I get that his basic skating fundamentals are good if not better than certain number top skaters in the current circuit but it does not mean that he should be contented with it. I would not be content of it if I was the president of the PHSU and wiling to let go a good amount of local skaters and coaches to fund summer camps off season along with consulting with specialists or even forcing him to move to Edmonton if I needed to whether he likes it or not. I can bring him his sweetheart along with if he wants to.
If you said that there's no need to rush in the previous seasons is understandable if he has some certain difficult jumps either 3A or quad yet in reality that he doesn't have both yet you mentioned that the PHSU should've sent him there to gain the FS mins to get to Montreal Worlds last season in such a short notice is off since he has the time prior to the 2023-2024 season to make it to Worlds in general which he should've utilized the time back then.
I get it that Montreal Worlds had some sentimental value but it wasn't an excuse for Edrian not trying to make attempts for the mins or to get out his comfort zone to move out from his home province to improve tech content in previous seasons prior to the 2023-2024 season minus Covid lock downs.
No point going to Edmonton when you've gotten Yvan as a coach. He built better men skater from younger age than Ravi has done. I cannot even name one man Ravi has built from a young age who ended up reaching the highest level at Nationals (someone can correct me here). For Yvan : Jo Phan and Nic Nadeau, even young kids Anthony Paradis and Eddy Vasii are both National junior champions. Ravi is wonderful, don't hear me wrong but Edmonton is not
and for a Montreal born skater, able to perhaps stay at home, maybe it was not even an option consdering the $$. BTW, the conditions in Edmonton don't seem so fun, training in a mall... I am not even sure why you mentioned Edmonton as a solution.
Now, all of us can read Edrian's story the way we want to read it... to me, it would look like this :
Worlds were allotted to Montreal in 2020 in 2017. Edrian announced he would switch to represent the Philippines and competed at PHillipines Nationals in 2018, Probably, he hoped he had a chance to qualify which, back then, with Keegan, Nam and others, would have been a very long shot for him in Canada. He represented the Philippines at 4CC in 2020. Neither him nor Caluzza qualified for worlds. Covid hit. Edrian lost a lot of training. Not being part of team Canada, if he were indeed in Canada during the longest lockdown ever, for non-essential activities, (he wouldn't be considered as an elite athlete) he was shut down for the longest time with very limited ice access. It happened even to local Quebec skaters not at the level of the National team. So I can imagine he regressed a lot. He found Yvan, he started training again and things are indeed going well. He is almost at his best level now.. since what ? 2017 juniors ? If Worlds in Montreal didn't get canceled the first time, who knows what would have happened... but then they got postponed to 2024. After a good 1.5 years of very little skating, he may have thought, okay... i have a second chance.... the story of this year you know though we have different opinions on it
But the reality is that it's been 6 years that he is hoping to skate a big event, at home, in front of his friends and family. Do not underestimate that.... especially considering he is now 26. He tried his best. He did his best. It didn't work out.
At this point, worlds are a difficult thing to achieve for him. He didn't get last minute challengers, which may have been frustrating. He didn't qualify. He probably may not again. He certainly may have seen the opportunity to skate at Nationals in Canada, a tiny bridge across from his Home Club, the swan song he wanted to give himself, with the support of his homies.
It's not always about making it to worlds... sometimes, it is about skating at home in a big event. Canadian Nationals (except when they are in winter vortex Calgary) are a big event ! I went in 2017 in Ottawa, gosh it was exciting !
So you can all make whatever from the history of the events, but you know, I like my hypothesis
and I will stick with it.
Sorry.. i guess i am irritable today but I wish people would give credit where it's due...
