2020-21 US Women's Figure Skating

[lizardlass]

I always fall for at least ONE April Fools joke.

Just to weigh on Bradie, I adore her and continue to root for her. She had a wobbly showing at Worlds, but she was awesome at Nationals, and I especially love her SP. I hope she changes coaches, though. She could definitely find a better fit.

 

[mrrice]

Charisma is in the eye of the beholder. If Bradie really had no charisma, she wouldn't be getting such high PCS scores, even with a subpar World 2021 performance.

I have never seen Bradie skate live. She appears to be quite fast on TV. That alone is very exciting to watch in person.

 

[macy]

Ashley posted on instagram today to announce she is returning to competition next season. Interesting!!!!

i was so upset this was just a joke

 

[ladyjane]

I always fall for at least ONE April Fools joke.

You're one among many: so do I! Although I agree it would have been interesting to see Ashley back in the business.

 

[Paulipau]

I was just thinking if how worlds turned out this year will affect Gracie.

I mean people were saying like she wouldnt be competitive anyway without a quad or 3A or whatever, but she could actually be very competitive with her beautiful 3-3.

Keep fighting Gracie!

 

[mrrice]

I was just thinking if how worlds turned out this year will affect Gracie.

I mean people were saying like she wouldnt be competitive anyway without a quad or 3A or whatever, but she could actually be very competitive with her beautiful 3-3.

Keep fighting Gracie!

Did Gracie land a 3-3 at Nationals? I don't remember

 

[readernick]

I have never seen Bradie skate live. She appears to be quite fast on TV. That alone is very exciting to watch in person.

This is very true. I didn't appreciate her skating until I saw her skate live. She is very fast and the angular choreography works better in person than on television. She is very tall compared to most skaters and it makes an impact in person. She really doesn't deserve all the negative comments she receives. (Of course, you don't have to like her skating but a lot of the comments are related to her personal appearance ( sugar coated with talks about her styling) and that just isn't ok)

 

[chuckm]

Bradie also happens to have all L4 spins and she gets L4 on her footwork.

 

[Jammers]

I was just thinking if how worlds turned out this year will affect Gracie.

I mean people were saying like she wouldnt be competitive anyway without a quad or 3A or whatever, but she could actually be very competitive with her beautiful 3-3.

Keep fighting Gracie!

I think we have to realize that this isn't the Gracie of 2012-16 and we aren't going to be seeing that version of her again. It would be great if we did because she would be almost guaranteed a spot on next years Olympic team. Her power, speed and jumps would still be the best in the US field and her spins were always among the best in the world though no one really ever talked about them as much because of all of her other crazy technical ability.

 

[Amei]

I was just thinking if how worlds turned out this year will affect Gracie.

I mean people were saying like she wouldnt be competitive anyway without a quad or 3A or whatever, but she could actually be very competitive with her beautiful 3-3.

Keep fighting Gracie!

Gracie is technically fine to be competitive in the US, we see in practices from nationals, warmups, and what her team posts on instagram, her problem is the same as it was pre-break, she comes apart in competitions.

I was just thinking if how worlds turned out this year will affect Gracie.

Worlds was a shaky competition that was an outlier to what we saw last season during the GP series and even the Russian cup series this year.

 

[Skater Boy]

I was just thinking if how worlds turned out this year will affect Gracie.

I mean people were saying like she wouldnt be competitive anyway without a quad or 3A or whatever, but she could actually be very competitive with her beautiful 3-3.

Keep fighting Gracie!

Yes, she could be competitive but that is only if she gets her jumps and spins and speed of yesteryear. That still remains to be a huge question mark. Gracie has had a fair amount of time to get it together and she has a huge fan base. Maybe she and Gabby will have a Cinderella ending. Three spots really is a blessing for the laides.

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

will Karen keep delivering and add in a 3+3 or will the pressure get to her again?

U.S. fed seems to like Karen a lot. They sent her to the Olympics in 2018 when she actually was not in a good place mentally, and she hadn't actually skated completely clean at Nationals. I thought that Ashley should have been in 3rd place. It shouldn't have even been a question of sending Ash over Karen, but fairly scoring in the first place. Even in the sp, I thought Ashley was low-balled at Nats because U.S. fed was apparently fed up with Ash's seeming loss of motivation. But Ash had gotten it together by Nats, and I think she would have done well at the Olympics when Karen didn't. Karen's meltdown didn't hurt the U.S. team though since Mirai and Bradie were the main ladies and got the job done in the team event, if not as particularly well in the individual events. I guess since Karen now has the Olympics experience, U.S. fed may feel that sending her to 2018 Olympics was a good decision, despite the fact she wasn't ready for that spotlight.

