The Up and Coming US Ladies

[crazydreamer]

I think Emily Chan has more promise than those mentioned thus far.

 

[topaz emerald]

I'm a big fan of Mariah Bell. If she can get consistent she will be a future star

I like Mariah too.

 

[peese]

I've been following Emily Chan for 2 years and am a huge fan. Back to back Novice Junior champ. In Novice she had T. Sal and Toe. This year added Loop and Flip plus the triple toe/triple toe. She has solid jump technique. usually level 4 on all spins and footwork, fab skating skills and beautiful to watch. Also on her side is that she was 17 and 18 when she won her titles and probably done with growth and puberty. I'm sure we will see the lutz this year! The only downside is that she did not skate great at her Jr Grand Prix this year in the fall. (nerves or still inconsistent with the new jumps?)

 

[peese]

I think Emily Chan has more promise than those mentioned thus far.

Hey crazydreamer! Just read this after my post. We are on the same page. Agree with you 100%!!!

 

[SarahSynchro]

i'm curious to see how Hannah Miller may improve in the off-season after being coached by Raf and company for almost a full year now. If I recall correctly, she only made the move to California in June of last year.

As for the younger up-and-comers, I really like Vivian Le, Tyler Pierce, and Amber Glenn. Bradie Tennell is good too, but not one of my favourites.

 

[andromache]

I feel like while skaters like Tyler Pierce, Bradie Tennell, Hannah Miller, and Mariah Bell may give us many beautiful skates in the future, I do wonder if they will ever be close to Worlds medal contenders. Most ladies who medal or come close to medaling at Worlds are 16/17 or have been on Worlds teams since they were that young. It seems unlikely that an 18/19/20 year old will come out of nowhere and be at that level. Of course, I appreciate all of these ladies even if I have doubts about their ability to compete with the top Japanese and Russian ladies.

Karen Chen has promise if someone reigns in her huge jumps so she can A. land them and B. get enough height on her -3T to get her 3-3 all the way around. Amber Glenn has also put on some nice skates, but is she still having health problems?

Vivian Le has won two JGP medals, which is more than many young American ladies have done at her age. I'm hoping she can make it to the JGP final next season.

(Looking at old JGP medalists...Hannah Miller won a JGP final medal?? Between Elena Radionova and Anna Pogo? What is up with Hannah's jump technique that those two have survived and Hannah hasn't? And looking back at that JGPF, Angela Wang, Courtney Hicks, and Leah Keiser all made it to that JGPF. And none of them have made a major impact since....)

 

[KatGrace1925]

I feel like while skaters like Tyler Pierce, Bradie Tennell, Hannah Miller, and Mariah Bell may give us many beautiful skates in the future, I do wonder if they will ever be close to Worlds medal contenders. Most ladies who medal or come close to medaling at Worlds are 16/17 or have been on Worlds teams since they were that young. It seems unlikely that an 18/19/20 year old will come out of nowhere and be at that level. Of course, I appreciate all of these ladies even if I have doubts about their ability to compete with the top Japanese and Russian ladies.

Karen Chen has promise if someone reigns in her huge jumps so she can A. land them and B. get enough height on her -3T to get her 3-3 all the way around. Amber Glenn has also put on some nice skates, but is she still having health problems?

Vivian Le has won two JGP medals, which is more than many young American ladies have done at her age. I'm hoping she can make it to the JGP final next season.

(Looking at old JGP medalists...Hannah Miller won a JGP final medal?? Between Elena Radionova and Anna Pogo? What is up with Hannah's jump technique that those two have survived and Hannah hasn't? And looking back at that JGPF, Angela Wang, Courtney Hicks, and Leah Keiser all made it to that JGPF. And none of them have made a major impact since....)

That is why I am curious about the future of American figure skating. Some of these girls are beautiful but could remain ineffective on the world stage. I really think Karen Chen with time could make an impact. Other than that Vivian Le is awesome but only time will tell.

