2019-20 Russian Ladies' Figure Skating

[peeches726]

The copyright blocking from nbc universal is pretty intense this season... anyone know a reliable work around?

 

[Spirals for Miles]

The copyright blocking from nbc universal is pretty intense this season... anyone know a reliable work around?

Yeah, they don't have any videos of the skaters but have taken down everything... no way to watch any of the skates.

 

[flanker]

I knew I was taking a risk with that post, so it‘s okay.

No need to play a victim, nussnacker is not an offender.

 

[nussnacker]

I knew I was taking a risk with that post, so it‘s okay.

First, I‘m not going to comment further on the Evgenia aspect, I think we‘ve clarified that everyone has different interpretations on that.

As for the second: I might have to explain that I did not mean that Alina is staying with Eteri because she‘s afraid to leave. I‘m saying she‘s staying because I think that this is what she wants. She could have left earlier, she didn‘t. Additionally I named some factors on why I believe leaving could be difficult for her. And actually, being 17, not being fluent in the second language and seeing that someone who left before (no matter how she did it) received huge criticism, are quite a few factors that might make leaving harder and not worth it. It‘s hard to leave for a country you don‘t know well, let alone one Alina‘s never even been in as far as I‘m aware. Why would she want that? I was saying that - while I would personally like seeing Alina with a different choreographer for example - I found the thought unrealistic and that I did not believe that this is what Alina wants. There‘s nothing wrong with that. Maybe my point didn‘t come across as clearly as I wanted to but to summarize:

I do not think Alina will change coaches because a) it doesn‘t seem like this is what she wants and judging from one problematic performance is irrational and b) there are quite a lot of factors that would make leaving harder and unappealing to her.

You're not at risk of anything and you're free to have your interpretation, but you made it sound a certain way. That was a choice

I would agree with it "difficulties" aspect when it comes to other skaters, but not with Alina.
I don't think Alina ever considered changing coaches, but if she wanted to, I don't think there would be anything that could stop her.
She's not the person to be afraid of changes or taking risks, she did just that by moving away from her parents at 12 and living with her only grandmother in a big unknown city.
Now she's 17, I honestly don't think adapting to something new is an unsurmountable issue for her.

 

[readernick]

Please.. don't make this into another Alina vs. Med fight... Some people get offended at everything

Anyway, it is clear that NHK is a two way fight for the top and everyone else fighting for bronze.

Alina had a bad program. It happens to everyone, on occasion. I was sorry to see her so upset.

Thankfully for Alina, this competition is not stacked like SC was.. A bad short program won't take her out of the GPF. The only skaters capable of challenging her technically for the bronze won't get great PCS and are inconsistent. She will be fine.

 

[macy]

Aliona's 3A looked more comfortable here more than ever. she seems a lot more confident in it and it pretty much looks like a double it's so effortless. very happy she was finally rewarded properly, although i don't believe holding Alina's PCS up as first in the event was correct.

before i continue my post, i want to say i am in no way writing Alina off or even leaning that way. but, this is the 2nd out of 2 (official) competitions this season that she's made mistakes, and i'm thinking of her chances at Rus nats and what she will need to do there to make the world team. obviously the free hasn't happened yet so we don't know how the competition will end, but if she makes GPF she'll need to be clean and obviously the same at nationals to prove to the fed she's still a threat. if she wants to stay in the conversation, she has to keep proving herself worthy of a spot. 3A have so far proved superior this year and Alina can't afford any mistakes if those 3 are clean through nats, and that's not even considering Evgenia and Liza. at this point, i think she will be fighting for the 3rd spot. hoping for the best for her, whatever that may be.

 

[katymay]

The copyright blocking from nbc universal is pretty intense this season... anyone know a reliable work around?

I use Opera plus VPN, set the VPN to 'Europe', which is connecting via Ukraine.

