Johnny Weir: Pre-Nats Interview

[Zanzibar]

Hey Zanzibar, for a hot minute there your title almost got the best of me:

"America's Olympic Strongman Shot-putts Things Into Perspective"

MM

Hi Mathman! Hello Joe! And I'd like to wish everybody a very HAPPY NEW YEAR before the clock turns over shortly.

Because this interview was done for the Golden Skate site, I'd like to make a couple of comments. First, I'd like to thank Johnny Weir for continuing to be one of the best interviewees in the figure skating world. By preceeding this interview with a brief light paragraph to set the mood, and by remarking throughout the interview how much Johnny himself was laughing, I was hoping that fans would figure out that he was joking around quite a bit, poking fun at himself ("I just don't want to be that sub-par whiny skater I've been all season...") and displaying his usual candid attitude.

Johnny only said what many people are already thinking. Johnny didn't 'bash' anyone - everyone he spoke of from Michelle to Plushenko are skaters AND people he admires and likes. Out of all of the tremendous AND lengthy compliments he poured on other skaters, it is a wee bit surprising that so many are focusing on his remarks about the US ladies and that he felt they should just
'get out there and skate more.'

There are some top skaters who are so PC-conscious, it's not even worth doing an interview - you can correctly predict the answers ahead of time. Johnny is a unique individual who started skating at a late age, turned out to be a phenomenal natural, and overall - seriously - is one really nice, funny, sweet guy. Believe me - there ARE @#&holes in the skating world, LOL - and Johnny Weir is not one of them.

An aside: the night before this interview was put up on the internet, I did something I'm reluctant to do and haven't done for a long, long time - I had Johnny read the interview - in its entirety - to see if he wanted to change anything. He read it. He chose to stand by his words, and I admire him for that because even though in my mind he said so many wonderful things about so many people, and because he was so self-depracating, and because he's funny and I can't help but love his candid approach to life...my parting words to him as we hung up were along the nature that he better brace himself...there could be an avalanche of anger coming his way.

True to form, Johnny held his ground.

Good luck to Johnny Weir and ALL of the US team at Nationals!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Zanzibar

 

[mmscfdcsu]

Great post Zanzibar. It was another great Johnny interview. I think he does a wonderful job of letting us know what he is thinking. He was certainly more critical of himself than he was of anyone else. Those that dislike him will continue to scour every word that he says in order to justify their feelings. The rest of us can sit back and enjoy. i

 

[R.D.]

Well said.

 

[millie]

Great post Zanzibar. Like I said in a previous post, that Johnny gave an excellent interview. He seems to be a normal 21 year old, opinionated and open. At least he gave you an interview, not like some people who are too high and mighty to talk to their fans and express their opinions, only to have fans guessing.
Good Luck to Johnny and may the skate gods be with him.

 

[Mafke]

I think that some people have trouble with basic reading comprehension skills or already have an anti-Weir agenda and are just looking for scraps to justify that. There was nothing whatsoever disrespectful toward Kwan there. He's disappointed she didn't skate in the GP, I think most people were. He might not fully appreciate the extent of her injury but I don't think that's required of him.

 

[euterpe]

Thanks for the posts from Zanzibar down. I am a Kwan fan and took no offense at what he said about her, and I thought he spoke respectfully about all the skaters he mentioned.

I agree with him that Plushenko is unmatched in skating skills by any of the other men, and I will root for Plushy to win the OGM, and for the US men to make the podium.

I'm glad Johnny has his head on straight going into Nationals. I am rooting for him to successfully defend his US title and hope to see him win not only an Olympic medal, but a World medal as well.

Go, Johnny!

 

[emma]

Great post Zanzibar, and thanks.

I really enjoyed Weir's interview. Sure, there were things I rolled my eyes at, or said, REALLY???? hmmm. But, that's exactly what I love about this and other Weir interviews - it feels more like a real conversation, where we can agree, disagree, laugh, get feisty, etc. and go on and do it all again. I love it.

Now, do i also admire and appreciate what I think Joe referred to as the Evan approach to sportsmanship (and the no comment approach), YES, I do. And I also like other approaches. Bottom line, what I like is that the different approaches and personalities exist and we get to see them and comment on them.

 

[Dee4707]

Because this interview was done for the Golden Skate site, I'd like to make a couple of comments. First, I'd like to thank Johnny Weir for continuing to be one of the best interviewees in the figure skating world. By preceeding this interview with a brief light paragraph to set the mood, and by remarking throughout the interview how much Johnny himself was laughing, I was hoping that fans would figure out that he was joking around quite a bit, poking fun at himself ("I just don't want to be that sub-par whiny skater I've been all season...") and displaying his usual candid attitude.
Zanzibar

Kathleen, so glad you posted. I didn't think that you would write anything and that Paula would allow anything on GS that would be considered dissing other skaters. I thought it was a good interview and enjoyed reading it. All I thought Johnny was saying was it was too bad the US women didn't do the Grand Prix this year. I was disappointed too. Nothing more.......nothing less.

Dee

 

[kyla2]

Go Back and Read It

For those of you who think we Kwan Fans have trouble with "basic reading comprehension," I suggest you go back and read the interview. There was nothing "tongue in cheek" about that section of the interview. He meant what he said. The comment "even Michelle should have been out there earlier" was as clear as a bell and so was its intent. I am sure she would appreciate that, if she was made aware of it, especially since she couldn't even get out of the bath tub without help because the pain was so bad.

