Best ladies Rivalries?

BronzeisGolden said:

Yamaguchi vs. Ito was also wonderful. While not long-lived, it was exciting and unpredictable. I didn't follow skating until after Albertville and was surprised to see that Kristi was by no means considered the front runner for Gold in 1992. Didn't Midori give a spectacular performance at the 1991 Trophy Lalique and convincingly defeat Kristi? Kristi had such a flowing, fluid style and wonderful jumps...but Midori had an explosive quality that could rock an arena! I think that was an incredible rivalry.

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Their rivalry as amateurs was great, but I thought it got even better when they turned pro. This was back when pro skating was still a vibrant arena and Kristi and Midori dominated ladies pro skating during the early and mid 90s. The two big events were the World Professional Championship and the World Challenge of Champions. Kristi and Midori traded titles back and forth for several years and gave many classic performances, including Kristi's "Fantasy-Impromptu" (which earned a whole row of 10s) and Midori's "The Rose of Pain."

Midori did defeat Kristi at Trophy Lalique in 1991, but I'm not sure I would say it was "convincing." Midori stumbled slightly on her combination jump in her short program. Kristi's SP was clean and put her in first place heading into the long. However, Midori came back strong in the free skate, landing 6 triples, including a 3axel/2toe combo. Kristi also skated well, but fell on the 3sal (her nemesis) and made a silly two-foot landing on her 2axel.

Best Ladies Rivalries?

Michelle vs Tara
They seem to bring out the in each other. Great skating at it best.

The battle of the Brian's
This was skating at its all time best. Two great skaters and two great performances. What more could a skating fan ask for.

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