Which THREE U.S. Ladies do you want to see at the Olympics next year? | Page 8 | Golden Skate

Which THREE U.S. Ladies do you want to see at the Olympics next year?

chuckm

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Country
United-States
Christina has already said she is taking a year off from Harvard for the Olympic season.

I'd like Christina most for the third; I'd rather Zawadzki than Mirai or Alissa.
 

Jammers

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 4, 2010
Country
United-States
I've said it before i would one of the younger girls like Hicks or Wang to get that 3rd spot. Agnes has yet to prove her internationally and Christina seems to be such a quiet kind of skater that she doesn't get the big scores even when clean. Mirai seems to have peaked and Alissa well who knows with her. So why not send someone for the experience?
 

Krislite

Medalist
Joined
Sep 22, 2010
Gao needs to quit school for a year and devote herself i hope. She could be in top 12. Gracie is going to be great. I see another Sarah Hughes when she feels confident. I wish she were with Lori Nichol next year. I just think he can do much more to showcase her talents.

She's got much more talent and potential than Sarah Hughes did. IF she keeps it together and improves artistically, I don't see her being a flash-in-the-pan fluke champion like Hughes at all.
 

sk8ingcoach

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 25, 2012
Agnes Zawaszki could easily get the 3rd spot, because she is great at short programs. But she consistently falls apart in the free and i think at next years nationals we may see her fall off the podium. If she were to pull together 2 clean programs she could be 1st at nationals

Alissa Czisny is out of the question, she will never make it to the podium. Rachael flatt has a better chance to make the podium than alissa.

Gao will place 5th haha

Caroline Zhang also out of the question.

I do hope that someone like Courtney Hicks could make it to olympics.



Obviously you would assume Ashley and Gracie will make it to olympics. They are clearly the better skaters in Us but they really have to improve on components if they want a chance to medal at olympics
 

chuckm

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Country
United-States
I don't believe Ashley and Gracie have any chance of a medal at Sochi because even with technically perfect 7-triple programs they wouldn't get the PCS scores Kim, Kostner and Asada get when not perfect.
 

Skater Boy

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 24, 2012
It'll be a fight to the death between Agnes and Christina for that third spot. Unfortunately, it seems that the USFSA and its judges are done with Mirai, who seems to have peaked at the 2010 Olympics. But she could prove me wrong with good skates at this next GP season...

What abourt Mirai, Alyissa, Rachel and Caroline? angela wang? I think they are all gunning for that final spot.
 

Skater Boy

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 24, 2012
Ashley and Gracie earned their spots on next year's Olympic team.

For the third spot, I would be happy with Mirai or Alissa - whichever one of them skates better next season.
I see your point but alyssa and mirai are such crap shoots. I almost dont' think they deserve to go to the Olys and definitely not medal there as they are so so so inconsistent. So much unfulfilled talent. But both may be past their best before dates not to sound mean. Mirai was fourth at the last olympics and in the lead and well.. she has faile dto keep the momentum. Alyssa has had not just bad skates but horrific, terrifying, tragic, disgusting skates. some may say she doesn't deserve another chance as she has had so many already.
 

Reginald

Match Penalty
Joined
Jan 28, 2011
She's got much more talent and potential than Sarah Hughes did. IF she keeps it together and improves artistically, I don't see her being a flash-in-the-pan fluke champion like Hughes at all.

She's got much more talent and potential than Sarah Hughes did. IF she keeps it together and improves artistically, I don't see her being a flash-in-the-pan fluke champion like Hughes at all.

So you're saying that Gao has the potential to be a TWO time Olympic champion? Gimme a break.
When 2014? Certainly Not. 2018 maybe. Sarah Hughes was not a fluke champion.

Let’s compare. Christina Gao has been to 4 National championships and placed 5th each time.
When SaraH Hughes had been to 4 National Championships, she had placed 4th, 3rd, 2nd, and 3rd. She had already won 4 GP medals, and a bronze medal a GP Final
Christina Gao has won 1 GP medal and was dead last at the GP Final.

And Sarah Hughes I went to Worlds and palced 7th, 5th, and 3rd.

So Sarah Hughes is a fluke, and Chriatina Gao is a seady contender. She’s steady all right. Steadily 5th.

And who cares about potential? If this world were judged on potential, it would be a different place.

They don't (or shouldn't) judge people on potential. The judges just need to leave the "would've kicked butt if she lived up to her potential" points at home.

