I almost dropped my laptop when I read the original article a couple hours ago...and only just regrouped after convincing myself that this wasn't some crazy April Fool's joke...so to sum it up best
(seemed like the best moment to use that emoticon) I'm not really bringing anything new to the board in terms of opinions/insights, but I just needed to get a lot of my thoughts out of my head and I figured it'd be good to share with people who actually cared...
I got the feeling toward the end of the most recent season that everything wasn't great in the land of ice dance up in Canton...the interactions between the both D/W and V/M weren't as "friendly" and even the skaters themselves seemed removed from the coaches - just look as K&C clips...everyone looks uncomfortabl. While this is figure skating (and ice dance in particular), and the likelihood of us fans actually getting the full scoop is unlikely, I really want to know what went wrong. I'm sure Igor has been offered money countless times by other clubs and the Russians, but I highly doubt he would ever do anything to jeopardize his relationship with the teams that he coaches. Furthermore, I cannot imagine any of the top teams in Canton pushing Igor out of the picture as all of them have expressed, rather genuinely, how important Marina as well as Igor are individually in regards to what they bring to the table. This leads me to believe that the issue here is truly a personal issue between Marina and Igor (but with that statement by Marina in the article - even if it is a PR-friendly statement - I can't imagine that Marina would play the blame game by involving the skaters directly...which makes me think that yes, Igor might have been pushed out b/c he was over-committed/didn't seem committed enough to his current teams. From Igor's statements, it appears as if he's being intentionally pushed out. BUT with the way the management is making remarks, I'm lead to believe that the management is to blame for actually pulling the rug out and possibly making a decision too rashly. Yes, Marina and Igor might not have been able to work out whatever problems they had, but I'm sure from a professional standpoint, with world-championship teams, you don't just bail when there are problems. While personal conflicts are never good to be around in such a competitive environment, and would have had to come to an end - either with a resolution or a coaching split - I'd like to believe that Zoueva and Shpilband know better than to let their skaters get caught in the middle of this in such a public and ugly manner). I doubt the the top 3 teams themselves would ever "get together" and make such a drastic (and bratty) decision like wanting Igor out of the picture at the club. I'm most intrigued my the Igor's meeting with Meryl and Charlie. Correct me if I'm wrong but Zoueva always preferred V/M and Shpilband favors D/W, right? That would means Igor has a closer relationship with D/W and feels he's going to get the most honest answers from Meryl and Charlie...but regardless, I sincerely hope that V/M, D/W, S/S, and the plethora of other teams that were under the joint-tutelage of the Zoueva/Shpilband "school" get out of this off-season drama relatively unscathed...In a way, change might not be a bad thing for the V/M and D/W rivalry (as i felt both teams were struggling to find inspiration...and were starting to feel a little flat - even as they improved technically and artistically), but I was certainly shocked that it had to come to this.
, but Doris, you've summed up my reaction.
