Kaitlin Hawayek & Jean-Luc Baker

[danse]

The rumour I've heard from TSL is that Anjelika is going back to Russia to work with Eteri & co and to develop ice dance in the mother country. And that Kaitlin and Jean Luc want to go to Montréeal to train with the Gadbois Team - Dubreuil, Lauzon, Denis, Hagenauer, etc. When I think about how Tessa and Scott's twizzles and overall skating improved, I think this might be a good thing for them if the rumour is true!

 

[ejnsofi]

The rumour I've heard from TSL is that Anjelika is going back to Russia to work with Eteri & co and to develop ice dance in the mother country. And that Kaitlin and Jean Luc want to go to Montréeal to train with the Gadbois Team - Dubreuil, Lauzon, Denis, Hagenauer, etc. When I think about how Tessa and Scott's twizzles and overall skating improved, I think this might be a good thing for them if the rumour is true!

I think Krylova confirmed coming back to Russia. Or at least Russian media shared this information but I'm not sure what she would have to do with Eteri. The only ice dance team from sambo-70 I remember is the one Diana Davis skates in. I'd prefer her to work with Zhuk team or Gorshkov.

Moving to Montreal would be great for H/B. They are really entertaining team and have great base to work with.

 

[Abraxis12345]

Krylova said she’s working with Chaikovskaya. The Eteri association comes from the fact that Eteri’s club has or had some vague association with Chaikovskaya.

 

[slider11]

The rumour I've heard from TSL is that Anjelika is going back to Russia to work with Eteri & co and to develop ice dance in the mother country. And that Kaitlin and Jean Luc want to go to Montréeal to train with the Gadbois Team - Dubreuil, Lauzon, Denis, Hagenauer, etc. When I think about how Tessa and Scott's twizzles and overall skating improved, I think this might be a good thing for them if the rumour is true!

If Papdakis/Cizeron and Hubbell/Donahue are sticking and staying with the Montreal group, I would rather see Kaitlin and Jean-Luc go somewhere else. I get that the Gadbois coaching team is hot right now but there are just so many ice dance teams that can receive prime attention. I think Marina/Massi coaching would be a good choice for them. Good technical foundation and a strong lift coach in Johnny Johns. Marina seems open to various choreographers and could help them find their groove. But obviously Kaitlin and Jean-Luc know their needs best. Just do it for the right reasons.

 

[danse]

If Papdakis/Cizeron and Hubbell/Donahue are sticking and staying with the Montreal group, I would rather see Kaitlin and Jean-Luc go somewhere else. I get that the Gadbois coaching team is hot right now but there are just so many ice dance teams that can receive prime attention. I think Marina/Massi coaching would be a good choice for them. Good technical foundation and a strong lift coach in Johnny Johns. Marina seems open to various choreographers and could help them find their groove. But obviously Kaitlin and Jean-Luc know their needs best. Just do it for the right reasons.

Well they won't have Virtue & Moir, who I'm sure took a lot of attention, so that opens up a "spot" at Gadbois. I wouldn't be surprised if a bunch of younger teams try to make the leap there after watching the successes of their top echelon of teams. I'd like to see Patrice help re-work their balance point and technique a bit and then see what they can do, if this is where they go.

 

[CAS]

The Spanish team that was in Montreal is also retiring (Celia and Luis) so that is two teams gone from Montreal.

 

[dorispulaski]

I hope to Heck they do not go to Montreal.

 

[Anyasnake]

I hope to Heck they do not go to Montreal.

Why not ? I think it could be great for them, they know how to make the male partner shine over there.
And I think they are going to Montreal.

 

[dorispulaski]

I don't think they will develop well there. The thing Gadbois does well is developing skating skills, a strength of H&B already, especially Jean-Luc.

I would rather see them with Marina to do twizzle camp with the Shibs. They mess their twizzles all too frequently. And they need some new lifts. What Marina has done with Chris Reed's formerly weak twizzles is very good.

 

[CAS]

I think she has a lot of room for improvement to match his skills so if they are going to Montreal maybe this will be addressed and we will see an equal balance between the two because currently she distracts me from really enjoying him. I also think Montreal is better for lifts whereas I feel Marina would just tell her to lose weight and he'd be dragging her around the ice. Finally I prefer Montreal approach to their skaters emoting whereas Marina is more fake/forced so I would like to see what they can bring out in her because it's another area I find she really lags behind him.

