The 6.0 system wasn’t that simple. I still have trouble understanding how the ordinal system determined the winner when it was close. Both systems have their good and bad points. I do think artistry is undervalued in the current system.
But it has been exciting to watch the technical developments in both ladies and men’s’ skating.. But if a a totally technical skater like Sasha Trusova wins the Olympics, I think there will be some re-evaluation of the current imbalance in the IJS between technical ability and artistry/presentation.
Artistry is a matter of taste and individual perception. It is broken down into two components that reflect just those perceived nuance for the panel to weigh in, Musicality and Interpretation. In an athletic competition, that’s already a large percentage that is given to things that cannot be verified or connected to personally by everyone. It is used to fine tune the standing, together with the more tangible metrics.
But in my opinion it should never be so high as to make it impossible for a skater to pack arsenal to win despite what the panel today thinks artistic is, what music is in, and who should get a helping hand.
Now, just like people say there is aerial challenge for jumping only, there is also a wide variety of skating shows available around the globe, where the skaters got to both perform and earn money. They are specifically there to be an artistic extravaganza, with light and stories. They are beautiful.
I think people who want the artistic side should consider watching or attending these shows, instead of sitting through 40 skaters working their way through the ranks by demonstrating the mastery of sport.
Trusova specifically is very good in doing one thing few of the skaters do—she captures imagination by being daring, not like all the other ladies, and carries skating to the masses in a package that tells a story blending on and off ice fantasy. She is the kind of athlete that needs to be in the mix for medals for a sport to be appealing.
It should not always be about which princess outprincesses all other princesses. We need tomboys to be successful too and tear the princesses down once in a while.
The 3A is a rare gift a sport has, a story within a story, and it will not last long. I am amazed at how many want to place a godsend under an interdict, instead of letting themselves enjoy a whole lot of good things the phenomenon creates.