Coronavirus and the new season | Page 4 | Golden Skate

Coronavirus and the new season

Tavi...

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 10, 2014
Honestly, I think they should just keep the same tech mins and give everyone 3 spots in each discipline for Worlds and the Olympics. Why not? Sure it will make the competitions longer, but they can just have preliminary rounds.
 

heartyxo

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 27, 2019
I think they will carry over the entries from this year.

I don’t have too much hope of there being a Grand Prix, but if possible everyone could debut at nationals, then Euros/4CC, then worlds. There could be some senior Bs too. Obviously that’s only if it is possible to have the second half of the season.
 

MaHa75

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 5, 2018
I think that ISU should start with competition as soon as possible. It does not matter that athletes will not be in their best shape! Athletes need to compete otherwise you lose motivation at all if anyone just train in their own coner. An all athletes are in same boat...nobody can train properly an and preparation plans are messy. Otherwise i mean without i ternational competition high level sport lose his meaning at all.
 

Harriet

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 23, 2017
Country
Australia
I got the seasons tangled up in my previous post - of course next season, if there is one, will be the pre-Olympic season. But I still think it would be best to cut it back to a half-season, with the option to discard that too if needed (and the cities granted Euros, FCCs and Worlds get the next open slot for those competitions). Let's face it, every sport in the Winter Games is in the same boat. Hardly anyone can train fully right now and might not be able to for many months, especially those who need to travel to train. The next Olympics - summer and winter both - won't be a grand parade of records and innovations, they'll be the 'more of us lived than not, let's celebrate' Games, and even most of the way through a full season, those athletes who are there will probably still be rebuilding.

So my thinking is, let it go. There's another four years after that for the sport to rebuild and reshape itself. The Olympics aren't a deadline or an imperative or even a requirement, they're just a big carnival. What matters is that the people who are part of this sport now are still alive at the end of this pandemic, and able to keep on participating in it for as long as they want to, if they still do want to.
 

Tolstoj

Record Breaker
Joined
Nov 21, 2015
I think that ISU should start with competition as soon as possible. It does not matter that athletes will not be in their best shape! Athletes need to compete otherwise you lose motivation at all if anyone just train in their own coner. An all athletes are in same boat...nobody can train properly an and preparation plans are messy. Otherwise i mean without i ternational competition high level sport lose his meaning at all.

People are dying for COVID-19, even young people.

Athletes often have to deal with all sorts of injuries, which make her health at risk with these viruses spreading. They will have to continue their training at home as much as possible.

Now it's important for everyone to stay home, the more you don't respect the rules of a quarantine, the longer it will take to limit the contagion.
 

TallyT

Record Breaker
Joined
Apr 23, 2018
Country
Australia
People are dying for COVID-19, even young people.

Not only that, but there's the coaches and support staff... some of whom are NOT that young (Chen made a point of acknowledging worry about his coach, I believe). And as I have said before, Yuzuru is not the only skater with asthma... though we can hope not all of them are as reckless as he has sometimes has shown himself to be, any respiratory condition is a worry.

I get it's a tough call, both for the sport which wants to maintain profile and for the skaters, especially those either on the rise or on the cusp, whose whole career could feel the impact of a long shut down. But at least the closedown happened at the end of the skating season and even if it lingers, we should get a truncated one next year. The players and fans - Olympic and otherwise - of the starting season (our winter, your summer) are looking possibly the entire year being wiped out, no ifs buts or maybes.

I know some footy fans who are weeping into their beer as their clubs' headquarters are closed and staff laid off...
 

bytheriver

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 28, 2016
As a society we will have to decide what matters to us more - human lives or medals and athletic events. Young people are dying - there was just an infant that died in my state from the illness. And older populations make up a significant portion of the figure skating audience.

I personally don’t believe we will have sporting events with audiences until there is a vaccine. Perhaps they will be able to do the second half of the skating season, but that is doubtful as well because of the international travel involved. They are saying that 18 months is an optimistic estimate for a vaccine being developed, so in all honesty I don’t see the 2020/2021 Olympic Games happening, and potentially the Winter Olympic Games being postponed. Because if we develop a vaccine at the earliest possible date, that would be in September 2021, and then it would take months for it to be distributed widely, during the middle of flu season no less.

Not to mention that athletes will likely not be able to return to training for months, or even longer if the virus hits a second wave. It’s all just wait and see now, this is unprecedented. But ultimately even if it means some careers are cut short, lost Olympic dreams are nothing compared to people’s lives. I’m sure an Olympic medal wouldn’t soothe the pain an athlete would have from losing a loved one from exposure. We’ll come out of this eventually, likely within 2-3 years, but not if we don’t see the big picture. The longer we resist, the worse it will get.
 