Gao's problem is similar to Caroline Zhang's problem and Wagner's problem pre-2012.

She has a very low ceiling for a total score. The highest she has ever scored is 176 something.

176 won't win a Olympic medal.

She needs to win a National Championship to get the score boost that she needs.

She only has one GP Medal, in a weaker-than-Wednesday Skate America.


Mirai: She peaked in 2009-2011.

Agnes: She can't skate a clean long program for the life of her.

Alissa: With back-to-back hip injuries, I don't think her body will allow her to compete.




The Bottom line is that the USFSA is going to make this like 2002 and 2006. They will send one Adult(Wagner) and two up-and-coming teenagers. I think that one of the other teenagers will be Gold.

Who will be the other teenager:
Agnes Zadawski: Falls apart in high pressure competitions.
Courtney Hicks: Ditto, see 2013 Junior Worlds.
Yasmin Siraj: Too inconsistent.
Angala Wang: Too unpredictable
Smantha Caesario: Too vulnerable, especially since she's had chronic UR issues since 2010

Alissa Czisny: Don't need to say anything.
Caroline Zhang: The USFS whipping girl won't catch a break this time.
Hannah Miller: Great extroverted skater, but the judges don't like her.
Ashley Cain: Raisin' Cane in the bottom 10!

Mirai Nagasu: She's keeps reinventing herself every season and it keeps failing. In 2010-2011, she wanted to reinvent herself as a skater who skated clean long programs. Didn't work. In 2011-2012, she tried to be sexy because she was 18 now, blah blah blah. Didn't work. In 2012-2013, she tried to reinvent herself as a consistent reliable skater. Didn't work.
Vanessa Lam: Oft-injured.
Leah Keiser: Same here, she should have gone to JUNIOR nationals IN 2012. Moved too quickly to senior.


The more I think about it, I think that Christina Gao WILL be the 3rd us lady. She has the least bomb potential. and Olympic year nationals seems to bring out the bombs in people (Alissa Czisny 2006, 2010), Caroline Zhang 2010, Danielle Kahle 2006. There's a reason why the 2006 nationals and the 2010 nationals are the lowest scoring US ladies nationals ever. Some skater do well. Some skater crumble under the pressure. But, she will be fortunate to be top 10 in the Olympics.

Olympic Podium
1. Yu-Na Kim
2. Mao Asada (by a closer margin this time)
3. Carolina Kostner

The judges already have their medalists picked out.


And what's with all this "IF" stuff?

IF an asteroid hits the earth, we'll all be dead in 10 years.

There is or there is not. There is no “if”.
 

Krislite

Medalist
Joined
Sep 22, 2010
So you're saying that Gao has the potential to be a TWO time Olympic champion? Gimme a break.
When 2014? Certainly Not. 2018 maybe. Sarah Hughes was not a fluke champion.

Let’s compare. Christina Gao has been to 4 National championships and placed 5th each time.
When SaraH Hughes had been to 4 National Championships, she had placed 4th, 3rd, 2nd, and 3rd. She had already won 4 GP medals, and a bronze medal a GP Final
Christina Gao has won 1 GP medal and was dead last at the GP Final.

And Sarah Hughes I went to Worlds and palced 7th, 5th, and 3rd.

So Sarah Hughes is a fluke, and Chriatina Gao is a seady contender. She’s steady all right. Steadily 5th.
[...]

I was referring to Gold--not Gao. Please read the quote I was responding to before going on a rant.

And yes, I still think Sarah Hughes' Olympic gold medal was a fluke. She had a lot of help from other skaters to win that night. Moreover, she never won any other major title, not even U.S. Nationals. Definitely a stroke of luck.
 

hippomoomin

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 30, 2012
So you're saying that Gao has the potential to be a TWO time Olympic champion? Gimme a break.
When 2014? Certainly Not. 2018 maybe. Sarah Hughes was not a fluke champion.

I think it is obvious that Krislite was talking about Gracie, not Gao. :)
 
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Poodlepal

On the Ice
Joined
Jan 14, 2010
Sarah vs. Gracie

Sarah burst onto the scene in year #1 after Olympics. She had four years to improve herself and get herself into a position to be forgiven some small mistakes by the judges in the short program. By then she was the reigning world bronze medalist and had beaten both Michelle and Irina at Skate Canada, iirc. She was no newcomer and had a pretty good resume by then.

She probably was not as good as Michelle or Irina overall, but on that night she skated clean and neither of those skaters did.

