- Joined
- Nov 9, 2009
Ashley just posted in her Facebook that she's going
Senior Ladies FS
- Thread starter sky_fly20
- Start date
- Joined
- Jun 3, 2008
It is a cruel cruel sport. Mirai is now only 20 years old, it is clear she has had a growth sprut post Vancouver seasons, like Sotnikova, Liza etc, where body and emotion are hard to handle, Caroll dumbed her with not very flatering comments, fans too and she fought back to regain herself, and already USA is searching for new faces like Mirai is old, she could go to 2018 Olympics and still be 24!
I was actually thinking the same thing, when I heard how old Mirai is. she could skate in 2018 and beyond...
- Joined
- Jan 15, 2010
Lol, I am 100% done with this competition. I have been emotionally compromised.
Alert: Gracie has a blue dress on. She's probably going to win the Olympics. LOL.
Alert: Gracie has a blue dress on. She's probably going to win the Olympics. LOL.
I don't think there would have been any controversy if Ashley had been kept off the team in favor of Mirai; the U.S. has generally stuck to the standings at Nationals determining who went to the Olympics. All Ashley had to do was to skate clean 1 of the 2 nights and she didn't do that. I don't think there would have been many people saying "Well, Ashley has skated so well the past couple of years she should have been allowed to go regardless of her Nationals performance".
That's true but it's not impossible. It could go either way. Her skating could slide or she might be able to adjust to her body changes and get it all back and with some added sophistication to boot. I'd love to see her give it a go. I didn't think Ashley would improve much over that last four years, yet here she is.
One thing about Mirai: Girl can stay on her feet. Not that she hasn't had her share of splats but more often than not it's silly mistakes - i.e. finishing after her music, botching spins - and those pesky URs that get her. But when she goes into a jump, I mostly expect her to land it. I wish more than anything she had been able to stay with Frank. She needs to find another grueling coach who can train the bad habits out of her and get her to perform, like she did in 2010.
In most all advertisements, Gracie was the golden Girl of figure skating. It seems that Gracie was the one that they wanted to win, she was Ashley's rival. Deep down, this may have affected Ashley. Gracie is not a likable girl....in my opinion...even in her preambles, she said that she was the one of the best skaters and deserved to win. In the long run, with this type of personality, wii not go very far. Just sayin
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So, not to get off the Ashley/Mirai discussion...and, my apologies, but I haven't read the whole thread; but I was wondering what everyone thought of Samantha Cesario - I thought she skated great in her LP and could see an argument for higher scores.
My heart still aches for Gao; lovely SP with two very unfortunate step mistakes; and then a fantastic opening to her LP that then unraveled. I truly wished I could just wave a magic wand and have her start that program all over again.
My heart still aches for Gao; lovely SP with two very unfortunate step mistakes; and then a fantastic opening to her LP that then unraveled. I truly wished I could just wave a magic wand and have her start that program all over again.
- Joined
- Jan 13, 2004
Cesario was gorgeous and I hope that they send her to 4CC's!
She seems to be hitting her stride, which is great because I do love her skating.
Barbie Long also was wonderful!
She seems to be hitting her stride, which is great because I do love her skating.
Barbie Long also was wonderful!
Ehhh
The spins were starting to look cookie-cutter -- watching all those the tuck your leg behind your knee, curl into a ball, broken sit spins, and Biellmanns were tedious.
That said, it was nice to see the footwork sequences from our top skaters actually meld well together with their music cuts. Plus I was amazed at how many fully rotated, CLEAN triple-triple combinations we saw this time around!
I didn't think much of it when people were writing Ashley off Friday or when she botched her 2 3Flip jumping passes during her free skate practice run through. I guess it really foreshadowed things last nite. What a tough call for USFS: either take Mirai, who has issues with underrotations/cheated jumps OR Ashley, the second coming of Tonia 'two-foot' Kwiatkowski? Two GPF podium finishes the last two seasons, and the 5th place at last year's worlds to regain that 3rd spot, I have no problem that Ashley was picked for the team with her international success.
