From Russia With Love - 2011/12 Season 2

[julieann]

Alexander Smirnov had surgery on his appendix yesterday I doubt they'll be able to go to the European championships. Moskvina said they should know soon. It's a simple surgery but I can't imagine he would be able to lift Yuko so soon. Too bad, I love their programs and S/K aren't even close to being as good.

RIA Novosti
another article

[skatefan]

noooooooo

I was really looking forward to seeing them skate live, I love their programmes this season.


But looking forward to seeing Plushenko

[Finnice]

Alexander Smirnov had surgery on his appendix yesterday I doubt they'll be able to go to the European championships. Moskvina said they should know soon. It's a simple surgery but I can't imagine he would be able to lift Yuko so soon. Too bad, I love their programs and S/K aren't even close to being as good.

Poor Smirnov.

[Nan]

And (going to euros instead of Worlds) he won't have to face Chan and the Japanese men before he is 100% ready.

There is that. I wouldn't risk a loss at Worlds when there is a bigger prize at stake down the road. I think he and Mishin have a plan.

Exactly the "plan" I was talking about.

[julieann]

All he had to do to win was to add a 2loop at the end of one of his combinations, or do a 3flip instead of a 2axel to maximise his points.

That why I said he is now taking the time to prepare properly, not just physically but choreographically.

Yes he has 24 months to prepare for Sochi but if he keeps his "I don't care about the rules" attitude I wouldn't be surprised if he gets beaten again by someone who does his best to maximise points under the rules.

There isn't one top skater who in the same position would have asked the ISU for the same exception and would not have been granted it. People's asses are just chapped because it's Plushenko. They can say "it's just about rules are rules", but no - it's Plushenko.

[poths]

Having watched a gang of RUssian Nats vids, I have a few comments to make

Ladies:

Sotnikova's technique will not hold up against the puberty monster.

Lipnitskaia is basically Jenny Kirk, and we all know how that ended.

Korbeynikova and Anna Shershak are actually the future IMO...
I can see Korbeynikova winning EUropeans.

Men:
Plushenko was God Awful
Loved Gachinski's free, super program and nice to see him push on from last year. WHy the fed are putting him behind Plush, I have no idea.
Also nice to see Voronov back, but PML at the Morozov flail...doesn;t suit him at all. Mind you, he never had much in the way of CH so, I guess laugable CH is better than no CH...(He actually placed 4th on the free at worlds a few years back, which some people seem to forget).

Pairs
Epic....but do not understand at ALL why Gerboltd and ENbert were 4th and not 2nd????

Go skate for Azerbaijan, please.

Dance
Does anyone watch this even anymore?

[Vash01]

Alexander Smirnov had surgery on his appendix yesterday I doubt they'll be able to go to the European championships. Moskvina said they should know soon. It's a simple surgery but I can't imagine he would be able to lift Yuko so soon. Too bad, I love their programs and S/K aren't even close to being as good.

RIA Novosti
another article

That's really too bad. I am sure he will not be able to lift ANY weight for sometime; lifting Yuko would be out of question. Hopefully they will have trained enough by worlds.

This means Stolbova-Klimov will go to Euros! I don't like them at all. I wish it was M&R instead.

[Vash01]

Then why compete at Euros? I agree that his focus is Sochi, and that risking that for 2012 Worlds is silly. But why compete at all this season? Hasn't he already risked his comeback by rushing his return?

He is taking smaller steps, instead of just showing up next season. The Euros will give him early feedback on what he needs to work on next season. Obviously he is not at the top of his game, but he is good enough to compete at the Euro level. So I think it's a smart decision.

[love_skate2011]

Alexander Smirnov had surgery on his appendix yesterday I doubt they'll be able to go to the European championships. Moskvina said they should know soon. It's a simple surgery but I can't imagine he would be able to lift Yuko so soon. Too bad, I love their programs and S/K aren't even close to being as good.

RIA Novosti
another article

No.

so no Euros ?

and I do not like Stolbova-Klimov, I wish they would send
Martiusheva - Rogonov, I'd like to see how they will improve
in the internatonal arena too.

[Marco]

That why I said he is now taking the time to prepare properly, not just physically but choreographically.

In 2010 he competed from Cup of Russia up to the Olympics. That didn't prevent him from narrowly losing the OGM due to ill strategic preparation.

There isn't one top skater who in the same position would have asked the ISU for the same exception and would not have been granted it. People's asses are just chapped because it's Plushenko. They can say "it's just about rules are rules", but no - it's Plushenko.

There isn't one top skater in the same situation who would not have prepared in advance should they intend to compete at Euros. They would have understood the rules and enrolled themselves into a senior B. There was one just 2 weeks before Russian Nationals.

And the bigger picture for Plushenko is he has a pattern for not understanding the rules. He lost one GPF to Sandhu and one Olympic Games to Lysacek because of ignorance in rules. And even though he got what he wanted this time, there is simply no guarantee he will be given a break in competition where it matters.

[julieann]

In 2010 he competed from Cup of Russia up to the Olympics. That didn't prevent him from narrowly losing the OGM due to ill strategic preparation.

You need more than three competitions prior to Vancouver to compete properly. That's a lesson he learned and a mistake he doesn’t intend on repeating.

There isn't one top skater in the same situation who would not have prepared in advance should they intend to compete at Euros. They would have understood the rules and enrolled themselves into a senior B. There was one just 2 weeks before Russian Nationals.

And the bigger picture for Plushenko is he has a pattern for not understanding the rules. He lost one GPF to Sandhu and one Olympic Games to Lysacek because of ignorance in rules. And even though he got what he wanted this time, there is simply no guarantee he will be given a break in competition where it matters.

