What's In Store For Kimmie? | Page 2 | Golden Skate

What's In Store For Kimmie?

soogar

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 18, 2003
I don't know, I was more impressed with Bebe than Kimmie. Bebe had so much height and pop to her double axel that I thought she could have easily turned it into a triple axel. I was not impressed at all by Kimmie's 3 axel because I was spoiled by Midori Ito's triple axel. Now Midori owned that jump, bot height and quality. I think the 3 axel for Kimmie is a hit or miss thing and when she hits it, it's not all that good anyway (even the clean ones in warmup weren't all that). That said, if Kimmie's body holds up, I think she has the competitive mind set to win a few titles. She is a focused and determined competitor.
 

kyla2

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 24, 2004
Kimmie

Kimmie has a strong jump technique and will survive the body changes that have doomed so many other skaters. But she will not challenge Sasha or Michelle from an artistic standpoint for another few seasons. She also needs to work on her layback and spirals. There is work to be done before she can challenge Michelle, Irina and Sasha. But she has tremendous potential.
 

brad640

On the Ice
Joined
Dec 8, 2004
The big question I have now is:

Can Kimmie contend for an Olympic medal in 2006?

I think she is at a disadvantage by not being able to go to worlds this year to begin establishing herself with international judges. Even Tara Lipinski was affected by her nerves on her first trip to senior worlds. Kimmie’s jumps were fantastic and her presentation was solid, but she reminded me of Michelle when she could not crack the podium at worlds because she was too young. I think Kimmie will need a transformation of Salome proportions to challenge the top ladies artistically. Yes, she has a “straight back” and skates to “appropriately innocent” music, but her positions are nowhere near Sasha’s, and it took Michelle years to develop the presence and interpretation to the level she has now.

Kimmie will also need to prove she is not another Naomi Nari Nam at nationals next year to qualify for Torino. Personally, I am very conflicted about who would best represent the US in the third spot. This is assuming Michelle and Sasha are guaranteed spots on the Olympic team (and assuming there is not a disaster this year at worlds and the US only sends 2 ladies to Torino). On one hand, I am hoping for Angela to redeem herself and put all of her demons to rest next year. On the other hand, I want the most capable skater to go so there is not another Nicole Bobek situation at the Olympics.

Regardless, I am very happy for Kimmie. I think she did a great job, and she was a bright spot at an otherwise lackluster nationals.
 

Chrystia Mee

Rinkside
Joined
Mar 31, 2004
Joesitz said:
Given the triple axel which will become standard in future competitions, how will this lyrical talented skater progress in the future?

Will she maintain her lead over her peers?: Bebe, Katy, Emilie?

Can she continue to surpass Jenny in next year's competitions? (Her age will not be a declining factor for going to the Olys.)

At next year's Nats, can she overtake the two American divas?

Are all these questions too early to answer at this time?

Joe

I don't think Kimmie will be a medal contender at the Olympics by any means, at least not 2006. But come 2010 we will ahve a mature and beautiful skater with excellent athletic ability. I could see her making the Olympic team next year and placing top 10. But there are far too many top contenders for the podium next year already. I don't think we'll ever see a fair Kimmie vs Michelle match-up because I don't see Michelle staying eligible beyond 2006. But if Sasha doesn't strike gold, it would be interesting to see if she would stick around. I think Kimmie, Katy, Bebe, Alissa, and Emily have demonstrated this season potential, and there are other skaters who are very good as well that will be seniors come 2010.
 

SailorGalaxia518

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 27, 2004
In USFSA event recap of the Ladies Free Skate. They said that she landed the triple axel and it was ratified. It's even on the part of the headline with Kwan's nine titles.
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
Times have changed. Maturity was never an issue with the teenybopper lovers. They wanted their Oly Champ to be no more than 16. Now, apparently, the mature skater is the in-thing.
 

chuckm

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Country
United-States
The ISU put the brakes on young skaters in the ISU Championship events because they were tired of skaters defecting to the pro ranks and competing with the eligibles for TV time and paid audiences.

