2018 Olympic Figure Skating Mens FS

[TunaKeem]

Nathan has broken the barrier for quads and that is commendable. As expected, he has consistency issues. I would even say with the amount of quads he is attempting and how he is changing up his programs constantly, his current level of consistency is higher than what can be expected from someone else who would do the same.

That being said, I feel Yuzuru is hands down the better skater overall. Technically, what Yuzuru is lacking in BV he makes up with BV+GOE. Now he has narrowed the BV gap by adding more quads and is coming back strong.

When Nathan came along he was just a jumper with no artistry. The amount he was able to grow in one year is leaps and bounds and I don’t doubt he will continue to grow and he will be a true competitor for Yuzuru Hanyu in the next quad. It will continue to be an exciting time for men’s figure skating assuming they don’t completely change up the rules too much.

 

[jenaj]

Any word on whether Hanyu will be continuing on? Will he be at Worlds?

 

[ks777]

Any word on whether Hanyu will be continuing on? Will he be at Worlds?

Hanyu hasn't mentioned about going to worlds yet but he did say that he is continuing. He wants to work on the 4 axel.

 

[anonymoose_au]

Hello friends, just checking in from last night, as before the event ended, I went to the medical clinic to see a doctor about the strange, sharp abdominal cramps I was experiencing. Turns out that I have UTI, and while they are definitely not fun, it’s much better than premature labour or having other pregnancy related complications! I am 29 weeks along now. Thank you for all your kind words and messages of concern.

I finally caught up on this whole entire 227+ page thread. The one thing that cracks me up the most on a personal level is how similar Shoma Uno is to my Yuzudaughter: she’s the exact type who would look dazed when her marks come up, hold her plushie backwards for photos, get confused on where to go to the podium, etc etc. Even though she’s a Yuzuber and dislikes Shoma simply for being Yuzu’s national rival, they actually have quite a lot in common. She can also be awkward and sometimes introverted - believe it or not, I am too, at times.

While I’m sad for my boy Boyang, I think the judges got the medalists right - and in the right order - on the podium.


I also bawled my eyes out during both Adam and Patrick’s programs. Despite their lack of technical arsenal and/or mistakes, they were both simply beautiful to watch. Three cheers for Keegan as well, he’s just so darling.

This will be quite a story to tell Newdaughter in a few years: how I’ll always remember watching the latter half of the 2018 Olympic men’s freeskate in a hospital waiting room because I was worried for her in utero, all while sucking the life outta my cellphone’s data plan without a care in the world regarding if I’ll end up with a ridiculously high invoice next month. Skating is life in the SynchroFam.

That's excellent news! Except for the UTI of course. :disapp:

And at your Yuzudaughter, I wonder if she'll ever come to appreciate Shoma and their similiarities!

 

[Haikush]

with Nathan's BV, would would he even try to improve the other aspects of his skating.....
I don't like the direction mens skating is going. There should be a limit to # of quads in a program

 

[readernick]

I am enjoying it. Sometimes I love reading varied opinions of people. You can't be too serious you know. You gotta laugh!

I came to love figure skating since Michelle Kwan. Love her artistry. Then, you have Slutskaya...

Evan WON in Vancouver and the criticism without having a quad was FURIOUS.

Then youngsters brought it to another level. Now see quad jumps as ordinary. REVOLUTIONARY!

Everyone was asking for Michelle to UP the ANTE as I can remember. Now we have the Russians dominating the ladies. And they still criticize the top two for lack of artistry and scream unbalance program.

SO WHAT DO WE WANT? UP the Ante or UP the artistry and limit athleticism? Don't forget, the rule book has now changed too and you got to play by the same rules in order to win.

FIGURE SKATING IS A SPORT! FIGURE SKATERS ARE CALLED ATHLETES! ATHLETE MUST BE ATHLETIC!

Now figure skating is unique because of artistry. Finding the balance between artistry and athleticism is now the new challenge of the NEW ERA indeed. We got to see a glimpse of that with Hanyu's SP and LP. So it is POSSIBLE!

