2018-19 British figure skating

LandShark · Nov 12, 2018

To play Devil's Advocate, I really enjoy the fact that Fear /Gibson have shocked the skating fanworld. Part of the pleasure for me is the complete unexpectedness of this seasons improvement.

I think every sport, not just figure skating, hugely benefits when someone or something completely left field happens that no one foresaw.

F/G have kicked joyous, lunatic, carefree happiness and sparkle into a post Olympic lull season that could otherwise have been a preconceived roadmap of predictability.

I don't mind at all that some didn't see them coming. It's where they are now that's important.

WeakAnkles · Nov 12, 2018

LandShark said:
To play Devil's Advocate, I really enjoy the fact that Fear /Gibson have shocked the skating fanworld. Part of the pleasure for me is the complete unexpectedness of this seasons improvement.

I think every sport, not just figure skating, hugely benefits when someone or something completely left field happens that no one foresaw.

F/G have kicked joyous, lunatic, carefree happiness and sparkle into a post Olympic lull season that could otherwise have been a preconceived roadmap of predictability.

I don't mind at all that some didn't see them coming. It's where they are now that's important.

BIG :thumbsup:

Princessroja · Nov 12, 2018

La Rhumba said:
Natasha McKay is in Innsbruck this week to get the TES!

Lilah & Lewis's RD has improved hugely from Nebelhorn to Skate America, and they were underscored at NHK. Lilah had a trip on Twizzles but Jean-Luc Baker had a trip on the Tango Romantica Pattern but the Judges didn't treat them as harshly. And without the 1.00 deduction for an extended lift in the FD they would've won the FD, they were 1st on FD TES anyway! They still deserved to be on the podium, but the medalists inexplicably all got higher PCS. Being in the final group for FD would've increased their PCS probably, but Dance is still judged in a certain way. Anyway they had their best showing for the Tango Romantica with Level 2 and 3 and 5 Ys - better than many of those ranked above them.

Edited to add: Can I just say how annoying it is to read so many people say about L&L "I didn't know them from Adam last year" or "I'd never heard of them before now". It's like you don't exist in Skating unless North Americans are talking about you. Which makes me wonder, what do they watch? L&L competed in 12 events last season, including Challengers, and won medals at some. They won medals at their first ever Challenger - Lombardia Trophy in their first season together. It seems unless you're from the top 5 big nations of Skating you're ignored by North Americans, whereas lower ranked singles skaters from the US/Can get talked about every week on TSL and the forums. I appreciate talent wherever it's from, and whilst I'm glad L&L are getting more attention and praise, some of the comments, as if they've come from nowhere and appeared overnight, make me really curl my lip and wonder what people are watching who claim to love skating? They were at Finlandia last season and made big strides in the FD, and the same at their first Europeans in 2017, climbing 5 places in the FD. They've always had stronger FDs than SDs in terms of technical content...But anyway, glad to get that off my chest!! :2thumbs:

I think just like some people don't watch juniors, some people don't watch the earlier groups of long competitions, and you have to be a pretty intense fan anyway to watch all of the Challengers and smaller comps. I've liked Lilah and Lewis and have had them on my radar for a year or two now, but they weren't placing well and would be pretty easy to miss if one wasn't following the lower ranked teams closely. They weren't on the GP series before, they didn't go to Europeans or the Olympics last year, and were 22nd 24th at Worlds the last two years. There's no need to curl your lip; they've shot up in the rankings and are understandably getting more attention because of this.

DSQ · Nov 12, 2018

LandShark said:
To play Devil's Advocate, I really enjoy the fact that Fear /Gibson have shocked the skating fanworld. Part of the pleasure for me is the complete unexpectedness of this seasons improvement.

I think every sport, not just figure skating, hugely benefits when someone or something completely left field happens that no one foresaw.

F/G have kicked joyous, lunatic, carefree happiness and sparkle into a post Olympic lull season that could otherwise have been a preconceived roadmap of predictability.

I don't mind at all that some didn't see them coming. It's where they are now that's important.

Very true! I hope this is more than just a moment in the sun for them but a real sustained rise in success.

It was always so heart breaking for Coomes & Buckland that they were to good to be a replacement (as they might beat the host pick) but not quite good enough to make the finals.

