The Kween is jumping again!!!

[iluvtodd]

"I love competition. I don't know how to explain it. It's very strange. You would think it would have been out of my system already,'' she said. "I'll always consider it fun.''

To me, that's all that ever needs to be said about what Michelle might or might not be able to accomplish if she comes back.

Good news to hear about Michelle. She sounds very happy in what's going on in her life now. :agree:

 

[mirai_asada]

I'm glad her injury isn't bothering her anymore. =))) I was really bummed she didn't participate in the 2006 olympics.

 

[Tinymavy15]

I wonder what "jumpsing" means. has she really been unable to jump all this time? I assume then that she is only doing singles and axels... maybe some easy doubles. Also, will she ever re-learn her triples and difficult spins.... if hs eis not planning to return to competition.

 

[attyfan]

I wonder what "jumpsing" means. has she really been unable to jump all this time? I assume then that she is only doing singles and axels... maybe some easy doubles. Also, will she ever re-learn her triples and difficult spins.... if hs eis not planning to return to competition.

As I understand it, the most difficult thing she had done before this were doubles. IMO, her refusal to rule out a comeback is based precisely on the fact that she is only starting to try to re-learn her triples -- she can come back (or not) after she determines that she can (or can't) get them back.

I think her giving her SLC warm up jacket to the child Dani was very sweet.

 

[Lucy25]

Do we know what Michelle's Olympic SP was going to be?

 

[Mathman]

Totentanz (Liszt).

And here it is on You Tube, as Michelle portrays the dancing skeletons come miraculously alive at the stroke of midnight on Halloween.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V396I2LGQeM

Hit that 3F and clean up the landing on the first jump of her 3Lz/2T, and we've got ourselves a another championship performance by the one and only!

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

She had been doing something with TT to Rach's Prelude in C Sharp Minor which is basicallty a funeral march, imo. Very, very sad music. I would have liked to see what she would have done with it.

Any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for thee.
John Dunne

Joe

 

[RealtorGal]

Ah, but what about when Elaine (sp?) Zayak came back ten years later to compete at Nats? She was great, and had standing O's all around!

True, but Elaine had the jumps in her arsenal to be competitive with the skaters of that day. Michelle never had the jump combos to be competitive with today's field. There were tons of reports of her being sighted doing a triple lutz/triple loop combo or some other great combo, but the truth is, 3 toe/3 toe was pretty much it for her in competition.

 

[Lucy25]

Totentanz (Liszt).

And here it is on You Tube, as Michelle portrays the dancing skeletons come miraculously alive at the stroke of midnight on Halloween.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V396I2LGQeM

Hit that 3F and clean up the landing on the first jump of her 3Lz/2T, and we've got ourselves a another championship performance by the one and only!

That's right, I had forgotten that she skated this at the fall event. Thanks!

 

[feraina]

I like the energy and excitement of this music! Fitting music for her to come back with, should she decide to return, given the theme. Cool footwork sequence, too. But she would need to hold her spirals and spin positions longer, as well as attempting higher-level spins, if she wants to compete with the field today -- as well as getting her jumps cleaner!

 

[Kypma]

True, but Elaine had the jumps in her arsenal to be competitive with the skaters of that day. Michelle never had the jump combos to be competitive with today's field. There were tons of reports of her being sighted doing a triple lutz/triple loop combo or some other great combo, but the truth is, 3 toe/3 toe was pretty much it for her in competition.

Sasha Cohen hasn't had a triple-triple in a couple of years, yet she's been medalling... although she does get the levels on everything else. And I don't know how she wou;d have fared this season against the likes of Mao and Yu-Na.

Kypma

 

[Mathman]

Michelle never had the jump combos to be competitive with today's field. There were tons of reports of her being sighted doing a triple lutz/triple loop combo or some other great combo, but the truth is, 3 toe/3 toe was pretty much it for her in competition.

Yeah, you're probably right about that.

Still, ice is slippery.

Here is the jump layout for the winning LP at 2007 U.S. Nationals:

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

Here is Mao Asada at the GP final:

2A
2A+3T
3F
2A
2Lz
3F (seq, no 2nd jump)
3Lz (seq, no 2nd jump)

Here is world champion Miki Ando at the GP final (I mean, the soon-to-be world champion. The reigning World Champion didn't make the cut.)

1Lz
3S
1F
3Lz
1T
1F
2A

(OK, Miki had a bad day.)

You just never know...

 

[Mathman]

Fitting music for her to come back with, should she decide to return, given the theme.

 

[nymkfan51]

I agree, Mathman ... the ice is slippery and there are no guarantees.

As much as I want Michelle to come back, I totally believe she won't do it unless she feels able to compete with the top ladies. That doesn't mean she has to win ... just that she has a reasonable chance. So I have no worries that she's going to come back and do 4 triple programs.
But ... just as you said ... the ice is slippery and there are no assurances that anyone will land all their jumps on a given night.

 

[emma]

Yeah, you're probably right about that.

Still, ice is slippery.

