Courtney Hicks GP season?! | Page 2 | Golden Skate

Courtney Hicks GP season?!

MoonlightSkater

On the Ice
Joined
May 17, 2011
It's unfortunate because if she did make the team, and I think it is a possibility, the international panel won't be familiar with her. I don't see how you can be 4th at Nationals and have a great summer skate and not get a GP spot from your host country.

I can't say I understand it, either, and I'm usually fairly forgiving with the USFSA choices (though there have been notable exceptions). The only other possibility that I can think of is that she requested not to have any Grand Prix assignments, but that is rather a stretch.
 

Jammers

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 4, 2010
Country
United-States
I agree. Cesario hasn't really done anything to deserve two assignments and Hicks certainly should at least have one GP event.
 

IleK

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 11, 2012
It is weird not only that she has no senior or junior assisgnements altough I think she was offered the junior GP but she said no (she probably wants to stay senior and prepare for the 3rd spot), but because she has no Senior B. I mean Nebelhorn and Finlandia are the most important senior Bs and who does USFSA send? Cain and Lam?? this is such a waste.
But I am really, really happy for Samantha. I 've never expected this, I am sure neither has she. But it is not her fault that France prefered her. As for USFSA, I think there is no unjustice, they both some good results in the last season ant they had to pick someone and that someone happened to be Samantha. I hope she will have good performences because this is her big chance to be seen.
 

FSGMT

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 10, 2012
It's unfortunate because if she did make the team, and I think it is a possibility, the international panel won't be familiar with her. I don't see how you can be 4th at Nationals and have a great summer skate and not get a GP spot from your host country.
That's exactly my point! :thumbsup:
 

gkelly

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
It is weird not only that she has no senior or junior assisgnements altough I think she was offered the junior GP but she said no (she probably wants to stay senior and prepare for the 3rd spot), but because she has no Senior B.

Hicks does have one Senior B assignment -- in Salt Lake City next week.

Whether she will get another, overseas, assignment remains to be seen.
 

IleK

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 11, 2012
Hicks does have one Senior B assignment -- in Salt Lake City next week.

Whether she will get another, overseas, assignment remains to be seen.

I ment aside that, being in her country and not that well known internationally. Like Finlandia and Nebelhorn are. She competes against her american rivals there, it will be like a mini national championships. I bet she would have loved some real competition like Finlandia or Nebelhorn.
 

FSGMT

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 10, 2012
The funniest thing would be if she beats Sam at Salt Lake and then Sam competes in two GPs when Courtney stays at home without having JGP/GP competitions!
 

mskater93

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 22, 2005
I ment aside that, being in her country and not that well known internationally. Like Finlandia and Nebelhorn are. She competes against her american rivals there, it will be like a mini national championships. I bet she would have loved some real competition like Finlandia or Nebelhorn.
It's probably more important for her to beat or be near point-wise with her American rivals
 

96skiluvr

On the Ice
Joined
Apr 3, 2013
I have to say, I completely agree with Samantha getting two spots (and mind you she originally had 0) over Courtney. As Dave on TSL said, Sam looks and skates much more like a senior lady, whereas Courtney still clunks around the ice, skating from jump to jump like a junior lady. I don't think Courtney would have been well received on the senior GP, but Sam will ver likely be well received.
And for the record, it's going to take a miracle for Courtney to get the 3rd spot. The USFSA would have to be idiots to put her on the Olympic team, where she'd be shoved down in the rankings, versus Alissa/Agnes/Mirai/Christina.
Courtney needs to do some serious work, NOW. Her posture, artistry, skating skills, speed, etc need serious work before she won't look out of place on the senior GP. Sam completely deserves those two spots.
 

Selene

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 7, 2012
Then why does Gracie get to be on the GP and the world team? Her presentation isn't any better than Courtney's and they have equally strong jumps. I don't see why one skater gets pushed into the world stage (and gets inflated PCS marks for horrible choreography and interpretation) and the other is snubbed for GP events.

I agree that Courtney earned the Skate America spot over both Zhang and Cesario by soundly beating them at Nationals. She deserved at least one GP, IMO. And I don't see why the USFSA prefers Zhang and Cesario, who are way inferior technically and won't get great PCS on the GP either.
 

tulosai

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 21, 2011
Then why does Gracie get to be on the GP and the world team? Her presentation isn't any better than Courtney's and they have equally strong jumps. I don't see why one skater gets pushed into the world stage (and gets inflated PCS marks for horrible choreography and interpretation) and the other is snubbed for GP events.

I agree that Courtney earned the Skate America spot over both Zhang and Cesario by soundly beating them at Nationals. She deserved at least one GP, IMO. And I don't see why the USFSA prefers Zhang and Cesario, who are way inferior technically and won't get great PCS on the GP either.

