4 disciplines | 4 nations

[4everchan]

Just a simple holiday fun thread Please have fun with this and respect everyone's favourites.

Simply, state the four discipline with your favourite nation throughout times... It can be recent or for as long as you have followed the sport.
You may use a nation ONLY ONCE ! That is the challenge
Of course, you can elaborate. You may put an honorable mentions and for these, there are no restrictions.

Here are my picks :

Pairs : Russia
Greatest tradition. Pushing the sport with intricate choreo and difficult elements.
Honorary mention : China : twists, throws, speed, power and passion !

Men : Canada
Long line of world champions from Orser to Browning to Stojko to Buttle to Chan
Skating skills, until recently, always pushing the sport forward including difficult jumps.
New emerging talent : Roman, Conrad, Jo, Gogo are fun to watch.
Honorary mention : Russia : many of the Russian men throughout the times have had a special flair. Right now, I love Kolyada and Aliev. Back then, Kulik and Yagudin were special to me.

Women : Japan
I have been a fan of Midori Ito but also Yuka Sato . Right now, I just love the power, speed and skating skills. Rika, Kaori, Wakaba. WOW !!!! They usually also have good programs.
Honorary mention : Past USA, Now, South Korea.

Ice dance : USA this one is tough but as I set the rules of having only ONE nation as chosen one, I will go with USA here as I cannot repeat previously chosen nations Still, i have liked a lot of the USA Ice dancers so I do no feel shortchanged Recently, the Shibutanis have been my favourites but what makes this country the best in my opinion is the depth of the program !
Honorary mention : Canada.... it is obvious I had to pick Canada for men... but from Bourne and Kraatz to Dubreuil-Lauzon to Virtue-Moir, to Weapo and Piper and Paul, we have been very lucky up north.

Have fun with this !!!! Happy holidays !

 

[GoneWithTheWind]

Ooooh what a fun idea (and a tricky one to decide about!)

Pairs: Russia
Such a long tradition, so many talented teams (as reinforced by the skating today). Love to see how many of the up-and-coming teams are pushing the tech with the sbs jumps.
Honorary mention: China. To have come from finishing dead last at Worlds in 1980, to, a couple of generations on, having Olympic medalists and world champions is a very impressive feat.

Ladies: Japan
Great skating quality and so many talented skaters (also as reinforced by the skating today!)
Honorary mention: Russia, whom I can't have for ladies as I've already had them for pairs!

Ice Dance: Italy
Maybe an unusual choice, but between Fusar-Poli/Margaglio, Faiella/Scali, Cappellini/Lanotte and Guignard/Fabbri, Italian ice dance is a small-but-mighty tradition, packed with memorable, emotional and entertaining programs.
Honorary mentions: France. Another smaller fed, but again full of great skaters (Papadakis/Cizeron, Péchalat/Bourzat, Anissina/Peizerat). From the bigger feds: USA.

I don't really watch men, so am not qualified to comment!

 

[lariko]

Russian Women, Japanese Men, American ID and Chinese Pairs

Or

Korean Women, Japanese Men, American ID and Russian Pairs

Basically, I like Russian Pairs and Women, Japanese Men and Women, American Men and Dance and Korean Women the most as fields, so it is hard for me to do the different disciplines an nations, because there is simply no pair country that is as deep as Russia, but I really love Russian women too.

 

[readernick]

Russian Pairs( obviously): the SP at RN reminded me how much I love them. Russian Pairs coaches led by the amazing Moskvina have made pairs my favorite discipline. Quality to the core. China has amazing pairs, too. Probably my two favorite pairs in the World at the moment but not nearly as much depth.

Japanese men: Actually, there are men that I love from many countries but in terms of depth Japan wins. Also, Takahashi and Uno are my two favorite men's skaters from the last 20 years. The US and Canada have also produced some amazing skaters. But, currently Japan has my favorites and most hope for the future so I'm going to my current favorites in this discipline.

Canadian ID: Marie France Dubreuil / Lauzon as well as Shae-Lynn Bourne/ Kraatz really opened up ice dance for the NA teams. Shae-Lynn is still making huge contributions to the sport and D/L are the most powerful couple in ID. Plus, of course, the amazing Virtue/ Moir. American ID currently has the most depth ( imho) but it only reached that place because of the work done first by the Canadians. Honorable mention to the French, not really because of their current champions ( who are obviously amazing) but more because of the creative choreo produced by the current junior teams and past competitors. I like weird.

