No Holding Back For Cohen

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Soogar - As I wrote before about being an ardent fan of Sasha is perfectly ok. Being bored with Michelle is perfectly ok. Figure Skating is an extremely subjective sport. I know how bored I get with writers harping on the 3x3s year in and year out, andf it can be frustrating if a fan let's that boredom get to him/her personally.

However, when one gets into writing about the technical and pushing the level of difficulty can only mean extra air turns, or combining jumps. There are no new jumps. There are jumps that for whatever reason are no long used, e.g., the Wally, the inside axel, and the toeless Lutz. If skaters were to execute those jumps with triple air turns, they would be pushing the level of difficiulty/ but not with the standard jumps and combos.

And for me, pushing the Artistry is not a push. It is growing with the artistry through the years, and that comes with age. Irina, for example may not be executing 3x3s as she used to but her level of artistry will not be a problem. And most important, it is the Presentation (artistry) that is the most subjective mark. You are aware of the Baiul/Kerrigan contest. The 5-4 decision was pure subjectivism.

Joe

 

[Nadine]

This Golden Skate Article discusses Sasha Cohen's goals for the World Championships and also her relationship with her new coach, Robin Wagner.

http://www.goldenskate.com/articles/2003/031204.shtml

Thanks for posting the link to the aforementioned article, Dustin!

Hmm, well I think Sasha & Robin are doing the right thing.........working with what Sasha can do..........as she has shown in the past, which is fairly consistent 5/6 triple programs (no 3/3s). I don't think she is ready to move up in terms of difficulty yet. She has to prove that she can do 5/6 triple programs cleanly for at least a year or two before moving up to the next level. JMHO.

Now for a note in general, ALL skaters have different strengths & weaknesses ~ some are powerful jumpers, others excel in the artistry area, and yet some may have the overall package. However, I have yet to see the ONE that can combine both ~ can do 3/3s, 3A, quads, huge jumps, spins on the spot of a dime, fast, athletic, poise, posture, stretch, extension, footwork, difficult entries & exits into jumps, pure lutzer, intricate connecting moves, etc. etc. ~ and can combine all that with equally superb artistry or presentation.

Thus, I think it's best for every skater to do what they can do, as s/he has proven in the past. And let the chips fall where they may. And if that means not upping the technical difficulty, then so be it; same goes for the one that has tried & tried and still hasn't been able to improve on the presentation aspect.

IMHO the one that has the best chance, anyway, is the one that has shown s/he is the overall package. And hope that another overall package skater doesn't outjump him/her. Or that a jumper doesn't suddenly improve on his/her presentation & suddenly becomes the overall package. Or that a skater that is known for his/her artistry doesn't suddenly starting landing 6/7 triple programs consistently. Or that an overall package skater suddenly doesn't give himself/herself an edge by becoming exceptional in a certain area as well (e.g. spins, speed, connecting moves, spirals, difficult entries/exits into jumps, etc.). JMHO.

Peace & Love, Nadine

P.S. I'm pretty sure that ALL the skaters know that the Olympic Year is the year that they'll see skaters going all out in their quest for that elusive twice-a-decade Olympic Gold Medal, and it won't be at Worlds. Thus, their eye is on the big prize down the road, and in the meantime NOT getting injured, just trying to get a spot on the Worlds podium (w/the top spot being an added +). JMHO.

"We do what we have to do, as well as we can, and we don't worry about what we can't do." - M.F. Thomson

GOOD LUCK, SASHA, IN YOUR GOAL OF TRYING TO GET A SPOT ON THE PODIUM (for the 1st time ever)!!! I'll be rooting for you (no lie).

 

[mzheng]

I am no Kwan fan, but even I can admit that Sarah NEEDED a 3/3, or even two 3/3's to beat Kwan if she was "on." There is no denying her talent, no matter how hard we try to make her less of a skater.

That's a sound of reasoning. Here is a cheer for you from a Kwan fan.

 

[BronzeisGolden]

"We do what we have to do, as well as we can, and we don't worry about what we can't do." - M.F. Thomson

That is a wonderful quote and very appropriate for this discussion, Nadine! I'm with you all the way on the 3/3 issue.

 

[hockeyfan228]

Cookie cutter programs, all designed to get a +3 on spins, footwork, nothing with any risk involved and then there will be no movement at all.

