2024 Skate America Men's FS

[cailuj365]

I think he sooner or later will get his tech consistent(have I seen him doing a quad or dreamed that?) and be someone to count on among US men. I seldom rewatch performances but I remember always liking Lucas'. He's only 18 so if he has the resources and will to go for big things I believe in him.

Lucas has a really beautiful 4T with both arms above his head.

 

[moonvine]

gala is when - 7 ish?

645. I’m sitting in a restaurant a short walk away where I have Diet Coke. It’s still 2 hours away. I usually arrive and start organizing my flags about an hour beforehand but no flags needed for Gala…maybe an autograph book in case?

 

[moonvine]

He did it during the practice skate. I am voting for this young man to go to the Olympics for the US - he has it all, the artistic quality, just need to work on those tech skills but he has many qualities like Jason Brown and though Maxim got placed higher - I feel Lucas is more reliable - can’t wait to see him perform again.

I like him well enough but the last time I saw him skate clean was at Philadelphia International a couple of years ago. The US has a massive list of men on the ISP and I’d like to see more of them get an opportunity.

 

[moonvine]

Thank goodness. So happy!

I hope he gets your hat!

 

[moonvine]

I would not put Deniss at Kevin's level. Deniss' free skate was delivered beautifully and cleanly, but the program is pretty empty in the first half. Valiant attempt on the 4S.

Kevin was fantastic this whole competition. Not just clean skates, but the composition/choreo are unique, and he knows how to move with intention. I love the little choreo highlights, like in the FS where he goes completely still and then later where he does a stationary flip and balances in a sitting position. He did three great quad toes and triple axels in the SP and FS, so it's not like it was a technically deficient outing. I think coming back to Texas where he had such a strong outing last year and has so much audience love and support was really good for him emotionally. This might be another hard competition for him to top, so let's hope he can continue to mentally stay with it throughout the season even if the skate doesn't go perfectly.

Kao was bringing it. He had some deserved underrotation calls and bronze makes sense given how strong Kevin was, but I'm really proud of him after the rough practices and injury. He really needed a competition like this after Worlds and Lombardia.

This was a good competition for Ilia to have. Yes, he's capable of ridiculous things, but he's not infallible despite the media and sometimes even his competitors putting him on this pedestal that he doesn't quite deserve yet, IMO. He is very gifted, and I love his own unique style that he brings to skating, but he can absolutely get nervous, which leads to jump errors and then he lets go of the transitions and choreo. He seems to get more nervous at home too than abroad, which he's going to have to manage for Boston Worlds. It is also ALWAYS harder to be the defending champion than being the one to chase. However, he did a good job of re-focusing. To have two major errors and then come back with two quad combos involving a triple axel at the end...like OK, that deserves some points. At some point, he will have to learn how to not "just get through" a program and win by virtue of his base value when he's feeling nervous but also consistently commit and perform from the very beginning. Stylistically, I think this program really fits him.

I don't have too much to say about Egadze, but I will say the HEIGHT on that quad lutz was crazy despite the fall.

Agree with everything and if Ilia has to have a little of an “off” competition it’s better here than at Worlds. Nathan had an off Skate America one year and I really think it lit a fire under him for the rest of that season.

 

[tsuyoboogie]

umm...off thread topic but if anyone knows who stealthily made off with my "Kao" banner that was hanging in the arena please tell them to treat it nicely
I was planning on making a new one anyway but I'm bothered thinking the missing one will be tossed onto a dumpster somewhere
...or suffer an even worse fate
I'm quite superstitious and that seems like it'll bring bad luck to Kao...and that child definitely does not need more bad luck

Thank you~

 

[cheerknithanson]

I hope he gets your hat!

The sweepers picked it up yesterday. It took 2 other people to help get it onto the ice lol.

I hope he got it.

 

[lariko]

Oh, the magnificent brat Malinin! Love him to bits.

Anyway, i am just catching up, because I had to do a bunch of gardening before snow tomorrow. So, like before Vasiljevs the competition was pretty bad. Then, all the great skates in a row.

Like, I totally feel sorry for Egadze sandwiched between 4 men with huge personalities and all different styles.

I must say I really love how Vasiljevs approaches this season. So much new maturity and I love both of his programs. Aymoz' free was so much more to my liking than the short, full of really polished moves and no cringy mannerisms that spoil the short for me. I can never chose between Miura and Sato as my fav post-Uno Japanese lead, but I mean, only Miura can turn a saccharine Unbrellas into something this intense.

And, of course, the magnificent brat himself. No 4A, and a couple of problematic jumps, but the way he just pulls out something like 4S-3A from his backpocket, and how much outward energy he channels! Wow. I am sure people will gripe about his legs again, but I love me big arms and I love the program and the drama of it. Extra points for a calm, collected conversation with his dad coming of the ice, steel cables for nerves.

Well done, Ilya, carrying the weight of the title in the first competion of the season and winning the only gold for the States in SkAm. I just hope he recovers enough to close the deal next week in Halifax, getting his GPF spot. Not to jinx it, because, obviously, there is plenty of illwishers who would be thrilled if he doesn't make it.