Yes, I feel that the other disciplines have done a better job of blending artistry and athleticism than ladies. I think that the reason for this is that there are actually a large number of men in competition right now who have both great athleticism and artistry. Yuzuru Hanyu got better and better artistically as he battled to overtake the beautiful Patrick Chan. Javier has improved so much since 2010 because of Patrick and Yuzuru. Nathan and Boyang are in the midst of developing artistry. Shoma is already artistic but he should improve his jump technique to see continued success. So, in order to win in the men's event you have to develop both. The same is true in pairs (so many competitive pairs) and dance is, also, really strong. However, not that many ladies have shown true technical and artistic brillance in the last few years. Carolina is the Queen artistically but her athletism is not that strong. (rather like Patrick Chan, right now )So, I don't think there is the same pressure to really improve the artistry or technical level in ladies. Mao Asada really pushed this envelope but since she has retired now --who is left? If you are consistent, your PCS and GOE's will rise in ladies regardless of whether you really deserve those scores. But, I think the Eteri and her backloaded programs are going to force this brillance from ladies in the future. I feel like Rika Kihira and Alena Kostornaia will bring this balance to ladies figure skating in the next few years. Right now, ladies is my least favorite discipline. (and no I am not insulting Medvedeva or Zagitova--- I respect them) but I think the ladies field will be much stronger in the future.

 

[MaiKatze]

exactly what I am afraid of. I hope he thinks long term whether is for himself or japan. If his injury get to the point of too serious to heal, then nobody's gonna carry Japan for the upcoming years. I know they see potential in Shoma, but imo his techniques are far from what Yuzuru can produce.

'Potential' just won Japan's first Olympic Silver Medal in Men's figure skating and wasn't too far away from the Gold.

 

[WeakAnkles]

Yes, I feel that the other disciplines have done a better job of blending artistry and athleticism than ladies. I think that the reason for this is that there are actually a large number of men in competition right now who have both great athleticism and artistry. Yuzuru Hanyu got better and better artistically as he battled to overtake the beautiful Patrick Chan. Javier has improved so much since 2010 because of Patrick and Yuzuru. Nathan and Boyang are in the midst of developing artistry. Shoma is already artistic but he should improve his jump technique to see continued success. So, in order to win in the men's event you have to develop both. The same is true in pairs (so many competitive pairs) and dance is, also, really strong. However, not that many ladies have shown true technical and artistic brillance in the last few years. Carolina is the Queen artistically but her athletism is not that strong. (rather like Patrick Chan, right now )So, I don't think there is the same pressure to really improve the artistry or technical level in ladies. Mao Asada really pushed this envelope but since she has retired now --who is left? If you are consistent, your PCS and GOE's will rise in ladies regardless of whether you really deserve those scores. But, I think the Eteri and her backloaded programs are going to force this brillance from ladies in the future. I feel like Rika Kihira and Alena Kostornaia will bring this balance to ladies figure skating in the next few years. Right now, ladies is my least favorite discipline. (and no I am not insulting Medvedeva or Zagitova--- I respect them) but I think the ladies field will be much stronger in the future.

Spot on.

:agree:

 

[WeakAnkles]

Hello friends, just checking in from last night, as before the event ended, I went to the medical clinic to see a doctor about the strange, sharp abdominal cramps I was experiencing. Turns out that I have UTI, and while they are definitely not fun, it’s much better than premature labour or having other pregnancy related complications! I am 29 weeks along now. Thank you for all your kind words and messages of concern.

I finally caught up on this whole entire 227+ page thread. The one thing that cracks me up the most on a personal level is how similar Shoma Uno is to my Yuzudaughter: she’s the exact type who would look dazed when her marks come up, hold her plushie backwards for photos, get confused on where to go to the podium, etc etc. Even though she’s a Yuzuber and dislikes Shoma simply for being Yuzu’s national rival, they actually have quite a lot in common. She can also be awkward and sometimes introverted - believe it or not, I am too, at times.

While I’m sad for my boy Boyang, I think the judges got the medalists right - and in the right order - on the podium.


I also bawled my eyes out during both Adam and Patrick’s programs. Despite their lack of technical arsenal and/or mistakes, they were both simply beautiful to watch. Three cheers for Keegan as well, he’s just so darling.

