Sasha's comments about competition

[dancindiva03]

Well that argument works just as well against you - unless you have seen Sasha not training with your own two eyes, you don't know how much she is not training!! Given that none of us here have been spending 24/7 with Sasha i guess we should probably stop speculating on how much she has or hasn't been training?!

Except that we have all seen just how much time she's spent hob-nobbing with celebrities at the Oscar parties, and all her publicity stunts.

 

[tarotx]

Except that we have all seen just how much time she's spent hob-nobbing with celebrities at the Oscar parties, and all her publicity stunts.

The parties all ended on March 6th. A little over a week after the Olympics. I don't think that time off had a lot to do with what happen at Worlds. It's just hard to get back into competitive mindset after a big event like the Olympics. You put everything you have in those 7 minutes of competition. For someone like Sasha who has a hard time getting into the moment of her long anyway it was worse on her. The issue should be-should she have went to worlds? Probably not-I mean Mr Nicks didn't want her to go. Reports say Sasha didn't want to go. But I think it came down to her the fact that's she's unsure of what she's doing next year. If Kimmie and Emily didn't perform the way they did at the Olympics at worlds then the US could be looking at 2 spots. If Michelle came back there would always the chance that Sasha could finish 3rd. If she was 3rd at nationals next year and there was only 2 spots for worlds she would only have herself to blame. Of course Kimmie ended up winning so it was a mute point. I think that if Katy had not had to withdraw from jr worlds with boot issues Sasha may have skipped worlds. Believe it or not the fact that she would have lighter competition probably didn't play too much of a factor in Sasha's decision. She has the talent to win even with the big boys there. It's Sasha that keeps herself from winning. It's what Sasha believes any way so that is the only thing that matters in a decussion about her state of mind. Some times I think Mr Nicks telling Sasha that she's the best and it all depends on if she's clean ot not makes things worse. It adds more pressure on her. I don't know now I think I'm over analyzing

 

[Ptichka]

Lonewolf my point exactly. You wonder why people even like figure skating because if everything is based on bringing home the medals or perfection then we Americans will always be disappointed. I enjoy watching Sasha good skate or not.

I think it's just disappointing to see athletes fall quite short of what they're well capable of. When ESPN showed ladies FS, they did little interviews with Katarina and Debbie about their Battle of the Carmens. One thing Debbie said was that she felt disappointed not because she brought home silver instead of gold - so many years later, that almost doesn't matter, but that she did not have the performance of a lifetime that she always dreamed of having at the Olympics. I think that's the key. I generally like ladies' skating the least of all disciplines; Sasha is one of the few skaters I am almost a fan of; her skating often truly moves me. We all know that Sasha could outskate Kimmie even considering the awesome skate the latter had; it's frustrating to see her fail to do so. By comparison, I was delighted for Inouie & Baldwin even though they did not win any medals - they actually outskated the reigning Olympic silver medalists in the free! Sure, they could have had a cleaner throw axel, but it doesn't matter because what they did was a huge accomplishment for them, and they absolutely should be proud of it. So, bottom line, what's frustrating about Sasha is not that she failed to become the Olympic champion, but that she doesn't seem to be able to have that skate we all believe she has in her.

 

[graceness]

The issue should be-should she have went to worlds? Probably not-I mean Mr Nicks didn't want her to go. Reports say Sasha didn't want to go.

Could someone shed some light on these claims that Nicks didn't want her to go, that she didn't want to go, that her mother did want her to go, etc??

I keep hearing this mentioned in folks' posts (not just yours,tarotx), but haven't read any actual quotes from Nicks or Sasha or her mother. Does anyone have those links, or are folks simply guessing what was in their minds?

Thanks,
Graceness

 

[R.D.]

Except that we have all seen just how much time she's spent hob-nobbing with celebrities at the Oscar parties, and all her publicity stunts.

Well you know what, you better get used to it because I take it she's going to retire and there will be more parties and premieres. Another Tara Lipinski in the making...but without the...well, nevermind.

I second the above post, too...people post comments from other people but don't include the source. Even if the source was another poster, just say it.

 

[R.D.]

Sasha is not that she failed to become the Olympic champion, but that she doesn't seem to be able to have that skate we all believe she has in her.

and what if she DOESN'T have it in her? Did that ever occur to some of these guys? Or are they just assuming from her talent that she has it in her? I don't think she has it in her right now. She just doesn't have the competitive mindset you need to get that clean skate...right now, that is. So when she's still trying to work things out, I expect mistakes. It's you guys that are busy looking for perfection...fine by me

 

[tarotx]

I read that John Nicks had doubts about sending her to worlds in an Canadian online newspaper that I can't remember the link (it's got to be linked via here or at FSU though) and the other stuff from FSU sources like poster Louis. Most of it was just my conclusions.

 

[Vash01]

What's the point of bashing Sasha while she's down? I feel terrible for her and see no point in dumping on her.

