What happened to the US Ladies?

[pangtongfan]

Yes that is true. I can just picture it now, Sasha Cohen lands only 2 clean triples in free skate, either flutzing, two footing, or popping the other ones, but NBC promotes she deserved atleast a bronze due to her superior grace, line, spins, and spins it into a major scandal which U.S viewers and press just eat up and run with.

 

[Olympia]

Had Sasha gone to the Olympics in the shape she was in at Nationals she probably would have finished around 12th. NBC would have had huge ratings though from guillable stupid fans who watched just to see Sasha "go for the gold" (ROTFL) so they would have won. So I fully understand the agenda for wanting washed up old never a champion even in her prime Cohen on the Olympic team. The agenda for Flatt's unrelenting popularity up to now with the USFSA and U.S judges is another matter though.

I would have watched, and I'm not too stupid. I would have watched because I like Sasha's skating, which has a lot more character to it than that of many of our current contenders (my apologies to them, but there it is). She may never have been a champion, but she was on the podium regularly, almost consistently, and that beats pretty much everyone else who was on the ladies' Olympic team in 2010. She wouldn't have medaled, and that would have been justifiable, given the top four performances. But like Stephane Lambiel over on the men's side, she would have given a memorable performance. JMO.

 

[Tinymavy15]

Had Sasha gone to the Olympics in the shape she was in at Nationals she probably would have finished around 12th. NBC would have had huge ratings though from guillable stupid fans who watched just to see Sasha "go for the gold" (ROTFL) so they would have won. So I fully understand the agenda for wanting washed up old never a champion even in her prime Cohen on the Olympic team. The agenda for Flatt's unrelenting popularity up to now with the USFSA and U.S judges is another matter though.

I can't even re-watch that fresskate from Sasha. It broke my heart, she was a mere shell of what she had been. As a big sasha fan I can say she was greatly overmarked, i guess in the hope that she would end up on the podium if anyone else made major mistakes. As pangtongfan said, the month or less between nationals and olympics would still not have given her enough time to porperly prepare, never mind the olympic pressure and the result would have been disastrous.

As for Flatt, USFSA champions her because she is a good american girl, and like the Hughes sisters did, has a life outside skating. She is smart but never cocky or rude to reporters, like the Hughes girls she comes from a "good family" and her consistency didn't hurt. After she won her 1st title the push was on to make her a two-time champion and finally re-create a champion figure that would dominate ladies skating from year to year.

 

[Olympia]

Do you really think it would have been disastrous, Mavy? Maybe I'm naive, but I thought she might be able to relax a bit and at least skate an interesting program. I suppose I'm deluding myself, but in any case I don't have to find out, because we had two clean programs from U.S. girls in a final that was marvelous for just about everyone participating. So if you are correct, at least we didn't have to watch a heartbreaker. We can go back to her wonderful Salt Lake City short program to "Sentimental Waltz." (One of my favorites of her entire output.)

What you say about Flatt sounds right and convincing to me. And it's not as if they found her on the ground somewhere. She was the World Junior Champion and was very promising, so the USFSA had good reason to notice and promote her. She is indeed a fine example of a scholar-athlete, and she's generally cool under pressure. And from all I hear, she's a hard worker, which I gather neither Mirai nor Caroline is, these days at least. I'm sorry she hasn't had a more stellar international career, but she's done her country proud inasmuch as she's been able to. I suspect that her best days (in terms of achievement and success) lie ahead, after her skating career is over. Dr. Flatt will be an asset to some research-based branch of science, perhaps, or some other academic field.