 

[nussnacker]

Aliona was phenomenal, she always is, but today she almost got the scores she deserved
I mean, come on, judges, that 3A is +5 worthy, who else is capable of that crazy entrance + beautiful big 3A + falling leaf exit?
And pcs should keep rising, it's still not good enough! :roll5:
Congrats to little bean on her WR, 85 is an insane score.

 

[flanker]

Aliona was phenomenal, she always is, but today she almost got the scores she deserved
I mean, come on, judges, that 3A is +5 worthy, who else is capable of that crazy entrance + beautiful big 3A + falling leaf exit?
And pcs should keep rising, it's still not good enough! :roll5:
Congrats to little bean on her WR, 85 is an insane score.

I'm so eager to see Aliona's whole program, I managed to see only the last minute due to working duties. Need to be home immediately. :curse:

 

[Fluture]

You're not at risk of anything and you're free to have your interpretation, but you made it sound a certain way. That was a choice

I would agree with it "difficulties" aspect when it comes to other skaters, but not with Alina.
I don't think Alina ever considered changing coaches, but if she wanted to, I don't think there would be anything that could stop her.
She's not the person to be afraid of changes or taking risks, she did just that by moving away from her parents at 12 and living with her only grandmother in a big unknown city.
Now she's 17, I honestly don't think adapting to something new is an unsurmountable issue for her.

Since you made your post sound a certain way, too, I‘m sure that was a “choice“ as well then. As for the risk thing. That was mainly a joke but seeing the answers I‘ve been getting from you and flanker, I wonder if I should have been more serious lol. It‘s nothing new that any mention of a Tutberidze skater changing coaches/choreographers is met with a lot (passive) aggressive comments explaining why this is not going to happen. I‘m sure I made my post sound a certain way, though. Is it anything new that I believe one has to be very careful when leaving Eteri? No. I do not want to wish going into this but that‘s my opinion after what happened with the last few students. Everyone is perfectly free to think differently, of course! But, yes, stating an opinion in here like that is in a way, a risk, unless you‘re a person who enjoys discussing in a certain (not fruitful) way. Which I‘m not.

As for the second part. I think this is a bit naive to be perfectly honest. Of course, if Alina really wanted to change coaches, she could do it and I‘m sure she would manage. So, yes, I do agree that it wouldn’t be an insurmountable issue. But that it would come without difficulties? That‘s... well... I think you‘re seriously underestimating the changes in life you have when you move away from your country. Especially in the case of Alina who is still very young, doesn‘t seem to be quite comfortable in speaking English (even though I‘m sure she understands quite a lot of it by now) and has never even been to the US. That‘s quite a lot to handle. Not to mention being away from literally everybody who speaks your language and shares your traditions. Alina is brave but she’s only human.

I also think living abroad comes with other additional aspects. It‘s not just “pack your things and go“. One has to consider rooming, visa issues, food, expenses and other things I‘m probably not thinking of right now. It‘s a big change and imo, not exactly comparable to moving within your own country. (Before you‘re picking that part of the comment apart: I realise that moving to a big unknown city at 12 is very brave as well and should be applauded! I still do not think it‘s entirely the same)

Like I said, I think Alina could do it if she really wanted to but it would be very, very difficult and she would risk struggling like anyone else when adapting to such a situation. With the Olympics being only 2 years away, I’m not sure it would be worth it. But again, if she wanted to she should do it. I’d be the first one to cheer her on! But I support her staying with Eteri too, if that makes her happy. I might have some wishes regarding choreography and stuff like that but ultimately, I know that I’m just some random fan on the internet and my opinion is not the one that matters at all. My original post, however, was actually more of the idea why Alina would not want to change coaches anyway. That‘s all. Don‘t see where this is offensive in any way.

 

[Sugar Coated]

Doing a 3A+3T at the beginning would lower her BV. She is backloading both 3-3 combos which gives her more points, same with Rika.

I'm wondering if she's planning to eventually add 3A+3T as her combo jump in the short? Or would this only increase her bv if its in the second half? I know she just set a record for her SP, but in the future gaining as much of an advantage in the short will help her remain competitive with Sasha.