I guess bottom line for me is I think he outshines her in every aspect and she holds him back so as they are to remain a team I think Montreal will address this better than Marina.

 

[slider11]

Give Kaitlin some credit. Yes, Jean-Luc's skills are superb and Kaitlin's have vastly improved the last few years. I find her edges and body positions much improved. They need coaches who can help them with their lifts and twizzles and find them music that suits their abilities. Romeo and Juliet and Libestraum were excellent vehicles. I think Camp Marina is a destination worth investigating for them!

 

[ximianK]

TSL tweeting H/B going to Montreal

https://twitter.com/SkatingLesson/status/986804411048579072

 

[SnowWhite]

Both Zach Donohue and Olivia Smart liked the tweet BTW.

 

[xibsuarz]

Good luck Kaitlin and Jean Luc on their new step. I hope this helps them set in the top 3 of American ID!

 

[alain06fr]

I hope to Heck they do not go to Montreal.

These news were already known for some time, like many others which you are not aware of yet it seems...

When people come here and are willing to share information freely and kindly then I guess it's great for GS to make sure they feel good here and keep on sharing information...

 

[CAS]

These news were already known for some time, like many others which you are not aware of yet it seems...

When people come here and are willing to share information freely and kindly then I guess it's great for GS to make sure they feel good here and keep on sharing information...

Doris wrote that post you quoted a month ago....

 

[WeakAnkles]

I don't think they will develop well there. The thing Gadbois does well is developing skating skills, a strength of H&B already, especially Jean-Luc.

I would rather see them with Marina to do twizzle camp with the Shibs. They mess their twizzles all too frequently. And they need some new lifts. What Marina has done with Chris Reed's formerly weak twizzles is very good.

Not only that, but I think Marina would be a perfect choreographer for them. Montreal. They'll probably foist some ghastly blues program on them

 

[lauravvv]

WeakAnkles - I doubt that about a blues program. You may dislike blues (which has to do only with your personal taste, and doesn't make blues itself or blues programs "ghastly" as a fact) or the programs choreographed by Dubreul, Chounard etc. in general, but it has been very rare when they have given one of their teams a program that just doen't suit them, their style and strengths. Even if you personally hated Hubbell/Donohue's blues FD, it showed off their skating skills very well and it also played to their strengths as performers, plus, it scored really well for them.

In Hawayek/Baker's case I don't see blues as something that could be their forte at all, and I am pretty sure that team Montreal doesn't see them in such a program either. I personally can see them doing something light and lyrical (which they have already done several times), or something really serious that tells a story (like their 2015/2016 season FD), but still not dramatic in terms of music, or perhaps something youthful, contemporary and fun, like their 2016/2017 season SD. But let's wait and see what the Gadbois choreographers team has given them - perhaps it will be something that I would not have expected, but that still suits them.

 

[slider11]

I just rewatched Kaitlin and Jean-Luc's "Theory of Everything" FD from Skate America 2015 and was mezmerized. It really never received decent marks all season and I can't understand why. I thought the program showed alot of maturity and strong technical and expressive skills. Her dress was meh but that was fixed later in the season. The fact that judges/audience may not have seen the movie nor understood his portrayal of a man with ALS I suppose is one rationale. But, honestly, compared to the other dramatic portrayals, I thought K/J-L never received credit for a very moving FD.

 

[Ice Dance]

I just rewatched Kaitlin and Jean-Luc's "Theory of Everything" FD from Skate America 2015 and was mezmerized. It really never received decent marks all season and I can't understand why. I thought the program showed alot of maturity and strong technical and expressive skills. Her dress was meh but that was fixed later in the season. The fact that judges/audience may not have seen the movie nor understood his portrayal of a man with ALS I suppose is one rationale. But, honestly, compared to the other dramatic portrayals, I thought K/J-L never received credit for a very moving FD.

I thought it was a good program. It was a rough season. They fell in their opening Challenger event. Had to pull out of Cup of China later due to illness. The balletic style in the SD didn't really work for her. I thought mostly they didn't have any momentum that season. There was a lot of unrealistic pressure because they had exceeded expectations the year before. The concept of the FD had great potential. Orford & Hill used the same program, and I thought their emotional portrayal was more powerful. Hawayek & Baker skated the FD well at Nationals (though I personally preferred the period costumes from earlier in the season), but it was a VERY well skated dance event that year.

Essentially, it was a building block. Most teams go through that kind of season when they transition up from juniors. Many of them go through it the first year. Hawayek & Baker went through it the second.