2019 Finlandia Trophy: Thoughts and Highlights | Page 2 | Golden Skate

2019 Finlandia Trophy: Thoughts and Highlights

Merjan

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 14, 2014
I was at Metro Areena on Friday and Saturday and the highlights for me were the SP of Sota and Alena, good performances of top 4 pairs in the short program and the RD of Madison and Evan. I think the FD is even better, I watched that on tv ( Madison / Evan). It was nice to meet them after their skate, I got some nice photos of them. I was quite disappointed after the men's free, but at least one very big surprise there, Roman Galay of Finland, landing almost all jumps including 2 triple Axels. The award ceremony was quite fun, small Shoma in the middle of 2 'giants'. It was good to see Adam Rippon there at the arena, not skating of course. I'm happy for Jenni Saarinen's comeback, she seems to feel much better now after all the problems. I was really looking forward to seeing new programs of Viveca and Juulia / Matthias of Finland but they WD because of injuries.
 

TontoK

Hot Tonto
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Jan 28, 2013
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The requirement most likely to have been violated is the distance that has to be covered from barrier to barrier. That happened to Lajoie/Lagha at JGP Austria last year too.

Thank you. That sounds like a possibility, although THREE senior dance pairs committing the same offense seems odd.
 

ladyjane

Medalist
Joined
Jun 26, 2012
Country
Netherlands
Just a small review, as I didn't watch everything. Nothing live, all available on screen thanks to Rocker Skating for a part and our own Colonel Green for the rest. Main focus will be on the Pairs.

Pairs: Mishina/Galliamov were okay (especially looking at the Tech) but they don't move me, neither do Efimova/Korovin whose FS made me want to see J/C again on that music. Maybe they should have waited a bit before trying to skate to an iconic number of another pair in the same discipline. Ilyushechkina/Bilodeau were the big surprise and my absolute favourite team, despite lagging behind in the technical aspect (although they were second in the Free Skate, before E/K). Those wonderful lifts. I also enjoyed Ziegler/Kiefer at the Free Skate, but it's such a shame they can't do without mistakes. Their SP was painful to watch. Serafini/Tran was another team that was a nice surprise. They're not there yet, but they have improved a lot since the first time I saw them. Walsh/Michaud were a bit of a let down, although I still could enjoy their Free. I'm hoping they will get better during the season, as they did last year. I also liked Chtchetinina/Nagyar. Still a new team, but doing quite well for all that. Gamez/Paradis were nice just because of them coming from a less well known country. I have a soft spot for Danlilova/Tsiba (well, they're Dutch) and I felt they were underscored both in the SP and the Free. Not in PCS, but on the technical side. No falls, though some two-foots and hands, and they need lots more speed. Tsiba still experiences some difficulties I think in being a pair skater now, and wants to be sure he doesn't drop Danilova or anything else that might hurt his partner. I didn't watch the Swiss couple.

Men
Lots of jokes have already been made about the podium that showed so clearly how small Shoma really is, but I admit to having to smile as well. It did look rather funny. The FP's of the three winners weren't very good (although especially Yamamoto did a wonderful short), but there were some good ones among the other men. Jimmy Ma was fun (I know not everyone agrees, but I liked watching it), while I personally really enjoyed the German guy, Jonathan Hess. Maybe not so high a technical wizard as those in front of him, but nice to see. I adore Sergei, especially because he is the 'grandpa' among skaters and in his SP he did quite well. He actually upped his game on the PCS side, which was nice to see. His FS was a bit of a disaster regrettably, I hope he will manage to pick it up soon. I love to see guys in their 30s still skating.

Ladies
Ladies are not generally 'my thing' but seeing Kostornaia was a joy. She skates so well for such a young girl, and I'm not even mentioning the 3A's (of which one was very good). I am always a fan of Tuktamysheva, and was so now. However, she has to improve on the rest of jumps in the FS or she'll be lost among the deep field in Russia. But, I sincerely felt her SP was very good. The young Japanese girl, Yokoi, was also fun to watch, and isn't it nice to see that Finland has another up and coming skater? Andrews did a nice job of it (except for the pop) while I was pleased to see Daleman up and about again. Not so good yet but on the rise I think. Poor Niki! I'll say no more.

