ISU video commentator?

NanaPat said:

I really like PJ. She may actually be available, as I believe she only freelances for the CBC.

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The problem isn't so much CBC. Because, let's face it, in this new era we are living in this season, CBC aren't actually showing a lot of figure skating. The problem is that she does an awful lot of work for the Olympic Channel, across a lot of sports. So, she may not actually be available for a lot of competitions.

You know, with so many male commentators about, it would be nice to get the female perspective once in a while. That was why I liked it when Catherine Whitaker joined the British Eurosport team. She may not have been anywhere near a top level skater when she was competing herself, but she really added something to the commentary.

balabam said:

This. Certainly this. Catherine is the very best mix of announcer with proper english pronounciation and a properly resonant voice (aka best of the best), further with real life skating knowledge (although rather amateur than world-class), moreover with woman charm, alongside with dignity and praise for all competitors aka Ted Barton style and furthermore the best match to cooperate with second announcer. Just listen to her for a minute or two here at 2018 WC (forget her generic counterpart announcer):

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6grtk7

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In case you are wondering, that was Simon Golding with her. He is a general sports commentator that Eurosport brings in in an emergency for any sport whenever none of their specialist commentators are available. But, he is very professional and clearly does a lot of research before he steps into the commentary box. And I have actually been quite impressed with him any time he has covered figure skating.

tafattsbarn said:

Actually, i was thinking of Belinda Noonan.

Maybe she wasn't the one doing he olympic commentary, i might be mistaken. I really like Belinda though, and would actually pay money just to get her specifically.

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Oops. :

I just assumed that it was PJ you were thinking of, because I know that she does do a lot of stuff for the Olympic Channel.

Have to be honest, this thread is the first time I have heard of Belinda. So, I was curious to know what she's like. But, balabam very kindly added a video with her commentating on it (we don't get access to the World Feed for the Olympics. We are stuck with either the BBC commentary or British Eurosport commentary)

balabam said:

And I would suggest like an co-host expert another great announcer lady, Belinda Noonan, who did Olympic channel coverage of 2014 Olympics (as the main announcer with Chris Howarth) and 2018 Olympics (as co-announcer of some generic guy), it was really priviledge to hear her, just listen here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgXKJvTVW9g

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Yes, I like her! She clearly went to the same commentary school as the British Eurosport guys. Like them, she only speaks during the routine to point out some of the more significant elements, or to pass a short comment on the quality we are seeing.

And, like we have been saying ever since he started popping up on the ISU stream, it just shows that Chris is better when he has somebody sitting beside him to bounce off and actually talk to. Although, in this video anyway, Belinda did kinda dominate him.

By the way, I just hunted out video of the PyeongChang 2018 Ladies FS on the Olympic Channel, and the generic guy sitting alongside her is Tom Kirkland, the guy I was complaining about at the start of this thread. So, thank goodness we in the British Isles didn't have to listen to him at the time. That would have been torture!

balabam said:

So we can have two great woman commentators for ISU (appreciating that Tracy Wilson is great announcer, but she is more needed in coaching) So I' am for those women, but like the Eurosport guys, too.

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Somebody else to consider is Sinéad Kerr. She was brilliant when she did a stint in the Eurosport box one time (can't actually remember which of the guys she was alongside). But unfortunately the Americans noticed that and stole her from us.

But the less said about Joanne Conway the better. She was far too critical. I can take a commentator being critical when it is justified, but she was criticising everything, most of it unnecessarily. I still smile when I think of the time that Nicky Slater had enough of it and turned on her.

CaroLiza_fan

I agree we need two commentators. There’s a reason that’s the standard.

CaroLiza_fan said:

The problem isn't so much CBC. Because, let's face it, in this new era we are living in this season, CBC aren't actually showing a lot of figure skating. The problem is that she does an awful lot of work for the Olympic Channel, across a lot of sports. So, she may not actually be available for a lot of competitions.

You know, with so many male commentators about, it would be nice to get the female perspective once in a while. That was why I liked it when Catherine Whitaker joined the British Eurosport team. She may not have been anywhere near a top level skater when she was competing herself, but she really added something to the commentary.



In case you are wondering, that was Simon Golding with her. He is a general sports commentator that Eurosport brings in in an emergency for any sport whenever none of their specialist commentators are available. But, he is very professional and clearly does a lot of research before he steps into the commentary box. And I have actually been quite impressed with him any time he has covered figure skating.



Oops. :

I just assumed that it was PJ you were thinking of, because I know that she does do a lot of stuff for the Olympic Channel.

Have to be honest, this thread is the first time I have heard of Belinda. So, I was curious to know what she's like. But, balabam very kindly added a video with her commentating on it (we don't get access to the World Feed for the Olympics. We are stuck with either the BBC commentary or British Eurosport commentary)



Yes, I like her! She clearly went to the same commentary school as the British Eurosport guys. Like them, she only speaks during the routine to point out some of the more significant elements, or to pass a short comment on the quality we are seeing.

