2017-18 State of U.S. Ladies Skating | Page 255 | Golden Skate

2017-18 State of U.S. Ladies Skating

Okay I am doing the thing and searching through the long IceNetwork video.

Ting is lovely. She has a floating quality to her actual skating, and her jumps are every nice. Looked like there was an error or two in her StSq at the end. Her Rippon arms are :love:. I wonder what would help her with consistency?

Loved Pooja's opening StSq. She looks so mature. Is she tall, or does she just have a tall presence? I'm not wowed by her jumps - I think I'd like to see a little more height on them? (I think I just have higher expectations for an Alex O. girl.) And she kind of telegraphs a lot - she needs more transitions. Incredible speed in her final spin. At 15 now, she'll be a little older than her top competition on the JGP circuit next year, but she could be a late bloomer. The basics are all there, for sure, and it already looks like she's dealing well with growth.

Alysa is already pegged as the future of US skating and the girl who will save US ladies. I hope the pressure over the next few years doesn't get to her too badly. Her jumps are tiny, but her rotations are very fast. Unlike with Ting and Pooja, I'm not convinced that all her jumps were fully-rotated. I'm not saying they were for sure UR'd, but they're small enough that technical panels will probably scrutinize them and could probably nail her if they wanted to. But she's a tiny girl! Her jumps will grow with her, I hope. In addition, her speed and ice coverage is very, very impressive such a tiny girl. She really attacks the program and you can tell she has grit. Very enjoyable to watch!
 
Okay I am doing the thing and searching through the long IceNetwork video.

Ting is lovely. She has a floating quality to her actual skating, and her jumps are every nice. Looked like there was an error or two in her StSq at the end. Her Rippon arms are :love:. I wonder what would help her with consistency?

Loved Pooja's opening StSq. She looks so mature. Is she tall, or does she just have a tall presence? I'm not wowed by her jumps - I think I'd like to see a little more height on them? (I think I just have higher expectations for an Alex O. girl.) And she kind of telegraphs a lot - she needs more transitions. Incredible speed in her final spin. At 15 now, she'll be a little older than her top competition on the JGP circuit next year, but she could be a late bloomer. The basics are all there, for sure, and it already looks like she's dealing well with growth.

Alysa is already pegged as the future of US skating and the girl who will save US ladies. I hope the pressure over the next few years doesn't get to her too badly. Her jumps are tiny, but her rotations are very fast. Unlike with Ting and Pooja, I'm not convinced that all her jumps were fully-rotated. I'm not saying they were for sure UR'd, but they're small enough that technical panels will probably scrutinize them and could probably nail her if they wanted to. But she's a tiny girl! Her jumps will grow with her, I hope. In addition, her speed and ice coverage is very, very impressive such a tiny girl. She really attacks the program and you can tell she has grit. Very enjoyable to watch!

It's really exciting that every girl on the podium was so evenly matched and a well rounded skater. They all got higher TES than PCS but that's to be expected as a junior. There is not one girl I could point to on the podium and say "Oh, she's there soley because of her jumps. She will need to work on her skating skills and presentation super hard if she wants to be a competitive senior" or " That girl is just an artist. I hope she can get the jumps to stay competitive!". All the ladies are so wonderful and I am so excited for the future of US ladies.
 
If Ashley is on the team, I hope it is because she medals.

I agree with you wholeheartedly on that one. Another four years of debating the issue of whether she(or anyone else) earned it or not... no thank you.

Amen to that. My sentimental favorites are probably not going to challenge for the team, so at this point all I'm hoping for is a result that will quell the fan wars for the next four years... if that's even possible, lol.
 
Alysa is only 12? It will be four years before she has the opportunity to prove herself at the international senior level. That’s a generation from now in figure skating years. Who knows if we’ll have three spots by then (or even two). She has huge growth ahead of her. She is of course very promising and exciting—I don’t disagree with that at all. But there’ve been too many Caroline Zhangs and Mirai Nagasus over the past decade to get me too excited about the prospects of a young junior.
 
Because Ashley will have higher PCS than Mirai. I'm a fan of Mirai though.

Also, it's not only about base value attempted. If it were, Yuna would have never beaten Mao. A couple of under rotated triples offsets any point advantage gained by executing a perfect 3A.
 
I agree with the fact that barring a complete meltdown, Ashley will be sent to the Olympics. People always forget that it's not only about the sport - NBC/sponsors etc. want to have good viewing rates, and they are easier to get with the one female US skater people might have vaguely heard of. Plus, Ashley can touch the casual viewer with her skating (those that don't know what an underrotation is :) ). That all sounds cynical, and it probably is, but......that's the way it works.