 

[Decoder]

I think the lutz edge calls from France made her more insecure, and probably knowing she was against Aliona and Rika might not be the easiest thing. Now, I’ll say something I’ll get lots of hate for, but whatever. I think Alina should move to Rafael A. He’s Russian, he’s a tough coach, and there she would be able to feel a little more loose with people like Adam and Mariah. Imagine an Alina program by Adam. The thing is, I think what binds her to Sambo70 is her relationship with Daniil, I feel like he’s a big brother to these girls, and his relationship with Alina seems even more special. Eteri probably doesn’t care as much about Alina now that she has 3A, Sofia, Kamila, Veronika. Now, you can go on and try to kill me in the comments below [emoji81]

I am not going to kill you, but Alina will NOT change coach. It is funny though, that people already started suggesting coach change.
Who knows what's going to happen in the next 2-3 years, but one thing I believe in firmly, is that Alina will improve both technically and artistically, with the help of Eteri.

 

[andromache]

I'm so thrilled for Aliona!!!! Totally magical. This SP is something I will show to my friends who aren't into figure skating to show them what they're missing out on. Not many programs like that out there - truly special. I also think her 3A is the best in the world among the women - so much height and spring, and the transitions are amazing as well. I think the judges are setting up a Trusova versus Kostornaia rivalry....they're giving Aliona the PCS she needs to take on the quads. I think maybe she was lucky she didn't get a ! call on her 3Lz, but I would have to see it more closely.

Alina....did anyone notice what seems to be small nude patches on her back like bandages? There were two of them, relatively small. Anyone know what they're for? Anyway, I wonder if it might be worth re-working her combos to be -3T instead of -3Lo. It's less BV, but will perhaps be easier for her to do, with less risk of UR as well. This is the best program she has ever had, and it suits her maturity extremely well. But I hated seeing her so sad. I hope she is able to find happiness in her skating even when she makes mistakes. Even when her jumps aren't technically perfect, you can tell how much she has grown as an artist and a skater since her OGM, and her spins are still gorgeous as well.

 

[Fluture]

I'm wondering if she's planning to eventually add 3A+3T as her combo jump in the short? Or would this only increase her bv if its in the second half? I know she just set a record for her SP, but in the future gaining as much of an advantage in the short will help her remain competitive with Sasha.

Backloading a 3A+3T seems more than risky, I‘m not sure it‘s the way to go. She‘s got an alright advantage against Sasha from the SP if she lands the 3A.

I do actually think her learning a loop combo would help more, however. This way she could do 3A+3T and drop the 2T and do something like 3F+3Lo and 3F+Eu+3S in the second half of the program.

3A+3T
3A
2A
2A
3F+Eu+3S
3F+3Lo
3Lz

She‘d repeat 3A, 2A and 3F like that. I haven‘t calculated it, is a layout like this worth it? And is it even allowed. I know doing 4 axel jumps right after another isn‘t optimal. The jumps should be spread out a bit but then Anna has four lutzes in her FS, so why not work to one‘s strengths? Aliona‘s 3Lo isn‘t the best, though, and I‘ve only seen one (pretty wonky) loop combo from her, so not sure that‘s the way to go either. She gets huge GOE on her 3F+3T, I wouldn‘t drop that. I think for now she‘s fine anyway. Imo, she should focus on skating cleanly to improve her PCS further (imo, that difference between her and Sasha isn‘t big enough) and getting high GOEs on every single element.

 

[nussnacker]

Since you made your post sound a certain way, too, I‘m sure that was a “choice“ as well then. As for the risk thing. That was mainly a joke but seeing the answers I‘ve been getting from you and flanker, I wonder if I should have been more serious lol. It‘s nothing new that any mention of a Tutberidze skater changing coaches/choreographers is met with a lot (passive) aggressive comments explaining why this is not going to happen. I‘m sure I made my post sound a certain way, though. Is it anything new that I believe one has to be very careful when leaving Eteri? No. I do not want to wish going into this but that‘s my opinion after what happened with the last few students. Everyone is perfectly free to think differently, of course! But, yes, stating an opinion in here like that is in a way, a risk, unless you‘re a person who enjoys discussing in a certain (not fruitful) way. Which I‘m not.

