Melissa Bulanhagui

Figure skater Melissa Bulanhagui was born on August 16, 1990 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She represented the U.S. until 2011 and now represents the Philippines.

http://figureskatersonline.com/news/2011/09/14/melissa-bulanhagui-to-represent-philippines/

I am so happy for her, I hope she could go to the Olympics, 4cc and Worlds!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DynFcQKjdLM

She was incredible during the US Nationals!

I wish her the best of luck in her switch I think its a smart move

christinaskater said:

I am so happy for her, I hope she could go to the Olympics, 4cc and Worlds!

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I would to see that in her future!

christinaskater said:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DynFcQKjdLM

She was incredible during the US Nationals!

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I spoke to her parents after the free skate (they were sitting in our section). They were so thrilled that Melissa finished in the top ten.

Pikachuusb said:

I wish her the best of luck in her switch I think its a smart move

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Wishing her all the best. I hope she continues to train in Delaware!

I reckon that she would continue training in Delaware since she studies there.

I really think ISU needs to have stricter laws on citizenship requirements, since almost all of South East Asian skaters are made up of American skaters. like I actually want to see skaters from those country compete even if they will not be getting any medals soon but at least they should actually be given a chance to represent their own country.

mylastduchess said:

I really think ISU needs to have stricter laws on citizenship requirements, since almost all of South East Asian skaters are made up of American skaters. like I actually want to see skaters from those country compete even if they will not be getting any medals soon but at least they should actually be given a chance to represent their own country.

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Care to elaborate on what you would advise the ISU to implement?

I'm pretty sure the ISU does not want to get in the business of determining which skater legitimately has which citizenship. Eligibility for citizenship should rightfully remain an issue for individual countries to decide and enforce. Eligibility for skating representing a country--an issue for the national federation. Dual citizens have a choice, what's the problem with that?

By doing what you propose, skating would not be possible in SE Asian nations. To use the Philippines as an example, if it weren't for Filipino - American skaters who wanted the opportunity to compete internationally then the Philippines might not be able to obtain ISU membership, which require at least two rinks in member nations. One rink was built for recreational purposes. The second was built when several US skaters wanted to represent the Philippines. Also if the ISU tightened its control then its not only stepping on a nation's jurisdiction but then we may never enjoy the following skaters: Viktor Pfeiffer, Tanith Belbin, Kaitlyn Weaver, Isabella Tobias, Charissa Thansonboom, Allapach and Kongkasem, Diane De Leeuw - Chapman, Charlene Von Sager,Lily Lee...

bigsisjiejie said:

Care to elaborate on what you would advise the ISU to implement?

I'm pretty sure the ISU does not want to get in the business of determining which skater legitimately has which citizenship. Eligibility for citizenship should rightfully remain an issue for individual countries to decide and enforce. Eligibility for skating representing a country--an issue for the national federation. Dual citizens have a choice, what's the problem with that?

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sorry I didn't mean the actual citizenship of a skater but the actual requirements to represent a country. of coarse pairs and Ice dance is different but still like the olympics someone like Tanith still needed to have full American citizenship in order to compete. Just look at the 4CC last year almost half of the girls competing (Puerto Rico, Chinese Taipei, Thailand etc.) where American born and raised, and I will bet that most of those girls barely set foot on the country they are representing let alone speak the local language.

Think about it what motivation would federations from smaller countries from actually investing in their own skaters, when they could simply import someone from America who has benefited from USFSA programs? How would local skaters gain exposure, if they will never get a chance to be in any important events (they may not be winning medals now, but they are potentially future coaches, choreographers etc.) foreign skaters will not in the long run will not push for the advancement of the sport as much as local skaters would.

like right now I just saw a very talented home grown talent from the Philippines in the JPG but he only got 1 assignment because his federation decided to give other assignment to a subpar American skater instead.

If the Isu can limit a skater switching countries 1 year from participating from international competition when they represented another country from a year before, then why can't they extend that to 2-3 years if a skater joined a nationals or regionals for another country the year before?

I think in the Philippines, they are allowed dual citizenship, so that is a good thing.

Melissa needs to have better costumes, more sophisticated and classy look, a little more ballet training to enhance the musicality much further.

mylastduchess said:

like right now I just saw a very talented home grown talent from the Philippines in the JPG but he only got 1 assignment because his federation decided to give other assignment to a subpar American skater instead.

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Then your gripe isn't really with the ISU, it's with the federation(s), right? Sounds like you want the ISU to play Nanny, Big Brother, or Enforcer with some sort of additional rules, since the federations don't necessarily see things your way.

mylastduchess said:

Think about it what motivation would federations from smaller countries from actually investing in their own skaters, when they could simply import someone from America who has benefited from USFSA programs? How would local skaters gain exposure, if they will never get a chance to be in any important events (they may not be winning medals now, but they are potentially future coaches, choreographers etc.) foreign skaters will not in the long run will not push for the advancement of the sport as much as local skaters would.

