Julias biggest problem was having any triples triples or more than two triples and not having great PCS!
Not landing her triple-triples or having them to begin with? Her PCS was ten points less than Mao's, which was where she lost significant ground, but she has time to improve.
Definitely doing the 3/3 - she could have maximized GOE on a 3/2 or 3 jump combo. Not 3/3 but 3/2/2 or 2/2/2. That is what Julia was doing as a junior and it was smart! She needs to go back to being smart! What skating world is her coach where the world champions are doing triple lutz triple toes the past few years.
It's interesting you mentioned doing doubles - Julia herself talked about it in her post-competition interview. She said her problem is that she isn't good at doing double jumps - they turn out strange when she does them and that was the reason she went for the triple at the end of both of her combos despite problems with the first jump. Very unusual.Definitely doing the 3/3 - she could have maximized GOE on a 3/2 or 3 jump combo. Not 3/3 but 3/2/2 or 2/2/2. That is what Julia was doing as a junior and it was smart! She needs to go back to being smart! What skating world is her coach where the world champions are doing triple lutz triple toes the past few years.
Is the triple lutz-triple toe not one of the hardest combinations around? I remember the Vancouver commentators saying that Yuna's attempt was the most difficult combo in the entire ladies' field, and that was with Mao's triple axels around.
It's interesting you mentioned doing doubles - Julia herself talked about it in her post-competition interview. She said her problem is that she isn't good at doing double jumps - they turn out strange when she does them and that was the reason she went for the triple at the end of both of her combos despite problems with the first jump. Very unusual.
I LOVE Oksana's Swan Lake SP (one of my all-time favourites), but if we're talking about footwork here, Oksana's steps in that SP are much too simple to be considered a "step sequence" under the standards of CoP today. Even by 94 standards her footwork was quite weak...wasn't her step sequence basically all 3-turns in a single direction?
Oksana Baiul's 1994 EX was not to Swan Lake, it was "The Swan" by Camille Saint-Saëns
I clearly respect and recognize the right of others to dispute Mao's win, since that's what makes this forum such a lively and interesting place.
...(edit)
Do not attempt to condescend or put words in my mouth--I never, ever suggested that it is "only okay for people to dispute victories that also dispute."
I was just thinking of her when she was a junior and it was all 2A+3T+2T and 2a+3T and there was no 3lz-3T and no 3/2/2 of any kind or 3/3.
By saying that Mao's win is "indisputable," actually, I don't think you ARE clearly respecting and recognizing the right of others to dispute Mao's win. By saying it's indisputable you're saying that people can't dispute it! That was what really bothered me; as you can see, I did not challenge others who also felt Mao should've won and I clearly said I saw the argument for why Mao did win. Why accuse me of condescending when it was YOUR post that declared Mao's win indisputable? I'm just disputing your statement when you said it's indisputable.
I see. I thought you meant her going for 3Lz2T instead of 3Lz3T, but I see what you mean now. I guess her 3Lz3T was solid enough in practice that they included it into the programs. Her coach mentioned that Julia was doing this combo in practice already last season, but they didn't want to do it in competitions yet. Maybe they thought she'll need a harder combo even to compete within Russia as both Adelina and Liza were doing difficult triple-triples last year. Also, doing 3Lz3T in SP allowed her to be in first after the short program here.
I can see how going for the lutz toe combo can also be for competition in Russia as well getting it for international events. Even if she did what was usual for SPs last season which was 3t+3t she probably wouldn't have beaten Mao in the SP. But as a junior she switched from 3/3 in the SP to no 3/3 in the FS. The coach thinks she needs 3lz 3toe as a senior I guess and no going back.
In fact, at this point, I think you're the one disrespecting my right to post my opinions, all because the diction was easily misunderstood and you felt it was necessary to attack me outright rather than clarify my meaning first.
I think that Julia does need the triple-triple, since it can get massive marks if done cleanly and maybe compensate for her shortcomings in the PCS. Just to use a few examples--Elizaveta, Gracie, and Adelina are all attempting triple-triples in their programs this season. Gracie has had them up and running since her junior competitions. I've seen Julia land the triple-triple (she did so at the Finlandia Trophy), so she is definitely capable of doing so. It seems to me that she had the same issue with nerves that a lot of the other teenagers have been having.
Getting back on topic, I think Julia will be fine. A silver in her senior debut is great, and I am impressed with the fact that she upgraded her combos in the SP and FS to harder ones this season. She's one of the few skaters to do so. There are valid concerns about the height of her jumps, especially her axel, but it's too soon to predict what will happen there. She, Adelina, and Elizaveta are certainly formidable competitors, and it's really exciting watching them compete and grow and develop as skaters.
If Julia has low jumps now, at 14, what will happen to her jumps when she grows/fills out? She gets little flowout from her jumps now, and that cuts down on her ice coverage. If and when she hits that leggy coltish stage, I can see that she may have a real problem adjusting.
chuckm said:If Julia has low jumps now, at 14, what will happen to her jumps when she grows/fills out? She gets little flowout from her jumps now, and that cuts down on her ice coverage. If and when she hits that leggy coltish stage, I can see that she may have a real problem adjusting.
Yes, it's sad beacuse she reminds me of C. Zhang: bad technique (especially in axel and lutz/flip), tiny body... I'm not saying this WILL happen, but just that she MIGHT lose some of them or become less constant in landing them... Yes, I'm not really worried about Liza growing: her technique (especially in the lutz) is almost perfect, so her problems should be temporary!That's pretty much what I thought too... although I don't think all of her jumps might be trouble. Her 3T is really good, she gets good spring into it - the only thing I'm wondering about is that tiny 2A. It's just a wait and see thing, I don't think Julia will completly lose her jumps or something, just that she will need some time getting used to body changes like a lot of skaters have. All of these discussions about body type and how unlikely it was for her to change much didn't stop Liza from growing out (although with that jumping technique, I'm not worried for Liza at all!).
And to be fair, while Julia never has good flow out of most of her jumps, it was really not her day at CoC. It's rather remarkable how she still landed everything.
On the other hand, I found a blog post where the writer was kind of complaining about Julia having pre-rotations on her 3Lz and 3F. Now I'm far from being an expert, but things like that don't make her technique look better to me at all.
Yes, it's sad beacuse she reminds me of C. Zhang: bad technique (especially in axel and lutz/flip), tiny body... I'm not saying this WILL happen, but just that she MIGHT lose some of them or become less constant in landing them... Yes, I'm not really worried about Liza growing: her technique (especially in the lutz) is almost perfect, so her problems should be temporary!
It was done in Finlandia so she can do it and only doing it will make it consistent maybe for the next GP but her PCS is not likely to improve and she may face better skaters with better PCS AND better jumps than Mao. So they really need to be good - perfect in a every way because everyone knows what kind of jumps she can lose a competition to if she is not flawless and perfection would be the only way to beat Wagner or Gao or Tuktamisheva.