Skate Canada

Oh my goodness, we're at the end of the GP series already! It's been a bit stressful for me and full of highs and lows, but it's hard to believe that after this weekend there's only the GPF, then various national comps, then the Olympics!

Anyways, I thought I would start a thread for SC since it begins tomorrow, for discussion and scores and such. Who are you looking forward to seeing?

My girl Akiko is competing, so I'm REALLY hoping she'll win or at least do very well (her LP this year is one of my absolute favorites. I love the way she skates it with such confidence and fire!). Love her!! I'm also looking foward to...

-Dai (did you hear he was briefly detained at customs in Canada? Maybe it was his cool sunglasses I saw in a photo with the article : http://sankei.jp.msn.com/sports/other/091118/oth0911180832000-n1.htm). Anyways, I hope he has more success here than at NHK. His programs are fab this season!

-Joannie: I love her programs and I really can't help but root for Joannie- such a sweetie and a very strong, dominating skater with tons of character and charisma on the ice. I love her style! I have strong feeling that she's going to skate WAY better here than at COC.

-Mirai: I hope she can get it together this time. Her spins are second to none and her basics are to die for. Love her no matter what, but oh, how I would love for her to medal!

And the guy I'm really waiting for: Patrick Chan! I absolutely adore his skating and I've missed him so much this season- Go Patrick!

Wow! There are so many great skaters at this comp it's hard to keep track-I also love Jeremy, Alissa, etc. I hope all the skaters skate well and that we have the best competition of the season this weekend.

ETA: Entries: http://www.isuresults.com/events/fsevent00011095.htm

I'm rooting for both Akiko and Joannie!! With her results at CoC, I think Joannie needs to win this to make the GPF but Akiko could go if she finishes on the podium!! So although I actually prefer Akiko (sorry Joannie, I love you too, but this girl just reaches out to me...), I want Joannie to win and Akiko 2nd with an even better score than at CoC! It would be so awesome if she could break the 120 mark!

As for the men's event, of course, I'm rooting for Dai-chan! I want Patrick to do well too, but whatever the results are here, I still don't think he can hold a candle against the likes of Daisuke Takahashi. He DOES have fantastic SS though.

Skate Canada Ladies SP results:

1 Joannie ROCHETTE CAN 70.00 38.40 31.60 7.85 7.50 8.05 8.00 8.10 0.00 #11
2 Alissa CZISNY USA 63.52 36.60 26.92 7.15 6.05 7.05 6.55 6.85 0.00 #7
3 Mirai NAGASU USA 56.34 32.30 24.04 6.35 5.50 6.25 6.05 5.90 0.00 #3
4 Laura LEPISTÖ FIN 55.74 29.14 26.60 6.95 6.20 6.65 6.75 6.70 0.00 #10
5 Cynthia PHANEUF CAN 55.58 31.10 24.48 6.45 5.40 6.40 6.05 6.30 0.00 #2
6 Amelie LACOSTE CAN 55.10 32.70 22.40 5.95 5.15 5.85 5.50 5.55 0.00 #1
7 Caroline ZHANG USA 54.58 31.58 23.00 6.20 5.20 5.85 5.80 5.70 0.00 #9
8 Akiko SUZUKI JPN 53.10 29.90 23.20 6.40 5.00 6.05 5.90 5.65 0.00 #8
9 Jenna MCCORKELL GBR 47.48 26.92 20.56 5.55 4.50 5.40 5.20 5.05 0.00 #5
10 Sarah HECKEN GER 45.50 25.70 19.80 5.30 4.25 5.35 5.00 4.85 0.00 #6
11 Joshi HELGESSON SWE 40.48 22.08 19.40 5.25 4.25 5.10 4.95 4.70 1.00 #4

Joannie score over 70 points without a 3-3! I hope this finally convinces people that the judges will reward clean skates with great jump technique, fab interpretation, and wonderful basics, no matter what your name is, especially because she scored over 126 for her LP at JO too. If Mao hits, I have no doubt she'll be near 75 or above in the SP, just like at WTT, and over 130 for the LP. Alissa also had an amazing skate and is VERY deservedly in second place.

Akiko... She got REALLY dinged on her flutz, a step out on her flip, and on her PCS. Most people on the other skating boards are going on and on about how she was underscored with PCS, especially because her interpretation is FAR better than any of the ladies at SC, even Joannie (jmho!). Mirai also had low PCS, and she was so much better than the first two Canadian skaters, it wasn't even funny.

Joannie's obviously going to win, but the difference between the other placements are not much, and Akiko at least is a much better LP skater than practically all of the women here. I hope Akiko and Mirai go out and have phenomenal skates tomorrow and get on that podium!