ITA. I felt really bad for Sasha, even though I am thrilled with Kimmie's great skate and her well deserved win. Not to make excuses, but was it lack of practice that may have caused Sasha's poor showing? The bronze has to hurt and I feel for her. It was just like Irina's bronze at the Olympics- the heavy favorite not even placing second!

Vash

 

[antmanb]

In Nancy Kerrigan's book she makes the point that the difficulty with doing a balanced program is this. In the jump elements, you have to bunch your muscles together, and in the moves in the field, you have to stretch them out. Nancy said that (for some reason) she was never able to do a good triple loop out of footwork for this reason -- and in fact, when a lopp-combination was required, she found it easier to do a double loop / triple toe than a triple loop / double toe.

I have often wondered if Sasha's extreme stretch and flexibility gets in the way of her jump technique. To go from a 180 degree spiral to a triple Salchow is really asking a lot of your body, it seems to me.

MM

I don't know if Sasha is more affected than any other skater because of this though. In every jump set up you have to be stretched as much as you can, not just for the aesthetics (taking the sal as an example the entrance and the three turn have to be fully extended especially for the counter check just before the take off) but also for the mechanics of the jump - the further your hands are from your body the more rotation you will get in the jump when you pull them in tight (very basically speaking - i know there are many variables that affect that statement but you get the idea). Everyone has to do the extend/stretch as much as possible before take off, and Sasha does have a beautiful in air position and she does seem to get into it quickly enough. I really do think he problem is not with the prep (except on teh lutz and flip!), take off or in air position its all in the landing.

Ant

 

[antmanb]

Except that we have all seen just how much time she's spent hob-nobbing with celebrities at the Oscar parties, and all her publicity stunts.

Don't worry i'm not going to try to convince you otherwise - your hatred of her is clear from this (but mostly) from other threads. Honestly i don't care for her skating but hatred like yours will never be turned around.

Ant

 

[Mafke]

Sasha does have a beautiful in air position and she does seem to get into it quickly enough. I really do think he problem is not with the prep (except on teh lutz and flip!), take off or in air position its all in the landing.

Ant

Am I the only one who thinks she has a really atypical and probably maladaptive body type (or musculature type) for a singles skater? (caution, wild theorizing ahead) She just doesn't seem strong enough to get high enough and/or the revolutions in. That is, she either gets height in which case she too often can't spin fast enough or she spins fast enough but doesn't get high enough. If anything I think it's impressive how many of her jumps she does complete, but even a lot of the completed jumps seem about a milimeter from disaster (double axel in Turin SP).

I'd say I think she might do better in pairs where there are some skaters with sort of similar body types, but on the other hand, I can't imagine her paying sufficient attention to a partner.

 

[antmanb]

Am I the only one who thinks she has a really atypical and probably maladaptive body type (or musculature type) for a singles skater? (caution, wild theorizing ahead) She just doesn't seem strong enough to get high enough and/or the revolutions in. That is, she either gets height in which case she too often can't spin fast enough or she spins fast enough but doesn't get high enough. If anything I think it's impressive how many of her jumps she does complete, but even a lot of the completed jumps seem about a milimeter from disaster (double axel in Turin SP).

I'd say I think she might do better in pairs where there are some skaters with sort of similar body types, but on the other hand, I can't imagine her paying sufficient attention to a partner.

I don't know, she's short which is a good start, she's small framed which really helps and seemingly has tiny hips which means she can rotate quickly. Add to that the fact she has great muscle tone on her body - i think she has the perfect body type for a singles or a pair skater.

I must say i haven't paid enough attention across competitions but i can't say that i've noticed Sasha's rotational speed in her jumps varying from competition to competition. I know she doesn't have the biggest of jumps but its all relative isn't it? Nobunari Oda doesn't have big jumps compared to the bigger guys but he does (to coin a Simon and Chris phrase) spin like a top in the air to get the rotations. Kostner is a another skater who doesn't get very much height on her jumps at all but she rotates quickly and makes the jumps quite long to get the rotation in. To my mind i think that's bad technique and its shown by how many times she's missed her jumps this season, if i were her i'd work on trying to make the jumps higher - the speed with which she goes into them should take care of the length just fine!

If Sasha' problem was just that she either doesn't quite get high enough or quite enough rotation then i would expect to see more underotated jumps from her but she does by and large rotate them, she just doesn't hold the landing. Even in SLC when she went doen on the 3T on the back half of the 3Lz/3t - she had a poor landing on the lutz, still went for the 3T and was pretty much all the way round, she just still had her legs crossed on the landing and got tangled up and sat down. It was a more severe version of the 2A in the calgary LP where she landed with her legs still crossed but she managed to stay on her feet and just heavily two foot it.

Ant

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

I don't think it is her body type that causes the so so jumps. I get the feeling that she is bored with the jumps and loves the powerful extensions which bring in the most ahhs and ohhhs.