Dance
I love Chock/Bate's dance this year. I realise quite a few people don't, but I just enjoy the arm movements, the crossed leg lifts (very much in style) and just the fact that they are both enjoying themselves so much. Wang/Liu have really improved, and it was really nice to see a Chinese Dance couple on an international podium. I kept thinking about Matteo Rizzo when watching both Popova/Mozgov and Lajoie/Lagha. Loved Lajoie's dress though.

Well, these were my thoughts.
 

Arriba627

TWO-TIME WORLD CHAMPION 🔥
Record Breaker
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Jun 2, 2014
Country
United-States
My happiest moments were seeing Shoma's new programs. After all this time of people saying "same old-same old; he needs to use different choreographers". So he has had his first competitive programs choreographed by someone other than Mihoko Higuchi. If anyone thinks he's doing the same moves as always (especially in the short), please see an optometrist pronto. The short is amazing, and he has only had the choreo for the free for a little over a month, so he definitely has some work to do there. The potential is huge, and his beautiful skating skills and innate musicality were really awesome. Love the costumes, especially the one for the short. Both were designed by Mathieu Caron whose work I love...Very happy to see Jimmy Ma place fourth over all and 2nd in the free -- quite an achievement for him...Sota's perseverance is so inspiring. He probably hasn't been 1st going into the free in a LONG time, so it seemed that it was just not his day with the jumps. Very nice programs though...Couldn't help but smile at the reaction of the Philippine skater (Caluza) in the K & C. That's what's called being a winner even if you're not on the podium. So happy that HE was so happy! :laugh:...I have really developed a new appreciation for Roman Sadovsky's skating. Really enjoyed his Schindler's List.

I'm not too into the Ladies but watched Kostornaia's beautiful programs after reading all the buzz about how wonderful she was. I was not disappointed! Wow! She has such maturity for a young skater. I see she has IdF and NHK for her GPs (along with Alina at both), so I'll look forward to seeing her there.

This seemed like such a fun event. Can we get a petition going to hold one of the GP's in Finland annually? I know I enjoyed going there for Worlds 2017 and would love to go back again!
 

readernick

Medalist
Joined
Dec 5, 2015
For those complaining about Elizaveta and comparing her to Ashley:

I always enjoyed Ashley's honesty. She was not rude to individuals but she called out systems that she didn't like even when it was against her own interest.. Liza's 3Lz is not +0. She has a right to call out a judge for underscoring her. ( of course, it might not make the judge her friend.. so it might not be a good idea. But, she is an adult and can do what she wants) ... Some people want to make drama out of nothing.

About Voronov, I adore older athletes who love a sport so much that they continue competing forever. We need more Aljona Savchenkos, Carolina Kostners, Sergei Voronovs, Zhang Haos, Alexei Bychenkos .. not fewer. You go Voronov... you go! Compete until you are 50. I will support you.

As for my favorites of this competition, Aliona's SP and the first 3A in her free. She's amazing. Shoma's sp and lp. The short, especially, is fabulous. I could watch Shoma skate all day. Sota' s SP suits him so will.
Elizaveta's SP. It actually has transistions and the jumps are great!

Chock/Bates's weird LP. It's so odd but I love it.

The Cons

The falls in the ladies LP. Some of those girls had Pogo falls and one walked off with a bloody noise. I hope they had a doctor examine them after the competition.
 

surimi

Onward and forward, Sota!
Record Breaker
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Nov 12, 2013
It makes me feel better that some others who were present there haven't produced long reports either. Embarassingly, I don't remember most of the programs by now (as in, who skated to what), I just remember the excitement and the feeling that the vast majority were amazing. That feeling is especially strong for ice dance. Madison and Evan were great, and I loved Madison's FD costume. The Chinese were great in their FD, a well deserved 2nd place. Great choreo, the crowd went wild. When it comes to the battle of Bohemian Rhapsodies, I preferred the Canadians' dance, though not by all that much. I felt they expressed and felt the music better, but the Russians were very good too, so no issues with the placements for me.

