2021 Worlds: Men's FS "Thoughts and Observations" | Page 15 | Golden Skate

2021 Worlds: Men's FS "Thoughts and Observations"

Blades of Passion

Skating is Art, if you let it be
Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 14, 2008
Country
France
Come on now - someone who does 5 quads in a program versus a skater who does 1 quad are simply not comparable.

Yes they are comparable. Quads are not the sport. It's one aspect of skating.

Does a skater who does 5 triples deserve to be ranked behind a skater who attempts 1 triple?

Again totally, depends on the performances. This exact thing did happen in the 1980's though.

It's also interesting to compare current figure skating and gymnastics scoring systems. In gymnastics, it's very common that a single element gets more in deductions than its base value is even worth, and if you fall it's disastrous. I don't agree with all of the current gymnastics scoring, but it certainly does reward people for not having form errors. In skating, "form" is almost worthless now for singles skating. Just chuck the jumps, after pre-rotating on the ice, and get lots of points. Haphazardly go through your footwork with no pattern or sense of purpose, as long as you hit the edges. Hit your difficult variations in spins for 2 rotations each and with some decent speed, and who cares what it looks like.

And to compare Brian Boitano and Chen as if they are technically even in the same realm. But hey spread eagles! Totally as risky as multiple quads.

You've ridiculously simplified the argument. Also, quads are barely even a "risk" in the scoring system right now. If you fall on a quad, you still get a considerable amount of a points. Other really bad landings that would have previously disqualified a Quad in the 6.0 system now get the skaters lots of points. This mental knowledge of knowing you can mess up and still be ahead is part of what contributes to making it easier for people to Quads nowadays.

Would people feel Jason should be at the top of the pack even if he did only doubles because his overall skating is just that good?

Now you've entered into another strawman argument. Obviously a program with only doubles is a completely different animal.
 

skylark

Gazing at a Glorious Great Lakes sunset
Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 12, 2014
Country
United-States
Yes they are comparable. Quads are not the sport. It's one aspect of skating.

True. It's one of the ways that the way people think about figure skating has altered. Not entirely. And I think the pendulum can swing back.

Also, quads are barely even a "risk" in the scoring system right now. If you fall on a quad, you still get a considerable amount of a points. Other really bad landings that would have previously disqualified a Quad in the 6.0 system now get the skaters lots of points. This mental knowledge of knowing you can mess up and still be ahead is part of what contributes to making it easier for people to Quads nowadays.

Excellent point. Every sport is a mind game, after all.
 

BlissfulSynergy

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 1, 2020
Country
Olympics
Thanks to the poster who linked the British commentary of Nathan's 2021 World's win in the Joy of Skating thread, I believe. CBC and British commentary are great. Maybe that's because they are both in English so I can comprehend easier. LOL!

I was just reflecting that we sometimes take great skaters and their performances for granted. We forget that such greatness and pleasurable moments will soon be just a memory. Enjoy these guys to the fullest while we can.
 
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