I did catch last night's coverage and thought I'd drop in with a couple thoughts...I don't really watch or follow skating outside of the Nationals these days so make of it what you will...
First, the names I'm already acquainted with. Gold - Good to see her back, and honestly the main reason I tuned in. Comebacks are always challenging undertakings, and doubly so under our current state of affairs. Clearly, last night was not the skate she wanted. I think she'd benefit from viewing this from a "glass half full" perspective and look how far she has come as opposed to how far she has to go. That 3-3 is ALMOST back! Once she has that down, I think the only remaining piece of the puzzle is consistency. 2022 Olys are just over a year away. She may ultimately have to reach a level beyond where she was in her 2014-2016 prime, which could be a monumental challenge. Tennell - pretty much the same skater as when I saw her 3 years ago. To be honest, I'm surprised she has stuck around at that level for as long as she has so far. I do remember her winning Nationals some years back, and her faltering under pressure in trying to defend, but this time around she held her own and was the clear winner last night. I sensed a sort of mechanical determination in her during her skate, so by the time she was halfway through I had little doubt she would pull it off. Chen - I think she did pretty well here. I can't speak in relation to how she's done in other events in recent history, but as usual, I think she was given the BOTD by the National judges on some of those jump calls. Bell - the commentators really seemed to peg her as the event favorite. But she didn't skate like it at all....or.....perhaps, maybe she did? Clearly, if she came into the event FEELING as if it was hers to lose, the skates reflected that. Very tentative throughout both programs and it just wasn't her night last night. The Mariah Bell I remember watching in 2018 was not present.
Names I'm less familiar with. Liu - I remember she made a splash a couple of years ago hitting 3As left and right en route to an easy national title at 13/14. Of course, as we all know, growing up happens. And she looked totally different this time around. The fancy jumps are gone - perhaps, for the moment, we shall see - but I saw something that I don't see very often, and I think this will bode well for her moving forward. There was a mental toughness, a fortitude in her skates and she did not let adversity get the better of her. The freeskate score was a bit lower than I thought it would be - they got her on the jumps - but most importantly, she held it together. With work, the jumps should return. Glenn - not sure where she came from, she was the surprise of the night to me. Can't say much more than that.
First, the names I'm already acquainted with. Gold - Good to see her back, and honestly the main reason I tuned in. Comebacks are always challenging undertakings, and doubly so under our current state of affairs. Clearly, last night was not the skate she wanted. I think she'd benefit from viewing this from a "glass half full" perspective and look how far she has come as opposed to how far she has to go. That 3-3 is ALMOST back! Once she has that down, I think the only remaining piece of the puzzle is consistency. 2022 Olys are just over a year away. She may ultimately have to reach a level beyond where she was in her 2014-2016 prime, which could be a monumental challenge. Tennell - pretty much the same skater as when I saw her 3 years ago. To be honest, I'm surprised she has stuck around at that level for as long as she has so far. I do remember her winning Nationals some years back, and her faltering under pressure in trying to defend, but this time around she held her own and was the clear winner last night. I sensed a sort of mechanical determination in her during her skate, so by the time she was halfway through I had little doubt she would pull it off. Chen - I think she did pretty well here. I can't speak in relation to how she's done in other events in recent history, but as usual, I think she was given the BOTD by the National judges on some of those jump calls. Bell - the commentators really seemed to peg her as the event favorite. But she didn't skate like it at all....or.....perhaps, maybe she did? Clearly, if she came into the event FEELING as if it was hers to lose, the skates reflected that. Very tentative throughout both programs and it just wasn't her night last night. The Mariah Bell I remember watching in 2018 was not present.
Names I'm less familiar with. Liu - I remember she made a splash a couple of years ago hitting 3As left and right en route to an easy national title at 13/14. Of course, as we all know, growing up happens. And she looked totally different this time around. The fancy jumps are gone - perhaps, for the moment, we shall see - but I saw something that I don't see very often, and I think this will bode well for her moving forward. There was a mental toughness, a fortitude in her skates and she did not let adversity get the better of her. The freeskate score was a bit lower than I thought it would be - they got her on the jumps - but most importantly, she held it together. With work, the jumps should return. Glenn - not sure where she came from, she was the surprise of the night to me. Can't say much more than that.
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I'd ask the judges who their dealer is but I probably can't hang.