There were very few "3"'s given out all year, let alone for spins and footwork. In each competition, there were, per skater/team:

1. 8 elements x 14 marks for SP's (112)
2. 12-14 elements x 14 marks for FS's (168-196)

or

1. 6-8 "quarters" x 14 marks for CD's (84-112) (not GPF)
2. 5 elements x 14 marks for OD's (70)
3. 12 elements x 14 marks for FD's (168)

I found the following 3's:

Skate America:
Ladies SP-Cohen: SpSt2 (4)
Ladies LP-Cohen: SpSt2 (6), CoSp2 (1), LSp2 (1), CoSp2 (1)
Pairs SP-Pet/Tik: 3T's (1), BoDS1 (1). Pang/Tong: 2Tw (2), 3LoTh (2).
Pairs LP-Z/Z: 3Tw (1)
Dance CD-G/G: 1 ea. 2 sections
Dance OD-Del/Sch: MiSt2 (1), OSp (2)
Dance FD-G/G: OL1 (1). Faiella/Scali: RL1 (1)

Total SA: 27

Skate Canada:
Men's SP-Plushenko: SlSt2 (1). Honda: 4T/3T (1), SlSt1 (1). Buttle: CCoSp3 (1)
Men's LP-Buttle: CCoSp3 (1)
Ladies SP-Cohen: SpSt2 (8), CCoSp2 (2).
Ladies LP-Cohen: CCoSp2 (1), FCoSp2 (2), SpSt2 (8). Arakawa: CoCoSp2 (1), 3Z/3T (1).
Pairs SP-Shen/Zhao: 3LoTh (4)
Dance OD-N/K: OL2 (1)

Total SC: 31

Cup of China:
Men's SP-Gao: 4T/3T (1)
Men's FS-Klimkin: USp2 (1). Li-4T/3T (2). Gao: 4T3T (1)
Pairs SP-Pet/Tik: BoDs1 (1). Shen/Zhao: 3LoTh (4).
Pairs FS-S/Z: 2A/3T Seq (2), 3STh (4)
Dance CD-N/K: 1 element 1 section (1). G/G: 1 element 1 section.

Total CC: 16

Trophee Lalique:
Men's FS-Plushenko: CiSt1 (1)
Ladies SP-Cohen: LSp2 (1), CCoSp2 (1), SpSt3 (6).
Ladies FS-Cohen: SpSt2 (6), CoSp2 (2), CCoSp2 (5)
Dance OD-B/A: OSp3 (1). Del/Sch: MiSt2 (2). D/L: OL2 (2), OL3 (2).
Dance FD-Den/Sta: RL3 (1), OL3 (2), SL2 (2). D/L: OL3 (1), OL3 (1), SL3 (2), RL3 (2), OL 3 (2). Del/Sch: SL3 (1), OL3 (3). B/A: OSp2 (1), OL3 (1). Kulikova/Markov: SL3 (1). Fraser/Lukanin: SL3 (1)

Total TL: 50, mostly in Dance

Cup of Russia:
Men's SP-Lambiel: CCoSp2 (3)
Pairs SP-Pang/Tong: 2Tw (1), 3LTh (4). Z/Z: 4Li2 (2), 3T's (2).
Pairs FS-Z/Z: 3Tw (6). Bor/Chu: 3LoTh (1), 3STh (1), 2Li2 (1), SpSt1 (1), FiDS3 (1) (All from same judge).
Dance CD-N/K: 1 element 1 section. W/L: 2 elements 1 section.
Dance OD-N/K: MiSt3 (1), OL3 (2), OSp3 (3), DiSt1 (2), OL2 (3). W/L: OSp3 (1). C/S: OL2 (1), DiSt2 (1). B/A: DiSt2 (2), OSp2 (2), MiSt2(3). Petitin/Jost: OL2 (1). W/L: DiSt1 (1), OL2 (2), OL2 (1).
Dance FD-N/K: OL3 (1), SL3 (3), OL2 (2), CiSt1(2), RL3 (3), OT3 (2), SlSt2 (2), OL3 (3). B/A: OSp1 (1), SlSt1 (2). C/S: OL2 (1), OL3 (1), RL2 (2).

Total CR: 75, mostly in Dance

NHK:
Pairs SP-Z/S: 4Li3 (1)
Dance CD-Den/Sta: 1 element. G/G: 1 element.

