2022 Olympics: Men's Short Program

[chuckm]

Vincent is not even a threat for the podium, his absence does not change the possible results at all.

After the SP, it appears no Russian skater is a threat for the podium as well.

 

[ccmc1926]

That’s..,,.crazy

that's not true, flowers and other stuff are not allowed due to covid19 control. A simple google you can find the truth, why started rumor like that?

 

[TT_Fin]

Things to do first after you come from work, watch men's SP. Done. So sad that Brezina did not make it to free. Donovan Carrillo stole my heart as a skater, with that smile during the program from the beginning jump to end and when he saw he makes it to free, it was like he had won the whole competition Things like that make me to be a fan of a skater. I am also happy for Majorov making to free.

 

[Ice Mage]

Overall I really enjoyed the event, it was great to see everyone skating so well here. Poor Yuzu, I'm so devastated him. However I'm so happy for Yuma, Shoma, Junhwan, and Kevin who all had such beautiful skates. I'm so proud of all of them and I hope for amazing free skates too.

 

[sworddance21]

Literally, why?! He was asked about the mistake and he explained how it happened. Quite calmly at that.

20220208 071703 — Postimages

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This was the hole his toe pick caught in, by the way. For everyone doubting it happend. Yes, ice quality can differ but that's a sizable chunk of ice and he's lucky he wasn't injured.

The guy's a two time Olympic Champion, a legend that goes beyond the sport. He's very critical of himself and never one to look for excuses. If he says there was a problem with the ice, there was. Especially since there's clear photographic evidence. Can't believe anybody seriously doubts his words instead of feeling sorry for the bad luck.

Yes. And for the folks who say, why wasn't everyone else falling? Well, the ice is pretty big and that hole doesn't take up very much of it, so Yuzu was just unlucky that he hit that spot. The others were lucky they didn't.

 

[mskater93]

Read an article today that these were the least watched Olympics in a very long time (in America).

It's no wonder. This coverage is just awful.

It's also due to people's perception of China in the US

 

[TwinnerA]

Phillips Glass was an amazing program! Nathan has a unique style.

I wish Nathan was skating to Phillip Glass for his free and I am a huge Elton John fan (I still have my EJ autograph I got at 16 a million years ago!).

 

[TwinnerA]

Yes. And for the folks who say, why wasn't everyone else falling? Well, the ice is pretty big and that hole doesn't take up very much of it, so Yuzu was just unlucky that he hit that spot. The others were lucky they didn't.

I thought skaters when they take the ice (while the previous skater is in the Kiss & Cry) they skate around looking at the ice for debris, etc. Don't they do that anymore? If so, perhaps Hanyu would have spotted if there was a pit or divot in the ice.

 

[Ducky]

It's just an unlucky turn of events. And I'm sure that Yuzu has skated on far choppier ice before.

 

[Joe Mendoza]

I'm also wondering if he'll attempt the 4A in the LP. If he tries it, I hope he lands it. For me that would be just as historic as if he had won a 3rd Olympic Gold Medal here.

After the SP, he for sure will! guys, yuzu has nothing to prove to any of us. I am a Nathan Chen fan, and I can appreciate the passion that Yuzu and Nathan fans have for their icons. We don't know EXACTLY what Yuzu's real motivations are and we are all simply speculating, but if the guy wants to do the 4A - let him do it. I would rather have him try it (regardless of whether he gets downgraded again or make history with a clean 4A) than for him to acquiesce to fans wanting him to win a 3rd Olympic gold when his personal goal from when he was a kid was to be the first one to land a 4A cleanly.

Also, all this talk about PCS and who deserves what more is fun. This is more subjective - I love EVERYTHING Nathan did (including his exits and transitions to his choreography and balletic nuances) and I also love Jason's type of skating and I think Yuzu's skate was fine. Others see their performances very differently from mine, but that is the beauty of figure skating - we all can appreciate the sport through our own eyes and POVs. That's just my opinion.

Keep going with the light shade though - I love reading them!

