1984 OLY Ladies Long Program

[longingfornia]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLS0nUK_syA
Katarina Witt
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k4cBjtJ2WI
Rosalynn Sumners
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDw0_ZpjU8Q
Kira Ivanova
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLAEGPYjEqM
Tiffany Chin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h17MwRSUjyQ
Anna Kondrashova
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1MBbng2Mzj8
Elaine Zayak

My Thoughts after watching these programs is that Ros's long is over marked. I do agree with Kat winning overall though.

Thoughts

[olympic]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLS0nUK_syA
Katarina Witt
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k4cBjtJ2WI
Rosalynn Sumners
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDw0_ZpjU8Q
Kira Ivanova
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLAEGPYjEqM
Tiffany Chin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h17MwRSUjyQ
Anna Kondrashova
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1MBbng2Mzj8
Elaine Zayak

My Thoughts after watching these programs is that Ros's long is over marked. I do agree with Kat winning overall though.

Thoughts

I started a thread in regards to the '84 Oly SP about a year ago. I seem to remember the SPs but not the LPs.

But I do remember the competition being rather uninspired overall

Witt deserved the win that day. Sumners had the best basics, but popped 3 or 4 jumps which kept her in contention but definitely off the top of the podium

Tiffany Chin and Elaine Zayak were the most inspiring. I recall thinking Elaine was badly undermarked in the SP and somewhat undermarked in the LP. Tiffany was great but for a step-out on the 3flip.

Ivanova's program was all over the map: occassionally showcased some good jumping ability, but was otherwise snoozeworthy.

[judgejudy27]

It is funny how Ivanova ended her program. It basically summed up the overall program- lifeless, blah, and like she didnt really give a darn.

[olympic]

It is funny how Ivanova ended her program. It basically summed up the overall program- lifeless, blah, and like she didnt really give a darn.

I always thought the same thing, but I've excused those lifeless I-don't-give-a-darn performances after reading how horribly she was treated by the Soviet Fed: [keeping her and her coach apart so they wouldn't defect; punished and not allowed on the team for 2 years; general criticism that the Soviet ladies weren't keeping up with the US and GDR ladies]. Perhaps that '84 Olympic bronze medal helped her spiritually for a while at least ....

But, yes, if Tiffany and Elaine had better figures, one of them [probably Tiffany] would've snagged the bronze instead. And we discussed in another thread the whopping no. of top ladies who may have made the comp interesting but retired in this Quad before Sarajevo -or simply sat out/forced to sit out Sarajevo -[Biellmann who was before her time; Kristofics-Binder and her great figures; Cottrill and her strong figures and a 3loop in the LP; Wegelius; de Vries; Wainman; teeny bopper Ito, etc.]

[robinhood]

I always thought the same thing, but I've excused those lifeless I-don't-give-a-darn performances after reading how horribly she was treated by the Soviet Fed: [keeping her and her coach apart so they wouldn't defect; punished and not allowed on the team for 2 years; general criticism that the Soviet ladies weren't keeping up with the US and GDR ladies]. Perhaps that '84 Olympic bronze medal helped her spiritually for a while at least ....

Could u tell more about this? It was quite interesting the skating world in that very political era

[olympic]

Could u tell more about this? It was quite interesting the skating world in that very political era

Here's her Wiki entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kira_Ivanova
It will give you a good synopsis.

[Loves_Shizuka]

^Ivanova's life sounds really tragic.

[briancoogaert]

ITA about Ros overmarked.
I was really disappointed the first time I watched this program (in 1994, during a special TV show for Katarina Witt).

[Taso]

Here's her Wiki entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kira_Ivanova
It will give you a good synopsis.

That's only the surface of it. IIRC she was raised by her grandmother (I have no idea what happened to her parents) and her twin sister had committed suicide

[olympic]

ITA about Ros overmarked.
I was really disappointed the first time I watched this program (in 1994, during a special TV show for Katarina Witt).

Were you disappointed in Witt's or Roz's '84 performance? Or both?

[Aussie Willy]

I thought Zayak was great.

I always felt quite sad for Ivanova. She never looked very happy. But I found her a very interesting skater.

I seem to remember reading something about one of the Russian coaches being a bit of sleezebag and trying it on with the girls. I think it was in Gordeeva's book and it might have had something to do with Kondrashova.

[essence_of_soy]

I thought Zayak was great.

I always felt quite sad for Ivanova. She never looked very happy. But I found her a very interesting skater.

I seem to remember reading something about one of the Russian coaches being a bit of sleezebag and trying it on with the girls. I think it was in Gordeeva's book and it might have had something to do with Kondrashova.

My memory is a bit fuzzy, but I think Katia mentioned in her book, My Sergei, that Stan Zhuk used to beat Anna up.

[duane]

Wow, I've never seen these performances! Zayak was great!!

[reese]

My memory is a bit fuzzy, but I think Katia mentioned in her book, My Sergei, that Stan Zhuk used to beat Anna up.

In her book Katia says that she saw him hit Anna only once. He was definitely an alcoholic sleaze tho.

[Loves_Shizuka]

^Once is enough. Is it Kondrashova who coaches Glebova?

[Taso]

^Once is enough. Is it Kondrashova who coaches Glebova?

Yes it is

[Coco]

IIRC, she also mentions Zhuk trying to sleep with a young Russian skater in Calgary.

I think her comment was that she was aware she was "lucky" because she was too young to be hassled in that way.

[reese]

I think her comment was that she was aware she was "lucky" because she was too young to be hassled in that way.

Yeah, I think that was her point. That she was lucky because she was just barely too young for him to bother her in that way. I agree that once is more than enough re: Anna. I have no doubt that it happened more than once, but my point was that Katia mentioned that she only saw him hit Anna once. She says she went to get Sergei immediately, but that Zhuk was gone by the time they got back.

[MR-FAN]

Who placed ahead of the other in the LP, Ivanova or Kondrashova?

[judgejudy27]

In Sarajevo Ivanova placed higher than Kondrashova in both the SP and LP. Had Anna placed higher in both she actually would have beaten Ivanova since she was close to her after figures.