Was Mirai Nagasu screwed over by the USFS?

[sweetskates1]

This is disgraceful - F%^ the USFS.

 

[Mathman]

OK, now they are really ganging up on Mirai. In pairs they put Denney and Coughlin on the worlds team, In men's they replaced Jason Brown with Max Aaron -- nothing for Mirai?

 

[drivingmissdaisy]

Here is why this is so upsetting to Americans. U.S. figure skating fans have a long history of believing that the traditional method that the USFSA used for many decades -- top three at nationals go to the Olympics and worlds -- was morally superior to countries like Canada and Japan, where internal politics intervened to spoil the purity of their souls. We won't even mention those outright criminals, Russia and France.

Now, all of a sudden, here we are mucking around in the mud with everyone else. A committee meets behind closed doors and does whatever it feels like doing.

I'm not sure why it's morally wrong for the USFSA to determine what the strongest team is they want to represent their organization. If Americans are upset then they need to read the current selection rules.

 

[coolboogie22]

https://www.change.org/petitions/u-...ident-pat-st-peter-send-mirai-nagasu-to-sochi

 

[pETEs (Sasha Fan)]

This is very sad news for the American skating.

 

[pETEs (Sasha Fan)]

This is really vicious. I'm sorry, but if the logical, reasonable, sane and FAIR criteria for every National Championship in the World, is to send to the Olympics their 'best' representatives BASED on the result of the conducive National Championships and according to the number of spots that country earned for that particular international event, this decision made by the USFS is corrupt and should be decried, not only by the direct offended (Ms. Nagasu), but for every National Olympic Committee in the world.

 

[tulosai]

OK, now they are really ganging up on Mirai. In pairs they put Denney and Coughlin on the worlds team, In men's they replaced Jason Brown with Max Aaron -- nothing for Mirai?

Yeah, I am not riled up that she is off the Oly team, but this is a slight, plain and simple.

 

[Mathman]

I'm not sure why it's morally wrong for the USFSA to determine what the strongest team is they want to represent their organization. If Americans are upset then they need to read the current selection rules.

I think U.S. skating fans have taken comfort, over the years, in the belief that "doing the right thing" is more important than winning medals. Now, we are having our faces rubbed in the reality that such a view is old-fashioned (if it ever existed in the first place).

 

[Figure 8's]

I'm not sure why it's morally wrong for the USFSA to determine what the strongest team is they want to represent their organization. If Americans are upset then they need to read the current selection rules.

That is their job and this is not a new occurrence as it has been done a number of times before. I am wondering though, say if this had been Agnes who won the bronze and many of you dislike, would you even care?

 

[Mathman]

Goodness yes! it would have been a great thrill if Agnes had broken out of her "almost there" trap and skated lights out at Nationals. The only knock on Agnes is that in past nationals she was awarded some high placements for not-very-good performances.

 

[aviva_dawn]

that is their job and this is not a new occurrence as it has been done a number of times before. I am wondering though, say if this had been agnes who won the bronze and many of you dislike, would you even care?

yes!

 

[tulosai]

Goodness yes! it would have been a great thrill if Agnes had broken out of her "almost there" trap and skated lights out at Nationals. The only knock on Agnes is that in past nationals she was awarded some high placements for not-very-good performances.

:thumbsup: I don't dislike Agnes, I dislike how the judges have held her up for the past 3 years until this one. I actually quite enjoyed her SP live, and met her briefly and she was a very very nice person. I don't wish any skaters ill- if they skate lights out I am happy for them, and if they skate badly I am sad for them (I cried 5 times last night at Nationals during the ladies LPs, 2 times happy tears and 3 times sad tears no joke- clearly I am better suited to watching from home with my bottle of wine). That's not to say I don't have my favorites and those I dislike, but in terms of wishing people ill I don't. What really gets me though is skaters not getting the scores they deserve, in either direction. I think that is where the majority of the Agnes dislike stems from.

 

[bebevia]

They didn't yet; but I'm hoping she'd get one. ...And this wasn't the smartest politics; she should've hinted her wish for a Worlds spot as part of deal for her graceful acceptance. I speculate her biggest issue in her career post 2010 has been not herself, but lack of mentors.

I actually maybe am alone in this but I think her worlds spot is pretty safe. I am 90+% sure they will send her, Gold, Wagner and Edmunds to Junior Worlds. I don't see how her writing a letter of appeal will change this unless the letter is offensive in some obvious way, which I doubt that it will be.

Mirai didn't get assigned to Worlds either

My bad feelings never fail me. Such a wrong feeling to be correct.

 

[ks777]

so wrong. Mirai deserved to go to worlds.

 

[MK's Winter]

so wrong. Mirai deserved to go to worlds.

I was devastated to read that. Only 4CC?! That was a slap in the face.

 

[b-man]

Mirai needs to find a way of getting out of this chickenshit federation and skate for another country. The US Fed has screwed over her before and is doing it again. She did eveything they wanted, jumped through every hoop, won GP medals for the Fed every year the last four years, she places in the top three. She is supposedly passed over because Wagner has a better body of work. If that is an issue, Mirai has ten times the body of work as Edmunds. And Edmunds should be out if anyone. There is no sense in her even trying, the Fed will find a way of screwing over her. She has done far more for this Fed than they have ever done for her. As a once proud American, I will be pulling for the Japanese, Korean and Russian ladies at Sochi, not the US team.

 

[b-man]

If its true she is assigned to 4CC only, I wish she would turn it down. She won't of course. She is like a puppet on a string. Either adhere to the arbitrary and capricious draconian USFS rulings, or quit. My guess is her family would prefer she quit, but Mirai still loves skating and she is still good. What a waste.

 

[Nadia01]

i had thought this is one of the great things about sport--is that in spite of "four failed years," an athlete can turn it around by delivering under spotlights and pressure in competition. otherwise, what is the point of even holding the event? but of course, ashley's corporate sponsorships and all the money riding on her name for USFSA... shrugs.

She could've made the team if she'd reclaimed the title, but she didn't. I think she would've been on the team if she'd been even 2nd. But not 3rd w/ Ashley 4th.

BTW -- there's a reason why Ashley has sponsorship $ and Mirai doesn't. And sadly, it's also due to what Mirai has (or hasn't) done since Vancouver.

 

[Nadia01]

OK, now they are really ganging up on Mirai. In pairs they put Denney and Coughlin on the worlds team, In men's they replaced Jason Brown with Max Aaron -- nothing for Mirai?

She got 4CC...

But my guess is that one of the girls assigned to the worlds may W/D, letting Mirai go instead.

 

[tulosai]

She got 4CC...

But my guess is that one of the girls assigned to the worlds may W/D, letting Mirai go instead.

Why would any of them WD? Wagner's not going to WD. She will have a high chance of a medal at worlds with the retirements, ditto Gracie. I also think Wagner will feel some responsibility to try to help us keep 3 spots. The only way I see her not going is if she medals at Sochi and decides to retire. Even then, I think that she'd go.

And Polina's going to go soak up the experience as she should. Mirai is out barring injury, I'm sorry.