Most complete female skater during the IJS Era

Evgenia Medvedeva.

With the Quad era coming in full-steam; Shcherbakova, yes she has some areas of improvement (I have yet to see someone named who had/has no areas of improvement needed), but she's doing the difficult jumps with the quad lutz and she's artistically amazing because she listens to the music and accents it - someone posted her JGF from last year where she fell on her jumps but still didn't miss a beat with the music.

Has got to be Kim and Asada.

Asada. Hands down.

I agree and pick Mao Asada. She was around for 10 years and her skating was and still is sublime. Technically masterful, very elegant, and just beautiful skating.

Amei said:

With the Quad era coming in full-steam; Shcherbakova, yes she has some areas of improvement (I have yet to see someone named who had/has no areas of improvement needed), but she's doing the difficult jumps with the quad lutz and she's artistically amazing because she listens to the music and accents it - someone posted her JGF from last year where she fell on her jumps but still didn't miss a beat with the music.

Click to expand...

Finally someone agrees with me [emoji4] yes, she is very artistic and looks like she is always enjoying it no matter what happens. Her performance is why I mainly enjoy her skating the most [emoji847] once she refines her skating even more she will really become a complete skater. And she is only 15.

I wasn’t a skating fan when Mao and Yuna were around but from what I’ve watched I’d say them. Also Carolina Kostner.
And for now, Anna Shcherbakova; because as Amei said she has the artistry and difficult jumps and spins and she is one of the few skaters I’ve seen who really understands every note of the music and is not afraid to perform. I don’t understand the hype around Aliona’s artistry because I don’t think she is quite like that musically, although she has lovely lines and big jumps so I’d say she is almost there. Both are very young anyway. Alina is quite an all rounder too, also, once she gets her beautiful jumps consistent, Ting [emoji7]

macy said:

Yuna. I'd even go so far as saying she is one of the most complete female skaters of all time. She had it all, besides pointing her toes sometimes.

Click to expand...

I was going to say Yuna and will add her to a list. It really depends what you consider as all around. and what criteria are you looking at? I will add my honour group!

Yuna Kim such style, grace yet smooth as butter jumps, spins and great skating skills. Is missing one major triple though.

Alina Zagitova - at her prime wonderful everything

Evgenia Mededeveda at her top also was well rounded and wonderful personality

Kaetlyn Osmond - the Canadian ladies are not your traditional American princess but shockingly she has all the triples and great spins and foot work.

Joannie Rochette - it is ironic both her and Osmond are musical and have great but underrated skating skills.

Mao Asada - well rounded with the triple axel

Carolina Kostner beauty on ice

Adelina Sotnikova - again well rounded especially her Oly skate

Sasha Cohen - when on she had such beauty on ice from spins to jump and glorious spirals.

rlopen said:

If we're talking about technically and artistically, Yuna. Perfect jumps, amazing connection to the music, innate artist. The only ones who can come close are Mao (flutz and URs), Carolina (lacked the competitive nerve to land 3+3's consistently), Yulia (career cut short), Evgenia (flutz), and Aliona (almost there, but I think she needs one more season or two to have fully "grown" artistically.)

Click to expand...

Yuna didn't hve the loop - what about the Canadians Joannie and Kaetlyn - they seemed to fit the bill in a non traditional more athletic way?

Yuna Kim hands down.
-Textbook, HUGE jumps with DISTANCE
-extremely musical and artistic
-good skating skills
-Memorable, captivating programs
-Remained on the upper echelon of skating from 2006-2014

I would hardly call Medvedeva a complete skater. Her jump technique alone rules her out.

I'd say Yuna Kim as well. She had great jumps, spins, footwork, artistry and well choreographed programs. What's also important that she always stayed at the top 3 in all competitions. It shows her consistency and mental preparation.

In the future, another well-rounded skater could be Aliona Kostornaia. Pretty much for the same reasons as Yuna Kim, the only problem that at such competitive field she may be left outside the team.

From current juniors, Kamila Valieva also has a lot of potential. She just needs to express more during her skates, because sometimes she looks disconnected. But I'm sure that will get better as she gets older.

lilahozi said:

I would hardly call Medvedeva a complete skater. Her jump technique alone rules her out.

Click to expand...

If you want to nitpick, each of the great skaters has something that could "rule her out". Being the most "complete" is always subjective. Some are willing to overlook a missing jump, some a recurring wrong edge jump, some the inconsistency. I don't have one name myself, but I agree with most that has been said in here - Yuna, Mao, Evgenia, Alina, Carolina, Kaitlyn etc. All very different, yet all very "complete" to me.

Yuna, Kaetlyn, JoAnnie, Shizuka, Kihira, and mark my words for the future: Sakamoto

Mao Asada is my favorite IJS female skater, but as readernick says, I can't pick her because of her technical issues. Comparing Kim and Asada, I'd say their strong points fall out like this:

Kim: basic jump technique, speed, packaging, consistency
Asada: spins + steps + spirals, skating skills (post-Vancouver), musicality

So neither are the whole package, or "complete".

