Emily Hughes shooting for Vancouver

[chuckm]

I must say, I can't help but think that people are jumping the gun with this Ashley Wagner. Unproven...plus this will be her first Nationals in seniors, no?

As a Junior, she won two gold medals in her JGP events and silver at the 2006 JGPF, and bronze at Junior Worlds. Pretty impressive, I should say.

At TEB, Ashley scored the highest FS score of any US lady in any competition, Junior or Senior: 108.15, and she won the bronze medal---which is a lot more than Emily Hughes was able to do. And Ashley did it with the usual low PCS scores given to a new Senior in her first GP series.

She is 16 and eligible to go to Worlds, and I think she is a strong contender for the US World team.

 

[Winnipeg]

In terms of Emily in 2010...................with so much depth in USA Ladies, based on what we've seen so far this GP season..........seems unlikely. As well, it lookd to me like she is forcing herself or is working really hard out there instead of making it seem graceful and effortless.

Having said that, a lot can happen between now and 2010 and maybe this is her plan so as not to burn out or peak before 2010 rather right at the time?

 

[chuckm]

Not making it to Worlds 2009 can't be beneficial to any skater. Remember, every single Ladies OGM winner has stood on the World podium at some point prior to the Olympic win.

So far, Emily hasn't been closer than 8th (at 2006 Worlds) and in '07, she dropped to 9th. The way she's been skating so far this year, it seems as if she may slip even lower in '08. So Emily would be forced to make huge improvements to her skating for the 2008-2009 season if she had any hope at all of even making the US World team, let alone hitting the podium at Worlds '09.

As long as Emily tries to combine skating and college, that is not going to happen. Her sister Sarah (who was in high school) trained about 30 hours a week the year leading up to the Olympics. Emily would have to do that for two years straight if she wanted to remain competitive with the surge of young US skaters who will become age-eligible next year. She cannot dedicate that much time to skating and still stay current with her studies.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

I don't get ESPN- I do not have cable. However, I'd appreciate a Youtube link if there is one.


I must say, I can't help but think that people are jumping the gun with this Ashley Wagner. Unproven...plus this will be her first Nationals in seniors, no?

RD try this:

]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=mFW3fZ1qT8M

Joe

 

[R.D.]

Remember, every single Ladies OGM winner has stood on the World podium at some point prior to the Olympic win.

So, keeping that in mind, our contenders for 2010 Gold thus far:

Miki Ando
Mao Asada
Yuna Kim

and you can throw in Kimmie Meissner and Fumie Suguri if you wish to count 2006 worlds results.

 

[R.D.]

RD try this:

]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=mFW3fZ1qT8M

Joe

Thanks, the link is appreciated :yes: It will be interesting to see how she develops over the next two or so years.

 

[chuckm]

So, keeping that in mind, our contenders for 2010 Gold thus far:

Miki Ando
Mao Asada
Yuna Kim

and you can throw in Kimmie Meissner and Fumie Suguri if you wish to count 2006 worlds results.

Also Carolina Kostner (Worlds 2005). And of course, whichever skaters make the podium in 2008 and 2009.

 

[JPierce]

Like sombody said you can never count out a hughes.... or rather you can never count out a hughes becoming judges' pet!

Shameful trolling. Sarah landed 7 triples in 2002 FS and "brought the house down." Make up fantasies about judging favoritism toward Sarah all you want. Those thousands of spectators would fervently disagree with you.

 

[JPierce]

As long as Emily tries to combine skating and college, that is not going to happen.

ITA. I love Emily, she's my favorite currently on the ice and it always brings me joy to watch her skate. Nonetheless, against Sasha/Kimmie/Caroline/Ashley/Mirai, seeing Emily in Vancouver seems a long shot at best, especially considering that she is trying to mix skating into a full college schedule. We don't even yet know how many slots we will have. However, she IS a Hughes. Sarah surprised everyone with an Olympic win, so it's in Emily's blood to potentially surprise everyone with another Olympic attendance. But even in that unlikely circumstance, she doesn't really have the numbers to compete for the podium. So unless that changes, I'd rather see Sasha, Kimmie and Caroline attend in 2010, assuming we get 3 slots.

 

[goldenskates]

Shameful trolling. Sarah landed 7 triples in 2002 FS and "brought the house down." Make up fantasies about judging favoritism toward Sarah all you want. Those thousands of spectators would fervently disagree with you.

THANK YOU! I don't think that either of the Hughes' were the judge's pets.

That is a disguisting thing to say!

If Emily WAS the judge's pet she would be receiving better results.

 

[chuckm]

Sarah was never a judges' pet. She had far more 3rd place finishes than silvers or golds, and that was true both domestically and internationally.

The reason? Severe flutzing, slightly hunched posture, mule kick into the pick jumps, under- and pre-rotation, especially of the second jump in a combo.

Sarah HAD to outskate the other top ladies to gain the top of the podium. She did that twice in her Senior career, once at Skate Canada 2001, and the second time, at SLC. But Sarah went into the FS with no pressure, as she was in fourth place and under 6.0, unlikely to make the podium, much less win. She skated before Cohen, Kwan and Slutskaya, and had no idea that both Kwan and Slutskaya would self-destruct, so she was able to skate her heart out for once in her life.

 

[gio]

It will be difficult for Emily to make the USA team in 2010, because she will have to face Kimmie, Zhang, Nagasu, Wagner, Flatt and a possible return of Sasha Cohen.

If she chooses another country (Mexico, Thailandia, Lithuania or Uzbekistan) she could easily do it.

If Emily, Alissa, Bebe, Fumie, Takeda, Lepisto switch country, they will all have a chance to be in 2010 Olympics. If they stay USA, Japan and Finland their chances are not that high.
But I guess is not easy to switch country.