 

[Skater Boy]

Really wonderful hi level clutch skating. Congrats to Nathn who was boss and Yuma and Shoma for being there inmedal contention. Sd about Hanyu but he can come back in the fs and maybe grab a medal still. Or land the 4A. The next group were a mix up of PBs. I would have had Messing higher even with the footwork issues. He skated with grit and personality. Jason was beautiful as usual.Cha is peaking at the right time. Never now about Moris we will see ifhe keeps this up. you could easily change the results fro like 4th to 10th. Two men are knd of lucky to be in the final group. I feel for Vinnie, Roman just a horrific downward spiral that somehow was even worse than the team event,Hanyu but he blew a guaranteed medal in team and he has his oly medals. Nathanjust seems so poised and fired up how could he lose.

 

[arewhyaen]

Right! Nathan had made his impact at the 2017 Four Continents, on the Grand Prix and at the 2017 Grand Prix Final, winning those events, but his only senior Worlds appearance in 2017 was 6th place. The US media hype monster proved to be too overwhelming for his youth and inexperience.

Totally agree. I almost wish the American media narrative would change from "this is redemption for 2018" to "this is a coronation ceremony for the most dominant skater the last 4 years." Sure, NBC has been alluding to his dominance, but a vast majority of the commentary and media soundbits is that Nathan is here it redeem himself for 2018 even though it felt like Nathan was playing with house money in 2018 (IMO). Nathan was one of the outside faves for gold in 2018 (not THE fave for gold), but I remember feeling that anything gained in 2018 was just bonus, and that Nathan's real moment was always meant to be in 2022.

 

[iceskater10]

He already has! Team Bronze!

He did not skate in the TE, so no he does not!

 

[TontoK]

It's also due to people's perception of China in the US

Probably some truth to that, too.

In my case, it's the poor coverage. I missed seeing several skaters I enjoy because NBC cut them out to do a Zoom interview with a skiier's mom and then to do a Nathan puff piece. That's inexcusable.

I wasn't able to get my fake Canadian credentials sorted out to watch on CBC, so that's a priority before the long.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

You're mixing things up... So did Hanyu a major error or was he effortless? PCS are not supposed to be tied to TES, at least not completely. Hanyu still did a program with good choreo, transitions and commitment. And what types of quads you do should not matter to The PCS. By that logic Jason should not get so high PCS. I understand why you think Yuzuru was overscored, but you're using the wrong reasoning.

Hanyu did a major error, which affects the overall impact of a program. It diminishes interpretation (a single salchow on the music is a different vibe than a 4S on the music). It also shows a lack of skating skills when the timing/technique is off.

People need to stop saying a "pop" isn't a serious error. It is. People need to stop diminishing their severity the way they say "a fall wasn't disruptive". It's a big, glaring, obvious error, especially on the first jumping pass/first impression/setting the tone of the program.

The program was excellent, don't get me wrong, but you can't give 9.75s to a performance with a pop (especially an SP where there are just 3 jumping passes) no matter who/how good the skater is.

Re: Hanyu/Jason vs. Chen.... a program with low-difficulty quads or no quads is inherently easier to execute. Easier difficulty impresses less than harder difficulty -- if a woman did 3S+3T, 3L, 2A and did the same program 3Z+3L, 3F, 2A, the latter deserves more credit on the performance because the skater literally performed a harder program. It's worth reiterating Chen did the same layout as Brown except with an extra rotation on his flip and lutz. After Hanyu got 47 I joked that Jason should get 49 then because Hanyu with a pop should get outscored on PCS by Jason going clean, as the overall impact of the clean skate is better (I'd put Jason higher on CO/IN and Hanyu higher on TR/SS). Hanyu's PCS should have been about 45-46.

Brown's PCS was correctly 47-48, but he attempted no quads -- with Hanyu's jump layout Brown should get low-mid 49 in my books, with Chen's jump layout mid-49 to 50. And for reference, Hanyu at his best in the SP is about 48-48.5 for me (48.5-49 if he had Chen's layout). Chen at his best in the SP is around 47-47.5 (and of course that would be higher if he/his programs matched Jason/Yuzu's artistic ability).

