Johnny Weir Journal Update !

[Vodka Shot]

I think he needs to pick his battles a little wiser. Does he really want to irritate the USFSA over an award? Not unfair judging, bias in promotion, or the fact that figure skating exists in a 50's time warp, but an award? If I was going to poke the people responsible for sponsoring nationals with a stick I'd make sure it was over something a bit more important. I love his attitude, but I don't want to see Evan Lysacek get a score of 684663653265826358623 to the 10th power at nationals either.

I also hope he doesn't get complacent. He's won only 2 events, the big ones are yet to come. The GP's are just like a little rain before the storm.

Stay focused Johnny! Stay focused!

 

[slutskayafan21]

I am happy for Weir having such a great season and he should feel good and proud of himself now. However I think he is a bit deluded to think he wont be needing the quad. He might get away with it but he is taking a huge risk and leaving himself very vurnerable. If any of Lambiel, Joubert, Takahashi, or perhaps even Verner or Lysacek, skate cleanly or almost clean with the quad, and he does not attempt the quad, they are going to beat him. Right now he is skating at a very high standard and showing excellent all around skating. Like chuckm and others have said he still can up some things without the quad. However he is relying on these other guys to make mistakes now, and that is not a comfortable spot to be in. Without a quad he needs to hope Lambiel, Joubert, Takahashi, and possibly even Verner and Lysacek, miss things when they compete vs him. If enough go fairly clean he could be off the podium without a quad.

 

[Jaana]

A very interesting journal entry! Generally speaking I really like reading Weir journals and interviews, but comments like this reveal something that can very easily stop me respecting a person:

"When I returned from Russia, I was expecting to see some kind of announcement from my federation or the US Olympic Committee that I had won an award, but I didn't see anything. I know it's interesting when Evan Lysacek attends a movie premiere, and I could pee myself with glee if Kimmie Meissner throws out one more pitch at a baseball game, but I actually won something!"

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

A very interesting journal entry! Generally speaking I really like reading Weir journals and interviews, but comments like this reveal something that can very easily stop me respecting a person:

"When I returned from Russia, I was expecting to see some kind of announcement from my federation or the US Olympic Committee that I had won an award, but I didn't see anything. I know it's interesting when Evan Lysacek attends a movie premiere, and I could pee myself with glee if Kimmie Meissner throws out one more pitch at a baseball game, but I actually won something!"

Agree! Not nice! he should rise above that sort of thing. In the small world of figure skating, he is not going to get a ticker tape parade down Broadway, and Disney is only interested in family values.

Joe

 

[Mathman]

Actually, I think Johnny's take on the quad might be the best strategy. He can't win the Olympic gold medal this season. But what he can do is re-establish himself as a world competitor. Even without a quad he can do well at the Grand Prix final and has a fifty-fifty chance to win U.S. Nationals.

At Worlds, he won't win first place without a quad (somebody will step up, yes?) but he has a good chance for the podium. A finish of 2nd at GP final, 1st at Nationals, and a world bronze would put him in an ideal position for the future.

 

[jennylovskt]

...... Even without a quad he can do well at the Grand Prix final and has a fifty-fifty chance to win U.S. Nationals.

At Worlds, he won't win first place without a quad (somebody will step up, yes?) but he has a good chance for the podium. A finish of 2nd at GP final, 1st at Nationals, and a world bronze would put him in an ideal position for the future.

That's true. It's probably the best he can do this season. It's still a triumph compared with his last two years. But what if Brian Joubert comes back at the Worlds? Johnny might be fourth or fifth again.

 

[BravesSkateFan]

I don't know why I read these things when I know they are just going to annoy me to no end. He's always so whiny.

Can't he just go skate for Russia already?

 

[attyfan]

I found this link at USFS official website - Evan Lysacek Works the Red Carpet at "Sky High" Premiere:
http://www.usfigureskating.org/Story.asp?id=30344

The dateline is 2005 -- when USFS still had the contract with ABC -- owned by Disney -- and it was plugging a Disney movie.

IMO, if Johnny wants to scream "the USFS hates me", then he had better rule out other causes of differential treatment -- otherwise he sounds more like a whiny little brat than anything else.

 

[clairecloutier]

Just last week, I was saying that Johnny seems to have no understanding of the fact that his pro-Russian leanings may not sit well with the USFSA, particularly those in the federation who lived through the Cold War years. He sees his love of all things Russian as being a good citizen of the world; they see it as skating with the enemy, so to speak. It's a fundamental difference in viewpoint.

I understand Johnny's frustration, but to waste time, energy, and blog posts sulking and complaining about the situation isn't useful. It's not going to change anything and just makes him look petty.

Better to focus on himself and his own skating. Johnny marches to his own drummer, and claims to be proud of that fact. Good for him. But he must realize that being unconventional means not everyone is going to agree with him or his approach to things, and that's just the way it is. Instead of complaining about the USFSA, try to take comfort in the fact that he has such a dedicated, loyal, and international fan base.

If Johnny skates to his potential, no federation or rival can stand in his way. If I were him, I'd let the skating be the focus and not worry about the federation press releases.

 

[NorthernLite]

IMO, if Johnny wants to scream "the USFS hates me", then he had better rule out other causes of differential treatment -- otherwise he sounds more like a whiny little brat than anything else.