 

[KatGrace1925]

So I watched Karen Chen's performances at nationals 2015 again last night and then I watched her at 2016 nationals. She has so much speed and power that it definitely needs some regining in. I still think she could be a huge force on the world stage but only time will tell.

 

[apgold]

What about Tessa Hong, who is currently training w/ Tom Z? I know she had an injury this year, so I hope she has recovered and will impress us next season!

 

[StitchMonkey]

What about Tessa Hong, who is currently training w/ Tom Z? I know she had an injury this year, so I hope she has recovered and will impress us next season!

She has missed nationals two years in a row due to injury but she did go to the JGP in Spain this last season and did respectably.

TomZ is good at promoting his skaters, so i suspect she will get at least a JGP assignment this season if she is even in remotely good condition. The problem is, I think learning how to train and compete without getting injured is part of a skater's development, and I am not sure she has figured that part out. It can be tricky to figure that part out and some don't I hope that she does get it figured out.

SP at JGP Spain
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9k_N8exPNCI

 

[tulosai]

I feel like while skaters like Tyler Pierce, Bradie Tennell, Hannah Miller, and Mariah Bell may give us many beautiful skates in the future, I do wonder if they will ever be close to Worlds medal contenders. Most ladies who medal or come close to medaling at Worlds are 16/17 or have been on Worlds teams since they were that young. It seems unlikely that an 18/19/20 year old will come out of nowhere and be at that level. Of course, I appreciate all of these ladies even if I have doubts about their ability to compete with the top Japanese and Russian ladies.

I agree, while late bloomers do certainly happen, they are rare, and so I'm not really sure how high it's realistic to think these girls can go. Even most skaters who hit their peak VERY late for skating were more of contenders internationally at these girls age than these girls currently are; the only ready counter-example I can think of is Maria Butyrskaya, who basically had NO success internationally before she was 20-21. Even most 'late bloomers' who ultimately become really successful like Ashley Wagner or Carolina Kostner were at least winning some GP medals consistently by the time they were 18.

With that said, I do think we are sort of in a 'new era' technically, so I do wonder if late blooming might be even more unlikely or, conversely, if it might ironically become likelier as more mature skaters may be able to bring qualities PCS wise that younger skaters can't (I do feel this helped both Ashley and Carolina, but then they both also had to up the ante technically, at least somewhat (more in Ashley's case), to stay in the mix).

With all this said I really like Mariah and Tyler and Karen especially and would be very happy if they do still manage to break out, and I don't think it's impossible, just not going to be easy.

 

[mrrice]

I am still holding out hope for Angela Wang. I know that she's still relatively young but, I'm starting to fear that her progress has stalled and that the other Ladies are beginning to distance themselves from this very promising young Lady. The skater's she used beat on the JGP have basically passed her up in the standings and I worry that she will burn out and quit if she doesn't get into top 5 next season.

The other skater that I think needs to make move this next season is Courtney Hicks. How old is she??? After seeing that picture of her doing squats with all that giant barbell, it's clear that she is quite strong. She could work on her artistry but, she reminds me of Rachael Flatt.

 

[KatGrace1925]

I agree, while late bloomers do certainly happen, they are rare, and so I'm not really sure how high it's realistic to think these girls can go. Even most skaters who hit their peak VERY late for skating were more of contenders internationally at these girls age than these girls currently are; the only ready counter-example I can think of is Maria Butyrskaya, who basically had NO success internationally before she was 20-21. Even most 'late bloomers' who ultimately become really successful like Ashley Wagner or Carolina Kostner were at least winning some GP medals consistently by the time they were 18.

With that said, I do think we are sort of in a 'new era' technically, so I do wonder if late blooming might be even more unlikely or, conversely, if it might ironically become likelier as more mature skaters may be able to bring qualities PCS wise that younger skaters can't (I do feel this helped both Ashley and Carolina, but then they both also had to up the ante technically, at least somewhat (more in Ashley's case), to stay in the mix).