 

[solani]

We are just going to need to agree to disagree on Jason’s scores. After all, jump content has diddly to do with PCS. And he is an excellent *competitive* skater whose skills are justly rewarded in competition, according to the rules. You feel differently. That’s OK.

more importantly, my heartfelt sympathy on your wrist. I fractured mine two years ago (not skating) and needed surgery. Living without my dominant hand for six weeks was no fun Please heal and get well soon!

After some reflection I think the technical panel was too lenient. But this happens and the result will be more to my taste after the FS. Jason was born 15 years too late. I have no doubt her would have won World and Olympic medals If he only was a few years older.

Thanks for your sympathy - I hope you've no problems with your injured wrist now! My physiotherapist told me horror stories on the phone when I called him to make an appointment after the cast will be taken off. I have an uncomplicated fracture and my arm is in an old school white cast. It's not my dominant hand and I can use it. So it's not too bad. I just feel old and a little stupid, because I didn't skate for a couple of years because of my kids and I was a little bit too enthusiastic ... and crashed. And forgot how to fall properly. Ice ist slippery ... but it was very nice until then.

 

[lesnar001]

Also, all this talk about PCS and who deserves what more is fun. This is more subjective - I love EVERYTHING Nathan did (including his exits and transitions to his choreography and balletic nuances) and I also love Jason's type of skating and I think Yuzu's skate was fine. Others see their performances very differently from mine, but that is the beauty of figure skating - we all can appreciate the sport through our own eyes and POVs. That's just my opinion.

I see it as they have three distinct and unique styles and all three are of the highest quality. For me, there really is no way to say who has the best artistry because each style is so distinct from the others. Of course, PCS doesn't equal "artistry" but for all intents and purposes that's how more than a few people perceive it in these discussions.

I'm glad that we get to see and appreciate their different styles and programs.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

Pops literally do not matter for PCS (or do you have any official documents proving otherwise?), so you cannot argue about which PCS scores were too high or too low using them. "Not so amazing skating" is your personal opinion (and I don't think your opinion on Hanyu is particularly neutral), others will say his skating was flawless in all of the ways that matter for PCS (Reminder: PCS ≠ TES, as per the ISU rules they are supposed to be kept separate unless a technical fault severely impacts the program like a fall does for example).

So if a skater popped all 7 jumping passes in one program, and then the did the same program again with everything else exactly the same but nailed all 7 jumping passes, then the PCS should be exactly the same between both programs? Because PCS ≠ TES?

ISU documents say a serious error affects the integrity of a program, which a pop clearly would count as adversely affecting.

 

[Makkachin]

Oh my gosh, so much to digest here. Overall that was a really exciting short program. I loved so many of these performances including the current top three, and Jason, Junhwan, Donovan, and Keegan were special standouts to me as they usually are when they skate well

I'm also still on the heartbreak train with Vincent, and now Roman and Michal Brezina too.

Yuzuru....I literally gasped at the pop. It's bad luck to hit a hole like that for sure, but it can happen. And honestly, if that does happen, I don't know if it would even occur to you in the moment to ask for a restart. It's not a typical reason for a restart and I'm not even sure if it's a legal one. So, what's done is done. Anyway though, I could definitely see him having a comeback in the free although I gotta say, I'm not totally convinced that he can do a clean and fully rotated 4a but I would love to be proven wrong.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

After some reflection I think the technical panel was too lenient. But this happens and the result will be more to my taste after the FS. Jason was born 15 years too late. I have no doubt her would have won World and Olympic medals If he only was a few years older.

They were a bit lenient. The 3F landing was scratchy so I wouldn't consider it effortless, nor was the 3A (Chen's 3A didn't deserve +4s either). The one footed Biellmann was also a bit wild/could have been centred better but didn't really show in the GOE. It is the Olympics though.

And yeah if Jason was born 15 years later he'd have all the medals really. But there is something about him being in this era that makes him truly special .... even back then his type of skating and avant garde choreo would have been hard to come by.