2014 Pokal der Blauen Schwerter JGP Ladies FP | Page 3 | Golden Skate

2014 Pokal der Blauen Schwerter JGP Ladies FP

kwanatic

Check out my YT channel, Bare Ice!
Record Breaker
Joined
May 19, 2011
Iushenko just missed a golden opportunity to get a medal here. :disapp:
 

Totentanz

Ursula Gumennik
Medalist
Joined
Feb 28, 2012
Three little pretty ladies on the podium:)

Wakaba is going to JGP final, well deserved. Elizabet's chance of qualifying seems low but possible. Alexandra needs to win her next event I suppose.
 

Sam-Skwantch

“I solemnly swear I’m up to no good”
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
Country
United-States
Re: wrong protocols :bang:

Oops :slink: Working ,watching skating, and paying attention are hard to do. I can usually only do two things at a time.
 

Chemistry66

Mmmmm, tacos.
Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 16, 2010
Chloe Villedey of Luxembourg (who was apparently born in Tokyo, which is cool) got a costume failure deduction. Oof.

ETA: looks like something (an earring or a hair clip or something like that) flew off when she did her Biellmann.
 

Alex D

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 23, 2013
Ya the girls were very busy today they had to collect all kinds of costume stuff from the ice.

Thanks for posting the protocols btw. I was on the ice so I couldn't and we had an internet failure anyways at the ice rink :D

It was a very cute podium wasn't it? These girls are a joy to watch and the best is they are always smiling ;)

Its been a really long day for me, 16 hours :think: so I really need some sleep.

The competition will continue tomorrow at 4 Eastern / 10.00 CET / 17.00 Japan standard with the pairs, followed by the men FS at 6.30 Eastern / 12.30 CET / 19.30 Japan Standard so don't miss that.
 

Alex D

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 23, 2013
I just started watching... I dunno, I wish there was some kind of minimal requirements for Juniors so the competition would be more exciting :scratch:

I don't think it actually transports into the living room of people but they are so proud to skate their elements, those single Axels, those slow spins or goofy looking steps - for them its living their dream and if I look into their eyes then its proud what I see.

Every skater be it from Indonesia, Hong Kong or Luxemburg - they had my full attention and still have my full respect for what they are doing.

Personally,

for me every skater is important. Its the one who does single jumps and the one who does triple combination. I was watching all the practice sessions and you cant believe how hard these little girls work.

And for them landing a single Axel is massive and if they then get no support from the crowd then I feel sad because we cant measure everything just in triples or doubles and level 4s. There is a lot more and to me as I said, if you sit there at the ice rink, if they look at you then you see how proud they are for every element that works be it trivial for a big skater, for them it means the world.

I already have a special spot reserved for them in my column, they deserve that so much.

I wished a skater good luck today, she was smiling for minutes because someone noticed her. This little moments are for me so important in sport, that's why I feel that everyone should be allowed to start. Where else should they skate? Most of their countries don't have any events, the big trophies don't let everyone so?
 

hippomoomin

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 30, 2012
Proklova's new LP does not really do her any good. With an injury, I think it would be smarter to keep one programs from last season. I like her programs last year much better than this year's.
Maybe Wakaba does not look like a typical 13 yr old, everyone seems to be very confident in her jumps in the future. We have to see in what way she grows in the next two years. I always remember how Risa Shoji lost her jumps when she grew taller.
 

burntBREAD

Medalist
Joined
Mar 27, 2010
Proklova's new LP does not really do her any good. With an injury, I think it would be smarter to keep one programs from last season. I like her programs last year much better than this year's.
Maybe Wakaba does not look like a typical 13 yr old, everyone seems to be very confident in her jumps in the future. We have to see in what way she grows in the next two years. I always remember how Risa Shoji lost her jumps when she grew taller.

Risa Shoji had pretty horrendous technique and was already URing all over when she appeared. Aside from the lip, Higuchi's jump technique is probably the best we've seen from the juniors this year internationally.
 

