Replay Lounge 2025 GP de France

[lariko]

Now that Simon is gone, I want Chris to follow his footsteps. There, I said it. Everyone else is better than him. Give Christine the job! Go without commentary. Whatever. Or let us finally mute commentary. I am sure the tech is available.

 

[Janice4th]

I think Ilia's jumps were more than a mere "gooood!" He's phenomenol and so effortless. I was happy Adam got it together. He looked really confident out there - a much different skater than from the SP and in front of the home crowd. I loved Andrew's program. Somehow overnight he found the juice to lay down a good program. I thought it was a good competition and definitely separated the men from the boys! This is going to be a good season. And for those who are still criticizing Ilia -a pox on you!

Yes, the sheer ease is beautiful in itself. I love a beautifully intricate skating program as much as many of you, but I don’t see Ilia lacking in skating skills.
When people complained about Nathan, there were many here that said ‘oh, yeah, watch his feet’. I think people often get caught up in the quad hate, that they don’t really look at the rest of the program. Ilia’s program is not empty. It just may not be what you want in skating. I don’t care for Hip Hop, but he clearly does. It speaks to him and that gets communicated to the audience.
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[Janice4th]

Nathan Chen was a very musically adept skater. He played the piano & he had ballet and gymnastics training, and it showed. As Kurt Browning once said, "Nathan Chen does not skate like anyone else" who came before him. I agree. Nathan brought his own unique style, and with the help of his choreographers, he ushered in a new way of expressing one's personality on the ice, which had a significant impact. This, in addition to his multiple quad expertise and technical efficiency. For sure, he wasn't perfect in every aspect, e.g., not having the best flow out on his jumps. But, with the help of coach, Rafael A, Nathan was one of the best strategists in terms of laying out his jump placement and pacing himself over the course of each season.

As Chris Howarth said in his recent coverage about both Nathan and Ilia, 'their strengths are mental focus and innate confidence,' or words to that effect. As far as Ilia's artistic abilities, I think he's still exploring what he can uniquely accomplish on the ice artistically, while wielding the expected multiple quads, which he makes look so effortless. At this point in time, it appears to me that Ilia is moreso competing against himself, while of course keeping an eye on the rest of the field. But it's largely about challenging himself to safely navigate new heights. He's certainly proving that he doesn't need to compete with the quad-axel every time out in order to dominate the field.

In regard to having artistry, Ilia clearly has artistic abilities which he displayed in his beautiful performance at the Legacy on Ice tribute. It's just difficult to fully concentrate on effectively incorporating aesthetic nuances while consistently executing multiple quads in high-stakes competitive performances. He is certainly trying to forge a creative path with the help of his choreographers, but he's not doing it in ways everyone likes or agrees with.

Well put. As one someone I know recently commented ‘why can’t we appreciate both?’.

 

[msteach3]

I suppose this is not going to make me popular but I was totally mesmerised by Laurence's and Cizeron's Free Dance, whether it's about a whale or not. I really felt this should get the win, much as I liked Lilah and Lewis' FD. I don't care whether the lifts are too simple because it all was so lovely together. I enjoyed the programme very much. I've still got to watch the Men as I have just returned from a vacation.

You're popular with me because I loved that free dance and now have rewatched it at least 10 times. Absolutely beautiful, and emotionally mesmerizing. I think it has Olympic gold medal written all over it.