If Ashley isn't in the top three, I don't think she will be on the team. This isn't 2014, where she was the previous years' two-time National Champion and bronze medalist at the recent GPF. She has had a lackluster season so far, lucking into a bronze at Skate Canada (with a lower score than Mirai had at NHK). She didn't do well at Worlds last year, either. I think Ashley a lock as long as she is at least third. Beyond that, the only way she should be on the team is if one of the top three is too young (and she is fourth).
 
My takeaway from the Brennan article is this:

USFS committees will pick the 2018 Olympians, and they will be armed with a long list of criteria about competitions past and present on which to base their decisions. I’ve read it all, and I’m happy to synthesize it for you now: The committees can do whatever they want.

This article is not Brennan pushing Ashley on the audience at the expense of others. It is an explanation for the general skating fans on why the committee will pick Ashley, no matter how she performs.
 
So Alysa Liu turning 13 on Aug 8 isn't enough for her to be eligible for the JGP circuit?? :sad21:

This girl has "it", hope she survives puberty and wins everything.

https://www.mercurynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/bng-l-skate-0103-5.jpg?w=810
https://www.mercurynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/bng-l-skate-0103-6.jpg?w=810

No, you must be 13 before July 1 in your place of birth.
Adelina Sotnikova was born a few hours into July 1 and was still ineligible.
 
Ashley can touch the casual viewer with her skating (those that don't know what an underrotation is .

Ashley touches thousands, who knows, around the world maybe millions more people with her skating than casual viewers who don't know what an underrotation is. I'm just one of many who are educated in that respect.

Vastly more important to me are the build up, the skating and Ashley's actual jumps, which are smooth, swift, beautiful, and connected to nuances and moods in the music. Attention to those things gives me an experience of figure skating and emotional satisfaction so much better than eagle eye to nitpick URs.
 

I don't have cable so I don't see many commercials (I love you HuluPlus!!) but have they been running any promos or commercials with Gracie in them? I know she was there for the team USA photo shoots earlier in the season. I also wonder about what happens to all of the endorsement deals now that she's not competing? Maybe they'll send her to Pyeongchang anyway. She can do appearances, interviews, etc. I think it'd be interesting for her to do commentary. She has a good personality and, having competed under IJS, is very familiar with the demands and nuances of it. I'm sure she'd offer a very interesting perspective, though it might be weird to comment on fellow skaters.

Still, I feel like I'd enjoy listening to Gracie more than I would the thinly veiled cattiness of Tara & Johnny.:rolleye:
 
I think it'd be interesting for her to do commentary. She has a good personality and, having competed under IJS, is very familiar with the demands and nuances of it. I'm sure she'd offer a very interesting perspective, though it might be weird to comment on fellow skaters.

Still, I feel like I'd enjoy listening to Gracie more than I would the thinly veiled cattiness of Tara & Johnny.:rolleye:

It's my understanding the Yulia's been a very good Russian commentator, so it is possible for someone young and inexperienced with broadcasting to still be very effective, as long as they have the knowledge (which former elite skaters obviously do).

That said, I think it's a bad idea to do commentary unless you are 100% NOT returning to competition. Commentating your former competitors is one thing, but commentating on them and then competing against them later can look bad. Not that Gracie would say anything overly negative or offensive, but good commentary demands some level of critique, and outwardly critiquing your competition isn't a good look, generally.
 
Vastly more important to me are the build up, the skating and Ashley's actual jumps, which are smooth, swift, beautiful, and connected to nuances and moods in the music. Attention to those things gives me an experience of figure skating and emotional satisfaction so much better than eagle eye to nitpick URs.

Thank you for explaining her strengths in such an articulate way. It's sometimes hard for me to put into words what makes her special, because it isn't so much about skating technique or ability. Skaters like Karen and Mirai are good expressing nuances in music with their arms, but with Ashley I feel like movement comes from a deeper place within her. Unlike a lot of other skaters, she moves differently based on the tempo of the music and the style of the piece.
 
Our new novice champ, Beverly Zhu, is almost 3 years older than our junior champ! Whoa!

(Actually, Alysa is also younger than every other novice lady! Wow! This is my first time paying this close of attention to the ladies below senior, so I'm not sure how typical this is!)
 
Our new novice champ, Beverly Zhu, is almost 3 years older than our junior champ! Whoa!

(Actually, Alysa is also younger than every other novice lady! Wow! This is my first time paying this close of attention to the ladies below senior, so I'm not sure how typical this is!)

It’s not typical. I can’t remember the last time we’ve had a junior champ so young. Kaitlyn was already really young at 13. It’s normal for novice medalist to be 14 and 15. And junior medalist are 15 to 17. US ladies are late bloomers.
 
I REALLY want to watch the performances but IceNetwork is sooooo unworkable. I don't want to search through a two hour video of the entire event! Split the videos into individual skaters so I can find them easily!!

back in the day they used to post the starting orders alongside the video, i don't know why they stopped doing this. it made it much easier to find the skater you're looking for.
 
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