Ksenia Makarova cheer thread!

[Katarzyna]

I’ve seen a lot of not very supportive comments regarding her skating recently, but I really like Ksenia Makarova. I think it was very brave to fight for being on the World team in 2012 against all the upcoming youngsters in Russia and I found it very gutsy of her to try to add a triple Lutz to her LP just before worlds. Hope it gets more consistent next season with a bit more time to practice it!

If she is on form, she has a lovely flow on the ice, nice spins, is very elegant and she skates well to the music (and to different types of music). I loved her Short Programme this year and the way she portrayed the music there:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylvYD...eature=related

Here is another programme of her that I enjoyed to watch:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzZwUdj9O_M

I wish her well for next season – Go Ksenia!

[martyross]

i like her too. she has a regal style and a stunning presence. cold femininity. her short program at worlds was the only one that captured my full attention and moved me. and i did enjoy the marylin program, ok, it may be not a masterpiece but the character suited her. i hope she'll have good results going forward although it'll get insanely competitive. i'm rooting for her and Polina Shelepen :-D

[Cherub721]

Love her! She's had my favorite ladies SP for two seasons in a row, and I love the character pieces as well. She adds those little touches like blowing a kiss during her spiral sequence that make her a performer and not just someone doing moves for points.

Tracy Wilson had a good comment about her Worlds LP... that even when she falls, she never goes into herself, and always continues selling the audience. Real showmanship!

I happened to be a big fan of her parents so I used to root for her even before I had seen her skating, but luckily it turns out I like her skating very much.

[eurodance2001]

Love her! She's had my favorite ladies SP for two seasons in a row, and I love the character pieces as well. She adds those little touches like blowing a kiss during her spiral sequence that make her a performer and not just someone doing moves for points.

Tracy Wilson had a good comment about her Worlds LP... that even when she falls, she never goes into herself, and always continues selling the audience. Real showmanship!
I happened to be a big fan of her parents so I used to root for her even before I had seen her skating, but luckily it turns out I like her skating very much.

What you said above which I bolded AND the fact that she needs better programs.. I'm shocked the Russian Federation didnt demand she get a new LP.. I mean they demanded a test skate, why not an actual decent program? Perhaps they let her skate this LP to sabotage her for the future since they are looking at their younger ones... I don't know.. Ksenia is a beauty, regal quality s was mentioned above and the potential to just hypnotize.. If she just had the right packaging!!

[judgejudy27]

I thought her short program at Worlds was undermarked. She skated cleanly with the exact same jumps as Leonova and Murakami who also skated cleanly. Yet she scored 4-6 points lower. It looks like she didnt have any backing from the fed. at this point. I enjoy watching her, I almost wish she would change to another country citizenship since I dont think we will see her much or any of her skating anymore otherwise.

[BittyBug]

Another Makarova fan here. I love her presence on the ice and especially her spins. She obviously struggled with her jumps this season, but I hope she can work through her jump issues (growth spurt? technique change?) and make a strong comeback next season.

[essence_of_soy]

Ksenia was forced to do a test skate to earn a spot on the World Team, and skated an excellent short in Nice.

In spite of a shaky free, she hung in there and helped earn the Russian Federation three places for Worlds in 2013. Well done!

[Jenna]

I do enjoy her. She's lovely when she's on. However, the FS she was given this year was most unfortunate. Ksenia is wayyyy above that crap.

[VarBar]

i like her too. she has a regal style and a stunning presence. cold femininity. her short program at worlds was the only one that captured my full attention and moved me. and i did enjoy the marylin program, ok, it may be not a masterpiece but the character suited her. i hope she'll have good results going forward although it'll get insanely competitive. i'm rooting for her and Polina Shelepen :-D

I agree with you about Makarova's cold femininity but cold femininity is never what comes to my mind when I think of Marilyn Monroe. Monroe was a very sensual woman, so the character didn't suit Makarova a bit IMO. But I liked her short program.

[blue_idealist]

I loved her short program, but her long program was.. underwhelming. I actually didn't mind the material, but too many splats at the Worlds. Once again though, LOVED LOVED LOVED her SP at Worlds, one of the best in the competition. I actually prefer Leonova but Makarova's pretty good, too.

[PashaFan]

Thank you for starting this thread. I too love Makarova & am tired at looking at the negative comments about her. Even when the subject is not about her somebody always posts something negative to say.
I LOVED her SP this season. The music really suited her.
I applaud her for trying something different in the free skate. So many people have trashed it yet I have really enjoyed watching a girl skate to the music instead of through the music.
I hope she continues. I would rather watch her than the younger jumping-machines who can't do any choreography yet.
Good luck Ksenia

[Cherub721]

I applaud her for trying something different in the free skate. So many people have trashed it yet I have really enjoyed watching a girl skate to the music instead of through the music.

i would have changed the middle part of the music and moved the MGM theme to the end. I wish she would've made those simple changes during the season. Other than that, it's an excellent program and beautifully costumed. Great concept.

[fan5]

^Her costume at the Russian championship SP was aqua with sparkles, the program beginning with her setting boundaries? and then going off and skating like a cascading mountain stream - just beautiful. At Worlds she wore sky blue and skated like the wind. Yeah, I liked it, the LP almost as much. I thought it was sort of a biography of Monroe's life beginning with her coming on the scene and giving so much of herself, having some success, then the big time, fame and fortune then the night life leading to her untimely death, Ksenia putting everything into the performance, maybe at the expense of her jumps.

