Skate Canada high performance camp, September 2012

[figureskate]

on pj's youtube channel

Virtue/Moir speaking to the media scrum

Patrick Chan speaking to the media scrum

 

[ice coverage]

Update:
Alexandra Paul IS at HP Camp, per this tweet and photo.

Jeremy Ten ‏@j3r3bear

Twinsies!!! @andrika & @Alexandrapaul_ #HPCamp http://twitpic.com/as46ob
12:34 PM - 7 Sep 12​

 

[sky_fly20]

hey have "ladies" training ?

 

[colleen o'neill]

golden411..well, yay!, then...and so much for overthinking....That's the first mention we've had of them.

 

[hohoho]

I think there are two parts to this camp - HP and National team. HP was for skaters doing GP.

 

[ice coverage]

2012 class photos of HP Camp (or maybe just of the national team??):

- (1) Skate Canada ‏@SkateCanada

Best lookin' team in #figureskating #gocanadago #HPCamp pic.twitter.com/0lK9EQ6d
3:52 PM - 7 Sep 12​

ETA:

Mitch Islam is in the photo (as is Alexandra Paul, whom we saw earlier).
Don't see Phaneuf. hwell:

Don't see Thomas Williams ... although Nicole Orford and he have been in other HP Camp photos.
I have trouble telling some of the lovely young women apart from each other ... but I think Orford is in this photo.
ETA: On second thought, maybe Orford is not. I see now that Liam Firus is "missing" too -- and he was seen previously in one or more HP Camp photos.
So maybe the GP skaters who are not officially on the national team were not included in these photos??
​

- (2) Photo of all the (national team?) female skaters together (including from pair and dance teams):
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f....10151291939262039.424274.129815677038&type=3

- (3) Photo of all the (national team?) male skaters together (including from pair and dance teams):
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...9262039.424274.129815677038&type=3&permPage=1

- And for colleen, Paul/Islam together:
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...9262039.424274.129815677038&type=3&permPage=1

 

[slipslidin]

Due to the vagaries of judging at last year's championships Orford and Williams are not on the National Team. They did, however, earn a high enough score to get a GP and be at the top of the list of substitutes. The will have two GP's neither of them a host pick.

ETA: It is their first year competing as Seniors. Can you say 'lost in the shuffle'?

 

[ice coverage]

I think there are two parts to this camp - HP and National team. HP was for skaters doing GP.

Thanks, slipslidin, I was in the middle of editing my post at the same time that you were adding your post.

I'm deducing that the photos are only of the national team although Orford/Williams and Firus are at camp b/c of their GP assignments.

ETA: Esp. in light of hohoho's post, I guess Skate Canada wants to preserve the status of the national team as something distinct from those with GP assignments.​

ETA: And yet now that I think about it, the SC press release about HP Camp had said it is both for the national team and for GP competitors.​

hey have "ladies" training ?

PJ Kwong tweeted yesterday her reactions to Lacoste's and Osmond's performances at camp.

ETA:

Plus Najarro and DeSanctis are in the HP Camp group photos. Of the ladies on the national team, only the injured Phaneuf seems to be absent.

And sorry, when I tried to look up the Kwong tweet about Osmond, I couldn't find any -- I had seen a photo of Osmond, and I think my memory somehow confused that with a tweet, LOL.

But here is what Pj Kwong ‏@skatingpj tweeted about Lacoste:

Amelie Lacoste's jumps looked greatly improved - higher n stronger - nice 3Lz/3toe (I think) combo! #cbcskates
11:48 AM - 6 Sep 12​

 

[slipslidin]

Yep, the back room boys play'em close to their vest. Once upon a time, the HPC was held in Vancouver, and the public was allowed to attend FREE. My sister and I were there every day, and rushed to the hospital right afterward to report to one of us who had fallen ill. I doubt that any skaters or coaches were hurt by this, although audience reports made it to the internet.

It was the first time I saw Joannie live, and was surprised to find her tiny and fast. I guess because of her size and speed, TV cameramen always kept her in the center of the frame, making her look large, muscular, and slow. Nobody seems to have tried to correct them.