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It depends how long their local program has been in existence, how good the local skaters are, and how old they are.
For JGP you want skaters who can do all the double jumps including double axel (required in the short program) and who are getting component marks at least in the 3s (preferably higher). A skater of average talent with average coaching and not a lot of training time may not reach that level at all, or not until maybe 7 or more years after starting to train in the sport. A more talented skater or one who has access to the best coaching and plenty of training time (i.e., probably training abroad in a country with a more established program) may get there sooner. If they're talented enough to get there before they're 13, they have to wait until they're old enough to get sent on the JGP.

So while the local skaters may still be working on skills at a level below junior, it can make sense to put the federation out on the international circuit with an imported skater, especially one who has connections to that country and will travel there to skate and inspire the younger skaters coming up in the new program.

like right now I just saw a very talented home grown talent from the Philippines in the JPG but he only got 1 assignment because his federation decided to give other assignment to a subpar American skater instead.

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When you say "subpar," do you mean by American standards, or compared to the homegrown Philippine skater?

Assuming they are both of comparable ability and there are only two JGP slots available for that country, it makes more sense from a development point of view to have two skaters with JGP experience than to have one skater with two assignments but no chance of qualifying for the final and another skater with no international experience.

See the JGP announcement here:
http://www.isu.org/vsite/vnavsite/page/directory/0,10853,4844-151840-169056-nav-list,00.html

Federations who sent a skater to Junior Worlds last year who didn't qualify for the short program get to send one skater to three events on the JGP. Federations who did not send anyone to Junior Worlds get only two slots. Was the local skater too young last year and the imported skater not yet committed to the new country? Or did they just not choose to spend the money on sending someone?

If they want more JGP slots next year, they have to send someone to Junior Worlds this year. If that skater makes it to the short program or to the final, they'll get four or five slots next year, so they'd do best to choose the skater with the best chance of advancing. If they hold a national championship and let the skaters compete against each other at the same time and place, they can use those results to choose the JW representative. If not, they can choose based on JGP results. Either way, they'll have a backup skater with some experience in case the first choice gets injured.

If the homegrown skater is better than the imported one, then that's who should be chosen for the one JW spot. And if there are enough JGP slots the next year to give everyone one spot and still have the option to give someone a second slot, then the one with the best results should probably get that second spot.

At the senior level, for skaters over 15 and especially those over 19 who are not eligible for juniors, the only restriction on sending skaters to "senior B" events is the money it costs to send them.

But for Four Continents/Europeans/Worlds, now the skaters first need to have met a minimum technical score at a previous event to qualify even to enter the initial round. Essentially, the senior B circuit is where new skaters can earn their way into the elite circuit. So if no homegrown skater has yet met that minimum or is likely to do so in the near future, it would make sense to import a skater who can meet it so the federation can have a representative at Worlds and 4Cs. (4Cs still allows three entries per discipline, so if there are up to three skaters who qualify, whether imported or homegrown, the federation could send all three and perhaps take results there into account before deciding which one to send to Worlds.)

If the Isu can limit a skater switching countries 1 year from participating from international competition when they represented another country from a year before, then why can't they extend that to 2-3 years if a skater joined a nationals or regionals for another country the year before?

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The ISU only cares about what happens internationally. They don't pay attention to what happens in the domestic competitions of their member federations. Oh, yeah, they do ask for a list of the top finishers at each nationals and publish them once a year, but not all federations submit the information. For one thing, not all federations hold national championships, if they don't have enough skaters to make it worthwhile.

bigsisjiejie said:

Then your gripe isn't really with the ISU, it's with the federation(s), right? Sounds like you want the ISU to play Nanny, Big Brother, or Enforcer with some sort of additional rules, since the federations don't necessarily see things your way.

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Uhmmm who makes the laws for the sport? Isn't it the ISU, who enforces the 1 year limit on skaters whose switching skaters? The Isu isn't so all of a sudden an extension of the one year ban for switching skaters is such a big deal for you...

so why not just let those smaller federation stop training all their own skaters if they will never gonna have a chance to represent their own country anyways? You know cause its healthy for the sport to have most of its international skater born and raised from one country!

gkelly said:

It depends how long their local program has been in existence, how good the local skaters are, and how old they are.
For JGP you want skaters who can do all the double jumps including double axel (required in the short program) and who are getting component marks at least in the 3s (preferably higher). A skater of average talent with average coaching and not a lot of training time may not reach that level at all, or not until maybe 7 or more years after starting to train in the sport. A more talented skater or one who has access to the best coaching and plenty of training time (i.e., probably training abroad in a country with a more established program) may get there sooner. If they're talented enough to get there before they're 13, they have to wait until they're old enough to get sent on the JGP.

