2024 Worlds: General Info and Pre-game chat | Page 9 | Golden Skate
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2024 Worlds: General Info and Pre-game chat

ladyjane

Medalist
Joined
Jun 26, 2012
Country
Netherlands
ISU Channel geo-blocked again, no coverage at all in our country. Thank you so much everyone for letting me miss out on another major Championship. And don't tell me to get a VPN, I did but I couldn't even get a connection using that. So that's no help. A kind Canadian showed me the way to their CBC coverage but - alas - understandably not available in my country.

It's not enough that our Federation only supports speed skating (both long track and short track) but the FS fans are denied even watching the Championships as well.

Rant over. I hope you all enjoy!
 

NoNameFace

GS given name - Beatrice
Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 12, 2012
Hello guys. After difficulties yesterday about lack of Internet (and maps not available, only what I've remembered from preparation for the trip and few screenshots), getting lost on my way to hotel from airport, I didn't have it in me to post anything.
It's 4.35 AM, can't sleep (time difference/jet lag possibly kicking in), so starting to get ready for the day. Woke up at 3 AM (8 AM in Europe) to attempt to fix the Internet issue with my provider and I succeeded. First win for the day, let's hope the sane will go to crowns prepared today for Pairs (I have 4 planned, can you guess for who..?) ;)
 

reader3

Chicago Lady
Medalist
Joined
May 17, 2021
Country
United-States
ISU Channel geo-blocked again, no coverage at all in our country. Thank you so much everyone for letting me miss out on another major Championship. And don't tell me to get a VPN, I did but I couldn't even get a connection using that. So that's no help. A kind Canadian showed me the way to their CBC coverage but - alas - understandably not available in my country.

It's not enough that our Federation only supports speed skating (both long track and short track) but the FS fans are denied even watching the Championships as well.

Rant over. I hope you all enjoy!
This site on TW/X has all the skates shortly after they occur.

 

4everchan

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 7, 2015
Country
Martinique

I bumped into Stéphane tonight. He is one of my first ever skating crushes with Jeff Buttle. (well the first one was Josée Chouinard ... that was odd considering... but you know I was a kid) He is still very very handsome so I sort of blushed when I saw him and left LOL :)

However, I am not the kind of fan who does approach skaters/coaches. If I am somewhere and they start talking to me (it has happened -you look familiar, are you a skater?- I guess I hang out too much at the smaller local events in the eastern part of Canada) I will certainly talk to them... but I am a very private person and I apply this to the skaters, I give them their privacy... Obviously, in the case of a meet and greet.. that's different.. I will not go.. because I am so dead and there are still two days of skating (well one full + gala) but yeah... I recommend it for those who like Stéphane ;) He looks very nice and seems very kind ;)
 

auser

Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 5, 2009
I bumped into Stéphane tonight. He is one of my first ever skating crushes with Jeff Buttle. (well the first one was Josée Chouinard ... that was odd considering... but you know I was a kid) He is still very very handsome so I sort of blushed when I saw him and left LOL :)

However, I am not the kind of fan who does approach skaters/coaches. If I am somewhere and they start talking to me (it has happened -you look familiar, are you a skater?- I guess I hang out too much at the smaller local events in the eastern part of Canada) I will certainly talk to them... but I am a very private person and I apply this to the skaters, I give them their privacy... I lObviously, in the case of a meet and greet.. that's different.. I will not go.. because I am so dead and there are still two days of skating (well one full + gala) but yeah... I recommend it for those who like Stéphane ;) He looks very nice and seems very kind ;)
I loved Chouinard(still have a scratchy video of her pro expo program "The Sweater" for the joy of it) and Buttle too. Love your respect for privacy while meaning no offense to ardent fans who want to respectfully connect to skaters. And you have seen/acknowledged my earlier reply to you about gorgeous Stephane.
 