Total NHK: 3

GPF:
Mens FS-Sandhu: CCoSp3 (1)
Ladies SP-Cohen: CCoSp2 (1), SpSt2 (7)
Ladies FS-Cohen: CCoSp2 (1), SpSt2 (6)
Pairs SP-S/Z: CCoSp1 (1), 3LoTh (7).
Pairs FS-S/A: 3STh (6), 3LoTh (3). Z/Z: 3Tw (2). L/A: 3STh (1).
Dance OD-N/K: OSp1 (1), MiSt3 (2), OL2 (3). B/A: DiSt2 (1).
Dance FD-N/K: ST3 (1), CiSt1 (1), OL3 (1), OL2 (1). Den/Sta: OL3 (1), SSp3 (1), CiSt1 (1), RL3 (1). B/A: SlSt1 (1).

Total GPF: 52

----------------------

I may have missed a few, but not that many. There just weren't many 3's awarded in the first GPF season. (And outside of dance, there were very few level 3 elements.) Many were one-offs, and at least half were out of range with the rest of the panel. (Not that I think that is always bad.)

In singles:

Cohen got rewarded consistently for her spiral sequence and combo spin -- 2 elements out eight or 14.
Plushenko got a few for footwork; Honda and Abt each got one.
Buttle, Sandhu, Lambiel, and Klimkin earned a few for spins.
Gao and Honda earned one each for a 4T/3T. Li earned two for a 4T/3T. Arakawa's 3L/3T got the only 3 for a Ladies' jump.

In pairs:

Shen/Zhao's throws got the most 3's, but they also got one for a spin. Zhang/Zhang's twists got a few. Z/S earned one for a lift.

Almost all of the technical elements that received 3's were early in the program. Notable were the 3 given to S/Z's 3STh in the GPF LP, which was their 10th element.

Looking at the scores for spins and spirals in singles are a rash of -1 to 1's. Not all that many 2's, and, except for Cohen, a dearth of 3's. I don't think this is a good thing, because there were some very fine spins this season that weren't rewarded. While quality skating can be rewarded in the Program Elements, unless really fine elements are given their due, what's the incentive to do really good, creative ones? Why should a Sokolova care if at the end of her unstretched leg in a camel spin is her foot, hanging like a gym bag, or if she travels?

I think one way CoP should be tweaked in general is to have closer to exponential rewards and penalties at the end of the scales, so that going from a 0 to a 1 is less than going from a 1 to a 2. Earning a 3 should be a greater reward than going from a 1 to a 2. The way CoP is written, the requirements are more difficult, the farther the score is from base. (Even if the differences are incremental, it is more difficult to achieve that last bit of excellence.) Same going in the other direction. The bigger the risk, the bigger the up or downside.

As far as cookie-cutter programs, maximum elements are not new to CoP; CoP limits the number of combinations and sequences further than OBO, but that change could have been independent of CoP. I would be happy dying of the boredom of seeing program after program with the creative spins, footwork, and spirals that Cohen, Lambiel, Buttle, Klimkin, Plushenko, and Sandhu bring to their programs, because everyone and his mother is trying to maximize the jump count anyway, CoP or no CoP.

 

[Rgirl]

Nadine--LOVED your entire post.

HockeyFan--Ah, my beloved keeper of the facts. Thanks for taking the time to present the way skaters were actually scored and for what during the GP series. We can all remember a one- or two-time error or our general subjective feelings about skaters' performances, but I personally love seeing trends in numbers, which is part of why I like the COP, even though I will add the obligatory "of course it needs tweaking," which it does.

Anyway, speaking of consistency and Cohen, on another thread someone said they heard that the reason Cohen's mother took her out of gymnastics was because Sasha couldn't maintain her concentration on the beam and her mother was afraid she would fall and be seriously injured. The story I've heard most was that Mom Cohen was worried about the injury rates in general in gymnastics, it now being a much different sport than when she competed, and that Sasha tried figure skating (lots of stories on how this happened), liked it, was good at it, hence the decision to go with figure skating.

The first story about Sasha not paying attention on the beam sounds a bit like hindsight urban legend, ie, Sasha has trouble with consistency in skating, somebody writes a post somewhere saying something like, "I wonder if Sasha had problems concentrating in gymnastics?" and next thing you know... I'm not saying this is the case, but we've all seen how questions or speculation have a way of turning into "fact."

