|
Post by Lee on Jan 1, 2005 18:15:35 GMT -5
Erm.... okay. I'm not going to touch that. I never like Sandhu. I'm waiting for the next great champion from Canada Total agree with you.
|
|
|
Post by TennisHack on Jan 1, 2005 18:31:49 GMT -5
LOL, I completely missed this til I saw Lee replying to it I thought they broke up after the big scandal in 2002...guess not ;D
|
|
|
Post by The Chloe on Jan 1, 2005 18:33:32 GMT -5
I like them, but probably only because they look cute ;D
|
|
|
Post by The Chloe on Jan 1, 2005 18:35:50 GMT -5
I never like Sandhu. I'm waiting for the next great champion from Canada Buttle isn't going to be the next Kurt or whatever, but he is pretty good and has a reasonable shot at beating Eman at the Canadians. Problem is that he flopped so badly at Canadians that I fear he could do it again. It will be interesting he does though, because with Sandhu and Buttle, Canada stands a reasonable shot of doing well enough at Worlds to get three slots for Italy in 2006. With Ben we really don't have that chance, imo . So it would be interesting to see if Skate Canada would send Buttle or Sandhu over Ben, if Ben comes in second and one of them third again. Last year they didn't do it, but there is more on the line now.
|
|
|
Post by Jasper on Jan 2, 2005 23:35:18 GMT -5
I saw the final from Beijing and yes, Joubert does seem to have a more complete program than last year. But he just didn't land his jumps cleanly at all. And by the end, he looked tired.
I've only seen three of Sandhu's performances but I am yet to see him not fuck up majorly. The commentators, however, go on and on about how amazing he can be when he's on and when he's focused and that he could callenge Plushenko at his best, but I'm yet to see it.
Buttle was the new skater I was most impressed by. Great spins and stuff. Whoo, I really know a lot about this sport!
Too bad that Arakawa is skating so horribly right now. Pressure!
I sort of like this new scoring system. Less numbers for me to worry about.
Looks like ESPN has some more coverage on the 8th. A couple of exhibitions (or something like that) and then another replay of the Paris event. I only saw Weir's performance there so I'll watch again this time for Joubert and friends.
|
|
|
Post by The Chloe on Jan 3, 2005 1:29:22 GMT -5
I saw the final from Beijing and yes, Joubert does seem to have a more complete program than last year. But he just didn't land his jumps cleanly at all. And by the end, he looked tired. Too much time with Miss France, maybe I don't really like his 1492 (er, is that even the right year?) program, but it's getting better. I liked his matrix from last year better, but maybe because I saw him perform it so well. He tends to peak around worlds, so hopefully the best is yet to come. Plushy's coach... I forget the guys name... last year was taping Sandhu at the Canadians, apparently :red: Apparently he considers Sandhu to be a much bigger threat that Joubert, or whoever else. And you know, if Sandhu had the mentality of a champion, he would probably have something to worry about. He's more annoying than Sasha Cohen in the "you'd be soooo good, if, if if!" stakes If I'm not mistaken, he was actually ballerina and worked with the national ballet here at some point in his life, so he has that going for him. I really like Buttle, yay! I love his long program. Technically he's not strong, with his jumps and blah (I am also a figure skating expert, as you can see ), but he's SO good with everything else (I am an expert for sure!) that he can make up points that way. It won't be enough to beat Pluschenko, but it's enough to place high. He said he's working on a quad for the worlds, so we'll see. I won't see her program until next week, since CBC spit the competition in half and didn't show women on New years. I don't suppose you saw Joannie Rochette? She was the bronze medalist. It actually has way way more numbers, we just don't see those when we watch on TV... I can post them here if you want your mind to be boggled ;D
|
|
|
Post by Jasper on Jan 3, 2005 2:00:29 GMT -5