No, your name really counts. Joannie gets 70 because she's Joannie and because this was in Canada, so now we're waiting for 45 points for Virtue Moir and 90 for Chan,yeah

polosatik wrote:

No, your name really counts. Joannie gets 70 because she's Joannie and because this was in Canada, so now we're waiting for 45 points for Virtue Moir and 90 for Chan,yeah

I take it you really don't like Joannie or Chan. Joannie has gotten very high scores in other competitions though an her scores have been steadily increasing through the seasons, and I do think she'll be getting these scores no matter where she goes this year as long as she's clean. I find her basics and jump technique amazing, so I'm fine with her score. It may be a wee bit high (especially with PCS), but others with clean programs and a high level of technique are also getting too high PCS (Plushy, Oda, Yuna, Shen/Zhao, etc). All of them are so wonderful that it doesn't bother me though. I REALLY want to see a clean Mao at Japanese Nationals so I can get a sense of where she would be scored when she's clean this season... so far, we really haven't gotten an idea about that at all because she's had so many major mistakes.

The scoring of the other two Canadian skaters was very though. Their PCS were too high for what they put out there, and I sort of think if they weren't in Canada, they wouldn't have been placed higher than Mirai and Akiko with the skates they had today.

ETA: I also wanted to say that my main point here was not necessarily that a name doesn't matter (it surely does in skating) but that a certain, um, skater is not the ONLY one who is overscored a bit, like some people think.

I agree with polosatik. I mean... I love Joannie, but she did not deserve 70 points for her SP. And I'll kill myself if Patrick gets 90. I can't stand him.



I love Tessa & Scott and I wouldn't mind at all if they got 45!

Liffey wrote:

polosatik wrote:

No, your name really counts. Joannie gets 70 because she's Joannie and because this was in Canada, so now we're waiting for 45 points for Virtue Moir and 90 for Chan,yeah

I take it you really don't like Joannie or Chan.

I really don't care much about Joannie, but yeah I think I don't like her, As for Chan Too many words to describe my feelings and he was lucky not coming to Rostelecom Cup, russian fans hate him.

I agree with polosatik. 31.60???????????? I can't say anything about the technical score, because I didn't see the program, but I saw her skating million times! How she can get 31.60???

Polosatik, what's wrong with Chen?

MikiAndoFan#1 wrote:

I agree with polosatik. I mean... I love Joannie, but she did not deserve 70 points for her SP. And I'll kill myself if Patrick gets 90. I can't stand him.



I love Tessa & Scott and I wouldn't mind at all if they got 45!

I love both Patrick and Dai's skating, so I hope they both skate well, no matter what the scores!

(sometimes I REALLY feel like the only person who really doesn't hate any skaters and I'm happy with whoever does their best. I may prefer some skaters over others, but I don't actively dislike anyone. Everyone else seems to hate some skaters. Am I nuts?? )

BTW, I did hear reports that both Dai and Patrick looked less than stellar though in the practices, as they're both coming back from injuries. Jeremy Abbott also has pink eye! I wonder if someone unexpected (maybe Brezina? Contesti?) will take the lead in the short.

Quote :

I really don't care much about Joannie, but yeah I think I don't like her, As for Chan Too many words to describe my feelings and he was lucky not coming to Rostelecom Cup, russian fans hate him.

Why is that? Does it have something to do with the whole quads hoopla, where Patrick said he could win without one, or that they didn't matter? I thought he said that to Joubert, though. Did he say something to Plushy too? Is that why the Russians hate him? (sorry for the questions- I'm out of the loop a bit on men's skating. )

Since I don't know skaters personally, I usually just like them based on their skating, and I really couldn't care less how they are as people (since people can seem nice and really not be, or seem mean but might not be. Hard to judge when you don't know them personally). I really love Patrick's skating skills, but I agree that his comments at worlds were a bit ridiculous to say the least.

Quote :

I agree with polosatik. 31.60???????????? I can't say anything about the technical score, because I didn't see the program, but I saw her skating million times! How she can get 31.60???

I'm the only one! Although I certainly wouldn't disagree that the PCS are inflated, but the other top skater's PCS in all disciplines are as well, so it doesn't bother me too much.

sofia wrote:

I agree with polosatik. 31.60???????????? I can't say anything about the technical score, because I didn't see the program, but I saw her skating million times! How she can get 31.60???

Polosatik, what's wrong with Chen?

Hard to tell. His skating just make me This guy is genius that everyone talk about? Oh, noooo... Russian fans have a good name for him, I don't think that it would sound right in english , anyway chistabokh ( bokh means god and chista- short ver of word clean) It's irony of course. And his behaviour drives me crazy He's is too big fan of himself.What a nasty guy!
P.S He said a lot of bad things about Plush and also Alexei.