Whatever the case, the facts are--at least as reported by Sasha's camp and the media--that Sasha skated while sick during her disastrous performance at the cheesefest the week before GPF; was still recovering at GPF; and had shingles at Nationals. No excuses--some skaters have had great skates while so sick they went running off the ice to puke--but still a factor. And as Mathman said, Tarasova was great at milking the COP for every extra tenth; however, it also meant that she kept changing Sasha's short and long programs for ever GP event, which means reinventing the motor program for certain sequences sometimes every week or ever other week. Again, not an excuse--some skaters handle changes just fine--but again, something to consider.

Still, I do wonder if Sasha has something akin to dyslexia but in a kinesthetic way. In other words, that her consistency problems are not a matter of concentration or mental toughness just as it's not a matter of effort, concentration, or IQ for someone who has difficulty reading or doing math because of dyslexia. I know I've seen "motor learning disorders" for lack of a better term in dancers. You'll get magnificent technicians, dedicated, concentrated, intelligent individuals who otherwise "have it all" but who have any one of a myriad of problems learning choreography, remembering it on stage, maintaining an adequate level of performance, or you name it.

Anyway, just so this isn't misinterpreted, I'M JUST WONDERING OUT LOUD, I'm not saying Sasha has any such problem because I don't know. It just seems like the "she needs to think about every element and not winning" is too pat--might have been accurate a couple of years ago, but not since she changed to TAT--as do explanations such as "she needs to keep her head on," "she loses concentration," or "she's not mentally tough." I would, however, be curious to see how Sasha would do if tested by a sports psychologist with expertise in this area. JMHO

I'd also be curious to see skaters with superb consistency, such as Michelle and Brian Boitano, undergo the same testing, just out of scientific curiousity to see if they do score "off the charts" so to speak in certain areas of motor control. After all, the big change in Martina Navratilova's tennis playing came when she embraced all that sports science had to offer at that time. Not that it's right for everyone, but the expertise is there and I wish more skaters with consistent problems would at least give it a try.
Rgirl

 

[antmanb]

I remember Sasha's skate at the Olympics, she didn't land her 3-3 cleanly at all but on the 3 toe, whatever 2 foot/stumble was not nearly as bad as the way Michelle wiped out on her jump in her program.

I think you're having a bout of selective memory ;-)

Sasha, IIRC, landed the triple lutz clean and on one foot but scrathcy and too far forward, she'd probably have done better to leave that as the solo triple lutz and put the combination in later, or at least go for double since the landing on the lutz wasn't great, she went for the triple toe landed half a rotation short with her feet crossed and sat down on the landing at a complete standstill, it took her a second to get her feet uncrossed and get up and continue with the program.

I think that's combarable to the fall that Kwan had on the triple flip since it was a similar sit down fall.

A fall is a fall is fall!

Ant

 

[antmanb]

I respect athletic achievement and the girls need to push the envelope. I think that it's kind of pitiful that ever since 1991, the winning short program always has a 3lutz/2toe combination. I mean , come on girls, try a different combination and put a triple as the second jump.

I don't think its pitiful i think its very ignorant if someone doesn't realise the immense physical feat it is to perform any triple jump let alone one as hard as the lutz, and then add a double toe on the end?

If you follow your theory to its natural conclusion then every few years somebody has to be landing something harder - what happens if the ladies have hit their peak in terms of jump content (the only thing you seem to be focussing on), with only the odd skater every few years trying a triple axel or a quad? Or what happens if the women all do up the ante and land triple axels and quads, will you find it pitiful after a few years that they're not tyring quad/quad combos and not trying quints?

If you are only looking at jumps and how many revolutions they are in the air then i don't think you'll be skating fan for much longer...i can't see the men doing every type of quad jump in an LP any time soon. Training quads enough to get one in the short and one or two in the long are giving skaters crippling injuries - while you might not care about the skaters enough to worry about their injuries or worry about a junior skater pushing themselves so hard to get the jumps that by the time they hit their 30s they'll be in wheelchairs, but thankfully most people do.

Ant

 

[swannanoa54]

From what little I've seen on the USFA board, it seems that the fans of one skater loathe the other. You'd never guess from some of those posts that they were supposed to be fans of figure skating as well as fans of a figure skater. (Just my opinion)

Wow, thought this thread was about Sasha and the article. Then I read the above comment about the USFSA board. Utterly untrue. There are two posters over there who are very adamant in their dislike of Sasha's skating and, quite frankly, have been called on the carpet for their negativity. If you only pick and choose certain threads, you will see that.

