Beverly Smith on Patrick Chan

Kunstrijdster · Mar 21, 2009

Patrick is just too good to be true

http://www.ctvolympics.ca/figure-skating/news/newsid=7381.html?cid=rssctv

I just love this part:

His name is whispered fearfully in Europe, in Japan - everywhere there is figure skating in fact.

Hsuhs · Mar 21, 2009

Bedankt voor de link, kunstrijdster / Thanks for the link, figure skater.

Kunstrijdster said:
Patrick is just too good to be true

He prob is. But who is Beverley Smith? Have never heard of her before.

But Chan has been on a roll ever since, even improving his triple Axel to the extent that a judge gave him a bonus mark of plus 3 in the short program at Four Continents.

Um, yeah. Right. Ain't it great?

Nobunari Oda, Japan
More of a Joubert type

Not sure Oda (or Joubert) would be flattered by this comparison :laugh:

His new, frenetic, fast-paced choreography camouflages his skating skills and edge quality.

Is there anything wrong with Oda's skating skills and edge quality that needs to be camouflaged? Have we been watching the same Oda?

Jeremy Abbott, U.S........ He was clearly ill.

I've come to like Jeremy Abbott this season. That is why I hope he isn't going to play the illness card too often, i.e. every time he under performs. I wouldn’t want that to ruin my tender liking of him.

Buttercup · Mar 21, 2009

Kunstrijdster said:
Patrick is just too good to be true

http://www.ctvolympics.ca/figure-skating/news/newsid=7381.html?cid=rssctv

I just love this part:

His name is whispered fearfully in Europe, in Japan - everywhere there is figure skating in fact.

Click to expand...

I believe this link was already posted on the Worlds forum, so the threads probably should be merged. The article itself wasn't that good; we've seen this sort of gushing over Patrick before, and frankly at this point I think he is a lot more realistic about his prospects, and those of the other skaters, than Smith is. Same goes for Jeffrey Buttle - "I think his skating skills and quality of skating are head and shoulders above everyone". Head and shoulders? Really? Give me a break.

Smith's assessment of the other skaters is mostly useless: Brian Joubert's footwork and spins, she writes, have deteriorated (he got mostly levels 3 and 4 at Euros on spins) and there is "an appearance of unhappiness and unease about him". I guess Brian has not been forgiven for his reaction after Worlds last year. Jeremy Abbott is "more like Chan than any of the others" (because everything must apparently be measured in relation to Patrick?), while for Ponsero, Verner and Lycasek it's mostly an overview of their results rather than any analysis. She's right that Kozuka can do more to relate to the audience.

Patrick Chan is a talented skater who probably has a very bright future in the sport, but this cult of Patrick in the Canadian media and among some fans is just annoying and makes him the very last skater I would want to cheer for. And it's not even his fault. Can't they just let Patrick's career develop without putting this ridiculous amount of pressure on him?

Joesitz (RIP) · Mar 21, 2009

Who is Beverly Smith?

:scratch: Who was Beverly Smith?

:bow:

Who does Beverly hope to be?

rosee · Mar 21, 2009

Buttercup said:
Brian Joubert's footwork and spins, she writes, have deteriorated

When I came across this line I was like "because it has ever been good?"

Level four footwork is worth more in points toward the final mark than level three. Required are immediate changes of direction, with complex turns and quick steps following each other. When the quick-footed Buttle won the world championship a year ago, he got level threes for footwork sequences.

Does that means that Patrick is so much better than Jeff?
I just can't be convinced by this quote because for me the way footwork sequences are scored in COP is one of the major flaws of the system

silver.blades · Mar 21, 2009

Joesitz said:
Who is Beverly Smith?

:scratch: Who was Beverly Smith?

Who does Beverly hope to be?

Beverly Smith is a figure skating journalist here in Canada. She writes books on the sport and articles for the paper. She's one of the only sports journalists who actually knows something about the sport, so anything she usually writes is ten times better than the crap about the sport we get from other sports writers.

Joesitz (RIP) · Mar 21, 2009

silver.blades said:
Beverly Smith is a figure skating journalist here in Canada. She writes books on the sport and articles for the paper. She's one of the only sports journalists who actually knows something about the sport, so anything she usually writes is ten times better than the crap about the sport we get from other sports writers.

Thank you sb. When I left The Edge this morning I did see it in the Worlds folder. I also enjoyed reading the article, and was surprised she could give those excellent capsule review of the top contenders. Let's have more of her when possible.

Buttercup · Mar 21, 2009

rosee said:
When I came across this line I was like "because it has ever been good?"

Does that means that Patrick is so much better than Jeff?
I just can't be convinced by this quote because for me the way footwork sequences are scored in COP is one of the major flaws of the system

I agree about CoP scoring of step sequences. I wish it wasn't so limiting about what is needed for high levels, because most of what we see is very cookie cutter. I actually agree that Chan is very strong on footwork, though probably not better than Buttle. But that is one area in which I don't mind seeing Patrick get rave reviews. On the other hand, I was amused by the suggestion that Chan has been good at maximizing points, considering his base value at 4CC was very low for an elite skater.

As for Brian, let's agree to disagree. For one thing, his spins have shown a marked improvement compared to earlier in his career. And I actually think he's had level 2s for much of the season because he's not playing the CoP game when it comes to upper body movement, and since said upper body movement is usually, IMO, the ugliest aspect of high-scoring step sequences, I find his approach refreshing.

Kunstrijdster, welcome! I meant to write that in my first post, but got distracted by some chocolate fudge cake and didn't notice the omission. I hope I did not create the impression that I was criticizng you - it was all in reaction to Smith's column, which annoyed me :biggrin:

.

