2014 Worlds - Pairs Free Skating

auser said:

Funny, Michelle Kwan popped into my mind during this S/S discussion. Thanks for expressing it CSG:yes:

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Oh my. I think Michelle might be insulted if Ssquared are the Kwan's and Kim's of pairs. They hardly skate clean and their programs while quirky never have had the smoothness of Kim or Kwan (ksquared). If anything V and T are more the Kwan or Kim.

So happy for Aliona and Robin! I've loved them since SA 2005; wow they've been around a long time!

Zhang looks like such a reliable partner -- but age difference with Pang is very noticeable. I still like them though.

Mirunna said:

Anyone who is questioning their amazing career is either a V/T extreme uber fan or in denial. This pair dominated since 2007-2008 season and led the sport for two Olympic cycles, winning medals at every single international competition they have entered since 2006. Sure, they will probably always regret their Olympic misses but overall they have one of the best career of pairs history (at least modern pair history). Totmianina/Marinin won the Olympics gold and I don't think they will ever come even close to the level of recognition S/S are getting. Olympic gold is not everything and on the long run, they will be much missed and appreciated for what they brought on the ice, not for their medals.

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Apart from their Olympic gold, I'm pretty sure Totmianina/Marinin are known less for their skating/accomplishments, and much more for 2004 Skate America

Really happy with MT/M and D/R. I LOVE MT/M's free program, not surprised to see them move up so much with it. It's great. I'd love to see them on the podium in the future, it's gotta be brutal being 4th two years in a row. It's a shame Meagan fell, because they definitely were in contention for silver if not for that. Still, D/R seemed a lot more at ease here - I'm a lot more hopeful about them going forward now.

Beautiful from S/S. Very happy to see them finish on top.

Skater Boy said:

Oh my. I think Michelle might be insulted if Ssquared are the Kwan's and Kim's of pairs. They hardly skate clean and their programs while quirky never have had the smoothness of Kim or Kwan (ksquared). If anything V and T are more the Kwan or Kim.

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This is ridiculous. Where did the original poster say "Kim"? Obviously Kim has an Olympic Gold Medal and you know that. So do V and T.

If you want to start a different comparison, go ahead, but I think they were talking about S/S being highly decorated and not winning an Olympic Gold Medal. So was Kwan. That comparison is valid.

Congrats once again to S/S for the 5th world championship!

Really thrilled for Aliona and Robin!

The Russians look well placed to dominate in the next quadrennial. And alas, American pairs are nowhere to be seen.

About the discussion of Artur Dmitriev, I went and looked up photos. My goodness, he does look ill-used. I hope it's just hard living and not some illness. He was a gorgeous skating god in his day.

Off topic: Does any one feel Aliona Savchenko and Tatiana Volosozhar look like twins? Or is it just me.

Good for S/S going out on a high note. Watching her cry over a silver or bronze was not something any of us wanted.

S/K were not as crisp as Sochi but I really came to love their fun free skate over the course of the season. They've positioned themselves so well for the next quad. Good luck to anyone who tries to beat them.

Happy to see D/R skating without the weight of the Olympics on their shoulders. She seriously seemed so much more in the zone. It was crazy. I don't know if a post Olympic World medal cures their Olympic disappointment but I'm sure it helps.

Gutted for MT/M. Coming in fourth two years in a row after putting out two good programs is really tough. I'll be rooting for them to podium next year. Everything is so lovely- they just need to skate a little bigger. And change the death spiral. But really they should be nothing but proud of their Olympic and World skates. When it counts the most they come up huge and that's so commendable. I think they were lowballed a bit on PCS.

China having 3 pairs spots back will be good. I don't particularly enjoy either team but I recognize their technical excellence when they're on.

B/L were really not that impressive. If Russian junior talent is coming up, I expect them to be passed and soon.

Glad to see B/H having a nice skate after her struggles in Sochi.

Beyond gutted seeing the faces of C/S in the Kiss and Cry and her in pain after that hard fall. I almost wish they had just skipped this after the highs of Boston and Sochi. But its really amazing that they went from just happy to be there in 2013 (like Z/B this time) to a team people expected things from in 2014. In a week or two, they'll realize that they're going to be called Olympic medalists for the rest of their lives and this Worlds placement largely doesn't matter as they kept the 2 spots and were never in medal contention. They should go into next season with confidence as the definitive US #1 and Olympic medalists but with some unfinished business motivating them from Worlds. That's a good place for them I think.

Z/B could have faceplanted on the ice and I would have preferred it to Denney/Coughlin representing the US. What a season for them- they exceeded everyone's expectations except maybe their own.

3 spots - Germany, China, Russia, Canada ?
1 spot - USA ?

JayW said:

Off topic: Does any one feel Aliona Savchenko and Tatiana Volosozhar look like twins? Or is it just me.

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only the platinum hair looks similar, nothing much other than that

sky_fly20 said:

3 spots - Germany, China, Russia, Canada ?
1 spot - USA ?

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3 spots (placements <13): Russia (9), Canada (7), China (11) Those three countries also took 6 out of the top 7 spots (Germany being the exception with the gold medal spot)
2 spots (placements <28): Germany (14; missed 3 spots it by one spot, bummer!) Italy (25), France (25), USA (25)

It was great to see the retribution for S/S. That was an absolutely incredible performance, even with the singled axels. The lifts were just astounding, especially the final one with the carry and seeing that near perfect throw 3salchow was a big relief.