I think currently, the skater closest to the whole package is Rika Kihira. She has good basic jump technique on all jumps (Asada did not) simultaneously with being able to land the 3A, her spin technique is good, her steps and SS are good, and her musicality and interpretation are above average. She doesn't stand out in any of these aspects of skating, but everything about her is very impressively above average.

Sakamoto is my current favorite female skater, but she has edge issues so... if she starts landing both 3Lz and 3F in competition, she will be a complete skater for me regardless of the lack of 3A or quads. She is just excellent in all other areas.

Yuna Kim. She had everything minus flexibility (as seen in some spirals and spins); I loved that she was always so attentive to the music.

The first one that came to my mind when hearing this question was Yuna Kim. I think that‘s quite an obvious choice, she‘s had everything from technique to artistry to other elements. The only thing I could say she was missing was flexibility and her spins weren‘t as good as some of her competitors. But all in all, she comes closest to the definition of “complete“.

Imo, EVERY skater is incomplete, that‘s human, none of us is perfect. We just have those that come close to it, but that will always include a grain of subjectivity.

Like, my second choice would be Asada, Medvedeva and Kostner. And all three of them have significant flaws.

Asada‘s had problems with URs and of course that infamous flutz. Still, she had a 3A and good spins and great artistry (I actually prefer it to Yuna’s) and is undoubtedly one of the legends of this sport. Is she “complete“, however? No. Not in the sense Yuna was but then I believe Yuna is a very, very rare skater and even she wasn’t perfect.

Now, I think that this trio of Kim, Asada and Kostner was probably the best rivalry skating has ever had. As for Carolina... she has gorgeous jumps. When she lands them. And that’s often a problem, as far as I know she’s never been consistent. Her artistry is top notch, though (she‘s my favourite out of the three) and she definitely is a legend. Especially her Sochi performances come to my mind when hearing the word “complete“

Medvedeva. Ah, I‘ve seen this one‘s controversial again and I do understand it. Her jump technique isn‘t the best and even though she’s spending time to improve it, she still has that equally as infamous flutz. But in my opinion, that one flaw shouldn‘t override the other qualities she has that make her come close to complete: Artistry, consistency, the right personality (as in star quality). But yes, I get why some wouldn’t name her. But I think this argument can be made for basically everyone (even Kim) depending on what one’s own definition of “complete“ is.

Some of the others that have been named here were Kihira and Kostornaya. I’m a fan of both and think they could all contend in the future. Especially Kihira who has great jumps and spins and whose FS last year was a true masterpiece. However, I’d still say (and especially after seeing her programs this year) that she needs a few more years to grow artistically. She’s good, great actually, and I strongly believe that when asked in a few seasons I‘ll answer differently, but for now she’s just not there yet for me. Pretty much the same for Kostornaya. It’s still too early to say where they’ll go with their skating.

But that’s just my take on it.

Yuna's jumps mixed with Alina's spins and Mao's step sequences Mao is my all-time fave but I think it's got to be between those three. Caro did come close to the full package with top-notch skating skills, correct technique on all jumps, and decent spins in her prime, but she's just too inconsistent to be a serious entry in a discussion like this imo.

Fluture said:

Imo, EVERY skater is incomplete, that‘s human, none of us is perfect. We just have those that come close to it, but that will always include a grain of subjectivity.

Click to expand...

I think it comes with subjectivity but not THAT much subjectivity. It's possible to separate your favorite from other skaters who appeal less to you but who have better all-around technique.

However, my favorite female skater of all time is Midori Ito and she is a complete skater. Figures? Who cares about figures!

medoroa said:

I think it comes with subjectivity but not THAT much subjectivity. It's possible to separate your favorite from other skaters who appeal less to you but who have better all-around technique.

However, my favorite female skater of all time is Midori Ito and she is a complete skater. Figures? Who cares about figures!

Click to expand...

I tried to do that. For example, out of the trio Mao vs. Carolina vs. Yuna, I‘d prefer the first two hands down, yet I completely agree that Yuna comes closest to the definition of “complete package“. However, I would still name Mao and Carolina, even if they had flaws, because everything else they offered was so great. And many in here have named Mao and imo, deservedly so, even if her technique was very flawed as well. As for Evgenia, I mentioned that I knew this one would be controversial and listed the reasons why I named her anyway. I‘m not saying anyone has to agree with me, in fact, I know very well that most will disagree. That‘s okay.

Oh, and I forgot to mention Kaetlyn Osmond in my last post. She‘s always been a bit inconsistent and her lutz also isn‘t the best but she‘s got a great overall package despite that.

PS: I‘d have a hard time believing Midori Ito was a complete skater but if you presented me with a good list of arguments, I might actually change my mind. It would definitely be interesting.