2016 Team Challenge Cup - Gen Info/Pre-chat | Page 78 | Golden Skate

2016 Team Challenge Cup - Gen Info/Pre-chat

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avatar credit: @miyan5605
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Feb 27, 2012
I meant the votes that determined which skaters would participate in the event? Have I misunderstood that such a thing was done?

Ok. It should be on the website that had the poll, if anywhere.

No numerical data from the fan voting were released as final results.
No final vote counts. No final vote percentages.

Only the names of the third man and third lady voted onto each team were announced.

(During the voting period, the voting platforms did show numerical data, but we do not know any final numbers. Even if a fan had recorded screen grabs one nanosecond before the voting period ended, we have no way of knowing how many [if any] votes subsequently would have been deemed invalid.

LOL, I just looked back at one of the original Pollcaster links, and it still is accepting new votes today :laugh:, so the numbers there of course are meaningless -- not to mention what I said above about the possibility/likelihood of some Woobox votes and many Pollcaster votes being invalidated.)


.... I have the scoring and score calc laid out in the video and results threads, if that would be a help. Links to all relevant posts are in the OP.

Doris, many thanks :bow: for thoroughly documenting all the number-crunching for how the convoluted rules were applied to the raw individual scores to determine the Friday team results and Saturday team results.
 
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Joined
Jun 21, 2003
http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2016/apr/23/john-blanchette-manufactured-team-challenge-cup-mi/
Did they succeed? Well, to put it in skating terms, they always try the quad, but in this case landed a triple. The first three sessions drew 5,151, 6,425 and 5,919 – all of them still more than free football attracted across town at Albi Stadium, and this with an average ticket price of $85.

Not a bad box office, not bad at all. The arena's capacity is about 14,000, so it was more than a third full for each session. Took in about one and a half million dollars plus the gala.

Interesting that the pairs and dance competition seems to have been the most popular. Maybe the Saturday afternoon time slot was favorable, especially for families with young children.
 
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CoyoteChris

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Joined
Dec 4, 2004
Not a bad box office, not bad at all. The arena's capacity is about 14,000, so it was more than a third full for each session. Took in about one and a half million dollars plus the gala.

Interesting that the pairs and dance competition seems to have been the most popular. Maybe the Saturday afternoon time slot was favorable, especially for families with young children.

Just for the record, Toby and Barb, IIRC, said the arena was configured for 10,000. Some sections were empty and I think they were reserved for mucky mucks, lord high executioners, and people who wouldnt throw
things down on the athletes or judges in their boxes. Also for the record, John Blanchette has proven himself over the years to be rather contemptuous of figure skating. Toby and Barb said on camera that they sold out the
AVAILABLE tickets 50 percent on Friday and 75 on Saturday and Sunday. That might be a bit optomistic but it was way better than nationals and way better than the last Stars/Champions on ice that showed up. I think Gracie is right.
The competition grew on us over the three days. We were used to serious comps and at the start, we took this one probably too seriously even knowing it wasnt. By the end, we were just glad for our own happy moments....
Sometimes, even just one skate can make a comp worth the money....Yuna Kim's free skate at London Ont. Worlds, Jason's at TCC. Many other good skates, of course....icing on the cake.....glad I went.
 

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!
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Joined
Dec 27, 2009
I didn't think the Blanchette column was that contemptuous. He even noted that skating did better than the free WSU scrimmage football game across town.
 
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CoyoteChris

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 4, 2004
http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2016/apr/23/john-blanchette-manufactured-team-challenge-cup-mi/

Some comments on the event and what place team events can have in the sport by freelance sports columnist John Blanchette in the Spokesman Review. He also wrote a few pieces for Ice Network.

ref: It’s curious that far more people flocked to the Arena in 2002 for arguably a less distinguished field. But the mavens from out of state – and country – who follow the circuit did not put this on the itinerary, especially with worlds having been on this continent just three weeks ago.

He is correct about worlds sucking off dollars, but look at the field and the place in time and space for SkateAmerica 2002. I guess he can argue that MK is less distinguished than Evgenia if HE wants to, but I like seeing "no names" like Brian Joubert, Pang and Tong, Tan and Ben, Zhang and Zhang and Tatiana and Roman, and Tatiana and Maxim.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_Skate_America
Blanchette, you are a charlatan about figure skating. Go back to games of the ball. Free lance THIS!
 

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 27, 2009
ref: It’s curious that far more people flocked to the Arena in 2002 for arguably a less distinguished field. But the mavens from out of state – and country – who follow the circuit did not put this on the itinerary, especially with worlds having been on this continent just three weeks ago.

He is correct about worlds sucking off dollars, but look at the field and the place in time and space for SkateAmerica 2002. I guess he can argue that MK is less distinguished than Evgenia if HE wants to, but I like seeing "no names" like Brian Joubert, Pang and Tong, Tan and Ben, Zhang and Zhang and Tatiana and Roman, and Tatiana and Maxim.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_Skate_America
Blanchette, you are a charlatan about figure skating. Go back to games of the ball. Free lance THIS!

Honestly, it's good that there are outside perspective on the sport. Skating can be so insular. Maybe you don't agree with all his points, but he's exactly the type of guy you want to critique the sport because he's coming from the outside.
 
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CoyoteChris

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Joined
Dec 4, 2004
Sooooo ... just curious:

I see that the detailed practice schedule for today (Friday) finally is shown on the TCC website:

Did it appear there in time to be helpful to anyone in Spokane with a practice pass?

