If you could change one Olympic moment... | Page 7 | Golden Skate

If you could change one Olympic moment...

Ballade88

On the Ice
Joined
Apr 19, 2017
Welcome to the forums! It would have been great to see Mao win Sochi, but I think having no pressure in the LP helped her skate freer. I would have liked to see Michelle win in Nagano, too, but I'm not sure if the Nationals program would have done it. She did win the US judge's ordinal in Nagano, so I'm not sure which two of Tara's judges she could have flipped given the difficulty of Lipinski's programs. 5.8's across the board for technical merit would have done it for Kwan, but I'm not sure that the judges wouldn't have left room for the others even had she skated like she did at Nationals. We'll never know for sure.

Thanks! :)

In my heart, those were the best outcomes. I still think the Nagano outcome was debatable.

I wouldn't say Mao had no pressure before the LP. In her recent conference, she admitted feeling a lot of pressure after the SP because she felt she couldn't end her career and go back to Japan like that. It's also not common or easy to give your best performance after a meltdown. Kostner wasn't able to do salvage her first two Olympics in her freeskates.
 
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madforskating

On the Ice
Joined
Apr 11, 2017
Well figure skating is not a jump contest and I hope the scoring system will value a program that greater than the sum of it's parts rather than individual technical achievements. I don't think landing 3 clean 3As is enough of reason to change the placements.

True but Mao was also so talented in the artistic side, especially step sequences, that I think she was robbed on PCS.
 

leoncorazon

Skating on through
On the Ice
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Feb 27, 2012
Country
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I guess we need some love for Janet Lynn...I would change her skate in 1972 to be perfect giving her a much deserved Olympic Gold Medal, go Janet!
 

skatesofgold

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Jan 14, 2014
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Well, if I can only pick one, I would go with Cohen in 2006. I found the ladies that year so underwhelming...in a matter of fact, I found it so underwhelming that I taped over all my 2006 Olympic tapes even though I was fairly happy with the men and dance.
 
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Danibellerika

Medalist
Joined
Jan 8, 2014
Well, if I can only pick one, I would go with Cohen in 2006. I found the ladies that year so underwhelming...in a matter of fact, I found it so underwhelming that I taped over all my 2006 Olympic tapes even though I was fairly happy with the men and dance.

I think I watched Sasha's free skate only once ever. And it was a while after she'd lost. However, the short program I can watch again and again. I remember vividly being at my computer refreshing for results and then when I saw she was silver...ugh.
 

Skatingcat

Final Flight
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Jan 10, 2014
Michelle would have a gold medal from Nagano.

(and she would have been healthy enough to compete in Torino).
 

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
Kurt Browning - 1994 Olympics SP. Nothing else has come close in my lifetime. :sad21:

I was also sad about Michelle Kwan in 2002 - but she at least has 2 Olympic medals. If Kurt had just been clean in the SP, he would have at least won bronze in 1994.

I think he'd have had gold. Unless the popped second Triple Axel in his Free Program (and the two foot on the flip) would've kept him from the top.
 

TontoK

Hot Tonto
Record Breaker
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Jan 28, 2013
Country
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It was. So often, it ends up being a choice between artistry and technical merit. At most Olympics, the judges seem to prefer athleticism.

There might be merit in the artistry over athleticism argument had Michelle skated with freedom and joy.

She skated cautiously and nervously at Nagano. While certainly not a disaster by any stretch, it wasn't one of her great skates. She knew it, too. You could tell in the Kiss and Cry. She left the door open. The judges had to leave room, because that performance was beatable.

Tara, meanwhile, skated with absolute abandon. I wish things had been different, but on that night, I think Tara clearly beat her.
 

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
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There might be merit in the artistry over athleticism argument had Michelle skated with freedom and joy.

She skated cautiously and nervously at Nagano. While certainly not a disaster by any stretch, it wasn't one of her great skates. She knew it, too. You could tell in the Kiss and Cry. She left the door open. The judges had to leave room, because that performance was beatable.

Tara, meanwhile, skated with absolute abandon. I wish things had been different, but on that night, I think Tara clearly beat her.

Yes, exactly. Kwan wanted gold too much and let the pressure and nerves keep her from the top in both 98 and 02.
 

jenm

The Last One Degree
Medalist
Joined
Jan 28, 2014
If Mao hadn't popped the 3T (+hadn't got an UR on her flip) it doesn't mean she would have won the OGM, or that she would have been near to Yuna's score. No offence, just saying :)

Agreed. While Mao had 3As (the most aesthetically pleasing of all 3A jumpers IMO), Yuna had stronger jumps overall (greatest Lutzes, strong flips, difficult transitions to 2A combos, etc). Also, Mao was slower back then.