This strategy has backfired in some ways. Now that skaters can earn money from skating and still remain eligible, fewer and fewer skaters are turning pro even when they're getting long in the tooth. Pro competitions have just about disappeared from TV, and skating audiences, both live and on TV, have dwindled.

The problem is now we have two distinct groups of skaters: those over 21, who have been around a long time and who dominate the World and National podiums, and the rising young skaters, many of whom are under 16. The problem is the TV and live audiences don't get to see the rising young stars, because they are consigned to the Junior events, which for the most part are rarely televised.

So---what will happen when the Kwans, Slutskayas, Cohens and Plushenkos finally retire and a bunch of unknowns are winning the big prizes? Will there still be an audience to watch them skate?
 

Linny

Final Flight
Joined
Aug 13, 2003
Ratified

If Kimmie's 3A was ratified, then that's the final word. People can say it was cheated until it comes out their ears with 3 1/2 full rotations around the ear lobes, but ratified means ratified.

What do Kimmie's parents look like? Are they her biological parents? That may provide some clues as to her future growth.

Even without growth, maintaining a level of jumps over the years can be pretty derned tough... think Tara.

In interviews at Sectionals, though, Kimmie seemed to have a good head on her shoulders. Time will tell. I wish her all the best.

Linny
 

hockeyfan228

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
chuckm said:
So---what will happen when the Kwans, Slutskayas, Cohens and Plushenkos finally retire and a bunch of unknowns are winning the big prizes? Will there still be an audience to watch them skate?
There shouldn't be a problem in Men's skating, with Weir, Buttle, Lambiel, and Joubert as challengers, and Li getting more air-time. (IMO, Li wuzrobbed in DC, and he may have even gotten the tour nod had he won the bronze.)

Kwan's and Cohen's withdrawals from this year's GP couldn't have played better into introducing new skaters to the TV-viewers and giving lesser-known skaters more exposure -- Poykio, Rochette, Ando, Pfaneuf, Meissner among them.

USFS seems to be planning for the future, with Meissner's third-place finish at Nationals, and Lysacek's win over Savoie last week.
 

alain707

Rinkside
Joined
Feb 7, 2004
First ratified underrotated jump ??? What's that?

Linny said:
If Kimmie's 3A was ratified, then that's the final word. People can say it was cheated until it comes out their ears with 3 1/2 full rotations around the ear lobes, but ratified means ratified.

Linny

What is a ratified jump ??? Is there some kind of commission that decides after a competition which jump or element is or is not ratified ? Is there an official book to record all the ratified jumps performed during official competitions ? Please explain that to me because I haven't got a clue if such a thing exists. I understand that with CoP it's easy to define a "ratified jump", just look at the score sheet and if the element gets a positive grade (or give your own criterion), call it ratified.
In any case, any video of Kimmie Meissner's attempt shows it is between 3/8 and 1/2 turn underrotated, so whatever some people in the skating community say, it is not a correct triple axel. Otherwise you'd also have to "ratify" Surya Bonaly's quad toe at 91's World (less underrotated than Kimmie's attempt). And how about all those 3-3's attempts in the Grand Prix where the second triple was downgraded as a double as soon as it was a 1/4 underrotated (Mikki and Shizuka, please stay calm if you get to see Kimmie's axel).
 

diamondqueen

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 4, 2003
What's in store for Kimmie?

Lots of greatest is in store for this young lady. Kimmie has wonderful potential and could be on track for a few US-World Championships. She needs to work on artistry and take every element one at a time. She has all the markings for a champion. I think that KM could be the next MK.

Kimmie 👍 skates at the University of Delaware, my state, that makes her pretty special in my book :rock:

diamond :rofl:
 
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chuckm

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 31, 2003
Country
United-States
The USFS can ratify Kimmie's 3A, but if she does a 3A the same way at Junior Worlds that she did at US Nationals, the ISU technical specialist might still downgrade it to a 2A. The 3As she did in the warmup were legitimate, so Kimmie is capable of doing a fully rotated jump. But executing the jump within the program context is not quite as easy as doing the jump by itself.
 
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