Gracie's presentation appears lots better than Courtney's even though they both have an equally dismal understanding of music, and here is why: Her posture is excellent, and her lines are excellent. Courtney needs serious work on these two areas. She has strong and powerful jumps, and she has good energy, but when I watch her I end up cringing and it's not because she has no sense of presentation/music- it is because her posture and lines are garish. If she could improve those two things A LOT she might be on-par-ish with Gracie (I think Gold's jumps are better because they are bigger and better controlled but let's not split hairs).
 

nam57

Rinkside
Joined
Sep 5, 2013
Has Zhang done anything over the summer? I am confused why she does not need to?
 

Jammers

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 4, 2010
Country
United-States
Something is wrong when skaters like Zhang and Lam are getting Senior B or GP events while Courtney get the US Senior B which is made up of mostly top US skaters but not top foreign skaters.
 

FSGMT

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 10, 2012
Courtney needs to do some serious work, NOW. Her posture, artistry, skating skills, speed, etc need serious work before she won't look out of place on the senior GP. Sam completely deserves those two spots.
I actually think her SS and speed are excellent, she surely has to work on her choreography, lines, musicality, interpretation etc. but I would say that her speed is one of the best (and for me that's one of the reasons that explain the enormous height of her jumps)...
 

Blades of Passion

Skating is Art, if you let it be
Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 14, 2008
Country
France
Courtney can't rotate 3T combinations as consistently Gracie, although she does have a better Triple Flip. Since doing a 3-3 combo is more important than not getting ! call on your Flip, Gracie does have the edge on jumps. She also has better spins. Gracie's presentation is better as well, for the reasons mentioned above.

I agree that Courtney earned the Skate America spot over both Zhang and Cesario by soundly beating them at Nationals.

Nationals was really weird, with the top 3 after the SP all doing poorly in the LP and Gracie Gold coming out and skating the technically strongest LP in the entire World after bombing the SP. I feel the scoring was really off. IMO, Cesario was held down for being an unknown and not having a 3-3. Zhang was held down with the scoring of her SP jumps, although she still shouldn't have placed that high because there's so much lacking in her overall skating (even her Layback at this past Nationals was lower quality than usual). Ashley Wagner and Agnes Zawadski were held up, as was Yasmin Siraj (in the LP she wasn't punished enough for poor technique on her jumps and her PCS were a bit too generous as a result of skating in the final flight). My rankings would have been:

01. Gracie Gold (10th SP, 1st LP)
02. Samantha Cesario (5th SP, 2nd LP)
03. Courtney Hicks (4th SP, 3rd LP)
04. Ashley Wagner (1st SP, 9th LP)
05. Christina Gao (7th SP, 4th LP)
06. Agnes Zawadski (3rd SP, 10th LP)
07. Mirai Nagasu (2nd SP, 11th LP)
08. Caroline Zhang (9th SP, 6th LP)
09. Angela Wang (11th SP, 5th LP)
10. Yasmin Siraj (6th SP, 8th LP)
11. Hannah Miller (8th SP, 7th LP)
 

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 27, 2009
I really don't think Courtney is miles ahead of Samantha...their records are quite similar:

Courtney at JGP: 1st, 2nd, 4th
Samantha at JGP: 3rd (3), 4th

Courtney at Junior Worlds: 6th (2011); 5th (2013)
Samantha at Junior Worlds: 4th (2013)

Courtney has the edge as far as JGP, but Samantha has had a better finish at Junior Worlds. Yes Courtney has the 3-3, but as BOP pointed out she isn't consistent on it.
 

Jammers

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 4, 2010
Country
United-States
Yes but Samantha has had trouble rotating her jumps. At Jr Worlds she had a ton of her jumps under-rotated in the LP otherwise she would have won a medal.
 

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 27, 2009
Yes but Samantha has had trouble rotating her jumps. At Jr Worlds she had a ton of her jumps under-rotated in the LP otherwise she would have won a medal.

And even with those URs, she still beat Courtney in the FS thanks to strong PCS (nearly six points!)

Point is the international judges do like Samantha's packaging and so do the commentators.
 

Blades of Passion

Skating is Art, if you let it be
Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 14, 2008
Country
France
Cesario still should have won a medal. The underrotation call on her first Loop was bullcrap and she shouldn't have received -GOE on her other jumps that were underrotated but otherwise clean and had good height. The even bigger problem with the judging was the PCS, where Cesario's maturity and musicality wasn't given any credit in comparison to the little Russian girls.

Also, Anna Pogorilaya's 3T's were underrotated but she didn't get called on it. No way should that girl have been on the podium.
 

SaraM

Final Flight
Joined
Aug 21, 2013
Country
Norway
Cesario still should have won a medal. The underrotation call on her first Loop was bullcrap and she shouldn't have received -GOE on her other jumps that were underrotated but otherwise clean and had good height. The even bigger problem with the judging was the PCS, where Cesario's maturity and musicality wasn't given any credit in comparison to the little Russian girls.

Also, Anna Pogorilaya's 3T's were underrotated but she didn't get called on it. No way should that girl have been on the podium.

100% agreed!!
 
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