Sandra and Scott had valid criticisms on Mirai's free, but I wonder if these two were also in-the-know considering they were harping so much on the program last nite even as Mirai was putting out the best performance she's had in a looong time.
Mirai's free skate without the commentary:
http://youtu.be/uN3mDZTOFHg
I thought that I was the only one that noticed this entitlement attitude. Not a fan but mostly because she just doesn't move me with her skating.
- Joined
- Jan 15, 2010
I'll keep my own opinion quiet on this subject, but my friend who doesn't usually watch figure skating said the same thing--not the "in the long run" part, just the attitude part.
(She had a lot to say about it.)
I was there at the arena yesterday, and my favorite performance was Samantha's! However, she really does need to work on speed. She is extremely slow. I enjoyed Samantha's performance much more than Gold's. Yes, Gold is a lot faster, but she has a long way to go with the artistry (she did improve with the plane arms). Her jumps were also huge, but they just did not look too aesthetically pretty live and are overrated IMO. For example, her 3lz is huge, but then the way she goes into the following 3toe looked like it took a lot of effort relative to say Yu-na's 3lz-3t, which just flies along with the music. But yes, her jumps were better than the rest of the US field, so I do see the hype. Ashley? She was doing fine, even after the fall on the first combo, but after the second fall on the 3lo, she suddenly lost a lot of speed. The speed of her layback was especially horrendous.
The live experience at Nationals was great, but it was very underwhelming (as expected) compared to my live experience at Worlds 2013. I highly doubt any of the US ladies will be able to medal in Sochi, but they do sure have a chance if the Japanese and Russians falter.
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2013
I'm really surprised with judging on this Nationals. Almost every jump of Mirai is underrotated, really poor jumps. I'm really surprised to see only one underrotation in protocol. Technical specialists are sleeping during competitions?
Even more surprising are PCS. 1 point difference between Wagner and Nagasu - oh, really? This seems to be a joke, there's such a big difference between their programs. Ashley's program is much more complicated from choreographical point of view. I think if both skaters got points they deserve, this tricky situation wouldn't have been even created.
However, I'm really happy that Ashley is qualified for Sochi (despite her arguable political statements
).
Even more surprising are PCS. 1 point difference between Wagner and Nagasu - oh, really? This seems to be a joke, there's such a big difference between their programs. Ashley's program is much more complicated from choreographical point of view. I think if both skaters got points they deserve, this tricky situation wouldn't have been even created.
However, I'm really happy that Ashley is qualified for Sochi (despite her arguable political statements
).Scott H. drove me totally nuts. He's not a commentator; he's a cheerleader with an agenda. and that near-scream-level voice -and the same old same old over and over and tell me how can you be "not hungry enough, doesn't want it enough" and also "she wants it too much, she's trying too hard"???? I hope he's not on the Olympic media team. Hated how he was drooling over both Gracie and Polina as "THIS is what US figure skating needs! Fresh blood, new energy, geek geek gekk!" I thought the jumping Polina had zilch elegance and musicality - her arms just seem weird all the time, they even look like they grow during the program.
Would Ashley still be sent if there were 2 spots and if it was Gracie that cost the spot at last year Worlds? I don't think Ashley has exceptional international results that deemed her worthy to bump Mirai off the Olympic team. She's never been on the podium.
Actually, if Gold can repeat her Nationals skates (or better) in Sochi, she has just about as good a chance as any of the top contenders at a medal. Even before she was getting high marks from international judges but FC has taken her to the next level. It will be up to her to deliver under pressure, however.
Otherwise, I agree. I think Wagner has regressed slightly and worse, is showing more vulnerability/decreased mental toughness. I know the pressure on her this week was immense, but even on the GP she was making little errors here and there. I don't expect Edmunds to contend, but then again I didn't think she'd contend at Nationals so...
- Joined
- Jun 21, 2009
Yes, that was my first reaction, that she may be on a steroid medication. They cause swelling, bloating and weight gain. I hope she is okay.
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