2025 World Championships Women's Free Skate

[4everchan]

Look, I've got no problem with you. We disagree sometimes, but even if I don't agree with you on particular points, I concede they're well stated and have some basis in rational thought. You state your opinion, and you back it up. I'm good with that. You and people like you are not riffraff.

I also do not want unconditional positivity. I don't engage in that myself.

But what really and truly frosts my hide is the self-proclaimed "expert" who pops up on a new account to randomly crap all over the place. And YES I am calling them riffraff. They contribute nothing of value.

The "buy in" competition threads were outstanding. They were generally populated by knowledgeable and unbiased contributors who really knew their stuff - better content than any TV commentator provides. And, to disagree with your point about trolls... yes, you bet, an $8 donation to GS for posting rights did keep them out.

I didn't buy in when it was made like this... A lot of people didn't either. I think there is a good reason why these threads are not under a paywall anymore. If you see a random new account coming to troll, you don't need to petition for a fee. The forum is already equipped with a functional ignore function.

 

[amc987]

I don't know about this. I think I'd have the same medalists, but maybe in a different order.

Respectfully, Alysa Liu shouldn't get several points higher than Chiba, Levito, and Glenn in components for a program that features so much mugging and hair flipping as choreo. As others have said, her skating skills are middle of the road compared to her competition. She's slower than many. And technically, she was given the benefit of the doubt on some calls today and in the short when others weren't. Both lutzes seemed like they should've been (!), and the 3T was a quarter short today and on Wednesday. And the GOEs are insane for what she actually did in relation to what others received. Kudos to her for winning and skating so well.

I'd have Kaori first today and maybe overall. Chiba second. Liu third. Glenn fourth. Levito fifth.

All the skaters should be very proud. They all skated well and fought as hard as they could.

 

[Alex Fedorov]

I don't know about this. I think I'd have the same medalists, but maybe in a different order.

Respectfully, Alysa Liu shouldn't get several points higher than Chiba, Levito, and Glenn in components for a program that features so much mugging and hair flipping as choreo. As others have said, her skating skills are middle of the road compared to her competition. She's slower than many. And technically, she was given the benefit of the doubt on some calls today and in the short when others weren't. Both lutzes seemed like they should've been (!), and the 3T was a quarter short today and on Wednesday. And the GOEs are insane for what she actually did in relation to what others received. Kudos to her for winning and skating so well.

I'd have Kaori first today and maybe overall. Chiba second. Liu third. Glenn fourth. Levito fifth.

All the skaters should be very proud. They all skated well and fought as hard as they could.

Amber Glenn made too many mistakes. I doubt her final score should have been even 200, let alone higher. Mone Chiba was robbed, which is because the judges don't like her as much as Kaori.

 

[TontoK]

I didn't buy in when it was made like this... A lot of people didn't either. I think there is a good reason why these threads are not under a paywall anymore. If you see a random new account coming to troll, you don't need to petition for a fee. The forum is already equipped with a functional ignore function.

By your own admission, you didn't buy in. So you don't know how excellent those threads were. And it's a pity. You're a serious fan, and you would have liked them immensely. Really knowledgeable contributors, fact-based opinions, special insights, a few laughs thrown in. Adults, no trolls, no nonsense, They were well worth the minimal investment.

However, your point about the ignore function is well made, and I appreciate it. I've employed it on the useless one.

 

[4everchan]

I have watched Amber + final flight.

Amber : glad she did better here with the 3a... but yeah... a popped flip... and some small wobbles.... still, a skate I would call "redemption"

Maddie : too bad she didn't repeat the lutz combo she did in the SP... it would have meant top ten for her and Canada. It also means she will have to fight if she wants to go back to the Olympics. I like the improvements she's made to this new LP. Really too bad about that lutz... She was also supposed to do a second lutz in the second half but opted for a triple toe... so her base value was too low. I am so proud of her.

Kaori : I loved her. She skated the way Kaori knows how to skate. Beautiful skating skills. Beautiful program. Bravo.

Wakaba : I was disappointed for her. Couple rotation issues and the +REP were really costly. I am not sold on this program. I hope she doesn't intend to keep it for next year. I like it when she skates to more powerful programs...

