2016 Skate Canada Pairs FP

[Violet Bliss]

Pffft, she's got nothing on Ian Millar: world record holder of attending ten Olympic Games.

Yes, but always with a different partner.

 

[QuadThrow]

Pffft, she's got nothing on Ian Millar: world record holder of attending ten Olympic Games.

Horse riding does not count.

 

[s_parks]

Dammit, for a second there I thought you were ere talking about Zhang.

I suppose it is a labor of love for the csa.

 

[el henry]

Just jumping in to say God bless you all who are taking so much time and care with your furry friends' health and meals.

And woot for Meagan and Eric!

That is all.

 

[bobbob]

I'm glad the judges are starting to get on Meagan and Eric's case for PCS. The judges last year would have given them a 71 or 72 but they only got a 68-69, which is moving in the right direction. Their program is not offensive because there is no choreography or interpretation to speak of.

 

[Krunchii]

During the medal ceremony Xiaoyu was adorable, she loves Meagan Duhamel and she kept following her. She was really sweet to me when I spoke Mandarin to her, Zhang was quite nice too, they posed for a photo for me

 

[yqs100]

Totally! I mean, their SBS double axels were sensational and crazy difficult! Their quad attempt was particularly impressive... And their level 1 and 2 spins were breathtaking. Definitely gold-medal worthy.

Oh dear. ... maybe D/R should push limit more on their posture/ body line/ cheorography...

When we look back.... I can't tell what their best program is!! The past few years, their programs were just more or less the same. You know it's figure skating, not ice circus..

Anyway there is no doubt D/R could comfortably win this game.

 

[ancientpeas]

Mine won't eat rice or white potatoes so we have to find alternatives to get him the carbs he needs. He will eat sunflower and pumpkin seeds (without shells of course)

 

[hippomoomin]

To my surprise, Zhang/Yu performed pretty well. Technically, it is a stepup from last season for both of them. Coaches probably know better than we do.
After the LP, Yu showed much more emotion and was happy. Who wouldn't if your partner can bring you to a more successful career?
So I guess that "lack of chemistry" would gradually disappear as long as they can keep this kind of performance going.

 

[4everchan]

he would have to upgrade his sbs jumps

Zhang Hao is never going to retire. Don't forget 2022 Olys is in Beijing. They did look great. Add a quad twist and/or a quad throw they are gonna be right in the mix for Worlds podium.

Aliona, Meghan and Zhang Hao are in the competition of "who wants it more at all cost"...(I would love to see what Duhamel/Zhang can do....)

 

[Violet Bliss]

he would have to upgrade his sbs jumps

And they need their sbs spins to be more in synch, which is a weakness of the Chinese Pairs. Their throws, OTOH, are spectacular. She has room and time to do quad twists and quad throw jumps! The program is beautiful worthy of re-watching.

I think this Pair can grow and reach a much higher potential than they would with previous pairing. To think the partnership is only a few months old!

 

[NAOTMAA]

And they need their sbs spins to be more in synch, which is a weakness of the Chinese Pairs. Their throws, OTOH, are spectacular. She has room and time to do quad twists and quad throw jumps! The program is beautiful worthy of re-watching.

I think this Pair can grow and reach a much higher potential than they would with previous pairing. To think the partnership is only a few months old!

That pretty much describes EVERY Chinese pair right from S/Z to today

The Chinese coaches really need help in the sbs spinning area and after over 10 years at the top class of the sport I can't believe they haven't yet

 

[Violet Bliss]

That pretty much describes EVERY Chinese pair right from S/Z to today

The Chinese coaches really need help in the sbs spinning area and after over 10 years at the top class of the sport I can't believe they haven't yet

That's why I said it was a weakness of the Chinese Pairs, not "this Chinese Pair."

Interesting that the world's best spinner Lucinda Ruh's favorite and most beloved coach was a Chinese coach. So the issue is the sbs syncing part. Maybe David Pelletier will help.

 

[treeloving]

This Clair de lune program should always got 10 in choreography.

 

[YoenNL]

Guessing it was a mistake, judge probably meant +3.

