floated across the ice with great ease.

I watched Czisney on Youtube. With the exception of that opening triple, she skated extremely well. It's not just her spins which are the best in the business, but her stroking, footwork, joie de vivre are also there. A first class skater who should get those jumps down. But for the SP one has to be perfect or big deductions.

Joe

Rosaleen said:

Katy Taylor USA - music: Theme & Variations by Tchaikovski / fushia with silver diag trim /
Some chor to start - quite ok / 3f / 1a / 3t hung on / camel starts a good combo spin - well centered and nice pos / music smooths out - layback with great pos and then foot to head / spiral start with coe in beillman - could use better extension on the rest / bailed on lutz / 3l landed sideways & fell / flysit with some nice variations in pos / bailed on flip / combo spin is good / strt ftwrk is chor’d to music but not quite dynamic enough for the music / last jump triple that she fell on - didn’t see take-off / another tough skate for Katy - I feel so bad for her / T 26.73 C 41.68 ded 1.00 tot 67.41 gr tot 110.57 curently 3rd overall

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I'm not sure what to think of Katy. Someone posted that one of the reasons they dislike her is that she reminds them of a Barbie doll and I have to agree. She also reminds me of Tara Lipinski...Maybe it’s her petite frame but she's like a jackrabbit on crack and I don't mean that in a positive way....I just don't understand what it is about her that people are fascinated with. To each his own.....

I watched her at 4C's and she skated very well and deserved to win. But it seems that so many, including USFSA, are eager to immediately give GP assignments to skaters who have a just a taste of success (e.g. did well at Nationals and then 4C's) but maybe are not as consistent as they need to be. Granted, according to the rules, she earned her GP assignments, but could USFSA have held her back a bit (maybe only one assignment) to see how she does and make certain she is the "real deal" and not a one-shot wonder? Perhaps they could have but are over-eager to get the “new kids” out on the GP stage and get them seasoned.

My question is, how much of her poor showing, and I don't mean having an "off" skate, but literally crumbling (she finished 10th in the SP and 12th in the LP at SC and at SA, she was 11th in the SP and 10th in the LP - last at both events) is really to do with this issue with her boots. I don't mean to say that there is not a problem. If there is, there is. But at this level of skating, she should have worked these kinds of issue out before the beginning of the season. (It’s like Johnny missing the bus at Worlds. You just don’t make ‘amateur’ mistakes like that at this level) Yes, these kinds of things happen and maybe its just bad timing, but I sense that it’s her immaturity and lack of experience at this level that is making her equipment issue a bigger issue. Granted, it's a self-sustaining cycle - boots not working = poor skating = lack of confidence = poor skating = frustration with equipment etc. I just wonder if it’s all too much, too soon and if this combo of experiences will create another Sasha – a skater who has talent and is so close, but so far away.

Just thinking...no offense intended to anyone.

dwiggin3 said:

But it seems that so many, including USFSA, are eager to immediately give GP assignments to skaters who have a just a taste of success (e.g. did well at Nationals and then 4C's) but maybe are not as consistent as they need to be.

I just wonder if it’s all too much, too soon and if this combo of experiences will create another Sasha – a skater who has talent and is so close, but so far away.

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Who else would they give GP assignments to? Skaters who have no history at all of success of any kind? I think it's absolutely the right thing to get the new skaters out on the circuit so they know what's really going to be required of them to hit the top level. It's worse, I think, and leads to more serious crumbling if skaters have never done the medium-sized Grand Prix events and then head to worlds and Olympics with no experience under their belts of competing on the same ice as say, the world champion.

Comparing Katy Taylor to Sasha Cohen? Seriously? I think any country would be thrilled to create another Sasha. Sure, she has had some disappointment at big competitions, but she's stood on the podium at most of them, maybe just not on the step she wanted. Sasha, by all objective measures, has been an extremely successful skater. Katy is nowhere near Sasha's level — she should be so lucky.