But in Sochi, Mao deserved higher scores in her LP. It was definitely the best of the night, the Olympic moment.
 

sallycinnamon

Medalist
Joined
Feb 20, 2014
Agreed. While Mao had 3As (the most aesthetically pleasing of all 3A jumpers IMO), Yuna had stronger jumps overall (greatest Lutzes, strong flips, difficult transitions to 2A combos, etc). Also, Mao was slower back then.

But in Sochi, Mao deserved higher scores in her LP. It was definitely the best of the night, the Olympic moment.

True. I think Mao became a more complete skater after Vancouver.

I don't think Mao deserved a higher score in Sochi though. She still had problems with underrotations (the toe-loop and loop) and she also got an edge call on her lutz. Plus her scores were held down because she skated earlier (same for Yuna during the SP).
 

Ballade88

On the Ice
Joined
Apr 19, 2017
True. I think Mao became a more complete skater after Vancouver.

I don't think Mao deserved a higher score in Sochi though. She still had problems with underrotations (the toe-loop and loop) and she also got an edge call on her lutz. Plus her scores were held down because she skated earlier (same for Yuna during the SP).

If her scores were held down, it means she deserved a higher score imo. Skaters shouldn't be penalized for skating earlier in theory.

Also you think she deserved to get PCS lower than Adelina and Julia, the latter who had a fall? Also many other skaters got benefit of doubt when it came to rotations and edges, while Mao didn't.
 
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sallycinnamon

Medalist
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Feb 20, 2014
If her scores were held down, it means she deserved a higher score imo. Skaters shouldn't be penalized for skating earlier in theory.

Also you think she deserved to get PCS lower than Adelina and Julia, the latter who had a fall? Also many other skaters got benefit of doubt when it came to rotations and edges, while Mao didn't.

No, she didn't deserve lower PCS than the Russians.:noshake:
 

jenaj

Record Breaker
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Aug 17, 2003
Country
United-States
I guess we need some love for Janet Lynn...I would change her skate in 1972 to be perfect giving her a much deserved Olympic Gold Medal, go Janet!

I still don't think she would have won gold. She was too far back in the figures. I would change her short program in 1973 to perfect. That would have given her a World gold.
 

jenaj

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 17, 2003
Country
United-States
One of the things mentioned by Jackie and Phil Hersh during their discussion of Mao's career on Ice Talk was that they felt she was really held back by two things in 2010: her LP music (too heavy, not suited for Mao's soft style) and that the first part of the program spent too much time setting up the 3As.

I definitely agree on the music, at least. Mao's programs in 2010 were just not stunners, IMO, and while they might be the faves of some fans, discussions I've seen of Mao's greatest programs usually focus on other ones. OTOH, Yuna's 2010 programs are generally agreed to be iconic. (I'm not the biggest Gershwin LP fan tbh - I just prefer more drama or more subtlety, but that program was perfect for the Olympics, whereas my preferred Yuna programs like SITC are just too subtle and understated for major Olympic appeal).

Mao had OGM-level LPs most years, but not in 2010.

In 2010, at Vancouver, Mao made at least one mistake in her long program. I don't think the music made a difference.
 

fourthdimension

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 3, 2017
To be completely divorced from reality: I wish Lambiel's obsession with Poeta had lasted to 2010, and he'd gotten to skate it cleanly and with passion on the Olympic stage, with 2 quads and a good triple axel. I don't even care whether that gave him a medal, I would have loved him to go out on a great performance.

(Also: Michelle in Nagano. Almost 20 years later and I'm still mad).


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

TontoK

Hot Tonto
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Jan 28, 2013
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I still don't think she would have won gold. She was too far back in the figures. I would change her short program in 1973 to perfect. That would have given her a World gold.

Janet Lynn could never have won the OGM. Under the rules of the day, Trixie Schuba had that baby wrapped up after figures.

She finished 7th in the free skate, and still won the gold in a rout.

Different era, different rules.
 
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Seren

Wakabond Forever
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 21, 2014
Michelle in Nagano. I've rewatched both skates often- I just don't see the fairness. It should have been Michelle's.
 
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