This will be quite a story to tell Newdaughter in a few years: how I’ll always remember watching the latter half of the 2018 Olympic men’s freeskate in a hospital waiting room because I was worried for her in utero, all while sucking the life outta my cellphone’s data plan without a care in the world regarding if I’ll end up with a ridiculously high invoice next month. Skating is life in the SynchroFam.

Sending healing vibes your way.

 

[kevinVchicago]

Hello friends, just checking in from last night, as before the event ended, I went to the medical clinic to see a doctor about the strange, sharp abdominal cramps I was experiencing. Turns out that I have UTI, and while they are definitely not fun, it’s much better than premature labour or having other pregnancy related complications! I am 29 weeks along now. Thank you for all your kind words and messages of concern.

Ahh! I didn't hear about this! So glad that you're okay.

While I’m sad for my boy Boyang, I think the judges got the medalists right - and in the right order - on the podium.

I did not like to see him cry. :/ Still sad about it today.

 

[eaglehelang]

Any word on whether Hanyu will be continuing on? Will he be at Worlds?

Not sure on Worlds or next season. He will go back Japan to get his ankle checked out 1st.
Yuzuru had to take painkillers to get thru the Olympics.
But....he wants to do the 4A, i.e. He wouldnt retire till he lands the 4A in competition. Not now of course, after his ankle heals up.

The interviews and translations link are in Yuzuru's fan fest, kindly provided by the Japanese fans

 

[ladyjane]

What a great competition (another one)! Pleased for Yuzuru who did very well, especially while still suffering from injury. I very much enjoyed his skating (as I usually do) even if the free wasn't totally perfect. To me second and third were a bit of a toss up, as I preferred Fernandez' free skate to Shoma's but both definitely medal worthy. Boyang came really close this time, he showed us two good skates. He's improved so much, I expect much from him the coming years. And Nathan had his 'Mao-redemption skate', which was nice too. Besides these, there were a lot of other enjoyable ones even if they didn't come close to medalling (as well as a few cringe worthy ones - but that's all in the game).

 

[Globetrotter]

This was an extremely well scored event. Nathan's BV makes him very competitive even when he is not getting high GOE's. He didn't get impressive GOE's but he completed a much more difficult long program than the other skaters (even Shoma--who is closest to him in BV but was also rather messy and did not get very high GOE's). He jumped the 4lz, 4flip, 4sal, 4toe. No other skate does 4 different quads in the long. He also got levels on step sequences and spins, deservedly. He deserved the place he got. People just like to complain after events. His PCS scores were fair. I don't see how people think he was overscored.

It’s not his tech that people felt he was overscored generally, although I myself don’t agree that his jumps should get +2 GOEs when there were no TR in and out and the flow out generally was mediocre. In the main, it was the PCS overscoring that was an issue. Nathan opted to hexaquad but also sacrificed his TR and was more cautious to focus on the jumps. Only the StSq had some semblance of performance but the rest of the programme lacked his usual standard and should really be scored lower and not at the same level. I am a firm believer of scoring based on what was delivered and not what could be or what had been.

 

[xeyra]

the correct way to look at that would be to look at BV and TES score. not the total score where pcs is a factor into it. the other 2 have the PCS score of being skating longer, just like the old day....

You're right and I've gone back to add it to the original table. I intended to, actually, but I blame sleep deprivation why I didn't. So, even though PCS are a differential factor, GOEs are just as important, and together they can elevate a lower BV to great heights, which was always Orser and Javi's strategy.

Nathan's strategy, though, is the only choice for the current era, considering his timing as a new senior (season before Olympics) and his technical calling card. With the USA breathing down his neck, and his own (and his team's) ambition, he couln't take the time to progressively and calmly develop his tech and PCS concurrently, so he had to rely on one of them. Boyang tried, this season, by keeping his layouts unchanged to work on basics, but he's from a nation that didn't pressure him too much into it.

Hopefully, now that the pressure of the Olympics is gone, and with the new changes coming into the scoring of Figure Skating, Nathan'll have more time to develop both aspects together. What I think is needed, though, for this to happen, is an attitude shift regarding his and his teams idea of artistry vs jumps. They seem to think of them as separate things, and that one can be developed at a later time, but programs should be choreographed to the jumps, with the jumps, and not in spite of the jumps.