LandShark · Nov 12, 2018

DSQ said:
Very true! I hope this is more than just a moment in the sun for them but a real sustained rise in success.

It was always so heart breaking for Coomes & Buckland that they were to good to be a replacement (as they might beat the host pick) but not quite good enough to make the finals.

It's a cruel old sport to be sure!

I always loved Coomes and Buckland and also always felt for them. I wish them all the best with whatever they do from now.

For now, I won't worry about the future for Fear /Gibson, as I'll leave that in the hands of their coaching team to guide them, but listening to the interview that was posted on here the other day, it's encouraging to hear that Lewis himself thought on the disco theme. There could just be a shrewd, astute head on these young shoulders.

Going back to the list of the top European scores for the season. Looking forward, I can see the two couples ahead of them in the list being under threat from F/G in light of their quantum leap forward in their scores at the NHK.

Their free programme was the perfect antidote to all the serious, terribly grown up grey drabness of the other leading couples.

WeakAnkles · Nov 12, 2018

LandShark said:
It's a cruel old sport to be sure!

I always loved Coomes and Buckland and also always felt for them. I wish them all the best with whatever they do from now.

For now, I won't worry about the future for Fear /Gibson, as I'll leave that in the hands of their coaching team to guide them, but listening to the interview that was posted on here the other day, it's encouraging to hear that Lewis himself thought on the disco theme. There could just be a shrewd, astute head on these young shoulders.

Going back to the list of the top European scores for the season. Looking forward, I can see the two couples ahead of them in the list being under threat from F/G in light of their quantum leap forward in their scores at the NHK.

Their free programme was the perfect antidote to all the serious, terribly grown up grey drabness of the other leading couples.

Coomes and Buckalnd choreographed the FD for a GB junior team: Emily Rose Brown and James Hernandez. Interesting couple. They have intriguing programs - C/B did a nice job on the FD and their RD has its moments. He has some of the best posture I've seen in ages. And they have a nice presence on the ice. But man are they slowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww. I mean really really slowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww. I almost grabbed a lanyard and booked a flight to GB so I could drag them off to speed skating lessons. I think it would do them a world of good. On an up note, I do think they're a team to keep an eye on. Part of that Brit ID Renaissance I mentioned before.

Oh and Nick did show up for one of this brother's events and was their coach there. The Buckland family was Well Represented. LOL!

blue_idealist · Nov 12, 2018

La Rhumba said:
Edited to add: Can I just say how annoying it is to read so many people say about L&L "I didn't know them from Adam last year" or "I'd never heard of them before now". It's like you don't exist in Skating unless North Americans are talking about you. Which makes me wonder, what do they watch? L&L competed in 12 events last season, including Challengers, and won medals at some. They won medals at their first ever Challenger - Lombardia Trophy in their first season together. It seems unless you're from the top 5 big nations of Skating you're ignored by North Americans, whereas lower ranked singles skaters from the US/Can get talked about every week on TSL and the forums. I appreciate talent wherever it's from, and whilst I'm glad L&L are getting more attention and praise, some of the comments, as if they've come from nowhere and appeared overnight, make me really curl my lip and wonder what people are watching who claim to love skating? They were at Finlandia last season and made big strides in the FD, and the same at their first Europeans in 2017, climbing 5 places in the FD. They've always had stronger FDs than SDs in terms of technical content...But anyway, glad to get that off my chest!! :2thumbs:

I had started to become a fan of them last year, since I watched most Challengers online, and I think I even recall seeing (and liking) them in 2016.

DSQ · Nov 13, 2018

WeakAnkles said:
On an up note, I do think they're a team to keep an eye on. Part of that Brit ID Renaissance I mentioned before.

Oh and Nick did show up for one of this brother's events and was their coach there. The Buckland family was Well Represented. LOL!

ID has alway been our thing, hasn’t it? Other than that blip where we had back to back men’s single gold. Lewis said despite winning silver at nationals NISA asked him to consider switching. It was a great call as we all see now but it definitely makes me feel for the other disciplines that they might not get as much attention.

