The Gang of Four becoming the Gang of Five?

Joesitz (RIP) · Jan 22, 2005

Shall we add Joannie Rochette to the list of top ranked skaters for the podium at Worlds 2005?

If so, there will be two divas not getting medals. Oh what a competition this will be.

Joe

hockeyfan228 · Jan 22, 2005

I thought she should have been in the top six at Dortmund.

millie · Jan 22, 2005

Joanne is going to be a power to be reckoned with at Worlds. With the performance that she gave last night, if she did the same at Worlds, she will be on the podium for sure.When she was practicing for her long program last night, she was doing triple, triple,double sequences--her coach said that she was scared that she was going to do it the long program last evening.--she said that she wants to keep something for a surprise. :rock:

bdreampixie · Jan 22, 2005

Nope its still a gang of four: Irina, Michelle, Shizuka and Joannie. Sasha hasn't done more than 4 clean triples all season and I don't expect her to at Worlds.

R.D. · Jan 22, 2005

I dunno...I know Rochette is good, but IMO it's a bit premature to start putting her up with the best in the world based on just one knock-out performance. Who knows if she'll repeat it again? I'll wait until after seeing how she does at Worlds to decide.

Nope its still a gang of four: Irina, Michelle, Shizuka and Joannie. Sasha hasn't done more than 4 clean triples all season and I don't expect her to at Worlds.

ITA with the Cohen comment.

millie · Jan 22, 2005

Nope its still the gang of four--Joannie, Sasha, Irina and Shizuka--Michelle hasn't skated under the GOP yet. : :rofl:

Tony Wheeler · Jan 22, 2005

One knock-out performance? LOL. Last year in the free skate at Worlds, she fell on her first triple and from that point on she landed everything else: 6 triples including two 3/3 sequences. Many people thought she was already good enough for at least 5th on that night, but she ended up 8th; not bad! Her Nationals performance last year, at least in the LP, was also a magical one.

This year, she did two 6 triple performances in her two Grand Prix events, the only mistakes being a doubled lutz in China and a 3toe that she stepped out of in France.

She's beaten the 4th (twice), 5th, 6th, and 7th place skaters from last years Worlds already, and remember she did beat the current World Champion in the free skate at the GPFinal.

I've been saying (and I'm sure people have been getting tired of me) since 2001 that this girl would be a tremendous talent and I even predicted her to be the gold medalist in Turin way back when. She was shown a total of once on American television coming into this year, but she really hasn't come out of nowhere.

ETA- Even though she was novice and junior champ of Canada in 2000 and 2001, Joannie hasn't been hyped/pushed nearly as much as some of the other girls, some already come and gone, have been. Maybe that's why so many people think she has just burst onto the scene..

R.D. · Jan 22, 2005

Ha, this looks like fun...now the thread is turning into, "Which Four is the Gang of Four?"

To me it's a gang of three: MK, Irina, and Arakawa.

After Rochette, the possible dark horse, then you have the rest.

R.D. · Jan 22, 2005

Tony Wheeler said:
One knock-out performance? LOL. Last year in the free skate at Worlds, she fell on her first triple and from that point on she landed everything else: 6 triples including two 3/3 sequences. Many people thought she was already good enough for at least 5th on that night, but she ended up 8th; not bad! Her Nationals performance last year, at least in the LP, was also a magical one.

This year, she did two 6 triple performances in her two Grand Prix events, the only mistakes being a doubled lutz in China and a 3toe that she stepped out of in France.

She's beaten the 4th (twice), 5th, 6th, and 7th place skaters from last years Worlds already, and remember she did beat the current World Champion in the free skate at the GPFinal.

I've been saying (and I'm sure people have been getting tired of me) since 2001 that this girl would be a tremendous talent and I even predicted her to be the gold medalist in Turin way back when. She was shown a total of once on American television coming into this year, but she really hasn't come out of nowhere.

ETA- Even though she was novice and junior champ of Canada in 2000 and 2001, Joannie hasn't been hyped/pushed nearly as much as some of the other girls, some already come and gone, have been. Maybe that's why so many people think she has just burst onto the scene..

Oh, OK. But still, IMO you can't put her up there because she hasn't finished top 3-4 in the world- yet, that is.

millie · Jan 22, 2005

Hey Red Dog, Rochette is no dark horse in any competition. She is the best Canadian skater that we've had in years, at least she wasn't held up with 6.0's only the GOP. :rock:

R.D. · Jan 22, 2005

millie said:
Hey Red Dog, Rochette is no dark horse in any competition.

Talk to me after worlds... :biggrin:

But one thing I WILL do is add her to the list of contenders for the 2006 Olympic Podium...

bdreampixie · Jan 22, 2005

I agree with Red Dog that it is a team of 3: Irina, Shiz, and Michelle. But I do see Rochette as the potential spoiler, but most likely she will come in 4th. The judges don't seem to behind her as much as she needs to beat one of the big three unless they have a true disaster.

As far as Sasha, I like SC's skating on TV, but after seeing her in person at Nats, her skating is very weak and there is nothing that she does better than Michelle. Well, one thing spinning, but that's only one thing. As far as power, jumping technique, edges, etc. she is behind the top 3 and I do believe Joannie is ahead of her in that respect.

R.D. · Jan 22, 2005

bdreampixie said:
As far as Sasha, I like SC's skating on TV, but after seeing her in person at Nats, her skating is very weak and there is nothing that she does better than Michelle. Well, one thing spinning, but that's only one thing. As far as power, jumping technique, edges, etc. she is behind the top 3 and I do believe Joannie is ahead of her in that respect.

Interesting to hear the differences between performances as they appear on TV and seeing it live.

