US. Coach of the Year? | Golden Skate

US. Coach of the Year?

Skatetomusic

On the Ice
Joined
Oct 5, 2009
Im wondering if Anyone has an idea of who would be worthy of a coaching award this year here in the US?

Honestly, I think the best coaches recently are Yuka and Jason. For helping Jeremy Abbott in raising his confidence and Alissa Czisny in skating more consistly than in the past.

I also think that Igor and Marina would also are worthy for their role in getting several of the many of the best for the US ice dancers. Punsalan & Swallow, Lang & Tchernchev, Silverstien & Perkarak, Belbin & Agosto and now Davis & White.
 

Blades of Passion

Skating is Art, if you let it be
Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 14, 2008
Country
France
If Jeremy and Alissa both win Nationals, I don't see how it could possibly be anyone other than Yuka Sato.
 
Joined
Aug 16, 2009
Both are excellent choices. Might Frank Carroll also have a chance? Does this award cover the whole year of 2010? In that case, there's the matter of the Olympics, in which both Shpilband/Zoueva and Carroll brought home impressive results.

But I bet Igor and Marina as well as Frank have won before. Wouldn't it be delightful if Yuka won? Can you imagine how proud her father would be to have a second-generation coach in the family....
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
But I bet Igor and Marina as well as Frank have won before.

Shpilband won in 1999 and 2005, He was also Choreographer of the Year in 2005 Carroll won in 1997, 2000, and 2001. (I looked it up. :) )

Wouldn't it be delightful if Yuka won?

Yet another reason to hope that Alissa and Jeremy skate their vest this weekend.
 
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CARA

Final Flight
Joined
Oct 16, 2009
Country
United-States
Although Jeremy has just missed the men's podium, I would still vote for Yuka Sato & Jason, for their pheonmenal work with Alissa.
 

ivy

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 6, 2005
Yet another reason to hope that Alissa and Jeremy skate their vest this weekend. :)

Well I didn't notice a vest on Allissa, but Jeremy looked handsome in his ;-)

I LOVE Yuka and hope every good thing in the world happens to her.

Tom Z. might be in the mix - though I tend not to like his skaters - still Men's Gold and Lady's Silver - IIRC
 

Nadine

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 3, 2003
DEFINITELY 210% TOM Z., HANDS DOWN!!!!! :cool:

No way Yuka & hubby, by their own admission/words they've confessed that they broke down Alissa's jumps, and you can tell. They're safe & barely rotated now, just enough to land them, not good. I do NOT want American Ladies to jump like that. Rather, I want them to jump the way Mr. Tom Z. has taught them how to ~ fully rotated, HUGE, correct technique! :thumbsup: Look at Agnes Zawadzki's jumps versus Alisssa Czisny, no question Agnes wins hands down, as it should be.
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
Yuka and Jason guided Alissa from a basket case who wanted to quit the sport to Grand Prix victor and champion of the United States. :)
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
Yuka and Jason both should get the award. I believe they work as a team and made great skaters out of timid skaters. I also think that Jeremy's programs were very special. Did they do the choreography? If not, then I think there should be a Choreographer's Award. I will never believe that skaters do their own. Skaters may tweek their programs for simpler movements, and that's as far as they may go. I am sure the program was even better before tweeking.
 

emma

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 28, 2004
I hate to nitpick, Nadine, but given Alissa's lack of falls, seems like breaking down the jumps was a really good idea. Now she can work on making them bigger.
 

Layfan

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 5, 2009
Yuka and Jason both should get the award. I believe they work as a team and made great skaters out of timid skaters. I also think that Jeremy's programs were very special. Did they do the choreography? If not, then I think there should be a Choreographer's Award. I will never believe that skaters do their own. Skaters may tweek their programs for simpler movements, and that's as far as they may go. I am sure the program was even better before tweeking.

They didn't choreograph the program. I think Camerlengo did?

Jeremy and Alissa both had gems of programs. Jeremy's long program is just beautiful and was hoping he would get higher PCS than he did Sunday but I guess it was just one mistake too many. Two many disruptions.

Yuka has had Jeremy for a couple of years and it's been as up and down as ever. But she has done a great job of giving him the right vehicles. His programs last year were terrific too. I guess coaches aren't magicians and Jeremy had training problems this year.

To me Alissa's jump seem a big higher and springer than last year. Her landings seems soft and secure. well, mostly.

She's never going to have jumps like Agnes. They just don't have the same body types. Nothing Yuka can do about that but Alissa has learned better technique and consistency.

Skaters can't be everything. Alissa has her strengths and Agnes has hers.
 
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Joined
Aug 16, 2009
I don't know whether Yuka and Jason will get a Coach of the Year award, but I bet you on Saturday night they felt like the coaches of the year.
 

ImaginaryPogue

Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 3, 2009
Shpilband/Zoueva.... three of the top five Olympic ice dancers, complete sweep of the top three at Nationals, medalists at all six GP events....
 

blue dog

Trixie Schuba's biggest fan!
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 16, 2006
I think they should change this award, in order to give more people an opportunity, kind of like the Oscars. Yes, there can be one "coach of the year", but there should also be "coaching team of the year," or, "lifetime achievement..."