Too much time with Miss France, maybe I don't really like his 1492 (er, is that even the right year?) program, but it's getting better. I liked his matrix from last year better, but maybe because I saw him perform it so well. He tends to peak around worlds, so hopefully the best is yet to come. 1492 as in the year Colombus sailed the ocean blue (this is the first year we Americans are taught to memorize). I didn't know that that was his program theme but it makes sense with the map outfit thing. His outfits are definitely creative. Yeah, with his experience in dancing you could see why he has the potential to be great. Our commentators were saying that he wants to have the perfect performance but if he messes up early with a jump, he almost wants to get off the ice right away and therefore loses focus after that and his performance just gets worse and worse, technically. He doesn't know how to persevere and win at not his best form or after mistakes like the great champions do. Hopefully he can change that mentality in the future that but he is considered an older skater, no, and time is running out for him? Oh god, I'm not looking forward to all the Sasha hype starting up again. We're subjected to it so much over here, but I guess it's hard to escape no matter where you go. And I heard that she ditched the Sarah Hughes Gold Medal coach and went back to her old one. Big surprise. Yeah, he's definitely cool to watch for his artistry and stuff that many other skaters don't possess, since they focus more on technical components like jumps. That's good that he's trying to become more complete and adding the quad to his program. I think the commentators said that he won something without nailing a single quad and he didn't attempt one in the final of the Grand Prix, either. Yeah, I did see her here and also her performance in Paris. She was better in France and seemed tired in Beijing. Most likely from all of her skating recently (she didn't expect to have qualified for the final, after all) but the commentators speculated that she could have been fatigued from nerves. She was sort of sloppy with her jumps and I think may have fallen once. I wish I could remember more about her performances - what she does well and what she needs to work on - but honestly the thing that stands out in my memory is her arms. She's buff (so helpful, I know). I guess we'll be seeing more of her in the future. Oh yes, I'm sure there are plenty of numbers but as a viewer, I appreciate not seeing them all. The final totals are enough for me. ;D
|
|
|
Post by The Chloe on Jan 3, 2005 2:38:14 GMT -5
1492 as in the year Colombus sailed the ocean blue (this is the first year we Americans are taught to memorize). I didn't know that that was his program theme but it makes sense with the map outfit thing. His outfits are definitely creative. Yes yes, that's what he's skating too. 1492. His old costume had ropes and fake sails and stuff. I don't like the new outfit so much. Er, there is probably something wrong with Colombus being the first year you guys are expected to memorize, considering the ramifications of that voyage Not that we didn't learn about him here Yeah, he's a perfectionist, and if something goes wrong he might as well just leave the ice That has really been his downfall. Buttle is definitely better than him there, but then, maybe Buttle has gotten used to falling ;D I think that Eman is 24, so while he's not washed up, he might want to consider getting it together soon Well, I quite like Sasha, but I suppose the hype would be annoying. Frankly, I don't think she'll ever be as good as she "could be" either. He and Weir have both won without quads this year. I can't remember who Jeff beat when he won the Grand Prix event in China (not the final), but Weir beat Brian who may have landed a quad? I don't remember if he fluffed it or not. They both get so many points in areas that Brian can't max out, so if Brian isn't totally solid on his jumps, it will be hard for him to beat either of them Her and the Canadian champ from last year, Cynthia Phaneuf. I'm hoping they work out okay... it would be nice to have good ladies skaters Cynthia was only 16 when she won the nationals last year, but didn't go to worlds... they decided to send her to juniors instead. But, despite her flop at the Grand Prix final, she had a pretty good debut season.
