Osmond to sit out 2018-19 Grand Prix events

[4everchan]

Chances are strong that the other seed will be one of Higuchi or Miyahara (both of whom beat Gabby by 14 points at Worlds), so Gabby may need a little extra help---like Leanna Caron on the Ladies judging panel, or an Amano-like TS to keep others' TES scores in check.

If Kostner decides against doing the GP, then Zagitova becomes 3rd seed and Sotskova, 6th seed. That would increase the odds of Gabby having to face both Zagitova and Medvedeva at her second event.

do you remember worlds 2017, when gabby skated a clean LP without having a sprained ankle ? yeah.. that's what I was thinking. Gabby had a terrible season last year... her only great performances : Nationals and she had pneumonia.. and the LP for the team event. At the beginning of the season she was recuperating from abdominal surgery. If you have had a major surgery in your life, the scar itself can be extremely painful for months.

I commend Gabby for staying at the top despite all the illness and injury and you may disagree with me, fair enough, but I consider her, based on her performance in the LP at the Olympics, a true contender for the GPF. Top 7 in the world, entering as 6t seed? why not? She's been 3rd just a bit over a year ago.

BTW Amano was there at worlds wasn't he??? In any case, Gabby got two carrots there and that was really one of the reasons her score was much lower than usually (of course, the ankle issue also meant she doubled a lutz).... so actually, Amano to me, judges what he sees and if Gabby rotates her jumps, she doesn't get downgrades.. .when she was injured and couldn't have the same power, she got dinged like everyone else.

And finally, if any Canadian judge is on the panel, they will be one of 9 judges.... so please... let's not make such petty accusations

 

[chuckm]

Top 6 in the world? why not? She's been 3rd just a bit over a year ago.

Actually, Bradie Tennell was 6th at Worlds. Gabby was 7th.

Leanna scores the CAN skaters so high and their top rivals so low, that too often her marks are dropped because they are the highest and the lowest. As Canadian judges go, she's probably the least effective.

 

[Colonel Green]

Chances are strong that the other seed will be one of Higuchi or Miyahara (both of whom beat Gabby by 14 points at Worlds), so Gabby may need a little extra help---like Leanna Caron on the Ladies judging panel, or an Amano-like TS to keep others' TES scores in check.

Gabby beat Wakaba by 25 points at both 2017 Four Continents and 2017 Worlds. She beat her in the SP at 2018 Worlds, and might well have beaten Satoko in the LP at the same event had she not hurt her ankle the morning of. Gabby lost to Kaetlyn at 2018 Worlds by 26 points, and to her at the Olympics by 58 points, but at 2018 Nationals she beat Kaetlyn decisively.

All of which is to say, you can't count on anything until the last jump is landed cleanly and the music stops.

I'd also say that the Canadian fed will likely be maneuvering to get Carolina, who she has the best chance against, but she could lose to Carolina as easily, as per the above.

If Kostner decides against doing the GP, then Zagitova becomes 3rd seed and Sotskova, 6th seed. That would increase the odds of Gabby having to face both Zagitova and Medvedeva at her second event.

There's no indication that Kostner isn't doing the Grand Prix -- not only is there money in it, but by its very nature they're the international competitions most likely to favour her, as the top skaters are divvied up amongst several events rather than gathered together in one competition (until the Final, and if you make the final, 50% of those who do get a medal).

Moreover, even if the scenario plays out as you say and she ended up second and third at her two events, that would have a solid chance of being enough to get to the Final; Wakaba made the Final with the same last year.

Actually, Bradie Tennell was 6th at Worlds. Gabby was 7th.

The "top six" in question refer to the Grand Prix finalists for the prospective coming season.

 

[4everchan]

thank you ^^ i corrected my post to clarify... i meant that if Gabby enters as sixth seed, technically the odds favour her to get to GPF...

 

[Osmond4gold]

Actually, Bradie Tennell was 6th at Worlds. Gabby was 7th.

Leanna scores the CAN skaters so high and their top rivals so low, that too often her marks are dropped because they are the highest and the lowest. As Canadian judges go, she's probably the least effective.

As 4everchan mentioned. Gabby was a World Bronze medalist just over a year ago, and finished 7th at Worlds while skating with a sprained angle. A fully healthy Gabby will be back on the podium in 2019, based on her pure talent and ability.

 

[Skater Boy]

I really fear Osmond missing the GP Season. Very few come back and do well. Yuna Kim is a rarity and even Kwan struggled when not doing the GP. I want to believe she intends to come back and that she knows what is best - she knows that is too long to skate four full years to the next olympics for her. But I think if she comes back for worlds or 2019/20 it will be an uphill battle. New rules and scoring. Some hungry skaters and if she waits til next season she will have a new batch of Russian contenders - granted, on the other hand these Russian hopefuls may go thru puberty and they ie Trusova won't see the light of day or a skating rink outside of Russia.

Still it may be hard to be motivated after you already overachieved what you thought could be a dream. I really want to see her skate and develop. Even if she is no longer competitive would the lure of an OBM in the team be enough - again assuming Canada will have trouble with the top pairs, dance and mens skater gone and a good chance the current top guy won't make it to Beijing or continue skating, no real promising pairs team and it can't be good to see the top two dance teams probably gone and maybe even Gilles and Porier. With Bradie Tenell and Starr Andrews, Nathan, Jason and Vincent for the men and 3 dance teams that could be higher than all the Canadian teams it would appear the USA is back on the upswing and a favorite for at least a silver and perhaps gold with Russia unpredictable still in men, way down in dance, and in pairs they have no marquee team which is so odd - Stolbova and Klimov are a huge question mark and how good they will be after injury and tragedy so to speak. Tarasova and Morozov really have not shown any great talent - just another pretty good russian pair team.

