Skaters that could use improvement? | Page 4 | Golden Skate

Skaters that could use improvement?

mzheng

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 16, 2005
Joesitz said:


For the Men, I think it is Plush's to lose. In which case I would give it to Tim. Yags will be hurting; takeshi just doesn't grab me; Li Cheng will be ready for the Olys;

Joe

Joe, I agree with your on most of the men. But Li Chengjiang for Olys? How old is he? probaberly 25 now?

Back to the topic. I don't get the 'least favorater' ones. Dose that mean the one you don't like but the ABC broadcast his program anyway? To me the least favorater one could be a LONG, LOOO.........ONG list, since I don't even want waste time to watch them.
 
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mzheng

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 16, 2005
Norlite said:
Close......24.

Thanks. He'll be 26 or 27 at 2006. Is he too OLD compare with Plush?

Don't get me wrong, I like Li, and I thought he was underscored at 03 worlds. He has very good basics edge, smooth, speed seems better than Tim. The presentation wide he is in his own class just that the Judges did not preciate his style. Did DB said he landed best quad at 03 worlds? And DB praised Li for his presentation, it is a rear case for ABC commentator, but I certainly appreciate DB's kind words toward a non FAV.
 

dorispulaski

Wicked Yankee Girl
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Country
United-States
I would have given Li 3rd at World's. I think even the judges would have given him 3rd if he had held the energy level up at the end of the program, but it kind of died off. By contrast Takeshi had more energy at the end, particularly in the footwork. (But I preferred Li).

Joe, how would you have scored it?

dpp
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
Doris - Yes, Li needs energy. One expects great quads at the beginning of his programs and he delivers. In fact I would not be surprised if he hit a quint. His spins have improved but they will never be 'good lookin' spins.

But he peters out after 3 minutes and the entire program goes down hill. My acknowledging his Oly potential is because I feel by that time the energy will be mastered.

As for the age thing. Boys to Men develop slower than girls to Ladies. 26/27 at 2006 is not old at all for the men. Plush, too will be in or approaching his mid-twenties, I believe.

But for now, Li, I am afraid needs to learn breathning techniques.

Joe
 

Ogre Mage

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 30, 2003
Least Favorite Skaters

Men
Michael Weiss: I used to think he was hot, but his ego is much bigger than his skating skills. SPLAT!
Evgeny Plushenko: He reminds me too much of Urmanov, who I could not stand.
Tim Goebel: The Tin Man.
Elvis Stokjo: I know he's a legend in the sport, but I find his style totally unwatchable.


Ladies
Sarah Hughes: I like her personally, but bad posture, improper edge takeoffs, cheated landings ... blech.
Maria Butyrskaya: She needs some muscle relaxants. Every time she (tried to) land a jump I would cringe.
Tonia Kwiakowski: A very nice lady who just could not get it together and to be honest there wasn't anything in her skating which set her apart.
Josee Chouinard: As Olga would say, she is in "fall, fall, fall."
Viktoria Volchkova: zzzzzzzzzzz.
Ludmila Nelidina: She cannot skate!
 
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kzarah

Le Patineur et sa Petite Lulu
On the Ice
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
Michael Weiss, Sarah Hughs Paul Weillly and Nancy Kerrigan.
Daniel and Little Lulu
 

BravesSkateFan

Medalist
Joined
Aug 7, 2003
Alexander Abt- his skating does nothing at all for me zzzzz

Kat Witt- more zzzzz

Surya Bonaly- Too rough around the edges for my liking

Sarah Hughes- seems like a nice enough person, but the technical flaws (cheated jumps, fluting, bent leg sprirals) along with her sorta "gawkyness" on the ice is just too much for me to take.

Irina Slutskaya-again she seems like a nice enough person, but her skating just doesn't do it for me. its not zzzzz, but Its just kinda there...not much to it

Petrova and Tikhonov-zzzzzzz

Sale & Pelletier- well actually I don't mind David Pelltier too much, but Jamie Sale....well I won't go into that. Bashing isn't allowed on this board.

Carolina Kostner- I don't get the hype. At Worlds I found her to be boring slow and uninspired. She lost me after the first minute of the program.

Phillipe Candoloro- I don't even know what to say

Chengjiang Li- zzzzzz

Elvis Stojko- I'm not sure what it is about his skating I don't like, but something just doesn't do it for me
 

shine

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
While I don't find Kostner the most exciting skater and had a boring long program last year, I don't think the word "slow" can ever been attributed to her. She's one of the smoothest skaters out there and has such a sailing quality in her stroking.