Vilord

Final Flight
Joined
Oct 9, 2015
Country
Sweden
One thing that I think people should keep in mind with all the Corona talk and next season is that when enough people have had it (somewhere around 70% i think) heard immunity will start to set in and Corona will be a seasonal flu just like all the others that go around. The point of all the restrictions is not to stop the virus from infecting us but to keep the infection rate slow enough that the healthcare professionals can keep up with those requiring intensive care. The majority (90% from what ive heard) get mild to moderate symptoms and like with any other influenca recovers at home after a couple of weeks. It is true that people die of this virus but that is true for other viruses as well. The seasonal flu kills around 600 000 people every year and that is the number we should compare Corona victims to. It is sad but also true that some of the people (how many is impossible to tell) would have died anyway either of the health concerans that made them suseptible to corona or of the normal flu.

I guess what im trying to say with this is that I see a lot of fear of this often more than I think is neasessary. I dont think we need to wait for a vaccine before we can start having competitions again. There may have to be a restriction in terms of spectators at early events but I have hopes of there being a next season even if probably an altered one.

As for the 2020 world championships I see no point in trying to host it later. Skaters wont have time to properly prepare for it and it would create a whole set of problems in how to structure this new season and when to get new program etc.

I hope that we will get a GP and JGP series but it seems likely that it would have to start later than normal. Especially the JGP which normally starts in August. The time frame of an illness like this is hard to predict and there is really no point in planning any competition before the majority of the skatera are able to be back training on the ice (In sweden we still have ice though, and our healtcare system is this far doing ok). hopefully we will have a spring with isolation and in summer the amount of cases will subside (remember you can only get the same virus infection once) and life can slowly start to go back to normal. There will probably be restrictions on travel and large gatherings fore some time after that but if we can get a parallel GP/JGP series in maybe late october to december (these can be without spectators if neasessary) skaters will still get those important autum competitions and hopefully we get the championchips as usual in 2021.
 

SkateSkates

Medalist
Joined
Feb 17, 2010
I don’t want to minimize the magnitude of the illness in anyway so I hope this doesn’t come off like that, but skaters training and competing at the highest level aren’t just doing it for medals or records. This is their livelihood, how they make money to live off of. They are not just skating for our entertainment. This not only impacts their ability to give us amazing performances, but also their ability to pay rent, buy groceries, etc. just like how many of us may lose our desk jobs.

Just something to consider.
 

bytheriver

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 28, 2016
One thing that I think people should keep in mind with all the Corona talk and next season is that when enough people have had it (somewhere around 70% i think) heard immunity will start to set in and Corona will be a seasonal flu just like all the others that go around. The point of all the restrictions is not to stop the virus from infecting us but to keep the infection rate slow enough that the healthcare professionals can keep up with those requiring intensive care. The majority (90% from what ive heard) get mild to moderate symptoms and like with any other influenca recovers at home after a couple of weeks. It is true that people die of this virus but that is true for other viruses as well. The seasonal flu kills around 600 000 people every year and that is the number we should compare Corona victims to. It is sad but also true that some of the people (how many is impossible to tell) would have died anyway either of the health concerans that made them suseptible to corona or of the normal flu.

But what you aren’t considering is that even if 60% of the US population alone get it and 1-2% of those infected die, that’s anywhere from 1-3 million Americans dead. That’s not like the flu. The goal is to flatten the curve, but that isn’t something that happens over a period of a couple of months, more something that needs to be maintained until a vaccine is found so we don’t overload the hospital system and see the death rate rise. Not to mention other people (cancer patients, regular accident victims) who will die because of the lack of resources.

The hype around COVID-19 is not alarmist - this isn’t like the seasonal flu, more like the Spanish Flu. Take the numbers above and estimate what the global death toll would have to look like to reach herd immunity. And even if we decided “whatever, all those tens (or hundreds) of millions of people might have died anyway” and burn through hundreds of millions of people to get to herd immunity status and go back to our normal lives as quickly as possible, the world will look drastically different after. Economies change, mindsets change, millions will lose their jobs and livelihoods (not just the athletes and people with desk jobs), nothing would be the same. So athletes losing their opportunity for income isn’t a major factor for me to consider right now when the alternative is people dying. Millions are unemployed in the US alone because of what has happened in the past couple of weeks, some families have lost their retirement and college funds in the stock market. It’s sad all around, but it doesn’t mean that we should let millions of people die just so we can get back to business as usual.

I’m not saying it’s all doom and gloom - I am optimistic we can get through this and keep the death toll low. But that won’t work if people undersell the danger of the virus and rush into getting back to business as usual. That’s a recipe for disaster.
 
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TallyT

Record Breaker
Joined
Apr 23, 2018
Country
Australia
I don’t want to minimize the magnitude of the illness in anyway so I hope this doesn’t come off like that, but skaters training and competing at the highest level aren’t just doing it for medals or records. This is their livelihood, how they make money to live off of. They are not just skating for our entertainment. This not only impacts their ability to give us amazing performances, but also their ability to pay rent, buy groceries, etc. just like how many of us may lose our desk jobs.

Just something to consider.

