All-time Favorite ice dance teams? | Page 2 | Golden Skate

All-time Favorite ice dance teams?

snejina

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 9, 2012
Virtue & Moir
Grishuk & Platov
Annissina & Peizerat
Torvill & Dean
Bourne & Kraatz
Pechalat & Bourzat
Krylova & Ovsianikov
Ilinykh & Katsalapov
 

rugbyfan

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 29, 2012
Torvill and Dean,
Virtue and Moir,
Bourne and Kraatz,
Krylova and Ovsianikov,
the Duschenays,
Drobiazko and Vanagas,
Klimova and Ponomarenko (only about two dances but a couple REALLY stand out in my mind),
Rhakamo and Kokko,
 

purplecat

Final Flight
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
Country
United-States
Gosh, too many to name but here a few, am sure I'll forget a few...

Davis and White
Usova and Zhulin
Silverstein and Pekarek
Punsalan and Swallow
Annenko and Sretenski
Klimova and Ponomarenko
Belbin and Agosto
Winkler and Lohse
Drobiazko and Vanagas
Rahkamo and Kokko
Roca and Sur
Chock and Bates
Shibutanis
Anissina and Peizerat
 

DonP

Rinkside
Joined
Nov 11, 2018
1. Moiseeva & Minenkov
2. Tessa & Scott
3. Torvill & Dean, Papadakis & Cizeron
4. Bestemianova & Bukin, Klimova & Ponomarenko, Denkova & Staviski
5. Gilles & Poirier
 

LadyB

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 7, 2016
No particular order apart from No 1:

1. Bestemianova/Bukin
2. Torvill/Dean
3. Bobrova/Soloviev
4. Gilles/Poirier
5. Weaver/Poje
6. Papadakis/Cizeron
7. Pakhomova/Gorshkov
8. Sinitsina/Katsalapov
 

sunn1ly

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 8, 2015
Virtue & Moir
Annissina & Peizerat
Ilinykh & Katsalapov
Papadakis & Cizeron
Denkova & Staviski
Klimova & Ponomarenko
Bestemianova & Bukin
Torvill & Dean


The above are my all time favorites. I have many others that watch occasionally. Also from the current teams I am enjoying too many that I will not list them all.
Ice dance is really spectacular and its pity that many teams will never be in the history as medalists from big competitions nevertheless their originality and how good they are.
 

brushalley

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 22, 2014
Country
United-Kingdom
Torvill/Dean
Anissina/Pezerait
Denkova/Staviski
Davis/White
Grishuk/Platov
Pechalet/Bourzat
Delobel/Shoenfelder
Papadakis/Cizeron
Domnina/Shabalin
 

markovai

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 16, 2015
Moiseeva/Minenkov
Virtue/Moir
Pohomova/Gorchkov
Klimova/Ponomarenko
Bestemyanova/Bukin
Gilles/Poirier
Denkova/Staviski
 

Spiralgraph

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 28, 2003
Country
United-States
Torvill & Dean
Klimova & Ponomorenko
Davis & White
Shibutani & Shibutani
Belbin & Agosto
Wilson & McCall
 

dorispulaski

Wicked Yankee Girl
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Country
United-States
Teams where I liked almost everything they ever did. This is not about being the GOAT. Did the team do such a variety of stuff that it was always a surprise and a delight to me? And do I rewatch all their programs?

Torvill & Dean
Rahkamo & Kokko
Davis & White
Chock & Bates
Duchesnays
Gilles & Poirier
Krylova & Ovsiannakov
Usova & Zhulin
Moiseeva & Minenkov

Teams where I like quite a few of their programs. If a team was very good, but had less variety, I do not rewatch all their programs, just some.
Klimova & Ponomarenko
Pechalat & Bourzat
Sladky & Schwomeyer
Delobel & Schoenfelder
Wilson & McCall
Virtue & Moir
Pakhmova & Gorshkov
Weaver & Poje
Annisina & Peizerat

Teams I wish or hope we would see more of (some alas retired too soon for me)
Manta & Johnson
Brown & Brown
Nguyen & Kolesnik
Muramoto & Reed
McNamara & Carpenter
Fear & Gibson
 

rain

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 29, 2003
Faves where I've like almost all of their programs:

Virtue/Moir
Torvill/Dean
Gilles/Poirier

Teams where I've really enjoyed a few of their programs, but not as many:

Davis/White
Weaver/Poje
Duchesnays
Rahkamo & Kokko
Delobel/Shoenfelder
Wilson/McCall
Bourne/Kraatz
Drobiazko and Vanagas
Shibs
Annenko and Sretenski

For me, two teams could go either way, right now: Hubbell/Donahue and Papadakis/Cizeron. Both are hovering right on the edge of my first group. I need to see where they go next in their careers.
 

