2016 World Championships Ladies Free Skate

[sweetskates1]

Sounds logical to me - I just don't think that there is enough softness in Anna's skating. When she is skating - it is a harsh skate, when she falls, it is a hard fall. It is all very hard-hitting and I feel like she needs to add more grace/softness to counter the power of her movements.

Does anyone else think that Anna Pogorilya ought to work on softer knees? She seems so straight-legged on her jumps. This is OK when they are perfect (like last night), but when they are off a little, a softer knee would help her save some landings -- or at least, if she fell, she wouldn't fall so hard.

Yeah, Anna definitely wasn't pleased when they announced Ashley's score. On the other hand, Anna and Evgenia seem to be on friendly terms -- there was a shot in the waiting room with Anna resting her head on Evgenia's lap.

Speaking of falls, I think the reason that Gracie's was so bad is that she landed on her back. Then she had to turtle herself awkwardly upright -- no chance for a graceful ("Fall? Whay fall?") rebound.

 

[Sam-Skwantch]

Brian does NOT need anymore skater! He needs to pay more attention to Yuzu!

Well than he is about the only person in the world of figure skating that needs to do that.

 

[Alexz]

Medved means bear in Russian. (Med = honey. )

Jeannie Honey-bear.

Well, to go explore Bear in Russian is "Medved", it goes a bit deeper:
Medved = Med + ved.
Med = honey,
ved / vedat (verb.) = to know. Vedat' is a very ancient Russian/Slavic word, they barely using it nowdays.
---
So Medved is literally "HoneyKnow", ie "the one who knows where the honey is"

Medvedev (as ex-president of RF, currently prime-minister) or Medvedeva could lously be translated as 'child/scion/descendant/progeny of a bear'

 

[Parsifal3363]

I'm sure that the judges greeted Evgenia Medvedeva's performance with relief. So often they're forced to resort to PCS to compensate for the technical failings of a favorite. Certainly, that was not the case here. I wonder, though. If PCS ought not to be used as a device to interject a subjective element into the scoring, shouldn't it be more than a reflection of TES? Watching Evgenia's skate, I had the impression of the movement of a fine mechanical timepiece, with its precision and regularity, but with no deviation suggesting the existence of a beating human heart. I was much more taken with the performances of Anna Pogorilaya and Ashley Wagner, with their size and power and passion, and if it had been mine to bestow, the gold medal would have gone to Anna. Such is the state of the art, however, that a well-turned jump almost displaces all other considerations.

 

[twirlingblades]

Is anyone watching the gala? I love Max's program. Max in tight jeans and a white t-shirt mmmm. Also Yuzuru introducing Mao, so cute.

 

[lyndichee]

Would love to see Gracie with Orser or Raf. Apparently she left her childhood Russian coach because she is sensitive and he would yell and bark at her.
Well perhaps Frank is too much the opposite. After reading an article on Orser's training camp it seems a very hard working but positive place to train.
Raf would be a good fit, because he is nice but does get mad when needed. I'll never forget his reaction this year to Ashleys free skate at nationals!

Last year Brian already said he stopped taking on students because he has too many now. Also I don't think Gracie wants to move that far to train.

Not sure if she would go to Raf, she is really close with Adam and gives shout outs to Ashley, but training together might be awkward.

 

[Sam-Skwantch]

Is anyone watching the gala? I love Max's program. Max in tight jeans and a white t-shirt mmmm. Also Yuzuru introducing Mao, so cute.

I'm watching on NBCSN which is quite a bit behind the actual event.

 

[msteach3]

Would love to see Gracie with Orser or Raf. Apparently she left her childhood Russian coach because she is sensitive and he would yell and bark at her.
Well perhaps Frank is too much the opposite. After reading an article on Orser's training camp it seems a very hard working but positive place to train.
Raf would be a good fit, because he is nice but does get mad when needed. I'll never forget his reaction this year to Ashleys free skate at nationals!

I totally agree. My first thought after leaving the arena last night was Gracie needs a coaching change ASAP. Frank looked like The Godfather standing at the boards and is very old school. Her programs haven't seemed right for her either.

I think Orser would be a great fit and it seems the environment at the CC is positive and supportive. Raf has done a fabulous job with Ashley and Adam, but somehow I can't see Gracie and Ashley training together like Yuzu and Javi do. :think:

 

[twirlingblades]

I'm watching on NBCSN which is quite a bit behind the actual event.

Same. I'm watching it online through Xfinity since my ****** college apartment cable doesn't have NBCSN (my parents have xfinity so I use that login). So not only is it late, but the stream is glitchy :sad21:

 

[Lillian]

Well than he is about the only person in the world of figure skating that needs to do that.

It's disturbing me that he didn't even notice something wasn't right with Yuzuru right before he skated his FS bc he was too busy with a certain skater and his aua aua

 

[adarskates]

I attended both the short and free skates. Here are my impressions from watching the skaters:

1. Mirai was so solid. She attacked and jumped without any doubts. She also emoted more than in past performances. She used her face more. I hope she has better choreography next year with better transitions.

2. Mao is so special. She really is in a class of her own. The quality of her skating is second to none. It may not have been her best competition in terms of landing her jumps cleanly, but she is so enjoyable to watch.

