2021-22 U.S. Pairs Figure Skating

[skylark]

I was very impressed with Smirnova/Siianytsia in their Junior Worlds appearances. Even more now, that I'm aware of the struggles that they went through from January 1 on. I think they have a spark of artistry that I'm loving to see. My heart goes out to them both; while they were in Talinn they visited/had visits with family members, so it was a very emotional time.

Not to make light of everything, but for some reason in the past week I've been thinking that Anastasia and Daniil will be stepping up big time. I also hope Emily and Spencer are re-doubling their efforts to prepare for the coming season as well.

 

[skylark]

Total speculation, but some folks on Twitter think Brandon wants to retire while Alexa wants to keep going.

Can you give me a link? I don't do Twitter, but I can read it sometimes.

If that is the case, please partner with Danny Alexa! That would be awesome!

If Danny's been training with someone for the past few months in an as-yet- unannounced new partnership, as has been speculated --- and he dropped that partner to try out with Alexa? It would be brutal. Puts another angle on the truism that "pairs girls are tough."

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

^^ Well, that sounds like just a rumor, which I thought I heard somebody also say about Ashley & Timothy! (i.e., that Ash wants to continue and Timothy doesn't). I really think we need to wait and hear it from the horses' mouths before over-speculating, especially regarding the more gossipy rumors. If a rumor is legit, then original sources of the rumor should put their names to it with back-up proof, or keep private the business of the skaters in question. And if it is just speculation only, what is the basis of this speculation -- a contemplation in the person's own head, just because something something strikes them that way?


In my previous post:
I forgot to paste a link to the U.S. figure skating fan zone article about Nastiya/ Danil, which provides more details, and quotes, including from their coach, Trudy Oltmanns (her daughter Oliva competed with Josh Santillans many years ago):

Smirnova and Siianytsia Confront a Season of Adversity - U.S. Figure Skating Fan Zone

In April, Team USA pairs skaters Anastasiia "Nastyia" Smirnova and Danil Siianytsia will compete for the second time at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating

usfigureskatingfanzone.com

 

[skylark]

@BlissfulSynergy
I really think we need to wait and hear it from the horses' mouths before over-speculating,

I don't think I'm over-speculating by wanting to read the posts on Twitter.

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

I was very impressed with Smirnova/Siianytsia in their Junior Worlds appearances.

Yes, for sure. I knew something was extremely upsetting emotionally, in addition to possible physical issues when I saw them compete at Junior Worlds. I just didn't know about their COVID situation. I also hadn't heard about exactly what they were dealing with in terms of family back in Ukraine, but I certainly knew that their emotion after the fp was related to the war in Ukraine. So, under these circumstances, it is truly amazing that they were even able to get out there and perform. They certainly did a good job. I'm: glad to hear how proud they feel about winning the small bronze medal at Junior Worlds!

I don't think I'm over-speculating by wanting to read the posts on Twitter.

No @skylark. I was agreeing with you asking for a link. I wasn't referring to you as 'over-speculating.' Not at all.

In fact, there's nothing wrong with speculating in the absence of solid news. We all do that to a degree. I was, just like you, wanting to know more about the origins of this kind of talk. Because clearly, it could just be someone's personal thoughts, unless they actually know about it from the skaters in question (which could mean breaking trust and confidences).

I'm sorry you mistook my comments as being directed at you.


ETA:
I wasn't referring to the poster you responded to either. I was referencing whoever it is on Twitter who said this. Seeing what was said is helpful, because it was either off the top of someone's head, or else perhaps they heard it from someone else, etc. How they phrase it might pinpoint whether it's just a speculative rumor, gossipy chatter, or something more solid.

 

[skylark]

Yes, for sure. I knew something was extremely upsetting emotionally, in addition to possible physical issues when I saw them compete at Junior Worlds. I just didn't know about their COVID situation. I also hadn't heard about exactly what they were dealing with in terms of family back in Ukraine, but I certainly knew that their emotion after the fp was related to the war in Ukraine. So, under these circumstances, it is truly amazing that they were even able to get out there and perform. They certainly did a good job. I'm: glad to hear how proud they feel about winning the small bronze medal at Junior Worlds!

Yes, me too. They've grown into a team that I'm really looking forward to seeing more of, and I hope they're getting encouragement. I think it's great that another pairs team from Ukraine has been able to join them in their training/coaching group.

I like that they were aiming high ... hoping to be on the senior podium at US Nationals, before they got de-railed by covid.

No @skylark. I was agreeing with you asking for a link. I wasn't referring to you as 'over-speculating.' Not at all.

In fact, there's nothing wrong with speculating in the absence of solid news. We all do that to a degree. I was, just like you, wanting to know more about the origins of this kind of talk. Because clearly, it could just be someone's personal thoughts, unless they actually know about it from the skaters in question (which could mean breaking trust and confidences).

I'm sorry you mistook my comments as being directed at you.


ETA:
I wasn't referring to the poster you responded to either. I was referencing whoever it is on Twitter who said this. Seeing what was said is helpful, because it was either off the top of someone's head, or else perhaps they heard it from someone else, etc. How they phrase it might pinpoint whether it's just a speculative rumor, gossipy chatter, or something more solid.

thank you for the clarification. It's a little hard to know who you were addressing when you said, "we shouldn't speculate."

