2018-19 Russian Ice Dance | Page 16 | Golden Skate

2018-19 Russian Ice Dance

gmyers

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
I think russian federation needs to do a reset ... creating new pairs ... strong couples ( even if they don't like each other)... and then stuck with then ... no more changes ... for example Bukin and Elena Ilinykh

I am hoping that in next years the juniors become seniores and things change

If they are going to create ilinykh/Bukin that would demand them being sent to dubreuil! Why do something that huge and then send them to kustarova! Which they probably would! Lol!
 

Ice Dance

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 26, 2014
If Abachkina & Drozd teamed up, they would probably both skate for France and this whole conversation would be in the wrong thread. (For 2 reasons. 1. It would be easier to get on the world team & make the Olympics skating for France. And 2. She would have to get a release from France which is apparently no small thing). I think the message Didier has sent to the ice dancers looking for an international partner is that you really want to be careful about teaming up with an athlete from France. Your partner may never get out. And if your partner gets injured or leaves, you may never be able to find another partner or get out yourself.
 

Artemisa

Final Flight
Joined
Sep 15, 2017
If they are going to create ilinykh/Bukin that would demand them being sent to dubreuil! Why do something that huge and then send them to kustarova! Which they probably would! Lol!

I agree in part... it's clear that the judges love dubreuil's work ... but i think if you have a strong stable pair ... even kustarova would win with that ... dubreil's pairs have years working together ... I think that Tessa Virtue and Gabriella Papadakis had the same pair all their career
 

Mattieu

Medalist
Joined
Dec 22, 2010
Gmy-chan, why so little faith? MFD isn't a magic bullet and by no means a guarantee.

I totally agree, as for me MFD is on her way out.
The minute a centre is seen to be at the top of it's game, is the very time that the centre is on the decline.
Mark my words, by Beijing, a new training centre will have replaced MFD, possibly Igor/Pasquale will get it together and strike it big.
Or Kyrlova or who knows. MFD only struck it big with PC, so all it takes is another centre to get a top team and they strike gold.
If Romain Haguenauer was to leave MFD (rumours are there) and say join Igor/Pasquale, hey presto, a new top centre, and MFD is history!
 

Mattieu

Medalist
Joined
Dec 22, 2010
If Abachkina & Drozd teamed up, they would probably both skate for France and this whole conversation would be in the wrong thread. (For 2 reasons. 1. It would be easier to get on the world team & make the Olympics skating for France. And 2. She would have to get a release from France which is apparently no small thing). I think the message Didier has sent to the ice dancers looking for an international partner is that you really want to be careful about teaming up with an athlete from France. Your partner may never get out. And if your partner gets injured or leaves, you may never be able to find another partner or get out yourself.

From my secret sources, Abachkina is more interested in her lovelife than skating.
Also DG would never release her to skate for Russia, especially now she has a French passport.
Moreover, Russia would not release Drozd given the current weakness of Russian ice dance.
It is for sure that the Russian Fed will to be very angry when Khavalian medals at Euros in January, knocking Russian teams off the podium.
That will mean no Russian male dancer getting a release for long time to come.

Just imagine if the euros podium was P/C, G/F, H/K, all hell would break lose in Russia, :laugh:
 

bramweld

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 12, 2012
From my secret sources, Abachkina is more interested in her lovelife than skating.
Also DG would never release her to skate for Russia, especially now she has a French passport.
Moreover, Russia would not release Drozd given the current weakness of Russian ice dance.
It is for sure that the Russian Fed will to be very angry when Khavalian medals at Euros in January, knocking Russian teams off the podium.
That will mean no Russian male dancer getting a release for long time to come.

Just imagine if the euros podium was P/C, G/F, H/K, all hell would break lose in Russia, :laugh:

Isn't gonna happen. More like P/C, S/B and H/K. :) But who knows stranger things have happened. The tango romantica will definitely separate the boys from the men, but I think S/B will do fine next season, their FD sounds very exciting.
 

gmyers

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
Gmy-chan, why so little faith? MFD isn't a magic bullet and by no means a guarantee.

But she’s the hottest coach in decades! She’s the new Tarasova! The IJS Tarasova.

I agree in part... it's clear that the judges love dubreuil's work ... but i think if you have a strong stable pair ... even kustarova would win with that ... dubreil's pairs have years working together ... I think that Tessa Virtue and Gabriella Papadakis had the same pair all their career

I am just looking for a Russian Hubbell and Donahue!! That would be great and something I believe only dubreuil can make happen.

