2016-17 Splits & Partner Changes
- Thread starter CaroLiza_fan
- Start date
- Joined
- Apr 22, 2014
There are so many young US Ice dance teams.... but Carreira and Ponomarenko are right at the top. Also, they're a whole quad younger than the Parsons and McNamara/Carpenter. They have the potential to stick around and be the top U.S. team. Once Parsons and McNamara/Carpenter go senior next year, they'll be fighting for junior world champion the next year. Especially if you consider that the Parsons may not survive seniors (she's too tall for him... AND they have to contend with the sibling thing).
- Joined
- May 2, 2015
I certainly HOPE so. I love them. But them alone won't keep Canada Ice Dance in high position at world.
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2012
Just watched the Junior Pairs SP from the Lombardia Trophy, and realised we have had a significant partnership change.
Nikol Gosviani's new husband, Leo Luca SFORZA, isn't doing Ice Dance with his sister (Sofia) this season. He's gone back to Pairs. And it's with his old partner, Giulia FORESTI!
Is it any wonder it's hard to keep track!
(By the way, they are leading the Junior competition after the SP)
CaroLiza_fan
Nikol Gosviani's new husband, Leo Luca SFORZA, isn't doing Ice Dance with his sister (Sofia) this season. He's gone back to Pairs. And it's with his old partner, Giulia FORESTI!
Is it any wonder it's hard to keep track!
(By the way, they are leading the Junior competition after the SP)
CaroLiza_fan
- Joined
- Mar 7, 2015
they are a bit younger and when they are canada's #1 , who knows what they will get out there in the judging world 
they've never been in that position before... they have never even been to the olympics....
they've never been in that position before... they have never even been to the olympics....
Maybe if Piper/Paul stopped with the gimmicks and just concentrated on skating their best, they'd get more respect from the judges. If bizarre costumes and weird moves were meant to distract attention from the skill differences between the two, the judges haven't been fooled. It would be far better to just work very hard on smoothing out those differences.
Um... Not sure there is any chance of C/P moving to Canada, even though there may be an easier path there. But on another topic -- almost becoming a pet peeve -- what is with the reference to the height difference between Parsons/Parsons as if it might limit them (but somehow no one else of similar heights)??? I checked - it isn't even true. They are fine in terms of height, with a 12cm (4.7in) difference. In fact, there is much more height difference between Rachel & Michael than many other top US and Canadian teams, including McNamara/Carpenter and Hayawek/Baker. No one ever says that about them, even though they are much closer in height. So why the double standard? FYI -- Even the height difference between Virtue/Moir and Davis/White is only a couple centimeters different -- did it limit them? I don't get this fixation on height. I want to watch teams who can skate beautifully, with power and speed, look amazing and technically brilliant, with great lines on the ice, qualities ALL of these teams have (especially Parsons/Parsons and M/C if you watched them at Jr. Worlds last year - they were breathtaking). I have never once thought about how tall they are. In fact, too much height difference in dance teams is a VERY BAD thing -- it wrecks their beautiful lines, so I don't get why people bring this up with them (and no others), unless they never bothered to look it up and are confused on the facts. In any case, it's a bum wrap against what I think is a very promising and talented team. Enough already with the height stuff...this isn't pairs! Oh, and I don't think they are going to Canada either.
Saying there is a quad difference between M/C and P/P and Carreira/Ponomarenko makes it seems as if the first two couples are ancient.
But Lorraine McNamara is 17, only a year older than 16-year-old Christina Carreira. Anthony Ponomarenko is 15, a year younger than Christina.
McNamara/Carpenter have to move up to senior next year because Quinn turns 21 in February.
Michael Parsons will turn 21 next month, and Rachel turns 19 in November.
Carreira / Ponomarenko have two more years of junior eligibility after this season, until Christina turns 19. The Greens will be JGP eligible next season, and will have another season to grow until C/P move on.
I agree that it is not good for ice dancers to have too great a height difference. IMO the huge height difference between Delobel and Schoenfelder held them back because they never seemed to have any interpersonal connection on the ice. Denkova/Staviski had NO height difference, and it didn't stop them from becoming two-time World champions.
But Lorraine McNamara is 17, only a year older than 16-year-old Christina Carreira. Anthony Ponomarenko is 15, a year younger than Christina.
McNamara/Carpenter have to move up to senior next year because Quinn turns 21 in February.
Michael Parsons will turn 21 next month, and Rachel turns 19 in November.
Carreira / Ponomarenko have two more years of junior eligibility after this season, until Christina turns 19. The Greens will be JGP eligible next season, and will have another season to grow until C/P move on.
I agree that it is not good for ice dancers to have too great a height difference. IMO the huge height difference between Delobel and Schoenfelder held them back because they never seemed to have any interpersonal connection on the ice. Denkova/Staviski had NO height difference, and it didn't stop them from becoming two-time World champions.
Of course they do. People say it about both M&C and H&B. I think all three teams are fine height-wise, BTW.
