- Joined
- Feb 26, 2014
Today should be SD day. If dancers skated both SD and FD, maybe they completed tests.
I think Elena said "they are done for today"? So, I presume they have not finished.
Russian Test Skates 2014
- Thread starter Sam-Skwantch
- Start date
I think Elena said "they are done for today"? So, I presume they have not finished.
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2014
No, in the car selfie, she said "Done," period. Tiffany also on her instagram said they're back training tomorrow.
- Joined
- Feb 13, 2014
So they finish both SD and FD free skate?
- Joined
- Sep 10, 2012
Thank you, I tried to use Google Translator but it didn't really work out, the second half of the interview made no sense at all... Can anyone translate it (at least partially, only the most interesting things)?
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2014
The theme of their program is Rodin statues. They didn't travel for training camps and trained in Moscow instead. Ksenia had a mild strain so they didn't do lifts in the test skates. They work with an acrobat specialist Dmitri Ionov (Ionov's twin brother, Denis, is the Kustarova group acrobatic specialist). Specialists and judges have been visiting them throughout the summer to give feedback.
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2014
Olga Ermolina wrote on FSO that she likes Bobrova and Soloviev's short dance and that the most solid and interesting free dances were from Kosygina and Moroshkin and Stepanova and Bukin. I'm thinking Stepanova and Bukin are in for a breakthrough season. ETA, she says that she wasnt paying attention to the technique of IZ but that as far as presentation goes, Elena is pulling double duty at the moment. She also said, that they need about two more weeks to fine tune the programs and it will look much better.
In Vaitsekhovskaya's latest blog post, she hints that IZ still have some work to do so they won't be doing any B competitions before China.
http://www.liveinternet.ru/users/vellena/post335191820/
In Vaitsekhovskaya's latest blog post, she hints that IZ still have some work to do so they won't be doing any B competitions before China.
http://www.liveinternet.ru/users/vellena/post335191820/
- Joined
- Jun 14, 2014
Thank you so much!
So no news about Nikita and Victoria. ... do we know if they even attended in the end?
So no news about Nikita and Victoria. ... do we know if they even attended in the end?
http://www.katok.ru/flirt/ (Russian)
06 September at Katok.Ru (near Moscow) will be open test skate. Starts at 15:00 Moscow time.
Who will participate - will be known soon.
06 September at Katok.Ru (near Moscow) will be open test skate. Starts at 15:00 Moscow time.
Who will participate - will be known soon.
- Joined
- Feb 9, 2009
I agree. I am really excited about them and I tend to forget they have only been together for a few months. They seem to get along well but I think it will take time for them to develop as skaters together. I hope they kill it his season.
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2014
True. That's why I wanted to know more about their technique, but she says that she wasnt paying attention to that.
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2014
Interview with Gachinsky: http://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/index.php?threads/gachinski-i-turned-inside-out.93028/
Extract:
Extract:
Olga Ermolina looks to be the only insider who talks about Closed Test Skate with people knowing her name openly. All other people looks to be afraid to talk openly at Forum boards what they saw on the ice (when they talked last years, they had BIG problems with Federation who wanted full embargo at any info from closed tests). So Ermolina is free to talk, that’s great, at least somebody.
But I don’t know what to think, frankly. This gives no precise info.
She wrote that Single skaters impressed her more than dancers – OK.
Ermolina also wrote, that personally she liked Bobrova & Soloviev’s SD, but she continued that it was because they looked beautifully – did she mean like a couple?, like people?, or in Carmen character?, in choreo? To say that a couple looks beautiful, we can imagine everything.
She noticed that she doesn’t look at technique (she noticed it talking about I&Z), but she liked Kosigina & Moroshkin and Stepanova & Bukin’s programs – she wrote what their programs are the most compact and interesting. How to judge a program without mentioning technique – it is fan’s job, but if somebody wants to judge a quality of programs from figure skating point of view – both technique and presentation must be included.
I also heard that some dancers skated only maquettes of programs – not with all elements (for example lifts) – it is like a ballet dancer dancing a part of Swan Lake for 4 minute and during that time run away from stage for three times to correct a make-up – if you don’t skate a program with full content, and instead of lifts or twizzles just stay on both feet and wait for 6 or 10 seconds – the program losts its compact image, so it is almost impossible to judge how it really looks like. But maybe most of skaters skated programs with full content – probably those ex-junior couples mentioned above. Overall I am very curious to see an improvement from both ex-junior teams K&M and S&B – they really need a fantastic programs to be included in Russsian Nationals medal contenders.