How many of the actually competitive skaters make a living from their sport, though? The rewards - unless you are lucky enough to be hugely successful, commercially appealing or both - aren't that immense, we all know that most skaters in the west have to come from fairly high-income backgrounds. Russians do get better funding but if the virus eats into the economy, that may get harder for all but the very top rank to get, possibly the same with China (though with Beijing 2022 on the horizon, they may actually be the safest).

I was reminded of the fallout for people who are not at the very peak of their field when reading an article on several writers who have just had their first - or their expected to be breakout - books released, were gearing up for the publicity and touring and book fairs and everything they needed to do to get sales, sponsors, income... and it's been wiped away at a stroke. And if the book that they hoped would make their career viable sinks because of it... they may never have another equal chance.

And some team sports are telling their players their pay is going to be massively cut.

It's a similar worry with the bubbling up skaters, for whom this could have been their year. Yuzuru and Shoma and Nathan Chen, Rika and Alina and (maybe) the winner in the 3A-3way, they have prize money, they have contracts and commercials and exposure, they will be okay (though probably for some the potential will be less, obviously) whether they stay or not. Others.... may have to let their dreams go, simply because they won't have the time or money to rebuild sponsorship/funds when this is over. And the cancellation of ice shows means a lot of that income is gone too.

Who that we know of does have independent funding/sponsorship to tide them over? When we do get our next season, it won't only be a different icescape, it may be a smaller one...
 

SkateSkates

Medalist
Joined
Feb 17, 2010
Yes, it’s not just the prize money from medaling - skaters with sponsors might get bonuses for medaling. Plus with an extra title, they can negotiate higher fees for shows, more appearances/exposure etc. which could lead to more social media followers, ability to charge more from sponsors.... it’s a vicious cycle that all these skaters will have missed out on. Not to mention the lost fees from spring/summer shows that were cancelled.
 

moonvine

All Hail Queen Gracie
Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 14, 2007
Country
United-States
People are dying for COVID-19, even young people.

Athletes often have to deal with all sorts of injuries, which make her health at risk with these viruses spreading. They will have to continue their training at home as much as possible.

Now it's important for everyone to stay home, the more you don't respect the rules of a quarantine, the longer it will take to limit the contagion.

Yes, an infant just died, this does not only affect old people.
 

moonvine

All Hail Queen Gracie
Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 14, 2007
Country
United-States
Yes, it’s not just the prize money from medaling - skaters with sponsors might get bonuses for medaling. Plus with an extra title, they can negotiate higher fees for shows, more appearances/exposure etc. which could lead to more social media followers, ability to charge more from sponsors.... it’s a vicious cycle that all these skaters will have missed out on. Not to mention the lost fees from spring/summer shows that were cancelled.

Hopefully they, like Uber drivers and other self employed people, will be eligible for unemployment in the US. Most especially if they coach, which most in the US do. Other countries I have no idea.
 

TallyT

Record Breaker
Joined
Apr 23, 2018
Country
Australia
My small suggestion for the working out of place numbers? Take the allocations for the last two, or even better three years 2017-18. For each country and each discipline take the best of the three years and grant them that for 2021. No one is likely to complain because they will all be allocated generously, it will be more in total than would have eventuated with a 2020 Worlds, but not overwhelmingly so.
 

WeakAnkles

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 1, 2011
This is :eek:topic: in a way, but I would still like to share it.

I live in Manhattan, the very epicenter of the pandemic in the US. We've gotten to the point here already where Central Park is being used as a hospital zone.

For the last few days, at 7 PM, people have been coming out of their apartments and cheering for all the people who are working and keeping the city functioning even in the midst of the worst pandemic this country has seen in a century. Tonight the cheering lasted 9 unbroken minutes. Every single day that cheering is getting longer and louder.

Every time I have gone shopping, I have thanked every single employee I see. Same at the laundromat. And I mean it from the heart.

I love skating, but sometimes there are more important things. And one of them is showing appreciation for those who are risking their own health for our benefit.
 

WeakAnkles

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 1, 2011
Stay strong WeakAnkles!!!

Thank you Sam. I've learned to sing Happy Birthday in a wide variety of styles when I wash my hands. I'm getting partial to the Marilyn Monroe Sings For JFK style. And unlike Ms Hubbell, I leave the faux fur in the closet!

:hap57:
 

TallyT

Record Breaker
Joined
Apr 23, 2018
Country
Australia
This is :eek:topic: in a way, but I would still like to share it.

I live in Manhattan, the very epicenter of the pandemic in the US. We've gotten to the point here already where Central Park is being used as a hospital zone.

For the last few days, at 7 PM, people have been coming out of their apartments and cheering for all the people who are working and keeping the city functioning even in the midst of the worst pandemic this country has seen in a century. Tonight the cheering lasted 9 unbroken minutes. Every single day that cheering is getting longer and louder.

Every time I have gone shopping, I have thanked every single employee I see. Same at the laundromat. And I mean it from the heart.

I love skating, but sometimes there are more important things. And one of them is showing appreciation for those who are risking their own health for our benefit.

Agreed. And I speak from a place with relatively few cases or signs of danger... yet. Please take care yourself... and keep us posted.
 
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