Here is the jump layout for the winning LP at 2007 U.S. Nationals:

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

Here is Mao Asada at the GP final:

2A
2A+3T
3F
2A
2Lz
3F (seq, no 2nd jump)
3Lz (seq, no 2nd jump)

Here is world champion Miki Ando at the GP final (I mean, the soon-to-be world champion. The reigning World Champion didn't make the cut.)

1Lz
3S
1F
3Lz
1T
1F
2A

(OK, Miki had a bad day.)

You just never know...

Ok, you're funny It took me a minute - I was like, huh? Michelle could beat that hands down...then I remembered the ice is slippery comment...very good.

Anyway, OT - but a question, why didn't Mao tack a double loop onto each of those phantom sequences to make it a combo (were her landings off...?)?

 

[Mathman]

Anyway, OT - but a question, why didn't Mao tack a double loop onto each of those phantom sequences to make it a combo (were her landings off...?)?

I didn't check out the actual performance, but she got a negative GOE on her second Lutz, so very likely she wouldn't have been able to put another jump on the end of it. (She got +1 GOE on her second, flip, though.)

What really killed her was the first Lutz. It was downgraded, plus she fell, and she ended up with 0.09 points for the element.

BTW, the downgraded triple Lutz is scored as a double, but counts as a triple for Zayak rules. So if Mao's first Lutz had been just a straight double all the way, instead of an underrotated triple, she would have got full credit for the second triple Lutz, instead of only 80%.

IMHO I think that by this point in the program Mao just wanted to finish the performance the way it had been choreographed, without any last-minute improvisations. She had already fallen twice and I doubt if she was in any state of mind to be thinking about gaining some extra points by modifying the end of the program.

Several times last season Kimmie Meissner bobbled her opening triple Lutz/triple toe combination, then got hit with the "SEQ" for her solo triple Lutz at the end. I would guess that skaters feel they might just be courting disaster to try to tack on an unplanned combo at the end of an already shaky performance.

 

[Tinymavy15]

even with her triple triples, i feel that at natioanls (or anywhere esle for that matter) michelle could beat kimmie. She could probably also beat Caroline and Marai as long as they do not land any triple triples. In other words another Nationals title won in triumph for the Kween is nit far fetched at all in my book.... weather or not she could even medal against yu-na ( if she is healthy), Mao and Miki is another story.
I wonder if Michelle has ever considered returing to win a 10th national title and then retiring. It would be a record and she could probably easily win it... on her repuatition alone. I think that every judge in the booth would look the other way at a shaky landing or a easier spin level to hand her the title (i would propbably do the same thing.) I hope that michelle realizes that OG is not everything and that she should not chase this dream anymore because the cahnces of it coming true are very small, even more so now than ever beofre and the risk of injury is too great.

 

[emma]

I think Michelle has made it very clear, many times that she really loves to compete and is a true competitor - so, that's in her blood, so to speak, and part of her 'let's see attitude' might be that drive still in her not letting her simply walk away. Whether she CAN do it (meaning compete at a high level) and whether she WILL do it, seam to me, two different questions that only time will tell (and if she doesn't, we may never know if she could but just didn't).

I can't imagine that Kwan watched the last Olympics or Nationals 2007 and didn't think, damn, I could have won both of these....sure, not with injury, but you know what I mean - in general decent health, Kwan could have won those two competitions without big tricks like 3Axel, or even triple triples....so, that might also be keeping her competitive fire burning too (it's like MM said, ice is slippery - so overall competitive control and consistency does go a long, long way)....

Anyway, I wished that Michelle ended her competitive career on the podium - at the top - and then I wished that if not on top, at least skating and not injured. Maybe, she wishes that too - ending skating on her own terms and not sidelined. Maybe Kwan actually knows the answers to these questions - and maybe not - all I do know is that I can't stop hoping to see her skate again (and this from a huge general skating fan who is enamored with the "Asian Ladies" and a whole bunch of newbies too).

PS - thanks for the thoughts on jump problems MM - I bet you are right regarding just wanting to finish, period.

 

[Kypma]

Several times last season Kimmie Meissner bobbled her opening triple Lutz/triple toe combination, then got hit with the "SEQ" for her solo triple Lutz at the end. I would guess that skaters feel they might just be courting disaster to try to tack on an unplanned combo at the end of an already shaky performance.

Kimmie actually stated somewhere (or maybe it was Peggy Fleming commenting... I can't remember) that the program is in her muscle memory, and starting to change things can get her confused. I know, however, that at least one skater (man in Canada, I just can't remember his name...) trains triple toes at the end of each element so, if needed, he can insert it.

Kypma

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Michelle never had the jump combos to be competitive with today's field. There were tons of reports of her being sighted doing a triple lutz/triple loop combo or some other great combo, but the truth is, 3 toe/3 toe was pretty much it for her in competition.

Even with the 3 toe/3 toe, when was the last time she did them.? I don't recall seeing them in 2003 Worlds which she won with the absence of Irina, an overanxious Sasha, and a high tech at the time, but a so so presentation of Elena.

Joe's Law: A female skater when reaching the age of 20 has all the high tech she can possibly do, however, her presentation can and should go on till she retires.

Joe