So while the local skaters may still be working on skills at a level below junior, it can make sense to put the federation out on the international circuit with an imported skater, especially one who has connections to that country and will travel there to skate and inspire the younger skaters coming up in the new program.

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I just want to make some stuff clear, Its not that I dislike smaller federations for importing some skaters abroad but now they almost seems to depend on them heavily. Remember a few years ago when Taiwan just published an add for a skater in the US to represent them in Worlds in Los Angeles?

When you say "subpar," do you mean by American standards, or compared to the homegrown Philippine skater?

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subpar to compete internationally (and yes the other skater outscores him quite a bit ).

Assuming they are both of comparable ability and there are only two JGP slots available for that country, it makes more sense from a development point of view to have two skaters with JGP experience than to have one skater with two assignments but no chance of qualifying for the final and another skater with no international experience.

See the JGP announcement here:
http://www.isu.org/vsite/vnavsite/page/directory/0,10853,4844-151840-169056-nav-list,00.html

Federations who sent a skater to Junior Worlds last year who didn't qualify for the short program get to send one skater to three events on the JGP. Federations who did not send anyone to Junior Worlds get only two slots. Was the local skater too young last year and the imported skater not yet committed to the new country? Or did they just not choose to spend the money on sending someone?

If they want more JGP slots next year, they have to send someone to Junior Worlds this year. If that skater makes it to the short program or to the final, they'll get four or five slots next year, so they'd do best to choose the skater with the best chance of advancing. If they hold a national championship and let the skaters compete against each other at the same time and place, they can use those results to choose the JW representative. If not, they can choose based on JGP results. Either way, they'll have a backup skater with some experience in case the first choice gets injured.

If the homegrown skater is better than the imported one, then that's who should be chosen for the one JW spot. And if there are enough JGP slots the next year to give everyone one spot and still have the option to give someone a second slot, then the one with the best results should probably get that second spot.

At the senior level, for skaters over 15 and especially those over 19 who are not eligible for juniors, the only restriction on sending skaters to "senior B" events is the money it costs to send them.

But for Four Continents/Europeans/Worlds, now the skaters first need to have met a minimum technical score at a previous event to qualify even to enter the initial round. Essentially, the senior B circuit is where new skaters can earn their way into the elite circuit. So if no homegrown skater has yet met that minimum or is likely to do so in the near future, it would make sense to import a skater who can meet it so the federation can have a representative at Worlds and 4Cs. (4Cs still allows three entries per discipline, so if there are up to three skaters who qualify, whether imported or homegrown, the federation could send all three and perhaps take results there into account before deciding which one to send to Worlds.)

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The local skater actually placed 8th in a JPG managing to get some points and actually has potential, the other one has none. I don't why the Philippines didn't send a representative last year at JW (I would guess its because of finances from either the federation or the skaters lack of funds). But at the end of the day the Philippine federation is hurting their own skater by only giving him one or two international assignment each year cause he will never rise up in the rankings and will always have an early skater order in major competitions

Imagine if someone from one of those smaller countries actually manages to win a spot in the Olympics, but then in the Olympic year somebody from the US or Europe decides to compete for that country and manages to get the spot instead. I don't think that would be very fair.

They may be two issues that concern some people:

1) The investment by the US or USFSA in an ultimately foreign competitor. As we all know, skating is a very expensive sport to train and compete in. It's the young skaters' families who foot all the bills and any support on low level skaters by the Federation is likely more than offset by all the membership fees paid over the years. All the expenses incurred and borne by the families go into the economy instead of draining from it.

2) The effect on the sport and skaters in the "foreign" countries with small federations. There are two important parts to consider - inspiration and financial support. The success of a person of the same race or national origin in a foreign land can arouse as much interest, pride, and inspiration as someone residing in the native land, especially for an exotic sport with few locals to cheer for. It was predicted and written right after the 2010 Olympics that the nation of Vietnam would likely be caught up in the fervor of watching figure skating competitions in 2018 Olympics, all because of little Nam Nguyen of Canada.

I left the US years ago and have enjoyed multiculturism in Canada vs the American melting pot. However, I imagine with today's ease and low costs of communication and travels, people of ethnic origins in the US these days must have much closer ties with the countries of their original culture or their parents' birth place. The skaters with dual citizenships are likely to have actually visited the other country and even close relationships with family members and friends there. Their representing that other country in competition may be more than just legal semantics, besides opportunities of international competitions.

As for financial support from a small, or any, federation, it's initially non essential any way since training is almost all self financed. Hopefully, with success of any representative, whereever they live or train, more young people will be inspired and more money will be invested as participation increases. Exhibit A: South Korea.

