- Joined
- Jun 21, 2003
I'm definitely not trying to shortchange the great spinners of the past (Krieg, Bielmann, Ruh etc) but when the IJS came about it felt like a lot of the skaters trying to get their levels were emulating Stephane Lambiel positions.
Cool observation! I think there is something to that. Ironically, in my opinion Lambiel himself became less innovative and natural as a spinner once the IJS became rigidly encoded.
Ic3rabbit said:Dick Button, Scott Hamilton, Robin Cousins, Paul Wylie, Kristi Yamaguchi.
Scoott Hamilton deserves a double does of praise because of his talent not just as a performer but as a producer and impressario. With Stars on Ice he introduced the novel concept that male ice skaters can be popular entertainers, too, and not just in the sense of Frick and Frack comic relief.
mrrice said:Katarina Witt!! Such a long and successful career including 2 OGM'S. Being from Germany, she was a huge star and though I was in the US by the time she became famous, she always had a special place in my heart.
I second the nomination. As a skater from the Cold War Eastern bloc, Witt was equally popular in the West and, in my opinion, did more than anyone else to bring into focus how silly all that turned out to be, as applied to ISU politics.