And, like we have been saying ever since he started popping up on the ISU stream, it just shows that Chris is better when he has somebody sitting beside him to bounce off and actually talk to. Although, in this video anyway, Belinda did kinda dominate him.

By the way, I just hunted out video of the PyeongChang 2018 Ladies FS on the Olympic Channel, and the generic guy sitting alongside her is Tom Kirkland, the guy I was complaining about at the start of this thread. So, thank goodness we in the British Isles didn't have to listen to him at the time. That would have been torture!



Somebody else to consider is Sinéad Kerr. She was brilliant when she did a stint in the Eurosport box one time (can't actually remember which of the guys she was alongside). But unfortunately the Americans noticed that and stole her from us.

But the less said about Joanne Conway the better. She was far too critical. I can take a commentator being critical when it is justified, but she was criticising everything, most of it unnecessarily. I still smile when I think of the time that Nicky Slater had enough of it and turned on her.

CaroLiza_fan

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Thank you very much, CaroLiza_fan for all the additional info. It seams that you are the best expert on commentary things here ar the GS forum.
You should be the ISU advisor on this topic, really They need one.

Kinga said:

We are in 2020, the streaming technology is so advanced that there should be 'no commentary' button. This dude is hopeless, but I don't particularly enjoy other commentators who speak throughout performances, whoever they are. I should have a freedom not to be dependent on a voice ruining the music for me and breaking a performance. They can talk all they want during replays. So: either no commentary option, or keep your thoughts until a performance has finished. Whoever you are. Chris H or no Chris H.

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When I watched 2018 Olympics on the Eurosport channels, there was an option to have it without commentary, so I used it during the actual performances because Belinda Noonan was talking just a little too much and putting me off. I so wished there'd been a button to shut off this guy during the 4CC!

I’ve not seen multiple audio tracks as an option on YT live but I’m sure the ISU could have a second silent stream.

DSQ said:

I’ve not seen multiple audio tracks as an option on YT live but I’m sure the ISU could have a second silent stream.

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There really isn't this technical option on single Youtube video, but why do not provide two separate Youtube videos at the same time, one with commentary and one without?
By that way, you can have A/B testing on real data:

1. People current preferences testing. Do more people watch stream with commentary or without?
2. Single commentator improvement. In case of the same commentator at more consecutive events, does he lure more and more people to commented stream or discourage them from it?
3. Comparison of different comentators. In case of different commentators at consecutive events, which of them brings higher share of people to commented stream?

DSQ said:

I’ve not seen multiple audio tracks as an option on YT live but I’m sure the ISU could have a second silent stream.

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They do two streams for some of the small Canadian competitions, one in French and one in English. If they can manage it, surely the ISU can. Oh wait, we're talking about the ISU..... They just now managed one stream. Baby steps, ISU, baby steps.

Yes that’s what I was trying to say, they could do a second stream without commentary. xD Sorry.

I really liked Paul during the 4CC, and I forgave all his his mistakes, as he redeemed himself with the cute British humour, and language. I will always remember when he told us that the Korean announcer recommended that anyone feeling something wrong anywhere in the body, should go to the medical office for investigation (Corona virus scare). He said that most people over 40 or 50 years old might have something to report...

Sabrina said:

I really liked Paul during the 4CC, and I forgave all his his mistakes, as he redeemed himself with the cute British humour, and language. I will always remember when he told us that the Korean announcer recommended that anyone feeling something wrong anywhere in the body, should go to the medical office for investigation (Corona virus scare). He said that most people over 40 or 50 years old might have something to report...

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Hahaha...I forgave a lot, even the hat thing (which was pretty bad), but at least he acknowledged the greatness of Jason's skate. But the 40/50 thing....no way! I'm 53 and feel wrong things in the body all the time. Unforgiveable! Still, it made me laugh too. Not meaning that I don't take this Corona virus seriously. I do.

viennaskater said:

When I watched 2018 Olympics on the Eurosport channels, there was an option to have it without commentary, so I used it during the actual performances because Belinda Noonan was talking just a little too much and putting me off. I so wished there'd been a button to shut off this guy during the 4CC!

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Did you watch this recently on Eurosport? If so, could you send me a link please.

viennaskater said:

When I watched 2018 Olympics on the Eurosport channels, there was an option to have it without commentary, so I used it during the actual performances because Belinda Noonan was talking just a little too much and putting me off. I so wished there'd been a button to shut off this guy during the 4CC!

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The setup that the Eurosport Player had for the 2018 Olympics was near enough perfect. You had one video stream showing the World Feed pictures, but you could select which audio stream you wanted on top of it. And there was a range of languages available, as well as the "ambient sound" stream which had no commentary.

My only complaint was that when you selected a different audio stream, it was not a smooth switch in audio. What was happening is that you were actually changing to a different video on a different page. Not like the old days of the Eurosport Player from years ago when you could select different audio streams on the same video stream. Now, that was perfect! :agree:

This is the sort of service that I would love to see the ISU provide on their own website. And to let ALL competitions have access to it, not just their own. By hosting it themselves, they would not have any of the problems that are associated with the various livestreaming sites. (videos buffering because they are so memory intensive on Daily Motion; music copyright claims on YouTube; etc.)