It's a shame that the nerves seemed to have got the better of S/K. They were near perfect in the SP and really commanded the ice but their FS was a little tense. Still, a good performance.

I am glad that China is back to 3 spots and gutted that Germany missed 3 by one placement.

I think that Wendes got a bit lowballed in both programs, SP in particular. They did a stunning 2twist, off a very difficult entry with good height, both arms above and a perfect catch. But because it's a 2twist, it only got +1s. Meanwhile, there were a lot of 3twists with the lady landing on the man's shoulder, man exiting on two feet and other issues, not being deducted appropriately. It's not fair. And Wendes' basics are decent and both programs were very well choreographed and presented. Their PCS should have been higher, IMO.

I think that Bazarova/Larionov and Antipova/Maisuradze got overmarked on the PCS again in the FS. Especially B/L. Technically both of these teams are great (Bazarova's sbs jumps aside) but presentation-wise they have a lot to work on.

JayW said:

Off topic: Does any one feel Aliona Savchenko and Tatiana Volosozhar look like twins? Or is it just me.

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I don't think they look like twins but they have a lot in common. Both ladies were born in Ukraine and both ladies skated with Stanislav Morozov.

Aliona skated with Morozov representing Ukraine. They won the World Jr. Chapmionship in 2000. 2000 and 2001 they were
Ukraine National Champs and represented Ukraine at the 2002 Olympics. I am not sure exactly when Aliona
got together with Robin.

Tatiana skated with Morozov from 2004-2010 representing Ukraine then she got togehter
with Max and now represents Russia. Morozov is still involved as a coach to Tatiana and Max.

JayW said:

Off topic: Does any one feel Aliona Savchenko and Tatiana Volosozhar look like twins? Or is it just me.

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Tania is a dead ringer for Angela on the US version of "The Office", minus the scowl. Seriously, look it up. It's uncanny.

anyanka said:

Tania is a dead ringer for Angela on the US version of "The Office", minus the scowl. Seriously, look it up. It's uncanny.

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Actually someone did an article about it! http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...ooks-eerily-similar-to-angela-from-the-office

demarinis5 said:

I don't think they look like twins but they have a lot in common. Both ladies were born in Ukraine and both ladies skated with Stanislav Morozov.

Aliona skated with Morozov representing Ukraine. They won the World Jr. Chapmionship in 2000. 2000 and 2001 they were
Ukraine National Champs and represented Ukraine at the 2002 Olympics. I am not sure exactly when Aliona
got together with Robin.

Tatiana skated with Morozov from 2004-2010 representing Ukraine then she got togehter
with Max and now represents Russia. Morozov is still involved as a coach to Tatiana and Max.

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Aljona got together with Robin in 2003 after Ingo Steuer arranged a meeting via Email between the two. Since then they have been skating as a pair. In longevity, Aljona & Robin have broken a record as well. In pairs it is quite rare to skate that long together. The Protopopovs were another example for longevity and success.

Tatiana V. looks more like Ksenia Makarova or Caitlin Yankowskas. Aliona doesn't really look like anyone else, she has unique eyes. If she dyed her hair brown instead she would look nothing like Volosozhar.

wordsworthgirl said:

and yes, true that many former skaters become overweight, as most people do in their 40s and 50s, but Artur D has taken it to a new level.

and Ingo S has stayed slim and so handsome!

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Dumb question here, but are you guys talking about Artur Dmietriev?? One of my favs----where are you seeing him?

WeakAnkles said:

Congrats. You've managed to alienate one of the absolutely nicest people on these boards in less than a month. Not a record I would like to have, but I guess you go with what you got.

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anyanka said:

Congratulations to Aljona and Robin on becoming five-time world champions! It won't make up for not fulfilling their Olympic dream, but they can retire on a high note and know that they have helped to push the sport athletically and artistically (along of course with other top pairs like S/Z, P/T, K/S, V/T) in the last two quads.


And kudos to both Canadian pairs as well, D/R on a second consecutive bronze, and MTM on placing third in the FS and taking a small bronze for themselves. Both teams have pushed each other and done well and I hope they continue to encourage their other teammates for Canada.

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I was hoping that Kirsten & Dylan would medal on the podium too. I am trying to stay "unspoiled," as we are DVRing Universal Sports coverage, but since our American pairs weren't shown on the broadcast of the free skate, how did they do, and where did they place?

iluvtodd said:

I was hoping that Kirsten & Dylan would medal on the podium too. I am trying to stay "unspoiled," as we are DVRing Universal Sports coverage, but since our American pairs weren't shown on the broadcast of the free skate, how did they do, and where did they place?

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Hi...didn't see any replies to your question, so...

Castelli/Shnapir -- 11th
Zhang/Bartholomay -- 14th

:disapp: Pairs is actually my favorite discipline, so I keep wishing for a US pair (or 2...or 3) who can really challenge for the podium. Wanting to see a US pair w/ medals around their necks feels like being a RedSox fan pre 2004! Still, have been really enjoying the Canadians, as well as James/Cipiers (sp).