 

[Colonel Green]

no real promising pairs team

We've got two.

 

[century2009]

It does feel like retirement is soon for Osmond, which is understandable given how long she has been in the business and have her best year. Best luck to her!

 

[NanaPat]

We've got two.

Moore-Towers/Marinaro, Seguin/Bilodeau, Walsh/Michaud ? M-T/M may not make it to the next Olympics, though she did want to, 4 years ago.

 

[Colonel Green]

Moore-Towers/Marinaro, Seguin/Bilodeau, Walsh/Michaud ? M-T/M may not make it to the next Olympics, though she did want to, 4 years ago.

I was thinking of the first two, yeah. In the first case, while they'll be on the older side, we've seen many pairs teams compete successfully at that age.

 

[corinthia]

FWIW, it took Davis and White about three years before deciding they were going to retire and not go for a third Olympics.

Except that when D/W announced they wouldn't try to go to Pyeongchang, they made a point of saying they are not retiring.

https://olympics.nbcsports.com/2017/02/22/meryl-davis-charlie-white-pyeongchang-olympics/

 

[chuckm]

It does feel like retirement is soon for Osmond, which is understandable given how long she has been in the business and have her best year. Best luck to her!

Kaetlyn started her senior career in the fall of 2012, just 6 years ago. She missed the 2014-2015 season with a broken ankle, and spent the 2015-2016 season in comeback mode. Altogether, she has had four full seasons of competition, including 3 National Championships, 4 appearances at Worlds and 2 at Olympics. That is not a long career compared to Joannie Rochette's 6 National Championships, 7 Worlds and 2 Olympics.

Kaetlyn is only 22. Joannie was 24 when she won her bronze Olympic medal and retired from competitive skating.

 

[narcissa]

thank you ^^ i corrected my post to clarify... i meant that if Gabby enters as sixth seed, technically the odds favour her to get to GPF...

I wouldn't say "favor" her, but that depends on what you mean by "favoring." Her sixth seed comes from the fact that there were only 2 Japanese and 3 Russian skaters allowed at Worlds while there will be no such quota on the Grand Prix circuit. But while she's never really had great performances on the GP, I wouldn't be overly surprised if she does make the final.

 

[chuckm]

Gabby is #20 on the 2017-2018 Seasons Best list (196.83 from CoC 2017 where she was 6th), with 17 Senior competitors topping her. For comparison, on the 2016-2017 SB list, she was #7 with 214.15 from 2017 WTT.

 

[Colonel Green]

Gabby is #20 on the 2017-2018 Seasons Best list (196.83 from CoC 2017 where she was 6th), with 17 Senior competitors topping her. For comparison, on the 2016-2017 SB list, she was #7 with 214.15 from 2017 WTT.

And?

We've already been over this. Gabby's international competition record last season was poor, for a host of different reasons. But she finished in the top six in the short at Worlds, and she had one very good long program at the Olympics team event (that I thought was a bit underscored relative to what she'd gotten for similar performances the previous year, but that's a different matter). There is no reason whatsoever that somebody who can get those results cannot make the Grand Prix Final.

 

[chuckm]

It all depends on the competitors she faces in her two events. Medvedeva wasn't at Worlds, and neither was Sakamoto, Mihara or Tsurskaya, all of whom have scored over 210. Gabby has never been a strong early-season skater, and there's nothing wrong with that. A skater's goal should be to peak at the most important events: Nationals and Worlds, and that's what Gabby's done the past two years.

Gabby's best GP season was 2016-2017, the year she finished 3rd at Worlds. She was 4th in both GP events, SA and TDF, and 2nd at 4CC. She was beaten at both SA and 4CC by Mai Mihara in her first season on the GP, and at TDF by Medvedeva, Sotskova and Higuchi in Higuchi's first season on the GP. Incidentally, Sotskova is a strong early-season skater: she has made the GPF in both of her senior appearances, winning silver behind Zagitova last season, but tends to fade in the late season, finishing out of the top 6 at the last two Worlds.

 

[Colonel Green]

It all depends on the competitors she faces in her two events.

And how they and she perform, as I said. To wit:

Medvedeva wasn't at Worlds, and neither was Sakamoto, Mihara or Tsurskaya, all of whom have scored over 210.

Medvedeva won't be at SCI. Gabby beat Sakamoto in the long program of the team event. She beat Mihara at 2017 Worlds and nearly beat her at 2017 Four Continents, and beat her earlier this season in the short program at CoC. She beat Tsurskaya in the short program at 2017 Skate America. And so on.

 

[LucyH]

And how they and she perform, as I said. To wit:

Medvedeva won't be at SCI. Gabby beat Sakamoto in the long program of the team event. She beat Mihara at 2017 Worlds and nearly beat her at 2017 Four Continents, and beat her earlier this season in the short program at CoC. She beat Tsurskaya in the short program at 2017 Skate America. And so on.

I have to tickets to SCI and I'd love to see Medvedeva there (crossing fingers)...

 

[Colonel Green]

I have to tickets to SCI and I'd love to see Medvedeva there (crossing fingers)...

I'm also going, and I'd certainly be interested to see her, but that invitation isn't going to be mailed. Skate Canada's priority will be maximizing their own top skater's chance of winning (assuming there's a realistic one, as there is here), which means not inviting somebody who is almost certain to win when you don't have to.

 

[narcissa]

I'm also going, and I'd certainly be interested to see her, but that invitation isn't going to be mailed. Skate Canada's priority will be maximizing their own top skater's chance of winning (assuming there's a realistic one, as there is here), which means not inviting somebody who is almost certain to win when you don't have to.

Then why does Skate Canada always invite Hanyu? Notwithstanding the point that he doesn't win but he certainly always could have.