But speaking of the Men’s what does everyone think of Harry Mattick? He was at ACI and I think he might be our only guy who has a quad, though he didn’t land it at ACI.

WeakAnkles · Nov 13, 2018

DSQ said:
ID has alway been our thing, hasn’t it? Other than that blip where we had back to back men’s single gold. Lewis said despite winning silver at nationals NISA asked him to consider switching. It was a great call as we all see now but it definitely makes me feel for the other disciplines that they might not get as much attention.

But speaking of the Men’s what does everyone think of Harry Mattick? He was at ACI and I think he might be our only guy who has a quad, though he didn’t land it at ACI.

I blame the BBC and all those dramas featuring ballroom scenes. Y'all have been brainwashed!

blue_idealist · Nov 13, 2018

DSQ said:
But speaking of the Men’s what does everyone think of Harry Mattick? He was at ACI and I think he might be our only guy who has a quad, though he didn’t land it at ACI.

I haven't seen Mattick yet. The only GB men I'm familiar with (I'm Canadian) are Philip Harris and Graham Newberry.

DSQ · Nov 14, 2018

He was at ACI and skated just before Hanyu, he definitely need to improve technically but I like him. He came 4th at nationals.

SP ACI: https://youtu.be/NMuyiA2UO6o
FS ACI: https://youtu.be/6p4H-XQJC0c

tabsy · Nov 14, 2018

DSQ said:
But speaking of the Men’s what does everyone think of Harry Mattick? He was at ACI and I think he might be our only guy who has a quad, though he didn’t land it at ACI.

He's skating at CS Inge Solar today - at the start of Group 2. (It's quite a good competition line-up, there'll be a mini-JGPF showdown between Camden, Adam and Tomoki, and Roman Sadovsky will be good to watch as well).

Tune in everyone! The men's short starts at 5pm English time.

Solid GB representation in the Ladies as well - Natasha McKay, Anna Litvinenko and Karly Robertson are all skating. Starts in 40 mins

pesto · Nov 14, 2018

La Rhumba said:
Can I just say how annoying it is to read so many people say about L&L "I didn't know them from Adam last year" or "I'd never heard of them before now". It's like you don't exist in Skating unless North Americans are talking about you. Which makes me wonder, what do they watch?

I'd vaguely heard of them, as I look out for Brits, and had maybe even seen them, once or twice, but couldn't really recall much about them. When I look them up, I see they did "You Raise Me Up two seasons ago, which is an immediate turn-off for me, I'm afraid.

Compared with British skaters at a similar level in other disciplines, they were less likely to be noticed, as we had a more accomplished team above them.

As for what I watch - other than a bit of checking up on noteworthy skaters on Youtube, I watch what Eurosport broadcasts, and not every minute of that. I'm pretty likely to watch only the top group or two of the SD / RD - I just can't enjoy hour upon hour of Rhumba, or Tango, or whatever.

So that means, unless ice dancers are in the Grand Prix series, the Worlds, Olympics, Europeans (or 4C), I won't see them, and if they don't make it through to the free in the big comps, I still might not see them.

Anyway, I think it's clear Fear and Gibson have taken a quantum leap this year. Their free is great to watch, and they look like they love it as much as the audience does.

DSQ · Nov 16, 2018

I’m properly sad that’s NHK was the end of the GP season for GBR - but what a run!

I’ve got no illusions that F/G could make the final on 12 points but I just really really hope they, or Tweedale and Buckland can be seeded next year and we don’t have to rely on a withdrawal for two appearances.

tabsy said:
He's skating at CS Inge Solar today - at the start of Group 2. (It's quite a good competition line-up, there'll be a mini-JGPF showdown between Camden, Adam and Tomoki, and Roman Sadovsky will be good to watch as well).

Tune in everyone! The men's short starts at 5pm English time.

Solid GB representation in the Ladies as well - Natasha McKay, Anna Litvinenko and Karly Robertson are all skating. Starts in 40 mins

I saw that but I was working unfortunately and the stream apparently broke during Harry’s SP.

Karly R is really gunning for National Champ this year. She’s out performed Natasha but quite a bit!

DSQ · Nov 20, 2018

Josh Brown, former Junior Men’s champion and start of CBBC’s Ice Stars has sadly retired.