I liked the crowd's support for all ladies, not just the Finnish ones who were at their best. Alena K was very impressive, but I am not on the fan bandwagon yet. She's expressive and her jumps are really big and confident, but she hasn't clicked with me yet. I didn't have a clear favorite among the ladies though I was rooting for Yuhana and Gabby. Gabby didn't skate confidently in her programs or practice, but I hope she can find her inner peace and rise again. It must be so hard and bitter for her to suddenly find herself with these placements when she's a former worlds medalist. I didn't have a chance to call out to her (I wanted to after her practice at the basically empty practice rink, but she was wearing her earphones so I let her be), but I really admire her for not giving up and skating on even through the difficult times. Fingers crossed for her. It was mostly because of her that I brought a small Canadian banner. (Okay, and because of Lubov/Charlie as well.) I am happy for Yuhana who medalled, and a little proud I was able to say a few words to her in her native language (enormous mental effort on my part, lol) And hooray for a new Phantom costume. I don't now recall who among the Finnish ladies was skating to the 'I'm not mental' song (I arrived home just half a day ago, and I'm tired, sorry), but she impressed me. Liza was great, but I'm not a fan of the FP dress. Her confidence is mind boggling, she didn't even skate her official FP practice and left before her music began, and still performed flawlessly in competition. :eek: That's the first time I've seen a skater do that. I hope Eva Lotta and Niki get well soon, I didn't know they were injured but their practices and skates were scary to watch. I don't like that kind of falls. =_=

Among the pairs, the Canadians stood out for me with their innovative lifts, that's unfortunately the one category I recall the least (I blame wathcing too much skating). But I enjoyed all the other pairs as well, and am fine with the podium placements as the Russians were very confident and performed high quality elements, too. It seems a part of a skater's costme (the lady from the Philipino couple?) got damaged during the FP, and sequins could be found on the ice even after ice resurfacing. I was worried for the pairs who came after, but fortunately none of them had an accident because of that.

Among the men, I was very pleasantly surprised by Selevko and a few others. Ma performed very well during his FS (like someone said, he's no Takahashi, but a valiant attempt still), and did you know a spectator shouted 'I love you' at him after his FS, and he called something back good naturedly? Loved that interaction :) I was in sore need of score boxes on the screen, because this uneducated fan cannot tell 3A from quads, and I am afraid I am even poor at distinguishing fast quads from triples, so I was quite amazed to see Voronov and Lazukin so far down the result list. There were mistakes, yes, but they didn't seem bad at all to me (though lazukin is a bit bland for me this season, but it's still early) Great program for Voronov - a great vehicle and he was selling it. He's charismatic, too, and I vastly prefer him to Samarin and even Aliev. I don't understand why someone would write him off. You rock, Sergei, good luck this season!
I liked Shoma's skating, especially in the out of the box short, but I am still looking for more of the magic of Fantasy and Loco that made me a fan, so yes, I sheepishly admit I was a little underwhelmed as I expected to be blown away (my first time seeing Shoma live) but wasn't, eventhough his skating is classy and impressive. I find the free a bit vanilla for him, but he tried. Same for Sota actually. My top favorite's SP was awfully good, and I'm happy I could cheer him on even through the disastrous (for his standards) free. When the crowd claps for struggling skaters you appreciate it, but doubly so if they're supporting a favorite of yours like this.
Hopefully I can attend one more comp this season, this was totally worth it. And guys, if you're thinking of going to Finlandia next year, don't waste your money on the overpriced junk food at the main rink and try the cafeteria at the practice rink. Warmth, quiet, you can watch skaters do runthroughs as you eat, and a full menu with drinks and veggies and second helpings included, for just 10 euro. That was also one of the highlights for me ^ ^
 

Gabby30

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 8, 2019
I was going to go to Espoo only on Friday when both singles' categories were on, but somehow found myself there also yesterday. My main interest was Alena Kostornaia who I wanted to see skate live - was she going to be as good to watch as on screen? Sometimes the live presence can surprise you (e.g. loved Denis Ten even without the good jumps, but Jason Brown did not live up to the hype). Watched half of pairs SP, ice dance FD, men and ladies SP and FS.

