2020-21 US Women's Figure Skating

bytheriver · Jun 22, 2020

Strange to still be based in the Bay Area but have your main coach be in another country. Especially given his large stable of skaters now, I would imagine you’d want to be in the mix to maximize your progress. Not to mention the uncertainty re: travel ban.

I wonder if the initial plan was to add Barkell and Scali to the mix alongside Laura, but that didn’t work out. That would’ve made more sense in terms of day to day training. As it is I don’t see how Scali (from an ice dance background) is expected to help improve her technique on jumps, which only will get more challenging with age.

katymay · Jun 22, 2020

bytheriver said:
I doubt it, but Alysa unfollowed her on Instagram which was surprising. She follows a lot of skating people and coaches so it stood out. I wouldn’t be surprised if Laura was hurt by the decision, but it wasn’t a surprise.

This is a do or die moment for Alysa - moving away from home for skating (and presumably a more expensive coach) puts a bit more pressure on your skating. And I’m sure it will be hard for her to be away from her siblings/friends. I hope she’s doing alright.

It's always a bit sad, because you have the coach that was with you from the beginning-this was true of Nathan, and many others-Gold? I think as well. At some point you just need a bigger sandbox with more competition at a higher level. Very few don't make a change at some point-I believe Bradie is with her original coach, but she is the only one I can think of.
Laura did a fantastic job showcasing Alysa's strengths, and finding ways to camouflage her weak spots. Still I figured last year she would move to a more competitive enviroment-nothing whatsoever to take away the fantastic job Laura has done.
The Liu's can afford pretty much anything, The cost of any training anywhere would never be an issue.

drivingmissdaisy · Jun 22, 2020

katymay said:
Laura did a fantastic job showcasing Alysa's strengths, and finding ways to camouflage her weak spots. Still I figured last year she would move to a more competitive enviroment-nothing whatsoever to take away the fantastic job Laura has done.

This is kind of how I feel. I wouldn't ever question anyone's decision on coaching because it's obviously very personal, but I think Laura doesn't get enough credit from the skating community for all the successes Alysa has had. People complain that she overly pre-rotates her 4Lz, but who else in the US is anywhere close to doing a pre-rotated 4Lz, or even a 3A? She's not even 15 and people are disappointed that she doesn't have Yuna Kim's artistry with the jump variety of Sasha T.

macy · Jun 23, 2020

here is an interview from the Jed Foundation with Gracie after nationals in January. she talks about mental health, her goals for the next season and her thoughts on Beijing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yL_us8zuRUw

Cindy1983 · Jun 24, 2020

theharleyquinn said:
It'll be really interesting. With respect to the field, the U.S. ladies were particularly shafted by not having Worlds this year. Bradie and Mariah had a solid shot at getting 3 spots for Worlds with their performances this season. You also have to wonder how many of the ladies will be "ready" for a GP season. Some may be on the ice now, but some may not be.

Could they do wild card spots based on the Grand Prix and smaller competitions? They could award the number based on competition results.

Bluediamonds09 · Jun 25, 2020

It’s interesting to think about how and why certain skaters progress at what rate in the early years of training.

Both Michelle Kwan and Alysa Liu began skating at 5 yrs old and were seniors by age 13, with a full set of triples. Bradie Tennell began skating at 2 and a half but didn’t turn senior until age 17 (after 2 years in novice and 2 years in juniors). Sasha Cohen began skating “late” (7 1/2 ?) but got to seniors at 15. Gracie began at age 8 and reached senior at 17. Mirai began at age 5 and went senior by age 14.

Maybe some skaters can afford more ice time and better coaching, causing them to learn faster? Maybe some are not as quick to learn. Maybe some are determined to be senior level ASAP?

drivingmissdaisy · Jun 25, 2020

Bluediamonds09 said:
It’s interesting to think about how and why certain skaters progress at what rate in the early years of training.

Both Michelle Kwan and Alysa Liu began skating at 5 yrs old and were seniors by age 13, with a full set of triples. Bradie Tennell began skating at 2 and a half but didn’t turn senior until age 17 (after 2 years in novice and 2 years in juniors). Sasha Cohen began skating “late” (7 1/2 ?) but got to seniors at 15. Gracie began at age 8 and reached senior at 17. Mirai began at age 5 and went senior by age 14.

Maybe some skaters can afford more ice time and better coaching, causing them to learn faster? Maybe some are not as quick to learn. Maybe some are determined to be senior level ASAP?

I didn't realize Gracie started so late. She was even good enough to be a solid senior the year before, since she skated multiple 7 triple LPs as a junior IIRC.

