- Joined
- Feb 13, 2017
He said "If something you really want to watch is artistry, go watch ice dancing. I think with what we're doing now, we're bringing such an athletic aspect to the sport." Too arrogant I think!
Nathan Chen
- Thread starter matmuh
- Start date
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2012
He made a comment saying that if you want to watch artistry, you should watch ice dance - but then he also says that he's looking to continue to grow artistically. I think it was just a throwaway remark in an article where the narrative was clear. They even have Rohene talking about how what's happening now is "figure jumping" not "figure skating."
But like you said, I didn't expect him to skate cleanly either. He had three really successful competitions in a row (even if he made a mistake in the SP at the GPF - like here) and the hype was loud. Worlds is a whole different beast, especially if it's your first one and a lot of the people watching think that you are going to win. He is human, after all. But I really do think he'll learn from it and it'll be a great experience for him going into the Olympic year, no matter where he ends up.
But like you said, I didn't expect him to skate cleanly either. He had three really successful competitions in a row (even if he made a mistake in the SP at the GPF - like here) and the hype was loud. Worlds is a whole different beast, especially if it's your first one and a lot of the people watching think that you are going to win. He is human, after all. But I really do think he'll learn from it and it'll be a great experience for him going into the Olympic year, no matter where he ends up.
- Joined
- Apr 4, 2016
I bummed for Nathan. Did anyone read the icenetwork article about him? He said he was nervous about the boots and didn't sleep well the night before which explains why he looked tried. That fall on the 3A was bad. I am concerned about the 6 quad free skate, I don't think it will be a good thing with the state if his boots.
In the Kiss and Cry he said as soon as he took off on the 3A he knew what was going to happen.
In the Kiss and Cry he said as soon as he took off on the 3A he knew what was going to happen.
- Joined
- Apr 4, 2016
How is that arrogant? It's no different than what may commenters around here have said and it's true. The athletics are a huge part of the sport and the scoring system invited it and is encouraging it. That is figure skating now and it is on the system not the skaters. He shouldn't have to field questions about this.
- Joined
- Nov 27, 2015
the 3a fall was a little bit unlucky,totally avoidable cause the edge was slightly right-leaning, still it shows his inexperience he didn't save it
great learning curve comes right before OG where he could get more nervous and has more unexpected issues
still looks forward to his FS even if he make total mess of it by trying too hard, but i'm sure he has calmed down a lot by now
as for the artistry and athletic debate, i think his argument is more true on women's side. The talent of male skaters has never been this great and the versatility they show us present so many possibilities balancing both, hanyu, chan, javier, jason,umo,den are all beautiful in their unique way. Chen is doing his balletic thing but the biggest problem about his programs i feel is lacking character and a bit flavorless, plus his upper body could use a lot work.He hasn't establish a style that's could be tagged "chen" but wait, what we are talking about here? this is his senior debut. He has a long way ahead, eventually, how high he reaches will partly depends on what's his idea of a true figure skating champion is about.
great learning curve comes right before OG where he could get more nervous and has more unexpected issues
still looks forward to his FS even if he make total mess of it by trying too hard, but i'm sure he has calmed down a lot by now
as for the artistry and athletic debate, i think his argument is more true on women's side. The talent of male skaters has never been this great and the versatility they show us present so many possibilities balancing both, hanyu, chan, javier, jason,umo,den are all beautiful in their unique way. Chen is doing his balletic thing but the biggest problem about his programs i feel is lacking character and a bit flavorless, plus his upper body could use a lot work.He hasn't establish a style that's could be tagged "chen" but wait, what we are talking about here? this is his senior debut. He has a long way ahead, eventually, how high he reaches will partly depends on what's his idea of a true figure skating champion is about.
- Joined
- Feb 13, 2017
I just think he could have put it in a more subtle way. Oh well, he is only 17, I shouldn't expect too much.
The exact wording was "If something you really want to watch is artistry, go watch ice dancing. I think with what we're doing now, we're bringing such an athletic aspect to the sport."
This highlighted comment seems to suggest Nathan disregard artistry. However that's not the case as the article continues:
Which is not to say that Chen is downplaying the artistic element of his skating. He says he pushed hard to improve that aspect last year, working with noted choreographer Marina Zoueva. "That's something I don't want to put aside," he said. "I want to continue work on that. I think that's a longer process to work on and will gradually mature over time."
Maybe the writer asked Nathan to comment on the opinion that figure skating should weigh more on artistry than athleticism.
http://www.espn.com/olympics/figure...hen-us-national-champion-spun-quad-jumps-gold
This highlighted comment seems to suggest Nathan disregard artistry. However that's not the case as the article continues:
Which is not to say that Chen is downplaying the artistic element of his skating. He says he pushed hard to improve that aspect last year, working with noted choreographer Marina Zoueva. "That's something I don't want to put aside," he said. "I want to continue work on that. I think that's a longer process to work on and will gradually mature over time."