I totally agree, as for me MFD is on her way out.
The minute a centre is seen to be at the top of it's game, is the very time that the centre is on the decline.
Mark my words, by Beijing, a new training centre will have replaced MFD, possibly Igor/Pasquale will get it together and strike it big.
Or Kyrlova or who knows. MFD only struck it big with PC, so all it takes is another centre to get a top team and they strike gold.
If Romain Haguenauer was to leave MFD (rumours are there) and say join Igor/Pasquale, hey presto, a new top centre, and MFD is history!

But you want to see a mfd actually fail before you announce her over. There’s no evidence she’s on her way out yet! It may happen but now she’s still in her “new Tarasova” period.

From my secret sources, Abachkina is more interested in her lovelife than skating.
Also DG would never release her to skate for Russia, especially now she has a French passport.
Moreover, Russia would not release Drozd given the current weakness of Russian ice dance.
It is for sure that the Russian Fed will to be very angry when Khavalian medals at Euros in January, knocking Russian teams off the podium.
That will mean no Russian male dancer getting a release for long time to come.

Just imagine if the euros podium was P/C, G/F, H/K, all hell would break lose in Russia, :laugh:

I’m very disappointed all hell didn’t break loose in Russia when they didn’t medal in Olympic ice dance for the first time ever this year! Not only did all hell not break loose there was not a hint of anyone caring!

Isn't gonna happen. More like P/C, S/B and H/K. :) But who knows stranger things have happened. The tango romantica will definitely separate the boys from the men, but I think S/B will do fine next season, their FD sounds very exciting.

Now I have to say Z/G are being really underrated! They were only 4 points behind s/b at worlds. Every indication they could overtake s/b and s/b will struggle.
 

bramweld

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 12, 2012
You know, I was looking over their SD at last Russian Nationals and I have to say Z/G were pretty impressive. That rumba!! Their internal politics based on looks is really going to hurt them in the future if they don't start to play clean. To my eye Z/G should get ahead of S/K it's just that their FD was such a dud last season and they can be a little sloppy sometimes. But if they really put in the work they and S/B should really be duking it out this season.

The fight really should be S/B, Z/G.....S/K and P/M fighting for third. Although I must say P/M has been growing on me. Their FD at nationals was really so good and no offence to her fans, I know Sinitsina has her merits but she is the weeakest link in all four pairs and in terms of partnering skills Katsalapov also falls to the bottom of the list. I must say that this is one glaring area Russian ice dance needs to address. Bukin does do it well though at times, especially in that tango from a couple seasons ago, I hope he really grows into a spectacular partner similar to Moir or Poje.
 

gmyers

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
You know, I was looking over their SD at last Russian Nationals and I have to say Z/G were pretty impressive. That rumba!! Their internal politics based on looks is really going to hurt them in the future if they don't start to play clean. To my eye Z/G should get ahead of S/K it's just that their FD was such a dud last season and they can be a little sloppy sometimes. But if they really put in the work they and S/B should really be duking it out this season.

The fight really should be S/B, Z/G.....S/K and P/M fighting for third. Although I must say P/M has been growing on me. Their FD at nationals was really so good and no offence to her fans, I know Sinitsina has her merits but she is the weeakest link in all four pairs and in terms of partnering skills Katsalapov also falls to the bottom of the list. I must say that this is one glaring area Russian ice dance needs to address. Bukin does do it well though at times, especially in that tango from a couple seasons ago, I hope he really grows into a spectacular partner similar to Moir or Poje.
But is like you are saying every aspect of z/g success and almost overtaking s/b at worlds will be overlooked and Russian nationals will be s/b vs s/k! Am I right?! Of course that is true! No one in Russia cares about ice dance anymore and Bukin is the son of andrei and Nikita is considered great.
 

bramweld

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 12, 2012
But is like you are saying every aspect of z/g success and almost overtaking s/b at worlds will be overlooked and Russian nationals will be s/b vs s/k! Am I right?! Of course that is true! No one in Russia cares about ice dance anymore and Bukin is the son of andrei and Nikita is considered great.

That's my gut feeling, right. Too much nepotism and politricks and not enough merit. But hey let's wait and see. Z/G did get their FD done by Dean, maybe, just maybe this might help them.
 

gmyers

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
That's my gut feeling, right. Too much nepotism and politricks and not enough merit. But hey let's wait and see. Z/G did get their FD done by Dean, maybe, just maybe this might help them.

Dean may work with international judges but do Russians even like him?!? Does he help with the Russian judges at Russian nationals? So now it’s all about watching the Russian ice dance reality show where it’s all about “will son of Andrei become champion over the great Olympic bronze medalist katsalapov?!?” If you can’t have world titles it’s all about the show!!
 

bramweld

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 12, 2012
Dean may work with international judges but do Russians even like him?!? Does he help with the Russian judges at Russian nationals? So now it’s all about watching the Russian ice dance reality show where it’s all about “will son of Andrei become champion over the great Olympic bronze medalist katsalapov?!?” If you can’t have world titles it’s all about the show!!