Ermolina’s notice about Lena and Ruslan warns me. Ermolina writes that she doesn’t look at technique, but she has the feeling that Lena makes presentation for both of them…Ruslan was a very passionate and expressive dancer last season, now it is said that he looks pale beside Lena. This is not good. I know that Navka and Kostomarov are Olympic Gold Medalists and Fusar-Poli & Margaglio are World Champions, but it doesn’t look well if one of partners looses so much in comparison with his/her second half. Great couple should fit each other and partners should be plus/minus equal in skating and presentation. If Ruslan is not able to keep a level with Lena’s open star presentation and is really so pale that Lena must do all work herself like Ermolina writes, than it is also quite understable that Zueva didn’t come at Closed Test Skate. During whole skating career of Sinitsina & Zhiganshin - Ruslan was always the leader, the more expressive one, that one who took the audience’s attention. How Zueva wants to explain that Nikita and Vika are great and an expressive couple (like she already told in the press) when Vika is much less expressive than Ruslan, who looks to be much less expressive than Lena?
Looking at Lena’s photos from last night, Ruslan looks visibly happy and in great mood…is he really so happy to be Lena’s shadow, does he know? He never looked to play an off ice games and smile when situation is really “pale” for him. The same for Kustarova & Alexeeva & Riabinina – why they look happy? During whole Test Skate Russian Fed + technical specialists say their opinions and advises, having really some serious problem, would they be so happy?
Ermolina wrote that hopefully Lena & Ruslan will learn everything in months and half (for Grand Prix) and everything will be all right.
This all makes me even more curious to see Open Test Skate and make some own opinions about couples.
If Ermolina was free to write her opinions and nobody from Russian Fed is not against, I am dissapointed that she didn’t mention all couples – also Monko & Khaliavin, Zahorski & Guerreiro.
Some pictures from Test Skate:
Bobrova & Soloviev:
Monko & Khaliavin:
Lena’s picture from instagram:
Eleanor's Rigby from Beatles (I am not sure with an arrangement).
- Joined
- Jun 14, 2014
@sisinka
You're right about the thing that Ruslan might look pale on Elena's side.
But- who wouldn't?
Now, I'm just saying that Elena is such a performer, so much facial expression and flirting with the audience and so on, that Nikita, to me, also looked a bit "pale" next to her.
Which wasn't a bad thing! As long as it doesn't become to much, it's normal that there is a let's say "more dominant" partner.
With Trankov/Volosozhar it's Maxim for example
With Klimov/Stolbova It's Ksenia.
So as long as it doesn't become too much, it's actually sth that can work well IMO
You're right about the thing that Ruslan might look pale on Elena's side.
But- who wouldn't?
Now, I'm just saying that Elena is such a performer, so much facial expression and flirting with the audience and so on, that Nikita, to me, also looked a bit "pale" next to her.
Which wasn't a bad thing! As long as it doesn't become to much, it's normal that there is a let's say "more dominant" partner.
With Trankov/Volosozhar it's Maxim for example
With Klimov/Stolbova It's Ksenia.
So as long as it doesn't become too much, it's actually sth that can work well IMO
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2014
Ermolina is a journalist of Russian Fed, if I'm not mistaken?
I was disappointed with her comment about not paying attention to the technique.
What the hell are you paying attention to? Just how people look?
Or, could be that she knows nothing about technique in dance?
As for Ruslan looking pale, I guess we have to wait and see for ourselves.
I also do agree with starlight. With many top couples you have a partner more dominant than the other.
As long as it doesn't become too much, I don't see a huge problem.
Margaglio was too much, for example, because he was weak as a skater in all aspects. Technically as well as artistry, and Barbara was a bit too much aggressive.
I don't think Ruslan is a Margaglio.
She is not an insider. She is press secretary of RusFed.
So it is not an inside, rather official position of Federation.
Official info about Open Test Skate http://fsrussia.ru/news/191-figuristy-sbornoj-rossii-pokazhut-novye-programmy.html
06 Sep - Katok.ru.
07 Sep - UOR-4, ice rink "Mechta" (name of ice rink means "Dream").
Both at 15:00 Moscow time.
List of skaters will be soon.
06 Sep - Katok.ru.
07 Sep - UOR-4, ice rink "Mechta" (name of ice rink means "Dream").
Both at 15:00 Moscow time.
List of skaters will be soon.