The pairs left no impressions in my mind, though, so can't really comment.

The ice dance competition reminded me why I generally tend to avoid watching it except out of weird misplaced sense of duty at live competitions. Bohemian Rhapsody as a pair dance is a little weird - I mean, who is the girl? Mama or "babe"? Or both? At least the cuts were kept at a minimum and in the latter part. It struck me odd that apart from Chock/Bates and the Russians, most of the teams were very loud on the ice, I could hear their blades through the music from the other side of the rink. Was under the impression that ice dancers need good skating skills, but this selection obviously did not have them. In addition, all the prolonged prancing right in the judging panel's faces seemed weird. Back in the day that did happen also in the singles, but currently not so much. The choreos featured also plenty of action just in the mid rink area instead of covering most of the ice area. The Chinese team was good but could have used just Tshaikovsky instead of the Black Swan OST with what they did. The most interesting entries into lifts. Chock & Bates I have always found somehow irritating but this FD I actually liked - maintained the idea throughout and they skated well.

Men's SP featured some pleasant surprises, both Philippine guys were good to watch despite the lack of difficult tech content. Caluza especially was just great in his classical routine. Jimmy Ma's program was slow, small (I think there were many places on the ice he did not even go close to) and stationary - standing on two feet to do armography is not really a very good idea. Estonia's Selevko I had seen in JGP competitions and his performance qualities are impressive also live, great commitment to the choreo and great movement! Hope he gets the tech content up to make a good contender for the European level at least. The top guys had some impressive quads before messing up easier jumps. Shoma was probably the most expected skater and although his music is more energetic than before, it was still the same old Shoma doing basically the same moves as always before. The return of Yamamoto was great to see although he still feels a little bit like the young man without characteristics. He has to develop a persona on ice one day. And as Jaana said above, a Finnish male figure skater in the Top 10 was amazing to see...

Then the main event for me, ladies. Alena started the SP, so that highlight was over fast. But I have to say that I don't think that I have seen anyone quite like her ever before. Her speed and general flow on the is just amazing, so fluid and smooth. She does not seem to have to work for the elements at all, the jumps just flow out of her body without much visible effort. Her movement is of great quality, finished, unhurried, graceful, with strength and intensity when needed. It was somehow unreal. I was hoping for a 3A already in the SP but was left a bit underwhelmed (well, the Ina Bauer entry into one of the best 2As in the world was quite good!). I think the SP steps are not very good somehow, it was level 4, but seemed slow and small. There was also some bits in the choreo that somehow did not fit with the rest (some of the arm movements). The FS with the 3As was pretty cool to see, though. The FS is a work in progress with the addeed tech content. I would like to see a better moment for her becoming a vampire, but there was now a difference between the human and the vampire skater which was good. But overall, her skating made me a true believer.

Seeing 4 3As in about 10 minutes in the ladies competition was quite cool, but the difference between Liza and Alena's jumps was huge. Liza's are small and made from a slow speed with little glory to them. Which is a pity, because they could be a huge highlight. Her T Rex arms (this apt description is by my companion at the competition) are somewhat irritating. But the SP was some of the best Liza I have ever seen - she was really living the music and the movement. The FS is not as good as a choreo, but she has some moments in that one also.