[Katarzyna]

I'm shocked the Russian Federation didnt demand she get a new LP.. I mean they demanded a test skate, why not an actual decent program? Perhaps they let her skate this LP to sabotage her for the future since they are looking at their younger ones... I don't know.. Ksenia is a beauty, regal quality s was mentioned above and the potential to just hypnotize.. If she just had the right packaging!!

Well, I too feel that Russian Fed doesn’t really support her. Probably only up to a level when they can use her as a mean to keep spots for the young wondergirls to skate in Sochi. Forcing her to do a test skate was just proof of it. Ok, she didn’t have a great start into the season, but she just had changed coaches and needed to adapt. She earned her spot at Russian Nationals and placed ahead of Alena Leonova at Europeans. But then due to that fact I like her even more. It’s certainly easier to skate well if you have all possible backing from your Fed, from the judges, etc.

About the Marilyn LP – it certainly left things to be desired (e.g. better music cut). However, Ksenia tried to do something new instead of opting for a “safe” programme to overused music like (insert Carmen, Bolero, ….).

I enjoy watching her, I almost wish she would change to another country citizenship since I dont think we will see her much or any of her skating anymore otherwise.

I’d be happy if she could skate for Austria. She’d easily make a trip to Worlds every year!

[Katarzyna]

I happened to be a big fan of her parents so I used to root for her even before I had seen her skating, but luckily it turns out I like her skating very much.

Need to add that I too very much liked their parents. One of the first pair skaters I remember from childhood beside G&G. They once had an LP to Russian Folk music and it was almost like an ice dance programme.

[fan5]

Well, I too feel that Russian Fed doesn’t really support her. Probably only up to a level when they can use her as a mean to keep spots for the young wondergirls to skate in Sochi. Forcing her to do a test skate was just proof of it. Ok, she didn’t have a great start into the season, but she just had changed coaches and needed to adapt. She earned her spot at Russian Nationals and placed ahead of Alena Leonova at Europeans. But then due to that fact I like her even more. It’s certainly easier to skate well if you have all possible backing from your Fed, from the judges, etc.

About the Marilyn LP – it certainly left things to be desired (e.g. better music cut). However, Ksenia tried to do something new instead of opting for a “safe” programme to overused music like (insert Carmen, Bolero, ….).



I’d be happy if she could skate for Austria. She’d easily make a trip to Worlds every year!

"placed ahead of Alena Leonova at Europeans" -- good! Leonova scares me a little after that pirate finale!

I hope the Russian Fed appreciates what they've got in Makarova. The fans there actually might have been real fond of both Ksenia's SP and LP this year. When I was there, well let's just say back when St. Petersburg was called Leningrad , they were into American blue jeans and rock & roll, and Marilyn Monroe was a big story. I doubt that's changed so much. Ksenia, born in St. Petersburg, moving to the US when 8 years old and now back there living and delivering these programs is probably received better there than anywhere else -- and they really liked it in Nice, clapping along to the beat starting with the fast second melody pretty much till the end.

Worlds LP Nice --
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gasv1...nofeather=True

LOVE the CNOPT 2 commentator! So polite. And the skyline and sunsets in St. Petersburg are gorgeous. Maybe she'll stay a while.

[Vash01]

I can't say I am a Makarova fan, but I don't hate her the way some posters here seem to. She is just 18 (19?), and still has the time to improve in many areas. Last year I liked her better than I did this year, but that's no reason for her to throw in the towel. I wish her well, and I hope she has a great future in figure skating.

[PashaFan]

The hate directed towards some skaters really shocks me. If you don't like a skater don't watch them.
There are some skaters that just don't do it for me yet I can still understand how hard they train & the difficult moves they make. I would not dream of trashing them & everything about them.
This thread is a good thing as now I can see how many people do like Ksenia & how she skates. I've liked her since the first time I saw her. I really hope she hangs in there & improves.
Maria Butyrskaya should talk to her. There is a woman who had many critics yet stayed strong & was a lady competing against girls.

[paskatefan]

The hate directed towards some skaters really shocks me. If you don't like a skater don't watch them.
There are some skaters that just don't do it for me yet I can still understand how hard they train & the difficult moves they make. I would not dream of trashing them & everything about them.
This thread is a good thing as now I can see how many people do like Ksenia & how she skates. I've liked her since the first time I saw her. I really hope she hangs in there & improves.
Maria Butyrskaya should talk to her. There is a woman who had many critics yet stayed strong & was a lady competing against girls.

I've enjoyed Ksenia ever since I heard of her through Johnny.

[Vash01]

The hate directed towards some skaters really shocks me. If you don't like a skater don't watch them.
There are some skaters that just don't do it for me yet I can still understand how hard they train & the difficult moves they make. I would not dream of trashing them & everything about them.
This thread is a good thing as now I can see how many people do like Ksenia & how she skates. I've liked her since the first time I saw her. I really hope she hangs in there & improves.
Maria Butyrskaya should talk to her. There is a woman who had many critics yet stayed strong & was a lady competing against girls.

Well said.