 

[readernick]

It’s not his tech that people felt he was overscored generally, although I myself don’t agree that his jumps should get +2 GOEs when there were no TR in and out and the flow out generally was mediocre. In the main, it was the PCS overscoring that was an issue. Nathan opted to hexaquad but also sacrificed his TR and was more cautious to focus on the jumps. Only the StSq had some semblance of performance but the rest of the programme lacked his usual standard and should really be scored lower and not at the same level. I am a firm believer of scoring based on what was delivered and not what could be or what had been.

I mean I agree with you. This performance was not the best until the step sequence and I absolutely think that you should judge what is in front of you not what is possible. But, did you actually check the protocols? Because, Nathan got much lower GOE than Yazuru, Javier, Shoma, and even Boyang (because the Chinese judge apparently felt that every element Boyang did was +3 in quality, haha). Nathan only got 2 +3 (from the USA judge, of course) most of his jumps got +1. Now, I agree you should have transitions into jumps to get postive GOE but since the judges gave +1/2 to Boyang too and to many other skaters and they also don't have those transitions at least they were consistent. (but I do agree they should either enfore this rule or get rid of it)

In terms of PCS, Nathan was 6th. Behind Yuzuru, Shoma, Javier, and Patrick (absolutely correct--they should be ahead) but also behind Mikhal Kolyada who has great SS but to put it the way Dick Button did-- the music doesn't bother him much. So, I think it is fair placement.

I am not a Nathan fan, honestly. I just don't like people pretending there were was a judging conspiracy when there wasn't one. I would give lower PCS marks to a lot of the skaters (and higher PCS marks to Patrick) but I think after I had done that the placements would still be the same because Nathan does not deserve a 8.32 in trans but Boyang doesn't deserve a 8.21 in trans either. (maybe 7.75 for Nathan and 7.5 for Boyang so the end result would be the same. -- I would give similar scores to Kolyada Rippon and on on -- many people got transition marks they didn't deserve) Who do you think deserved to be be placed higher in terms of PCS placement? Normally, I would say Adam but I don't think this was actually his best performance. Aliev is lovely but the falls really knocked the wind out of his sails and I don't think he performed to his potential either....

Now, the technical caller was definitely lax . He did not call a lot of underrotations including Shoma's first Quad which could actually have caused a change in placement between Shoma and Javier but I don't think there was any conspiracy just human error or the failure of the one camera system for technical panel. (And, I love Shoma so the silver medal isn't making me sad- but I would like all tech calls to be fair).

 

[Panpie]

I don't see any Nathan Chen haters here

I did see a few people who were annoyed with having to respond to claims such as
"Nathan gifted Yuzuru Hanyu his Gold medal"

It's not personal

Amen. I put a few people on ignore be cause of all the what iffing. I don't know if they were just trying to be cute and play devil's advocate, but reading their posts got tiresome.

For the record, I'm American, and I did not buy into the Nathan hype. Yuzuru has shown time and again that he can perform under immense pressure, much more than Nathan or any of the other men have had to deal with. Yuzuru put down two incredible programs with transitions, choreography that related to the music, nuance, speed, power, and passion.

Nathan bombed his short program and basically put on a jump clinic in the free program. Despite Tara and Johnny's gushing on NBC, Nathan's program was basically jump, jump, jump. The day I see Nathan skate a program with full attention to choreography, difficult transitions, seamless integration of jumps, and connection to the music and audience, I will happily give him his due. I haven't seen that from Nathan yet.

 

[readernick]

Amen. I put a few people on ignore be cause of all the what iffing. I don't know if they were just trying to be cute and play devil's advocate, but reading their posts got tiresome.

For the record, I'm American, and I did not buy into the Nathan hype. Yuzuru has shown time and again that he can perform under immense pressure, much more than Nathan or any of the other men have had to deal with. Yuzuru put down two incredible programs with transitions, choreography that related to the music, nuance, speed, power, and passion.

Nathan bombed his short program and basically put on a jump clinic in the free program. Despite Tara and Johnny's gushing on NBC, Nathan's program was basically jump, jump, jump. The day I see Nathan skate a program with full attention to choreography, difficult transitions, seamless integration of jumps, and connection to the music and audience, I will happily give him his due. I haven't seen that from Nathan yet.