[email protected]

Medalist
Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 26, 2014
If Proklova wins next event and Sotskova comes second they are both in the final. But Sasha might consider skiping it - looks like she has not recovered and it may be not worth it.
 

unico

Final Flight
Joined
Feb 10, 2014
I don't think it actually transports into the living room of people but they are so proud to skate their elements, those single Axels, those slow spins or goofy looking steps - for them its living their dream and if I look into their eyes then its proud what I see.

Every skater be it from Indonesia, Hong Kong or Luxemburg - they had my full attention and still have my full respect for what they are doing.

Personally,

for me every skater is important. Its the one who does single jumps and the one who does triple combination. I was watching all the practice sessions and you cant believe how hard these little girls work.

And for them landing a single Axel is massive and if they then get no support from the crowd then I feel sad because we cant measure everything just in triples or doubles and level 4s. There is a lot more and to me as I said, if you sit there at the ice rink, if they look at you then you see how proud they are for every element that works be it trivial for a big skater, for them it means the world.

I already have a special spot reserved for them in my column, they deserve that so much.

I wished a skater good luck today, she was smiling for minutes because someone noticed her. This little moments are for me so important in sport, that's why I feel that everyone should be allowed to start. Where else should they skate? Most of their countries don't have any events, the big trophies don't let everyone so?
Alex D, you truly seem like a wonderful person. :)
 

humbaba

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 12, 2004
I don't think it actually transports into the living room of people but they are so proud to skate their elements, those single Axels, those slow spins or goofy looking steps - for them its living their dream and if I look into their eyes then its proud what I see.

Every skater be it from Indonesia, Hong Kong or Luxemburg - they had my full attention and still have my full respect for what they are doing.

Personally,

for me every skater is important. Its the one who does single jumps and the one who does triple combination. I was watching all the practice sessions and you cant believe how hard these little girls work.

And for them landing a single Axel is massive and if they then get no support from the crowd then I feel sad because we cant measure everything just in triples or doubles and level 4s. There is a lot more and to me as I said, if you sit there at the ice rink, if they look at you then you see how proud they are for every element that works be it trivial for a big skater, for them it means the world.

I already have a special spot reserved for them in my column, they deserve that so much.

I wished a skater good luck today, she was smiling for minutes because someone noticed her. This little moments are for me so important in sport, that's why I feel that everyone should be allowed to start. Where else should they skate? Most of their countries don't have any events, the big trophies don't let everyone so?


I watched a senior summer comp where one of the skaters was a stocky young lady in her late teens who looked like she would do better on the softball field than at the ice rink. During her short program, it became obvious that her skill level was much lower than the other competitors. I wondered why she would enter a competition that was so clearly too strong for her. But there she was in a pretty dress with ribbons in her hair. By the time she finished I was feeling very sorry and embarrassed for the girl. But when she skated off the ice, I noticed she looked happy. She hugged her coach and her face was glowing. By the time the long program came around, I was cheering this skater on rather than pitying her.

Obviously, despite the falls and the slow-motion spins and the labored double jumps that barely got off the ice, this girl got something meaningful and satisfying from participating in that competition. For some skaters, the most important thing really is just to be there and take part. In its own way, that is great fun to watch.
 

enzet

On the Ice
Joined
Sep 13, 2006
I was in Dresden yesterday and here are some of my impressions from the ladies Free:

1. Wakaba Higuchi
After being completely blown away by her in Ostrava, I already knew what to expect, so I could better focus on the details as well.
I was a little nervous for her, as she was struggling with her loop in the warm-up quite a bit. Popped the first three attempts, fell on the fourth before finally landing two clean ones. In Ostrava, she didnt put a foot wrong the entire time I was watching her and there was no doubt she would nail everything. She was just oozing confidence. This time she seemed slightly more cautious and had a little less spark than last time, but still went out there and except that step-out, hit all her jumps like it was nothing.
Her jumps are beautiful, very effortless, no hesitation going into them, perfect control in the air and very smooth landing with lots of flow out.
She has skating skills to die for, very secure edges, no wobbling at all, powerful stroking that generates speed easily. This is actually the thing I find most amazing about her considering she is only thirteen.
The security and control she has over every move make her look mature and polished.
Her spins need some work indeed. I guess she will never be very flexible, so it is important for her team to carefully choose spin positions she would look good at. Otherwise the speed and centering is quite ok.
It would also be nice if she could develop a more nuanced interpretation of the music in the future. Right now her performance is based on her power, zeal and enthousiasm which very charming but it is also obvious her range of expression is rather limited at the moment.
She has plenty of time to work on that though.
One more thing, I hope Im not wrong, but she seems to have the mental toughness necessary to make her a good competitor. If you look at her before she takes the ice and during her warm-up, she doesnt look nervous but very determined, happy to compete and ready to take all the others on. If she doesnt become too perfectionistic or hard on herself she could hopefully be fine in this department.