The Olympic bronze medalist had an equal as a partner then. He's since given her the pink slip. So.....
 

gmyers

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
The Olympic bronze medalist had an equal as a partner then. He's since given her the pink slip. So.....

I know but isn’t it shocking how almost everyone in the Russian establishment talks about him like he’s one of the best Russian men ever?! I would have been certain one of the many chaotic events since 2014 would have meant a forced retirement but no!!
 

LoopCombo

Rinkside
Joined
Jun 10, 2018
More on topic: I'm excited that Popova/Mozgov got 2 GP assignments. They have fire and I hope they can show their improvement and deliver. :hap57: :dance:

I agree! I came on this thread expecting to see a lot more buzz and about Betina Popova and Sergey Mozgov. They are an example of what many people on this thread are talking about (the Russian ice dancers keep switching partners, etc.), yet watching them I feel they made a good choice. They are 21 and 23, so they still have time to improve; and physicality and personality-wise, they seem well suited to each other. They have this intense, dramatic, and classic style but at the same time they are edgy, modern, and fresh. I liked their Carmen a LOT -- it didn't feel like a warhorse, it felt like I was watching a story. They did really well this past season, particularly considering they had relatively little ice time for their training. I think that their recent coaching change and more ice time is going to benefit them in 2018/2019, and am looking forward to seeing them skate to 'Tango in a Madhouse' and 'The Master and Margarita.' The madness theme feels really fresh to me for ice dance. I am glad they're going to be able to give more artistic input with their new coach -- I watched an interview with them, and they seemed down to earth, serious, and fun -- like really cool geeks. These guys have less of a showbiz look, they're more intense like they're going through an experience. Exciting skaters. I've heard that they need to improve their skating skills. I've read that they are already learning new techniques. I expect them to improve and then really drive everyone crazy with their awesomeness :)
 

Mattieu

Medalist
Joined
Dec 22, 2010
Ruby99, whilst I love PM, I worry about their technique. Betina is so full on, she is often too far over her skate.
Live, they are quite scratchy, something I hope Krylova can skate out, as they have everything else
Sergei is an awesome partner, he holds onto Betina no matter what she does, he is rock solid.
I am hoping for a miracle from Kryolova, rock solid technique.
But whatever happens, IMO, they are so much more reliable than SK, I would put them as no. 3 team for sure, possibly No. 2 if they can iron out the technique.
(Betina not Sergei, as his technique is solid)
 

Ice Dance

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 26, 2014
The madness theme feels really fresh to me for ice dance.

The madness theme felt fresh to me back in 2008 with Pechalat & Bourzat:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQ62mdaFAmo


And Bobrova & Soloviev won World bronze with it in 2013, the first of the two seasons that they used it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aGulyQ3-YQ

But it is possible that "insanity" was a thing in ice dance before P&B. Feels like it would have been right up Bestemianova & Bukin's alley.


I do think Popova & Mozgov are an example of a new partnership that may have more potential than the former ones. Betina is a very strong character performer. It was always apparent that she would eventually need a stronger partner. I don't think I watch Mozgov when they skate any more than I did Vlaskenko, but Mozgov is tall. So there's that. I do think they have potential. I thought Loboda & Drozd had at least as much. And I think there are several other young international teams that do as well this season. Looking forward to watching the ones that have survived the Olympic turnover battle it out during this season with so many opportunities. I am actually more excited about watching all these young teams from the next generation than I am the current medal & GPF favorites. Fun to see fresh faces on the GP. And a lot of potential for movement and surprise among these young teams. Curious how the results will shake out.
 

LoopCombo

Rinkside
Joined
Jun 10, 2018
The madness theme felt fresh to me back in 2008 with Pechalat & Bourzat:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQ62mdaFAmo


And Bobrova & Soloviev won World bronze with it in 2013, the first of the two seasons that they used it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aGulyQ3-YQ

But it is possible that "insanity" was a thing in ice dance before P&B. Feels like it would have been right up Bestemianova & Bukin's alley.

Thanks very much for the video links! I have never watched either of those performances and enjoyed them both. I think maybe madness on ice is always going to feel fresh to me. I especially liked the straight-jacket dress from Pechalat and Bourzat.

I find myself watching Mozgov a lot -- they have these offbeat moves that they don't do in sync with each other and it makes him stand out in little solo moments, which is great because he's a great complement to Betina -- he's expressive. I am also really looking forward to skaters on the GP who we don't see at the Olympics and worlds (yet)!
 
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