US Women: Definitely my most controversial pick, I'm going with the Americans here. Mostly because the Japanese ladies are actually my favorites ( Ito, Arakawa, Asada, and currently Higuchi and Kihira) but I can't choose them because I already selected the Japanese men. If you look at the history of women's figure skating the US has by far the most women's champions. Dorothy Hamill, Peggy Fleming , Janet Lynn all changed the sport . Kristi Yamaguchi and Michelle Kwan were amazing champions. So, this pick is about history not current results. I do love several of the US juniors. Obviously, Russia has the depth right now but, unlike with pairs, the Russian ladies' style is rarely my cup of tea. Although, there are individual skaters like Aliona, Ksenia S, Sofia A, and Sofia M whose skating I love.

 

[invisiblespiral]

Japan for men, South Korea (as the Yunakids got me into following FS in non-Olympic years), Russia for pairs (China is a close second), and I suppose Canada for dance.

 

[BlissfulSynergy]

Pairs: Since the 1960s, Russia for sure; historically is quite different as Russian pairs skaters did not come to prominence until the 1960s, 70s, 80s and beyond. During the early years of the sport of figure skating, Russia was dealing with revolution, political unrest, war, etc. When the sport first began, Russian figure skaters were involved, but obviously during the early 1900s, with the Russian Revolution and formation of the Soviet Union, the nation was in upheaval.

Some of my favorite pairs teams have hailed from Canada, China, the U.S., France, and Germany. It is interesting that although one of the greatest pairs teams of the 2000s, Savchenko/Szolkowy, represented Germany, Aljona is from Ukraine (of course Robin was born in Germany of a German mother and an African father). When Aljona finally won gold at the 2018 Olympics, she was competing for Germany with a partner who was born and bred in France. So country affiliations, especially these days, are not as strictly circumscribed.

Currently, Georgia is making inroads with a couple of fast-developing pairs teams. Ukraine should be mentioned due to Aljona S. and Tatiana Volosozhar originating from there, in addition to the current young U.S. team of Smirnova/ Siianytsia hailing from Ukraine.

Ice Dance: U.S. is very strong and has been dominant in recent years. The U.S. team of Judy Schwomeyer & James Sladky should have been the first U.S. team to win a gold medal in ice dance at 1970 Worlds. It was a travesty that the judges gave the gold medal to Russia's Ludmilla Pakhomova & Alexander Gorshkov. One judge also body-shamed Schwomeyer, when trying to justify P/G's win. Viewing the performances on YouTube, it's clear that Gorshkov was not a good ice dancer, despite Pakhomova's abilities. Schwomeyer/Sladky were absolutely brilliant.

Some of the best ice dance teams historically, and many of my favorites have hailed from Canada, Great Britain, Russia, France, and the U.S. In this category currently and recently, Canada and the U.S. have been the strongest, with a few teams from France shining through. Russia has been desperately politicizing and forcing the issue, which is a complete turn-off.

Men: Currently and historically, the U.S. has always had enormously talented men with great depth, particularly since the late 1940s and the emergence of Dick Button. It is U.S. men who have greatly influenced the discipline, along with Canadian men (especially Toller Cranston), and since the advent of Plushenko & Yagudin, Russian men. Some of my favorite male skaters also hail from Japan, France, Czechoslovakia, Sweden, Germany, Spain, and especially John Curry of Great Britain who, along with Cranston, changed the men's discipline. John Misha Petkevich of the U.S., and of course Dick Button, in his era, also changed the discipline. Today, Nathan Chen and Jason Brown have had similar impacts on the growth of the men's discipline. And before them (aside from Plushy & Yags): Orser, Boitano, Buttle, Weir, Takahashi, Hanyu, Denis Ten, Fernandez.

Women: Hands down, U.S. women have historically been the best and still hold the record for the most World and Olympic medals. That record will not change hands for some time to come. This is true, despite the U.S. being off Olympic and World podiums from 2006 to 2016, when Ashley Wagner won a silver medal at Worlds. No medals since then, of course. Still, it will take a great many more years before Russian women will be able to take over that record even despite their current dominance. They are obviously on a pace to make serious inroads into capturing the record, but it will still take more time because of the medals amassed by U.S. women over the years. Currently, I would pick Japan, as Japanese women are phenomenal and they should be receiving better recognition and rewards from judges.

Over the years, of course, there have been lovely women from Germany, Switzerland, Italy, (a few from Canada), South Korea, and during the sport's very early history, from Sweden, Finland, and Great Britain.

