Thanks so much for posting all those videos! I think:
- the French were the class of the field, and deserved their placement for sure.
- Russian1 was significantly over-rated. This was REALLY bad - telegraphing lifts, spin that traveled, a whole lot of 2-foot skating and very basic stroking. They did not deserve to medal. It looked like the program is not yet ready for prime time. They were thinking through it all the way, and it looked almost like they were making it up as they went.
- Canada1 had a solid program. It looks like real dancing, and was light and quite lovely and fast. I would have had this team in 2nd. To improve, she needs to fix her posture (shoulders) by learning to use her knees more instead of bending forward. The choreography also has her doing way too many pirouettes/twizzles throughout the program. I'm sure there are more complex and interesting ways to transition than this. At the moment, Bent/McKeen have the more complex and better presented program from what I've seen.
- Ukranians I liked much better than the Russian1 team. Perhaps they had more errors than the Russian team, but I can't see how. The program is more complex, and much better executed.
- I have to confess I stopped watching Russian2 about a minute and a half in. I just couldn't take it anymore. Boring, they skated far apart, and were missing an semblance of finesse. Again, a whole ton of crosscuts and 2-foot skating.
- The American team is charming. I love their lifts, and they had some good elements. I think they are missing more complex choreography and transitions. Again, too many crosscuts and 2-foot skating was the norm throughout the competition. I think this team is capable of more, and given their really young ages, it should be interestiing to see how they develop at Junior over the next few years. They are a well-matched team.
- Canada2. What can I say? I've been a fan of Hasagawa's for awhile. I think they have a lot of potential, but I don't see it yet this season. They seem out of sync, and not skating as a team. They have the moments where they have beautiful lines, but then it is lost in a lack of unison or lack of connection. This was really obvious in the SD, but also continued in the FD. We'll have to see how they develop over the season, but perhaps it is time to think about new partners for both of them? I think they both age out of Junior? Maybe a chance to reinvent themselves at Senior with separate partners?
I stopped watching after the first 7 numbers. It's early in the season, so I guess it is normal for programs to be a little rough yet. It will be interesting to see if/how the quality improves with upcoming events. Looking forward to the Lake Placid event next week.
Well based on the reviews so far it seemed like only the Russian teams were bad! How did these Russian teams compete with all the teams with talent?