I think there are a couple of levels of hype. If you hype a junior who has yet to perform in the senior level, that is premature. If you hype some child who's years away from competing, that is another level of serious overhype. I'm thinking of Nathan, the young Asian-American boy who was a very big thing a couple of years ago.
But if a skater has been in the senior level for a couple of years and actually accomplishes a national championship/nearly medals/wins a short program (Mirai), or makes the Grand Prix Finale (Caroline), I think the attention is warranted. Something went very wrong with those skaters who had so much potential.
Another thing is bothering me. Everyone is talking about these girls going through puberty at 16 or 17 and having a growth spurt, etc. As a teacher with many years teaching in high schools, I can tell you that it is not that easy to tell the female seniors from the freshmen (with boys, it's a different story, of course). There is not usually any great growth spurt in the later teen years. Maybe just an inch or two is enough to throw everything off jumpwise, I don't know, but if these girls are really going through puberty at 17 years old, that is pretty unusual.
But if a skater has been in the senior level for a couple of years and actually accomplishes a national championship/nearly medals/wins a short program (Mirai), or makes the Grand Prix Finale (Caroline), I think the attention is warranted. Something went very wrong with those skaters who had so much potential.
Another thing is bothering me. Everyone is talking about these girls going through puberty at 16 or 17 and having a growth spurt, etc. As a teacher with many years teaching in high schools, I can tell you that it is not that easy to tell the female seniors from the freshmen (with boys, it's a different story, of course). There is not usually any great growth spurt in the later teen years. Maybe just an inch or two is enough to throw everything off jumpwise, I don't know, but if these girls are really going through puberty at 17 years old, that is pretty unusual.