3. Elena is underwhelming in person. The arm flailing is so over the top and distracting. She also doesn't land her jumps well. She tends to land forward on her toe picks. She needs to work on her posture and needs more sophisticated choreography. In the free skate, I didn't think she connected at all to the music. She is fast.

4. Gracie... In the short, she was on fire. She skates fast, and she was stunning. The choreography was amazing, and she really performed for once. It was an impressive skate. The long was disappointing but not a total disaster. She didn't perform the program as much, and her skating felt more rushed and stiff.

5. Ashley. She is a performer. She sells her programs. Her jumps were really solid. She lands with nice positions. Her spins still need work. Some of her positions are not very pretty. She was determined and really skated two strong performances. She is also a woman on the ice and has emotional depth in her skating.

6. Pogo. She was a surprise for me. I enjoyed her skating a lot more in person. She is really stunning on the ice. She has presence. She is fast, and her jumps are huge. Her landings were strong. She is expressive. She was way more impressive than Elena.

7. Med. she deserved to win, though I must admit that she impressed me less in person. I have really enjoyed her skating all season, but I was underwhelmed by her skating. She is slower than the other top ladies, and her landing positions are sometimes vey iffy. She tends to land forward and on her toe pick. Also, her positions in the air are not very straight. The tano helps to cover it up but technically she is not as strong as Gracie, Mao or pogo when they are on. Also do think she has the best edges or skating skills. She is not smooth like Mao.

8. Satoko. She is tiny. Her jumps are small. She is a pretty skater and enjoyable to watch. When the others skate clean, she gets lost in the pack. She is solid but nothing is particularly exceptional or memorable.

9. hOngo. Her posture is so bad. It makes it difficult to even watch her. She is a strong jumper but everything else is really lacking. Her skating is simply not pretty. I hope she works on it, because she has potentially be a top skater.

 

[TontoK]

Different topic I know but ...

Now I know why people hate Tara's commentary so much. ''She's still chasing that Olympic Gold, blah, blah, blah ... ''), She almost can't stop babbling throughout and her voice is annoying :shock2: I don't know why but almost all American commentators have that manner of bringing up trivialities and talking too much Lipinski is surely knowledgeable but I can't stand listening to her.

I know I'm drifting a little bit off topic in bringing up the men's competition, but it aligns with the subject of commentary.

During the men's skate, Tara (especially) talked about how even with mistakes, Yuzu had already put the competition away. Even while Javi was skating.

It was evident to me that Yuzu had left the door wide open. Yes, Javi needed to skate a great performance, but she spoke as if the competition was over. Clueless. I expect commentators to be at least SOMEWHAT more informed than I am, otherwise the home viewer doesn't learn anything.

I want Uncle Dick to return.

 

[ice coverage]

Is anyone watching the gala? I love Max's program. Max in tight jeans and a white t-shirt mmmm. Also Yuzuru introducing Mao, so cute.

If you want to chat more about the gala, I hope that you have seen the thread devoted to the gala.

Lots of people in that thread are watching it .

http://www.goldenskate.com/forum/showthread.php?59101-2016-Worlds-Gala-Exhibition-April-3

 

[twirlingblades]

If you want to chat more about the gala, I hope that you have seen the thread devoted to the gala.

Lots of people in that thread are watching it .

http://www.goldenskate.com/forum/showthread.php?59101-2016-Worlds-Gala-Exhibition-April-3

Oh! Sorry, I still haven't got forums down yet!

 

[matcha]

a bit OOT but that last sentence just made me laugh hahahaha XDD It makes me think of DragonBall Z where everyone had final forms, and i kept having this image of Satoko going into her final Super Saiya form and everything

omg I need to see a DBZ program before I die.

 

[ice coverage]

Oh! Sorry, I still haven't got forums down yet!

No need to apologize, twirlingblades.

I just thought you might enjoy the active conversation over there.

 

[[email protected]]

I rewatched the final group. The podium is absolutely correct. I would just switch Anna and Ashley. Anna had 2 outstanding programs with outstanding delivery. Ahley was also great in presentation but technically weaker. Anna lost just enough pcs points to be outrun by Ashley. But I don't have grudges - Ashley and USA needed this. It's just no luck for Anna who already had a similar situation in Saitama when Caro also needed the final chord. At least here Anna got a medal in the toughest field ever (may be, Sochi excluded). And she is still very young and motivated. I hope to see her and Evgeniya in the Olympic team with the third spot to be determined in the bloodiest competition this sport has had.

 

[artsciboy]

Just rewatched Ashley's program with the Russian commentary. How did Tarasova and team call it? I appreciated how they kept their talking to a minimum during the actual performance!

 

[Dee4707]

I just wanted to say that I am sooooo happy for Ashley.:gclap: I was on the edge of my seat until she took her final pose.....she works so hard and finally got the skate of her career.

for Ashley!!

 

[MDfsfan]

Although, I agree with the placements of the top three, I thought that Medvedeva's PCS were too high. She is only 16 and her artistry is somewhere in between junior and senior ladies. Wagner, only beat her by about a one and one-half points and I think there should have been a bigger gap as Wagner is far superior artistically than Medvedeva. In addition, Ryan Bradley commented that Medvedeva has the best technical ability among the ladies in the world. Her jumps are good, but not that big. I think when Gold is on, she has the better jumps technically. IMHO