MiraiFan · Jun 26, 2020

Bradie also had a really serious back injury that had her off the ice for a long time...

moonvine · Jun 26, 2020

dancelion21 said:
I'm curious how that will work if she will continue to be based in Oakland. Scali is based in Oakland as well, so will he be her main coach? How will she work with Barkell if she's not moving to Canada? As an ice dancer, Scali can definitely help her speed, skating skills, and interpretation, but I'm not sure he has the answers for her jumps.

She can't move to Canada. The border is closed for who knows how long. I predict an expansion on the current closure if things in the US don't improve drastically soon. The EU is also not letting us in.

moonvine · Jun 26, 2020

macy said:
here is an interview from the Jed Foundation with Gracie after nationals in January. she talks about mental health, her goals for the next season and her thoughts on Beijing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yL_us8zuRUw

Thank you! I always need more Gracie. :love:

meem · Jun 26, 2020

I saw what I thought was Gracie the other night on TV and wondered what was she doing in the promo I was watching. It turned out to be Grace Kelly (or Princess Grace). She was in profile first and looked just like GG but as she turned more toward the front, her face looked more mature (womanly, not aged) and I realized who it was.

princessalica · Jul 2, 2020

Did I just miss this? Here's another interview with Gracie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkzKgtvHRAE

drivingmissdaisy · Jul 2, 2020

I'd be curious to hear about how the uncertainly regarding the resumption of competition is affecting the training of the athletes. There seems to be a finite amount of wear and tear these skaters can put on their joints, and I wonder if they're scaling back the intensity when there aren't any important competitions coming up in the near future.

ladyjane · Jul 2, 2020

drivingmissdaisy said:
This is kind of how I feel. I wouldn't ever question anyone's decision on coaching because it's obviously very personal, but I think Laura doesn't get enough credit from the skating community for all the successes Alysa has had. People complain that she overly pre-rotates her 4Lz, but who else in the US is anywhere close to doing a pre-rotated 4Lz, or even a 3A? She's not even 15 and people are disappointed that she doesn't have Yuna Kim's artistry with the jump variety of Sasha T.

This. Expecting a little girl (And Alyssa definitely still is that) to have the artistry of a Yuna Kim in her hey day and the jump variety of Sasha is ludicrous.Whichever interview I read or listen to, she seems to be well grounded - for a 14-year-old, and that's good. And she enjoys skating and that's what it's all about! At least, it should be.

el henry · Jul 2, 2020

princessalica said:
Did I just miss this? Here's another interview with Gracie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkzKgtvHRAE

There is a thread regarding the Scott Hamilton "Let's Talk" Friday interviews.

https://www.goldenskate.com/forum/s...ks-with-Skaters-Lysacek-Boitano-Gold-amp-More

The Gracie one is excellent, but I am quite enjoying all of them.

MarinHondas · Jul 4, 2020

Here’s some rather upsetting news I saw about Bradie, apparently Tara and Johnny created a video that made fun of skating and sexualiz3d her. Pretty sad and heartbreaking for Tennell, hope she didn’t see the video.

Link to the article: https://t.co/4gRCsxooHw?amp=1

el henry · Jul 4, 2020

MarinHondas said:
Here’s some rather upsetting news I saw about Bradie, apparently Tara and Johnny created a video that made fun of skating and sexualiz3d her. Pretty sad and heartbreaking for Tennell, hope she didn’t see the video.

Link to the article: https://t.co/4gRCsxooHw?amp=1

I think this mischaracterizes the video, it makes it sound as though they were going out of their way to mock Bradie as Bradie. ETA: The skit had nothing to do with Bradie specifically and they could have used video of anyone skating.

The skit was supposed to be humorous, although IMO, it was not very funny. It was making fun of what announcers say by sarcastically exaggerating.

That said, they should never have used a real skater in a real comp as backdrop for the “bit”. They should apologize to Bradie for that.

brightphoton · Jul 4, 2020

With the recent state of politics in the US, I'm feeling a little bit sad for Karen Chen. It's probably not easy having so many people use your name as a slur.

Ross74 · Jul 4, 2020

el henry said:
I think this mischaracterizes the video, it makes it sound as though they were going out of their way to mock Bradie as Bradie. ETA: The skit had nothing to do with Bradie specifically and they could have used video of anyone skating.....

I think it would have been funnier, and more appropriate, if they had used video of themselves.

frida80 · Jul 4, 2020

Ross74 said:
I think it would have been funnier, and more appropriate, if they had used video of themselves.

Tara stopped competing at 15, so that would’ve been much worse.

2020-21 US Women's Figure Skating

bytheriver

katymay

drivingmissdaisy

macy

Cindy1983

Bluediamonds09

drivingmissdaisy

MiraiFan

moonvine

All Hail Queen Gracie

moonvine

All Hail Queen Gracie

meem

princessalica

drivingmissdaisy

ladyjane

el henry

Go have some cake. And come back with jollity.

MarinHondas

el henry

Go have some cake. And come back with jollity.

brightphoton

Ross74

frida80

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