Will Lipnitskaya pull off a comeback? | Page 7 | Golden Skate

Will Lipnitskaya pull off a comeback?

karne

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A height of 167 is a little shocking to me. That is dangerously tall. Please Anna, stop growing taller.

*raises eyebrows* "dangerously tall"? I'm 173cm. Can we not with the body shaming please?
 

moriel

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Mar 18, 2015
*raises eyebrows* "dangerously tall"? I'm 173cm. Can we not with the body shaming please?

i guess that is mostly about height vs skating, not body shaming - shorter ladies seem to do better, in average.
 

karne

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i guess that is mostly about height vs skating, not body shaming - shorter ladies seem to do better, in average.

When words like "dangerous", and a plea to stop growing - as if that was something anybody could help! - is definitely body shaming for her height. Height is not a factor in singles skating - else why do we have Olympic singles champions who are over six feet tall?
 

Seren

Wakabond Forever
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Dec 21, 2014
When words like "dangerous", and a plea to stop growing - as if that was something anybody could help! - is definitely body shaming for her height. Height is not a factor in singles skating - else why do we have Olympic singles champions who are over six feet tall?

I wouldn't say it's not a factor, it's basic physics that there will be some benefits to being shorter. But as karne says, we have very tall Olympic medalists. It's not the only factor. Is it challenging to adjust to being taller? Of course, but it doesn't make it dangerous. Especially when we are talking about elite athletes.

That said I hope Lip can rework her jump technique and come back strong. Her spins are magnificent.
 
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Alchamei

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Sep 14, 2014
When words like "dangerous", and a plea to stop growing - as if that was something anybody could help! - is definitely body shaming for her height. Height is not a factor in singles skating - else why do we have Olympic singles champions who are over six feet tall?

I wouldn't freak out so much, hippomoomin was no way bashing Anna or at least did not intend so, of course it is not the real danger and the word is used not really seriously. In this context it is still fine, since it's much more difficult for taller skaters to remain being good technically.
 

TheGrandSophy

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Apr 14, 2014
Well, tbh, the phraseology was a bit... alarmist. 'Dangerous' needs surely to be reserved for things that are likely to cause harm. And 'shocking' should not, IMO, be used for something that is rather common in the real world. A lot of women these days are way over 5ft 4/5. I realise that this is being said in the context of skating, but the words made me stop and mentally calculate what 167 was in feet and inches, thinking she had suddenly grown 1 metre in the last few months! :laugh:
 

Isabel_O'Reilly

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Nov 30, 2013
I think she will comeback strong, regardless of how she places. Most of the issues last year were more mental than physical and a few of them are ones that don't exist this year. Stress of the year after Olympics: no longer a problem. Change in boots: she's fully used to them now. Hard to find motivation: New technique and achieving better results. Lack of programs that were completely ready resulting in changes in music, choreography, and jump layouts: All three program ready before the end of June.

It's also clear from her social media that the problems from last year have helped her to grow stronger. The break from competition may have done her a lot of good as well. She seems happier, more confident, and more settled in her skin and that's saying quite a bit considering how strong she was already.

https://instagram.com/p/4Uh8X3kLT8/

This clip while very short already shows that even something she was already very good at has become even better making me believe that she's taken this time off to become better as an all-around skater and I'm sure that will pay off in the long run.
 
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Amei

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Nov 11, 2013
I think she will comeback strong, regardless of how she places.

She seems to me to be the type of skater that gets bothered more by poor performances than not winning gold.


https://instagram.com/p/4Uh8X3kLT8/

This clip while very short already shows that even something she was already very good at has become even better making me believe that she's taken this time off to become better as an all-around skater and I'm sure that will pay off in the long run.

Love that clip! Her spread-eagle into an Ina Bauer is beautiful
 

Isabel_O'Reilly

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Nov 30, 2013
She seems to me to be the type of skater that gets bothered more by poor performances than not winning gold.




Love that clip! Her spread-eagle into an Ina Bauer is beautiful

I know, when I first clicked on it in the fan fest thread I ended up just watching it on a loop for a few minutes before I manage to pull my attention to what I was supposed to be doing.
 

OS

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Mar 23, 2010
Has Julia stop growing in height? I'd never count her out without seeing her new programs first. A poor skater with a great program should able to match and even beat a good skater with a poor program in the 'ideal' world. Julia's charisma is among the very best even if her techniques other than spins often aren't. With an OGM reputation to boot, she has extra cushion when she delivers.

Pogo's 167cm surely have explained her poorer state last season... that is a massive growth to get through wow. Surprised she decide to stay with the tough looking coach, but may be that is what works in Russia? Tough love!
 
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jkun

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Mar 16, 2013
When words like "dangerous", and a plea to stop growing - as if that was something anybody could help! - is definitely body shaming for her height. Height is not a factor in singles skating - else why do we have Olympic singles champions who are over six feet tall?