[quote="polosatik"]

sofia wrote:

P.S He said a lot of bad things about Plush and also Alexei.

He said something bad about Alexie?? How did I miss that?! What did he say? I really don't understand how anyone could say something bad about him. He had artistry, the jumps, everything you could want in a skater. That's crazy.

[quote="Liffey"]

polosatik wrote:

sofia wrote:

P.S He said a lot of bad things about Plush and also Alexei.

He said something bad about Alexie?? How did I miss that?! What did he say? I really don't understand how anyone could say something bad about him. He had artistry, the jumps, everything you could want in a skater. That's crazy.

It was like if they were skating now they won't get anywhere, now skaters are much better. Oh , about Plushy chistbokh said a lot of different things First of all Olympic champion can't be former- Chan laughs when asked about Plushenko's memorable gesture during the long program in Moscow, throwing his finger in the air, to show that he was still No..1.

"It wasn't like I didn't practise that day because I was so upset," Chan said.

"It was silly. I think it was disrespectful on his part.

Chan agrees that Plushenko's routines lacked a lot of transitional moves - he sailed from jump to jump without complications in between - but "he could get away with it because he's a former Olympic champion, and he's in Russia and in his own country and he's got judges that really appreciate his skating,"

[quote="polosatik"]

Liffey wrote:

polosatik wrote:

sofia wrote:

P.S He said a lot of bad things about Plush and also Alexei.

He said something bad about Alexie?? How did I miss that?! What did he say? I really don't understand how anyone could say something bad about him. He had artistry, the jumps, everything you could want in a skater. That's crazy.

It was like if they were skating now they won't get anywhere, now skaters are much better. Oh , about Plushy chistbokh said a lot of different things First of all Olympic champion can't be former- Chan laughs when asked about Plushenko's memorable gesture during the long program in Moscow, throwing his finger in the air, to show that he was still No..1.

"It wasn't like I didn't practise that day because I was so upset," Chan said.

"It was silly. I think it was disrespectful on his part.

Chan agrees that Plushenko's routines lacked a lot of transitional moves - he sailed from jump to jump without complications in between - but "he could get away with it because he's a former Olympic champion, and he's in Russia and in his own country and he's got judges that really appreciate his skating,"

Sigh. I thought he learned his lesson after worlds, but obviously not.

I think it's pretty darn obvious he feels threatened by the quad. Why else would he be saying stuff about them? And why on earth would he say Alexie couldn't be successful today? His LP in Salt Lake had WAY more technical difficulty and artistry than almost any of the men today. In fact, one of the biggest probelms with men's skating right now is that 95% of the men really aren't pushing the technical envelope, even though I do enjoy a lot of their skating skills and presentation.

Just a really odd comment. I don't think anyone would agree with what he said, and like I said previously, I think it comes from fear of the quad and those who have mastered it.

Oh well. Honestly, I don't think Plushy is too concerned about him.

I have a feeling maybe all his words just show that he really afraid of our Plushy
I think that if you want to talk like this Patrick, please win a pair of Wc gold medals and a gold or silver medal at Olympics.

polosatik wrote:

I think that if you want to talk like this Patrick, please win a pair of Wc gold medals and a gold or silver medal at Olympics.

That's actually what bothers most about Chan's comments. The first time was before Worlds 09... when all he really had to his name were 2 national titles. It's never a good thing to comment on other skaters, but when it's a little 18 yo nobody commenting on skaters with a LOT LOT more credentials, it's just laughable. I was in love with Patrick's feet last year but his comments at Worlds (on both Alexei and Joubert... who may have been an ass at WC 08, but that wasn't Chan's battle at all) really threw me off. To learn that he also commented on Plushy after all the noise he caused at Worlds... well I'll just say it is exceptionally disapointing. I, for one, do not want a champion who cannot act like one.

My advice to him: grow up...

I sure hope Dai-chan rocks it in the SP!! I actually don't really mind where he ends up in the rankings. I just want him to keep building towards Nationals and feel like he is advancing. Go Dai-chan!!!

Liffey wrote:

I think it's pretty darn obvious he feels threatened by the quad. Why else would he be saying stuff about them? And why on earth would he say Alexie couldn't be successful today? His LP in Salt Lake had WAY more technical difficulty and artistry than almost any of the men today. In fact, one of the biggest probelms with men's skating right now is that 95% of the men really aren't pushing the technical envelope, even though I do enjoy a lot of their skating skills and presentation.

Just a really odd comment. I don't think anyone would agree with what he said, and like I said previously, I think it comes from fear of the quad and those who have mastered it.