I believe Karen has probably cemented her ticket to Beijing with her consistent showing at Worlds. Plus her fp is lovely with its Chinese theme, so perhaps she will keep it for next season. She needs to strategize to eliminate URs and try to find a way to gain more tech points. Arguably, with all the falls and messy skating at 2021 Worlds, Karen should have reached the podium (if not for the huge GOE, PCS, and high value quad and 3-axel elements accumulated by the Russian ladies). As much as I like Liza and I'm happy for her, she skated so tentatively, and with a fall, but I guess less messy than Kihira's skate. I thought Scherbakova was over-scored on her spins that were wonky. And Scherbakova of course also fell, right along with Trusova and Liza. The Russians had enough tech elements, political backing, and love from the judges to stay on top.

Bradie could have finished higher with the same fire she brought to U.S. Nationals. It must be difficult for Bradie realizing that Mariah and now Karen are apparently favorites of U.S. fed when they show grit and consistency. I hope Amber solidifies her 3-axel and performs well on the GP next season (which I imagine will go forward by then). It remains to be seen whether Alysa can get her high value jumps back. Without them, I doubt she will be favored. Mariah needs much better programs for next season than she had this season, in addition to finding inner strength to perform under intense pressure. I believe that Loena Hendrickx was likely inspired by Mariah's 'Work B**ch' sp from last season in choosing Beyonce's Fever for her fp.

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

Charisma is in the eye of the beholder. If Bradie really had no charisma, she wouldn't be getting such high PCS scores, even with a subpar World 2021 performance.

I enjoy Bradie's skating. She needs to clean up the URs and continue utilizing music that motivates her. I like her drive, determination and self-belief. She needs to maintain her confidence at major events. Skating clean when others falter makes a difference. But skating clean is easier said than done in figure skating. Mishin was impressed by Bradie, but then apparently sorry he helped her technically when she came ahead of Liza at a GP event. LOL

 

[katymay]

Did Gracie land a 3-3 at Nationals? I don't remember

She did in the practice sessions. Best jumps of all the women. But fitness and conditioning /stamina not there to get through a program. With alot of super hard work though? It could happen.

 

[beepboop]

could someone explain the Team USA training/assessment schedule? just saw that Alysa is now at the OPTC in Colorado Springs, and was wondering why. thanks!

 

[Amei]

She did in the practice sessions. Best jumps of all the women. But fitness and conditioning /stamina not there to get through a program. With alot of super hard work though? It could happen.

How many years have we been saying that though?

 

[Mathman]

U.S. fed seems to like Karen a lot....

My impression -- just guessing here - is that the powers that be see a lot of up side to Karen's skating, while they hope that the challenges that hold her back can be met with only minor tweeking. This gives her higher potential than Bradie or Mariah, who seem to be maxed out. Alyssa appears to be a long shot at this point. Amber is not yet regarded as a top-rung contender, but who knows what a year will bring?.

 

[Colonel Green]

Alyssa appears to be a long shot at this point.

Why do you think that? She looked very bad early in the season, but showed up at nationals and was less than two points off the silver medal. I wouldn't bet against her.

 

[natsulian]

Alysa dealt with injuries, growing pains, and was written off by the media and fans alike during the beginning of the season. During the few times in which we saw her, Alysa showed only double jumps and spins that looked laborious. Fast forward a few months and Alysa shows up to Nationals, completes a clean short program, and managed to compete head-to-head against ladies who were on the up-swing. Alysa has shown, time and time again, that she should never be written off or looked at as a "long-shot." We must give credit where credit is due because from a young age, despite the huge media attention, has stood resiliently. Alysa may not have the quads or triple-Axel ready or she may come prepared with multiple quads and a triple-Axel come next season but whatever the case may be, she cannot be doubted.

 

[TontoK]

My impression -- just guessing here - is that the powers that be see a lot of up side to Karen's skating, while they hope that the challenges that hold her back can be met with only minor tweeking. This gives her higher potential than Bradie or Mariah, who seem to be maxed out. Alyssa appears to be a long shot at this point. Amber is not yet regarded as a top-rung contender, but who knows what a year will bring?.

I dunno. If Alyssa shows the same growth in the coming year that she did in the prior one, I'm not writing her off by a long shot.

Particularly if she can regain the jumps she had before. And let's face it, if she does, then the improved maturity we're seeing in her skating won't even matter. It will just be a bonus. Can't wait to see it all play out.