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reader3

Chicago Lady
Medalist
Joined
May 17, 2021
Country
United-States
Great resource @reader3. Thank you. I bookmarked your link even though I have a reliable VPN just in case. :thank:
You're welcome. I watch some of the comps on NBC/USA cable channel and once in a while have to get the Peacock stream. ISU vids won't work for me but that link is good if one can't get any of those or a VPN to work either.
 
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NoNameFace

GS given name - Beatrice
Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 12, 2012
So last 3 days happened. Flew by a flash.
I just want to apologise for probably not being that present here as I could and I want to say heartfelt thank you to every single person who liked/interacted with those posts or more like flower crowns updates. Canadians showed UP for the crowns and, in a way, for me. I'm very insecure person who learned the hard way to conceal it quite well, who almost always doubts herself and especially in social surroundings - to receive this much praise and encouragement from strangers overwhelms me. I stopped today counting how many people approached me about crowns, but every positive word made me push harder (yesterday, I crashed badly from tiredness and I had 8 crowns to finish and two to do from scratch, everything was done before Roman stepped onto the ice).

In a way, Wuthering Heights are the golden program, so I'd like to think that I crowned Champions. The moment of their performance was 'out of body' experience for me, something I'm taking with me home. The hugs, their kindness overwhelmed me too, them spotting me and getting my attention during FD practice, keeping crowns close to them - it all does something to me (now I start to cry). I got this photo sent by their friend of me, waiting for them, crowns in hand, crowd still applauding. And it made perfect sense, encapsulating how I always stand in their corner.

Cannot express my gratitude to other skates: Christina and Anthony accepting gifts and wearing crowns, Hannah hug, Roman eyes lighting up upon seeing the crown, Maddie putting her crown despite disappointing skate, Lia telling me she always wanted one...It just makes me believe a little more that it matters to them in a way. And means everything to me.

If it brought one smile out, it was worth it.

 

Arriba627

3-TIME OLYMPIC MEDALIST! 🏅🏅🏅
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 2, 2014
Country
United-States
Cannot express my gratitude to other skates: Christina and Anthony accepting gifts and wearing crowns, Hannah hug, Roman eyes lighting up upon seeing the crown, Maddie putting her crown despite disappointing skate, Lia telling me she always wanted one...It just makes me believe a little more that it matters to them in a way. And means everything to me.

If it brought one smile out, it was worth it.

I was trying to figure out where you were sitting! I haven't been online too much and kept saying "Wait! She's here!" I knew you would be thrilled about Piper and Paul. They were lovely, as were your crowns!.I was in Section 203. Where were you?
 
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apgold

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 10, 2014
Country
United-States
My 2024 Worlds Experience

I am very grateful that I was able to attend the 2024 World Championships in Montreal last week, after being postponed from 2020. Despite the challenging weather and the overpriced arena food, I saw some amazing performances, met some new skating friends and spotted many skaters cheering their teammates on in the audience.

I bought an all event ticket for section 203. When I arrived there on Wednesday night to watch the Women’s SP – there was a woman behind me who was literally shrieking her head off after every skater. I knew this would make me very cranky so I looked around at the lower bowl and saw many empty seats in the back rows of Section 104/105 (behind the DJ booth where Kaitlyn Hawayek, aka KHAW, was working during Zamboni time). I never returned to section 203 for the remainder of the event.

I spent the majority of Thurs and Friday in the last couple of rows of Section 104/105. It was perfect for me, I don’t like sitting too close the ice, but could see the Kiss and Cry and corner jumps. It was also a great vantage point to watch skaters come and go. I also brought my binoculars so I could see costume details or skaters more clearly.

At one point, Team Israel sat near me to cheer on Mark G during his SP. I also saw groups of retired skaters like Alex Johnson (who coaches Camden), KMT, Kaitlyn Weaver, Andrew Poje, Patrick Chan and Jean-Luc Baker sitting together a few rows in front of the DJ booth. At other points in the competition I saw Kaetlyn Osmond with Keegan and Nam, Isabeau and Amber sitting with Max and Val, Sara and Niccolo, Adam Solya, Alex Selevko, Corey Circelli, Stephen Gogolev and too many others to name.

