Can Takahashi Close The Gap On Patrick Chan? | Page 29 | Golden Skate

Can Takahashi Close The Gap On Patrick Chan?

Joined
Aug 16, 2009
I definitely don't find the current Men's skating boring at all, I think it is great. Different strokes for different folks.

I agree. Even just looking at the Japanese skaters--gosh, even just looking at the guys the Japanese team had to leave at home!--makes for fascinating viewing. While there have certainly been great skaters in the past (the honor roll mentioned by pangtongfan), I think there are some incredibly dynamic guys out there now. I wish I felt that way about the ladies, but I have hopes for the future. And then there's ice dancing, a veritable treasure house right now.
 

deedee1

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
I definitely don't find the current Men's skating boring at all, I think it is great. Different strokes for different folks.

Me, too! I agree.
I love Mens discipline the best! So many talents and diversity in styles.

Sometimes the actual competition may not turn out as exciting as it seems prior to it, or as we wish/hope for prior to it. I am okay with it, because it is a competition; nerve-wrecking enough already. Plus such depth in Mens field, only to add more pressure on boys.

But whenever I watch an exciting (and nerve-wrecking!) competition and boys are able to bring their A game, just like the Free at Nice, I can fall in love with this sport once again!:rock:
 

DianaSelene

Medalist
Joined
Aug 2, 2011
The mens event is far and away the most boring and predictable event for years now. Currently it is nothing more than a Chan coronation (or bore-o-nation). Scary thing is it reached an even lower low with Evan Lysacek being crowned as World and Olympic Champion the two years prior to that. Thank goodness the pairs and dance are stronger than ever, and ladies is coming around again after hitting its all time high in Vancouver. I am glad for the mens event, it gives me and my friends a chance to go for meals or catch up on other things at events we attend, before the real skating resumes with the other 3 disciplines. For the glory days of mens skating there are wonderful videos of Boitano, Browning, Petrenko, Kulik, Yagudin, Plushenko, Takahashi (2007-2008 version), Lambiel, Fadeev, Hamilton, Urmanov, Stojko, Orser, Curry, Cranston, Cousins, always easily assessible.

:agree:

My thoughts exactly. At this world championship, I stopped watching the men's event and found out the results only days later. I see no reason to watch Chan, I start falling asleep 20 seconds into his programs.

Except for Hanyu and Takahashi, I don't care to watch it at all.
 

Boeing787

On the Ice
Joined
Oct 21, 2011
Congrats to Dai! Let's not forget the jet lag effect on Patrick though. I still remember how Dai popped his 3A at 4CC.
 

Bluebonnet

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 18, 2010
Dai beat Chan in both SP and LP at WTT.:party2::hb:

It has proved that Patrick fans and some other skater fans were correct all along from the beginning of this thread - Takahashi could beat Chan when Chan wasn't in his best but Takahashi was.:yes:
 
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Bluebonnet

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 18, 2010
Opposite. You cannot blow away something that doesn't exist.

It's disappeared because it was false claim. That was something doesn't and has never been exist. That's just one of the examples of irrational claims by some of Takahashi fans.
 

Mao88

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 9, 2011
New article on Dai? Reads:-


I often ask myself how some skaters attract just fantastic attention of fans around the world. Why do we want to watch again and again performances of some skaters? Why during the performance of some skaters we are completely forgetting about everything and just enjoying programs? I have not found an answer. I only have a few suppositions.....his skating....can be considered as an art form....Performances of Daisuke can not be divided on just footwork, handwork, body movements, etc. Yes, technically it’s possible, but to understand all the beauty of his performances you have to perceive all the details in full. No, do not TRY to do it! It’s useless. You just have to watch and FEEL it. Feelings will come by itself and you are unlikely will not be able to accurately describe them. These incredible feelings are the result of Daisuke’s movement on his Way. He never deviates from his own unique way. Even for the sake of the ever-changing requirements and trends in figure skating. He accepts them, but as a master he harmoniously integrates the necessary changes to programs and continues to conquer audiences around the world. No one knows exactly what kind of Way it is. You can’t know or understand it by your mind; you can only feel it by your heart and soul. When Daisuke is on the ice, he is both focused and relaxed; concentrated on the main and at the same time draws attention to the details; immersed in what is happening, but not divorced from reality. It is a condition which described by the Eastern (Oriental) philosophers, when they say that man is on his Way without deviating from it. The Way when person is not only in harmony with himself, but when he passes this extraordinary feeling to the people around. This is the only Way to reach a full potential of a person. That’s what Daisuke creates on the ice. His skating on the ice can be compared with Japanese calligraphy, where each image of a character brought to perfection; when every line has meaning, and when all connected lines form a stunning and very beautiful picture.
 
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Butterscotch17

On the Ice
Joined
Apr 26, 2012
Thanks for that article! I don't understand everything it means about The Way as I do not speak Japanese, but it is beautifully written. I love how it says you have to FEEL his programs - that is absolutely right.
 
Joined
Aug 16, 2009
New article on Dai? Reads:-

Oh, man, I was bouncing in my chair when I read that. It embodies how I feel when he skates. The word harmony is especially evocative of what I notice in his skating. May I assume that "the Way" has to do with the Tao? If so, I have a glimpse of the concept this author is alluding to. In a way, it's a bit like the Platonic idea of some perfect archetype that we all strive for in various pursuits. It also brings to mind for me Michelangelo's statement that he didn't sculpt a figure out of the marble; he freed the figure that was already in the marble.

The fact that we can talk about those grand concepts when we think about Daisuke's skating is an indication of the indefinable essence that he brings to skating. I'm not saying, mind you, that he's better than Patrick Chan and should always beat Patrick. I'm saying (and I think the article is saying) that the thing he brings to skating (though his skating is of high quality) transcends the individual components of high-quality skating. He creates some living entity with his skating. I got that feeling with Michelle Kwan and with some other skaters as well (Gordeyeva and Grinkov are other examples). I don't get it with every champion by any means. But it's there with Daisuke almost every time he skates.
 

let`s talk

Match Penalty
Joined
Sep 10, 2009
New article on Dai? Reads:-
It was posted on Dai thread on May 8 when the article got published. But it's always nice to read it since it's indeed very beautifully written.

Thanks for that article! I don't understand everything it means about The Way as I do not speak Japanese, but it is beautifully written.
That kanji is very close to the Russian word "путь", and both are bigger in meaning than the English "way". I think here the author also meant all his struggles, ups and downs, through thorns to stars, to reach his goals. Plus the way how he did it is amazing.
 
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