2. Elizabet Turzynbaeva
A very good skate for her. She already looked very good in the warm-up landing most of her jumps but, my god, she is like the tiniest thing I have ever seen! Its not her fault but it makes her look very fragile on the ice and she seems to be lacking power in her skating. I felt like I almost wasnt taking her performance all that seriously because she looked like a little girl who is going to completely change in few years. No offence intended, she is quite elegant, flexible and she was able to create an atmosphere with her skating. Her jumps are also rather high for her size (at least the first ones in her combinations) but also wobbly, with little flow out and dont seem fully under control. Anyway, a well deserved 2nd place.

3. Alexandra Proklova
That was a rough skate for her and, Im sorry to say, I wasnt all that impressed in general. Like Elizabet, she is extremely tiny, which makes her look immature. She is not that fragile and has more power to her skating than Turzynbaeva but her jumps were not with her that day and maybe because of that she wasnt even performing well. Based on the video of her SP, I thought she was very musical, with a wide range of expression and very nuaced interpretation compared to e.g. Wakaba, but in the FS I didnt see that. She also doesnt have particularly good lines or carriage, so there was little left to appreciate without her jumps or fire. I understand she is coming from an injury and is not in an ideal shape yet, so this competition is probably not a good indicator of her potential. For what she actually put out there that day, her score seemed very generous though.

4. Lutricia Bock
Lovely skater with nice jumps and presentation. I already liked her in Ostrava and she seems to be quite consistent. OK 3F-3T, mature in her skating. I would have her over Proklova in the Free.

5. Elizaveta Iushenko
Another one I remember very well from Ostrava and I liked her even better yesterday. Beautiful, elegant, mature skating. Loved her arms, lines and the way she expressed the music. This is what I call polish and if PCS was scored correctly, I think she should lead the top 10 in this segment. Out of the young Russian ladies I saw this season, I like her and Sotskova the best. If she could also land her jumps, she would be a force.

6. Mariko Kihara
Pretty good skate considering how bad she looked in the warm-up. She was much better in Ostrava though. Here she looked somewhat off and tired. I like her a lot. She doesnt have a distinguihing wow fator but she is very elegant, has nice jumps and does all her elements well.

Honourable mention:
I have to say I was VERY impressed by Alissa Scheidt. I liked by far the best of the German ladies and, along with Iushenko, she deserved the highest PCS, IMHO. She had amazing, effortless flow over the ice, super smooth edges (better than Wakaba), good speed and beautiful posture, lines and arms, clean poitions in her spins. Beautiful jumps too, when she landed them, although lacking in difficulty. For me, she has the perfect look on the ice and she really stood out already in the warm-up, where she did much better than in the actual competition. If she had the tech of the top girls, she would be my winner.
 

TMC

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 27, 2014
I'm calling it now. Higuchi on the Olympic podium 2018.
 

Miss Ice

Let the sky fall~
Medalist
Joined
Apr 16, 2006
I'm calling it now. Higuchi on the Olympic podium 2018.

YES. YES. YES. HOW IS SHE 13. FREAKING. YEARS. OLD?!?!?? She skates already with the maturity of a true Senior skater, and half of the senior skaters right now would die for that jump execution, that ice coverage, that speed and that grace. HOLY MOLY. WOW.

I see all the elements of the top 3 ladies from last seasons - Yuna, Mao, Carolina - in her... :love:
 
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