ETA:
Honestly, to be fair as possible to OP's suggestions in how to respond, I should probably pick as follows:

Pairs: Russia (with Canada, China, the U.S., Germany and France also having teams I've loved)
Ice Dance: U.S. (with Canada equally strong as well as currently an important center for ice dance, and especially for choreography across disciplines; also there are some important ice dance teams from France and Russia, historically)
Men: Japan (although the U.S. is my real pick as U.S. men have always had great depth, but once Nathan and Jason retire, it looks like Japan might be taking over with Yuma & Shoma, et al); historically, Canada & Great Britain
Women: South Korea (to stay in line with OP's guidelines); historically, U.S. is the strongest country in the women's discipline; currently my faves: Japan -- I don't care about Eteri's crew; they already have enough support among the fans and the judges

 

[mercybuckets]

Pairs - IDK I honestly don't watch a ton of pairs. US is probably the only country I could think of more than one pairs team for haha but we're saving that for women (spoilers) so China?? if pressed. I enjoy Sui and Han and I remember liking the Chinese team at the 2010 (?? I think) Olympics.

Dance - France, this is transparently for Gabby and Guillaume as they are the team that got me into ice dance (with that voice over program that everyone either loves or hates. Honorable mention to Canada.

Women - US, this one is easy because I grew up watching these women and wanting to be them. Honorable mention to Japan (I remember losing my mind seeing Mao Asada leaving the building when Worlds were held in Boston).

Men - Russia, what can I say I like suffering and uncertainty haha. Honorable mention to the US.

The main thing I've gotten out of this exercise is that I like a lot of skaters from smaller countries that I couldn't possible say are my favorite nation for the whole discipline (Kailani Craine, Alexia Paganini, Georgii Reshtenko, Deniss Vasiljevs, etc)

 

[ladyjane]

I'm going to do it slightly differently (but I'll stick to the main question), so I can include some federations that may be less influential now but show a lot of history and also have produced some remarkable skaters and/or couples.

Pairs: Russia
Honourable mention: China
Historical countries: Germany, Canada

Men: USA
Honourable mention: Japan
Historical countries: Canada, Russia

Ice Dance: Canada
Honourable mention: USA
Historical countries: Russia, France, and Italy

Women: Japan
Honourable mention: Russia (only recently)
Historical countries: USA, Finland (mostly within Europe).

 

[4everchan]

I'm going to do it slightly differently (but I'll stick to the main question), so I can include some federations that may be less influential now but show a lot of history and also have produced some remarkable skaters and/or couples.

Pairs: Russia
Honourable mention: China
Historical countries: Germany, Canada

Men: USA
Honourable mention: Japan
Historical countries: Canada, Russia

Ice Dance: Canada
Honourable mention: USA
Historical countries: Russia, France, and Italy

Women: Japan
Honourable mention: Russia (only recently)
Historical countries: USA, Finland (mostly within Europe).

love that idea

as i said in the OP : it can be for recent or historical weight... my main request was that it was different nations for obvious reasons (at least obvious to me)

 

[gravy]

Pairs: Russia
Protopopovs, Gordeeva & Grinkov, Mishkutenok & Dmitriev, Berezhnaya & Sikharulidze, nuff said!

Men: Japan
Honda, Takahashi, Hanyu, Uno. Perfect marriage of skating ability, jumps, spins, showmanship, and musicality.
** I debated choosing Canada/United States because of their long lineage of champions but I think the Japanese men are really pushing the sport forward despite not really being a major presence on the scene until the early 2000s. But the latter 3 skaters I listed I like more than any other men so I went with Japan.

Ice Dance: France
Duchesnays, Anissina & Peizarat, Delobel & Schoenfelder, Pechalat & Bourzat, Papadakis & Cizeron. Beautiful skating, unusual and innovative programs, fantastic interpretation, the whole package.

Women: United States
Michelle Kwan, Sasha Cohen, Tara Lipinski, Kristi Yamaguchi, Tonya Harding, Nancy Kerrigan, Debi Thomas, Dorothy Hamill, Peggy Flemming. Unprecedented success in the women's discipline and perfection of traditional elements (layback spins, step sequences, spirals) and also helping push the sport technically (Tonya's 3A, Kristi's 3Lz+3T, Tara's 3Lo+3Lo, Debi's 3T+3T).
** Second choice was Japan because of Ito, Asada, Arakawa, Ando, Miyahara, Higuchi, Sakamoto.

