2014 Olympics Mens Free Skate

[yuki]

It seems Daisuke was invited to the Gala!! :yay:

It would have been such a shame if he wouldn't have been there!

Really? That's great news! :yay::agree:

With all the Yuzuru/Patrick debacle, I'd almost forgotten how much I enjoyed Daisuke's LP. It may not be one of his best programs, but he looked so calm and at peace out there and his smile during the step sequence at the end was so genuine. I'm glad we get to see him one more time in Sochi.

 

[Olympia]

It seems Daisuke was invited to the Gala!! :yay:

It would have been such a shame if he wouldn't have been there!

REALLY? That would be such good news. What a splendid gesture, if it's true.

 

[MaiKatze]

It seems Daisuke was invited to the Gala!! :yay:

It would have been such a shame if he wouldn't have been there!

What a gift! Thank you, Gala organizers!

 

[karne]

I imagine the only reason they did it was because Plushy can't.

Should've picked Jason.

 

[daydreamangel]

I love to see Dai skate one last time at the Olympics. It''s sad that an injury robbed him of the chance at a podium finish

 

[Crylais]

It seems Daisuke was invited to the Gala!! :yay:

It would have been such a shame if he wouldn't have been there!

Do you know who else is invited to Gala? I keep missing out on the Galas...

 

[sweetskates1]

:yay:

It seems Daisuke was invited to the Gala!! :yay:

It would have been such a shame if he wouldn't have been there!

 

[demarinis5]

I imagine the only reason they did it was because Plushy can't.

Should've picked Jason.

I can think of a few more reasons.

 

[Silvia451]

I can think of a few more reasons.

:yes::yes::yes:

 

[Meoima]

Of course he didn't cry there, he didn't have Winnie the Pooh with him.

On a second thoughts, I would love to see Plushenko train Hanyu. If this kid moves to Plushenko, we would have a chances seeing Plushenko the king carrying around a Winnie the Pooh tissue box. I would pay any price to see that happens.

 

[Frenchie]

Missing him an awful lot and realizing "this was it" made me enjoy Brian Joubert's program a lot, despite the flaws. 10th or 13th won't really make a big difference to him, but if he hadn't wobbled at the beginning of his final spin, he'd have finished 10th instead of 13th.

Here's the moment where it hit him that it's all over now, a reporter asks him about his mom, and he starts to cry.

"I'm pretty happy with these Olympics. The SP was great, and the FS... the beginning was good with 2 quads! But that killed me for the rest of the program. I had nothing left, no more "juice", my legs were shaking. It was pretty tough but I'm really happy."
Q: Emotionally, you're starting the first minutes of the rest of your life as a retiree. When you saluted the crowd, you seemed "elsewhere". What was going through your mind?
-Starts to cry
"I was moved. The Russian public has always been cool with me. I'll see them again in exhibitions, but it'll be different.
And then I think about my family."
- Really difficult for him to keep talking.
"They have always supported me and I say to them "thank you"."
- The reporter sees there's an opening for more tears and mentions his mom who couldn't be here. She gets what she wanted. Really emotional, gutwrenching.
He can't answer.
She asks one last question: "Will we see you again as a pair skater?"
"I need time. I need to rest. I have a character that's not easy. So I don't know if I'd find a good partner." (Philippe Candeloro says "If you want you and me can skate together" - thankfully, I don't think Brian heard it.)
He just ends with "je vous embrasse tous". (I hug you all)

That was emotional, you should all watch it, even if you don't speak french. A great guy leaves the scene.

Brian has really been put through so much crap by Gailhaguet (withdrawing him from this season's GP events without even informing him, criticizing his every move, ...) and the French media have had unrealistic expectations and were really nasty at times too.
When he said "j'ai besoin de me reposer" (I need to rest), he really sounded like a traumatized sad pile of misery. He's such a proud guy, to break like this in front of cameras must really mean he was exhausted. Mentally more than physically.
He's awesome and has always kept it classy, one thing that Gailhaguet - probably the next ISU president - doesn't even know how to spell. :no:

I just clicked on the link again, and youtube said "this has IOC content and therefore has been blocked". Seriously??? Anyway, here's another one.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsPQp7mx2tE

 

[Silvia451]

On a second thoughts, I would love to see Plushenko train Hanyu. If this kid moves to Plushenko, we would have a chances seeing Plushenko the king carrying around a Winnie the Pooh tissue box. I would pay any price to see that happens.

This made my day. Actually, sometimes it's funny to see Brian with Winnie.
http://i57.tinypic.com/23ws51k.jpg

 

[Icey]

With Chan , I thought I had mistaking tuned in to a reshowing of his skate at Vancouver.

It was heart breaking to see Joubert break down.

 

[SGrand]

I wish they had more rest between the Sp and the Fs then maybe we would have had better results. Maybe they should do the short dance after the men's sp then have the men do the fs. Imagine how much better it would be with some rest.

AMEN to this!!!

 

[emma]

I would be thrilled if Dai skates in the exhibition!!! fingers crossed!

 

[Li'Kitsu]

Do you know who else is invited to Gala? I keep missing out on the Galas...

The top 6 guys: Yuzuru Hanyu, Patrick Chan, Denis Ten, Javier Fernandez, Tatsuki Machida and Daisuek Takahashi. Can't say anythign about the pairs though

 

[pangtongfan]

With Chan , I thought I had mistaking tuned in to a reshowing of his skate at Vancouver.

It was heart breaking to see Joubert break down.

Chan actually skated a much better LP in Vancouver. One fall and a 2nd smaller mistake and that was it, and a better choreographed program than his zzzzz Four Seasons. Vancouver was just a much better skated event than this one, and that is also back when the judges actually scored him properly (prior to 2011) rather than the 15% unofficial Chan bonus in scores (aka inflation).

 

[Layfan]

With Chan , I thought I had mistaking tuned in to a reshowing of his skate at Vancouver.

It was heart breaking to see Joubert break down.

He broke down? when? I watched his program but I think I may have not watched him in the kiss and cry.

 

[Orange Cat]

It seems Daisuke was invited to the Gala!! :yay:

It would have been such a shame if he wouldn't have been there!

:yay: indeed!! This has made my day even when Dai's jumps are off he is amazing to watch. Ain't no one right now who can match his musicality and his ability to dance! (Well, possibly Jason, if you give him a bit of time, but Dai is my sentimental favourite)

 

[sgsmozart]

There are a lot of standout performances from the 'old days' that I love, that are timeless, but a lot of it was pretty boring for me.
I think there is definite room for improvement in the judging system, but a return to old methods would put me to sleep. Plushenko-style 'stillness' on the ice nearly had me throwing popcorn at the TV. I'm interested to see if points and deductions will change in the future though.

Although this is not a technical program, it illustrates the element of style that now is totally missing in skating. Look at her arm and free leg positions, the feeling of "floating through the air".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlenY92HjlA