As for the second part. I think this is a bit naive to be perfectly honest. Of course, if Alina really wanted to change coaches, she could do it and I‘m sure she would manage. So, yes, I do agree that it wouldn’t be an insurmountable issue. But that it would come without difficulties? That‘s... well... I think you‘re seriously underestimating the changes in life you have when you move away from your country. Especially in the case of Alina who is still very young, doesn‘t seem to be quite comfortable in speaking English (even though I‘m sure she understands quite a lot of it by now) and has never even been to the US. That‘s quite a lot to handle. Not to mention being away from literally everybody who speaks your language and shares your traditions. Alina is brave but she’s only human.

I also think living abroad comes with other additional aspects. It‘s not just “pack your things and go“. One has to consider rooming, visa issues, food, expenses and other things I‘m probably not thinking of right now. It‘s a big change and imo, not exactly comparable to moving within your own country. (Before you‘re picking that part of the comment apart: I realise that moving to a big unknown city at 12 is very brave as well and should be applauded! I still do not think it‘s entirely the same)

you can copy my words, I don't get how that gives any legitimacy for bringing Evgenia into this, when this wasn't' about her at all :confused2:
People left Eteri many times, and they were not met with negativity for it, but whatever

Oh, and I'm anything but naive when it comes to moving countries. I've left my homeland as a teen, and I have lived abroad my whole life, lived on different continents and completely different environments/cultures, and I know firsthand what it's like to move countries
I also know that it's much easier to move when you're young, as a teen it's much easier to adjust, compared to changing countries at 20+ or 30+.

 

[mrrice]

I was just saying how much I love my "New to me" discovery Alena k. and she gets a record breaking score. She's so young and talented. I hope she can hold it together during the free and bring home the title. I hope I can see her skate in person some day...…

 

[flanker]

BTW I remember some people were objecting that SP is losing it's impact to a total placement. Now, with Aliona's huge score, just imagine it, Aliona leading after Sp, people are expecting FP where Sasha will show her weapons, will it be enough? It will be more thrilling than it ever was
So I think both programs still have their reason.

 

[nussnacker]

BTW I remember some people were objecting that SP is losing it's impact to a total placement. Now, with Aliona's huge score, just imagine it, Aliona leading after Sp, people are expecting FP where Sasha will show her weapons, will it be enough? It will be more thrilling than it ever was
So I think both programs still have their reason.

If anyone's pushing Sasha to nail that 3A, it's Aliona now. I mean, 10-11 points of difference in SP alone are pretty motivating I can imagine!

 

[Sugar Coated]

Since you made your post sound a certain way, too, I‘m sure that was a “choice“ as well then. As for the risk thing. That was mainly a joke but seeing the answers I‘ve been getting from you and flanker, I wonder if I should have been more serious lol. It‘s nothing new that any mention of a Tutberidze skater changing coaches/choreographers is met with a lot (passive) aggressive comments explaining why this is not going to happen. I‘m sure I made my post sound a certain way, though. Is it anything new that I believe one has to be very careful when leaving Eteri? No. I do not want to wish going into this but that‘s my opinion after what happened with the last few students. Everyone is perfectly free to think differently, of course! But, yes, stating an opinion in here like that is in a way, a risk, unless you‘re a person who enjoys discussing in a certain (not fruitful) way. Which I‘m not.

As for the second part. I think this is a bit naive to be perfectly honest. Of course, if Alina really wanted to change coaches, she could do it and I‘m sure she would manage. So, yes, I do agree that it wouldn’t be an insurmountable issue. But that it would come without difficulties? That‘s... well... I think you‘re seriously underestimating the changes in life you have when you move away from your country. Especially in the case of Alina who is still very young, doesn‘t seem to be quite comfortable in speaking English (even though I‘m sure she understands quite a lot of it by now) and has never even been to the US. That‘s quite a lot to handle. Not to mention being away from literally everybody who speaks your language and shares your traditions. Alina is brave but she’s only human.