Hey, if Eurosport got the rights back, the ISU could even do like the IBU does and have Eurosport providing the commentators for the World Feed. Save them having to find their own commentators for each language feed.

But, this is the ISU we are talking about. So, I don't see it ever happening.

CaroLiza_fan

Since this has turned into a general commentary discussion, I'd like to say how tired I am of Johnny Weir and/or Tara Lipinski saying a variation of, "Without the quads/triple axels, this program can't compete with the top skaters." I understand why they say it, because they need to explain lower scores for lower tech content, but my heavens, it gets irritating. I just watched a lovely program, and they compliment it very nicely but then fill up the rest of the time saying it won't be competitive. It would be less negative and demeaning if they said, "This will get a lower score because of the lower base value of the elements." That's factual while passing no judgment (judgments like "he/she should try to upgrade their tech content to compete with the top skaters"). It's obvious to anyone watching that the lower the score, the lower they'll end up in the standings. There's no need to say, "So and so won't be competitive." Just say they'll get a lower score and leave it at that. The other statements imply, however subtly, that so and so shouldn't be competing, doesn't belong there, or that their approach to competing is "wrong" or "lacking."

Johnny and Tara have a general habit of filling all the time after the skate but before the commercials, and sometimes I want to sit back and personally absorb what I just saw. But maybe that's just me.

Anyone know if WC will air on Eurosport? If so, I'm buying a subscription, but if not, I only hope that Chris & co will be hired to do the commentary on the ISU channel.
We should write a letter or something.

I have really appreciated the live ISU streams and I do miss commentary if there isn't any. As far as my preferences go, I love Ted Barton, Chris Howarth and Simon Reid. I think the current one has definitely improved a bit but he doesn't manage to convey any excitement. Robin Cousins is obviously very knowledgeable but doesn't convey excitement either. Chris is the best one for that.

wintersmith said:

Anyone know if WC will air on Eurosport? If so, I'm buying a subscription, but if not, I only hope that Chris & co will be hired to do the commentary on the ISU channel.
We should write a letter or something.

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No, Eurosport will not air WC, because they decided not to buy broadcasting rights this year.

NanaPat said:

They do two streams for some of the small Canadian competitions, one in French and one in English. If they can manage it, surely the ISU can. Oh wait, we're talking about the ISU..... They just now managed one stream. Baby steps, ISU, baby steps.

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After what Skate Canada did to the Nationals stream this year, I am disinclined to compare them favourably to the ISU. Sure, I have to suffer through the inspired ‘She skates very well indeed’ commentary from warm up to exhibition, but at least I get to see the last warmup group and I can play it back at my leisure as many times as it pleases me. Woah. Technology!

lariko said:

After what Skate Canada did to the Nationals stream this year, I am disinclined to compare them favourably to the ISU. Sure, I have to suffer through the inspired ‘She skates very well indeed’ commentary from warm up to exhibition, but at least I get to see the last warmup group and I can play it back at my leisure as many times as it pleases me. Woah. Technology!

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Don't get me started on Canadian Nationals coverage. It is always bad for me. They sell the rights to CTV/TSN, and TSN then shows the last groups on CTV or TSN, or one of the TSN-lets (TSN2, 3, 4, 5). My problem is that I don't get the TSN-lets, therefore can't see the "prime" groups. It was even worse this year when some of the events were on CTV for most of the country but not in BC or Alberta, leaving us "westerners" with nothing to watch.

The only ray of sunshine in the spotty coverage is that if I can't watch, I don't have to watch/listen to Rod Black, whom I find intensely irritating. So much so that compared to Rod, I barely noticed SBS-man.

NanaPat said:

Don't get me started on Canadian Nationals coverage. It is always bad for me. They sell the rights to CTV/TSN, and TSN then shows the last groups on CTV or TSN, or one of the TSN-lets (TSN2, 3, 4, 5). My problem is that I don't get the TSN-lets, therefore can't see the "prime" groups. It was even worse this year when some of the events were on CTV for most of the country but not in BC or Alberta, leaving us "westerners" with nothing to watch.

The only ray of sunshine in the spotty coverage is that if I can't watch, I don't have to watch/listen to Rod Black, whom I find intensely irritating. So much so that compared to Rod, I barely noticed SBS-man.

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I am in Alberta, and that’s the first year I was watching, so I had experienced the pain... I couldn’t believe that I had by far better coverage from Russia and Japan than from States and, what stung the most, Canada. Apparently, they buy the rights to restrict access to figure skating competitions... lol.

So I came across some social media posts talking about Chris Howarth "racist" comments. Does anyone have an exact quote of what he said or during which program, and for which skater he said something inappropriate? It looks like Ted Barton is commentating the WC and I just want to find out if Chris is being ousted out because of something unfair. He's my fave, so I gotta go support.