HOW does a skater normally prepare for postponed championships?

[olympic]

I was thinking about the situation with 2011 Worlds being cancelled 1 week before its beginning.

What would skaters normally do to 'recalibrate' themselves to peak for a big event that was postponed at the last minute??

Do they take a week off to 'cool down'? Do they practice more lightly? A lot of skaters were probably hitting their peak at the moment it was cancelled.

Can skaters keep up their top form until late April or May?

Are their greater risks of injury from training too hard for too long?

Thanks

[gkelly]

I don't think "normally" and "postponed championships" belong in the same sentence.

It's so rare for championships to be postponed that there's no "normal" about it.

[miki88]

I think it may affect some skaters' training, because they were moving toward one deadline, but now it has changed. The buildup tension may have been somewhat relaxed after hearing Worlds is postponed. I'm sure the skaters feel a certain uneasiness until a new date is set.

[briancoogaert]

That's right, I don't think any skater really know what to do in such case.
It is very difficult to prepare mentally and physically when you don't know when will be your competition. I guess they train as usual, but not too much because they don't want to be tired too early !

[Sylvia]

Originally posted in the "Skaters Care" benefit show thread in GSD but also relevant here:

The main thrust of the blog [PJ Kwong's] is about how some of the coaches and skaters are handling this unexpected delay.

Read the full item here: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/blogs/pjkwo...t-routine.html

[essence_of_soy]

Usually, it is a case of a skater assigned the role of alternate being called up at the last minute to replace another athlete who has withdrawn.

Case in point, Alissa Czisny replacing skaters not once, but twice, at Skate American 2005 and Skate Canada the following weekend.

She won medals (silver at SA and gold at SC) in both events.

[julieann]

I'm not sure too much would have changed, many of the skaters said they wouldn't leave for Japan until the 17th or later so I'm assuming the training was the same until that time. What they do for the next 4 weeks is in question. I guess some will do shows, some will still train the normal schedule and some might take it easy. I don't think 4 weeks is enough to derail much. Not like an October worlds would have done.

[Aussie Willy]

How often is a championship postponed? It is not normal.

[Aceon6]

This isn't normal and I doubt any of the skaters or coaches had thought about it. The last time anything of this significance disrupted skating schedules was in 2001, and it only impacted the first Junior Grand Prix event (Phoenix) which was cancelled, not postponed.

One of the biggest factors will be diet. Many skaters who feel they need to work towards a specific competition weight in order to perform at their best. They would have adjusted their diets up or down and should have been within a pound or two last weekend just as their training tapered off. Now, they need to resume heavy training, so that means another adjustment.

eta, I also see an adjustment for the male pair skaters and many male dancers, as some may choose to resume weight training.

[GarrAarghHrumph]

These skaters would have been training so they could peak for Worlds. As part of that, they'd have "tapered down" during the last two weeks before the event. They train less, and differently. So when the Tsunami and quake happened, skaters were in that "taper down" mode. They'd most likely have brought their training back up to a more intense level again, but since they didn't exactly know when Worlds would be held, their training methods would have been messed up.

The "peak" period tends to be the time when injury is most likely, and normally, you only try to peak for a short period of time - for the event - as having to try to maintain your peak for a longer period of time risks injury and something called "overtraining syndrome", where your energy drops, you experience pain, you lose your ability to perform your sport well, and you risk illness. There are ways to prevent overtraining syndrome, but they all involve breaking away from training to peak for an event.

So the coaches and athletes have had to walk a fine line, here. They want to maintain their performance, but at the same time, there are risks to doing so. And since they did not know the dates for Worlds, it was hard for them to train appropriately.

[RunnersHigh]

One more month to train hard for the season's most important competition must not be easy one to any skater.

[aliceanne]

I guess one way to look at it is that they are all in the same boat. Hopefully shows etc. will cut them some slack to train as competing at Worlds enhances their marquee value.

[Aceon6]

I guess one way to look at it is that they are all in the same boat. Hopefully shows etc. will cut them some slack to train as competing at Worlds enhances their marquee value.

I would expect the competitors to do far fewer shows - most will want to stay at their training facilities and not risk injury. Those who want to do complete versions of their programs will probably do so close to home.