The men were simply amazing, when they stepped out on the ice for their warmup. They were absolutely soundless, as if we had lost our hearing. Jeff Buttle, Sean Sawyer, Patrick Chan were there for sure, and I'm a little ashamed to admit, I'd have to look up the other names, but every one of them was an exceptional skater.

Virtue and Moir were there without a coach, and Scott came out to make notes on the feed-back. They did Umberellas, and I was blown away by the wonderful, floating lifts, especially for a team so close in height.

Many of these skaters have gone on to sucess, despite having been veiwed by the public.

 

[ice coverage]

Before the 2008 HP Camp, Skate Canada said that the social media era of YouTube videos was the reason for discontinuing public access.
They did not seem to mind individuals watching in person, but they did not want videos of skaters performing early versions of programs to be posted on the Internet.
(I for one believe their policy is understandable.)

Text below copied and pasted from:
http://www.skatecanada.ca/AboutUs/News/20082009/July311/tabid/12112/language/en-US/Default.aspx

(July 31, 2008 - OTTAWA, ON) – At last year's camp the attendance and enthusiasm of the crowd was a great asset to the skaters during the simulation. Due to a few unfortunate situations, we've had to make some policy changes to this year’s event.

The High Performance Camp is designed as an opportunity for our skaters to train and have a simulated competition in the Olympic venue. It provides them an environment to show their programs to top judges, technical specialists, and Skate Canada Officials for feedback to better prepare for the upcoming season. We were very disappointed that within a few hours of the simulation last year many of the programs were posted and viewed on You-Tube. At this point in the season many of the programs are still developing and should have been viewed only by those in attendance, and not by the worldwide web.

There is a substantial cost to run the simulation at the PNE and to provide the required staffing for public access (which we covered last year). With the video concerns, we do not have the resources to cover the additional cost to screen for video or camera equipment for each spectator.

We trust our fans will understand our number one priority is the skaters and how Skate Canada can provide the best opportunity for them to successfully develop in their preparation for the upcoming season and the 2010 Olympics.​

 

[slipslidin]

Oh, I know the rationale, but I love to watch the Russian test skates, and I suspect the reason the Russians are not on top, is not that these are shown, but because the best Russian coaches are in the USA. I remember a year when our three top teams all did Flamenco programs and I'm pretty sure they didn't get the idea from you tube. I just believe that seeing the developing programs is more interesting than any fluff piece or media scrum could ever be.

 

[ice coverage]

Today Pj Kwong @skatingpj has been tweeting links to a fresh batch of YouTube videos from HP Camp that she has been uploading.

New today so far:
- Virtue/Moir interview snippet, re Carmen (I have posted the link in other threads)
- Chan interview
- Kathy Johnson (a separate video from Chan's)
- Weaver/Poje interview

And I think there will be one more, b/c Kwong also says that CBC will be posting a blog from her with five videos. CBC link is TK.

ETA: CBC link: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/figureskat...n-skaters-ready-after-lengthy-off-season.html​

ETA: Liam Firus is the fifth one added by Kwong today.​

Again, these videos are a newly uploaded batch from Kwong -- additions to her previous ones at HP Camp of V/M media scrum, Chan media scrum, and Elladj Balde interview.

 

[ice coverage]

SkateBuzz video montage from 2012 HP Camp

Includes some bits of footage of individual skaters/teams performing on ice.
Total length: 1:50.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eClwepAWPM

Thanks to m_chenning for posting the link at FSU.

ETA:

On ice:

- I'm sure that I saw Virtue/Moir, Weaver/Poje, Ralph/Hill, Gilles/Poirier, Chan, Rogozine, Moore-Towers/Moscovitch.
- I think that I also saw Orford/Williams, Duhamel/Radford, Lacoste.
- Not sure who else I missed.
Except for V/M and Chan, most were in costume.
​

Off-ice clips (showing additional skaters) are woven through the montage as well.
​

ETA:

Just realized that colleen already had posted the same video link in her Costume thread, where she commented on the dance costumes.​