At this point, I'd have to say the only skater I truly cannot bring myself to like is Tim Goebel. Sorry Goebel fans, I think all the talk of his "improved" presentation is BS. Even his quads are unexciting and mechanical. He gets my vote for the most boring world medalist to have ever stepped onto the ice.
 
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April

Rinkside
Joined
Aug 4, 2003
Gee

Least favorite skaters that I appreciate nonetheless, and why?

M. Weiss-- his skating lack depth and breath; a waste of music.
T. G---his round shoulders and arm movements, and I admit he is getting better, go Tim.
A. Abt--his failure to propel and complete his skating; he is so talented but just seems to come up short of the glory.
Ondo& the Russian Lady w/the triple axle jump--too muscle-minded and no appreciation for artistry, but a few more years of dance will do the trick.

That's all folks
 

Germanice

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
Actually I think Michael Weiss, at least his skating, is not that bad. He's elegant and musical, to me he's still the best us-american male skater recently (prefer him over Goebel and Eldredge any time, but haven't watched Johnny Weir
yet ;)). His personality, his scary wife and his even more scary Dad, well, that's another story! If I'd have them in my staff, I'd screw up my double axels as well! Poor Mike! :D

Anke
 
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curious

Final Flight
Joined
Aug 15, 2003
shine said:
While I don't find Kostner the most exciting skater and had a boring long program last year, I don't think the word "slow" can ever been attributed to her. She's one of the smoothest skaters out there and has such a sailing quality in her stroking.

Add this point, I'd have to say the only skater I truly cannot bring myself to like is Tim Goebel. Sorry Goebel fans, I think all the talk of his "improved" presentation is BS. Even his quads are unexciting and mechanical. He gets my vote for the most boring world medalist to have ever stepped onto the ice.



I have to agree with shine about goebel. Very consistent but also very boring. And that posture of his is just horrible.
 

Panther2000

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
It is not that I don't like certain Skaters. It is that I don't care for their style or lack there of. Like Most as a person in their own right. Well, not Michael Weiss. He just thinks that he is it.

Ladies:
Sarah H. It's been said before. That god awful posture of hers. & her Gawkiness on the ice. Not smooth at all.
Surya B]/b]. Her skating was bad, No artist side what so ever. & her attitude & her mother did not help her skating career.
Katt Witt: She was always more of a Tart on Ice. Sorry, But standing & posing isn't skating for me.
Nancy K]/b]. She had great Technical skill but lacks true soul.
Oksana B. Great Artistic Skill ( But after olympics, She went overboard, She became addicted to the drama around her that she created)
Maria B.She too made me nervous when she skated. Very stiff & no passion when skating.
Irina S she only made my list because, she is a 1 sided skater. Jumps, jumps & more jumps. Her spins are good. But, Like Nancy she has no or very little artistic side. Flash isn't art. But, I love her as a person. Very happy & bubbly. Well, not after SLC. She too fell in with the crybabies.:cry:
Men:
Michael Weiss: Sorry, to say this but, I can't stand him. & was happy that he did not medal at worlds. That Hummer that he rented. Please. Did he really think that he cold beat plushenko. I could go on but, I think I am reaching the border line here.:D
Elvis S. Sorry, But, never liked his type of skating. Short, choppy, no Soul.
Timmy G: He is another one. All one sided. But, He is improving alot. So he is borderline.


 

missflick

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 31, 2003
P&T
Liashenko
T&M (sorry, these two Russian teams put me to sleep-truly missing B&S)
VP
That is all I can think of for now.
 
S

SkateFan4Life

Guest
In my opinion, Maria Petrova and Alexei Tikhonov are one of the most boring, uninspiring pairs teams to ever win a World title.
They definitely have talent, but their mediocre choregraphy, their lack of musicality, and their complete lack of audience connection just about puts me to sleep whenever they perform.

As far as I'm concerned, the judges have consistently scored
P & T far higher then they deserve to be scored. Their bronze medal at this years Worlds was a gift, in my estimation.

BORING, BORING, BORING!!!

:sheesh:
 
S

SkateFan4Life

Guest
Perhaps my "least favorite" ice dance team was the Soviet pair of Natalia Bestemianova/Andre Bukin. Sure, they won four World titles from 1985 thru 1988 and the 1988 Olympic gold medal, but so many of their programs were chock-filled with "wierd" choregraphy, complimented with garish costumes.