Then I start reading posts from "sooger". Most of his/hers are concerned over Kwan instead of Cohen. Goodness!

First of all, I don't think Kwan OR Cohen will need a 3/3 to win Worlds. I think both of them will be on the podium whether Kwan then Cohen or vice versa I don't care. They are both the epitome of ladies figure skating at this time. I post at the USFSA board and I am a figure skating fan. I have a favorite, but I cheer all the skaters on because they all work hard to get where they are. Others don't feel like that. They denigrate one skater to hold up their favorite. Usually this only happens in two fan camps. I won't name them.

I think Robin is good for Sasha. Time will tell. However I recently read an article or a post somewhere about flexibility. It was about being too flexible can mess up the landing on your jumps. Some ballerinas were able to be extremely flexible but it would mess up other parts of their dancing. When I see Sasha first raise her leg on her spiral, it isn't that high. But if you watch her hips, she will push it higher. I sometimes wonder if that increased extension isn't damaging to the landing on her jumps sometimes. If I can find where I read this, I will post a link.

I think Cohen, Kirk, Kwan and others have something to offer all of us. A chance to watch some beautiful young women skate. I am amazed that a discussion of 3/3s is so prevalent right before Worlds every year. Kwan has pulled them out when she's needed them the most. So she doesn't have an Olympic gold medal, sooger. She's got a silver and bronze and that ain't whistling Dixie, ya know what I mean? Probably not since so many people focus more on OGM than on the other TWO winners at the Olympics.

Oh well, my thoughts.

 

[chuckm]

BravesSkateFan:

Actually she fell out of the spin because her edge hit a rut in the ice. She stated this herself in the interview after her skate. It could have easily happened to any skater.

Sasha always has an excuse at the ready when something goes wrong. It was the ice at Worlds '03. It was the ice at the Winter Cheesefest. It was the shingles at Nationals.

But Sasha had fallen in a similar way mid-spin earlier in the 2002-2003 season, at Campbell's, so the collapse on the spin at '03 Worlds was not an isolated incident. In any case, she didn't just blame the fall on the SPIN on a rut in the ice---she blamed BOTH of her mistakes on the ice: the fall on the spin AND the fall on the 3T.

Funny though: Elena Sokolova and Michelle Kwan skated on the same ice and didn't fall.

 

[bronxgirl]

to realistic 51

I have read many threads on the USFSA board (both old and new) and chose to join Golden Skate because the level of discussion was far more civilized. As the old saying goes, it just takes one bad apple, and the other board seemed to have rotten apples mixed in among the Sasha and Michelle fans

 

[swannanoa54]

bronxgrl, Every board has a bad apples. Sometimes they have two or three even. They are posters who tear down another skater or just plain have nothing nice to say about their fav skater's competition. It happens.

I've been at USFSA for a long time. And at several other boards throughout the 'net. I like them all for different reasons.

If you are going to let "bad apples" chase you away, that's your choice. I prefer to stand and fight for a more positive atmosphere, ie emailing the admin etc., when things get out of hand. Sometimes I just choose not to respond to them.

This board is always pretty good, but I've seen some bad things on it as well. Like I said, there's always a few bad apples on every board.

 

[BravesSkateFan]

Sasha always has an excuse at the ready when something goes wrong. It was the ice at Worlds '03. It was the ice at the Winter Cheesefest. It was the shingles at Nationals.

Chuck...I wasn't defending Sasha. I was just stating that the reason she fell wasn't because she was pushing her edges and extension. As for the whole excuse thing...I could go into a whole other thread about that, but I really don't feel like starting another debate right now, so I'll leave it. alon.

 

[Matt]

Ando's quad link

Hey,

I'm not going to get involved in the whole "whether or not Kwan or Cohen should do the 3/3" debate, because as far as I'm concerned, the arguement is pointless. Whoever skates the cleanest, landing all of their jumps and displaying good choreography and interpretation (subjective it may be), will win in Dortmund. Period.

I'm posting because somebody (soogar, IIRC) asked about an online video link to Ando's quad. The only one I have found is at www.cruelladekwan.com. Once there, click on Other Skaters and scroll down to Miki Ando.