Isabeau : well done for her after injuries... the dress is the perfect colour... if only she dropped some of the flowers. Isabeau sat down on the first combo which looked also short... and was definitely not great. I find that the GOE on her jumps is exaggerated. Simply, one of the bullet points is "ease of execution" and that mule kick and sometimes, low kneed landings are definitely not looking fluid and performed with ease. To me, she's the only one here where I would disagree with judging... way too high. I give her props for the elegant and refined skating she does but that elegance makes her jumps look even worse.

Mone : gosh I loved that skate... a couple rotation issues, some boring music (in my opinion) but delightful skating.

Alysa : i have always liked Alysa, since junior years. As a fan, I am happy she won. I am happy she seized the day... I also think that her program didn't have the same level of skating as both Japanese skaters. I am not saying she shouldn't have won. I am saying that it could have also been okay with me if she landed behind Kaori.

I am not going to get into edge calls and rotation calls made or not made. I am much more at ease with these results and also acknowledging that it may have been a coin toss between Kaori and Alysa for the title... I like both skaters very much... for different reasons...
I guess the "comeback" story for Alysa , after she had declared she would never skate again makes me all happy inside...

Yes, fans like underdogs... Fans like personal stories. I don't think the sport is losing anything with this outcome.


I omitted watching Chaeyeon. She was my sentimental fave coming into this event. Tough one here for her.

 

[4everchan]

By your own admission, you didn't buy in. So you don't know how excellent those threads were. And it's a pity. You're a serious fan, and you would have liked them immensely. Really knowledgeable contributors, fact-based opinions, special insights, a few laughs thrown in. Adults, no trolls, no nonsense, They were well worth the minimal investment.

However, your point about the ignore function is well made, and I appreciate it. I've employed it on the useless one.

I have heard from other posters that they were very quiet because many fans weren't willing to buy

 

[TontoK]

I have heard from other posters that they were very quiet because many fans weren't willing to buy

It depends on how you define quiet.

If you mean "a general lack of nonsensical, annoying, and non-value-added posts" or "there aren't five posts asking Why???? every time a skater falls" then you would be correct.

If you mean "nobody ever contributed and the threads weren't worth $8 for the season" then you would be very wrong... in my opinion, of course. Value is in the eye of the beholder.

 

[TontoK]

I have watched Amber + final flight.

Amber : glad she did better here with the 3a... but yeah... a popped flip... and some small wobbles.... still, a skate I would call "redemption"

Maddie : too bad she didn't repeat the lutz combo she did in the SP... it would have meant top ten for her and Canada. It also means she will have to fight if she wants to go back to the Olympics. I like the improvements she's made to this new LP. Really too bad about that lutz... She was also supposed to do a second lutz in the second half but opted for a triple toe... so her base value was too low. I am so proud of her.

Kaori : I loved her. She skated the way Kaori knows how to skate. Beautiful skating skills. Beautiful program. Bravo.

Wakaba : I was disappointed for her. Couple rotation issues and the +REP were really costly. I am not sold on this program. I hope she doesn't intend to keep it for next year. I like it when she skates to more powerful programs...

Isabeau : well done for her after injuries... the dress is the perfect colour... if only she dropped some of the flowers. Isabeau sat down on the first combo which looked also short... and was definitely not great. I find that the GOE on her jumps is exaggerated. Simply, one of the bullet points is "ease of execution" and that mule kick and sometimes, low kneed landings are definitely not looking fluid and performed with ease. To me, she's the only one here where I would disagree with judging... way too high. I give her props for the elegant and refined skating she does but that elegance makes her jumps look even worse.

Mone : gosh I loved that skate... a couple rotation issues, some boring music (in my opinion) but delightful skating.

Alysa : i have always liked Alysa, since junior years. As a fan, I am happy she won. I am happy she seized the day... I also think that her program didn't have the same level of skating as both Japanese skaters. I am not saying she shouldn't have won. I am saying that it could have also been okay with me if she landed behind Kaori.

I am not going to get into edge calls and rotation calls made or not made. I am much more at ease with these results and also acknowledging that it may have been a coin toss between Kaori and Alysa for the title... I like both skaters very much... for different reasons...
I guess the "comeback" story for Alysa , after she had declared she would never skate again makes me all happy inside...

Yes, fans like underdogs... Fans like personal stories. I don't think the sport is losing anything with this outcome.


I omitted watching Chaeyeon. She was my sentimental fave coming into this event. Tough one here for her.

Well reasoned.

