Agree with that! Last year's tinker bell and this year's Gone with the Wind will never win you a Worlds championship. Still a little too much arm flailing for me with Polina.
2016 US Nationals Senior Ladies FP
- Thread starter tulosai
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So I didn't read the whole thread--it's super long after all, but here's my take:
1. Polina (with Gracie beating her by some way in the free, just not enough to make up for her botched combo in the short)
2. Gracie or Tyler
3. whoever the other one in number 2
4. Mirai
5. Ashley
I think Mirai and Ashley were really close as Ashley's free program technical was slightly higher and Mirai only did triple flip double toe in the short. But Gracie should have been more than 8 points back of Polina. With a botched combo, she should have been behind Bradie or pretty close (in 7th or 8th), fighting her way back onto that podium. I don't know--maybe I have a 6.0 mentality still, but I don't understand how someone who skates two clean programs with the same or better technical difficulty can lose behind someone who pops a combo into a single in the short. Yes, Gracie had better GOE's on everything in the free, but her short program would have put her out of the last group at any World championships / Olympics. This is probably not really true, but it feels like the judges manufactured things so that the final group in the free would be all the top ladies and look really good on TV. I just hate how even at the press conference, all the attention was on Gracie and Ashley, when Polina was miles better than Ashley at this competition, perhaps even better than Gracie. Polina had two triple triples, Gracie had one triple triple and double axel triple toe double toe. They both had a triple double combination in the 2nd half. Yes, Gracie's GOE's / PCS should have put her on top of Polina in the free, but not by 10+ points.
And Tyler got robbed. Her technical score was better than Ashley's in both programs, but she got held back by 15 points in PCS total. Maybe Ashley's PCS are better than Tyler's, but not that much better.
They just wanted to send Gracie, Polina, and Ashley because they're trying to build this "Big Three" myth. Based on just this competition, Ashley does not deserve to go to Worlds. But maybe that is how figure skating is changing--it is no longer about just what you do that night. I think that that's a reasonable change, but I wish it would be made explicitly rather than worked in by fixing scores / individual competition results. : (
1. Polina (with Gracie beating her by some way in the free, just not enough to make up for her botched combo in the short)
2. Gracie or Tyler
3. whoever the other one in number 2
4. Mirai
5. Ashley
I think Mirai and Ashley were really close as Ashley's free program technical was slightly higher and Mirai only did triple flip double toe in the short. But Gracie should have been more than 8 points back of Polina. With a botched combo, she should have been behind Bradie or pretty close (in 7th or 8th), fighting her way back onto that podium. I don't know--maybe I have a 6.0 mentality still, but I don't understand how someone who skates two clean programs with the same or better technical difficulty can lose behind someone who pops a combo into a single in the short. Yes, Gracie had better GOE's on everything in the free, but her short program would have put her out of the last group at any World championships / Olympics. This is probably not really true, but it feels like the judges manufactured things so that the final group in the free would be all the top ladies and look really good on TV. I just hate how even at the press conference, all the attention was on Gracie and Ashley, when Polina was miles better than Ashley at this competition, perhaps even better than Gracie. Polina had two triple triples, Gracie had one triple triple and double axel triple toe double toe. They both had a triple double combination in the 2nd half. Yes, Gracie's GOE's / PCS should have put her on top of Polina in the free, but not by 10+ points.
And Tyler got robbed. Her technical score was better than Ashley's in both programs, but she got held back by 15 points in PCS total. Maybe Ashley's PCS are better than Tyler's, but not that much better.
They just wanted to send Gracie, Polina, and Ashley because they're trying to build this "Big Three" myth. Based on just this competition, Ashley does not deserve to go to Worlds. But maybe that is how figure skating is changing--it is no longer about just what you do that night. I think that that's a reasonable change, but I wish it would be made explicitly rather than worked in by fixing scores / individual competition results. : (
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- Feb 25, 2006
I didn't think of this until now, but why was Amber Glenn not competing? Is she injured? Did she retire?
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- Feb 27, 2012
Amber is not retired. Plans to be back next season.
She had to withdraw from sectionals b/c of health issues.
https://twitter.com/AmberGlenn_/status/666783589141377024 (Nov 17)
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- Jun 21, 2003
I agree. It is not the job of the judges to send messages. They have enough on their hands judging a skating contest.
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- Feb 25, 2006
Thanks!
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- Nov 16, 2005
Has anyone seen any podium pictures for the ladies?
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- Nov 19, 2013
Here's the take from my only somewhat knowledgeable husband who watched with me over the weekend. Gracie look terrified, but totally pulled it off and deserved to win. Polina's very talented but the program is a complete snooze. Ashley's pop looked to him like a lazy mistake and Mirai is a just a little bundle of cute.
So, basically, he saw what we saw. I'm just so happy that everyone put out very respectable longs.
All the best at worlds, ladies!
So, basically, he saw what we saw. I'm just so happy that everyone put out very respectable longs.
All the best at worlds, ladies!
- Joined
- Apr 8, 2014
Congrats to Gracie, she pulled it together in the free skate. However, she really needs to work on consistency. I don't think her short program deserved that score, should have been scored lower. If she can pull out two clean programs, she should be on the podium at worlds. Polina needs to fix her packaging, her programs make me feel like she is competing at the junior level. I feel like every time I start to give up on Gracie and Ashley, they start to prove me wrong. Maybe, I should have lower expectations for both of them and they will surprise me 
Which only adds to the frustration with the US women. They show flashes of brilliance every now and then (typ. domestically) as a tease...and then ALWAYS proceed to choke at a major international comp.
Best thing is just to accept that it won't ever happen...especially in Wagner's case (too long).
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- Apr 2, 2009
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Yeah, when it's Mirai she gets nailed but they ignored Polina's URs. In any event - great competition!
I'm proud of all the girls especially the top 4! Mirai had me so worried with that boot issue (yikes Mirai - it always seems to be something last few Nationals!) but she came through. She was never going to be allowed on the Worlds team even if she'd skated lights out both days imo - but top 4 is terrific and she's going to 4CCs! And hopefully she'll keep going upwards and gain back the respect she's seemed to have lost from judges over the years.
I am so happy that Gracie came through. I like Polina but she still seems so unfinished to me. I didn't like her program or her hair style - like someone said she seemed more Sueellen than Scarlett. Not even a Melanie.
I actually thought Ashley had done enough to pull ahead of Polina but I guess the eight point lead Edmunds had from the short was too much for Wagner to overcome. Back to back you could really see how Ashley sells her programs better than Mirai (and I LOVE Mirai - I'm a huge fan of hers). Nagasu is getting some of her mojo back though. I hope she does great at 4CCs and I hope the U.S. girls do awesome too at Worlds - I'd love for one of them at least to bring home a medal (at last!).
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