 

[Arriba627]

Congratulations to Ilia for his gold medal, now feeling and realizing that the expectations are different for him. I think it's a good thing and will keep him from getting complacent. I am truly amazed at the spring in his jumps and not surprised that he can do quints (although I don't want to see them anytime soon! LOL)

 

[Skater Boy]

Well while I am happy for Kevin it was the greatest for the other big guns - Kao and Ilia. They skated okay but well below expected. Kevin did so well and I was happy for himm but now we will see if he can back this up. He is going to have to prove himself

I thouught the Canadian kind of got shafted he easily could have been in the 150s to low 160s The other American mmen were ho hum. Now we will watch to see how Kevin does the rest of the season.

 

[figureskatingandrainbows]

BREAKING NEWS: Men's Figure Skating Now Has More Scoring Discourse Than Women's (But Ice Dance Is Still Supreme Source Of Controversy)

Experts say that there is a projected 49% increase in long-winded posts about the merits of PCS and the importance of technical prowess in this sport as the season progresses, second only to a 53% increase in complaints about programs, costumes, and skating ability from ice dance. The women's discipline is expected to have a much smaller 25% increase in arguments about jump technique, under-rotations, and national bias, down significantly from the 2014-2022 period.

 

[reader3]

Congratulations to the Medalists. I'm very happy that IM rallied in the long program. Kevin was quite a surprise.

 

[moonvine]

The sweepers picked it up yesterday. It took 2 other people to help get it onto the ice lol.

I hope he got it.

I’m sure he did! They usually give them a bag (or bags) of stuff they got and they can look at it and see if there’s anything they want.

You could have given it to me. I was at ice level.

 

[Karoltyna]

I just watched Kevin's FS. Please, please keep it at least until the Euros. PLEASE! I won't write anything else at least for now.

 

[dalenofff]

trend allert, fainting on ice

i thought after dean and torvill , everyone was dying on the ice so the ISU band the move.

 

[museksk8r]

I just watched the NBC replay of Vasiljev’s FS and Terry Gannon asks how taxing are spins. Tara thinkssheknowsitall Lipinski then says that spins are not taxing. Johnny Weir scoffs and corrects her that the 6.0 system she skated in did not require difficult spins to fulfill technical requirements, but that the spins the skaters do under the COP system are very difficult due to the positions they are expected to achieve and maintain for an extended period of time. Tara then asks Johnny if he is telling her that a spin is more difficult than a quad Salchow? Johnny did not say or insinuate that at all. Johnny says to her that they can continue the debate off the air. Yikes! Catfight! Tara even brings it up again when Deniss is receiving his marks and says that she doesn’t want to tell Ilia that Johnny said that a combination spin is more difficult than his quad Lutz. This is more evidence that Tara is so out of touch with where figure skating is now and more proof that a new commentating team is needed. Tara made a complete fool of herself on air and acts like she always has to have the last word, like she usually does. Where are Adam and Ashley??

 

[Jeanie19]

I just watched the NBC replay of Vasiljev’s FS and Terry Gannon asks how taxing are spins. Tara thinkssheknowsitall Lipinski then says that spins are not taxing. Johnny Weir scoffs and corrects her that the 6.0 system she skated in did not require difficult spins to fulfill technical requirements, but that the spins the skaters do under the COP system are very difficult due to the positions they are expected to achieve and maintain for an extended period of time. Tara then asks Johnny if he is telling her that a spin is more difficult than a quad Salchow? Johnny did not say or insinuate that at all. Johnny says to her that they can continue the debate off the air. Yikes! Catfight! Tara even brings it up again when Deniss is receiving his marks and says that she doesn’t want to tell Ilia that Johnny said that a combination spin is more difficult than his quad Lutz. This is more evidence that Tara is so out of touch with where figure skating is now and more proof that a new commentating team is needed. Tara made a complete fool of herself on air and acts like she always has to have the last word, like she usually does. Where are Adam and Ashley??

I want Jean luc and Mariah Bell to be new commentators.

 

[museksk8r]

I want Jean luc and Mariah Bell to be new commentators.

Jean Luc was absolutely wonderful covering the practices with Jackie. I have never heard Mariah’s commentary, but it has to be better than Tara’s since Bell has actually competed many years in the COP system. It makes no sense to have a commentator who is supposed to be considered an expert, yet has never competed under the current judging system, like Lipinski.

 

[Jeanie19]

Jean Luc was absolutely wonderful covering the practices with Jackie. I have never heard Mariah’s commentary, but it has to be better than Tara’s since Bell has actually competed many years in the COP system. It makes no sense to have a commentator who is supposed to be considered an expert, yet has never competed under the current judging system, like Lipinski.

Mariah talked during women's practices. She was really good.
Obviously, Tara does not watch much figure skating, because I have seen many skaters, get zero points on a spin. They either can't finish or they fall out of it. So a fall on a spin is zero -1. A fall on a quad, you will still get 2-4 points. So spins are hard. And if Deniss's sit spin is so easy , then why doesn't anyone do it like him.

 

[museksk8r]

Right! I don’t like the notion that Lipinski is making that the skaters are getting a smoke break during their spins. It also insinuates that skaters who were known in history for their spins, like Lucinda Ruh, Alissa Czisny, Sasha Cohen, and Stephane Lambiel were doing nothing special. I have never been an elite skater, but I sure know from my layman’s observation as a fan of this sport for 32 years that spins are very difficult. I have often heard elite skaters say in interviews that spins are more difficult to perform than jumps as well.