I don't think you're allowed to skip the WTT to do shows. It's one thing for V/T to manufacture an excuse and claim they're injured or too exhausted or whatever and quite another to basically say, the rules don't apply to us. If that's what they're doing, the ISU will not be pleased with them. As far as I can tell, the only other medalists who aren't going are the injured Hanyu and S/S, whose country did not qualify.
Golden411 basically explained this while I was typing my post, but the brief version is that the ISU is the governing body for skating, and you either play by their rules or you don't play at all. V/T are certainly allowed to miss the WTT - but they are not allowed to skate in shows between April 2nd and April 23rd. As you can see, the WTT announcement is very clear on this.
The ISU would like to think of them as emplyees.
Actually, although skaters can do as they please, as Golden41 posted, the ISU does have control over which skaters are allowed to compete in ISU events like the Grand Prix, Worlds, and the Olympics. The rule is that if a top ten skater does not skate at this event for any reason, then that skater cannot do any shows or exhibitions during the time period that the World Team Trophy is going on (or between Worlds and the Team Trophy). What the ISU holds over the skaters' heads if they do it anyway, is that the skaters can't go to worlds next year, or something like that. The ISU can also punish the skaters' national federation in various ways if the federation cannot coerce the sdkaters to comply.
Whether they would enforce this rule or not, I don't know. In the past Michelle Kwan and Evgeny Plushenko were both warned about skipping Grand Prix events. In one case Plushenko was schedule to do an exhibition in St. Petersburg, but the ISU/Russian Federation made him withdraw and jus send a tape of himn skating to be played over the jumpbotron.
In Michelle's case, the cheesefest that she was scheduled for took plce just after the Grand Prix Final, so she was technically OK andfd the IDSU did not pursue the matter.
This is important to the ISU because it means money. The Japanese television networks that are paying out millions of dollars for this event will not be happy if the ISU does not send the top skaters.
I think the show that Plush was forbidden to do the last minute was Prague AOI or sth close to it, not RUssia
I m surprised Adelina got in the team, I didnt know she could anyway, but at this point she is a great choice, thats a slap for Polina K. though...
USA team is out?
Did you read the Morosov interview post worlds? He is talking about I/K and that he is happy with their placement cause it showed which is truly the Russian No1 dance team right now outside russia, emphasizing the fact that there wasnt a russian judge in ice dance pannel and that helped. Maybe RF got the note?
hwell:
There were rumors that Mishin didn't want any of his students to go, he later changed his mind about Gachinski (or RFSF convinced him), but not about Liza, guess they decided to finish the season for her. And Adelina has higher placement at World Standing than Liza anyway