I could swear that I had looked at the schedule page a few hours ago, and the detailed schedule was not there yet.




Awwww, thanks, Chris.

Mrs. P definitely rocks :luv17:.
Wish she could go to every comp everywhere and report for GS.

No worries. The detailed PDF schedule will come out any day now! Thankfully, I have important friends in High Places who kept me informed about who was practicing when....
 

CoyoteChris

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 4, 2004
Honestly, it's good that there are outside perspective on the sport. Skating can be so insular. Maybe you don't agree with all his points, but he's exactly the type of guy you want to critique the sport because he's coming from the outside.

We shall agree to disagree. I remember his "work" from 2010 that put me off on him. I am an outsider to many sports. If I were writing about football, I could be very negative about it or positive or neutral...that's true just about in any sport. If he wants to critique figure skating as an outsider to USFS for bucks, fine. Lets see how many magazines publish his work that we care about. Anyone who calls the field of SA2002 less distiguished than these fine folks who did show up is a charlaten. SA is a cross section of the world's best skaters. TCC was supposed to be THE worlds best skaters, period. And many were. Buts its apples and Oranges. And skating was much more popular then. There were people with attention spans back then.
Outside perspectives can be useful,we do agree on that. Positive, constructive critism is very useful and to be sought after. Anyone who thinks it is curious that people flocked to SA 2002 at that time and place in skating history does not know anything about the sport.
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
^ I don't know. I wouldn't blame the guy for not knowing anything about figure skating. Lots of people don't. I think he was just trying to play up the the fact that the TCC had some of the world's best skaters.

Actually, both of the events (2016 TCC and 2002 Skate America) had a lot of no-shows. 2002 Skate America was supposed to feature ALL of the Olympic champions that year, but Sarah Hughes, Berezhnaya and Sikharulidze, and Sale and Pelletier all withdrew, and Alexei Yagudin withdrew after the short program.

In fact, it is one of my favorite skating stories: Michelle had intended to take the Grand Prix season off that year and then to decide later whether she wanted to compete at Nationals or not. The USFSA, fearing a dud of a show at Skate America with all the withdrawals (especially Sarah Hughes, who was heavily promoted), reached out to Shep Goldberg and "made Michelle an offer she couldn't refuse." Michelle said afterward, quoting Michael Corleone, "just when you think you are out, they pull you back in."

By winning Skate America, Michelle qualified for the Grand Prix Final that year even though she had only one event. But she put her foot down: "Hey, the GP Final wasn't in the deal!" Skate America did, however, get her competitive juices flowing again and she went to National and on to Worlds, winning her fifth world championship.

Anyway, what a competiton it was (2002 Skate America)! Great performances all up and down the roster. Teenaged charmers Jennifer Kirk and Ann Patrice McDonough were the toast of the town, along with the equally charming Jobert. I bet Mr. Blanchette wrote some glowing reports of the competition, if he was writing for the Review back then.
 

CoyoteChris

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 4, 2004
^ I don't know. I wouldn't blame the guy for not knowing anything about figure skating. Lots of people don't. I think he was just trying to play up the the fact that the TCC had some of the world's best skaters.

Actually, both of the events (2016 TCC and 2002 Skate America) had a lot of no-shows. 2002 Skate America was supposed to feature ALL of the Olympic champions that year, but Sarah Hughes, Berezhnaya and Sikharulidze, and Sale and Pelletier all withdrew, and Alexei Yagudin withdrew after the short program.

In fact, it is one of my favorite skating stories: Michelle had intended to take the Grand Prix season off that year and then to decide later whether she wanted to compete at Nationals or not. The USFSA, fearing a dud of a show at Skate America with all the withdrawals (especially Sarah Hughes, who was heavily promoted), reached out to Shep Goldberg and "made Michelle an offer she couldn't refuse." Michelle said afterward, quoting Michael Corleone, "just when you think you are out, they pull you back in."

By winning Skate America, Michelle qualified for the Grand Prix Final that year even though she had only one event. But she put her foot down: "Hey, the GP Final wasn't in the deal!" Skate America did, however, get her competitive juices flowing again and she went to National and on to Worlds, winning her fifth world championship.

Anyway, what a competiton it was (2002 Skate America)! Great performances all up and down the roster. Teenaged charmers Jennifer Kirk and Ann Patrice McDonough were the toast of the town, along with the equally charming Jobert. I bet Mr. Blanchette wrote some glowing reports of the competition, if he was writing for the Review back then.

It would be interesting to read his stories from 2002, 2007, and 2010. All I remember is they went against my grain. I sent a link to Mrs. P with MK's long program at SA2002. This was her "Independant" period and she didnt do well. But she did "Save" SA2002 for Spokane as evidenced by the vids showing the packed stands.
I really enjoyed your recap of the MK story. My fuzzy recollections of that period in time seem to remember that MK got a nastygram from the ISU that if she and skaters like her werent going to compete in the GP series and bring in the bucks, there would be repercussions. But the most important thing I remember was that this was my first competition and I loved it...it ruined me for shows forever....Nationals from 2007 to date, 2 four conts, three worlds, and many SkateAmericas and one SkateCanada....plus sectionals and regionals....its been quite a ride.
As I told Mrs P via email, I am going to try and keep an open mind and read some of Mr. B's games of the ball work and see how he expresses himself there. And report back to Mrs. P.
 
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