2017-18 State of Russian Ladies skating | Page 74 | Golden Skate

2017-18 State of Russian Ladies skating

hippomoomin said:
That track record does not mean anything anymore; it's just history.
Evgenia has been improving year after year, and Elena has been declining two years in a row. Based on her test skates, magic did not happen with her new coach over the summer yet. She showed better ss in the LP, but her lack of energy in the second half is very noticeable. Her strength used to be her performance and ability to engage audience, which is completely absent in the test skate.
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Well, people were also noting - praising - that Elena was more restrained in her movements; if she is working on that, I would imagine that it would inhibit her exuberance. Rome was not built in a day, and sometimes you lose something to gain something. At least for the time being while she is learning new habits.
 
OMG! Trusova was in a league of her own. Almost 70 points.
https://youtu.be/Gnc3UwCiIBU
 
what I love about Medvedeva is she keeps improving, she has become more expressive and her skating skills have vastly improved over the years, she looks so light skating out there !!
 
Have you guys seen Med's SP? Even with the new depth of the Canadian, Japanese, and US Ladies, she is still the best skater in the world. I had thought's that Zagitova might catch her but not anymore. Med is a Brilliant Skater!!!
 
mrrice said:
Have you guys seen Med's SP? Even with the new depth of the Canadian, Japanese, and US Ladies, she is still the best skater in the world. I had thought's that Zagitova might catch her but not anymore. Med is a Brilliant Skater!!!
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Yes. The cameraman tried his best to ruin her program but in the end she still prevailed.
 
I had a dream last night that the Olympic podium was Evgenia, Alina, and Anna.

Dream-me was a little disappointed that Evgenia/Alina went 1-2 because it was very predictable, but I was mostly thrilled for Anna.

This is NOT the first Olympic figure skating dream I've had...I think it shows that my subconscious is wayyyy too obsessed with figure skating instead of anything real going on in my life lol.

(I think Evgenia is always the winner is every dream though - haven't seen an upset yet!)

In all seriousness though, Russian ladies 2018 Olympic team will possibly/probably be the strongest 3-person ladies Olympic team in skating history? Their closest "competition" would be US ladies in 1992, 1998, and 2002, the difference being that the 1992/2002 team had basically no chance at a medal sweep with Midori/Irina there as a favorite for either gold or silver, whereas the 1998 team had gold and silver all wrapped up (Michelle and Tara), with the bronze being a possibility for a number of ladies, including Nicole Bobek (who bombed).

Russian ladies NEED Anna to have a shot at a sweep. Not that a sweep is realistic at all - particularly with politics involved - but it'd be cool to get all three ladies in the top 4 or 5, and beat their current overall best from 2016, where all three ladies placed top 6. In both 1992 and 2002, all three US ladies placed top 4. Anna is capable of being in medal contention or bombing. OTOH, Elena, Liza, and Maria are all capable of top 6 finishes, top 10 finishes for sure, but probably not close to medal contention.

(Also relevant: US ladies swept Worlds podium in 1991.)

Anyway, yeah, this is a ramble because my dream made me think about a Russian ladies podium sweep.
 
andromache said:
In all seriousness though, Russian ladies 2018 Olympic team will possibly/probably be the strongest 3-person ladies Olympic team in skating history? Their closest "competition" would be US ladies in 1992, 1998, and 2002, the difference being that the 1992/2002 team had basically no chance at a medal sweep with Midori/Irina there as a favorite for either gold or silver, whereas the 1998 team had gold and silver all wrapped up (Michelle and Tara), with the bronze being a possibility for a number of ladies, including Nicole Bobek (who bombed).
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I would say the US team in 1992 was the strongest, as they had all proven themselves as seniors by sweeping the 1991 Worlds podium (where Ito also competed). However, Russia has the most depth ever; they could probably send their 4th-6th place Nationals finishers to the Olympics and they would all be medal contenders.
 
drivingmissdaisy said:
I would say the US team in 1992 was the strongest, as they had all proven themselves as seniors by sweeping the 1991 Worlds podium (where Ito also competed). However, Russia has the most depth ever; they could probably send their 4th-6th place Nationals finishers to the Olympics and they would all be medal contenders.
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If we are looking at current seniors only - I don't think Liza, Maria, or Elena has much shot at a medal. They will already have a "#3 Russian" PCS disadvantage, and on top of that, are not likely to put out two clean programs. Whichever two ladies Japan sends + Katelyn Osmond are more likely to make the podium than the #3 Russian lady, due to a combination of both politics and actual skating quality.

I think if Polina Tsurskaya was healthy it would be another story. Fingers crossed for her.

Whoever the Russian ladies are making a case in 2022 - that is when there will be enough depth to be a legitimate podium sweep threat. Since 2014, there has always been a "weak link" out of the Russian lady trio, and it seems like there will be one this season as well. By 2022, I don't think that will be the case.

2015 Russian ladies also had a real chance of sweeping the Worlds podium going into the competition - it was a weak field overall among the US, Canadians, and Japanese.
 
drivingmissdaisy said:
I would say the US team in 1992 was the strongest, as they had all proven themselves as seniors by sweeping the 1991 Worlds podium (where Ito also competed). However, Russia has the most depth ever; they could probably send their 4th-6th place Nationals finishers to the Olympics and they would all be medal contenders.
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Definitely 1992. Gold-Kristi, Bronze-Nancy, Pewter-Tonya. I'm still on the fence when it comes to a Russian sweep although I do see Med as the Champion.
 
well... if I would be a bookmaker, I simply wouldn't accept any bets on Tutberidze skaters... you know why :laugh:
 
mrrice said:
Have you guys seen Med's SP? Even with the new depth of the Canadian, Japanese, and US Ladies, she is still the best skater in the world. I had thought's that Zagitova might catch her but not anymore. Med is a Brilliant Skater!!!
Click to expand...

Yeah, it's my favorite SP by her. The FS didn't seem as good during the test skates but I'll have to see how it is during an actual performance. Still, it's nice to once again have a program that I like by Medvedeva. The last one I have liked was her 15-16 FS.
 
I was unsure about Evgenia's SP but I take back whatever I said before. This is really good. The ending still does not make much sense to me though. After such a good skate the Olympic crowd (or any crowd in a major event) will be getting up, clapping, generally making a lot of noise immediately after the music stops but Evgenia will have an extra breathing part which I'm not even sure will be heard and look awkward?
 
Tulipstar said:
Evgenia is amazing.
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Yes, she is. Although this program is much more powerful live. I had shivers seeing it in Sochi. Anyway, she has set the level that will be very hard to match for anyone.

I browsed the Nepela thread. Strange enough but there is very little critique outside a few "usual suspects". Either the fighers are building up their energy for "future battles" or they have slowly started to appreciate Evgenia's excellence.

It will be interesting to see if she has improved her LP. Frankly speaking, after the breathtaking short I was not convinced by the long. Hope, my viewpont will change.
 
andromache said:
In all seriousness though, Russian ladies 2018 Olympic team will possibly/probably be the strongest 3-person ladies Olympic team in skating history?...

...Russian ladies NEED Anna to have a shot at a sweep.
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You answered yourself. Only with Anna at her best can the Russian team shoot at the sweep and be considered the strongest team in history. There could be a theoretical possibility with Polina T but her state is a mystery. All other "third" ladies are frankly speaking quite far from big podiums. Tukt lost to Yura Matsuda and Bradie Tennel. Lena is losing to Rika Hongo. Maria was not convincing in Sochi. So far getting into top-10 seems the best they can do. It may change, of course, as the season progresses but my hopes are with Anna anyway.
 
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