- Joined
- Apr 5, 2016
The "gimmicks" are part of who they are. Piper is passionate about fashion and cosmetics, and brings that passion to the ice. The CBC has even done a piece on them where it featured her going shopping for vintage clothing, something she does regularly. It's not meant to distract from anything. If it did, part of their SD from Worlds 2016 would not be a new pattern dance recognized by the ISU. But please, continue to believe what you like.
It'd be great to see the Parsons stick around. They haven't let their height difference (or lack of) hinder them from achieving great results. From what I've seen, they don't skate like they're siblings. All that comes off from their performances is two people who love ice dancing.
- Joined
- Oct 31, 2014
It will be extremely boring to watch all the cookie-cuttered teams in ice dance. Piper and Paul's uniqueness is one of my reasons to stick to watch ice dance events, which is still my least favorite discipline among the sport though.
When a team is pushing "uniqueness" it is taking a risk: most of the judges are on the old side (50+) and they may not like what Piper considers avant garde or retro style. The fact is in ice dance, what gets rewarded most is great ice dancing skills, not uniqueness. Some "unique" French teams cropped up after the retirement of Anissina / Peizerat, generating lots of discussion among fans about their unusual music and costume choices. But none of them made it to the top of the podium.
There will always be fans who prefer the more "out there" ice dance teams. Unfortunately, fans have no say on who gets medals, the judges do. And believe me, Paul and Piper want medals just as much as any other team does. You could see the disappointment on their faces after their FD at Worlds 2016 when they dropped from 5th after the SD to 8th. The judges appreciated the changes they had made to their SD and rewarded them for it, but they reacted to the FD just as they had all season---with thumbs down.
There will always be fans who prefer the more "out there" ice dance teams. Unfortunately, fans have no say on who gets medals, the judges do. And believe me, Paul and Piper want medals just as much as any other team does. You could see the disappointment on their faces after their FD at Worlds 2016 when they dropped from 5th after the SD to 8th. The judges appreciated the changes they had made to their SD and rewarded them for it, but they reacted to the FD just as they had all season---with thumbs down.
The technical caller appreciated the changes in G&P's SD. The judges still had Paul & Piper's short dance PCS marks below Sinitsina & Katsalapov, Hubbell & Donahue, and of course Cappellini & Lanotte.
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- Joined
- Apr 5, 2016
I just read a discussion on French skaters as a whole across all disciplines pursuing the avant garde style. Apparently influenced by Duchesnays. You may recall they left Canada because their style wasn't acceptable to Skate Canada. But they won the silver medal at the 1992 Olympics for France. Now Piper and Paul aren't the Duschesnays, but there is a history of 'uniqueness' in ice dance and it has been rewarded at times. Their FD in its earlier iteration did manage to get them on the podium at Skate America.
And if the judges are so unwilling to accept change then those old guys are just going to drop dead this season with all the teams doing hip hop. They like to say "A little party never killed nobody" but we'll have to see about that.
And if the judges are so unwilling to accept change then those old guys are just going to drop dead this season with all the teams doing hip hop. They like to say "A little party never killed nobody" but we'll have to see about that.
And if the judges are so unwilling to accept change then those old guys are just going to drop dead this season with all the teams doing hip hop. They like to say "A little party never killed nobody" but we'll have to see about that.
Teams doing hip hop:
The Shibs (we believe)
Chock & Bates
Hubbell & Donahue
Thus far, I believe that's it among the top ten teams.
Teams not doing hip hop:
Papadakis & Cizeron
Cappellini & Lanotte (I've actually heard both here, but the last post I read said not)
Sinitsina & Katsalapov
Gilles & Poirier
Fabri & Guignard
Other top teams:
Hip hop:
Stepanova & Bukin
Hawayek & Baker
No hip hop:
Bobrova & Soloviev
Virtue & Moir (I believe?)
Ilinykh & Zhiganshin
Fournier-Beaudry & Sorenson
Torn & Partanen
The Duchesnays are known, in part, for their avant guard program in 1991. However they scrapped it after it was poorly received by the judges & performed a revamped version of their previous program at Worlds. They won their silver medal in 1992 to West Side Story.
I agree that avant garde is a style well-embraced in France. I also believe there is absolutely a possibility that a team may win with an avant garde program in the future. But let's not rewrite history.
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- Joined
- Feb 27, 2012
Tessa and Scott ARE doing hip hop in their Prince SD.
They said so (for example) in Ted Flett's interview at HPC for GS:
https://twitter.com/goldenskate/status/771246698802786304 (at approx. 2:04, he asks about their programs)
Hip Hop is one of the dances authorized for this years' SD, so it doesn't count as something unusual or bizarre. However, most dance teams seem afraid to try it. The top juniors McNamara / Carpenter are doing hip hop for their SD, and getting high marks just the same.
- Joined
- Mar 17, 2015
I am not sure what "unique French teams" you are talking about but Delobel/Schoenfelder did make it to the top of the world podium as did Papadakis/Cizeron. Péchalat/Bourzat didn't but they won Europeans twice and a world bronze medal. That being said, they actually all have/had good skating skills and technique, not only relying on an original style.