Yuhana Yokoi was a good performer, but perhaps not yet anything truly memorable. Eva-Lotta Kiibus has the makings of a great performer, I think (have not seen any reports on injury despite the falls). She has that fire in her that is great to watch. Also Johanna TaljegĂĄrd! It was great to see Jenni Saarinen come back. I only realized whilst looking at the protocol that she had done all the jumps in a row - usually you get bored when a program is made like that, but she was somehow so good to watch that I did not notice. The other Finnish girls are (possibly) promising but need a cure for those hunched backs and eyes directed to the ice.

The crowd was ok - it might be that the Finnish big names could have attracted a bigger audience. Kostornaia, Tuktamisheva and Uno were obviously not enough to fill the stands properly. The Japanese left mostly after the men's competition, but were replaced by seemingly many Russians. The rink works well for audiences this size and these days it is even fairly easy to reach with the metro stop nearby. The last time I got to go to FT was in 2013, so it was nice to get back there.

E

What do you mean with Sota has no characteristics and persona? His talent, skills, style of skating, interpreting and jumps (when he lands them) stand out, it's shows his personality and it's something only he has. But i guess you have to be a "showman" with no much talent to have "characteristics" and "persona"....
 

eppen

Medalist
Joined
Mar 28, 2006
Country
Spain
What do you mean with Sota has no characteristics and persona? His talent, skills, style of skating, interpreting and jumps (when he lands them) stand out, it's shows his personality and it's something only he has. But i guess you have to be a "showman" with no much talent to have "characteristics" and "persona"....

What I saw in that SP was a perfectly fine technical execution of movement which was yet devoid of depth and emotion, personal connection with the music. The choreo did not help much in its blandness. East of Eden is a big piece of music which would require more from the interpretation to make the performance believable and good.

Sota reminds me a bit of Kaori Sakamoto when she came to seniors. She was also a perfectly good skater with plenty of technical skills but really almost nothing in the performance side. Working with Benoit Richaud for the past couple of years has given her more skills and depth for the perfomance side or her skating and eg last year I really liked what she was doing.

Good technique or talent for jumps does not equal style or ability to perform IMO, you have to be able to connect with the music and make that visible whilst on ice. In the best cases the skater has both, the tech content and the ability to perform and infuse the movement with that something that makes it interesting to watch. It is also possible to learn how to get better with the performance and develop that side of your skating as I think Kaori has been able to do. Sota is still probably working mostly to get that tech content under control, but I do hope they also pay attention to the other side of his skating.

Having "showmanship", "characteristics" and "persona" is a big part of skating IMO. It is why I like to watch it, the combination of technical skill and artistry that is quite unique in sports.

E
 

Ic3Rabbit

Former Elite, now Pro. ⛸️
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Jan 9, 2017
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Chock/Bates's weird LP. It's so odd but I love it.

Can I ask what you think is so weird about C/B FD?:scratch:

I love it, so different and out of the box.

Weird is what I consider Smart and Diaz FD this year...What the heck is that? That is truly odd and not out of the box LOL!
 

surimi

Onward and forward, Sota!
Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 12, 2013
What I saw in that SP was a perfectly fine technical execution of movement which was yet devoid of depth and emotion, personal connection with the music. The choreo did not help much in its blandness. East of Eden is a big piece of music which would require more from the interpretation to make the performance believable and good.

Sota reminds me a bit of Kaori Sakamoto when she came to seniors. She was also a perfectly good skater with plenty of technical skills but really almost nothing in the performance side. Working with Benoit Richaud for the past couple of years has given her more skills and depth for the perfomance side or her skating and eg last year I really liked what she was doing.

Good technique or talent for jumps does not equal style or ability to perform IMO, you have to be able to connect with the music and make that visible whilst on ice. In the best cases the skater has both, the tech content and the ability to perform and infuse the movement with that something that makes it interesting to watch. It is also possible to learn how to get better with the performance and develop that side of your skating as I think Kaori has been able to do. Sota is still probably working mostly to get that tech content under control, but I do hope they also pay attention to the other side of his skating.

Having "showmanship", "characteristics" and "persona" is a big part of skating IMO. It is why I like to watch it, the combination of technical skill and artistry that is quite unique in sports.