There should also be one for people who coached the most successful singles, pairs, and dance teams, respectively.
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
They didn't choreograph the program. I think Camerlengo did?

Jeremy and Alissa both had gems of programs. Jeremy's long program is just beautiful and was hoping he would get higher PCS than he did Sunday but I guess it was just one mistake too many. Two many disruptions.
I should not have mentioned the Correographer's Award because of one of the segments of the PC scores which most fans believe it is a collaboration between the skater and pro choreographer. The only collaboration I know of is tweeking the more difficult moves by the skater in hopes it will make his performanc easier not necessarily more interesting.

Jeremy's choreo was splendid as was his interpretation of it. It didn't need a little story for it. It was in the music and Jeremy made it come alive.. Alissa's program to me had the standard choreography for Ladies - nothing special - but she did it well. Rachael had better choreo, but she did not quite bring it to any superlative performance. Maybe she will at Worlds.

Agnes is still young in the performance field but she has 3 more seasons before Sochi.
 

mskater93

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 22, 2005
Yuka and Jason both should get the award. I believe they work as a team and made great skaters out of timid skaters. I also think that Jeremy's programs were very special. Did they do the choreography? If not, then I think there should be a Choreographer's Award. I will never believe that skaters do their own. Skaters may tweek their programs for simpler movements, and that's as far as they may go. I am sure the program was even better before tweeking.

Carmelengo did the choreography for at least one program each (LP), not Yuka and Jason. I believe Alejandro Najarro (Lambiel's Poeta choreographer) did Jeremy's SP. There IS an award for best choreographed program from the PSA every year. Braden Overett is the only SKATER ever to receive that award (for his PotC program which was just AWE-SOME a couple years ago).

Alissa talked about having Carmelengo do her programs this year and how great it was because she saw him at least 1X per week and he could see what wasn't working and tweak it with her. This is usually the perview of the coaches.
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
Carmelengo did the choreography for at least one program each (LP), not Yuka and Jason. I believe Alejandro Najarro (Lambiel's Poeta choreographer) did Jeremy's SP. There IS an award for best choreographed program from the PSA every year. Braden Overett is the only SKATER ever to receive that award (for his PotC program which was just AWE-SOME a couple years ago).

Alissa talked about having Carmelengo do her programs this year and how great it was because she saw him at least 1X per week and he could see what wasn't working and tweak it with her. This is usually the perview of the coaches.
Thank you mskater93 for that information. I was a big fan of Braden Overett, and I believe his choreography goes beyond the mundane. The Carmelengo name is new to me. I will watch for more by him.
 

Layfan

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 5, 2009
I should not have mentioned the Correographer's Award because of one of the segments of the PC scores which most fans believe it is a collaboration between the skater and pro choreographer. The only collaboration I know of is tweeking the more difficult moves by the skater in hopes it will make his performanc easier not necessarily more interesting.

Jeremy's choreo was splendid as was his interpretation of it. It didn't need a little story for it. It was in the music and Jeremy made it come alive.. Alissa's program to me had the standard choreography for Ladies - nothing special - but she did it well. Rachael had better choreo, but she did not quite bring it to any superlative performance. Maybe she will at Worlds.

Agnes is still young in the performance field but she has 3 more seasons before Sochi.

Well, it's funny how opinions work. :) Alissa's programs maybe subtle but I thought they were most the different and intricate.

Rachael and Mirai's choreo seemed like standard Lori Nichols stuff that we've seen over and over again and the music choices were recycled warhorses.

I think Rachael's FS has some silly moments and Mirai's SP too. Mirai's FS is forgettable and has nothing to do with Geisha.

For me, Alissa's program show how talented she is. It is hard for me to imagine Mirai or Rachael pulling off an abstract program like Alissa's, which is all about the interpreting the music and showing the beauty of skating itself.

Rachael and Mirai had to play characters in their programs and they didn't do it particularly well, especially Mirai.

Rachael's SP was a different story as I appreciated how much more it suited her strengths and weakness. I actually think Rachael is quite a mature skater and deserves better than her gimmicky LP. So I liked the SP.

Speaking of the partnership between skaters and choreographers, I admire Rachael for her search of style. She said she went to Lori after the GPF and asked for a new SP because the first one wasn't getting good reviews. They choreographed in two days.

I don't know how much input Mirai has in her choreo. I don't get that feeling that it's a whole lot. Mirai has exquisite skating abilities and has a lovely, exuberant style when she's at her best. But I don't get the feeling she has found her voice yet.
 

colleen o'neill

Medalist
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
Joe, just off the top of my head ..for me ,two standouts of Camerlengo choreo are daisuke's FPs this year and last.
 

fairly4

Medalist
Joined
Oct 28, 2007
personally i would go for Yuka and Jason, than IGor and Marina because of davis & white and the shibs.
 
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