(sigh) I had resolved to give Patrick the benefit of the doubt this year, but if he's going to say things like that about Alexei, never mind...

But as to the technical content not advancing much in the last few years, I think there are two major reasons. 1) the new system doesn't reward the quad enough--safer for many of the men to gain points in other ways, like 3-3s. 2) Alexei and Plushy were two very talented skaters who had a very strong rivalry and pushed each other to include the difficulty. As a result, the rest of the field had to try to keep up. When Alexei left, that rivalry was gone, and that combined with the new system has caused the men's jumping content to remain much the same, and even backslide for many of them.

I do think there is more complexity in spins and other parts of the program required by the new system, and maybe that's what Patrick meant. But I have watched Alexei's olympic LP recently and I must say that I think it stands up very well--he was magnificent!

Liffey wrote:

Oh well. Honestly, I don't think Plushy is too concerned about him.

I very much doubt that he is.

Anyway, I hope Daisuke does well here, I really like his LP this year.

Well, good news for everyone in this thread: Dai was fab and Chan bombed! Jeremy Abbott is currently in first with a wonderful skate- he looked great tonight!

The biggest suprise was Denis Ten- he was amazing! His jumps and skating skills are really nice, and he's in third place. Isn't he coached (or partially coached) by TAT?

ETA: I guess TAT is only his choreographer.

Results:

1 Jeremy ABBOTT USA
79.00 1
2 Daisuke TAKAHASHI JPN
76.30 2
3 Denis TEN KAZ
75.45 3
4 Alban PREAUBERT FRA
72.30 4
5 Michal BREZINA CZE
71.92 5
6 Patrick CHAN CAN
68.64 6
7 Samuel CONTESTI ITA
67.30 7
8 Armin MAHBANOOZADEH USA
65.30 8
9 Joey RUSSELL CAN
61.82 9
10 Stephen CARRIERE USA
59.40 10
11 Kevin VAN DER PERREN BEL
58.86 11
12 Jeremy TEN CAN
45.14 12

And Dennis and Jeremy come back with a vengeance. I only knew it was a matter of time before Dennis's jumps kicked back in hard.

Wow, that's great for Jeremy! I always like to see him have a good skate.

I have only managed to catch this starting from Dai's ending pose. But from the twitter updates I take it he skated great. But Patrick with his failed 3A and another mistake still got the highest PCS. Which Tango do you think is better?

That said, I'm glad for the Top 3 after the men's SP. Jeremy, Dai and Denis. I hope they'll be even better tomorrow. Gotta wait for Dai and Denis' vids in YT soon...

I'm happy to see Denis's clean SP!!!!!!!!!! He made the audience happy!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWtAM0n77cU

[quote="polosatik"]

Liffey wrote:

polosatik wrote:

sofia wrote:

P.S He said a lot of bad things about Plush and also Alexei.

He said something bad about Alexie?? How did I miss that?! What did he say? I really don't understand how anyone could say something bad about him. He had artistry, the jumps, everything you could want in a skater. That's crazy.

It was like if they were skating now they won't get anywhere, now skaters are much better. Oh , about Plushy chistbokh said a lot of different things First of all Olympic champion can't be former- Chan laughs when asked about Plushenko's memorable gesture during the long program in Moscow, throwing his finger in the air, to show that he was still No..1.

"It wasn't like I didn't practise that day because I was so upset," Chan said.

"It was silly. I think it was disrespectful on his part.

Chan agrees that Plushenko's routines lacked a lot of transitional moves - he sailed from jump to jump without complications in between - but "he could get away with it because he's a former Olympic champion, and he's in Russia and in his own country and he's got judges that really appreciate his skating,"

Polosatik, where did you read this? I'm sorry because I've never read this anywhere and the only thing I've heard him say this year is that he has learn about the Joubert thing last year and that he has learn to deal with the medias and what is good to tell and not to tell...

Mmm..also...Am i the only one disappointed about Mirai scores??! I thought she deserved much higher scores, she skated brilliantly! Congrats to Joannie and Alissa

coconut wrote:

I'm happy to see Denis's clean SP!!!!!!!!!! He made the audience happy!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWtAM0n77cU

Awww... watching that again, he's so cute!! Isn't he only 16 years old? Just wait until he grows up! Such a bright future!

bibi wrote:

Mmm..also...Am i the only one disappointed about Mirai scores??! I thought she deserved much higher scores, she skated brilliantly! Congrats to Joannie and Alissa

Oh no, you're not the only one. On the last page, I lamented her low scores. Not only did the jumps look rotated, but she deserved a WAY higher PCS than she was given. I really hope she'll get the PCS she deserves one of the these days.