With all this said I really like Mariah and Tyler and Karen especially and would be very happy if they do still manage to break out, and I don't think it's impossible, just not going to be easy.

Well Karen did have boot issues all last year. I think of the current group she is the most likely to break out. She just has to get her power under control and that could come with maturity.

 

[sarama]

Vivian Le...but you probably saw that coming

She's one of the most talented jumpers I've ever seen and a great spinner to boot. So if she fixes her consistency issues, I can see her going very far.

This might very well have been what people said about Gracie as a junior, though. And that does not bode well for her mental strength.

I think it is premature to judge Vivian's mental toughness, last season she was just starting to include the 3S and 3Lo, and she still doesn't have a lot of experience at big competition...so it was more than ok to not be very consistent.
I hope next season she will be in the mix with the top Russian and Japanese juniors (she is not less talented for sure).

Just saying best 3Lz-3t ever (sorry Polina T, yours is great too!) https://youtu.be/rQn8j7zfVZs?t=48

 

[temadd]

Tyler Pierce is the only one that has shown any consistency this year. Her jumps are high and beautiful and she really upped her speed from last year. She's the only one of the up and comers who has really improved competitively since last year. Mariah Bell was kind of a mess, as was Karen Chen and Bradie Tennell couldn't handle the pressure at Junior Worlds.

 

[Layback11]

I think it is premature to judge Vivian's mental toughness, last season she was just starting to include the 3S and 3Lo, and she still doesn't have a lot of experience at big competition...so it was more than ok to not be very consistent.
I hope next season she will be in the mix with the top Russian and Japanese juniors (she is not less talented for sure).

Just saying best 3Lz-3t ever (sorry Polina T, yours is great too!) https://youtu.be/rQn8j7zfVZs?t=48

:agree:

I digress, especially on the 3lz-3t. Apologies to Polina, but the only better one I've seen is Yuna's (because of the flow, not the height). #ShutUpAndTakeMyGOEs

 

[sarama]

:agree:

I digress, especially on the 3lz-3t. Apologies to Polina, but the only better one I've seen is Yuna's (because of the flow, not the height). #ShutUpAndTakeMyGOEs

Well I'm a big time Yuna fan and adored the easiness and flow of her 3-3s, and I think she is one of the absolutely best in that department, but I believe the two youngsters here are simply more impressive due to the height, and for Polina I love the delayed rotation, while for Vivian I love the fact that she ends her rotation way earlier than the landing (Higuchi does that too). Anyway enough with the nitpicking, I would undoubtedly give them all +3 GOEs

 

[Layback11]

Well I'm a big time Yuna fan and adored the easiness and flow of her 3-3s, and I think she is one of the absolutely best in that department, but I believe the two youngsters here are simply more impressive due to the height, and for Polina I love the delayed rotation, while for Vivian I love the fact that she ends her rotation way earlier than the landing (Higuchi does that too). Anyway enough with the nitpicking, I would undoubtedly give them all +3 GOEs

Maybe I should start a "juniors with mindblowing 3-3s" fan fest. We could cover Vivian and Polina and Wakaba and whoever else with crazy good 3-3s comes along next year...

 

[sarama]

Maybe I should start a "juniors with mindblowing 3-3s" fan fest. We could cover Vivian and Polina and Wakaba and whoever else with crazy good 3-3s comes along next year...

Oh please do! A lot of junior girls are such incredible jumpers and each one with their own peculiarities... Next year I think we'll see some Korean wonderbabies as well! :dance2:

 

[Princessroja]

I enjoyed watching Haley Beavers at nationals this year; I think she won novice. It seems like American girls are later bloomers in general, so I wouldn't write off any of the younger-but-not-as-young girls yet. The nice thing about them blooming later is they've got a bit of maturity under their belt and their bodies are done changing, so they don't peak super early and then crash. Sometimes a long and steady rise isn't so bad.