I wonder if Cohen will go the route of Sokolova- she went up to win the World Silver in 2003, and then went way downhill from there. Now she's not even a world contender. :eek:

bdreampixie · Jan 22, 2005

Red Dog said:
Interesting to hear the differences between performances as they appear on TV and seeing it live.

I wonder if Cohen will go the route of Sokolova- she went up to win the World Silver in 2003, and then went way downhill from there. Now she's not even a world contender.

Hmm..I don't know. I think Cohen is a better skater than Elena. The thing about Sasha is that she's a great short program skater. Cohen in a short program and Cohen in a long program are like night and day. I think she'll stay near the top but never quite reaching the very top of the podium.

millie · Jan 22, 2005

BIG NEWS----Michelle may be America's Golden Girl of skating on American ice.
REALITY CHECK--When she steps on the ice at World's, she's not.
She's going to have to do a lot better at World's then she did at Nationals with the programs that she has. Hey fans, be serious, she's not going to have the screaming audience or the 6.0's to keep her up. She is going to be skating against the best in the world.
NEWS FLASH---Sasha beat her last year and she will do it again this year. Sasha knows that and that will give her the confidence to do it again this year.
She knows that she is the underdog to American fans but not with her world fans. :rock:

mzheng · Jan 22, 2005

Joesitz said:
Shall we add Joannie Rochette to the list of top ranked skaters for the podium at Worlds 2005?

If so, there will be two divas not getting medals. Oh what a competition this will be.

Joe

Definitely. And based on their own National performances, which are the latest competetion we can based on, I would say she is at the front of the pack.

She dose have the solid basic skating skill and the calmness, smoothness, refiness quality in her skating. I'd say she is more smoothness than Irina. Worlds became really interesting.

Piel · Jan 22, 2005

BIG NEWS----Michelle may be America's Golden Girl of skating on American ice.
REALITY CHECK--When she steps on the ice at World's, she's not.
She's going to have to do a lot better at World's then she did at Nationals with the programs that she has. Hey fans, be serious, she's not going to have the screaming audience or the 6.0's to keep her up. She is going to be skating against the best in the world.

Well Millie, she has been skating against the best in the world all over the world for over 10 years and she has fared very well agianst the competition.

NEWS FLASH---Sasha beat her last year and she will do it again this year. Sasha knows that and that will give her the confidence to do it again this year.
She knows that she is the underdog to American fans but not with her world fans

Is this some kind of selective confidence that she only can muster at Worlds (and even there only in the QR or SP) but can't seem to find for Nationals? Why is OK for Sasha to have adoring World fans but not OK for Michelle to have adoring National fans? I find it a little strange for someone not to have their major fan base in their own country.

mzheng · Jan 22, 2005

bdreampixie said:
As far as Sasha, I like SC's skating on TV, but after seeing her in person at Nats, her skating is very weak and there is nothing that she does better than Michelle. Well, one thing spinning, but that's only one thing. As far as power, jumping technique, edges, etc. she is behind the top 3 and I do believe Joannie is ahead of her in that respect.

I agree with this one. Sasha's skating, those gorgeous positions, really is TV friendly. ppl having been commented at this for a long time.

And if you watch the edge, speeding, etc. Carolina Kostner may ahead of Sasha as well. But she lacks of Sasha's refineness and polish.

millie said:
REALITY CHECK--When she steps on the ice at World's, she's not.
She's going to have to do a lot better at World's then she did at Nationals with the programs that she has. Hey fans, be serious, she's not going to have the screaming audience or the 6.0's to keep her up. She is going to be skating against the best in the world.

You bet she'll have two CoP friendly program and all the goods she needed. You don't know Rafael is an excelant Rusian Card player? lol

bdreampixie · Jan 22, 2005

millie said:
BIG NEWS----Michelle may be America's Golden Girl of skating on American ice.
REALITY CHECK--When she steps on the ice at World's, she's not.
She's going to have to do a lot better at World's then she did at Nationals with the programs that she has. Hey fans, be serious, she's not going to have the screaming audience or the 6.0's to keep her up. She is going to be skating against the best in the world.
NEWS FLASH---Sasha beat her last year and she will do it again this year. Sasha knows that and that will give her the confidence to do it again this year.
She knows that she is the underdog to American fans but not with her world fans.

This is an odd thing to say. So Sasha can only skate well when she has more fans than the other ladies? Interesting concept.

During the long program my sister and I were sitting in the "Sasha section". There were so many people around us with flags that read "Go Sasha!". She really isn't lacking in American fans. She was very well received by the crowd, it was only after her performance that the applause was tepid.

I think Sasha's problem is just that she gets nervous when the final LP is on the line. It happens to the best of us. Sometimes its hard to control your nerves and I think that's what is holding her back.

R.D. · Jan 22, 2005

My thoughts, summed up concisely:

- MK has the biggest chance of the American ladies to make something happen at worlds. I would not count her out yet. I think she's trying to make the most of the Cop and she said she would rework Bolero for Worlds. Now, let's see what happens...

- With Rochette's performance at her Nationals, that makes her a contender, not for gold, but maybe for a podium spot if and only if she can skate like that at worlds too.

- Irina is the heavy favorite here. Count on her to finish on the podium SOMEWHERE.

- I'm getting tired of all this talk on Cohen; oh if she'd only do X, skate clean etc. she'll be unbeatable crap. I don't expect her to finish higher than 5th. She's struggled this season and I think it will continue. Besides, her long program is empty and boring, and "front-loaded". Bleh...

The Gang of Four becoming the Gang of Five?

Joesitz (RIP)

hockeyfan228

millie

bdreampixie

R.D.

millie

Tony Wheeler

R.D.

R.D.

millie

R.D.

bdreampixie

R.D.

bdreampixie

millie

mzheng

Piel

On Edge

mzheng

bdreampixie

R.D.

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