Joe

 

[diver chick]

I think that the problem has just become ingrained now and she is going to have to work so hard to overcome it!

I feel so badly for her because over the years I have come to really enjoy and appreciate her for so many reasons and I find nyself holding my breath that she this will be the one performance for her! In time she may come to appreciate and cherish her achievements but at the moment she can't see past the 'failure' and it becomes a bit of a vicious circle.

Maybe she needs a season away from competitive skating to learn to love it again or alternatively to realise it isn't really what she wants and to figure out what she does want.

 

[Dee4707]

So, bottom line, what's frustrating about Sasha is not that she failed to become the Olympic champion, but that she doesn't seem to be able to have that skate we all believe she has in her.

Excellent point Ptichka!!

and what if she DOESN'T have it in her? Did that ever occur to some of these guys? Or are they just assuming from her talent that she has it in her? I

Red Dog, I don't know if you have ever gone to a competition and watched the practice sessions. Sasha is a completely different person in her practice sessions. She is a dynamic little powerhouse. Now, I don't know if that is the same for all practices but I'm telling you what I experienced from the one I saw. Her program was dynamic and filled with emotion and spirit, grace and style. She got a standing ovation and that was just the practice.

A question up for discussion is ---- if Sasha doesn't want to compete, doesn't like skating--- on and on (summed up from many posts here)-- then why is she doing it? I think it would be gruling to maintain the practice time, the diet, the hectic schedules and whatever else goes into being a competitive skater.

Dee

 

[flying camel]

I still think she has a phobia about skating clean. She does like to compete. The pressure to skate clean is enormous. She wants to be a World & Olympic champion. She wants those titles. She has put in her time but she just can't get over that hurtle. Don't believe for a second that she doesn't like to compete. It is the strain of not winning the big ones that is showing on her face.

 

[R.D.]

Red Dog, I don't know if you have ever gone to a competition and watched the practice sessions. Sasha is a completely different person in her practice sessions. She is a dynamic little powerhouse. Now, I don't know if that is the same for all practices but I'm telling you what I experienced from the one I saw. Her program was dynamic and filled with emotion and spirit, grace and style. She got a standing ovation and that was just the practice.

Actually, I haven't been to a skating competition. Which comp was this, though?

Remember that it's one thing to do it in practice, another to do it under pressure. I still don't buy it- just because she can do it in practice does NOT mean she has it in her to do it under pressure. I think people just expect too much out of her. And I think it's getting to her, too- she's been more vocal recently about it, it seems.

Maybe even she doesn't know what's going on. That's possible, you know.

 

[flying camel]

Maybe Nancy Kerrigan can give her some advice. They seem to be more alike then Sasha and Tara.

 

[clairecloutier]

I feel like there is something wrong with Sasha's ability to handle the mental pressure of competition. She has all the talent in the world; everyone knows that. Yet in competition after competition, she continues to fall apart. To me, this points to a mental block of some type, although there may be physical issues as well.

I fear that Sasha herself perhaps has not faced this mental block, either. The troublesome thing is that Sasha continues to say many things in interviews which do not appear to gibe with the reality of her situation. For example, all season long, she was telling the press about how she was in the best shape of her life and had been practicing really hard. Then at Olympics and Worlds, she skips her practices! And we get posts from people who have seen her practicing in CA and who say she's only doing 3 or 4 triples per program. If this is in fact true, why is she boasting to the press about what great shape she's in?

Something just doesn't add up about Sasha's behavior. She says she's in shape when she isn't. She claims she just wants to have a great performance at the Olympics, and never mind about the medals, but then she comes out for the long program looking completely terrified, instead of excited to skate her program. She says she's fully prepared for the Olympics, but then she completely loses confidence after falling on a couple jumps in the warmup. (This in particular amazed me because skaters fall *all the time* in practice and obviously should be experienced in getting past such problems.) She says she enjoys competing but then freezes up nearly every single time she has a chance to win a big competition (and also admits she feels more comortable when facing lower-ranked skaters). There is basically just a huge disconnect between what Sasha's saying and what she's doing. It is very strange.

 

[R.D.]

I agree, and THAT is what makes things about her odd. She wants a world title, but "it's not about the titles any more?" Huh?

Maybe she meant to say she's trying to MAKE HERSELF believe it's not about the titles any more, but isn't succeeding. *WARNING, SPECULATION AHEAD* does she want it too bad? Or not want it enough? Both can lead to tentativeness. I think it's the LOOK on her face that tells all. I think it's a confidence issue. If everyone tells you that you can't do it, unless you're a really strong person why would YOU think you could? I think it's that doubt that creeps in every time. Can I do it this time? And I think that's what hinders her from the performance of her life.

It also doesn't help if you don't have the jumps down pat....when the nerves kick in how can you expect to do it all?