 

[Joe Mendoza]

Men: USA (mainly for Nathan)
Ladies: Japan (whole package - not just jumps)
Pairs: Russia (the drama and the politics - love)
Dance: Canada (mainly for the men - Scott Moir, Andrew Poje, Nikolaj Sorensen, Paul Poirier)

 

[4everchan]

Men: USA (mainly for Nathan)
Ladies: Japan (whole package - not just jumps)
Pairs: Russia (the drama and the politics - love)
Dance: Canada (mainly for the men - Scott Moir, Andrew Poje, Nikolaj Sorensen, Paul Poirier)

hehe loving that comment in bold

 

[Joe Mendoza]

hehe loving that comment in bold

lol, I mean I guess I could say the same for Canadian pairs (Radford, Marinaro, Moscovitch, Michaud) and Russian ice dance (Bukin, Katsalapov)... am just a #thirstyfan lol

 

[4everchan]

lol, I mean I guess I could say the same for Canadian pairs (Radford, Marinaro, Moscovitch, Michaud) and Russian ice dance (Bukin, Katsalapov)... am just a #thirstyfan lol

you could add Ferland and Deschamps to the Canadian pairs

 

[Joe Mendoza]

you could add Ferland and Deschamps to the Canadian pairs

didn't wanna come across too thirsty, but I guess the jig is up. lol

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

This is so hard! I'm gonna have to podium it:

Men
GOLD: Japan
SILVER: USA
BRONZE: Canada
While historically Japan hasn't always been a threat, it's pretty apparent now that they have the depth, technical ability and artistry to produce the goods. I've rarely been bored watching a Japanese men's skater and that's because they do such a good job at packaging their skaters and not just focusing on high-ticket elements. Canada has always produced technical innovators which gets them the bronze here, and USA has been well-rounded and successful medals wise (and also had technical innovators in Goebel and Chen). It's hard to not put Russia on this list, especially with their OGM successes, but I kinda feel meh about most of their skaters... there's often a workman's mentality to their skating and "getting the job done", which they have done very well when the cards are down, but it's not my favourite skating to watch (Kolyada IMO is one of the most watchable Russian men in years).

Women
GOLD: Russia
SILVER: Japan
Bronze: USA
This one is a no-brainer for me. People can complain about Eteri all they want, but this is a new age of women's skating and a new echelon of technical feats - and we see it in non-Eteri skaters too like Liza, or heck, even down the list at Russian Nationals where a 3Z+3T is practically par for the course. But even before this age of IJS, we still had lovely Russian skaters historically like Slutskaya (who pushed the envelope with a 3Z+3L herself) and Butyrskaya. Japan has obviously turned it on in the past few decades and really popularized the 3A for women - skaters like Ito, Asada, Arakawa, Miyahara have been exciting/beautiful skaters to watch. USA of course has always been consistent and has some of the best ever in Yamaguchi/Kwan/Lipinski/Cohen but right now they aren't doing what they need to keep up - but there is potential.


Pairs
GOLD: China
SILVER: Russia
BRONZE: Canada
I will always associate China with bringing pairs skating into the next level - I mean, come on, they were arguably the first teams to actually *throw* their throws. China has had a bit of a dip lately (if we were going only by recently I'd definitely give Russia the edge), but Sui/Han continue to represent. They historically haven't had a ton of depth, but the teams they do put out there are very good. Russia has been quite dominant in pairs historically, and really executed well on unison and connection, but only as of late are we really seeing Russian pairs really pushing the technical envelope instead of relying on consistency. Canada has always been in the mix with some exciting technical innovators too (Brasseur/Eisler, Duhamel/Radford).

Ice Dance
GOLD: Canada
SILVER: USA
BRONZE: France
While it seems sacrilegious to omit Russia from this list after so much dominance historically speaking, I much prefer the new age of ice dance with technical prowess and commitment to difficulty and intricacy complementing artistic ability (which North American teams do very well and historically have done but just weren't credited for it when ice dance was all politics and bringing the drama and theatrics was more important than difficulty/execution). USA and Canada are neck in neck in terms of what I like, but I feel Canada has been overall a bit slightly more effective in the new wave of ice dance with teams like Bourne/Kraatz, Dubreil/Lauzon, and Virtue/Moir (and solid ones like Weaver/Poje, Gilles/Poirier). I just really don't like the state of/programs of Russian ice dancing enough at the moment to put them in the top 3. I feel that artistically, France has to be on here with innovative, and sometimes underrated, skaters like the Duchesnays, Pechalat/Bourzat, Delobel/Schoenfelder, Anissina/Peizerat, and now Papadakis/Cizeron; they haven't really had a lot of depth, usually just one dominant team - but that one team is usually stellar.

 

[Fetinia]

Pairs: Russia, they always have a pair fighting for a top spot.
Favorites (all IMO):
Best pairs female skater: Alyona Savchenko
Best pairs male skater: Artur Dmitriev
Best pair: Sui/Han
Men: Japan, they brought it to the next level
Best skater (GOAT): Yusuru Hanyu
Ice Dance: Great Britain, they invented this discipline if I amount mistaken, and they produced the GOAT (IMO)
Best ice dance female skater: Tessa Virtue
Best ice dance fmale skater: Christopher Dean
Best ice dance team (GOAT): Torville/Dean
Women: USA, based on historical dominance.
Best skater: Katarina Witt