Antilles · Mar 21, 2009

I think Canadian journalists and commentators are always filled with hyperbole the minute we have a decent skater or team. They get built up to be "the best ever!", so that anything they do feels like a letdown. Competitors of these skaters are always nitpicked or outright put down. I really wish this would change. It helps no one.

Tonichelle · Mar 21, 2009

Actually I think every major skating country has at least a couple of outside sources that hype them up (ie not the federation's press team, but national media) and make them better than the rest. The US certainly has it, as do Russia and Canada... so I don't think this article is any worse or more surprising.

evangeline · Mar 21, 2009

Antilles said:
I think Canadian journalists and commentators are always filled with hyperbole the minute we have a decent skater or team. They get built up to be "the best ever!", so that anything they do feels like a letdown. Competitors of these skaters are always nitpicked or outright put down. I really wish this would change. It helps no one.

As a Canadian myself I agree. I'm still rolling my eyes at all the Torvill/Dean comparisons heaped on Virtue/Moir. And of course who can forget all the fawning over Sale/Pelletier and the *evil* Russians.

skatingbc · Mar 21, 2009

Buttercup said:
I believe this link was already posted on the Worlds forum, so the threads probably should be merged. The article itself wasn't that good; we've seen this sort of gushing over Patrick before, and frankly at this point I think he is a lot more realistic about his prospects, and those of the other skaters, than Smith is. Same goes for Jeffrey Buttle - "I think his skating skills and quality of skating are head and shoulders above everyone". Head and shoulders? Really? Give me a break.

A comment like that could have been taken completely out of context though. For instance, Jeff could have been commenting on Patrick in relation to other Canadian skaters. If that were the case, the comment would be true.

And honestly, Canada is not the only country whose media produces articles that hype their skaters a bit too much. That's what the media does no matter what the subject is. Remember all the drama surrounding Y2K? A lot of hype for absolutely nothing at all.

I think that Patrick Chan deserves some hype and a lot of positive comments because he is a great skater. No doubt about that.

psycho · Mar 21, 2009

Antilles said:
I think Canadian journalists and commentators are always filled with hyperbole the minute we have a decent skater or team. They get built up to be "the best ever!", so that anything they do feels like a letdown. Competitors of these skaters are always nitpicked or outright put down. I really wish this would change. It helps no one.

So, so true.

Eddie Lee · Mar 21, 2009

All of the arguments regarding Patrick Chan at this stage of his skating life, will not make one whit of difference when he steps on world's ice in Los Angeles this coming week. The proof is ultimately in the results--not pro or anti hyperbole!

Let the skating begin!!!!!

Tinymavy15 · Mar 21, 2009

I think she sounds a little too much like a gushing fan than a writer...Chan does have great skating skills and interpretation, but Oda also has excellent skating skills along with Kozuka. Abbott is pretty good in that area himself.

shine · Mar 21, 2009

Hsuhs said:
Is there anything wrong with Oda's skating skills and edge quality that needs to be camouflaged? Have we been watching the same Oda?

I think you might have misunderstood Smith's sentence. What she meant I think was that the choreography Morozov has done for him doesn't showcase but camouflages the edge quality and skating skills for which he has been known for, to his disfavour.

Personally I do think Patrick has amazing skating skills. He skates very "into the ice". But I also think Takahashi, Oda, and Kozuka have comparable skills if not better. And they also seem to be lighter and have more ease to their blade work. As far as interpretation goes, I'd still give the notch to Takahashi and Abbott, who has very beautiful edge work and respectable skating skills as well.

Hsuhs · Mar 21, 2009

Kunstrijdster said:
Did you take a Dutch language course?

I believe I did.

shine said:
I think you might have misunderstood Smith's sentence. What she meant I think was that the choreography Morozov has done for him doesn't showcase but camouflages the edge quality and skating skills for which he has been known for, to his disfavour.

I hope I've misunderstood! It's just that Lori Nichol is the choreographer of Oda's both programs. She happens to camouflage Patrick Chan as well.

Mathman · Mar 21, 2009

Hsuhs said:
I hope I've misunderstood! It's just that Lori Nichol is the choreographer of Oda's both programs. She happens to camouflage Patrick Chan as well.

I believe I did.

Tonichelle · Mar 21, 2009

skatingbc said:
Remember all the drama surrounding Y2K? A lot of hype for absolutely nothing at all.

yeah but think of the stimulated economy towards the end of 99 when everyone really started freaking out thinking we'd be without a bunch of things! maybe we should look into mass hysteria more often to force us to buy more...

jettasian · Mar 22, 2009

Buttercup said:
Patrick Chan is a talented skater who probably has a very bright future in the sport, but this cult of Patrick in the Canadian media and among some fans is just annoying and makes him the very last skater I would want to cheer for. And it's not even his fault. Can't they just let Patrick's career develop without putting this ridiculous amount of pressure on him?

Well, give credit where it's due. Chan IS GOOD. So there's nothing wrong with that? And it's unfair to say that many Canadians like Chan is a "cult". I'm pretty sure Kim and Asado receive as much attention (if not more) in their home country as well. So What's wrong with that?

And for you (and many others) to dislike Chan simply because he's good and he's liked by the judges and the Canadian media just show how silly it can be.

Beverly Smith on Patrick Chan

Kunstrijdster

Hsuhs

Buttercup

Joesitz (RIP)

rosee

silver.blades

Joesitz (RIP)

Buttercup

Antilles

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll

evangeline

skatingbc

psycho

Eddie Lee

Tinymavy15

Sinnerman for the win

shine

Hsuhs

Mathman

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll

jettasian

Match Penalty

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