E

Well, you marked your post as what *you* saw, so I don't have a problem with that... but my impression of Sota's program was vastly different from yours. For me he's got loads of personality and charisma, and is perfectly 'believeable' and 'good' in his program. He himself said he's still working on his expressivity so that's a WIP, but his movements/expressions match the music quite well, and have for a while. (Disregarding his free which I consider a mismatch for him and his on ice persona) What I disagree with is that one needs showmanship to be a great skater. I think it's perfectly possible to be a great skater even when one isn't a showman/entertainer. There are skaters who are too serious/introverted to be ones (and Sota is one of them IMO), then there are skaters who excel more at entertaining than at serious performances, but most can do both; but I like them all.

-

That said, I've remembered I didn't give a nod in my previous post to Warren's entertaining bandit performance which was definitely something that spiced up the programs and was just the right program to get the arena in the mood. And also I have to mention the great enthusiastic atmosphere during the victory laps, with kids and adults (but mostly kids) cheering for Liza, Shoma and Alena like crazy, and not wanting to let them go. :]
 

readernick

Medalist
Joined
Dec 5, 2015
Can I ask what you think is so weird about C/B FD?:scratch:

I love it, so different and out of the box.

Weird is what I consider Smart and Diaz FD this year...What the heck is that? That is truly odd and not out of the box LOL!

They said that the story of this free dance is that Evan discovers a snake in the desert. The snake turns into a sexy woman and seduces him. How is that not weird? Madison is literally playing a sexy snake. I mean if someone has to play a sexy snake, Madison is the girl for the job but... to me that is a bonkers plot for a free dance. The walk like an Egyptian arms are also of questionable taste. But, I still love it.
 

TontoK

Hot Tonto
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Jan 28, 2013
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They said that the story of this free dance is that Evan discovers a snake in the desert. The snake turns into a sexy woman and seduces him. How is that not weird? Madison is literally playing a sexy snake. I mean if someone has to play a sexy snake, Madison is the girl for the job but... to me that is a bonkers plot for a free dance. The walk like an Egyptian arms are also of questionable taste. But, I still love it.

Oh, I completely disregard these "plotlines" that skaters put out. They're ridiculous.

The program has to stand on its own, without benefit of a pamphlet telling us what to think or feel.

In this case, C/B performance does just that.

They could say, "This is the story of a Martian who lands in the Amazon and thinks that alligators are actually people." After all, Evan does have a reptilian shirt.

It wouldn't make one lick of difference. The actual skating is beautiful. I still think there are too many Egyptian arms, but whatever.
 

Ic3Rabbit

Former Elite, now Pro. ⛸️
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They said that the story of this free dance is that Evan discovers a snake in the desert. The snake turns into a sexy woman and seduces him. How is that not weird? Madison is literally playing a sexy snake. I mean if someone has to play a sexy snake, Madison is the girl for the job but... to me that is a bonkers plot for a free dance. The walk like an Egyptian arms are also of questionable taste. But, I still love it.

LOL that's just their weird description of it.
 

WeakAnkles

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 1, 2011
They said that the story of this free dance is that Evan discovers a snake in the desert. The snake turns into a sexy woman and seduces him. How is that not weird? Madison is literally playing a sexy snake. I mean if someone has to play a sexy snake, Madison is the girl for the job but... to me that is a bonkers plot for a free dance. The walk like an Egyptian arms are also of questionable taste. But, I still love it.

Right. I really do like the program. And I don't have a problem in principle with the use of ethnic dances or dance moves in a SD or FD. Heck, I think Meryl and Charlie's Indian folk OD is a model of how well such moves can be integrated into the required elements of an ice dance. The issue I have here is that there are so very very many Egyptian arms that they turn a character dance into a caricature dance. It's a good program. It doesn't need to remind us over and over and over and over and over again that no, this isn't a Viennese waltz.
 

Bcash

Final Flight
Joined
Feb 18, 2017
Lubov/Charlie are lovely and I look forward to seeing them compete more this season.