Gracie burst onto the scene the year before the Olympics. She hasn't been around long enough to get "reputation points." Nor has she skated as consistently well as she could have. It's hard to believe she's as wonderful as everyone says she is when she didn't medal in the 4CC, one of her Grand Prix assignments and came in 8th and 9th in two short programs.

If she's like anyone, it will be that she's like Tara Lipinski. Maybe she'll get really, really good next year and jump over everybody, if that's even possible today.

Frankly, I find it sort of depressing that everyone's predicting next year's medallist to be 67% like last Olympics, and the third spot is "slotted" to go to the female Patrick Chan. There have been no exciting new skaters at all who have amounted to anything in 4 years, and that's sad.
 

ForeverFish

Medalist
Joined
Aug 21, 2012
What abourt Mirai, Alyissa, Rachel and Caroline? angela wang? I think they are all gunning for that final spot.

I don't think Alissa will be coming back from a second hip injury--she should understand that her body is telling her, "Enough." And even if she does return, the odds that she'll be in competitive shape in time to challenge for that third spot are minuscule at best. The same goes for Rachael, who seems to have acknowledged that her skating career is indefinitely on hold.

The judges, as you probably saw at US Nationals this year, don't think as highly of Mirai or Caroline as they used to. At top form, Mirai could possibly challenge for that third spot, but she'll have to overhaul her jumping technique (i.e., fully rotating ) before anyone in the USFSA considers putting her on another Olympic team. She should have a chance to prove herself anew on the GP circuit.

Angela Wang has never been to a big junior OR senior competition, and I wouldn't expect the Olympics to be her first. She has the potential to finish in the top six at Nationals if she skates two clean programs. As of now, I'm more interested in seeing how many (if any) GP assignments she gets.
 

flying camel

Medalist
Joined
Nov 16, 2005
I would love to see Angela and Hanna on the senior GP next year. I think they are ready. They appear to be good competitors.
 

ForeverFish

Medalist
Joined
Aug 21, 2012
Sarah vs. Gracie

Sarah burst onto the scene in year #1 after Olympics. She had four years to improve herself and get herself into a position to be forgiven some small mistakes by the judges in the short program. By then she was the reigning world bronze medalist and had beaten both Michelle and Irina at Skate Canada, iirc. She was no newcomer and had a pretty good resume by then.

She probably was not as good as Michelle or Irina overall, but on that night she skated clean and neither of those skaters did.

Gracie burst onto the scene the year before the Olympics. She hasn't been around long enough to get "reputation points." Nor has she skated as consistently well as she could have. It's hard to believe she's as wonderful as everyone says she is when she didn't medal in the 4CC, one of her Grand Prix assignments and came in 8th and 9th in two short programs.

If she's like anyone, it will be that she's like Tara Lipinski. Maybe she'll get really, really good next year and jump over everybody, if that's even possible today.

Frankly, I find it sort of depressing that everyone's predicting next year's medallist to be 67% like last Olympics, and the third spot is "slotted" to go to the female Patrick Chan. There have been no exciting new skaters at all who have amounted to anything in 4 years, and that's sad.

She more than held it together in the FS at US Nationals, IMO. And she didn't crumble under the pressure at Worlds in the way that many other girls did--Gracie was the highest finisher of the "new generation" of teenagers. This is her first season as a senior, and while she hasn't handled her nerves as well as she could have, the amount of expectations thrust onto her in the few months of transition from junior to senior has been more than enough to spook her.
 

Jammers

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 4, 2010
Country
United-States
Sarah vs. Gracie

Sarah burst onto the scene in year #1 after Olympics. She had four years to improve herself and get herself into a position to be forgiven some small mistakes by the judges in the short program. By then she was the reigning world bronze medalist and had beaten both Michelle and Irina at Skate Canada, iirc. She was no newcomer and had a pretty good resume by then.

She probably was not as good as Michelle or Irina overall, but on that night she skated clean and neither of those skaters did.

Gracie burst onto the scene the year before the Olympics. She hasn't been around long enough to get "reputation points." Nor has she skated as consistently well as she could have. It's hard to believe she's as wonderful as everyone says she is when she didn't medal in the 4CC, one of her Grand Prix assignments and came in 8th and 9th in two short programs.

If she's like anyone, it will be that she's like Tara Lipinski. Maybe she'll get really, really good next year and jump over everybody, if that's even possible today.