 

[R.D.]

For those of you who think we Kwan Fans have trouble with "basic reading comprehension," I suggest you go back and read the interview. There was nothing "tongue in cheek" about that section of the interview. He meant what he said. The comment "even Michelle should have been out there earlier" was as clear as a bell and so was its intent. I am sure she would appreciate that, if she was made aware of it, especially since she couldn't even get out of the bath tub without help because the pain was so bad.

Well, given that the interviewer herself posted and said there was nothing wrong with what he said or how he said it, I'm willing to take that word. Also- just because I may not agree with a couple of his points doesn't mean I should put him down. I don't think he meant to be "hateful" with his comments. He was just saying what he believed.

 

[tristan1]

Johnny is a huge supporter of Kwan and has always looked up to her and mentions it alot in interviews... I think he felt bad FOR the US girls this season, that they did not get out there sooner and get the chance to compete. I don't believe that he was dissing anyone, especially since he knows what it is like to have an injury....if you notice in the one part of the interview he hopes that Kwan, Cohen and Slutskya do well in the Olympics,,now if he was anti Kwan would he have made this statement. Give me a break...Kwan fans need to be a little less sensitive and look at the whole picture or in this case the whole interview. He disses himself more than anyone

 

[tristan1]

And Joesitz,,,do you know Evan personally?? Do you know JOhnny personally?? If not how would you begin to know that Evan would not say anything bad about fellow competitors?? Just a question....or maybe Evan is self absorbed and doesn't care about other competitors,,you could look at it that way also!!!! Oh wait maybe you are assuming Evan would not...and everyone knows what assuming does...right!?

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Golden Skate came to Johnny's support after the board crashing at US Nats in 2002(?). He has mentioned that to us.

Joe

 

[Lucy25]

For those of you who think we Kwan Fans have trouble with "basic reading comprehension," I suggest you go back and read the interview. There was nothing "tongue in cheek" about that section of the interview. He meant what he said. The comment "even Michelle should have been out there earlier" was as clear as a bell and so was its intent. I am sure she would appreciate that, if she was made aware of it, especially since she couldn't even get out of the bath tub without help because the pain was so bad.

I agree with you completely, and my basic reading comprehension skills are pretty darn good.

 

[mmscfdcsu]

Johnny is a great kid. He speaks his mind, and is incredibly generous to his fans. I enjoyed this article as well as the interview that has been overanalyzed here.

http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060101/SPORTS/601010315/1002

 

[Dee4707]

Johnny is a great kid. He speaks his mind, and is incredibly generous to his fans. I enjoyed this article as well as the interview that has been overanalyzed here.

http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060101/SPORTS/601010315/1002

Mmscfdcsu, thanks for the article.

Dee

 

[Mafke]

For those of you who think we Kwan Fans have trouble with "basic reading comprehension," I suggest you go back and read the interview. There was nothing "tongue in cheek" about that section of the interview. He meant what he said. The comment "even Michelle should have been out there earlier" was as clear as a bell and so was its intent. I am sure she would appreciate that, if she was made aware of it, especially since she couldn't even get out of the bath tub without help because the pain was so bad.

"I'm very, very disappointed with the US girls. There have been so many withdrawals and injuries, etc. that they need to just get out there and skate. Stop talking about it and get out there and do it!Even Michelle (Kwan) should have been out there earlier, it would have been great to see her at a Grand Prix event."

So ... you're not disappointed with the collective showing of the US women so far this season? And you're glad that Kwan's season didn't start until Marshalls? And you think it wouldn't have been great to see her at a Grand Prix event?

There's two words 'even' and 'should' that maybe weren't well chosen (together they tend to push emotional buttons) but if you look at the whole thing it's hard to find anything offensive unless you're already unfavorably disposed toward Weir.
It would be interesting to hear the words as he said them, the overall impression then might be quite different from plain words on a screen.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Not quite on Johnny but on topic:

How does one compare diplomacy with speaking out openly?

Joe

 

[soogar]

"I'm very, very disappointed with the US girls. There have been so many withdrawals and injuries, etc. that they need to just get out there and skate. Stop talking about it and get out there and do it!Even Michelle (Kwan) should have been out there earlier, it would have been great to see her at a Grand Prix event."

.

Maybe Johnny was referring to the two previous years Kwan skipped the GP.

 

[kyla2]

Imo

Thanks Lucy! Mafke, you have got to be kidding. OF COURSE, I would have loved to have seen Michelle out there skating her heart out this season. It's also true that I have complete sympathy for her very difficult situation and I would never take a potshot at her because she has been injured, and pretty badly from what we have been able to see. Do you think for one minute she would have been popping those jumps at the Marshall's cheesfest if she had been able to practice and compete? It was very clear to anyone with a brain that she was significantly injured. For anyone to cavalierly imply that she should have just hopped out of bed and competed, injured or not, is unrealistic and shows a lack of empathy, period. Joe, I don't think there was any diplomatic way to put what he was trying to say. I think he meant exactly what he said. I do like Johnny Weir and think he is one of the greatest skating stylists ever. I just wish he would think about what he says before he says it when it is for public consumption.