Kostornaia has beautiful technique and a competitor's cool-headedness, but her FS is a weird construct. Even the SP, which is more attractive has an abrupt transition in music.
 

SkateSkates

Medalist
Joined
Feb 17, 2010
My highlight was Aliona Kostornaia. I can’t imagine her senior debut going any better than it did. The skating speaks for itself!

Another highlight was the high quality stream - both the illegal re-stream version and also the Finnish TV versions which were later uploaded to YouTube. I think the stream was the best of the challengers so far.
 

sclloyd

On the Ice
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Aug 20, 2019
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United-States
For someone who hasn’t been following current skaters, Alena was impressive. Those 2 triple axels brought memories of Mao’s fantastic skating years ago. In time, I believe she will improve in the artistry, spins, and step sequences.

It's crazy to me that even with the artistry Aliona already has that she can be even better. I am really excited to see how her program progresses, especially the opening of the free skate. There was some lovely choreography in the test skates that I believe was excluded to help the axels, so I'm really curious to see how/when/if it gets reincorporated back into the program as the season progresses.

I also noticed she switched to a much stiffer boot, which I imagine is why her step sequences don't look on quite as deep of edges as normal. As she adjusts to the stiffness, I expect we'll see a return to that.

It's really incredible the performance she gives. Two triple axels for both her and Liza, but the results and on ice impression are so different. When you watch the two side by side, it is easy to be underwhelmed by Liza. I think a more interesting match up than Aliona with any of her teammates or compatriots will be Rika Kihira. Kihira has generally good presentation (though her programs this year seem underwhelming) but with the same jumping arsenal, perhaps we can see truly what Aliona is capable of besides her technical ability.
 

CanadianSkaterGuy

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 25, 2013
Lubov/Charlie are lovely and I look forward to seeing them compete more this season.

Kostornaia has beautiful technique and a competitor's cool-headedness, but her FS is a weird construct. Even the SP, which is more attractive has an abrupt transition in music.

Yeah, the music is a bit weird in Kostornaia's FS, but I have to hand it to her for being able to sell it. There was fire and expression I hadn't seen from her before. 71 was a bit generous, since parts of it still need cleaning up but I'm so impressed by her finesse and quality of movements throughout (not just the jumps). There is a refinement that you don't see in a lot of newbies, established senior skaters, and (not to throw shade) but definitely not in typical Eteri skaters. It's like someone took the competitiveness and technical expertise of an Eteri skater and gave her an actual program. But she clearly has a lot of natural talent too because a program/music like this can come across very rushed and wild, and she managed to still have a level of refinement to it. Can't wait to see how the rest of her season goes. :)
 

eppen

Medalist
Joined
Mar 28, 2006
Country
Spain
Well, you marked your post as what *you* saw, so I don't have a problem with that... [---] What I disagree with is that one needs showmanship to be a great skater. I think it's perfectly possible to be a great skater even when one isn't a showman/entertainer. There are skaters who are too serious/introverted to be ones (and Sota is one of them IMO), then there are skaters who excel more at entertaining than at serious performances, but most can do both; but I like them all.

We all can only really describe these things from our own points of view - there is really no other way! And we all have to respect each other's dislikes and likes. :)

Showmanship can be defined in many ways I guess, but to me it means mostly having good performance skills, preferably also the ability to interpret different kinds of styles and moods in music. It does not mean only the flair for drama or theatricality IMO. Michelle Kwan or Carolina Kostner might not be described by many as show(wo)men, but they certainly had/have excellent performance skills and are able to entertain (as in make their viewers feel the performance what ever they were doing) their audiences with interpretations of even very difficult and different pieces of music. I also doubt whether the skater's personality is really what determines how and what they are able to perform. On the ice you can be someone else and also a shy and introverted person could do that. And vice versa, an extroverted skater might find it hard to perform to a big audience or not be very good at expressing different kinds of emotions etc. Going out there on that huge ice in front of even thousands of people is not an easy task for anyone, extrovert or introvert, I think.

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