Another "least favorite" skater was Austrian Trixi Schuba, who won the 1971 and 1972 World titles and the 1972 Olympic gold medal. While Trixi was perhaps the greatest-ever performer of the compulsory school figures, her free skating was, quite frankly, an embarrassment. She was quite "clunky" and gawky out there, and there wasn't the slightest hint of femininity or gracefulness.
Typically, Trixi would place sixth or seventh in the long program, and several skaters who outskated her in the long program did not even make it to the podium. It wasn't Trixi's fault that she won those titles, and she won according to the rules, which were based upon cumulative scores. But, boy, was she ever a weak free skater!
 

clairecloutier

Final Flight
Joined
Aug 27, 2003
Least favorite skaters

I have to admit that, with the possible exception of Elena Sokolova, I really don't like any of the recent Russian women skaters.

Irina Slutskaya is, in my opinion, the most overmarked and held-up skater ever. I can't understand why she consistently gets such high marks from the judges. The technical marks I can see somewhat--she does spin fast and jump high. But her spin positions are nothing special and her jumps are always telegraphed. Not only that, but her long programs are often riddled with small mistakes on the jumps--hands down, two-footed landings, little spin-outs at the ends of jumps. Still, I can understand her technical marks somewhat. Her high artistic scores are, however, inexplicable. Although she's improving, artistry just doesn't come naturally to Irina. She has little musicality, her positions in all her moves are sloppy, and even her basic stroking is ungainly-looking. It enrages me that she gets the same or better artistic marks as the American ladies, despite the fact that nearly all the American girls' spirals, posture, and spin positions are vastly superior to Irina's.

Maria Butyrskya was another ridiculously overmarked skater. Poor jumping technique, slow spins, insecure stroking, and, seemingly, a basic inability to hold her free leg out straight. (My father pointed out to me years ago that Maria's free leg was almost always bent, rather than straight. Check out your tapes and you'll see what I mean.) About the only thing Maria had going for her was her sheer charisma on ice.

Viktoria Volchkova is also overrated, in my opinion. Yes, her jumps are big, but so what? She still falls on too many of the jumps. And despite Peggy's raving about Viktoria's grace on the ice, I just don't see it. To me, she has a lot of the same weaknesses as Irina--little muscality, poor positions, no stretch to her skating. Viktoria just looks lazy on the ice, as if she can't be bothered to put any effort into what she's doing.

Elena Sokolova's skating has a lot of the same flaws as the other Russian women. Her artistry and positions are very lacking when compared to the American ladies. However, of the Russian women, I do like Elena the best. Her skating technique is a little more solid than the other Russian ladies'. By that, I mean that Elena at least can stroke around the rink without pumping her upper body and arms (as Irina does) or falling on simple footwork (as Maria did). There is speed to Elena's skating and good edges. Her artistry is rough at the moment, but I feel like at least there's some potential there.

As a group, though, the Russian ladies seem very overmarked. I'm usually not a paranoid person, but sometimes over the last few years, I've really wondered if there was some kind of judging conspiracy in place to hold up the Russian women, just so that the American women wouldn't completely dominate ladies' skating.
 

merfsk8s

Rinkside
Joined
Aug 16, 2003
Sarah Hughes absolutely. I have never understood the big deal made about her skating, she tends to be all knees and elbows....and her spiral!?! Her free leg always looks bent to me.
She is awkward, awkward, awkward...and, oh, the flutz!

Tara Lipinksi - have never cared for her skating a whole lot.

Plushenko doesn't do a whole lot for me either. I know he's World Champion and can do quad-triple-triples and all that and has a Biellman spin. But, it doesn't seem to matter, his skating doesn't thrill me much.

And, most of the ice dancers bore me to death. I liked Jamie Silverstein and Justin Pekarek (sp?), but they aren't around anymore so it's back to the same ho-hum ice dancing. Really, Klimova and Ponamorenko (sp?) were the only ice dancers that I couldn't take my eyes off of.

And, Petrova and Tikhonov - just don't get the big deal about them at all!

Johnny Weir - odd fellow, don't care for his skating or his attitude - and with that nonsense that he pulled this season w/stopping his program - whatever. I can't believe he won some award recently for his sportsmanship or something like that b/c of that. Huh?!

But, never say never, any one of the skaters or teams/pairs could just knock my socks off one day - Goebel certainly changed my opinion regarding his skating at this year's Worlds (even if he did use an old program) - he used to be one of my least faves, but not anymore - he's been great the last couple of years!
 
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