I said sorry to Meagan, Eric and Bruno in person. On my paper was a +2, in the computer a -3. I guess something went into the wrong box and I did not notice before sending the marks. I feel bad about it but it happens, and did not change the result as the mark got thrown out.

 

[lyndichee]

I said sorry to Meagan, Eric and Bruno in person. On my paper was a +2, in the computer a -3. I guess something went into the wrong box and I did not notice before sending the marks. I feel bad about it but it happens, and did not change the result as the mark got thrown out.

Is this actually Jeroen Prins? Wow that is very interesting. At least in this case this error wouldn't have decided who won or lost. Would the score be adjusted had placements been closer/if it were a big event like GPF or World Championships? Thanks!

 

[cathlen]

The judging was better tonight for me than yesterday. I really liked the transition D/R made between lift and Pairs spin, that was a nice detail from them. Yu/Zhang were great! But I wish their parthership were handled differently and not forced Others had kind of bad skates. Lubov and Dylan had a great program, bu sooo many msitakes That Th3Lz was a nail in the coffin. Hope they would improve in CoC. Denney and Frazier had big chances to qualify to GPF if they had podium, but right now, not so much. I'm sorry for K/S who won't qualify for sure now.

 

[Tallorder]

I think it's too early to say who will/won't make GPF. Pairs this GP season seems quite wide open, with many of the top 10 teams sitting out (with injuries or othewise) and some unexpected results. Denney and Frazier would have certainly improved their chances with a second podium finish but I say, let's stay tuned and see how it all shakes out. Absolute kudos to them for making such a bold statement, competing in back-to-back events so convincingly with this return to competition after such a major injury/extended mandatory rehab.

 

[Ilvskating]

Sitting in the rink for three days is exhausting, but it really worth it. All in all great competitions.I'm so happy to see Yu/Zhang performed so well! It was mismerizing, breathtaking! She has such beautiful lines, delicate expression and graceful carriage, and he did a good job to showcase her. I thought it might be too much a contrast but it turned out they look good together. They have very good speed, and skate like a pair. Giving a bit more mileage they should gel even better. And they have room for upgrading their difficulties based on what the did in practice and in competitions. The costume and cheoreography are superb! Hope Peng/Jin do well too in COC!

Thrilled to see D/R landed 3Ath in their SP! Her costume are both very pretty.

Congratulations!!!

 

[3T3T]

Just caught up on the Pairs Free. I don't really agree with the scoring, particularly on the PCS side

A disappointing night for K/S. I was worried for her when she came of the ice, she looked to be hurting but you didn't see that during the performance. Yuko's jumps have not been great this weekend. I really think the judges hosed them on PCS, they were nearly five points down on D/R, simply ridiculous and just behind I/M and Y/Z. Hoping they can bounce back for their next competition. What happened with their combo spin, it is listed as V in the protocols They left enough points on the table for this programme to score 130+, which sadly will not be enough for a worlds medal. I wonder when was the last time they did not podium at a GP?

I was impressed with Y/Z in short and even more so after the Free. For me this was the performance of the night, it looked like they had been skating together for years. The twist and throws were very impressive, potential room there for quads. I was never a fan of his with Zhang but I liked his new style with Peng (even if they looked a bit odd) but in this partnership the age gap isn't as apparent and they had stepped things up more. A definite threat for a worlds medal I think, again I would have them ahead of D/R on PCS.

I'm a big fan of I/M but that was not a good performance. She didn't land a clean jump all weekend and it is still enough to get them on the podium a GP event? I can't see how that is ahead of DM/G and K/S. I do enjoy D/F but there performance was not as good as last weekend, they have certainly a lot of momentum behind them now, I would expect them to be favourites for the US title.

D/R were gifted their PCS marks, for me not really deserved. They did deliver the goods in TES terms, as always they went for it but not everything is clean. From the protocols everything was Lv4 bar the twist. I simply don't see how on PCS they could rank ahead of K/S or Y/Z. The style they are going for does not suit them and I didn't like the costumes.