Personally, I like Kaori's skating better in a general way, but man alive, was that an unbelievable performance from Alysa at exactly the right moment. I can't dispute the outcome, and I couldn't have disputed it if it came out the opposite.

And I have to comment on Kaori's contributions to the sport in terms of support for all the women. She's redefined the responsibilities of a champion and a leader in our sport. Brava.

 

[reader3]

Congrats to the medalists! I'm so happy for Alysa.

 

[TallyT]

That little fee kept the riffraff out.

Riffraff??? And here I was thinking it was a way to help with running costs, not some skullduggerous plot to keep the unwashed peasantry out

 

[goldenwaltz]

Coming here helped to elucidate why I chose to just stick to the prediction threads.

 

[cailuj365]

One of my favorite moments was when Kaori and Alysa hugged and jumped up and down in excitement before Alysa even got her scores! Then, Kaori even hugs Alysa's coaches and does a little bow to them! Amazing sportsmanship.

 

[kimganos]

Liu has mediocre skating skills, almost zero transitions - and her program was basically jumping drill until choreo sequence. How that easy approach was rewarded by 70 PCS? Isn't it humiliating for veteran skaters like Wakaba, for example

 

[Skating91]

Chiba should have had a 3 point lead over Liu going into the free skate, instead she had a 1 point deficit. That's a 4 point turnaround.

Then they pecked away at Chiba's score in the free skate with q's and underrotations which were there, but Liu despite almost every landing in both the SP and FS having a pronounced hook, not one q or underrotation for the entire event, high PCS, high GOE on everything. 3Lz-3T combo the 3T is a clear < a definite q anyway with 270 degree prerotation, 3Lz in sequence a <, 3F in combo was a clear q if not <. Everything ticked off by the tech panel, some of the judges giving a 4 for these jumps. In the short program the 3T was a clear < but it's given as clean. This is wrong.

Chiba should have won, they kind of held Sakamoto back on PCS with 72 when Liu is getting 70, Glenn and Levito receiving nearly 68 (Haein Lee is getting 61 and Samo is getting 59 for a seamless program). Liu still would have got a bronze if the obvious q's and underrotations were given, which is a great result.

Levito's scoring was some what absurd as well no q on her 3F in the sequence (could have been a <) and the following 2A is a definite q instead two 4's and six 3's, 3Lz in the 3 jump combo was a clear q but not given, her single 2A comes to almost sudden stop and gets 2's and 3's, PCS of nearly 68 for a program that was so slow across the ice.

Samodelkina was so seamless from one element to the next, such a cohesive program, just the one error, whacked her for a hook on the landing of the 3Lz which was no different to the majority of most of the winner's landings but hit poor Samo with an underrotation. Not a q, but an underrotation. Then a downgrade on the 3Lz she fell on which was not there at all. That was a <. Then just 59 PCS. I'd have her PCS up closer to Levito, or Levito needs to be brought back down to Samodelkina. Also, 7 of the top 8 women couldn't do a 3-3 in the second half but Samo did. Well done!

With correct scoring we would have
1. Chiba (not that she was amazing in the free skate but it was enough)
2. Sakamoto
3. Liu

Bad day for the legitimacy of the sport.

 

[DancingCactus]

I dunno I think Kaori's free has a better layout than Alysa's (Alysa's jumps wrecking of clustered together at one point, whereas Kaori's enhance the music) and noone had a more impressive powerful glide than Kaori but I guess overall I can live with the result. Alysa exudes such natural joy it is just nice watching her. No psycho drama, no wonky jumps, actual emotion.

 

[withwings]

Chiba should have had a 3 point lead over Liu going into the free skate, instead she had a 1 point deficit. That's a 4 point turnaround.

Then they pecked away at Chiba's score in the free skate with q's and underrotations which were there, but Liu despite almost every landing in both the SP and FS having a pronounced hook, not one q or underrotation for the entire event, high PCS, high GOE on everything. 3Lz-3T combo the 3T is a clear < a definite q anyway with 270 degree prerotation, 3Lz in sequence a <, 3F in combo was a clear q if not <. Everything ticked off by the tech panel, some of the judges giving a 4 for these jumps. In the short program the 3T was a clear < but it's given as clean. This is wrong.

Chiba should have won, they kind of held Sakamoto back on PCS with 72 when Liu is getting 70, Glenn and Levito receiving nearly 68 (Haein Lee is getting 61 and Samo is getting 59 for a seamless program). Liu still would have got a bronze if the obvious q's and underrotations were given, which is a great result.