I understand Vaitsekhovskaya’s article in completely different way…
First she describes that she must choose only some events to visit, she says that Figure skating looks to be more interesting than Biathlon this year. She decides to visit Cup of China – because there will be Lipnitskaya, Tukhtamysheva, Kovtun, Ilinykh & Zhiganshin and Bazarova & Deputat. Then Vaitsekhovskaya continues saying that SHE (Vaitsekhovakya) SUPPOSES that it will be I&Z first event. She explains it with words that they don’t have time to compete at B-competitions, because they need to work on technique and competitions mean a loss of training time.
Vaitsekhovaskaya continues writing that she thinks that this differentiate Bobrova & Soloviev from I&Z and S&K. The journalist is not afraid about Katya and Dima - all people who saw their programs likes it. (Vaitsekhovskaya also notices that those programs were done without lifts.)
She thinks for sure that Katya & Dima will skate at some B-competitions. But once again she doesn’t believe that Lena & Ruslan or Vika & Nikita will skate at B-events, because they can’t loose training time. But she immediatelly notices that Zueva loves to take her couples at some event before Grand Prix. And then Vaitsekhovaskaya admits herself that she may be wrong with her predictions. But if not… she continues with assumptions – she thinks that I&Z have an advantage having first Grand Prix sooner than S&K, because in moment when both couples meet at Cup of Russia, it will be I&Z second Grand Prix event, so they can feel more comfortable.
So that is Vatsekhovskaya, a well-known journalist…
...From my notes…I completely don’t agree with having no international pre-Grand Prix competitions. Like many people mentions dancers needs to get used to each other, to get synchro, to feel like one unit. Yes. But they also need to get used to each other during competition. Every skater has a different reactions during stress situation and that is something what your partner needs to know about you as well. Nobody is skating the same way at practise and competitions (Nikita and Lena can tell a stories about that, their last season press conferences were very often like: “We never done it before at practises and then at competitions suddenly…“) Lena and Nikita were criticised a lot last seasons for low results and form in opening competitions – there were falls, low levels, many and many small mistakes – Morozov was criticised for not preparing them well for Grand Prix and one of key points were no or almost no competitive experiences before Grand Prix.
While American and Canadian skaters are able to skate full programs at competitions in August, Russian couples are making maquettes in September and are making many mistakes at Grand Prix circuit.
All programs need to be skated publicly more times to get the image which it should have from presentation point of view. So if new couples who don’t know each other needs something before big and prestigious Grand Prix events – than it is definitely a competive experiences. If not…they hazard with their Grand Prix results this year.
It is not nice memory but I would like to bring back some “top moments“ from last season Grand Prix for Russian skaters, because it fully supports my idea about the importance of B-competitons skated like a preparation for Grand Prix…
Althought I can’t speak for sure about Riazanova & Tkachenko‘s two 4th places in Canada and Russia – maybe they really wouldn’t skate much better having some full B-competitions before, but there are other examples much suitable…
Bobrova & Soloviev skated only one unknown International competition in Minsk before Grand Prix and they fell into Grand Prix competely unready with mistakes and two falls at Cup od Russia and Grand Prix Final (also they were not able to skate full programs publicly in the middle of August, only maquettes). Yes, Dima was injured and they had to change SD and music for FD – which all leaded to late preparation for top competitions and almost no competive experience before Grand Prix…
Sinitsina & Zhiganshin also skated in Minsk only and their Grand Prix in Japan finished like a disasters when Vika fell in opening steps in Finnstep which caused a loss of whole Finnstep sequence, and the couple made more mistakes and finished millions of points behind expectations…
Stepanova & Bukin who didn’t feel any need to come at International competitions before Grand Prix came at Skate Canada and executed a very dangerously looking fall in front of judges during their opening lift in FD. And SD looked more like a run for points than anything what would be similar to dancing…they finished last.
Ilinykh & Katsalapov also didn’t need to prepare for season at International competition and their low points because of lost levels were the most shocking Russian news after Victoria’s fall in SD during NHK Trophy (like Nikita told to the press – they didn‘t remember such low points for years). Althought TEB looked to correct the image of the couple, FD at Russian Nationals and European Championships once again pointed that competive experience and stressful athmosphere is hunting the couple like never before….
For me, if the couple wants to get rid of such disasters caused by stress (because all those couples swore on their lifes that such mistakes never ever happened at practise), the key is the only one….compete and compete to learn how to keep control your head and body!
More training time (from 3 to 5 hours a day on the ice versus 30 to 45 minutes at competitons once or twice a day for about 4 days plus travelling) is for nothing if you loose your skating skills entering the ice at Grand Prix thanks to uncontrolled stress.