I don't think this is an issue of body-shaming. It is true that height has an effect on jumping ability.. A skater has to develop much stronger technique and leg power to pull off the same jumps as a lady who is shorter in stature. In Men's it doesn't seem to have much of an effect, but in ladies skating it is incredibly rare to see skaters above 165cm do well, especially in jumps. It is exceptionally rare for a skater as tall as Carolina Kostner to do as well as she has. Even skaters like Yuna were relatively tall compared to the rest of the field! There is a lot more physical energy required to vault a taller skater into the air. Additionally, being taller means a higher center of gravity, and thus it is easier for taller skaters to get off axis in the air and all. Taller skaters have an enhanced presence on the ice and can usually cover much greater ice. I wouldn't say it is "dangerous," but definitely something that must be overcome through exceptional technique.
 

jkun

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Mar 16, 2013
Love that clip! Her spread-eagle into an Ina Bauer is beautiful

More people need to start doing Spread-eagle, Ina Bauers into 2A, I will miss it a lot with no Yuna around. It seems as though it was exceptionally difficult, as I don't see anyone but So Youn Park doing it.. Maybe someone will match Yuna's Spread-eagle 2A-3T from Vancouver soon.
 

Sam-Skwantch

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More people need to start doing Spread-eagle, Ina Bauers into 2A, I will miss it a lot with no Yuna around. It seems as though it was exceptionally difficult, as I don't see anyone but So Youn Park doing it.. Maybe someone will match Yuna's Spread-eagle 2A-3T from Vancouver soon.

I've been saying for a long time that this is something she should tackle. Sure her 2a isn't the highest but when she's on it can actually look extremely smooth considering how easily she traditions out of good ones..and the 3t after is always crisp. With her flexibility and capability to deliver a very high quality Ina Bauer....why not. I'm sure she's got bigger fish to fry currently but please....think about it for future considerations ;)
 

Tutto

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Jan 25, 2013
I'm not sure if Pogo has psych issues. She was such a strong competitor in the previous 2 seasons. Some of her struggles last season may have been puberty/growth or injury related. She said on her instagram that she is now 167 cm, and I thought she looked different last season compared to before, noticeably taller but she also had a thinner yet more mature look to her. Plus she was injured at the beginning of the season (withdrew from Nebelhorn) and then again at the end of the season (circa Worlds, a nasty injury involving a sprained ankle and torn ligaments). I think the psychological issues tend to arouse around the same time as puberty related issues anyways, and both can play a factor. For example, I think part of Julia's problem last season was physical but I also think some of it was mental. 16/17 year old girls are mostly very self conscious and can be really emotional, plus once you make mistakes, it's easy to get scared and lose the sense of fearlessness you used to have.

From what I can tell, both Julia and Anna (and Elena too, for that matter) are good competitors by nature. They are gritty, realistic, focused, and have shown they can deliver when it counts. So that makes me think what happened with Julia and Anna last season was not a permanent thing, and that any sort of "psychological issues" that had developed can and will hopefully subside once they become more comfortable in their own skin and develop a more mature mindset as they get older. To me, it seems like the ability to compete is often inherent - it can't be taught, you have it or you don't. Of course, things can change, but we've seen in the past many times that both Julia and Anna have the ability to compete. So I'd be surprised if this just went away. I'm rooting for both of them this season.

I think that Anna's problems this past season were mostly puberty related. I remember reading in one of Adelina's interviews that going through puberty her coordination was affected to the point that she could not jump for some months. I've just re-watched a few Anna's performances and I am convinced that discoordination was the issue, it affected her spins, jump landings (hence those awkward falls) even footwork at times. Hopefully she is past the worst now and will come stronger this season, as regards her issues with Tsareva that is another matter, sigh...
 

silverlake22

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Nov 12, 2009
I think that Anna's problems this past season were mostly puberty related. I remember reading in one of Adelina's interviews that going through puberty her coordination was affected to the point that she could not jump for some months. I've just re-watched a few Anna's performances and I am convinced that discoordination was the issue, it affected her spins, jump landings (hence those awkward falls) even footwork at times. Hopefully she is past the worst now and will come stronger this season, as regards her issues with Tsareva that is another matter, sigh...

Agree that physical growth probably contributed to her struggles this season, but unlike others, I'm not too worried about Anna's height of 167 cm. She's 17 now, so I would think she's done growing height wise or at most will grow another 1-2 cm. Also, for people in the US, 167 cm is not super tall, it's a tad over 65.5 inches or 5'5.5", I know this because when my family was living in Germany, the doctors there measured me as 167 cm and in the US I'm always 5'5.5". So sure for a female single skater that's on the taller side, but these days a lot of successful female skaters are about the same height such as:

Agnes Zawadzki - 170 cm
Carolina Kostner - 169/170 cm
Kiira Korpi - 169 cm
Mae Berenice Meite - 168 cm
Gracie Gold - 168 cm
Polina Edmunds - 167 cm (according to ISU bio, but looked taller than Gold at Nationals so likely 169-171 cm now)
Christina Gao - 167 cm
Shizuka Arakawa - 166 cm
Rika Hongo - 166 cm
Maria Artimeiva - 166 cm
Yuna Kim - 165 cm
Zijun Li - 165 cm

Once Anna is adjusted to her height, she should be fine. She may have dealt with inconsistency last season, but she still showed us she is capable of some fabulous jumps including her explosive 3lz-3t and 3lo-1/2lo-3s combos. No reason to be doom and gloom about her future, I was more pointing out her height as a reason she may have struggled last season - ie, because she was growing, not because she's "too tall".
 
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