Kwan Injured - Pulling out of Cambell's & Skate America... Life is NOT Fair

[Joesitz (RIP)]

I would have thought any contract with an athlete that requires them to compete (and i'm dubious that a endorsement deal would include such a clause) would include a force majeure clause and injury would be a force majeure event. Someone with the clout of Kwan would have a fair amount of bargaining power to be able to negotiate such a contract so i would have thought she's suitably covered.Ant

I think Witt got the big Coca Cola contract after she left eligible. Am I correct?

Joe

 

[Mathman]

I think the question about contracts comes from persistent rumors that Michelle has some sort of side deal to skate in the Invitationals (Campbells and Marshalls), either from USFS or directly from the event sponsors or from ABC television.

I don't know whether this is true or not. Skaters used to receive appearance fees for these events. When the prize money went up to $50,000 these fees were supposedly discontinued.

MM

 

[mzheng]

Contract may not explicitly stipulate that she has to compete more, but she herself might feel obligated to compete more.....Don't know the detail, just heard back around the time of Emmy party that she has a new contract with Coca Cola. And she will compete more this season.....The Campbell, SA, COC were all in plan originally.....For god sake those ppl accuse her 'fake' injury, they have no idea how pain/suffer that was......I had a back pain (not injury) 5 or 6 years ago (after a visit to Disney taking all those attraction rides), for a week or two I couldn't even sit/lay down without help from my hands, I have to use my arm support me then sit/lay down very slowly.....

 

[hockeyfan228]

There's an article in The Guardian about mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/filmandmusic/story/0,16373,1591405,00.html

First, a quote from Bartoli,

Her reply, when I ask her who guides her career, is instructive: her mother, a former opera singer, but most of all the voice itself. "My voice tells me what is possible. I have to listen to my instrument, otherwise there is no way to survive. If you don't listen to your instrument, you cannot really have a longevity. If I squeeze my instrument too much, it's clear the instrument will one day say goodbye. Some singers collapse very quickly."

I find it interesting that the same questions that are asked constantly about Kwan are asked of Bartoli in the context of her career management choices:

Yet there remain questions about the trajectory of her career - the ones hinted at by Hoelterhoff. Where will it go? Will Bartoli fulfil herself? Is it wise to be her own manager? Might the speed of the jet be a useful counterweight to the luxury of the liner? The care with which her career is constructed feels constricting, airless, too perfect. She admits to having so far sung little Monteverdi because she "never had the courage" - his genius demands an extraordinary performance. But shouldn't great artists be willing to contemplate failure?

 

[wvgal57]

But don't tell me that she has never been injured as a result of the triple-triples she has been landing because it isn't believeable.

Well just because you choose not to believe it does not make it unbelievable. The facts say otherwise, Gromova stated last year that Irina's knee injury was from new double axle entry work. I think Irina hurt her back during a fall in Worlds 95..

 

[SkateFan4Life]

Terrible, terrible news. Michelle needs to be 100 perfect fit and competitive sharp for the US Nationals, Olympics, and Worlds. She can probably skate a reasonably good short and long at Nationals and still win, but not at the Olympics and Worlds.

Hopefully, she'll make a full recovery ASAP.

 

[R.D.]

Terrible, terrible news. Michelle needs to be 100 perfect fit and competitive sharp for the US Nationals, Olympics, and Worlds. She can probably skate a reasonably good short and long at Nationals and still win, but not at the Olympics and Worlds.

Hopefully, she'll make a full recovery ASAP.

Definitely. The question is, can she do it in time? I have my thoughts but I'm not counting her out just yet. Maybe not (being able to) attend the Olympic summit this year was a blessing in disguise?

I have absolutely no doubt that she'll win nationals without any resistance from other skaters.

 

[mpal2]

Well just because you choose not to believe it does not make it unbelievable. The facts say otherwise, Gromova stated last year that Irina's knee injury was from new double axle entry work. I think Irina hurt her back during a fall in Worlds 95..

:scratch:
wvgal57, that is exactly what kyla2 was trying to say. Her argument has been all along that jumps cause injury and that young girls should be limited in their attempts because their bodies are not fully formed yet and vulnerable to injury.

 

[wvgal57]

:scratch:
wvgal57, that is exactly what kyla2 was trying to say. Her argument has been all along that jumps cause injury and that young girls should be limited in their attempts because their bodies are not fully formed yet and vulnerable to injury.

No, IMO her argument is that Irina most certainly has had to have been injured because she, Kyla thinks that her body has taken such a beating and that for someone to suggest that no, Irina has not been injured is to say something unbelieveable. That is how I read her post.

To even suggest that Irina's vasculitis and ensuing illness was caused by her jumping is preposterous. Irina Slutskaya has an autoimmune disorder which you can read all about at the Churg Strauss Syndrome website. Any breathing difficulty she has or bruising in her legs is a symptom of her illness.

As I said before Irina seems to have very, very good training habits as she's not had any serious injury and she starting doing 3/3's back in 1995. She is the most technically proficient female in the world and she doesn't seem to be letting either her age or her illness hold her back. I contribute much of her success now to the fact that she has continued to train her body for competition, realizing that if you plan to be competitive you must keep your skills top level.

 

[LegalGirl82]

Wishing Michelle a full recovery and a successful season!

 

[sk8ing_lady2001]

Feel better soon, Michelle! I'm sorry this happened. We will miss you. Hope you can participate in Cup of China, the Nationals, and the Olympics. :disapp: