Sasha's comeback attempt.

[Layfan]

She is not a CoP skater. Spirals and I spins were a hoot from 2002-2006, but the ladies of today do the same flexible positions and more. The Ladies of today have joined the Men in skating for the POINTS. Sasha did her 2004 content-of-program competition that was just plain dated.

It was nice to see her again, and she will always be remembered for skating the most stunning Short Programs in her competitive career.

Sasha did extremely well under CoP.

 

[Bennett]

In terms of the media coverage, I have mixed feelings. Core skating fans kind of knew that her chance to make the Olympic team virtually diminished many months ago. Sasha herself would have known it. But all the media coverage was like Sasha Cohen Returns Ready for Winter Olympics 2010, which was like a big show of which storyline we already knew. Those articles have sounded so dramatic and she needed to do those interviews wanting to hear how excited she was about her Olympic dreams. And what happened happened and skating fans are appreciative of her courage to actually showed up and skated despite what was expected. It was really good for her to show up. But her attendance gave a little different impression from Fumie's attendance at her Nationals.

Had Sasha attended GP series, the media had not hyped her as much as they had, which might have made her life easier in a sense that she did not need to deal with the gap between where she actually was and what was expected by the media. But the gap was so wide that there was some uneasiness about the unrealistic story that the media was trying to hype.

 

[MKFSfan]

I just have a hard time believing Sasha would've done this comeback if she didn't think she had a chance. She stated recently she watched the GPs and felt she stacked up well. She seemed confident she was ready and would do the best she could. I really couldn't read her expressions during the LP, but at times she seemed tight and worried, and then she just seemed...resigned. She didn't have that deer in the headlights look pre-LP, but she certainly did not look as confident as she has looked pre-SP. I think she just took it all in, enjoyed the attention and knew she wasn't going to deliver a strong LP. What I'd love to know is why she couldn't at least start strong as she did in her SP, was she that nervous and tentative, or was it just a bad skate from start to finish?

Sasha has never been one to wear her sadness on her sleeves, she doesn't cry to the media and crowd, so I really didn't think her reaction post LP was unexpected. She said all the right things-no regrets, wouldn't do over-but I'm sure she'd do this whole comeback differently in hindsight.

So, I do think she fell short of her goal, but I hardly think she was a failure. If she had a hand in increasing excitement at Nationals, that is a win for NBC and their constant coverage of Sasha. If her anticipated return pushed the top 3 to try harder, that is a win for US Ladies. If she really did enjoy the attention as she said, that is a win for her.

But her appearance gave a little different impression from Fumie at her Nationals.

Of course. While Fumie is like a Kwan icon in Japan, she has been in the public eye competing and struggling this past quad with coaching changes, injuries and the younger generation overtaking her. The difference is Fumie had her swan song last year by winning the LP over Mao, making it to Worlds over Yukari and doing respectfully. I wish either she would've retired after Worlds, or that 2009 Nationals was really 2010 Nationals for her.

 

[Bennett]

I just have a hard time believing Sasha would've done this comeback if she didn't think she had a chance. She stated recently she watched the GPs and felt she stacked up well. She seemed confident she was ready and would do the best she could.

Well, what else could she have said? She is an athlete.

At the same time, having prepared for many months, missed GP series due to injuries, all the media coverage, sponsors, and fans, she would have wanted to at least show up and skate regardless of her chances to make the team.

 

[Tinymavy15]

To me, Sasha looked prett relaxed before the freeskate, but I guess it was just a facade. Instead of coming to life when the music started as she did with the short, she seemed to fall apart. I understand that her lack of training prevented sucess with the latter jumps but her first 2 passes were not clean. She looked VERY wobbly, she leg was even unsteady on the spiral. I guess she was terrified, but kept her poker face on.

 

[Sasha'sSpins]

This may seem obvious and not be even worth saying, but I feel saddened by Sasha's failed comeback attempt.

I think this is definitely an opportunity missed: while her training certainly helped her regain her form to a certain extent, her preparation level was below what was needed to mount a serious challenge. Basically, I think she has miscalculated the amount of time it would take to really become competitive at the national level. That's very sad because it is obvious she put in serious effort that has gotten her far. All that effort was wasted by poor planning. She needed to start the serious training about eight months earlier than she did. Ironically, this is what has always frustrated me about Sasha: she seemed like a hard worker, and yet her preparation efforts were not optimized to ensure success.

Wasted? I'm sorry but I don't consider Sasha's comeback 'attempt' a failure. She came back, she competed, she won the pewter medal at Nationals a huge accomplishment for someone who did not compete in an eligible format for FOUR YEARS, and she has been named 2nd Alternate to the Olympic and Worlds Team-a huge honor.

Brava Sasha!

It was a joy for me to see Sasha compete again-if Michelle were to come back and compete again also I would die happy. Her making the Olympic Team was a longshot and everyone knew it. Even if she had nailed both the SP and LP she likely would have finished no higher than third. Rachael and Mirai were clearly the top two skaters, the class of the field as far as overall performance. I would have preferred Ashley over Rachael but she made a costly mistake in the SP. Rachael made no glaring errors. She and Mirai were the most consistent and athletically they are visibly superior in the jumps than Sasha-this is a sport and it's a new generation. The age of triple axels in the SP and triple-triples has arrived in women's skating. I believe the medallists at Vancouver are the ones who go for a triple-triple in the SP and Sasha never got consistent with those. Never. I think she nailed maybe one or two in her entire competitive career. Major KUDOS to Sasha for attempting them at practice this past week. That's another thing-I enjoyed watching Sasha's SP practices more than most of the competition at Nationals-except for the top 4 ladies. Sasha hinted in interviews she is thinking of competing again-already my joy in ladies figure skating vaulted to heights I thought I'd never achieve again. Sasha is a Rock Star and the proof is in the attention she got at these Nationals.

I agree Sasha should have attempted to come back sooner-but perhaps for reasons known only to Sasha she couldn't. Scott Hamilton said she stepped away, 'made a living' as an adult should and then felt ready. We are in a world wide recession and these days skaters have to think long and hard about turning down potentially lucrative contracts. COI I believe tours for just 4 months out of the year and they're not exactly selling out venues. And one other thing-you can't attempt a come back if the desire is not there and may be for Sasha it came too late-but she made one heck of a run and I'm happy I got on that wild roller coaster ride again. I believe Sasha lit a fire under these young skaters who perhaps felt threatened by Sasha's return. And they should have because she came close-very close to making the team.

edited to add: I forgot to add that I think it's awesome Sasha went for all her jumps-I think she attempted all six jumps in the LP.

 

[R.D.]

In terms of the media coverage, I have mixed feelings. Core skating fans kind of knew that her chance to make the Olympic team virtually diminished many months ago. Sasha herself would have known it. But all the media coverage was like Sasha Cohen Returns Ready for Winter Olympics 2010, which was like a big show of which storyline we already knew. Those articles have sounded so dramatic and she needed to do those interviews wanting to hear how excited she was about her Olympic dreams. And what happened happened and skating fans are appreciative of her courage to actually showed up and skated despite what was expected. It was really good for her to show up. But her attendance gave a little different impression from Fumie's attendance at her Nationals.

Had Sasha attended GP series, the media had not hyped her as much as they had, which might have made her life easier in a sense that she did not need to deal with the gap between where she actually was and what was expected by the media. But the gap was so wide that there was some uneasiness about the unrealistic story that the media was trying to hype.

I thought Scott and Sandra were pretty realistic about her chances though, pointing out several times that this was her first competition in 4 years, and she was injured in the fall. I think some of the media (including NBC) was expecting too much. She could have come out and said, "I don't think I'm quite ready but I want to compete anyway just to see what happens" but NBC and USFS wanted to keep the possibility of her making the team out there to get people to watch

This is not the first time they've done this. In 2007, during the national gymnastics meet (granted, it wasn't an Oly year but the idea is the same) I remember them hyping Nastia Lukin, hyping her, saying she's so great and then she came out and basically fell apart. It was only later that the commentators pointed out her struggles and that she was trying to return from injury. Same thing happens to Cohen in 2010, but it's an Olympic year, Oly trials, so much more at stake.

...she has been named 2nd Alternate to the Olympic and Worlds Team-a huge honor.

The announcement took forever. I can't help but wonder if they actually considered making her the FIRST alternate, given how NBC and media outlets seemed to be pushing for her presence. Then, it wouldn't be fair to Ashley who did a fine job out there, qualified for the GPF and was one fall away from the team.

USFS made the right decision IMO- just go down the list

 

[Tinymavy15]

Ashley and Sasha know that there is NO WAY, barring terrible injury that either one of Mirai and Racheal will get off the Olympic team. Mirai has never even been to worlds so she will definetly go to Torino in march as will Rachel. With the retirments and no-shows that we expect in Torino thief chances of medaling wll b higher.

 

[Layfan]

The announcement took forever. I can't help but wonder if they actually considered making her the FIRST alternate, given how NBC and media outlets seemed to be pushing for her presence. Then, it wouldn't be fair to Ashley who did a fine job out there, qualified for the GPF and was one fall away from the team. USFS made the right decision IMO- just go down the list

I noticed that too only I wondered if the were considering making Sasha an alternate at all given how shaky she was. As much as I adore Sasha, I think an argument could be made that Christina Gao should have been fourth considering Sasha's LP performance. In retrospect, you're theory of course could be a possibility. But I get the feeling they really wanted Ashley on the team. I don't really get why Ashley was above Mirai in the LP. I thought Ashley two footed a couple of jumps. But maybe Hamilton was wrong about that?

 

[Tonichelle]

man, if only I could fail as "horribly" as Sasha...


seriously she's 4th at nationals after 4 years of show skating, yeah she two footed the jumps... big deal, she took a chance - knowing this exact thing of "Sasha's a Failure" was coming if she didn't deliver. And she NEVER GAVE UP... that says a lot...

she could be like Alissa and just throw it all away once a mistake happens.

 

[Layfan]

In terms of the media coverage, I have mixed feelings. Core skating fans kind of knew that her chance to make the Olympic team virtually diminished many months ago. Sasha herself would have known it. But all the media coverage was like Sasha Cohen Returns Ready for Winter Olympics 2010, which was like a big show of which storyline we already knew. Those articles have sounded so dramatic and she needed to do those interviews wanting to hear how excited she was about her Olympic dreams. And what happened happened and skating fans are appreciative of her courage to actually showed up and skated despite what was expected. It was really good for her to show up. But her attendance gave a little different impression from Fumie's attendance at her Nationals.

Had Sasha attended GP series, the media had not hyped her as much as they had, which might have made her life easier in a sense that she did not need to deal with the gap between where she actually was and what was expected by the media. But the gap was so wide that there was some uneasiness about the unrealistic story that the media was trying to hype.

Sasha has always said she appreciates being in the spotlight and that if people are buzzing about her it must be because she's doing something right. I'm sure she knew exactly what type of media scrutiny she would be facing before she went. I guess because of that some people who love to hate Sasha see her as an attention seeker. But I see a skater who acknowledged but never whined about pressure and I always liked that about her.

 

[R.D.]

Ashley and Sasha know that there is NO WAY, barring terrible injury that either one of Mirai and Racheal will get off the Olympic team. Mirai has never even been to worlds so she will definetly go to Torino in march as will Rachel. With the retirments and no-shows that we expect in Torino thief chances of medaling wll b higher.

I really hope both Flatt and Nagasu can make it to both events. I think the Oly experience will be great for them, and they *could* contend for 3 spots at Torino.

 

[Bennett]

I thought Scott and Sandra were pretty realistic about her chances though, pointing out several times that this was her first competition in 4 years, and she was injured in the fall. I think some of the media (including NBC) was expecting too much. She could have come out and said, "I don't think I'm quite ready but I want to compete anyway just to see what happens" but NBC and USFS wanted to keep the possibility of her making the team out there to get people to watch

Are Scott and Sandra skating people? (Is he Scott Hamilton? I do not know any Sandra though, sorry). If so, it totally makes sense for them to be realistic.

But more generic media people and their interviews with Sasha wanted to make a big story and I do not know if Sasha had ever come out like that.

 

[R.D.]

I noticed that too only I wondered if the were considering making Sasha an alternate at all given how shaky she was...In retrospect, [your] theory of course could be a possibility. But I get the feeling they really wanted Ashley on the team. I don't really get why Ashley was above Mirai in the LP. I thought Ashley two footed a couple of jumps. But maybe Hamilton was wrong about that?

I think all the points you raised, plus mine, might have been covered during the Committee meeting. I somehow find myself thinking that Gao probably should have been the second alternate and Cohen the third, based solely on nationals performance. But in the end, the fairest thing to do is just go down the list. :yes:

Are Scott and Sandra skating people? (Is he Scott Hamilton? I do not know any Sandra though, sorry). If so, it totally makes sense for them to be realistic.

Yes, Scott Hamilton and Sandra Bezic, the latter who is a choreographer IIRC

 

[Tonichelle]

Sandy was also a competitive pairs skater in Canada... Scott Hamilton is just some punk who won four world titles and an olympic championship in the 80s.

 

[Layfan]

I really hope both Flatt and Nagasu can make it to both events. I think the Oly experience will be great for them, and they *could* contend for 3 spots at Torino.

I've thought about that too!! I'd be awesome if they had breakthrough performances and medaled at Torino. If they perform well at the Olympics would that earn the U.S. three spots for this year's world? Or do Flatt and Nagasu have to do the 13 thing ag worlds to earn the three spots back for next year?

 

[R.D.]

I've thought about that too!! I'd be awesome if they had breakthrough performances and medaled at Torino. If they perform well at the Olympics would that earn the U.S. three spots for this year's world? Or do Flatt and Nagasu have to do the 13 thing ag worlds to earn the three spots back for next year?

Only Worlds count, Olys is just that, an Olympic event.

 

[Sasha'sSpins]

A week ago we were all worried that she wouldn't even show up, or that if she did poorly in the competition, she'd petition her way onto the Olympic team. Instead, she arrived, she stuck it out, she skated a grand short program, and she managed pretty well in the long, considering her short training time and lack of competition experience in the past few years. Then when she didn't place as high as she would have wanted, she took it like a champ and graciously left the spotlight to the winners. I suppose this can be called a "failed attempt," but it's by no means a failure. As for whether it will "taint" her career, baloney! Go look at her best performances on YouTube and see whether she suddenly has bad posture or a lower spiral in any of them. No? I didn't think so.
Should she have stayed away? Not if this was what she had her heart set on. She was entitled to show up, she didn't take anyone else's place away, and she didn't let anyone down with her attempt--least of all herself.

I think anyone who thinks Sasha has 'tainted' her career is just kidding themselves. She's a big a star as she ever was. Her fans will still be there, so will the haters who insisted she wouldn't show, or she would show then bail after the SP, and I am a thousand percent sure she's earned herself some new fans the world over. I was watching the little flower children watching Sasha by the sideboards during her SP-I am willing to bet they will always remember Sasha's "Espana Cani' performance, her extraordinary line, artistry, form grace, PRESENCE on the ice that so many of the current group of eligible skaters are lacking. And in spite of the costly errors "Moonlight Sonata" was a lovely program. She clearly was hampered by the injury and could not get the numbers in necessary to at least get her jumps as consistent as she could. And as I said before-even a clean Sasha in both the SP and LP was not likely to place higher than third. She did an awesome job and the haters who bashed her before and continue to after can't take that away from her gutsy comeback.

 

[Mafke]

For the record, have never been a Cohen fan, but I take back all the snarky comments I made about her. She gets full credit for me for trying and making it thru both programs and being as close as she was.

I'm sure she's disappointed with the results, but she should be proud of the effort. I know my respect for her has increased dramatically

 

[Sasha'sSpins]

Ashley and Sasha know that there is NO WAY, barring terrible injury that either one of Mirai and Racheal will get off the Olympic team. Mirai has never even been to worlds so she will definetly go to Torino in march as will Rachel. With the retirments and no-shows that we expect in Torino thief chances of medaling wll b higher.

Forgive me because I basically stopped following skating after Michelle and Sasha left the building. Mirai has never been to Worlds? Wow. Then like Sasha in 2002 the Olympics will be her first major international event!

May the Skate Gods and Skate Goddesses put wings under Mirai's and Rachael's feet in Vancouver.

Whoever medals I think we're in for an awesome show.