I also think living abroad comes with other additional aspects. It‘s not just “pack your things and go“. One has to consider rooming, visa issues, food, expenses and other things I‘m probably not thinking of right now. It‘s a big change and imo, not exactly comparable to moving within your own country. (Before you‘re picking that part of the comment apart: I realise that moving to a big unknown city at 12 is very brave as well and should be applauded! I still do not think it‘s entirely the same)

Like I said, I think Alina could do it if she really wanted to but it would be very, very difficult and she would risk struggling like anyone else when adapting to such a situation. With the Olympics being only 2 years away, I’m not sure it would be worth it. But again, if she wanted to she should do it. I’d be the first one to cheer her on! But I support her staying with Eteri too, if that makes her happy. I might have some wishes regarding choreography and stuff like that but ultimately, I know that I’m just some random fan on the internet and my opinion is not the one that matters at all. My original post, however, was actually more of the idea why Alina would not want to change coaches anyway. That‘s all. Don‘t see where this is offensive in any way.

I completely supported Zhenya's decision to leave. But it makes no sense for Alina to change coaches. Alina has won everything with Eteri. This would seem completely ungrateful. The difference was that Zhenya did not achieve her main goal with her coach, lost to a teammate, so she likely lost faith in Eteri and felt she couldn't train effectively in a situation with Alina and the 3A. It would be difficult psychologically to be reminded daily that your teammate beat you out for something you'd worked so hard for and to feel that your coach may have more faith in a younger prodigy. I mean Yagudin basically said he completely understood Zhenya's decision to move. But also, she would have to wonder if a different coach could have gotten her different results.

Now Alina has achieved every goal she has set under Eteri. And she has had the benefit of seeing the backlash and difficulties experienced when Zhenya switched. Long term if she wants to have a career in media or modeling or other endorsements it makes sense not risk negative public opinion. And its not clear that she would actually have better results with a different coach, Zhenya seems to have struggled psychologically and not improved her content in a significant way (which is okay for Zhenya, there is still time, and she seems happier with the change and knowing she at least will never look back and wonder if she should have switched coaches).

Alina herself has stated she is skating for fun this season and that she's not in current condition to train quads. Which is absolutely fine. She's still skating at a high level, just not her peak performance. And if her goal is to win another olympics this is actually a smart move. If you have ever been a competitive athlete you know you have to cycle your training regimen. The training she needs leading up to an olympic year is not sustainable for 4 years straight, it leads to injuries and burn out. Simone Biles took a year off completely after her first olympics and is now in better shape than ever. Alina likely would benefit from a less strenuous training year, especially since she has plenty of teammates for Russia to remain dominant. However, the 3A are in a different situation since this is their first senior season and need to be in top form to establish themselves.

I think not going to Euro and Worlds, ending her season after nationals for a break, would allow her to actually jump start training for next season to work on quads - if this is her goal. This would allow her body to rest for a bit, but then to start amping up training and performance prior to the next olympics. But maybe that's not what she wants, she just truly wants to skate for enjoyment now and is less concerned with results. And that's also okay. She is still delivering beautiful content, its just not at the most competitive level she was previously used to. Maybe she wants to do shows. She's still doing great, there is just so much expectation on her due to past results, and we've seen that competitors like Zhenya and Liza can rebound after a shaky start or several off years.

 

[macy]

I was just saying how much I love my "New to me" discovery Alena k. and she gets a record breaking score. She's so young and talented. I hope she can hold it together during the free and bring home the title. I hope I can see skate in person some day...…

this is 100% on my bucket list. if she ever attends skate america, skate canada or worlds near me i am absolutely making it a point to go. as fast and light as she appears on camera, i can't imagine how good she is in real life