For those who bemoan the US residents representing another nation, just be comforted that Michelle Kwan represented the US instead of Taiwan! Or that Michelle Wie has chosen the US over South Korea when she turned 21. Or that many American Nobel Prize winners are immigrants and their prize winning works were often accomplished years ago in other countries.

Skatefiguring is right. What Melissa is doing isn't like the situation with Azerbaijan right before the 2009-2010 season, where they were courting Joelle Forte and Fyodor Andreev, just so they can have skaters in the Olympics. I think Melissa may have even been torn about her decision, since USFSA has done many things for her, but now she has not only an opportunity to be the top skater in her parents' home country, but to do well enough that she can attract corporate sponsors for figure skating in the Philippines. This is something that none of the girls representing the Philippines have been able to do (the only female skater, if I recall, that is homegrown, skates in ISI contests, not ISU-- Verniece Enciso). As I recall, Mericien Venzon, Grace Baldo, Zhaira Costiniano and Gracie Tan are all American skaters who represent the Philippines due to dual citizenship.

There is also the matter of winning nationals. In order to represent the Philippines, Melissa has to win Filipino nationals. Not an easy task, considering Mericizen, Zhaira, Gracie, and Grace are all pretty good. Melissa has higher jump content (she can perform triple lutz/double toe; the best jumper of the group, Mericien, does triple toe/double toe), and has done better internationally. The current crop also have a year, since as I understand it, USFS now has an iron-clad rule of not releasing ANYONE for two years. Melissa won't be skating internationally for the Philippines until 2012 (this is the same situation Piper Gilles found herself in--which is why she can't represent Canada until after 2012).

Many of these SE Asian nations didn't seek the skaters out, like AZE did. It was quite the other way around.

Having Melissa skate for the Philippines, and hopefully do well, will be good in the long run for skating in the Philippines. Hopefully, many of my cousins who are still living there will be inspired to take up skating for my native country--after seeing Melissa do well. If she does well, it will also inspire the other girls to do well.

mylasduchess, think about it and you should be happy about the situation you are presently unhappy about, i.e. US born and raised skaters competiting for other nations.

Firstly, it's the immigrants' families who do the sacrifices and pay for their children's participation in the sport and then the escalating costs as the hobby turns into an athletic and competitive pursuit. Then, among those with promising futures, the US retains the creme of the crop, e.g. Michelle Kwan and Kristi Yamaguchi. Some of the currently lesser talents may then choose to represent their other country where they may initiate or further the sport's development. The US can take credit for providing the environment, initial exposure and facilities for such "foreign" skaters to even begin their career in figure skating, as wll as for any subsequent development of the sport in another country.

The US end up smelling like roses, taking 3 wins out of a win, win, win, win, win situation.

mylastduchess said:

Imagine if someone from one of those smaller countries actually manages to win a spot in the Olympics, but then in the Olympic year somebody from the US or Europe decides to compete for that country and manages to get the spot instead. I don't think that would be very fair.

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A variation of this happens to skaters all the time, especially when there is only one spot. In 2006, Australia had one spot, which was earned by Jo Carter. However, Australia had the rule of sending the national champion, which was Miriam Manzano. Australia's compromise was not well-liked by Australians--they decided to send Jo Carter, who had been to the Olympics before (13th in Nagano) over Manzano, whose best Worlds finish was 25th.
Even when there are two spots, it can get hairy. In 2006, Andrea Vaturi and his partner were the 2nd-ranked Italian dance team, until their coaches, Fusar-Poli/Margaglio decided to come back.

Point being, it doesn't matter if your competition is home-grown or a foreign skater who just switched nations. Bring it, and you just might beat them.

SkateFiguring said:

mylasduchess, think about it and you should be happy about the situation you are presently unhappy about, i.e. US born and raised skaters competiting for other nations.

Firstly, it's the immigrants' families who do the sacrifices and pay for their children's participation in the sport and then the escalating costs as the hobby turns into an athletic and competitive pursuit. Then, among those with promising futures, the US retains the creme of the crop, e.g. Michelle Kwan and Kristi Yamaguchi. Some of the currently lesser talents may then choose to represent their other country where they may initiate or further the sport's development. The US can take credit for providing the environment, initial exposure and facilities for such "foreign" skaters to even begin their career in figure skating, as wll as for any subsequent development of the sport in another country.

The US end up smelling like roses, taking 3 wins out of a win, win, win, win, win situation.

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No its not, since skaters from emerging coutries always lose cause they miss the opportunity to represent there country. International cimpetitions would simply be American girls representing different countries. Don't buy the idea that B class skaters frim ither countries will somehow boost the sport in those countries because lets face it they wont be racking up medals any time soon therefore would get ignored. This is the thing they LIVE entirely in the US how are they exactly helping the sport locally when they only set foot there once a year (mostly half-heartedly because they can't represemt their country of choice)