I criticized him in an adoration-filled thread on FSU. I'm glad to find some others who also get annoyed by some of the remarks that he thinks are so clever.

 

[BravesSkateFan]

I criticized him in an adoration-filled thread on FSU. I'm glad to find some others who also get annoyed by some of the remarks that he thinks are so clever.

If Evan made some of the remarks that Johnny did in that entry people would be all over him.

 

[1cmarie]

If Evan made some of the remarks that Johnny did in that entry people would be all over him.

Naw, two completely different situations. AFAIK, the federation's never ignored Evan's accomplishments. They praise him and put him front and center as the rep for all of US Men's figure skating. Not saying that he doesn't deserve it, but unlike Johnny, he probably doesn't have the grounds to complain that the USFS ignores him in favor of others.

As for Johnny himself, a) I think he's probably still peeved at last year's publicity stunt at Nationals, and with good reason, IMO, and b) I get upset when an immediately family member doesn't remember my birthday, so I can only imagine how Johnny feels. If it were me in Johnny's shoes, no, I probably wouldn't have broached the topic on a public journal. But, I'm not Johnny and his journal is not my journal. Just because people might not agree with what he has to say doesn't mean he can't write what he wants. My humble opinion, only.

 

[NorthernLite]

If Evan made some of the remarks that Johnny did in that entry people would be all over him.

If insert name of many skaters made some of the remarks that Johnny did in that entry people would be all over him/ her/ them.

 

[werelump]

If insert name of many skaters made some of the remarks that Johnny did in that entry people would be all over him/ her/ them.

Like 1cmarie said, does insert name of many skaters have the grounds like Johnny to complain that USFS ignores him/her/them in favor of others?

In some respects, it's kind of Johnny's own fault that USFS is weary about promoting him as much even when he was national champion because not only has some of his actions have been pretty provocative, he had done them fully aware that they were. Still, that doesn't diminish the fact that his belief that USFS has a tendency to push him aside seems to have at least some substance... not saying that I believe the lack of Russian Award mention has anything to do with USFS favoritism at all.

It also doesn't diminish the fact that by favoring other skaters over him the USFS is indirectly (probably not on purpose) sending the message that there is something wrong about Johnny. That there is something right about Evan or Kimmie. I don't think there is anything wrong with being like Evan or Kimmie, but to imply that there is something wrong with Johnny when he is just being himself, is kind of an attack on him as a person. I can imagine why he might feel slighted.

 

[BravesSkateFan]

Naw, two completely different situations. AFAIK, the federation's never ignored Evan's accomplishments. They praise him and put him front and center as the rep for all of US Men's figure skating. Not saying that he doesn't deserve it, but unlike Johnny, he probably doesn't have the grounds to complain that the USFS ignores him in favor of others

I wasn't referring to his comment about the award he got, I was referring to his pokes at Evan.

As for Johnny himself, a) I think he's probably still peeved at last year's publicity stunt at Nationals, and with good reason

What publicity stunt are you talking about? Do you mean the Evan/Tanith thing (and if so why would Johnny be upset about that?) or did I miss something?

 

[figureskatingfan22]

Johnny's journal entries are always interesting...

Johnny still seems to be a bit naive:
1. The award was just part of a show. So it had no importance outside the show - just a special reward by the show creators. That's why neither the USFSA nor the press picked it up. The same idea as the Golden Skate Awards. Those awards were only mentioned in reports about the show - no where else.
2. Being different usually means more criticism. You cannot go your own way and get no critique for it by many people. That's how it is.
3. As Plushenko already told him several times, he needs the quad to get to the top. But even Plushenko had to try the quad 2 years in competion to get it consistently. With a quad in competition for 2 years, Weir would already be were Takahashi is today. With two quads he'd be almost unbeatable.

But I think Weir lacks the absolute hunger for success/the World and Olympic title. It's nothing bad. He just wants to have enough attention and do good in where he's best. When he has that he's happy and satisfied.

 

[psycho]

I wasn't referring to his comment about the award he got, I was referring to his pokes at Evan.

You're kidding, right?

Evan and Johnny have been mutually poking each other for almost a year now! And they've both made worse comments about each other than anything in that entry. Let's not pretend that Evan is some innocent victim in all this. He was the one who started the masculinity campaign, after all.

 

[Medusa]

What publicity stunt are you talking about? Do you mean the Evan/Tanith thing (and if so why would Johnny be upset about that?) or did I miss something?

Perhaps it was more the NancyKerrigan-MarkLund thing?!? Which was in my opinion pretty outrageous.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwDarorjN6c

 

[ciroc83]

The Evan masculinity thing always makes me LMAO… In comparison to what? A box of newborn kittens?

 

[BravesSkateFan]

You're kidding, right?

Evan and Johnny have been mutually poking each other for almost a year now! And they've both made worse comments about each other than anything in that entry. Let's not pretend that Evan is some innocent victim in all this. He was the one who started the masculinity campaign, after all.

I know they've been poking at each other, but that's just my point. If Evan pokes at Johnny people jump all over him, but when Johnny says something everyone thinks its funny or clever, or just ignores it completely. I never said that Evan was a victim or that he was innocent. I really could care less if they talk smack about each other, I just think if you are going to get on Evan's case about it you should do the same for Johnny.