When the arena got more crowded on Saturday for the Free Dance and Men’s Free, I moved my seat to the area behind the NBC booth. The view was slightly obstructed, but I could still see pretty well and was occasionally distracted by Johnny Weir’s outfit lol. I also enjoyed spotting Keegan and Nam waving the huge Canadian flag around the arena. The only time I was asked to move was by Security because I was sitting in a row designated for press. I never sat in the press area itself but I guess they needed those seats clear for press members to move freely. They eventually put tape on them to block them off.

As for the skating itself, I think the Men’s Free was probably my favorite event – especially the Top 5. Watching Ilia kill it was something I won’t soon forget. I’m not Ilia’s biggest fan and prefer Jason by a country mile yet couldn’t help but stand before he was finished and pumping my fist in the air. I knew I was witnessing something historical and amazing.

I also loved watching Shoma and Yuma, even with the errors – I love how they both use their full body when skating. Adam was also quite something. I don’t like that he does the backflip in competition, and it could have hurt him in the end. I also enjoyed Donovan and Deniss live as well, wish they could have performed in the gala. Not surprised by Romsky in the freeskate, while he did very well in the SP but he can’t seem to do 2 clean programs in a row. I don’t know how many more times Skate Canada can give him chances to prove himself. It’s so frustrating being his fan, because if he could land things, he could easily be in the Top 10.

For ice dance, I was most impressed with Marjorie and Zach’s speed and fluidity and wish they could have been on the podium. I also enjoyed Piper and Paul’s “Wuthering Heights” live. I also really liked seeing Hannah and Ye’s “Umbrellas of Cherbourg” live – they deserve much higher scores. Those were my favorite free dances. I don’t think that the CanaDanes should have been allowed to compete here and wish I could have seen Marie-Jade and Romain’s “Corpse Bride” instead. I spotted them on the concourse during the RD, they must have come to watch their training mates.

It was also fun to watch the dueling “Swan Lake” programs by the Czech team vs. the Georgians. Johnny Weir did a funny impression of a swan flapping his wings during this part. I preferred the Czech team for obvious reasons.

I like Chock and Bates but they were much slower in person. I love Lilah and Lewis and have come to like the Rocky routine, but I wasn’t connecting to it in person. Charlene and Marco are quite impressive live with their speed and precision, but I didn’t love this program or their RD (that music mix was quite bad) this season.

Pairs was exciting with Deanna and Max’s win against Riku and Ryuichi, and of course Deanna making history as the oldest World Champion. I was also happy to see Minerva and Nikita get the bronze medal. I was disappointed with the US teams and wish they could do better. I would love to see Ellie land a throw triple someday, because her and Danny’s other elements are quite good.

The women’s event was probably the least exciting but was happy to see Isabeau maintain her 2nd place to help the US get 3 spots. Amber was Amber – with the first half of her FS being great with her 3A and combo. I hope she can work on her mental game or ADHD issues so she doesn’t lose focus in the FS. Kaori proved herself to be the queen that she is, winning her third title in a row. I did see her with Mone and Hana on the concourse on Saturday with some fans. I also loved Kimmy Repond and was glad she placed 5th after dealing with injury this past season.

While I’m not usually a gala lover, I’m glad I got to attend and take some videos for my Youtube channel. As of this writing, Shoma has 8K views and comments, many from Japanese fans. I’m guessing that some Japanese fan posted it on a Shoma fan board somewhere, lol.

I also really enjoyed the Feeling Mathieu Caron exhibit on the concourse. It was fun to see all those costumes up close. Some of the mannequins were tiny so I could tell how small some of the skaters like Shoma, KMT and Riku really are.

That was my overall impression of Worlds 2024. There is nothing like seeing this level of skating live in person. I am looking forward to going to Worlds again in Boston next year. Hope to see some of you there!
 
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