Small Linda Fratianne update

[STL_Blues_fan]

This article appeared in Albany Times Union. Linda is helping promote the 25th anniversary of the 1980 Games.


http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=331380&category=SPORTS&BCCode=&newsdate=2/9/2005


Yana

 

[Peggy]

WOW! Good for Linda. That is such an uplifting story. I remember watching her skate and was so sorry she did not get the gold. It sounds like she has a gold medal daughter and that is more important. I hope she has a great time at her reunion.

 

[chuckm]

It's really too bad that skaters like Linda and Rosalyn Sumners could continue to feel so bitter for so long over having won a silver Olympic medal. Winning an Olympic medal is a very special thing, no matter what the color.

If Michelle Kwan felt the same way, we wouldn't have the pleasure of continuing to see her skate today. If Michelle had won gold in 1998 or 2002, we would have missed out on so many wonderful performances in the years since then. Whether she ever wins gold or not, we have been blessed to be here to enjoy what she has brought to the ice since 1994.

 

[hockeyfan228]

With her endorsements and ability to earn money in shows, Kwan had an opportunity to extend her eligible career in a way that was, frankly, unaffordable to earlier generations of skaters. Without the government support that Witt received, Sumners and Fratianne didn't have the money for another four years, even if they had had the wish to continue.

 

[bladerunner]

Linda is maybe my favorite skater of all time(well,behind Dorothy and Jill Trenary),so it's gonna be great to be finally able to see her SKATE,even if
it's just an abbreviated program.I'm all set for the show on FEB.23rd,just 2
more weeks.In my opinion,she is a much-overlooked champion skater.We don't hear much from/about her anymore,which is too bad.

 

[brad640]

This article made me think - whatever happened to Annette Poetzsch? She could be the least talked about ladies OGM of all time.

 

[Margaux]

Does anyone remember why Linda won silver instead of gold? Did Linda not skate as well as expected? Did Annette outskate her? Was there a judging controversy? I just remember how disappointed Linda was.

 

[thisthingcalledlove]

This article made me think - whatever happened to Annette Poetzsch? She could be the least talked about ladies OGM of all time.

She worked in a bank until the collapse of the Iron Curtain. Then, she began coaching.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

It's really too bad that skaters like Linda and Rosalyn Sumners could continue to feel so bitter for so long over having won a silver Olympic medal. Winning an Olympic medal is a very special thing, no matter what the color.

I don't think bitter is the word. The opening lines of that article are from the author. Linda does explain how the disappointment lasted for quite a while, and how nice it was that her daughter snapped her out of it. She says she is now very happy.

Roz spoke much of the wave she caught because of the Tonya/Kerrigan debacle. After that competition, she was skating on every Sunday afternoon and making lots of money. Hardly bitter right after the Olys but there will always be disappointment when expectations are not met.

I think Kwan was more bitter at herself than at the competition. Her 3x3 which she left out caused the problem, imo. Had she skated after Tara, she would have put that 3x3 in the routine. I think that bitterness towards herself is what made her continue to skate competitions.

You're right Chucum about any Oly medal is better than none. I can think of a number of skaters off the top of my head who would gladly accept an Oly medal of any color.

Joe

 

[Linny]

Oly of any color

Todd Eldridge, anyone?
Linny

 

[Peggy]

If Michelle had won gold in 1998 or 2002, we would have missed out on so many wonderful performances in the years since then. Whether she ever wins gold or not, we have been blessed to be here to enjoy what she has brought to the ice since 1994.

Thr rules have changed alot since Linda skated in the Olympics. Skaters are allowed to earn money now that helps pay fpr coaches and living expenses. Families really sacrificed alot in the old days in order to get the best coaches for their Olympic hopeful.

Michelle has been earning money, from a young age, for her skating so you can't compare why people in the past did not stick it out for another Olympics. I wished they had changed the rules sooner. We had some good skaters in the past that could have used another chance and we would have enjoyed just as much as MIchelle.

 

[JockProf]

At the time of the 1980 Olympics, Annett had a good lead after figures (Linda was 3rd). There were some rumblings about Linda's placement at the time - none from her though. She won the short program and finished second in the long (to Denise Biellman). Had they been using the factored placement system, Linda would have won.

 

[SkateFan4Life]

Does anyone remember why Linda won silver instead of gold? Did Linda not skate as well as expected? Did Annette outskate her? Was there a judging controversy? I just remember how disappointed Linda was.

Margaux, I re-posted the "Flashback - 1980 Winter Olympics" thread that I started some time ago, as it contains a number of posts concerning Linda Fratianne's controversial second-place finish at Lake Placid.

Annet Poetszch won the gold medal according to the rules of the day, which included the school figures, the short program, and the long program. Her free skating was anything but spectacular, but it was enough to win. Linda Fratianne
was devastated at losing the gold medal, and it took her years before she would even look at her silver medal.

Of course, in those days - 25 years ago - figure skaters did not have the opportunities they have today. An eligible skater of 1980 could not make the kind of money that Michelle Kwan and Sasha Cohen make today, and they did not remain in the competitive arena after their "Olympic cycle", for the most part. Skaters living in Communist countries, such as Annet and Katarina Witt, had their training fully funded by their governments, while skaters in the West had to scrounge around for sponsors and the like.

I always enjoyed Linda's skating, and I thought she was a wonderful champion.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

At the time of the 1980 Olympics, Annett had a good lead after figures (Linda was 3rd). There were some rumblings about Linda's placement at the time - none from her though. She won the short program and finished second in the long (to Denise Biellman). Had they been using the factored placement system, Linda would have won.

There has always been distrust of judging figure skating and always big differences in the scores. I believe mention of that was made during Annett's figures. They may have been higher than they should have been. That is the trouble with figures. A spectator can not get enough view of them to say the judges were favoring a skater.

Anyway, Annett came out in that boa and skated flat throughout her exhibition. Oh well, it is one of if not THE worst exhibitions I have ever seen. Would you pay $60 to see the Oly Champion skate that boa number again in SOI?

Joe