Levito's scoring was some what absurd as well no q on her 3F in the sequence (could have been a <) and the following 2A is a definite q instead two 4's and six 3's, 3Lz in the 3 jump combo was a clear q but not given, her single 2A comes to almost sudden stop and gets 2's and 3's, PCS of nearly 68 for a program that was so slow across the ice.

Samodelkina was so seamless from one element to the next, such a cohesive program, just the one error, whacked her for a hook on the landing of the 3Lz which was no different to the majority of most of the winner's landings but hit poor Samo with an underrotation. Not a q, but an underrotation. Then a downgrade on the 3Lz she fell on which was not there at all. That was a <. Then just 59 PCS. I'd have her PCS up closer to Levito, or Levito needs to be brought back down to Samodelkina. Also, 7 of the top 8 women couldn't do a 3-3 in the second half but Samo did. Well done!

With correct scoring we would have
1. Chiba (not that she was amazing in the free skate but it was enough)
2. Sakamoto
3. Liu

Bad day for the legitimacy of the sport.

With a dirty eye everything seems dirty.

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

I didn't expect Alysa to skate that well, without URs because she hasn't all season long. As she said, this was the best she's ever skated that fp. I guess it was like being lifted on the wings of eagles. So the skaters for the most part, did what they could and that made it fairly easy for the judges to place skaters accordingly. For e.g., Mone Chiba seemingly skated well enough to place over Kaori. I actually thought Mone would win after I saw her skate. But apparently, she did have under-rotations While I think Mone's fp is much more mature than her juniorish sp, she can still benefit from more time and experience. The judges took off for Mone's URs and Mone was safely placed behind Kaori as Japan would surely prefer, according to how they support the ladies they sent to Worlds. Wakaba was very strong in the fp, but it wasn't enough. I still think Wakaba should have been first in the sp, but Alysa does edge Wakaba in some PCS categories. Plus, the fairytale nature of how things turned out apparently was meant to be.

On replay, some of Alysa's jumps looked close, but not enough to call under. Though I dislike the media overhype that often happens to her, what I most admire about Alysa is her down-to-earth nature, and her lighthearted calm, strengthened underneath by a will of steel. She's able to embrace the pressure with gratitude and good humor. Few athletes are able to do that in a way that prevents their nerves from making them tighten up. Alysa might have had butterflies but she probably laughed at them and they floated away and she floated with them over the ice in a delightful performance.

I'm happy for Amber coming back to do the best she could on the night. Hopefully, she can grow from this and overcome the nerves and pressure. I'm sorry that Maddie was not able to get two spots for Canadian ladies. Sucks that she came so close. The Olympics next year will be interesting.

 

[Zora]

I thought they left the door quite open after Kaori, that's not her usual PCS score for such a performance. Also I didn't see the q on her 3T, on the other hand she got full credit for both her 3Lz. But someone still had to go through that door and Alysa is really the coolest skater on earth to do so without showing ANY nerves. But I wish she would have also gotten the calls she deserved.

That being said, soooo many great performances! So much about adult skating being boring. That was an amazing competition!

 

[Skating91]

With a dirty eye everything seems dirty.

No.
This is the 3T on the 3Lz-3T combo. It's underrotated, but they couldn't even bring themselves to give it a q.

Then this is the 3Lz on the sequence. This one is even more blatant. A generous tech panel would give both of these a q, but again clean even though there was a clear hook to the naked eye on all these landings.

I'll go through the rest later.

 

[TT_Fin]

I watched the rest without comments as our TV show night events local time so. I agree Alysa did underrotate some jumps as it was quite visible on the slows she did not land backwards, but I must listen what our (retired)-judge-commentator says, as it will be it will be shown recorded and post commented later today. Mika is quite accurate and sometimes he disagrees with judges and sometimes says things being so close he is happy he is not there judging now. I think she (Alysa) deserved to win gold but I was expecting Kaori win the free. Compared to Mone, Kaori and Alysa have more speed but I am happy Mone medaled, nice to see some surprises in the podium. Well, Alysa was also maybe a little surprise. I love Isabeu's beautiful little moves between elements, it makes figure skating figure skating. But whatever the result is, all people never agree - and that is one of the problems why scoring sport events are not so popular as measured sport events.