Frankly, I find it sort of depressing that everyone's predicting next year's medallist to be 67% like last Olympics, and the third spot is "slotted" to go to the female Patrick Chan. There have been no exciting new skaters at all who have amounted to anything in 4 years, and that's sad.
I agree. The fact that the 3 Ladies who will most likely be on the podium were at the last Olympics and two of them medaled doesn't say a lot for this cycle heading into Sochi. I can't remember the last time a newcomer didn't get on the podium in the next Olympics.
 

jaylee

Medalist
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
I agree. The fact that the 3 Ladies who will most likely be on the podium were at the last Olympics and two of them medaled doesn't say a lot for this cycle heading into Sochi. I can't remember the last time a newcomer didn't get on the podium in the next Olympics.

Depends on how you define "newcomer." Do you mean a skater who made their senior debut during the 3 seasons leading up to the Olympic season? While a veteran is a skater who was a senior during the previous Olympic cycle? Then 2006 Olympics is the last time a newcomer didn't get on the podium. All three medalists were veterans who had been to a prior Olympics.

Not surprisingly, they all retired immediately after, leaving the door open for the next generation to take over. Which I think is what will happen after Sochi.

The newcomers for this cycle just haven't quite put everything together yet--not enough competitive experience, they each have weaknesses to work on, and some need better programs. But I can see that happening soon...probably not in time for Sochi, but right after Sochi.
 

chuckm

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Country
United-States
Of the ladies on the podium in Vancouver, Rochette was the only 'veteran', at 24; YuNa and Mao were 19. So it's not so surprising that the younger ones would return for Sochi. While Mao's consistency has fallen off in the intervening years, YuNa's has apparently not. I'm not sure YuNa will retire after Sochi---2018 Olympics are in her country. I do expect Kostner to retire, but Mao, who knows. Mao may be like Suguri, and continue on and on.
 

ForeverFish

Medalist
Joined
Aug 21, 2012
Of the ladies on the podium in Vancouver, Rochette was the only 'veteran', at 24; YuNa and Mao were 19. So it's not so surprising that the younger ones would return for Sochi. While Mao's consistency has fallen off in the intervening years, YuNa's has apparently not. I'm not sure YuNa will retire after Sochi---2018 Olympics are in her country. I do expect Kostner to retire, but Mao, who knows. Mao may be like Suguri, and continue on and on.

Yuna said that 2013 Worlds would probably be her last, so I'd be surprised if she did decide to continue competing after next year's Olympics. Given that she has about a 95% chance of repeating as the OGM, she really won't have any more titles to win or records to break. She'd likely find it hard to dredge up the motivation to look four years into the future.

That being said, it would probably be in Yuna's best interest to not attempt 2018. In five years, several of the younger girls could easily be at or above her level (Tukt, Sotnikova, Gold, Osmond, Li).
 

pangtongfan

Match Penalty
Joined
Jun 16, 2010
I doubt Tukt, Sotnikova, Gold, Osmond, or Li will ever be above Kim's best level of skating which is amongst the very best in history (and the best in history under COP standards). The only one of those who I think might ever even come close to Kim's best level of skating someday are Gold and Li (maybe Tuks, no chance for Sotnikova or Osmond IMO, they could win World medals or even World titles in the future years, but wont reach Kim's peak of skating for sure). So Kim coming back or not, if she wanted to, would be completely dependent on whether she could revive her former standard of skating at a relatively advanced age for amateur skating, but it certainly wouldnt be those girls scaring her away ever. As for no records to chase if Kim wins in Sochi she would have a chance to tie Henjie's record of 3 Olympic Golds if she were to win in Korea, so that would be incentive. I dont think she would continue competing non stop, she might go to the post Olympic Worlds, but would almost certainly take a break for awhile, but then could return for the pre Olympic Worlds just like she did this time, in preperation for the Olympics.
 

pangtongfan

Match Penalty
Joined
Jun 16, 2010
I agree. The fact that the 3 Ladies who will most likely be on the podium were at the last Olympics and two of them medaled doesn't say a lot for this cycle heading into Sochi. I can't remember the last time a newcomer didn't get on the podium in the next Olympics.

In 2006 the podium was 27 year old Slutskaya, 24 year old Arakawa, and 21 year old Cohen. 2 of those 3 had competed at the 1998 Olympics, and the 1994 Junior Worlds. The other was already in her 6th consecutive World or Olympic event, which would have been 8th without the age rule and an injury. Some field of newcomers, LOL!
 
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