|
|
|
Post by Kiro on Jan 3, 2005 6:44:38 GMT -5
To be honest...I do think that figure skating now is not as good as those several years ago, around 97~98. I said in the Chat thread that Evgeny Platov has been my hero since 1994. Oksana Grishuk and him were the best ice dancing pair I've ever seen. They won the 94 Winter Olympics, and after that, they didn't lose any tournament they went to. They won all the World Championships, European Championships. In 1998 they won the Olympics again, the competition was close then and they were not in the top place after the composed and original dances, but their free dance program was so strong and stunning and it brought them the second Olympics title. They can do every kind of dances on ice very easily, waltz, tango, paso doble, rumba, even rock & roll and tap dance. Their dance was so strong and beautiful. Sorry but I really don't think B/K from Canada could compare to them. Neither could any ice dancing pairs nowadays. And about men's, I like Ilia Kulik very much. He's got great talent, his jump is always great to watch, and he's got great touch in artistic performance too. Joubert's performance in GP Final Beijing was not good. His short program was a disaster, he fell on almost every jump. The free skating was a little better, but he's not confident at all in his jumps. And he fell in the Gala too. One reason I dislike Joubert is that he copied too much actions from Yagudin (before Yagudin became his coach) and it seems that he's quite comfortable with it. OK, maybe Yagudin himself doesn't mind, but I hate to see Joubert performing the paces Yagudin had been doing. I don't like Sandhu either, he's way too sissy in his performance. And he's lack of stability. About Weir...he needs more strength in his programs too. And he'd better try to do a quadruple jump. Buttle got some good results before, and then has been having some injuries. He's ok, I hope he can have some better programs, more suitable for his image. (Don't beat me Rebecca... )
|
|
|
Post by Jasper on Jan 3, 2005 22:31:48 GMT -5
Yes yes, that's what he's skating too. 1492. His old costume had ropes and fake sails and stuff. I don't like the new outfit so much. Er, there is probably something wrong with Colombus being the first year you guys are expected to memorize, considering the ramifications of that voyage Not that we didn't learn about him here Will he be doing the 1492 performance again at Europeans and Worlds? Tell me about it. Colombus Day is such a joke. But when you're in kindergarten or first grade or whatever, the teachers only tell you of how wonderful he was discovering an uncharted land. Okay. Ouch. Sounds like Joubert isn't loving this new scoring system.
|
|
|
Post by Jasper on Jan 3, 2005 22:35:17 GMT -5
One reason I dislike Joubert is that he copied too much actions from Yagudin (before Yagudin became his coach) and it seems that he's quite comfortable with it. OK, maybe Yagudin himself doesn't mind, but I hate to see Joubert performing the paces Yagudin had been doing. Sounds like he's been recieving quite a bit of criticism for this.
|
|
|
Post by Kiro on Jan 3, 2005 23:21:33 GMT -5
BTW, I don't know if you are familiar with internet hub or P2P software... www.rinkside.org/Install DCplusplus and you can download tons of figure skating videos here
|
|
|
Post by Kiro on Jan 3, 2005 23:35:03 GMT -5
Well, this season Joubert's not performing well in his short programs, and this costed him much. I think his best performance was the free skating at French Grand Prix. Actually, the new scoring system is not bad for him, as long as he can do those jumps clean and complete his program successfully. But it seems that he's not confident in his jumps right now. Once he makes a small mistake, he loses concentration and makes more mistakes.
Anyway, 2005 won't be a big year for figure skating. I think everybody's concentrating on 2006 Olympics.
|
|
|
Post by Kiro on Jan 3, 2005 23:39:18 GMT -5
lol, talking about men's, it looks like we have some quite different point of view...I don't want Plushy to retire now...IMO right now he's the only one interesting to watch.