 

[moonvine]

Updates:

Danny Neudecker has split with Sasha Fakhroutdinov, and newly paired up with Grace Hanns (who was formerly paired with Jim Garbutt). Neudecker previously competed successfully with Nica Digerness, who reportedly has been partnered and training with Mark Sadusky, in Colorado. I believe Hanns/Garbutt competed at U.S. Nationals, in 2022. Danny/Sasha were in position to make 2022 Nationals after their sp at an early qualifying competition, but they had too many problems in their fp, and thus dropped in the standings and missed the cut. I am not surprised that they split. I wish that Danny & Nica had stayed together. But, I suppose injuries played a part in their break-up. Good luck to all!

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cdd3hWzrUxc/

Sylvia Unseen has also posted about the above on another forum, and included the below news about an additional pairing for the U.S. -- Haley Beavers/ Matthew Kennedy. Beavers is new to pairs, while Kennedy has previously competed in Intermediate pairs. They will apparently be skating as juniors domestically, but are not eligible to compete as juniors internationally (similar to Wessenberg/Eisenach who train at the Irvine rink):

Skating Academy at The PIC on Instagram: "Less than 2 weeks to showtime! More amazing skaters in the lineup: Junior level ice dancer and National competitor Meryl Shackett @merylsk8; Junior Pair team and singles National competitors, Haley Beavers @h

57 likes, 0 comments - skatingatthepic on April 24, 2022: "Less than 2 weeks to showtime! More amazing skaters in the lineup: Junior level ice dancer and National competitor Meryl Shackett @meryls..."

www.instagram.com

This is insanity.

 

[moonvine]

Can you give me a link? I don't do Twitter, but I can read it sometimes.



If Danny's been training with someone for the past few months in an as-yet- unannounced new partnership, as has been speculated --- and he dropped that partner to try out with Alexa? It would be brutal. Puts another angle on the truism that "pairs girls are tough."

Here's another bit. I'd just read the whole first page. Brianna posts a lot about US pairs, it is her favorite event. She has some interesting insights, though she's not right any more than any of the rest of us are.

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

thank you for the clarification. It's a little hard to know who you were addressing when you said, "we shouldn't speculate."

LOL! I'm including myself in the 'we,' because it's always a fine line when we're musing out loud on a skating forum. I try to be thoughtful and reasonable, but I know that emotion gets the best of me at times, and I'm not exactly editing myself before I post. It's a bit of stream-of-conscious. But some things obviously should be phrased carefully, when there's no primary evidence, and it's off-the-top of someone's head. On occasion, it's hearsay, that could come from insider knowledge, so people commenting on Twitter should say when they are just shooting the breeze, without any solid information.

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

This is insanity.

What do you mean @moonvine? LOL!

I definitely agree with you if you mean that Danny should never have split with Nica in the first place, and thus pairing and then splitting with Sasha would not have happened. However, after seeing Sasha and Danny struggling at the Challenge qualifier before U.S. Nationals, I suspected their partnership might not last. I was asking about that earlier, and someone had said they were still together. But obviously, not for long. Sasha is a very good jumper, but she looked nervous competing, and her timing was off. Off-topic: Danny is looking so fit and manly these days. I love his beard. He had had some back issues years ago, but maybe he's on a preventative training regimen, and he's also grown up more and shed the baby fat (no, I'm not body-shaming), which happens in the maturation process.

Sasha and Danny had devastated expressions on their faces in the kiss 'n cry, and I felt so sorry for them. They really looked good together, so I'm not sure why they wouldn't have tried to work through the difficulty and disappointment. But again, the same goes for when Danny was with Nica -- they were good together too. I'm sure Tai Babilonia is shaking her head. She's always advocated for sticking together for the long haul. It worked for her and Randy Gardner, albeit in a very different era.

Nica was training with Ian Meyh, until she wasn't. The latest has been that Nica is training with Mark Sadusky, but I haven't heard anything recently about how they might be doing. Ian moved on to pair with Ellie Kam in junior pairs, and I guess they are still together. They had to WD from the fp at Nationals in January, due to injury, I believe.

Frankly, I'm crossing my fingers that Sonia Baram is going to stick with Daniel Tioutmentsev. They are great together, but there's a huge age gap between them.

ETA:
Thanks for the Twitter link @moonvine. Like you said earlier, that person is speculating-- and I see now that it's purely based on how they interpreted quotes. We talked here about the quotes from Alexa/Brandon too, but we didn't go further to create a scenario which probably doesn't exist. I don't read that quote from Alexa in that way at all. Brandon essentially says the same thing. They are just expressing themselves in slightly different ways. It seems to me that they are definitely on the same page regarding whatever decision they make. And right now, it seems like they may be thinking of moving forward with their lives after achieving something together that has fulfilled them both on a very deep, emotional level. Not because of the medals or placements either. As they said, it's more about breaking through together to a place where they grew as people and as athletes, while achieving the 'icing-on-the-cake, even more than they had ever hoped for or dreamed of accomplishing.

When Braverman begins to suggest that Alexa is questioning Brandon's 'drive,' that's just wrong, period! It's not close to being accurate. It's the kind of thing a person should back off of saying on Twitter. It's baseless, especially for those who know Brandon well, and for fans who have closely followed his career.

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

Deleted -- in the wrong thread