Same, I am also an American and I did not think he would win the Gold medal. ( I was rooting for Shoma, honestly) But, to be fair to Nathan it is not really possible to perform much when you are jumping that many Quads. Hanyu's performance quality began to suffer earlier in this season when he decided to add the 4lz to his program. I am so glad that he didn't try the loop or quad in competition here. You have to build up speed before the Quad so if you have that many Quads in your program the performance will suffer. I was impressed by Nathan's short program earlier in the season. I have yet to be impressed by his artistry in the long. I think they should reduce the number of jumping passes in the long.

 

[Ziotic]

That was then! As good as Hanyu is today, I doubt he can replicate the 223 today my friend. He only has quad toe and quad sal at best to rely on. Nathan tried 6 quads, one was not perfect and with no triple toe attached to quad lutz this time. See where I'm coming from? Mathematically Nathan has the upper hand regardless if Hanyu scored perfect 10's on the PCS or how masterpieces his programs were tonight.

Which is basically everything wrong with the current scoring system.

That being said, with the changes coming hopefully the playing field will level out again so jumping beans don’t win everything.

 

[Ylyzybyth]

Hello friends, just checking in from last night, as before the event ended, I went to the medical clinic to see a doctor about the strange, sharp abdominal cramps I was experiencing. Turns out that I have UTI, and while they are definitely not fun, it’s much better than premature labour or having other pregnancy related complications! I am 29 weeks along now. Thank you for all your kind words and messages of concern.

I finally caught up on this whole entire 227+ page thread. The one thing that cracks me up the most on a personal level is how similar Shoma Uno is to my Yuzudaughter: she’s the exact type who would look dazed when her marks come up, hold her plushie backwards for photos, get confused on where to go to the podium, etc etc. Even though she’s a Yuzuber and dislikes Shoma simply for being Yuzu’s national rival, they actually have quite a lot in common. She can also be awkward and sometimes introverted - believe it or not, I am too, at times.

While I’m sad for my boy Boyang, I think the judges got the medalists right - and in the right order - on the podium.


I also bawled my eyes out during both Adam and Patrick’s programs. Despite their lack of technical arsenal and/or mistakes, they were both simply beautiful to watch. Three cheers for Keegan as well, he’s just so darling.

This will be quite a story to tell Newdaughter in a few years: how I’ll always remember watching the latter half of the 2018 Olympic men’s freeskate in a hospital waiting room because I was worried for her in utero, all while sucking the life outta my cellphone’s data plan without a care in the world regarding if I’ll end up with a ridiculously high invoice next month. Skating is life in the SynchroFam.

I hope you feel better!
You remind me of the girl from Yuri on Ice that has the kids that are hardcore skating fans and get busted for staying up late and streaming FS comps on the computer!
I am not a die hard Shoma fan, mostly because of his wonky jumps and the way he has to spank the ice on his toe jumps. BUT he so reminds me of my 3 yr old boy! I can't help but find him adorable. It's funny that someone else feels the same.
Get wellll sooooon!!

 

[Panpie]

Same, I am also an American and I did not think he would win the Gold medal. ( I was rooting for Shoma, honestly) But, to be fair to Nathan it is not really possible to perform much when you are jumping that many Quads. Hanyu's performance quality began to suffer earlier in this season when he decided to add the 4lz to his program. I am so glad that he didn't try the loop or quad in competition here. You have to build up speed before the Quad so if you have that many Quads in your program the performance will suffer. I was impressed by Nathan's short program earlier in the season. I have yet to be impressed by his artistry in the long. I think they should reduce the number of jumping passes in the long.

I will agree with you except the part about Hanyu's performance quality. He usually is not at peak level until later in the season, so whatever was lacking could have been due to that.

I would love to see Nathan and his team focus on something other than doing five or six quads. I've seen pictures of Nathan in ballet shoes. Where is the ballet or any dance in his skating? He could win by becoming a more complete skater, not just by relying on doing more quad jumps than the others. Maybe Yuzu, Javi, and Shoma could do five or six quads if they abandoned almost everything else, but I'm glad they haven't done that.