Let’s wish him the best of luck in the future! x

https://www.instagram.com/p/BqanmBJHHkx/

CaroLiza_fan · Nov 21, 2018

DSQ said:
Josh Brown, former Junior Men’s champion and start of CBBC’s Ice Stars has sadly retired.

Let’s wish him the best of luck in the future! x

https://www.instagram.com/p/BqanmBJHHkx/

Mmmm. Sorry to hear that.

Although it was disappointing to see him finish in the penultimate position at the Volvo Open, I wasn't expecting him to call it a day. I thought it was just a typical early-season blip.

For goodness sake, he was 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] at the Hallowe'en Cup in Hungary a few weeks earlier! And OK, the score was considerably lower than the 2 guys in front of him, but it was also considerably higher than the 7 guys below him!

By the way, speaking of "Ice Stars" skaters, what is the status of Kloé Rozgonyi nowadays? Because a couple of weeks ago I was looking at the Entries / Results page for the Hallowe'en Cup, and she was all on her own in a separate Senior Ladies competition to everybody else:

Senior Ladies Out of comp SP: Results; Protocols
Senior Ladies Out of comp FS: Results; Protocols
Senior Ladies Out of comp: Results

What caught my eye is that she was listed in the results as representing her native Hungary. Of course, this competition was held in Hungary, so the organisers might just have been trying to emphasise that "She's one of our's".

However, the fact that she was in an "out of competition" competition suggests to me that she may be currently under embargo for changing countries (from Great Britain back to Hungary). And, because she is Hungarian and the organisers wanted her to be there, having her compete as a guest skater in a competition of her own was their way of getting around this.

So, does anybody know what is going on?

CaroLiza_fan

DSQ · Nov 22, 2018

I posted in the Hungarian Nationals thread so hopefully we’ll get an answer about Kloé.

How I just found out some exciting news on NISA’s Instagram. On Facebook NISA will be live-streaming the whole event which is awesome but BBC Sport will also be live-streaming nationals on November the 30th and December the 1st! (https://www.instagram.com/p/BqfXws5H77F/)

Looking at the timetable those days include all levels of Pairs and Ice Dance and Senior Men, Senior Ladies and the Gala. (http://www.iceskating.org.uk/is/assets/File/Competitions/British 2018/timetable to publish.docx)

I have a feeling since both Pairs categories only have one entry they might not be shown (also I can’t find their FS time on Saturday..) but I actually hope they do as it’ll be a treat for the families!
How I can’t see how they’ll cut out all the Novice and Junior Ice Dance displays if they want to show the Senior Ice Dance which, judging from the Instagram picture, is the main event.

If this mean even one extra person gives Ice Skating a watch then I’ll be happy. It’s nice to see some support from the terrestrial media outside of DOI and the Olympics. I think the last it happened was the 2012 Europeans in Sheffield.

Miriam090 · Nov 26, 2018

I can't wait to see the competition streamed on BBC Sport! Hopefully this is just the start of more good things to come when it comes to the BBC and figure skating!

Miller · Nov 27, 2018

This is from today's BBC Sport website to confirm what they're going to show, basically all of Friday and Saturday, 12.30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/winter-sports/46346877

DSQ · Nov 27, 2018

I read that same article last night and they’ve edited since then.

The main differences are that they’ve added a paragraph about Graham and changed the favourites for Ice Dance from Tweedale/Buckland to Fear/Gibson.

I was wondering why they put T/B as favourites over F/G considering they’ve not beat them in competition yet. That said I’m happy both teams get to go to Europe this year - the fight is for worlds!

I watched some of last nights stream this morning on the NISA’s (sorry British Figure Skating now) Facebook page. They had a problem with the audio but fixed it half way through. I didn’t realise Novice competition only had Free Skating. A lot of the girls were very good!

2018-19 British figure skating

LandShark

WeakAnkles

Princessroja

DSQ

LandShark

WeakAnkles

blue_idealist

DSQ

WeakAnkles

blue_idealist

DSQ

tabsy

pesto

DSQ

DSQ

CaroLiza_fan

EZETTIE LATUASV IVAKMHA

DSQ

Miriam090

Miller

DSQ

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