Really? Not one? What if they were injured right up until their nationals? You seem to forget he was injured. So if he was ok to skate should he have skipped nationals too because he missed a B competition? I have a feeling if it were Kostner, this would be a non-issue.

So he lost to Sandhu/Lysacek, who cares, how many other skaters could have won if they put an element in the last half to get maximum points or did a different jump or a combo? I would have to say 99% of them.

Since 1999 he won 41 gold medals out of 48 competitons, was that a fluke?
Plushenko’s non-gold medals since 1999

4th 2000 Worlds
silver 2001 GPF
silver 2002 Olympics
silver 2002 Campbells FS Classic (?)
silver 2003 GPF
silver 2004 Euros
silver 2010 Olympics

The seven times he didn't win gold - 6 were silver and one 4th place. Two silvers were Olympic Medals! He also didn’t compete for 4 season in between all that either. WOW he must be super rich to pay that many people off for sooooooooooo long.

I don't hear you bitching about Oda's lack of rule readability? Or am I missing those threads?




BTW he paid me to write all that....

[kwanfan1818]

There isn't one top skater who in the same position would have asked the ISU for the same exception and would not have been granted it. People's asses are just chapped because it's Plushenko. They can say "it's just about rules are rules", but no - it's Plushenko.

Speak for yourself. If it had been Rochette, who is one of my all-time favorite Ladies skaters, I would have been equally annoyed, after the absurdity of this year's GP announcement and the substitutions nightmare.

[Marco]

So he lost to Sandhu/Lysacek, who cares

I am sure he didn't. Have you missed him stepping onto the top of the podium during the Vancouver Olympic men's medal ceremony (and got booed)?

I already said up-thread that if he decides to be complacent about rules, he will have to accept the consequences himself (and not whine like he did last time).

I don't hear you bitching about Oda's lack of rule readability? Or am I missing those threads?

I have been bitching about that since 2006 up til recently.

BTW he paid me to write all that....

No wonder he has no money for a real choreographer.

[rfisher]

Too bad about Smirnov. If it's not him, it's Yuka. They can't both seem to be totally healthy at the same time. This does open a door for B/L to medal. Hopefully, they'll both keep their mental focus and take the opportunity.

[ciocio]

I can't believe people are still arguing with Marco about anything related to Plushenko.

[Cherub721]

Since 1999 he won 41 gold medals out of 48 competitons, was that a fluke?

When you put it that way... damn, so impressive.

Plushenko’s non-gold medals since 1999
silver 2003 GPF
silver 2010 Olympics

Those are the only two competitions he lost under CoP... both were due to not properly implementing the rules. In both cases, he could have won with very easy fixes that he was completely capable. As a fan of his, that makes me frustrated and sad. I think it was incredible how he got back into shape, and how hard he worked, giving up all the little luxuries like pasta and red wine, pounded his body... and then lost the gold because of a double loop that he could do in his sleep.

If I were him, I'd hire 100 CoP consultants to check and re-check my programs...

[ciocio]

Those are the only two competitions he lost under CoP... both were due to not properly implementing the rules. In both cases, he could have won with very easy fixes that he was completely capable. As a fan of his, that makes me frustrated and sad. I think it was incredible how he got back into shape, and how hard he worked, giving up all the little luxuries like pasta and red wine, pounded his body... and then lost the gold because of a double loop that he could do in his sleep.

If I were him, I'd hire 100 CoP consultants to check and re-check my programs...

Please, he didn't lose because of a double loop, this is ridiculous, he would have lost anyway with the double loop or without it.

[Vash01]

You need more than three competitions prior to Vancouver to compete properly. That's a lesson he learned and a mistake he doesn’t intend on repeating.



Really? Not one? What if they were injured right up until their nationals? You seem to forget he was injured. So if he was ok to skate should he have skipped nationals too because he missed a B competition? I have a feeling if it were Kostner, this would be a non-issue.

So he lost to Sandhu/Lysacek, who cares, how many other skaters could have won if they put an element in the last half to get maximum points or did a different jump or a combo? I would have to say 99% of them.

Since 1999 he won 41 gold medals out of 48 competitons, was that a fluke?
Plushenko’s non-gold medals since 1999

4th 2000 Worlds
silver 2001 GPF
silver 2002 Olympics
silver 2002 Campbells FS Classic (?)
silver 2003 GPF
silver 2004 Euros
silver 2010 Olympics

The seven times he didn't win gold - 6 were silver and one 4th place. Two silvers were Olympic Medals! He also didn’t compete for 4 season in between all that either. WOW he must be super rich to pay that many people off for sooooooooooo long.

I don't hear you bitching about Oda's lack of rule readability? Or am I missing those threads?




BTW he paid me to write all that....

Great post!

His record alone shows that Plushenko is one of the most decorated skaters ever. I respect him for wanting to come back and working toward it, regardless of what happens in Sochi.

About the GPF loss to Sandhu, we also have to take into account that the COP was a relatively new system, particularly someone that had competed under 6.0 for years. So one lapse is forgiveable. In 2010 he was simply too late getting into the picture; he really needed to come back in the 2009 season. He seems to be correcting that mistake, with Sochi as his goal, as you pointed out in your earlier post.

[Cherub721]

Please, he didn't lose because of a double loop, this is ridiculous, he would have lost anyway with the double loop or without it.

IMO the scores should not have been as close as they were (especially in the SP), and part of that is due to the location of the event and the anti-Plushenko media blitz that occurred prior to the games, but even with all that, mathematically, had he just tweaked the program, he would have eked out the win.

[Kasey]

I don't hear you bitching about Oda's lack of rule readability? Or am I missing those threads?

Uh, yeah, you have missed those threads. Trust me, Oda has been raked over the coals for his ignorance in counting.