|
|
|
Post by The Chloe on Jan 4, 2005 1:21:39 GMT -5
One reason I dislike Joubert is that he copied too much actions from Yagudin (before Yagudin became his coach) and it seems that he's quite comfortable with it. OK, maybe Yagudin himself doesn't mind, but I hate to see Joubert performing the paces Yagudin had been doing. .... (Don't beat me Rebecca... ) The only problem I have with any of your criticism is this. How can you still accuse him of "copying" Yags, when Yags is the one who is helping choreograph his bloody program?!?! To say that he's "copying" Yags is just not the right word. I'm not entirely sure what is the right word, but that isn't it. Loads of people on FSU say the same thing, and I'm sorry, but I find it ridiculous. Before he hooked up with Yags the criticism was the same. For starters, he has the same general style and body shape as Yagudin. Also, the same guy who put together some of Yags footwork also did Brian's. DING DING. There is a big reason why Brian "copied" Yags. Because his choreographers and advisors TOLD him to
|
|
|
Post by The Chloe on Jan 4, 2005 1:39:53 GMT -5
Sorry. That post was a result of built up frustration over seeing what you said, Kiro, again and again over on FSU and not saying anything about it. Nothing personal
|
|
|
Post by Kiro on Jan 4, 2005 3:22:58 GMT -5
Sorry. That post was a result of built up frustration over seeing what you said, Kiro, again and again over on FSU and not saying anything about it. Nothing personal Sorry Becca, I know it's frustrating, but I didn't mean to make you angry... We share some common ideas on tennis, but it seems that we're holding totally different opinions on FS
|
|
|
Post by TennisHack on Jan 4, 2005 3:29:17 GMT -5
Unfortunately I have nothing to add to this conversation but its been very interesting. I agree that it seems everyone is working towards the 06 Games, which could be interesting in the pairs domains (skating and ice dancing). The singles, as per usual, seems more dominated by one or two major figures. BTW, ESPN did a little fluff piece on Joubert and I think its hilarious that he's dating Miss France Mostly because of all the talk here about how he looks prepubescent
|
|
|
Post by The Chloe on Jan 4, 2005 4:05:00 GMT -5
He doesn't look prepubescent Oh, you mean from the neck UP? Yeah, sometimes ;D
|
|
|
Post by The Chloe on Jan 9, 2005 17:06:07 GMT -5
US Championships are this week. Keep your eye open, Hackie and Leo! Well, if you care about your national champs. I do ;D Go Weir! Go Sasha!
|
|
|
Post by Jasper on Jan 9, 2005 17:18:43 GMT -5
US Championships are this week. Keep your eye open, Hackie and Leo! Well, if you care about your national champs. I do ;D Go Weir! Go Sasha! I do, I do! Last night on ESPN they replayed Grand Prix Paris (not sure why) so I got to refresh my memory on Rochette and also see Joubert and Weir again, which was barrels of fun. And I noticed that we have coverage of US Nationals this week - I think it starts Thursday. Can't wait!
|
|
|
Post by Lee on Jan 9, 2005 18:48:16 GMT -5
Saw Weir last night on ESPN. Even he won, I was not impressed by his long program. Too plain, nothing exciting. I rather saw all those fall and 2 handed landing by Sandhu LOL, that guy really knows how to choke.
|
|
|
Post by The Chloe on Jan 9, 2005 19:04:36 GMT -5
The Canadian's won't be held far from here, and the junior worlds will only be 20 minutes away... but my work load this semester is crazy
|
|
|
Post by Jasper on Jan 9, 2005 22:38:47 GMT -5
Saw Weir last night on ESPN. Even he won, I was not impressed by his long program. Too plain, nothing exciting. I rather saw all those fall and 2 handed landing by Sandhu LOL, that guy really knows how to choke. I thought the end of Weir's performance was amazing with the straight-line footwork and spins. And he may not have had any quads, but he did complete one triple-triple.
|
|
|
Post by Jasper on Jan 9, 2005 22:39:21 GMT -5
The Canadian's won't be held far from here, and the junior worlds will only be 20 minutes away... but my work load this semester is crazy There's always time for figure skating!
|
|
|
Post by Lee on Jan 10, 2005 4:18:23 GMT -5
I thought the end of Weir's performance was amazing with the straight-line footwork and spins. And he may not have had any quads, but he did complete one triple-triple. For footwork, I still have to find someone who can beat Kurt Browning. The spin is... nice, but just spin
|
|
|
Post by The Chloe on Jan 13, 2005 22:32:36 GMT -5
US National Champs started today... well, the parts that matter did ;D Did you guys want me to hold off posting results until it's shown on TV this weekend? I'm cool with that
|
|
|
Post by TennisHack on Jan 13, 2005 22:53:10 GMT -5
US National Champs started today... well, the parts that matter did ;D Did you guys want me to hold off posting results until it's shown on TV this weekend? I'm cool with that Nope, I don't really care since I'm not big on American skating
|
|
|
Post by The Chloe on Jan 13, 2005 22:55:26 GMT -5
I'll wait to see what lee and leo say, so that I don't ruin it for them The mens SP is done and the women are just getting started on theirs
|
|
|
Post by Lee on Jan 13, 2005 22:57:15 GMT -5
No problem for me. I hate tape delay ;D
|
|