Maybe the writer asked Nathan to comment on the opinion that figure skating should weigh more on artistry than athleticism.
http://www.espn.com/olympics/figure...hen-us-national-champion-spun-quad-jumps-gold
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2012
I honestly think the nerves just really got to him. There's so much hype about him and rightfully so, but this is his first senior worlds. The boots are concerning, but they don't seem to be affecting him as badly as I thought they might (just considering the practices - he's been practicing relatively well) - I just think it was nerves. Based on that article and what I've read from his post-SP comments, I think he was hyper focused on landing the two quads that he probably relaxed a bit too much when it came to the 3a. He'll learn from it, he's a smart competitor. Like the poster up there said, it's good to experience this all now as opposed to experiencing it for the first time during the Olympic year. Who knows what'll happen in the FS.
..I just can't believe he has to skate after Hanyu AGAIN!
- Joined
- Feb 13, 2017
His LP is not well choreographed. Don't know if it's the choreographer's fault or a lot of transitions have been eliminated to give way to the quads. He is able to dance beautifully. Just look his performance when he was around 13.
He is ready for all the poohs. Lol
He was nervous today. But He still landed 4lz and 4f. 3a is his worst jump, so that jump got affected the most. The pressure would be less on him in the fs, so I believe he will perform better.
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2012
Yeah, I'm hoping he'll be like, "Well, I've done this before! And every time, I've skated really well, so..." And yeah, he also landed some good 3as prior to the SP in the practice/warm-up so it was totally the nerves.
- Joined
- Apr 4, 2016
I honestly think the nerves just really got to him. There's so much hype about him and rightfully so, but this is his first senior worlds. The boots are concerning, but they don't seem to be affecting him as badly as I thought they might (just considering the practices - he's been practicing relatively well) - I just think it was nerves. Based on that article and what I've read from his post-SP comments, I think he was hyper focused on landing the two quads that he probably relaxed a bit too much when it came to the 3a. He'll learn from it, he's a smart competitor. Like the poster up there said, it's good to experience this all now as opposed to experiencing it for the first time during the Olympic year. Who knows what'll happen in the FS.
..I just can't believe he has to skate after Hanyu AGAIN!
He is being swarmed by the press, there have been story videos posted on instagram all week of it. The hype machine is being worked so hard for him, but he is so young so I wish the press would let up for a bit.
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2012
Yup, me too - it's a lot and very soon. Imagine if he had actually won this competition though.
In the long run, this might be the best thing for his career trajectory.
- Joined
- Apr 4, 2016
Yup, me too - it's a lot and very soon. Imagine if he had actually won this competition though.
That is absolutely true. He doesn't need too much too soon. If he doesn't medal in this competition he still had a great season and set himself up well for the next one.
But even if he didn't medal the US hype machine could push him. Gracie never medaled and the hype machine was crushing her as it pushed her into this idea that she just had to win in Boston. Nathan sees to handle the hype much better which for him he'll need since it's probably going to be crazy next season regardless of what happens here.
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- Joined
- Nov 12, 2012
Yeah, like, I'm super invested in Nathan - I really love his skating and have for a long time and I thought I'd be more upset by him not skating his absolute best (like I said, I get too invested) but I'm actually not too upset about it. I really never thought he would win (especially after I heard about the boot issues)- as Worlds is a very different beast than anything else he's competed at before, I just want him to have skates that he can be proud of. I know he's disappointed about the short but he can still do a good long. I would love it for him if he could medal (and then there's the whole deal about the three spots vs two spots) but I just want him to do his best. All in all, he's had a really great season and like you said, set himself up well for the Olympic year. I was really encouraged by the fact that he fell and still scored close to 100. He's built the reputation. And now he's getting the experience.
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2012
Yeah, you're right - it's not like the Phil Hersh's of the world are going to stop writing about him. Christine Brennan already has an article about saying that "When he wins an olympic medal, you can point to this moment where he learned how to not only deal with success but with failure" or something along those lines - but yeah, I think that Nathan will be able to withstand it. I hope he will anyway, he's too talented!
I don't have an Instagram account, so can you share some of the videos here?
I guess the media pressure not just comes from the US but also from Japan especially after 4CC.
It's good that Nathan experiences this "new" kind of pressure one year before the Olympics since the media
pressure can not be stopped.
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Thanks for the video. Nathan is so cute when he says "I'm a jumper". Stay healthy, Nathan, so you can jump as along as you like.
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2012
So proud of Nathan! He had to skate in an impossible position and in those boots... Did anybody notice after the 4lz fall that he shook his foot like something had definitely happened to the boots? Amazing he was able to keep his composure as much as he did. He's a fighter and this was a super experience for him leading up to the Olympic year. Hopefully he sees it that way too.
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