Another option will be to make the ISU change the rule of the MAX 3 skaters per country. Which is not a very fair rule, IMO, especially for an individual sport as is FS. We will see at Oly week skaters partecipate, but good ones not, because of different degree of competition and skating level in two different countries.

I mean Emily could be a top skater in 3/4 of the countries in the World which are members of the ISU.

 

[R.D.]

actually, the 3 max rule is good IMO; it helps keep the competition pool diverse (and not just 3 or 4 countries participating).

 

[gio]

actually, the 3 max rule is good IMO; it helps keep the competition pool diverse (and not just 3 or 4 countries participating).

IMO, Olympics and Worlds should be a competition among the best skaters of the World without country limitations. Obviusly there should be tons of other competitions before those events where the skaters should gain experience. And all of those competitions should serve as qualifiers for Worlds and Olympics.

 

[feraina]

IMO, Olympics and Worlds should be a competition among the best skaters of the World without country limitations. Obviusly there should be tons of other competitions before those events where the skaters should gain experience. And all of those competitions should serve as qualifiers for Worlds and Olympics.

The current system is just the opposite. American, Russian, Japanese, and Finish competitors dominate the GP and JGP circuits, whereas skaters from smaller (skating-wise) countries only get to go to competitions like Euros, Worlds, and Olympics.

 

[chuckm]

The current system is just the opposite. American, Russian, Japanese, and Finish competitors dominate the GP and JGP circuits, whereas skaters from smaller (skating-wise) countries only get to go to competitions like Euros, Worlds, and Olympics.

That's true for the GP, for sure. Skaters and teams from the smaller federations are lucky if they get one GP event. That the ISU World Ranking is so heavily weighted towards the GP definitely discriminates against those skaters/teams that aren't from GP host nations.

To use the GPs as a 'feeder' to Worlds, and to allow more than 3 skaters from the top FS countries to compete at Worlds would further discriminate against the smaller and poorer federations, and that would be even more unfair.

But all federations can send skaters to the JGP. The higher a federation has skaters placing at Junior Worlds the previous year, the more skaters (up to 2 for a non-host, and up to 3 for a host country) can be sent to each JGP event. Estonia has done very well with Ladies in the past couple of years and has been able to send 2 skaters to each JGP event last year and this year. Finland has become strong in Ladies also, and this is due to the younger skaters getting lots of opportunities in the JGP. Now Finland has more accomplished skaters than they can send to Worlds or Euros, and skating there is very competitive in the Ladies event.

After seeing how Mai Asada and Aki Sawada competed in the GP, I sure don't think that they deserve to be at Worlds more than Elene Gedevanishvili, Elena Glebova or Idora Hegel.

 

[krenseby]

Sarah was never a judges' pet. She had far more 3rd place finishes than silvers or golds, and that was true both domestically and internationally.

The reason? Severe flutzing, slightly hunched posture, mule kick into the pick jumps, under- and pre-rotation, especially of the second jump in a combo.

Sarah HAD to outskate the other top ladies to gain the top of the podium. She did that twice in her Senior career, once at Skate Canada 2001, and the second time, at SLC. But Sarah went into the FS with no pressure, as she was in fourth place and under 6.0, unlikely to make the podium, much less win. She skated before Cohen, Kwan and Slutskaya, and had no idea that both Kwan and Slutskaya would self-destruct, so she was able to skate her heart out for once in her life.

If Sarah managed to overcome her constant pattern of 3rd place finishes to skate her heart out just twice, one of these times during the Olympics, I am pretty sure that such luck could also strike the perennial silver medalist Sasha Cohen.

Say what you will about Sasha about being the bridemaid, but Sarah proves that a constant pattern of coming in 3rd or 2nd can be suddenly and unexpected broken to the horrified suprise and amazement of everyone.

(Well horrified surprise mostly for fans for Kwan and Slutskaya)

 

[chuckm]

If Sarah managed to overcome her constant pattern of 3rd place finishes to skate her heart out just twice, one of these times during the Olympics, I am pretty sure that such luck could also strike the perennial silver medalist Sasha Cohen.

Say what you will about Sasha about being the bridemaid, but Sarah proves that a constant pattern of coming in 3rd or 2nd can be suddenly and unexpected broken to the horrified suprise and amazement of everyone.

(Well horrified surprise mostly for fans for Kwan and Slutskaya)

Except that for Sarah, the SP was her Achilles heel. She took hits because of her flutz and her underrotated jumps, and that put her out of first or second place so that she was not in control of her own destiny. In the case of SLC, she was in 4th place. Under 6.0, a skater in 4th could only win if the skaters above her faltered. Kwan and Slutskaya were not prone to meltdowns, so from Sarah's point of view, she might as well have a good time out there, because she wasn't going to win. She had the skate of her life, and won because the others faltered.

OTOH, Cohen is a superb SP skater. At 2004, 2005 and 2006 Worlds and the 2006 Olympics, she was in either first or second place going into the FS, so she was always in a position to win. But where Sarah was a skater who rarely fell or had big mistakes in her FSs, Cohen has never skated a clean FS in a major competition. Sasha has finished out of first place time and again because of mistakes she made in her FS.

Even at US Nationals, Sasha has been in first place after the SP and still didn't win, because she made fatal mistakes in the FS.

 

[slutskayafan21]

Also Carolina Kostner (Worlds 2005). And of course, whichever skaters make the podium in 2008 and 2009.

That depends too if any new skaters, that havent yet already made the podium, do make it at either of those worlds. While that could happen there is also a pretty good shot it wont with Kim, Asada, Ando, Meissner, Kostner being the five who have already won world medals.

 

[Nadine]

Re: Emily, from your lips to God's ears