 

[peachstatesk8er]

((shakes head)) .....I never fail to be amazed at the lengths some people will go to to slam a skater. It's absolutely amazing. Now Sasha is dyslexic. MmmmHmmmm. What's next? :\ No one ever questions the problems AP has or why Jenny has failed to be atop podiums at Nats or Worlds. They're all the same age, or close to it. Funny that the most consistent one, the one who has done really, really well (IMO anyway) in her Senior career is the one who gets endlessly picked apart while the skaters who really do have some serious work ahead of them are praised to the ends of the earth.

People elsewhere tout this board as being sane and reasonable, but I think GS is becoming as much of a cesspool as some skater-specific boards.

 

[soogar]

Thank you Matt. Excellent site.

 

[Mathman]

Hi Realistic, I'm glad to see you posting here again (even if it took a contentious thread like this one to lure you back, LOL.)

Peachstate, I absolutely agree about the head shaking. Why would anyone want to post hateful things about any skater?

But I am sure that Rgirl's hypothesized phenomenon, for which she coined the name "kinesthetic dyslexia," is not intended as a bash of Sasha or anyone else. How "muscle memory" forms in the brain and nervous system is an interesting subject for research.

In my opinion, the main thing that separates world class athletes, like Sasha and Michelle, like Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan, from the rest of us is that they can handle the nervous energy and the "flight or fight" adrenalin rush that accompanies top level competition in any endeavor. In a situation where the average person would collapse in a bundle of nerves, athletes at this level can somehow harness all that potential energy and make it work for them instead of against them.

I saw the International Skating Challenge in December. Michelle completed her first jump, and then fell on her second. After that she settled down and skated a safe and conservative performance taking into account the somewhat adverse ice conditions. Afterwards she said that she was nervous about the program because she hadn't skated in such a long time, so when she hit her first jump it gave her such a "high" that she wasn't able to get herself "down" to the emotional-neurological-physical place where she needed to be to do the second jump.

I think this happens to Sasha sometimes, too. Managing the highs and lows of a four-minute performance is a formidable task. At Nationals Sasha came out and hit three triple-double combos, then stumbled on her triple-toe. She said afterward than she was a little bit tired at that point (IMO she meant emotionally tired, in the sense of having come too far down after the adrenalin highs of the first minute and a half), and that "my arms and legs were not working together." To me, this is a sign of momentary emotional fatigue.

Mathman

 

[euterpe]

I think there is such a thing as kinesthetic 'dyslexia'.

I have experienced it myself more than once. I used to do lots of musical theater, and am just fine as a singer and actor, but I always had a huge problem with dance routines. I had a good sense of rhythm, and looked just fine DOING the dance, it isn't that I couldn't do the movements, I just couldn't REMEMBER them. I simply couldn't remember which step came next, or where my arms should be in relation to my feet. I could memorize words to songs and pages and pages of dialogue in a snap, but to remember the steps of a dance? The only way I could get through a show was to practice each dance over and over every chance I could, with someone who knew the steps well. And I made lots of mistakes.

I think Sasha may have a problem similar to mine, except in a much smaller way, of course. What hasn't helped her is the constant tweaking of her FS. She hasn't skated the same FS from one competition to the next from the beginning of the season. And from what I understand, the program is STILL being tweaked. I think her 'muscle memory' is good for just so long, and then comes the disconnect, and that's where the mistakes come in--about 2/3s through the program.

 

[hockeyfan228]

As an FYI the note about Cohen's mother pulling her away from gymnastics because of concentration problems, and fear that she was risking injury on the beam as a result was actually a quote by Cohen or her mother in a cover story a few months ago in Blades on Ice. (Both were quoted in the extensive article, but I don't have the magazine with me to verify who said what). I believe a less detailed version was published in one of the most recent IFS issues as well.

I remember deciding not to post about it, because Cohen is such a lightning rod, and I didn't want it to turn into a "there she goes again with the excuses" thread, when that wasn't the point.

 

[soogar]

I posted that on the toe point thread but others didn't believe that was why she left gymnastics. I'm not sure about being dyslexic as much as she really does lose her concentration and makes a lot of errors that you don't normally see top level skaters make. Her mom was right to pull her out of gymnastics b/c you can't lose your concentration on the beam like that. However she has skated relatively clean programs before with an error on a jump and not much else so I'm not sure if it's a medical problem or mere getting ahead of herself.