Big Deal

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 23, 2004
Pahomova/Gorshkov, Torvill/Dean and Virtue/Moir changed and improved the sport established a new direction and technical level for many years to come.
As brilliant technicians Klimova/Ponomarenko , Anissina/Peizerat and Denkova/Staviskiy has to be mentioned as the best ones.
Talking about originality Papadakis/Cizeron, the Duschesnays, Rahkamo/Kokko and Bourne/Kratz came to mind. They all established their own distinctive style but remained rather uncomfortable in any other one.
 

skylark

Gazing at a Glorious Great Lakes sunset
Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 12, 2014
Country
United-States
1. Gabrielle and Guillaume
2. Torvill and Dean
3. Meryl and Charlie
 

elbkup

Power without conscience is a savage weapon
Medalist
Joined
Mar 3, 2015
Country
United-States
Adding Naomi L and Peter T. .
 

skateluvr

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 23, 2011
Teams where I liked almost everything they ever did. This is not about being the GOAT. Did the team do such a variety of stuff that it was always a surprise and a delight to me? And do I rewatch all their programs?

Torvill & Dean
Rahkamo & Kokko
Davis & White
Chock & Bates
Duchesnays
Gilles & Poirier
Krylova & Ovsiannakov
Usova & Zhulin
Moiseeva & Minenkov

Teams where I like quite a few of their programs. If a team was very good, but had less variety, I do not rewatch all their programs, just some.
Klimova & Ponomarenko
Pechalat & Bourzat
Sladky & Schwomeyer
Delobel & Schoenfelder
Wilson & McCall
Virtue & Moir
Pakhmova & Gorshkov
Weaver & Poje
Annisina & Peizerat

Teams I wish or hope we would see more of (some alas retired too soon for me)
Manta & Johnson
Brown & Brown
Nguyen & Kolesnik
Muramoto & Reed
McNamara & Carpenter
Fear & Gibson

Delores I can understand group one without Bourne and Kraatz but not at all? I’m just kidding lol.

Ok by regions because ice dance has so much talent and they are the purest skating we see.

The past. Europe. Torvill and Dean because they have programs that really hold up and didn’t have any awful costumes or insane hair in the eighties. Really perfect unison every time. If they made mistakes I never saw one. Great innovators and she is such a lovely skater who really had to work to be the muse he needed. He is the choreographer but she had to perform what he saw which was not that easy. They made it look easy. Our of Russia there are so many great teams. Just trying to pick the top Russian team is very difficult. Of the past I think Of maybe 3 teams. But none got their due because Grishuk and Platov were favored. Pasha had that great running edge and I like how the russian teams repeated moves in threes to get it in your head. They had two gold medals but I never watch them. I feel Bourne and Kraatz should have won many more medals and Riverdance in Nagano is a great piece of skating. I love it. Go watch kids! So the over the top performances that came out of Russia and Europe were just a tad rediculous in the 80s and Early nineties. So this is why I feel T and D are in a league all their own. They podiumed at Olympics ten years after their gold medal. And they were very good. Really they don’t look like a relic of days gone by in any program. They are eminently watchable through the years.

I always preferred Usova and Zhulin. I saw them live and liked them very much. Right now I can’t say who I think is the best Russian team under IJS. I kind of lost interest because the North Americans were more to my taste. I think that Gabby and Guillaume are the best team ever out of Europe and they have programs that are very similar but classic and will withstand the test of time.

Canada deserves mention because they have three stellar teams I love. First were Bourne and Kraatz who deserved gold in Nagano. In the IJS era I love Virtue and Moir due to the extreme talent and VERSATILITY. I also love Weaver and Poje. They personify beauty and talent and are also a bit under rated.

The USA has had great teams who didn’t win under 6.0 days. My favs included Roca and Sur and Davis and White. Also Chock and Bates who do not get scores they should get imho. In person I must say I found the Shibs amazing and I don’t think Hubbell and Donahue at least that eve in SOI were anywhere near the Shibs. They are adorable and they did as well as could be hoped in Korea. Many great programs besides the Coldplay ones.

I don’t think we have seen a truly great ice dance team from Japan as yet or China but that’s just my opinion. But no doubt they are building as we speak.

My podium would be T/D, V/M, P/C and fighting for pewter would be Bourne and Kraatz The Shibs, Chock and Bates and Weapo. Team one has to love is Gilles and Poiirier. So I def have a bias toward great NA teams because stylistically less is more.
 

bunnybarista

If I risk it all, could you break my fall?~
On the Ice
Joined
May 27, 2018
Ooh, this is my favorite kind of thread! Alrighty, this is only roughly in order...

Virtue & Moir (will always be #1 in my heart)
Klimova & Ponomarenko
Torvill & Dean
Usova & Zhulin
Annisina & Peizerat
Cappellini & Lanotte
Papadakis & Cizeron
Davis & White
Weaver & Poje
Gilles & Poirier
Bestmianova & Bukin
Belbin & Agosto

Bonus: my favorite junior teams - can't wait to see them as seniors!
Nguyen & Kolesnik
Lajoie & Lagha
Brown & Brown
 

YagsFan

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 25, 2010
1) Papadakis/Cizeron


2)Anissina/Peizerat
3) Dubreuie/Lauzon
4) Klimova/Ponomarenko
5) Davis/White
6) Belbin/Agosto
7) Shibs
 
Top